“From Buddy Spicher to Charlie Pride” from The Many Stories of Bill Fitzpatrick. (Vol.2-02)
Channel: Bill Fitzpatrick's Videos
Date: 28/10/2022

So Buddy Spicher and I were sitting and talking at the Blair Academy when Buddy looked at me and said that he wished he could play Wieniawski like me! As Buddy was a great country Fidler I was surprised but then replied that I wished I could play country like him! With this we came up with the idea to take lessons fro each other. Buddy would teach me fiddle one week and I would teach Buddy Wieniawski the next. This was great fun and went on for a while and then Buddy asked me if I were free to do a “head” session with Charlie Pride, who was the only Black Country singer back then. A “head” session was one in which there were no arrangements, no notes, only chords that were written down which meant that you had to improvise. So I said yes and me, my friend Lennie and Buddy were there in the studio recording with Charlie Pride, with only the chords written down … Well I had a blast! Oh yes, I was doing a live broadcast of the Country Music Awards and the fiddler was late for the opening act when the band leader looked at me and said to the contractor standing next to him, “he can do it”, pointing at me! I saw him doing country at a Charlie Pride session a few weeks ago! And so I kicked off the band for a regional live TV show …