Buddy Emmons and Willie Nelson create new tune

Al Gershen · Post by **Al Gershen** » 31 Jan 2003 12:01 pm

Hi SGF:

Here a portion from the Country Music Classics mailing list I receive weekly from Doug Davis at the email address:

Classics@countrymusicclassics.com

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STORY BEHIND THE SONG
==========================================

A song that became part of Ray Price’s 1962 “Night Life” album and is also
included in Willie Nelson’s new “Crazy: The Demo Sessions” on Sugar Hill
Records, began with an encounter with an over friendly drunk in a Nashville,
Tennessee bar.

Willie Nelson and steel guitar great Buddy Emmons were together in the bar
and the situation became a case of “inverted mistaken identity.” The drunk
closed in on Willie and Buddy and began getting closer and closer.

Buddy thought Willie knew the overly friendly drunk fellow and Willie
thought Buddy knew him!

Finally Buddy asked the drunk, “Are you sure about where you want to be?”
And the drunk replied “Yeah.”

Emmons repeated the question, “Are You Sure?”

Buddy says that Willie looked at him and said, “Hey, there’s a title for a
song. I’ll write it and give you half of it.”

Emmons told Nelson that wasn’t necessary and even tried to talk Willie out
of splitting the song with him but Willie insisted—saying, “an idea is as
good as a song.”

According to Buddy, “That’s just the kind of person Willie Nelson is!”

Willie did write “Are You Sure” and did share the song with Buddy Emmons.

The song was recorded by Ray Price and is included in his 1962 “Night Life”
album.

It’s also a track in Willie Nelson’s “Crazy: The Demo Sessions” album on
Sugar Hill Records.

The album contains some of the early Willie Nelson works recorded for Pamper
Music-which was owned by Ray Price and Hal Smith.

The recordings were found in 1994 on a large unmarked ¼ inch reel of tape
labeled “Pamper Demos” in the vault of Sony/ATV/Tree in Nashville,
Tennessee.

The Pamper Music song catalog was sold to Tree International in 1969 and
Sony Music bought Tree in 1989.

The original recordings were not intended for release to the public-but were
intended for use as “demo recordings,” to pitch new songs to recording
artists and record producers.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Information for this article came from liner notes furnished by producer
Steve Fishell.

“Crazy: The Demo Sessions” is on Sugar Hill Records and will be available in
stores February 11th.

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I hope that you find this interesting. The mailing list is available at no charge.

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Regards,
Al Gershen
Grants Pass, Oregon. USA
Fender 1000 (1956),
Fender PS 210 (1971) &
Gibson Electraharp EH-820 (1960)
Al's Photographs and "Photos of the Day" at http://www.alsphotographs.com

nick allen · Post by **nick allen** » 3 Feb 2003 12:13 am

The song is also on the Offenders Reunion album, sung by Johnny Bush if I remember right.
And the story of its writing was also told by Buddy Emmons a few years ago - where else?

- but on the Steel Guitar Forum!
Nick

Smiley Roberts · Post by **Smiley Roberts** » 3 Feb 2003 11:54 am

.....however,if you will check the album,(as I did) Buddy's name does NOT appear on it,as co-writer!
?????????????

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<pre> ~ ~
©¿© It don't mean a thang,
mm if it ain't got that twang.
www.ntsga.com</pre>

Steve Spitz · Post by **Steve Spitz** » 3 Feb 2003 6:11 pm

My band "the Uptown Plowboys" play that tune, and we allways tell the audience that story. They like the tune, and so do I.

Fish · Post by **Fish** » 4 Feb 2003 8:26 pm

".....however,if you will check the album,(as I did) Buddy's name does NOT appear on it,as co-writer!
?????????????" --- Smiley Roberts

Smiley, good research!
You're absolutely correct. First pressings of Ray Price's "Night Life" album incorrectly listed only Willie Nelson as the author of "Are You Sure," but subsequent pressings were updated to reflect both Willie and Buddy Emmons as co-writers. The correct authorship is listed as Nelson/Emmons at bmi.com, which is the definitive source for this sort of question.

I guess this means that your copy of "Night Life" is collectible!

----Steve Fishell

Steve Hinson · Post by **Steve Hinson** » 5 Feb 2003 4:09 am

Hello,Steve Fishell...

Smiley Roberts · Post by **Smiley Roberts** » 5 Feb 2003 8:44 am

Hey "Fish"
One more bit of "trivia" on the same album.
Willie Nelson is NOT listed as writer of "Night Life",either. Four names appear,none his!

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<pre> ~ ~
©¿© It don't mean a thang,
mm if it ain't got that twang.
www.ntsga.com</pre>

nick allen · Post by **nick allen** » 5 Feb 2003 8:51 am

Wasn't that one of the songs, along with "Family Bible", that he sold outright, when he wasn't quite

as successful as he is now? (I think maybe there was a third, but I forget which, for the moment...)
Nick
P.S. also very happy to discover that "Fish" is Steve Fishell - a name, along with Greg Leisz, that crops up frequently on some of my favorite records...[This message was edited by nick allen on 05 February 2003 at 08:53 AM.]

Fish · Post by **Fish** » 5 Feb 2003 9:57 am

Hi Smiley (and Steve!),

Willie sold the rights to "Night Life" in 1959 to a fellow in Houston named Paul Buskirk who ran a music school where Willie taught guitar lessons. In fact, there were two other investors who bought the song with Buskirk. Later on, the rights were sold in part to Pappy Daily's Glad Music in Houston. As far as the name "M. Mathews" on the liner copy on Ray Price's album, that's a mystery to me. It's interesting that only the names Breeland and Buskirk are mentioned along with Willie Nelson at bmi.com.

Incidentally, Willie says he has no regrets about selling the song for that amount because at the time he and his family desperately needed the money.

Fish · Post by **Fish** » 5 Feb 2003 10:00 am

Nick---Sorry, I didn't see your post. Thank you for the nice compliment.
sf

Ray Jenkins · Post by **Ray Jenkins** » 5 Feb 2003 11:43 am

I think all the later cuts on Night Life are credited to Willie,Mr.Buskirk and Mr. Breeland gave the song back to Willie.
Ray

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Steeling is still legal in Arizona