TRANSCRIPT Bullseye with Jesse Thorn: Tanya Tucker

[00:00:00]

Transition: Gentle, trilling music with a steady drumbeat plays under the dialogue.

Promo: Bullseye with Jesse Thorn is a production of MaximumFun.org and is distributed by NPR.

Music: “Huddle Formation” from the album Thunder, Lightning, Strike by The Go! Team—a fast, upbeat, peppy song. Music plays as Jesse speaks, then fades out.

Jesse Thorn: It’s Bullseye. I’m Jesse Thorn. Tanya Tucker recorded her first single in 1972, when she was 13 years old. It was called “Delta Dawn”. She cut it with Billy Sherrill, the veteran country producer who had collaborated with George Jones and Tammy Wynette. “Delta Dawn” is a sad story song about a woman who was abandoned by her lover decades ago. It’s not really a song for kids. And Tanya Tucker doesn’t really sound like a kid on the record. We’re gonna play it in a bit. You’ll hear what I mean.

It was a smash. There are dozens of versions of the song, from a copycat recording by the Australian country singer Helen Reddy—which hit even bigger than Tucker’s version—to a cabaret version by Bette Midler. Waylon Jennings, Loretta Lynn, and Kitty Wells all cut it too. The song launched Tucker’s career: a girl with the voice of a woman. Since then, she’s released about two dozen albums. When I talked with her in 2020, she’d just cut While I’m Livin’. It was her first record of original material in over 15 years. Eventually, it won Best Country Album at the Grammys in 2020. Tucker has since released 2023’s Sweet Western Sound. Also great.

If you’re in Nashville, there’s some good news. She has her own drinking establishment. Tanya Tucker’s Tequila Cantina features, among many other things, a $300 cocktail which is essentially a 60-ounce margarita. Seems like maybe too many ounces! Anyway.

Tanya is a musical genius, a country legend, and an absolute delight to talk to—as you’re about to hear. Let’s kick things off with “Bring My Flowers Now”, which won Best Country Song at the Grammys in 2020.

Music: “Bring My Flowers Now” from the album While I’m Livin’ by Tanya Tucker.

“Bring My Flowers Now” by Tanya Tucker plays.

Bring my flowers now, while I’m livin’

I won’t need your love when I’m gone

Don’t spend time, tears, or money

On my old, breathless body

If your heart is in them flowers,

Bring ‘em on

 

All the miles cast a long shadow

I’d take a couple back, if I could

I’d have learned to play guitar,

Told my daddy more I loved him

But I believe, for the most part,

I done good

(Music fades out.)

Jesse Thorn: Tanya Tucker, welcome to Bullseye. I’m so happy to have you on the show.

Tanya Tucker: Hey, thanks Jesse. Good to talk to you.

Jesse Thorn: Can you tell me about where that song that we just heard came from?

Tanya Tucker: Yeah, I mean, I’ve had it in my back pocket for quite a few years, but just couldn’t get it past the chorus. And I walked—Brandi asked me to come in and finish it on the last day of the sessions when we were in California and making this new record. And I went in the piano room. And I don’t know, maybe 35/40 minutes, we finished it. And you know, we just went right to the vocal booth and recorded it. So, what you hear on this record is just like it came out of my mouth. There was no fixing anything.

Jesse Thorn: How did you feel working in that context where you were singing more or less as live?

Tanya Tucker: Well, I mean, it took me back to the days when I first started out with Billy Sherrill. You know, the first records I made, we made pretty much like that. With live. Everybody is in the studio, you push the record button, and it’s all on the same deal. And the only thing they did differently probably was the background vocals we did after I got done singing. But with Billy back, you know, doing “Delta Dawn” and all the way up to “Would You Lay With Me in a Field of Stone”, all those songs were recorded with the vocals and the background vocals at the same time.

Jesse Thorn: Let’s hear a little bit of “Delta Dawn”, which was your first hit.

Music: “Delta Dawn” from the album Delta Dawn by Tanya Tucker.

She’s 41, and her daddy still calls her baby

All the folks around Brownsville say she’s crazy

‘Cause she walks downtown with a suitcase in her hand

[00:05:00]

Looking for a mysterious, dark-haired man

In her younger days, they called her Delta Dawn

Prettiest woman you ever laid eyes on

Then a man of low degree stood by her side

(Music fades out.)

Jesse Thorn: I mean, you’re like 13 or 14 years old when you cut that record.

(Tanya confirms.)

I heard that when you were in the studio, not only were you singing it with the band and the backup singers as though it was live, you were just singing it with monitors in front of you. Like, not even wearing headphones.

Tanya Tucker: Right. No, they—Billy never would let me have any headphones. So, it was a little—I’ve never seen them since. They were two monitors, one on each side of my head, and kind of like—you know, about two or three inches thick, and very—like, maybe a foot and a half tall, square. And on each side of my head at the microphone. I haven’t done it like that since. (Chuckling.) And at least this time I had a set of headphones. So, we’ve come up in the world.

Jesse Thorn: I mean, that was my experience of hearing “Delta Dawn”, which is one of my absolute favorite songs.

(Tanya thanks him.)

Is I had the album, and you know, I bought it at a used record store or something like that. And you know, you look young on the cover of the record, but I wouldn’t have guessed that—you know, enough time had passed and hairstyles had cycled enough and makeup styles had changed enough that like you could just as well have been 19 as 13 or 14 on the cover of the record. And it absolutely blew my mind when I learned how young you were when you cut it. But I had that experience again, watching Bette Midler sing the song.

Music: “Delta Dawn” performed by Bette Midler plays.

In her younger days, they called her Delta Dawn

Prettiest woman you ever laid your eyes upon

But a man…

(Music fades out.)

Jesse Thorn: It was in her act. I saw her sing it on the Bette Midler Show on YouTube. And I was like, this is—I mean, it’s literally the same song, but substantively, in every way, completely—and I like Bette Midler, but I was like, “Whoa!” So, did you hear something in that song that made you think that that would be a special song for you personally, in a way that was very different from the way it was on the demo or in the record that had been out?

Tanya Tucker: Well I think, you know, being a kid at that time—I didn’t really place any preconceived thoughts or even really think about it that much. You know? I just—I didn’t know why I liked it. I just knew that I did. And that carried on later, when I saw that so many young people were attracted to this song and not even knowing what it was about. Something about the melody, the haunting melody, the—but the words. I mean, why would a youngster be so attracted to those mature words? I have no answer for that. I just think it was something that struck a chord with me, and I didn’t really think about it too much, at that time. You know. The song has something special about it. And I’m not sure you can really put words to what it is.

Jesse Thorn: I want to play another one of your early hits that ended up on your second album. And I think that it’s another one of my favorite songs ever. And it’s another song that has a real intense spooky edge to it that is made all the more unusual, because you were—I guess—14 or 15 years old when you were singing it. It’s called, yeah, “Blood Red Going Down”. Let’s take a listen.

Music: “Blood Red Going Down” from the album What’s Your Mama’s Name by Tanya Tucker.

We searched in every barroom

And honky-tonk as well

And finally, Daddy found them,

And Lord, you know, the rest is hard to tell

 

He sent me out to wait, but scared

I looked back through the door

And Daddy left them both

Soaking up the sawdust on the floor

 

That Georgia sun was blood red and going down

That Georgia sun was blood red and going down

That Georgia sun was blood red and going down

(Music fades out.)

Jesse Thorn: It’s an intense song for a teenager to be singing.

Tanya Tucker: Yes. Curly Putman wrote that song, who also wrote “He Stopped Loving Her Today” and many other—you know, “Green, Green Grass of Home”. But to me, on that song, Jerry Kerrigan playing drums—there’s a drum lick, a riff on there that I’ve never been able to get anybody to copy it. It’s just like a certain kind of drum thing that I’ve never heard on any other record that he did.

[00:10:00]

And it was just, you know, like I say—I’ve heard these songs for, what? 48 years, you know. I guess for “Delta Dawn”. And it’d be, you know, 47 for this one.

But I loved the song. And it was very intense. And maybe, you know, that was part of the mystery of it is because I was so young. And my dad told me—I mean, when I was a kid, he said, “You got two problems.” He said, “One, you’re a girl. And the other one’s you’re a nine-year-old girl.” So, he said, “You’re gonna have to sing these songs that you’re singing with twice the feeling, because no one’s gonna believe it. It’s not believable coming from a nine-year-old kid.”

So, you know, he worked with me on that to try to emote what the song was and sort of a bit of an acting job, but singing, instead of acting. And then acting it out in my vocal performance. But… you know, I didn’t think too much about all of that, at that time. I just sang it the best I knew how to sing it, and I guess it was convincing, you know.

Jesse Thorn: We’ve got more to get into with the immensely charming Tanya Tucker after the break. Stick around. It’s Bullseye from MaximumFun.org and NPR.

Transition: Pleasant, chiming synth.

Jesse Thorn: It’s Bullseye. I’m Jesse Thorn. I’m talking with the country singer Tanya Tucker.

How is it different for you to sing those songs that you had recorded as a child, as—you know, when you were 30, 15 years later, or when you were 45?

Tanya Tucker: I might sing them better now, as far as vocal ability and quality. But I don’t think necessarily that they’re better, you know? I might be singing them, you know, better technically. But as far as a feel? There was no—there was no better way to do those songs. And they couldn’t—I’ve done them live, since. There’s no way to redo, recapture what those tracks and those songs, those records, were in that time. It was just a once in a lifetime thing. And I’ve had a lot of those, so I’m very lucky.

Music: “High Ridin’ Heroes” from the album While I’m Livin’ by Tanya Tucker.

 

Daylight or midnight

Red eyes and that old hat

Whiskey-bent and busted flat

She’s a credit to her flaws

She’s a bad risk, but a good friend—

Small change and loose ends

She only regrets that she might’ve been

A little faster on the draw

 

Those old high riding heroes

They’re anywhere the wind blows

She’s been to hell and Texas

And she knows how it feels

To be riding that hot streak

And drunk on some back street—

Falling off the wagon

And under the wheels

(Music fades out.)

Jesse Thorn: When you were a kid and a young teenager, before you started recording for record labels, your dad won money in a keno game to pay for you to make a demo, spent two days playing keno straight to do it. (Chuckles.)

(Tanya confirms.)

Did you know that was weird at the time?

Tanya Tucker: You know, I didn’t even know it, really. I didn’t even know he was doing it. He just came in about midnight, when my mother and myself were at our little old trailer we lived in, in St. George, Utah. And said, “Mother, Tanya, get up. We gotta go. We’re gonna make some demo tapes. I just won some money.” So, we got in the car and went right to Las Vegas. And he’d set it up where a guy named Cotton Harp was here, and I don’t know how he met him. But he was a bass player. And he had a family, so we stayed with him and his family while we were, you know—just staying here a couple days. Went in and did six songs in about three hours.

Yeah. That wasn’t normal. Looking back on it, it wasn’t normal. But nothing was normal in my early days. It don’t seem to be very normal now, either.

(Jesse chuckles.)

I mean, I’ve just had a very abnormal life that is not a life that everyone could’ve—that would have been good for everyone. Or anyone else, really. It was just singularly mine. (Chuckles.)

Jesse Thorn: What else was not normal about your early days?

Tanya Tucker: Just all kinds of things that—you know, when Jimmy Durante was playing the Arizona State Fair, we went up there from Wilcox, up in Phoenix. And I saw him at the Coliseum getting a hot dog in the afternoon, and my dad said, “There, go get him.” So, I went over and introduced myself and said—

[00:15:00]

“Mr. Durante, I’m Tanya Tucker, and I’m 11 years old. And I really, really would like to get started as a singer, and we would like your advice on that.”

And he said, “Well, come back after the show! Let me hear you sing!”

So, we were watching the show, and Rex Allen was about to introduce him, and he said, “Ladies and gentlemen, we’re sorry. We’ve had an accident. Mr. Durante was coming onstage tonight, and he fell. And he’s had to be—he’s had—they plan to run him to the hospital emergency room.”

So, my dad doesn’t stop there. I found myself in the hospital room.

(Jesse chuckles.)

At the hospital, with Jimmy Durante in bed, talking to his agent with—he had about 92 stitches across his face. He fell and cut his face open. And they’d stitched his face up, and he was talking to his agent and said, (imitating him emphatically) “I can’t believe we didn’t do the show!” You know. “The show must go on!”

And then he looks up and sees me and my dad there in the hospital room, and hangs up the phone. And of course, you know—my dad said, “(Mumbling) Hey, we’re here to let you hear my daughter sing.”

(Jesse laughs.)

So, I did. I sang to him. You know, he loved it, but—I guess he did. He was very nice. Very kind. But those things aren’t normal. You know. And my dad was not a normal human being.

Jesse Thorn: Did your folks travel with you when you were on the road as a teenager?

Tanya Tucker: Oh yeah. They were with me all the time. And then later on, my brother and my sister. We were all on the same bus, and it was kind of a family affair. With the band. And so, we all rode on the bus, and it was tight. But I’d relief drive sometimes, even though I didn’t have my driver’s license.

(Jesse chuckles.)

I would drive. And you know, we did what we had to do to get through it and get to the next show.

Jesse Thorn: What’d your brother and sister think of it?

Tanya Tucker: My brother drove. Oh, that was normal to them. It wasn’t—you know, they’d already been through that. My brother especially. We all learned to drive at a very young age. I always think I was about four or five.

Jesse Thorn: Tanya, I’m not talking about what’d your brother and sister think about driving the bus! I’m talking about what’d your brother and sister think about being on the road with a band! (Laughing.)

Tanya Tucker: Oh! Well, you know, it was just kind of a normal thing, you know. It’s just like we’re all in this family together, we’re going to get through all this, and we’re going to prevail. And we have success, and we’ll all be successful together.

Jesse Thorn: Did you have a part of your life where that wasn’t what you wanted?

Tanya Tucker: Oh, all the time.

(They laugh.)

Every other day. No, I say I’m quitting every other day. You know, I just get—you know, I get frustrated just like anybody does about their work or their job or their life. And then I really remember—the next day, I remember how fortunate I am and count my blessings, and when I start counting, there’s not a number big enough. So, I just try to keep my head up and get through it. Because it doesn’t get any easier. You just learn how to handle it a little better, I think. I think. I’m not sure sometimes if I handle it really at all. But every day is a challenge, and every audience is a challenge, and every interview! Nah.

(They laugh.)

Jesse Thorn: It’s Bullseye. I’m Jesse Thorn. I’m talking with country singer Tanya Tucker.

You know, I worked with my dad briefly when I was in my like early mid-20s, early twenties. And I love—

Tanya Tucker: Mm! That can be complicated.

Jesse Thorn: I was going to say, Tanya—look, I love my dad. He’s a great man, and he was a good dad. And god bless him for finding a way to get me some part time work when that was what was standing between me and eating. But Tanya, it was a disaster. (laughing.) It was a disaster!

Tanya Tucker: Yeah, I would think so. Especially for a guy.

Jesse Thorn: You worked with your dad as well as your mom, but especially your dad—who was your manager his entire life—all the time for decades.

Tanya Tucker: Well, there were struggles, for sure. Believe me. I know, and I see those struggles too of my brother and my dad. That was a difficult situation. And of course, my dad ended up really disowning him and didn’t even consider him to be a son. And they went through a lot of problems. I can’t imagine being a son, comparing himself to my dad. You know, that had to be hard. It was a lot easier being a girl.

But it didn’t mean I had it easier. It was—in some ways, I guess it would have been. But you know, I had my struggles too with him. I mean, he was very, you know, “Let’s do it my way or that’s it.” You know, the highway. So—and then I did the highway. So, you know, there were times when I didn’t listen to him, and I should have. And if I have any regrets, that’s probably one of the biggest ones, that I didn’t listen to him at the right time. And I would have been more successful sooner if I had listened to him.

[00:20:00]

But now, I mean, he’s been gone since ’06, and I think I listen to him now more than ever—even though it’s a little late, but maybe not too late.

Jesse Thorn: What do you think of when you think of him? Like, if you—I don’t know if you do this, but I know my mom is always telling me that she talks to her mom who’s been gone a long time. So, when you talk to your dad, who’s been gone for more than a decade, what do you think about him telling you?

Tanya Tucker: Well, it might sound strange, but sometimes I hold—I have a wallet that he had. It still has 75 bucks in it. And I can kind of hold that wallet, and I can ask any question I want and get an answer. I think, somehow, he is guiding me from above. I really do. I have no doubt, actually. So—but there were times when there was no guiding me. And I’m not sure—now that I have three kids, I really understand (laughs) where he was coming from. And I apologize to him all the time, saying, “Oh my god, now I know why you—what you were doing and what you were trying to say.”

‘Cause I talk to my—one of my daughters or my son; mostly my daughters—and they just don’t get it. You know? And I have the frustration that my dad had. And I see it so clearly. But I could not see it at that time. I see it, now.

Jesse Thorn: Even more still to come with Tanya Tucker. After a quick break, she will tell us about the time she met the king: Elvis Presley. It’s Bullseye, from MaximumFun.org and NPR.

Promo:

(Fantastical tinkling and sparkle sounds.)

Narrator: (Echoing.) Somewhere, in an alternate universe where Hollywood is smarter.

(Harp chords fade into applause.)

Presenter: And the Emmy nominees for Outstanding Comedy Series are Jetpackula. Airport Marriott. Throuple. Dear America, We’ve Seen You Naked. And Allah in the Family.

(Applause fades into harp chords.)

Narrator: (Echoing.) In our stupid universe, you can’t see any of these shows. But you can listen to them on Dead Pilots Society.

(Rock music fades in.)

The podcast that brings you hilarious comedy pilots that the networks and streamers bought but never made. Journey to the alternate television universe of Dead Pilots Society on MaximumFun.org.

(Music fades out.)

Transition: Bright, chiming synth.

Jesse Thorn: Welcome back to Bullseye. I’m Jesse Thorn. My guest is Tanya Tucker. She is a country music singer who has been at it for over 50 years. She recorded the hit song “Delta Dawn” in 1972. She won a Grammy for Best Country Album in 2020, which is when we talked. Let’s get back into it.

Music: “The Day My Heart Goes Still” from the album While I’m Livin’ by Tanya Tucker.

Yes, I know—well, I know I will, I will

Love you ‘til the day my heart goes still

Until they put me in the ground up on some hill

I don’t think I’ll ever get my fill

I’m gonna love you ‘til the day my heart goes still

 

When I was younger—

(Music fades out.)

Jesse Thorn: There were two things that I imagined. And like I said, I really don’t know, ’cause I wasn’t there. But I’m gonna tell them to you in case they make sense to you or don’t make sense to you. Either way. One of them was I was thinking what an unusual situation it must be to be a teenager in a world of adults where you are—and I’m talking about basically everybody in your life besides your siblings, when you were a teenager—and like constantly having to demonstrate that you belong there. When you—I mean, goodness knows you had the talent to belong there. I don’t think that’s a question. Right? And you had the skills as a performer to belong there. I mean, you were an incredible singer when you were 13 years old.

But you didn’t have other equipment to belong there, I’m sure. (Chuckling.) Y know what I mean? Like, you’re still a 16-year-old or an 18-year-old or whatever.

Tanya Tucker: I really wanted just to be one of the boys. And in fact, that’s one of the songs I wrote for this album that I’ve been holding on to for about 10 years, that I’ve been working on. It’s called “One of the Boys”. “It’s not hard for a girl like me to be one of the boys.” And I really just wanted to be one of the boys. I mean, I wanted to be Elvis’s buddy, you know. I had no visions of me going into his bedroom or anything closer than that. I just wanted to be a friend that maybe—I thought maybe he might need.

[00:25:00]

And—but it was hard to get through, especially to men, that I was a—not a girl. (Laughs.) I mean, I was just a girl, is all I was saying. And get past that to be friends. And you know, sometimes I still have that little struggle, but it’s not as big as it used to be. But that was one of the things.

But also, just talking to musicians that were older than me that were much more experienced and much more knowledgeable about music than I was—it was difficult for me to tell them what to do and it—not that I could tell them how to do it right, I just knew they weren’t doing it right. And that was a difficult problem, for me. Very, very difficult.

Jesse Thorn: You know, I heard in you talking about Elvis just now something that I—probably because I’m a guy—had not thought about. So, tell me if I’m misreading the situation. But I am guessing that one of the biggest problems when you were a young woman was, in finding belonging or seeking belonging, was not just that you were much younger than the people around you—you know, that you were a 13-year-old or a 17-year-old and you were around 25-year-olds or 35-year-olds—but that you were a woman in a situation where most of the people around, whether it was in the industry or your fellow artists, were men.

(Tanya confirms.)

You know, your band was probably almost all men and so on and so forth. And so, you know, when you are seeking regular friendship belonging, a lot of those men might have been seeking, uh, something else.

Tanya Tucker: I mean, very true. I mean, that was a—not a problem. I mean, it was definitely a hiccup every now and then, you know. But you know, I just learned how to get through that. And it’s hard to kind of work through that and figure out how to handle those kinds of situations. My dad was very good about helping me with that. He gave me a lot of advice. You know, when I walked out that night to meet Elvis Presley or to see his show—because I could never afford to go and then, and even if I did, I wanted to meet him when he knew who I was. Not just some random girl, you know. I wanted him to know me.

And so, I waited. And then I got invited to see his show in Las Vegas. And me and my sister went. And on the way outside the door, my dad opened the door of the trailer house that I lived in Henderson, and he said, “Listen here.” He said, “That boy can have any girl he wants in the world.” He said, “Just let him know he can’t have you.” And I never forgot about that. And so, later when Elvis asked me to come backstage, and I went back. And all of his cronies, they were kind of getting a little nervous, because he hadn’t come out to say hello to me yet. And you know, I know the whole score now, ‘cause that—you know, I’ve been there, done that.

And you know, they couldn’t give me a drink. I was underage, you know. I remember looking back, it was like, “You want some peanuts? You want some M&M’s? How about some cashews?”

(Jesse chuckles.)

You know, they were just, “How about a Coca Cola?”

You know, and I just said—I looked at my sister, I said, “Five minutes, we’re out of here. I’m not waiting for him.”

And they got—and I think someone must have went back and told him, because it wasn’t five minutes, and he popped out and talked to me. And then, of course, at the end—after we talked a little while—he went to kiss me. And he went to kiss me on the lips. And so, I gave him the old side cheek, you know. And I think that I saw the biggest smile I’d ever seen on his face. He got it, you know, he got it. And he thought it was pretty amazing, I think, at that age that I could act like that. You know. The last thing I wanted him to think of was I want him for any other reason, you know, than to just be a buddy.

Jesse Thorn: What was it like for you as a lifelong picker of hit songs? A person who, you know, one of your great skills that I know you were very proud of was choosing the right material for yourself, recording great songs. And you’ve recorded so many great, you know, country story songs and songs that were not direct representations of yourself and your story. To have—

Tanya Tucker: Well, I think—go ahead.

Jesse Thorn: To have two producers on this record come in and say, “Hey, we’ve written some songs. They’re kind of about you.” And you don’t get to pick them necessarily.

Tanya Tucker: Yeah, well ultimately I had the decision whether to do them or not. And I had decided not to do them, I mean several times they tell me.

(Jesse chortles.)

But I talked to—

Jesse Thorn: You don’t remember, Tanya?

(She doesn’t.)

I did read a quote about you—

Tanya Tucker: I cancelled it four times, but I don’t remember that.

[00:30:00]

I just really, really have had an innate ability to pick great songs. And not just for me, but for other people. I have a really, kind of a—(clicks teeth) I don’t know if it’s a talent or what, but to be able to put a song with the right singer. And I’ve done it so many times that I know that I’m good at it. And this time I really didn’t think these songs were gonna be good enough. And I’ve never been prouder to be wrong, but I was wrong about that. And people have really been attracted to this new album, and through all the kicking and screaming and digging my feet in and having me—drag me to LA. It’s just—I’m just glad I did it.

You know, it’s like, “Whew, I’m glad I worked out for three hours. You know, I feel much better.” Kind of like smoking. You know, you quit smoking and you think—you’re always so proud of yourself. But what it took to get there is really difficult. And I went through a lot of doubts, doubts, doubts. That’s all I had was doubts. You know, I always have a few doubts about anything, but this was overwhelming. But I’m glad I did it. You know, it just shows me that maybe I’m not an old dog. I’m learning new tricks, you know. (Chuckles.)

Jesse Thorn: Well, Tanya, thank you. Thank you so much for coming on Bullseye. It was a real dream to have you on the show. I really appreciate you taking this time.

Tanya Tucker: Thanks, Jesse. And it was great talking to you. I’d talk to you any day. It’s easy. I mean, you make me think. So, I wouldn’t say it’s easy, but definitely make me think.

Jesse Thorn: (Laughs.) Well, I’ll take what I can get. Thanks again.

Tanya Tucker: Alright. Thank you a lot.

Jesse Thorn: Tanya Tucker from 2020. Her newest album is called Sweet Western Sound. Let’s go out on a song from it. This is “Breakfast in Birmingham” featuring Brandi Carlile.

Music: “Breakfast in Birmingham” from the album Sweet Western Sound by Tanya Tucker.

You know me, I’m a still a movin’

Just as slow as old molasses

Bacon cooked up good and crisp are gone

Moved into Alabama in a purple Firebird

Looking for some love

(Music continues under the dialogue.)

Jesse Thorn: That’s the end of another episode of Bullseye. Bullseye is created from the homes of me and the staff of Maximum Fun, in and around greater Los Angeles, California. This week though, I went to the Ay—San Francisco, California, my hometown. Got to see the Giants have a bottom of the ninth inning comeback. Great tribute to Willie Mays. Got to hang around the mission with my friend Javaca. Good time. Love you, San Francisco.

Our show is produced by speaking into microphones. Our senior producer is Kevin Ferguson. Our producers are Jesus Ambrosio and Richard Robey. Our production fellow at Maximum Fun is Daniel Huecias. We get booking help from Mara Davis. Our interstitial music is by Dan Wally, DJW. Our theme song is “Huddle Formation” by The Go! Team. Thanks to The Go! Team. Thanks to their label, Memphis Industries.

We are on Instagram, @BullseyeWithJesseThorn. I personally am on Instagram, @JesseThornVeryFamous. You can also find us on Twitter and YouTube and Facebook. And, hey, how about taking this opportunity to recommend one of the interviews that you heard today to a friend? It means the world to us. If you hear something great on Bullseye, share it with somebody. Because, you know, nobody else is going to do it except you. Please do it. We appreciate it. Thank you.

I think that’s about it. Just remember, all great radio hosts have a signature signoff.

Music:

I’ll get breakfast with brown eyes in Birmingham

Breakfast with brown eyes…

(Music continues under the dialogue.)

Jesse Thorn: Bullseye with Jesse Thorn is a production of MaximumFun.org and is distributed by NPR.

Music:

Oh, Birmingham

(Song ends.)

Download transcript (pdf, 186.59 KB) ↓