“Have you got a heart…..do you have a soul…..what about your life…..is it out of control….are you alone and aching…..you don’t know what to do…..well, I’ve got a Friend for you.”  Just sitting here on the front porch of the old farm house thinking about the words of that song that I wrote some time ago.  Not thinking of it as a song, so much, as a condition of so many people.  It’s easy to enjoy a peaceful existence, sitting here of a morning, birds singing to me a beautiful lullaby, two hummingbirds feeding at the feeder Denise keeps full and hanging on the eave of the house, my old dog, Buck The Collie, sleeping at my feet after a night of being on duty to keep the deer out of the garden.   Living in the country, like we do, with the creek chuckling along just down the hill from the porch, is a wonderful blessed life, and I never take it for granted.  I believe that a thankful heart is the least we can offer to such a loving God.

Well, the Old Sun came up early this morning.  Probably couldn’t wait to shine down on my tomatoes.  I mean I got tomatoes as big as watermelons….uhh, ok, small watermelons….basketballs?....well, by golly they’re mighty big.

Well, life is good on the riverbank.  Just returned to the old farm house in Sumner County, Tennessee after three weeks on the Upper Mississippi River in Wisconsin.  Everyone that knows me knows I have a passion for fishing the streams, rivers and lakes of our great country.  In the last 50 years of traveling with my old J45 Gibson and a guitar case full of songs, I also managed to fish about every body of water in America, Canada and the Nortwest Territory.  One of my favorite times, for the past 25 years, has been my annual fishing trip to Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin and the Upper Mississippi.  From the last of June through the first week of July that is where you will find me.  This year happened to be a wet year on the river and the water kept rising all the time we were there.  Caught some fish, but not nearly as much as previous years.  But, that is the thrill of fishing....you never know what the elements will throw at you while you're on the water.  Reminds me of a tour I was making, picking and singing my little songs, in the great state of Florida in the early 70's

VIEW FROM THE  FRONT PORCH……Stan Hitchcock

“God Loves Fishermen and Fisherwomen”

Ah, April and May.  Been a beautiful Spring in Tennessee.  Sitting here looking out from the front porch of our old farm house to the creek running clear and fast on its way to the Cumberland River about 5 miles down the road here in Sumner County.  The water in the Lakes and Rivers has warmed up and the fish are biting so you don’t find me on the front porch too much this time of year, I’m usually on the water, somewhere in Tennessee or Kentucky searching for the mighty bass….smallmouth and largemouth.  Or, later on in the summer,  you can find me in Wisconsin, camping on the banks of the Upper Mississippi, and in hot pursuit of Northern Pike, Walleye and, once again, small and large mouth bass.  I just barely make it through Winter,  when it’s too cold to fish, watching the water temperature as Spring finally arrives and I can get back to the important things in life; fishing and enjoying a good bologna sandwich on fresh white bread while sitting in my boat.  I’ve got two sons, Stan Junior and Scott, that have inherited the love of fishing from me along with a couple of grandsons, Kahner and Josh, so the tradition of the Hitchcock Fishing Adventure  will be carried on long after I have gone to the Home of the Great Fisherman in Glory.

                View From The Front Porch

By Stan Hitchcock

THE U.S. NAVY OFFERS A MOVABLE STAGE….

 I graduated from Pleasant Hope High School in May of 1954.  I had turned 18 on the 21^st of March, had never been out of the hills of the Ozarks and was looking for an adventure where I could travel, have a secure place to sleep, 3 meals a day and some walking around money….hey! let’s join the Navy!  So, three months later, on August 12, 1954, I headed off to bootcamp to learn the finer points of sailormanship.

A Hillbilly's Take On The Weather

Stan Hitchcock

I wish Al Gore was here in Tennessee in the middle of this snow and ice storm so he could tell me again how warm we are making our planet.  Feels more like the “Return Of The Ice Age”, now that is a cause I could really get behind.

Front Porch Ramblings-The Shadow Of Your Smile

Stan Hitchcock

“Curly Chalker, the best dang steel guitar player that ever slid a bar across strings….”

Early one morning, in 1998, one of my musician friends called me and told me that one of my old compadres had just died, namely Curly Chalker; the best dang steel guitar player to ever slide a bar across strings, and asked me if I would come and sing at the funeral. Many years ago, around 1970, I recorded a song called “The Shadow Of Your Smile”; an old pop standard with one of the prettiest melodies I have ever heard. The reason I recorded it was so that I could feature Curly playing the steel guitar turnaround, no small feat for a country steel guitar player; but Curly wasn’t just any  steel player--he was Curly Chalker, the best

Curly had a long history in Country Music, touring with Lefty Frizzell and playing on some of Lefty’s early hits, playing on Hank Thompson’s “Wild Side Of Life” recording, being part of the ABC TV “Ozark Jubilee” Red Foley Show and many other historic music events.  A true hero of musicianship.

FRONT PORCH RAMBLINGS

By Stan Hitchcock

My Big Break Arrives In The Mail, Postage Due. . .

 In 1959 I had been discharged from the Navy for a year, moved back to my

Ozark home of Springfield, Missouri, and was helping in the startup of The Good Samaritan Boys Ranch just outside of Springfield.  I was singing with a great group of young college kids called the Waymakers in churches, brush arbors, local events and on radio around the Mid West.  I was living and working full time at the Ranch and really loving it.  Life was good and I figured this was what I would be doing for the rest of my hillbilly life.  Singing Gospel music and working with homeless boys. . . . .

FRONT PORCH RAMBLINGS

Stan Hitchcock

Stan’s Special Moments of Music:

I have stood in the wings of great theaters and auditoriums waiting to sing my songs and shared special moments of music from heroes of mine.  I heard Slim Whitman sing “Indian Love Call”, in his pure tenor, in an auditorium in Michigan.  Bobby Helms “Fraulien” in Atlanta.  How about Hank Locklin’s  “Please Help Me I’m Falling” with the Floyd Robertson piano intro and turn around that started a trend in piano runs that Floyd Cramer built into a signature sound on his Nashville sessions.  I worked the Opry with Hank, many times, and he always amazed me.  Ray Price’s early sessions where he was building his great career sound, or Faron Young’s “Hello Walls” and Sonny James “Young Love” were great moments in Country Music and times I stood there and just drank in the sound.