Take A Letter Maria

Tom Ward · Post by **Tom Ward** » 7 Feb 2000 11:55 am

Anyone know where I can obtain a recording of this song? And who was the original artist? Thanks in advance. Tom

Patrick Smith · Post by **Patrick Smith** » 7 Feb 2000 12:33 pm

Tom, I'm not sure where you can get that tune but if memory serves, it was "Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose" that did the original. I may be mistaken but that name popped up immediately.

Regis, that is my final answer!....*L*

PMS

Post by **Brad Bechtel** » 7 Feb 2000 12:41 pm

<H1>WRONG!</H1>
The song was written by R.B. Greaves; its most famous version was by B.J. Thomas. The song is available on many different 70's compilations, and on the soundtrack to the movie "Priscilla Queen of the Desert".

Patrick Smith · Post by **Patrick Smith** » 7 Feb 2000 12:44 pm

Wow! Missed that one didn't I?...*L* And I didn't even make it to the $1,000 mark!

P. "the wrong M" S.

Jerry Hayes · Post by **Jerry Hayes** » 7 Feb 2000 4:13 pm

Hey Brad,
"WRONG"........The most famous version was by it's author R.B. Greaves. I don't think BJ Thomas ever released it as a single. The hit version was by the author. He performed it on Midnight Special, American Bandstand, and other venues where BJ didn't. I think it was only maybe an album cut for him.

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Have a good one! JH U-12

BobG · Post by **BobG** » 7 Feb 2000 4:35 pm

I bet I have a copy of the least famous version. The New Riders of the Purple Sage featuring Buddy Cage on steel. Never released but still a great bootleg copy

Janice Brooks · Post by **Janice Brooks** » 7 Feb 2000 5:42 pm

So are there any opinions on the current version by Doug Stone.

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Patrick Ickes · Post by **Patrick Ickes** » 7 Feb 2000 6:23 pm

Hi Janice,
How 'bout huurlsville!
To quote Dale Watson's Nashville Rash Song,
"Rock-n-Roll hits from the 70's,
Are country hits today"

70's pop/rock was bad enough the first time when I was a kid. It's way worse now that I'm an adult...cronologically of course!

Sorry if my vomit got onto anyone's boots,
Pat

Ken Lang · Post by **Ken Lang** » 7 Feb 2000 6:56 pm

The song is in rotation on our company 75 slot cd player which goes out to the shop, the offices and to people on hold. I'm sure it's on a compilation. I'll try to check it out and post it tommorrow night.
Ken

Science and the bible:
The bible says there are 10 dimensions, of which 4 are knowable and the rest are not.

Science has discovered there are indeed 10 dimensions: Length, height and depth with time being the forth dimension (see Albert E.) The other 6 are curled within 10x -35 centemeters. The farther you dig, the more science supports the Bible. (sorry) We could go on.......

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 7 Feb 2000 10:12 pm

Actually-The NRPS version DID get released on one of their later albums, it may have been on Mighty Time-The studio version was a little thin, but live it was one of the bands GREAT Rave Ups. The jam on that used to go on for about 4 minutes and it was all Cage going nuts-pulled the crowd to it's feet every time.
I still get that oen going thru my head every once in a while. Makes the original seem a little tame.

John

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Better Late than Never!
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Jerry Hedge · Post by **Jerry Hedge** » 7 Feb 2000 10:31 pm

If my memory serves me correctly it was B.W. Stevenson.

Kenny Davis · Post by **Kenny Davis** » 7 Feb 2000 11:03 pm

A protege' of Conway Twitty named Anthony Armstrong Jones (Ronnie Jones) from Oklahoma City covered that song in the late 60's. It was a "country" version. He also had a release of Proud Mary. If I'm not mistaken, all of his recordings were done in Nashville, and Lloyd Green played steel on them. He got a lot of airplay in this part of the country, and used to open for Conway. Unfortunately, he passed away a few years ago. His sister used to be in our band, Mountain Smoke in the late '70's.

Jackie Toney · Post by **Jackie Toney** » 7 Feb 2000 11:37 pm

I'm moving this thread to Country Music.

Jackie

Jerry Hayes · Post by **Jerry Hayes** » 8 Feb 2000 6:17 am

Hey Jerry Hedge,
B.W. Stevenson didn't do this song. His was the tune "My Maria" which Brooks and Dunn brought back a couple of years ago!

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Have a good one! JH U-12

Patrick Smith · Post by **Patrick Smith** » 8 Feb 2000 7:30 am

Ok, so who did "My conscience feels guilty, and sometimes I talk in my sleep?"...ha! Can't just look this one up on the internet, gotta have heard this one...

PS-I never heard B.J.Thomas do that tune either, not saying he didn't, I just never heard it.

P. "M for Maria" S.

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 8 Feb 2000 9:37 am

The New Riders version indeed camoe out on "Oh What A Mighty Time" in 1975. Lineup was Dawson,Cage,Dryden, Nelson, and Skip Battin. To my recollection, this was the first album after Dave Torbert left the band

John

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Better Late than Never!
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel

Ken Lang · Post by **Ken Lang** » 8 Feb 2000 6:40 pm

Tom:
I looked at the jewel case this morning that had Take a letter, Maria. It was a Billboard compilation dated 1993, published by Rhino Records here in LA. It listed the artist as R.B. Greaves, with the song reaching its peak on the charts in Nov. 1969. Wow, has it been that long?
Ken

Jerry Hayes · Post by **Jerry Hayes** » 9 Feb 2000 5:17 am

Hey Patrick,
The tune "My Conscience Feels Guilty, and Somtimes I talk in my Sleep" was recorded by a great Texas lead guitarist/singer named Randy Coroner! I think I spelled the name right. He worked a lot with Fiddlin' Frenchie Burke and the Outlaws. What a great voice! I always wondered why he didn't go any farther than he did. I heard somewhere that he'd been in a serious accident and that curtailed his career for a while but I don't know for sure. Maybe Herb Steiner or one of the guys from Texas could shed some light on the subject. This guy is one GREAT lead guitarist with a style that was way ahead of everyone else when I first heard him.

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Have a good one! JH U-12

Patrick Smith · Post by **Patrick Smith** » 9 Feb 2000 7:53 am

Jerry,

Man, you win the Cadillac!...*L* That was indeed Randy Corners (Sp?). He was/is from Houston if I'm not mistaken and you're right, just a singing/playing fool! Man what a voice! I'm playing in a band now that does several of his tunes. I think he also did the song "Kay" didn't he?....and "Sugarfoot Rag?"

From what I've heard, he was in a pretty bad van wreck years back and just never quite made it all the way back. I sure would like to know how/where he is though....:

Herb? can you help?

PMS

Jerry Hayes · Post by **Jerry Hayes** » 9 Feb 2000 8:26 am

Hey Patrick,
I don't know if Randy did "Kay" or not but the big record on that was by Nashville guy named John Wesley Ryles who is still active. You see a his name a lot on album credits. As for Sugarfoot rag, I have a copy of the original recording by it's author Hank Garland & the Sugarfooters from the 40's. If you've got the Frenchie Burke album with Orange Blossom Special on it check out Randy's solo on that! It's awesome! Also, I've seen his name in the last couple of years in the PSGA newsletter as he was playing at one of the steel shows, maybe the Texas one...Have a good one! JH U-12<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Jerry Hayes on 09 February 2000 at 08:30 AM.]</p></FONT>

Patrick Smith · Post by **Patrick Smith** » 9 Feb 2000 8:42 am

Jerry,

You're right! JWR did that tune..I get em' confused but then I get so many things confused...*L*

Kay has one of the all time lyric lines in it IMHO..."Jim kept mumbling through his teardrops, God she'll leave this world with flowers in her room"...Man, what line! That's right up there with "I picked a ragged daisy from it's home out in the corner of the yard...she loves me, she loves me not, now I don't have to wonder any more"

Now that's country music...ha!

Take care. PMS<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Patrick Smith on 09 February 2000 at 08:59 AM.]</p></FONT>

Rich Paton · Post by **Rich Paton** » 12 Feb 2000 3:00 am

Nov. 1969. Wow, has it been that long? Ken
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Yeah, it has! Ken, I just left Simi V. last year, wish I'd known there's a few sane folks there! Do you shop at World music? I love that place!
>
I've got to hear the one with Cage. NROTPS was a damned good group for the times, with good tunes & session cats.
>
"Take a Letter, Maria" discography/credits:
> http://allmusic.com/cg/x.dll?UID=5:45:03|AM&p=amg&sql=HTAKE|A|LETTER,|MARIA

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 12 Feb 2000 11:24 am

Everyone is correct about Randy Cornor, except the spelling of his name!! I worked with Randy just recently with Frenchy Burke, and THAT was a fun gig! He is a monster guitarist and singer, absolutely. The car accident did cut his career short, but he is still an in-demand player in Houston. He's around 46-47, something like that

BW Stevenson did record and co-write "My Maria," and I was fortunate enough to be on the album, though not on that particular tune. I was in BW's band during the first half of 1973, when that tune was cut at RCA studios in Hollywood. We came out from Texas to record that album. Kix Brooks was a big BW fan and it was his idea to cover "MM." They did an almost note-for-note knock off of the tune, very faithful to the original.

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