Music Pages:

"That's a 1970 Les Paul Studio bass that I played for a couple of years after my 1969 Fender Jazz bass was stolen. Boy was that thing heavy compared to the Fender!"

"I have always loved music. I have memories of hearing certain songs on the AM radio with my parents when I was a toddler, small enough to stand in the front seat of the car. At age 8 my father taught me how to make the chords A, B, C, D, E, F and G on the guitar."

"Almost everyone that's had a hobby they were passionate about, should admit to having thoughts of turning the hobby into a vocation."

Pictured Left: Me performing on stage New Years Eve 1994 with a rhythm and blues/rock-n-roll band at a club in Guntersville, AL. (the same stage where Ricky Nelson gave his final live performance on December 30, 1985). Below: Most of the pictures were taken in 1986. The pictures are either related to performances or interviews with famous musicians for a radio program that was aired on a dozen or so radio stations throughout the southeast.   

Greg Cook, Keith Whitley and Don Whitehead: Keith was a great guy who made great music.

Johnny Lee and Greg Cook: Who can forget "Lookin' For Love (In All The Wrong Places)"?

Don and Greg: Recording the radio program "Loose Talk with Don and Greg".

Keith Whitley on stage: 1986 performance at The Country Station in Decatur.

Johnny and Greg: Doing the radio show from Joe V's office at the old Carousel Club in Huntsville.

Greg, Ricky Scaggs and Don: Back stage at the Grand Ol' Opry.

Don, GrandPa Jones and Greg

Greg, Bill Monroe and Don

Greg, Minnie Pearl and Don

It's funny how we attach memories to certain songs...

I remember hearing Johnny Cash sing "Ring of Fire" on the juke box in a hamburger cafe before all the fast food places came into existence, like McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's. I was barely tall enough to reach the push buttons on that old "Rock-ola" juke box, and not near tall enough to make a selection. I couldn't handle the hamburger without assistance, but I remember dipping those big french fries in the ketchup! This was 1963 when I was three.

Of course I remember hearing the Beatles on the radio, but this stands out in my mind as my first exposure to them. My parents went to the drive-in theatre to see either "A Hard Days Night" which would have been in 1964, or "Help" which would have been 1965. On this occasion for whatever reason, I got to go with them instead of staying with my grandmother.

I remember my father buying gas at the Union 76 service station back when an attendant would not only pump the gas for you, but clean the windshield, check the air in the tires, the oil and a few other things. I remember that big orange ball with the Union 76 logo and they used placards and signs with the slogan about "put a tiger in your tank". Buck Owens had a song out back then about "I've Got a Tiger by the Tail". If I have any of these facts wrong, just remember that this is coming from the memory of a child (I want to say 1965 when I was five years old). The more I think about it, I think the service station was originally an Exxon, that later became a Union 76.

Anytime I hear Herman's Hermits "I'm Into Something Good" or "Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter", I think of riding in a navy blue 1965 Mustang convertible with my aunt (my mom's baby sister) while she was baby-sitting me.

One of my all-time favorite songs is "Blue Money" by Van Morrison, in fact I really love almost all of Van Morrison's music. I still remember the first time I heard that song. I must have been eight years old and was riding in the car with my parents. It was a sunny day and I remember it as a very happy time.

Fast forward to 1976, the year that Elvis died. Although it's thirty years later, when I hear Elvin Bishop's "Fooled Around and Fell in Love", I remember Sherry and Vic's wedding reception where some of my musician friends and I (age 16) performed that song. The dance floor was filled to capacity. 

Music has been my № 1 hobby and for a period of time, the way I earned a living (talk about a roller coaster ride)...

  Anyone that heard us back then would probably say, "they sounded like #@!%$", and they would be right. Playing music was our way of letting off steam and we all drank like soldiers. But there was a lot of talent there. It's unfortunate that I haven't stayed in contact with those guys.

  One day, out of the blue, I got an email from David. He played keyboards, harmonica and trumpet in BC Driver. He was teaching music at a college and some of his students found my web pages and told him about it. He is still performing as a back-up musician for big name groups at some casinos not far from his home.

  A whirl-wind few months and I was out of the Army and back in Alabama. Don, Barbara, Randy, Dwayne and I were traveling in style on ZZ Top's old bus. Note: Randy was playing drums with me back in '76 at that wedding reception.

  I love so many different kinds of music that it's difficult for me to name a single "favorite" anything. But I'll give it a try here: Greg's Favorites

• Band - The Beatles
• Pop Song - "I Saw the Light" - Todd Rundgren (1972 or so)
• Country Song - "Borrowed Angel" - Mel Street (around 1970)
• R&B Song - "Can I Change My Mind" - Tyrone Davis - 1968 - Bernard Reed on Bass (those bass lines were funky before that was even a music term), I think it was Mighty Joe Young on guitar, a great horn section backing and it was recorded in Chicago (not Muscle Shoals)
• Album - Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd (1970 or so)
• Live Album - Frampton Comes Alive - Peter Frampton (1975 or 6?)
• Vocal Harmony - The Lady She's Right - Leon Everette (Baughman) and Ray Gosden (Verne's brother) Awesome harmony
• Live Performance - "You Don't Love Me" Allman Brothers Band
• Country Instrumental - "Last Date" Floyd Cramer
• Rock Instrumental - "Jessica" Allman Brothers
• Disco Song - (I can't believe there is one that I like, but) "Rockin' Chair" Gwen McCrae (1975) Wonderful tempo, bouncing bass and her voice is so soulful and sexy.  

Disclaimer: Favorites are subject to change, depending on what day of the week it is. I feel guilty for not mentioning the music of Credence Clearwater Revival (CCR) They turned out so many great songs from 1968-1972 and I loved them all, the Grass Roots, Badfinger, and there are many more.

There are only four songs that I actually like the "cover versions" better than the originals; Twist and Shout, The Beatles, How Sweet It Is, James Taylor, Baby I Need Your Loving, Johnny Rivers and Ohh, Baby, Baby, Linda Ronstadt.