1980

ROSANNE CASH

I met Rosanne Cash for the first time in Las Vegas. I was playing keyboards for the Oak Ridge Boys, who were opening the show for Johnny Cash at the Hilton on the Las Vegas Strip. Rosanne was about nineteen years old and was part of the Cash family entourage. I immediately noticed that she was a pretty girl with a very sweet spirit about her. I didn’t see her much after that, until I was playing with The Cherry Bombs and she began dating the recently divorced Rodney Crowell. Rodney later produced Rosanne’s first record for CBS Nashville, and our band played on the record and also become her touring band—good times!

Rosanne and Rodney got married. And as part of The Cherry Bombs, I played on Rodney’s Warner Brothers albums, as well as Rosanne’s next two albums, Right or Wrong and Seven Year Ache, the latter of which included hit songs “Seven Year Ache” and “Blue Moon with Heartache.” After I quit playing on the road and became a record executive and producer, I continued to stay in touch with Rosanne and Rodney. By then we were all “chosen family.” We all still have a bond, to this day.

Rosanne is currently married to producer and fabulous musician John Leventhal.

Emory Gordy (back-facing), Larrie Londin, Rosanne Cash, and me, about to leave the Nashville Airport on tour.

“I’ve known Tony almost forty years. He has a permanent soft spot in my heart. His generosity as a performer and a friend is unwavering. I still use his one-liners if I want people to think I’m funny. Tony has a place in music history, and in the hearts of those who’ve worked with him and loved him, that is uniquely his own.”

Rosanne Cash