Jimmy Day passed to Musical Heaven on this day

Ricky Davis · From: Bertram, Texas USA

Farewell Party (Jimmy Day)I have to say; this was very difficult for me, both emotionally
and mentally. How do you tab such emotion. Jimmy Day was known
for the best "feel" player and it is very hard to write down all
the inflections and emotion, he puts in playing around, and through
the measures of time, and song. As I, and all of Jimmys' family and
friends said our last goodbyes to this wonderful man; "Farewell Party"
played by "Jimmy Day"; was the last song we heard at his funeral.
I did shed tears on that very sad day. And I have to say; tears were
shed today as I listened along and tried to capture the most emotional
steel player in history. I miss you Jimmy Day.
Ricky Davis

Bill L. Wilson · From: Oklahoma, USA

Ricky, I had the opportunity to play guitar with â€œThe Great Jimmy Dayâ€ in Dallas at a church pastored by one of my closest friends, The Reverend Dwain Hobbs, who has since passed away. Also, Bro. Dave Rich was there that night, in fact heâ€™s the one who got Jimmy to come up. I canâ€™t tell you how exciting it was to get to pick with Jimmy, the whole congregation,(mostly black folks) were mesmerized by his pickinâ€™ on â€œThe Blue Darlinâ€ Mullen. It was fantastic, a night Iâ€™ll never forget, and he let me set down to his steel, but I couldnâ€™t play it. â€œIt was the DAY setupâ€. Bro. Hobbs and Bro. Dave Rich invited me to ride down to Austin for Jimmys funeral, and burial at Buda. It was very sad, but Jimmy had given his heart to The Lord of Lords and if I can get to Heaven, maybe we can pick again. God Bless You Ricky.

Sandra Scott-Wall · From: St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Hall of Fame member Jimmy Day was always a personal favorite of mine despite his "idiosyncrocies". I remember him from way back in the late 60s and early 70s when he would come to St. Louis to play one of Scotty's small shows or even just to hang out with Dad. And who can forget his performances at the Chase Park Plaza! He was very likable, funny and, of course, very talented. He passed on the same day as Scotty and Mary's grandson Joey so missing Jimmy is always on our minds when missing Joey. Now so many of the players from that time are all together in heaven. What a band that must be!

Ford Cole · From: Texas

Bill, based on what you've said, Jimmy is probably visiting with his former lead singer, Ray Price. What a duo!!

Bruce W Heffner · From: Payson, Arizona

Amen.
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"We live in Arizona now."

Payson, AZ

Herb Steiner · From: Briarcliff TX 78669, pop. 2,064

Jimmy's was an amazing funeral, I remember it like it was yesterday. There had to have been over 400 people there, so many folks who hadn't seen each other in such a long time. The very large chapel was packed and there were folks standing in the hallway listening over the PA system to Bro. Dave Rich's beautiful eulogy, which was about God's love and redemption for professional musicians and our lifestyles, and how we shouldn't be burdened with guilt for our sins but seek God's love just as Jimmy did. Bro. Dave knew who he was talking to, and I had a great visit with him there. I'd heard his recordings on RCA when he'd been a country singer and Jimmy played on his cuts, and I was honored to meet him.

Before the service, everybody was milling around reminiscing and such, and Jimmy's music was being played over the PA, quietly. Then a song came on with Jimmy singing it called "I Love You and I know You Love Me." Everybody immediately hushed, and Dave Rich came up to the microphone and said "let's have a hand for Jimmy Day." The entire chapel exploded in the biggest ovation I'd ever heard.

Please allow me to share a personal story about that day. It was very emotional time for me because Jimmy was a close friend and musical mentor. We played a lot of the same jobs and I'd fill in for him with gigs when he was double-booked and he'd fill in for me with gigs similarly. We had this little joke between us. When I'd show up at one of his gigs, he'd ask me to sit in and I'd say "no man, I'm not good enough to carry your case," and he'd reply "no, you're good enough to CARRY my case," then we'd laugh.

After Jimmy passed, Marilyn was devastated. She was distraught that week and not up to making decisions, so the funeral director had asked Lynn Owsley, who'd driven a bus down from Nashville to be a pall bearer, and me to help him arrange the visitation room; where to place Blue Darlin', his HOF plaque, the flowers, etc. When it was time for the service on the day of the funeral, the staff was about to wheel Jimmy's casket from visitation into the chapel and the director asked me "Mr. Steiner, would you please carry the guitar and follow us into the chapel?" At that very moment, I thought of the joke that Jimmy and I always had, and I realized that this time, it's for real and it will be the last time I'll ACTUALLY carry Blue Darlin' for my friend. The emotion was too much and I just lost it, cried like a baby.

After the funeral service, Lynn and the other pall bearers took the casket to the hearse, and I loaded Blue Darlin' into Lynn' bus and we all went to the gravesite, a very small private cemetery out in the country south of Austin. It was wintertime, cool and drizzling. Congress Avenue was under construction at that time, closed down to one lane, and traffic was backed up for at least a mile as the bus, hearse, and all the cars filed one-by-one onto what was normally one of the town's busiest streets. I rode in the back of the Lynn's bus with Jimmy's two sisters and his brother. They knew that he was "kinda famous," but had no idea of his immense significance to the world of steel guitar, and how he (with Buddy) had created about 75% of the vocabulary on the E9th tuning. I got the impression that Jimmy's older brother Joe had felt that Jim was the "black sheep" of the family, and that maybe my explanation about his significance to the world of music helped him that day.

At the gravesite, Diana Finlay, who was the wife of singer Kent Finlay who'd hired Jimmy for gigs, said "I guess every steel player just moved one rung up the ladder." No one could disagree with that.
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My rig: Infinity and Telonics.

Son, we live in a world with walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with steel guitars. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lt. Weinberg?

Barry Blackwood · Posted 25 Jan 2018 9:34 am

Jimmy was my "mentor in absentia" when I was first learning to play. I wore out so many records trying to absorb all those nuances he was so famous for. Many years had passed when I finally got to meet him at a Ray Price show where he showed me how to play the intro to Four Wheel Drive. After all these years it remains one of the rare high points of my career as a steel player.

Ricky Davis · From: Bertram, Texas USA

Thank you so much Herb for sharing your amazing story and feelings of that very sad day; I certainly remember like it was yesterday too. I was in Aw of the major historical showing of everyone that loved and now grieving the loss of their great hero.
Ricky
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Ricky Davis
Email Ricky: sshawaiian2362@gmail.com

J R Rose · From: Keota, Oklahoma, USA

Thank You Herb for sharing those personal stories and personal feelings. Many years ago I was working in Austin and of course as always ended up at the Broken Spoke and walked in the door and their was the Great Jimmy Day on stage with some good band but I cannot remember who. I ended up setting right at the front corner and watched him all night playing the Blue Darling. What a great night and great memories. Shook his hand and visited as if we were old friends. He was a great inspiration to a lot of us. J.R. Rose
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