It was 50 years ago Dianne and I met country music star Mel Tillis at a gala celebration in Weston, the 200th Anniversary of the USA. Much of the celebration was delivered by the Weston Fire Department, me being a member.

We bumped into Mel sitting under a shady tent, and Dianne wanted to met him.

Gracious would be a word describing Mel, who made mention that Dianne had a southern drawl, mentioning the word hillbilly, which led to a discussion of the famous publication, Jim Comstock's West Virginia Hillbilly.

Mel said he had been reading the Hillbilly for years and always wanted to go to Richwood.

I mentioned I had met Comstock a number of times and he was undoubtedly one of the best writers ever to spring from the Mountain State.

Dianne did most of the chatting, and I can't remember most of the conversation.

Yes, Mel did stutter, but he made it part of his life's persona, but while singing a tune - he never missed a beat.

After a long career, he always said he had an angel sitting on his shoulder.

He died in 2017 after 85 years on the planet.