Acorne Coffee Interview
Born in 1936, pedal-steel guitarist Acorne Coffee lived most of his life in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania then retired to his wife’s home state of South Carolina, where he lived until his death in 2009. Elder Coffee influenced Chuck Campbell in his early years as a steel guitarist. In the 1970s, many House of God steel guitarists who took up the pedal-steel guitar, including Elder Coffee, sought out Chuck Campbell for his technical expertise. “His steel was the first one set up with the more complex chord changes: minor seventh, major seventh, suspended seventh and sixth,” explained Chuck Campbell. “I’d just worked out converting piano chords into our straight tunings. This also allowed playing the chord changes to contemporary gospel songs from André Crouch, Edwin Hawkins and James Cleveland, to name a few, instead of just melody fills.” Elder Coffee’s sons, Acorne, Jr. and Lawrence, continue the family steel guitar tradition.
– Robert L. Stone
- The Robert Stone Sacred Steel Archive: Acorne Coffee Interview 00:00
Interviewee: Acorne Coffee
Interviewer: Robert Stone
Date: 1/23/1997
Location: Phone interview
Language: English
For the archive overview:
The Robert Stone Sacred Steel Archive
This is an interview originally recorded for research purposes. It is presented here in its raw state, unedited except to remove some irrelevant sections and blank spaces. All rights to the interview are reserved by the Arhoolie Foundation. Please do not use anything from this website without permission. info@arhoolie.org
Acorne Coffee Interview Transcript:
Robert Stone:
You know, the reason I’m calling is that I am trying to fill in all the background I can about the history of this whole steel guitar tradition, which is real interesting. You may not be aware that we’re making a documentary video, too.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, okay!
Robert Stone:
Which will probably go on public TV next fall.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And we did these three albums. And one of them, the first one, we’re hoping… We’ve submitted it for a Grammy nomination. So we’re hoping that might happen. It’s gotten real good reviews and acceptance.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
People are interested in this. So I’ve been working and trying to put the history of all this together. And I’ve got the… Bishop Elliott is behind me. Bishop Campbell is behind me. The Campbell boys have been great. They’re great guys.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. Chuckie, and Phil, and Darick-
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Darick, and Chuck. I just talked to Chuck a little while ago. And matter of fact, I’m going to be going up to their church dedication in March. You know, Bishop Campbell has built a new church.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, he built up a great big church!
Robert Stone:
Yeah. And anyhow, as you might imagine, Mr. Coffee, one of the problems I have is finding people that go back pretty far. You know?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
There’s this kind of a gap, say, between Henry Nelson, whom I’ve talked to a lot… and he used to come down to Ocala before he got sick. You know? He’d come down and visit his sister, Mary-
Acorne Coffee:
Right. I know his sister.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. She’s great.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And see, that’s real close by to where I am.
Acorne Coffee:
I know his other sister, too. The one that passed?
Robert Stone:
Alyce?
Acorne Coffee:
Now that… Right. And that was Willie Eason’s wife.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). His first wife, yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. So you go way back?
Acorne Coffee:
Back in-
Robert Stone:
When were you born, Mr. Coffee?
Acorne Coffee:
’36.
Robert Stone:
1936?
Acorne Coffee:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Robert Stone:
In what city?
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Robert Stone:
Oh, so you were born in Philly?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
So you probably remember Willie from way back, huh?
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah. Whew! I remember Willie when nobody couldn’t beat him playing.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Well, in his own way, he’s still hard to beat!
Acorne Coffee:
It’s insane, man. That guy could do things with a steel guitar, man, right now that a lot of these guys can’t do.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. I liked to see him when he hit the harmonics.
Robert Stone:
Yep!
Acorne Coffee:
And Charles would play him on that.
Robert Stone:
Yep. Yep! Oh, yeah. I’ll tell you, since we’ve got him playing more… You know, he kind of quit for a while. And since we’ve been paying attention to him, he’s been playing more. And I’ll get him some gigs. You know?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And we’ll put him on that first record. We got his Roosevelt song. Tell me: Do you have a CD player?
Acorne Coffee:
Do I have one?
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, I have one.
Robert Stone:
Well, I ought to send you some CDs.
Acorne Coffee:
Okay!
Robert Stone:
Yeah. I think I’ve got your address back there in South Carolina. I think Chuck gave me that.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. Blythewood. That’s B-L-Y-T-H-E-W-O-O-D. South Carolina.
Robert Stone:
Okay. Great. Yeah, I’ll send you a… Do you have any of these CDs?
Acorne Coffee:
I think I’ve got the one with Chuck and Katie Jackson on it.
Robert Stone:
Oh, okay. I think I can send you those others. I’ll send you as many… You know, there’s three others. So I’ll see how many I can round up and send to you.
Acorne Coffee:
All right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Oh, yeah. That’s the least I can do for you telling me what you can tell me, and all about the history, and all.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Because we want to do a nice job on this. And so you must have known Troman, too?
Acorne Coffee:
Troman?
Robert Stone:
Troman Eason.
Acorne Coffee:
That was Willie’s older brother.
Robert Stone:
Yeah, right. He was-
Acorne Coffee:
I just vaguely remember them talking about it, and a little bit of playing.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
But he was a master.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). Did he play like Willie, or did he play more of a straight Hawaiian style?
Acorne Coffee:
He played more of by notes. He could play by notes. He could read music. He was good.
Acorne Coffee:
But Willie had something on him, because his was more like… You know, like we talk “broken English.” His was just right down by ear.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
And whatever he hear, he could just do it.
Robert Stone:
Right. Yeah. That’s what has been my perception. And it sounds like it’s pretty good that Troman played pretty straight ahead. Well, I know Willie said that Tr0man took lessons from a Hawaiian guy.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And he played what they call “tablature,” where they had the numbers of the frets.
Acorne Coffee:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Robert Stone:
But Willie never had any lessons?
Acorne Coffee:
No, Willie just picked it up by ear.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Same as the rest of us. Well, I went around to a couple guys. You know? I met a lot of guys in playing. And one was Grady Lindler.
Robert Stone:
Grady Lindler?
Acorne Coffee:
Grady Lindler, yeah. From South Carolina.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
He’s good now.
Robert Stone:
He’s still alive?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. He’s still alive.
Robert Stone:
How old of a guy is he?
Acorne Coffee:
Huh?
Robert Stone:
How old of a guy is he?
Acorne Coffee:
How old?
Robert Stone:
Yeah. How old is he? Is he a young man, or a older fellow?
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, he’s young. He don’t go way back.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Winnie Winston.
Robert Stone:
Oh, yeah. Sure.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. I know him real well. Me and Chuck-
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
… all of us used to go over to his house. And he’s got a 14-string steel. And he’s got about 10… maybe about 20… pedals.
Robert Stone:
Ah!
Acorne Coffee:
One is in the front, and one is in the back.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
You know?
Robert Stone:
You know he moved to New Zealand?
Acorne Coffee:
Winnie did?
Robert Stone:
Yeah!
Acorne Coffee:
When?
Robert Stone:
I don’t know when, but that’s where. He’s been there a little while, because I play the steel myself. You know? I don’t play the kind of music you guys play in church, but so I keep up on stuff. And Winnie Winston, he writes books, and he writes stuff for-
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, now he had a beautiful book: The Nashville Number System.
Robert Stone:
One of the first books. So are you a steel player, too?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
Are you still playing?
Acorne Coffee:
Who, me?
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah! I just played at one of our bishop’s funeral.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). Really?
Acorne Coffee:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Robert Stone:
Who was that?
Acorne Coffee:
That was Bishop Bell.
Robert Stone:
Was that up there in Philly?
Acorne Coffee:
That was in Alabama.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Right. He just passed about two or three weeks ago. I played the funeral.
Robert Stone:
So the House of God is pretty big in South Carolina, isn’t it?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, it’s pretty big there.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Because-
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
… Getting back to the old days: How about the Bishop Lockley’s band? Do you remember that?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
Did you see that group when they would-
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah. I seen that. That was Bishop Lockley’s son, J.R., Willie Eason-
Robert Stone:
What did J.R. play?
Acorne Coffee:
J.R. played everything! It’s insane, man. He played xylophone. He played steel. He played drums. He played lead. He played bass. Man, he could play everything.
Acorne Coffee:
But when Willie Eason, then, was playing the steel, and then Deacon Sims… that was Henry Sims…. he was playing the lead guitar. Then J.R. would play the vibraharps. What do you call it? The xylophone. You know? They called it the “vibraharps” then.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
And J.R. played the xylophone. And-
Robert Stone:
Was there a guy named Moe Harper?
Acorne Coffee:
Huh?
Robert Stone:
A guy named Moore Harper or Moe Harper?
Acorne Coffee:
What? Eberhardt.
Robert Stone:
Eberhardt? Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
You ever heard of him?
Robert Stone:
He was a drummer. Right? Was he-
Acorne Coffee:
No. Eberhardt was a guitar player.
Robert Stone:
Guitar player? Okay.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. Now, that dude could play!
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Eberhardt and Willie Eason played together. Deacon Sims and Eberhardt played together. You know? Willie Eason wore out a lot of people! He played with a lot of people.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Right. But now these was the ones that was in my particular church, was Deacon Sims, Eberhardt, Willie Eason, J.R., these was the ones that I was around when they were playing.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). Now, what do you mean, in “your” church? Just-
Acorne Coffee:
Well, everybody have a band. You know?
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
It’s all one church. But we was in Philadelphia church.
Robert Stone:
Okay. So they were out of Philadelphia, all those guys?
Acorne Coffee:
Right. And Willie Eason was in our band, except when he traveled around with Bishop Nelson and Bishop Lockley. You know? Down south.
Robert Stone:
Mm-hmm (affirmative). Mm-hmm (affirmative). So he even traveled with Bishop Nelson?
Acorne Coffee:
Willie Eason? Yeah, that’s going back and forth to Florida with Bishop Lockley. That’s how he met-
Robert Stone:
Alyce.
Acorne Coffee:
… his daughter.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Then you had his brother, too. Henry Eason.
Robert Stone:
Henry Eason?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. Did he ever tell you about him?
Robert Stone:
No.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh! Oh, Henry could play, boy!
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah! Now, he wasn’t… You know, you get stuck on one guy. But it just seemed like nobody could beat him playing.
Robert Stone:
Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
But he taught me a little bit on this. As a matter of fact, when I first started playing, the first steel I played was the one that Henry Eason had. It was Old National.
Robert Stone:
Old National?
Acorne Coffee:
My mother bought it for me. I bought it off him for $15.
Robert Stone:
All right. An old National: Electric or acoustic? Electric steel?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. It was an electric guitar.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Yeah, I got one. I got an old 1947 National.
Acorne Coffee:
National?
Robert Stone:
Yeah. It looks like-
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, that’s just about what it was, too!
Robert Stone:
… Black and white. It looks like the Empire State Building.
Acorne Coffee:
Black and white with the knobs on the-
Robert Stone:
And it’s got the Roman numerals on the frets.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
And it’s got the skinny neck, right?
Robert Stone:
Right. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, that was it.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Good sounding guitar.
Acorne Coffee:
It’s made out of plastic, right?
Robert Stone:
Right. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Okay. That’s it.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Real nice looking. Black and white. Real sharp looking.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. What kind of guitar do you have now?
Acorne Coffee:
I got a EMCI.
Robert Stone:
EMCI?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Well, have you got a pedal steel?
Acorne Coffee:
Huh?
Robert Stone:
Do you got a pedal steel? Or-
Acorne Coffee:
I got a pedal steel.
Robert Stone:
Oh, really? What kind of… How many strings?
Acorne Coffee:
20 strings.
Robert Stone:
Oh, two 10-string necks?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
How do you tune it?
Acorne Coffee:
E7 and sometime E9. I’ve started E9, but E9 didn’t really get… E9 is basically if you’re going to have somebody playing with you.
Robert Stone:
Right. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
E7, I can play by myself, because I can-
Robert Stone:
Right. You can-
Acorne Coffee:
… the chords-
Robert Stone:
… You can strum it. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
So that’s why I took it to E7.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). So you helped Chuck get started, huh?
Acorne Coffee:
Huh?
Robert Stone:
You helped Chuck get started? Chuck Campbell?
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah. I taught Chuck. Taught Chuck a lot.
Robert Stone:
Yeah?
Acorne Coffee:
I didn’t hold anything back. I helped him, too.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
When people say, “Oh, that wasn’t right!” I said, “Hold on a minute. This is what you’re doing wrong. You’ve got to do this.”
Robert Stone:
Mm-hmm (affirmative). He’s got a lot of good technique.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. You know, he speaks very highly of you.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. That’s my man! That’s my buddy, there!
Robert Stone:
Oh, he’s a great guy, isn’t he?
Acorne Coffee:
Right!
Robert Stone:
Yeah, both him, and Phil, and Bishop Campbell. Great. And Darick can play, too.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, Darick plays real well.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. We-
Acorne Coffee:
Darick plays on the order of… like a Nelson.
Robert Stone:
Right. Right.
Acorne Coffee:
And Chuck is on the order of a up-to-date Nelson.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
A modified Nelson. And I think I may have some tapes that you may want to hear. When Chuck first started-
Robert Stone:
Yeah?
Acorne Coffee:
… it’s a style like nobody ever had. Man, you wouldn’t believe this. You wouldn’t believe where he came from.
Robert Stone:
Oh, when he got wild, you mean?
Acorne Coffee:
Huh?
Robert Stone:
What do you mean?
Acorne Coffee:
When he first started playing. Right?
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
When he first got good, he had a different style.
Robert Stone:
Ah!
Acorne Coffee:
And then he started playing like Nelson, a modified Nelson.
Robert Stone:
Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
You know? But he had a style like (singing). I mean, Calvin, it wasn’t even like Calvin’s!
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
It was just beautiful. And then he used to put the hillbilly in with the prayer hymn. You ever hear him play that on the prayer hymn?
Robert Stone:
Oh, yeah. Yeah. He-
Acorne Coffee:
That’s what I’ve got some of that pedal steel and some of the hillbilly from him.
Robert Stone:
Mm-hmm (affirmative). He knows exactly what he’s doing.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. And from Grady Lindler.
Robert Stone:
Now, is Grady Lindler a guy in your church?
Acorne Coffee:
No. Grady Lindler is a white fellow.
Robert Stone:
A country player?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Oh, okay. Yeah. I’m not-
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. I just wanted… I used to go to Mr. Johnson’s studio. Johnson had a studio in South Carolina.
Robert Stone:
Johnson?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. Johnson’s studio. He’s retired now. Now he’s-
Robert Stone:
What city was that in?
Acorne Coffee:
That was in Columbia.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Columbia, South Carolina.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And he said, “And I know a guy that could help you!” Because I was always looking. Always! I don’t care how old you was, how young you was. If it was anything you had I could pick up, I was after it.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
And I went with Grady Lindler. And that’s when he introduced me to Charlie Ward of Emmons.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And Charlie Ward made me a guitar.
Robert Stone:
Really?
Acorne Coffee:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Robert Stone:
Ah. So you had an Emmons for a while?
Acorne Coffee:
Well, I’ve still got Emmons!
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
That EMCI is made by Emmons. EMCI.
Robert Stone:
Okay. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. But Emmons endorses it.
Robert Stone:
You can’t beat Emmons.
Acorne Coffee:
No, man. You can’t beat Emmons or Fender. They got our church sound.
Robert Stone:
Right. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
They got the deep, bodied church sound.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Yeah, those old Fenders have still got it.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. But you started off on a six-string, I guess, huh?
Acorne Coffee:
Right. I started off on a six-string.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. That’s-
Acorne Coffee:
I started off on a piece of wood with my mouth!
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
(Singing).
Robert Stone:
Now, what kind of bar do you use? Do you use one with grooves in it?
Acorne Coffee:
I use a 12-string, special machined by… What’s the guy on Broadway? I’m trying to think of the name.
Robert Stone:
Shot Jackson?
Acorne Coffee:
Shot Jackson.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
So you got the grooves cut in the side?
Acorne Coffee:
That’s his son.
Robert Stone:
You got the grooves cut in the side?
Acorne Coffee:
I got the grooves in the side. And mine’s… And it’s round on both ends.
Robert Stone:
Round on both ends?
Acorne Coffee:
Round on both ends.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
I don’t have the three grooves. I had the three grooves when I first started.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
And then I went to the round bar. And I just had Shot to make me one with the grooves just down the side.
Robert Stone:
Right. And it’s got the bullet nose on both ends, huh?
Acorne Coffee:
Right. No, this has a round… The front end is round. The back is still square.
Robert Stone:
Okay. Okay-
Acorne Coffee:
Still blocked it off.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. You know, Chuck turns his around backwards.
Acorne Coffee:
His bar?
Robert Stone:
He turns it around backwards.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, because this way he can push it and hit some strings with it.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. He’s got a lot of technique.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. He got techniques! I know most of his techniques!
Robert Stone:
Ah, that’s… I’d love to hear you play sometime!
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, well-
Robert Stone:
Well, maybe you can send me some tape! Because we’re liable to be making more records.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
We got this label that did these records. You know? It’s a small outfit. And he’s got to get it. See if he’s going to get any of his money back. But you know, that first album has already sold… The Sacred Steel album?
Acorne Coffee:
Who did?
Robert Stone:
The Sacred Steel album? The one that has Henry Nelson, and Glenn Lee, and Aubrey, and Sonny, and-
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, great!
Robert Stone:
You know what I’m talking about? You don’t have that one, do you?
Acorne Coffee:
I don’t have it. The only one I have is one that I got of Chuck.
Robert Stone:
Okay. Well, I’ll send you that Sacred Steel. And you’ll see what kind of work we’ve been doing, because it’s got a 32-page book in it all about the history. And we’ve got pictures of Lorenzo Harrison and Henry Harrison. We got a picture of Willie when he was a kid!
Acorne Coffee:
Willie Eason?
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, man! I’m getting too old.
Robert Stone:
Well, when he was in his 20s.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, I thought he had that little picture when he was a boy. He had knickers on. You know that? The pants that come up to your knees.
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
I’d love to get a picture like that.
Acorne Coffee:
Then he had the old pictures where they had the square neckties.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
The necktie was square at the bottom.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Great big hats. Big pants. Oh, man!
Robert Stone:
When’s the last time you saw Willie?
Acorne Coffee:
I seen Willie not too long ago. And no sooner than he looked up and seen me, he said, “Oh, God! There go one of them Coffees! I know that! There go that…” Everybody turned and looked! Every time he see me, he just goes crazy. See, I used to sing a lot.
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
I used to sing What a Time, and Tell Me How You Love Roosevelt, and all that stuff in our church. And he would play. Man, I was younger then.
Robert Stone:
Now, that Roosevelt thing: Do you know if Willie wrote that, or if… What’s the… Otis Jackson wrote that, or… Do you know that?
Acorne Coffee:
I’m thinking Willie didn’t write it. But I know that Willie did make it famous.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
What a Time-
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
… Tell Me How You Like Roosevelt, and… What’s another one? I’m trying to think of that… Oh, boy, I can’t think of it.
Robert Stone:
Well-
Acorne Coffee:
I know it was three of him he had. He had Roosevelt. He had a version about, “When the war was on, I couldn’t enjoy my rides. They’re rationing my gas. They’re rationing my tires-“
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
“… Over 35 was against the law. I was saving them up. They were saving them up. But they had to win the war. What a time!”
Robert Stone:
“Oh, what a time!”
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, Jezebel! That was the other one.
Robert Stone:
I-
Acorne Coffee:
Jezebel!
Robert Stone:
Jezebel? Yeah. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
You ever hear Willie play that?
Robert Stone:
I haven’t heard him play that. But you know what we did? We found one of his old song books.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
That he had the words in it. You know?
Acorne Coffee:
Right. Okay, next time you run across him or get with him, tell him to play Jezebel.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. I see him all the time. You know? He’s only about two, two and a half hours from here.
Acorne Coffee:
Wait, he’s in Florida? I thought he was in New York!
Robert Stone:
No, he’s in St. Pete. St. Petersburg.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh!
Robert Stone:
He’s-
Acorne Coffee:
I’ll be down there in Pensacola down there. I’ll be there pretty soon.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
I have to go down and see Darryl Brundidge.
Robert Stone:
I know Darryl.
Acorne Coffee:
Huh?
Robert Stone:
I know Darryl well.
Acorne Coffee:
Darryl Brundidge?
Robert Stone:
Yeah. He played with Aubrey for a while.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah! He played with me in this funeral we just played.
Robert Stone:
Is that right? Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. He played with me for the funeral.
Robert Stone:
Well, when you see him-
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, me and him has been playing for years! I’m talking about since he was a little teeny boy!
Robert Stone:
He’s a great keyboard player.
Acorne Coffee:
He’s a great musician, period.
Robert Stone:
Yep. Yep. Yep.
Acorne Coffee:
And anything that he can’t play, if you can play it, he can teach you how to enhance it.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
That’s right. He’s really good.
Robert Stone:
Right. No, he’s a top notch musician.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
He is good. I’ve known him since he was a little teeny boy. He wasn’t playing nothing but drums, and he could play them, too.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). He played steel for a while, too, didn’t he?
Acorne Coffee:
No, he played lead.
Robert Stone:
Lead guitar? Yeah. That’s right.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. He played lead. He can still play it. So he’s great on it, him and Kenny Ellis.
Robert Stone:
Yep! I know Kenny well. I’ve run across him several times.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. I-
Acorne Coffee:
Glenn.
Robert Stone:
Glenn, I know. You see, I was raised down there where Glenn lives, down in Perrine. I used to live down there until… from the time I was, I don’t know, 12 years old, until just a couple years ago. About 10 years ago, I lived down there. That’s my old home.
Acorne Coffee:
Okay.
Robert Stone:
I went to elementary school down there.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, that’s good to hear.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. You’d know him.
Robert Stone:
Oh, yeah. I used to deliver groceries over there in Richmond Heights where his dad lived.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. So matter of fact, the very first time I got involved with this music… And one day, I went over to Aubrey’s apartment down in Fort Pierce. This was before he was married. And then that night, I went to the State Assembly down there in… Pompano Beach. And Glenn was playing the Assembly.
Robert Stone:
So he might say, “I jumped off the deep end.” Do you know what I mean? Because that place was rocking in there! I didn’t know what to think! They were really going!
Acorne Coffee:
As soon as I get with my nephew, David Watson, me and him normally play together, too.
Robert Stone:
Oh, yeah?
Acorne Coffee:
He plays lead. He plays anything and everything.
Robert Stone:
Oh, where does he live?
Acorne Coffee:
He lives here in Philly.
Robert Stone:
Ah.
Acorne Coffee:
But he goes all over with me.
Robert Stone:
Is that right? So you still travel playing?
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah. I still move around.
Robert Stone:
Yeah!
Acorne Coffee:
I’m pastoring in South Carolina, but I’m still playing.
Robert Stone:
Is that right? And there in Blythewood? You pastor?
Acorne Coffee:
In Cayce, West Columbia.
Robert Stone:
Cayce, West Columbia?
Acorne Coffee:
Right. I pastor at the Church of Cayce.
Robert Stone:
I want to get up to South Carolina sometime. Because there’s quite a few churches up there, isn’t there? In that Keith Dominion.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. Oh, yeah. There’s plenty of them. Yeah, you need to get out here.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. How about… Chuck mentioned that you knew something about the Jewell Dominion, too. Did you know the Harrisons?
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah! I was in the Jewell Dominion for a while.
Robert Stone:
That’s what he said, yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
He was right.
Robert Stone:
I’ve run across that a lot. I guess, as you know, a lot of people have been on both sides.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. I know Harrison and Postell. He was one of the ones that was back with… He wasn’t quite back as far as I. He was back with Willie’s brother, Henry.
Robert Stone:
Who was that?
Acorne Coffee:
James Robert Postell.
Robert Stone:
Postell?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Now, he got two nephews. They wasn’t back there, but they play now. They good. You know?
Robert Stone:
Ah. But how about Bishop Harrison? I think I heard that he had steel guitars set up at different churches so he didn’t have to drag an instrument around. Is that right? Did he have a steel-
Acorne Coffee:
No, it was not… He basically bought his guitar, because he had them made on a special order. And he basically bought his… Because you know if I go to another church and someone goes, “Come on. Play, now!” They would have to get my guitar out.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
You know? I don’t know what… Unless I’m just going to tune that guitar straight and play straight, and then you can’t do exactly what you want to do if it was just played straight. You know?
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
So everybody likes to have their own. Now, he had his own guitar. And it had a horseshoe shape. He took his time and played. And I play a lot of his stuff now.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
There’s the Jewell stuff, and they can play-
Robert Stone:
Right. If you play that E7 tuning, you can do that, I guess. Huh?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
That’s right.
Robert Stone:
But he played for a long time, didn’t he?
Acorne Coffee:
Who? Harrison?
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. Now, he had a brother that played, too!
Robert Stone:
Henry?
Acorne Coffee:
Bishop Harrison.
Robert Stone:
Henry Harrison, right? Or was that another brother?
Acorne Coffee:
It was… Yeah, Henry.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. He’s dead now. Both of them dead.
Robert Stone:
Right. Yeah. That’s the oldest picture we have in this booklet. You’ll see. We got a picture of Henry Harrison with his lap steel and his little tiny amplifier with his Bible on top of it.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And that was in the 1940s.
Acorne Coffee:
Now, he’s got a son. Starlin.
Robert Stone:
Spalding?
Acorne Coffee:
Starlin.
Robert Stone:
Starlin.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. You ever heard of him?
Robert Stone:
No.
Acorne Coffee:
He maybe can give you some information, too.
Robert Stone:
Okay.
Acorne Coffee:
Because he was back there with his father. And Bishop Harrison… Well, both of them was Bishop Harrison… The one in the Jewell Dominion, that’s his uncle.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And he came to an assembly that I was playing at in Knoxville about… Oh, I guess about three, four years ago.
Robert Stone:
You mean there’s a Harrison in the Keith Dominion?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
That’s the son of Bishop Harrison in the Keith Dominion. He’s the uncle of Bishop Harrison in the Jewell Dominion.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
They was brothers.
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. And he’s way back there, too.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). Do you know the Mozee brothers, too? Ronnie Mozee, and Robert?
Acorne Coffee:
From Florida?
Robert Stone:
No, they’re up in Indianapolis. They play for Bishop Manning now.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh! Yeah, I know who you’re talking about.
Robert Stone:
Yeah?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah! And Postelle and them played, too.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Now, Postelle and them is the top players there.
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Okay.
Acorne Coffee:
See, they’ve been here to this house that I’m in now.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
They’ve been here.
Robert Stone:
Are you visiting some family up here now? You got family in Philadelphia?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
We got kids up here, and some more family.
Robert Stone:
So were you based out of Philadelphia for a long time, then?
Acorne Coffee:
Was I out of Philadelphia?
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Well, you lived up there for a while?
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah. I lived in Philadelphia for a long time before I moved.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). How long have you been in South Carolina?
Acorne Coffee:
I moved to South Carolina in ’73. Left in ’78. Moved back five years ago.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
After ’78, I stayed out for a while. Came back here. Opened a couple restaurants. Played in the church here. Then I moved back.
Robert Stone:
So you’ve been in the restaurant business, too, like Willie?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah!
Robert Stone:
You know, you had one down in St. Pete. He called it “Fat Willie from Philly.”
Acorne Coffee:
“Fat Willie from Philly?”
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
That was right, too. With that big cowboy hat!
Robert Stone:
He wore a cowboy hat? Or you did?
Acorne Coffee:
He always do.
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. You seen it?
Robert Stone:
No.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, man! You should see that thing. He got a great big cowboy hat he wears.
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Robert Stone:
I’ll have to get him.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. The last time I seen him, he had it on.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. He’s a great guy.
Acorne Coffee:
He is. Sure enough.
Robert Stone:
I can’t say enough about him. He’s a great guy. We’ve gotten to be… I’ve known him for about five years now. And he’s a good buddy. Him and Jeannette.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
We drove together all the way up to Tennessee, to Murfreesboro, to the college up there, to Middle State Tennessee University. And he played up there for a little concert.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, okay!
Robert Stone:
And you know where I went with Aubrey Ghent?
Acorne Coffee:
Where?
Robert Stone:
Switzerland.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh!
Robert Stone:
He played over in Switzerland.
Acorne Coffee:
Man, I played over in Jamaica. I was the first steel player from this church to play in Jamaica.
Robert Stone:
Is that right? When was that?
Acorne Coffee:
Me and Brundidge.
Robert Stone:
When was that?
Acorne Coffee:
It was Bishop White.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). When was that? Recently, or-
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, no. That was when we first got the church over there.
Robert Stone:
Oh, great.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. That was from years ago.
Robert Stone:
Can you hang on just for a minute? I want to change tapes, okay?
Acorne Coffee:
Okay.
Robert Stone:
Thank you… Which is over in the islands. But I guess there’s still no steel players over there, huh?
Acorne Coffee:
No. And the music is not fast as ours. It’s like (singing). You know?
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And Brundidge, me, and Darryl Brundidge, and Bishop White, and his wife, and Brundidge’s father, we went over.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And man, Bishop White’s wife was beating the drums. And I was on steel. Brundidge was on the lead. And when they started to sing, instead of letting their musicians give it a beat, I took off ahead of them. (Singing). It was real fast. And man, his wife got to beating that drum! Those people jumped out the side of the church!
Robert Stone:
They liked it, huh?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, man! It was the first time they had heard it there. They liked it, man. We had a wonderful time.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
I forget what year that was. I can find out what year it is if you need it. You know?
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Well, I’m interested. Because we did a… We’re working on this video. And when you do a professional documentary… This is something that’ll be shown on national television when we get done. You have to shoot maybe… You might shoot 20 or 30 hours to get a half hour of video.
Acorne Coffee:
That’s right.
Robert Stone:
Okay? You got to edit it down.
Acorne Coffee:
You know how to edit, though.
Robert Stone:
Okay? So anyhow, we did a service over at Glenn Lee’s father’s church. This was back in the same week we did these records. We did it back in May.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And there was one of the ministers there… was from the Bahamas.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, okay! Yeah.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. I forget his name. I wrote it down. It might have been Ferguson. I’m not sure.
Acorne Coffee:
I think… I know… one of the pastors over there is an ambassador.
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Mm-hmm (affirmative). Anyhow, you know… Well, because Reverend Lee is… He’s not doing well at all.
Acorne Coffee:
No, he’s sick now.
Robert Stone:
He can’t hardly… He’s got four or five different serious diseases.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. Why don’t you come over and do something on our church?
Robert Stone:
Well, I’d like to.
Acorne Coffee:
Where I’m at in Cayce.
Robert Stone:
When are you going to be back there?
Acorne Coffee:
I’m going to be back there a little after New Year’s. Maybe if I can finish up here in time, I may just go back New Year’s Eve, start off that night and get there in the morning.
Robert Stone:
Well, I’ll tell you what: I’m going to… I got to work for a living. You know?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
But I’ll try and get around. And South Carolina isn’t too far. You know? Because I’m in Gainesville, Florida, which is near the Georgia line.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
So it ain’t too far in the lot. I’ve gone up and heard the Campbells play when they’ve been in Georgia in those little towns. Hazlehurst, I went up there. You know? So I’d love to get to South Carolina. I’ll do it. I’ll do it.
Robert Stone:
And right now, I’m concentrating a lot on doing interviews and taking photos. Because you’ll see when I send you this album: We do lots of photos. You know? But you never know! We might have some video material there, too. Because we’ve still got our… We’re going to shoot a few more days of video. Probably another three days. We’re going to go up to the Campbell brothers, that dedication for their father’s new church-
Acorne Coffee:
I’ll probably be there, too.
Robert Stone:
… in March. March 15?
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
You know? Well, we’ll all be there. So, well-
Acorne Coffee:
I’ll probably be there.
Robert Stone:
… if I don’t see you sooner, I’ll see you then. But-
Acorne Coffee:
Okay. Well, you got the phone number. Give me a call. You know? You-
Robert Stone:
Yeah. And when I mail you these… I’ll get these CDs in the mail to you tomorrow. So when you get home, they’ll be waiting for you.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, man! That’d be great. Send them in.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. And I’ll give you my address and everything.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. Make sure you give me your address and phone number, and you send me-
Robert Stone:
Phone number, and let me… Another thing that I would like to… that I’m trying to put the word out on… is we’re looking for old photographs. You know? The older, the better. And we-
Acorne Coffee:
Of the people that play?
Robert Stone:
Yeah. And even the people that were just the leaders in the church, but mostly musicians.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And what we can do, we can do it one of two ways: Either you can mail it to me, and I can get them duplicated, and mail the original back to you… and if you’re uncomfortable with that, I can make arrangements where you can get it duplicated in your hometown somehow.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
But usually, you can see what I got in this book. I always send the photos back, and we do a nice job.
Acorne Coffee:
I think I got one of those photos, too. Way back in the ’40s.
Robert Stone:
Yeah? Well, we’d love that! You know? We got a nice one of Willie with his old car. It was that old Buick he had.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah!
Robert Stone:
When it was brand new, and he’s wearing spats. You know?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. And he had his loudspeaker on his car.
Robert Stone:
Oh, he did?
Acorne Coffee:
His Cadillac.
Robert Stone:
Well, this was a Buick. This was a ’48 Buick.
Acorne Coffee:
Okay. This was around ’44.
Robert Stone:
He had a Cadillac, huh?
Acorne Coffee:
’45. He had a Cadillac with the speakers mounted on it. And he had his DC system turned into AC so he could plug his guitar into his car.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
You know how the people used to go around and speak on the microphones from those cars?
Robert Stone:
Right. Right.
Acorne Coffee:
Well, that’s what he had on top of his car.
Robert Stone:
Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And he had it so that he had AC and DC in the car. Because he used to have to go to people’s houses and ask them, “Could he-“
Robert Stone:
Plug in. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
… “Hook up that…” And he’ll tell you to, “Let me hook up.”
Robert Stone:
Right.
Acorne Coffee:
So then he started putting it on his… He had it made in his car. And he bought houses and everything from playing that guitar, too.
Robert Stone:
I know. He made a lot of money.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah.
Robert Stone:
He lives well now.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah.
Robert Stone:
He lives right. He lives down in St. Pete. He lives a block off the water.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, he’s doing good! Yeah. I made a pretty penny in my day.
Robert Stone:
Is that right?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah! I remember, I was the only one playing at one time.
Robert Stone:
Did you play street corners, too, like he did? Did you-
Acorne Coffee:
Did I do what?
Robert Stone:
… Did you play on street corners like he did, too?
Acorne Coffee:
I played outside of the churches.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
We had street service.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And I played outside of churches.
Robert Stone:
Was that in Philadelphia?
Acorne Coffee:
Philadelphia. Also, in Canton, Mississippi, New Jersey, South Carolina… Let’s say this was like-
Robert Stone:
Now, when you played in Mississippi, was that the Jewell Dominion or the Keith?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. When I played at Mississippi, that was the Keith Dominion.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative)..
Acorne Coffee:
I was on the National Evangelistic Team, and I played for the missionaries-
Robert Stone:
Wow!
Acorne Coffee:
… when we went out and had street services.
Robert Stone:
Man, we got to get together! You’re a history book!
Acorne Coffee:
If I’m not mistaken, I got some video tapes of Mississippi when we played.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative). Well, we got to get together and… But I need to get going now, because my phone bill is going to go through the roof here.
Acorne Coffee:
You’re not kidding!
Robert Stone:
But I’m sure enjoying it, and I want to get together with you sometime. And-
Acorne Coffee:
Okay. Good. You’ve got my phone number, my address.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Yep-
Acorne Coffee:
Drop me a line. Just give me a call, and I’ll see what I can do. Anything I can do-
Robert Stone:
Yeah. And I’ll send you two or three of these CDs, so you ought to have the full set. And I-
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah, man. Ooh, I’ll be crazy about those!
Robert Stone:
Oh, you’re going to enjoy them. And well, you know how Chuck’s… The Campbells’… That turned out real nice, I think.
Acorne Coffee:
Right. It did turn out nice.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. I was so-
Acorne Coffee:
Did you know Katie Jackson?
Robert Stone:
Well, I was there when we recorded her!
Acorne Coffee:
Okay.
Robert Stone:
Matter of fact, I’ll-
Acorne Coffee:
I think they sang that the other night. You know, my son is playing, too.
Robert Stone:
No, I didn’t know! What’s his name?
Acorne Coffee:
Acorne Jr.
Robert Stone:
Acorne Jr.?
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. He’s good.
Robert Stone:
Where is he, in Philly? Or in South-
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. He’s in Philly.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. He’s pretty good.
Robert Stone:
Well, that’s great. Does he play a pedal steel, or lap?
Acorne Coffee:
He plays a pedal steel.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative)..
Acorne Coffee:
Six-string, all of that. You know, most people are going back to the six-string.
Robert Stone:
Yep. Six or eight, that’s all you need.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. If I went anywhere, I would go back to eight. But I done got established on the 10 now, so I’m not going to try to squeeze all that stuff and run up and down them strings like that. Because it’s supposed to be making it easier on yourself, not hard.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. That’s right. No, after a while, you don’t want to change any more. You get used to what you’re doing, and you-
Acorne Coffee:
And then you can-
Robert Stone:
… stick with it. Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Well, I’ve really enjoyed talking with you!
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah, it’s been nice talking with you.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. And if I don’t see you before, I’ll see you in March up at Rochester.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
And-
Acorne Coffee:
There’s probably some more I could have told you if I had known you was going to call me.
Robert Stone:
Well-
Acorne Coffee:
I probably could have been thinking of something. You know?
Robert Stone:
… Well, if you get a chance, jot it down and I’ll call you again.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Because I love talking about this stuff.
Acorne Coffee:
Okay. Well, me too, bud. This is fun!
Robert Stone:
Yeah! Well, it gets your mind going.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Well, I’ll tell you: It’s been very rewarding for me to document this music, and make these records, and stuff. And-
Acorne Coffee:
I’m just glad to have been back there.
Robert Stone:
Yeah?
Acorne Coffee:
In that time.
Robert Stone:
And I’m sure that there’s going to be more. You know? Because the guy that I’ve been working with on the record label, he’s very enthused about this music. He really loves it, and we’re getting some good reviews. I think the first album has sold around 3,000 already.
Acorne Coffee:
Phew! That ain’t bad.
Robert Stone:
No. That’s just starting to get his money back. You know?
Acorne Coffee:
That’s great.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
No, that’s not bad. And these young guys in the church will buy them anyway, because they want something to try to steal off it, anyway.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
Well, you can ask the Campbells: The record label treated them real good, too.
Acorne Coffee:
They did?
Robert Stone:
They got a big advance on their royalties. And they’re getting royalties and all that. Yeah, next time you talk to them, you ask them. They got nothing but praise. You know?
Acorne Coffee:
Okay!
Robert Stone:
Yeah. As a matter of fact, I would encourage you. You know? You talk to Chuck and Phil sometimes, and Darick, and ask them about me, and about this record deal. They’ll tell you. They-
Acorne Coffee:
Right. Well, I talked with Chuck in the general assembly. I mean, it was outside in the car talking.
Robert Stone:
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Acorne Coffee:
And he was telling me about it. And what he was saying seemed like… to jump from overnight to that… it seemed like, “Wow, man! That’s a big jump!” But he was telling me how great it was.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Well, he’s… They have been real, real, real easy to work with. And of course, I’ve been hearing about Chuck for a long time.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
I mean, everybody-
Acorne Coffee:
They’re nice people. They’re good people. You know?
Robert Stone:
They’re the greatest. I can’t say enough. You know? I’ve known them two years, and I feel like I’ve known them all my life.
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah?
Robert Stone:
They’re great folks, and-
Acorne Coffee:
I talk to the kids sometimes, too.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. And their father, too. Bishop-
Acorne Coffee:
Yeah. All the time.
Robert Stone:
Yeah.
Acorne Coffee:
He’s a good person.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. They’ve been over to my home.
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, yeah?
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Okay, well, I’d better run before I run out of money!
Acorne Coffee:
Okay!
Robert Stone:
I enjoyed talking to you!
Acorne Coffee:
And I enjoyed talking to you!
Robert Stone:
Yeah, and I’ll get those CDs in the mail tomorrow.
Acorne Coffee:
Okay. I sure do appreciate it, because I just might leave out of here now.
Robert Stone:
Yeah. Well, they’ll be waiting on you when you get home, I’m sure.
Acorne Coffee:
Right.
Robert Stone:
All righty. Well, take care. Have a good Christmas!
Acorne Coffee:
Oh, and you do the same, too!
Robert Stone:
I sure will!
Acorne Coffee:
All right.
Robert Stone:
Bye, now!
Acorne Coffee:
Bye!