It was 45 years ago this week in March, 1966 that in preparation and promotion of our premiere shows to be held at Hillsboro High School, the original cast of Sing-Out South gave a thirty-minute performance to members of the Tennessee General Assembly on Capitol Hill in Nashville.
That's an honor not often given to a singing group and the cast was enthusiastically received by lawmakers who gave a standing ovation (see above) at the end of the show.
Governor Frank Clement was also a huge supporter of SOS and he met with a group of cast leaders while they were on the Hill that day. Later in the week, a letter of support from the Governor (as well as another from Nashville Mayor Beverly Briley) appeared in the programs for the premiere shows at Hillsboro.
That's pretty heady stuff in terms of the political support Sing-Out had at that time and which it continued to receive throughout its history, including from Governor Buford Ellington who succeeded Clement in the governor's office in 1967.
Governor Buford Ellington proclaims Sing-Out South week in August, 1967.
Mayor Beverly Briley proclaims PACE Magazine Week in Nashville in the fall of 1966.
All this and much more memorabilia will be on display this coming weekend (March 25-26) as we celebrate our 45th Sing-Out South Reunion at the Millenium Maxwell House Hotel. We are gathering on the exact days (and even the exact hours) that we gave our first public shows.
It is going to be a most memorable weekend!
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