 of the great and the late and the legendary Charlie Pride and in a few minutes I'll be talking to him of course. When you hear the name Pride you immediately think of Charlie but his younger brother is just everybody's good. He is a legend and he's alright I have to say. Carved out his own path and country music. He shared the stage with the likes of Willie Nelson, Ricky Van Shelton, Barbara Mandrell and many many more. And we'll be talking to him about his life and times in just a few minutes and in the studio as well as a very own Tommy Rosney. We're going to further a big thanks to Mark Donner-Marie Daugherty for the news. The news team will be back in the morning and bright and early with all the latest national and international and local news as well. While I get in touch with those we are live on Facebook and Instagram and Twitter. We can reach us also on the Highland Radio app and WhatsApp and text number 08 660 25000. And of course getting the show off to start this evening of course is Stephen Pride. From his album and it's called Pride on the Wild Side. An album that was recorded back in 2005. I'd love to hear from you. Good to have you company. And Stephen you're very welcome along to the show. Well thank you very much Rosemary. It's a great great pleasure to have you here indeed. It's a pleasure being here. Thank you. And of course you're playing down in the Mount Arigil tonight. Yes. As well as the country awards as long as not right Tommy. That's right tonight the country awards us. And your special guest at the country awards tonight. Yes that's correct. And you're playing your own show tomorrow night. Correct. OK we're going to talk to you about your life and your music and when you grew up in Mississippi. So tell me about when you were young and you were growing up Stephen. When I was growing up I was I guess we lived on the sharecroppers farm until I was five years old. And then my father moved us my sister and I. He remarried and moved to Lambert from Sledge. And I grew up basically in Marx and Lambert Mississippi. I was also born in Marx Mississippi. So while growing up those were my areas of growing up and developing. And sharecroppers sharecroppers it must have been a tough kind of life. Yes it was. It was quite a demanding and challenging work. Yeah. For people probably there are listeners that doesn't know as both what sharecroppers mean. It means that you actually get part of your crop to the landowner is it? Yes in order to facilitate success from the good Lord giving you crop. So that must have been tough enough because the crop failed or whatever it was. Okay when you moved things were were you still working on sharecropping or was it different? No it wasn't I never actually. I was a child during that time. But my dad he actually when moved he involved with other works. He was a school bus driver and just like I said by his own craft his own skills. He was also a carpenter and a barber as well as a school bus driver. And you were brought up in Lambert Mississippi and I went to school in Marx. And I also was born in Marx Mississippi. Very good. So you were brought up through music weren't you? Music was in your family? Yes. Listening to country music. Yes. Our dad did. Yes. He listened to the Grand Ole Opry. Yeah but you know like I said that was his only music that he listened to other than gospel. Yeah and tell me you met Charlie. You were telling me earlier you met Charlie when you were eight years old. There's 21 years difference in both of you. Yeah. And you met Charlie when you were eight years old. Yeah I first met my brother in Mac. And Charlie when I was eight. Because of course they were way working of course. Yes. Yes and they were way. You were a baby yeah. Yes. Wow. So tell me when you first heard Charlie singing. Oh that was great. I first heard him singing on the Lawrence Welk show. The Lawrence Welk show. My stepmother and I were sitting in front of the TV and looking at the program. And I'm going to mention that tomorrow night too. There's a few really lovely stories I have about home and him coming home. But anyway to continue it. We were looking at the Lawrence Welk show and my brother was on TV and Lawrence Welk introduced him. And he came on and he did one of his songs. And ten minutes later there's a knock on the door on the front porch. And it's my brother. Well. He had driven down from Nashville. Wow. And I'm trying to I'm looking here I am looking at him on TV. And then he's coming in the house stepping in the house. And I'm trying to figure out how is that possible. How can he be there and here at the same time. And see that's all prior to me knowing about technology. Yeah. I'm young. I'm a kid. Child. You know they know no better. Of course. Yeah. Well tell me this. Then when did you start to sing? When did you started actually. Six years old. Really. Yeah. Singing country music. Yeah. No. Not country music. I started realizing I had the ability and the best talent to sing. Yeah. Uh huh. Yeah. At six. At six. Yeah. Because his mother bought him a guitar when he was about eight years old. And yeah. Or maybe 10. Was it Tommy? I think. I think it was 10. Yeah. It was 10 maybe. Yeah. And he started to sing and then so. Yeah. So when did you start to sing and then. Oh. I'm sorry. Let me correct that. He was 14. Was he? Right. Yeah. He was 14 when she when he got this serious robot guitar. Wow. Very good. He started himself to play the chords play and everything. Do you play the guitar yourself? Yes. Yeah. Wow. When did you start yourself playing guitar? 83. Wow. Very good. So when did you start then and sing in professionally yourself? Uh. 84. 85. Yeah. Right. Okay. And then did you ever sing along with your brother? Oh yeah. Yeah. Wow. Yes. When later on in the later years. Yes. He was gracious enough. I love him for that. Mm-hmm. He took me on tour with him. Oh, absolutely. Brilliant. But we sang together a couple of times at home, you know. Mm-hmm. I'm talking about for the general public. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Gospel music is a big party for life as well, wasn't it? Oh, yes. Yeah. You grew up with gospel. Yes. Yeah. Back then is everywhere. Yeah, of course. All families had that vein. Yeah. Yeah, gospel vein. Yes. And then the big stars, anyway, started off in gospel music, didn't they? Yeah. Well, history-wise, I'm not as versed on the actual situation, but I would only assume that all of those genres of music were pretty much connected. Mm-hmm. You know? Okay, tell me about your CD, Pride on the Wild Side. Pride on the Wild Side became an existent, like you said, late 2004, early 2005. I had done a Nashville session back in 99, 2000 of sick songs that were kind of like sitting a little bit for... My producer at the time was handling other major artists. Mm-hmm. And in 2004, later part of 2000, early part of 2005, I went back to Nashville and let my producer, Jim Glenn Pace, we got together and comprised, and I listened to a lot of songs, and I picked out about maybe 280 to 300 songs, just listening to songs, and I managed to come up on six to add to the other six that I had done previously. Mm-hmm. And so that's how that album became. Mm-hmm. I love the album. You have another album out as well, don't you? You recorded an album as well, didn't you? Not an entire album. There's a single that is being recognized here in Ireland that I did when I was in Norway. Mm-hmm. I recorded this... I recorded one of my brother's hits, Crystal Chandelier and Christians in Norway. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Oh, wow, very good. The CDs, kind of a blend of country melodies that kind of rip your heart out, and honky-tonk, kind of. Yeah, I can't remember the reporter who actually made that assumption or made that narrative, but I considered it to be a group of a combination of songs that had a meaning, and it told stories, but it had different nice melodies, you see. Yeah. And the instrumentation was quite complimentary, I thought. Mm-hmm. I'll be playing tracks from that CD now throughout the show, even when you're going... Yeah. Because really, it's my featured... I do a featured artist on the show every single week. I feature one American artist, and I play tracks throughout the show from that artist, so that's what I'll be doing tonight. And we'll expect some of the same on Wednesday, will we, from that CD? Actually, this is a short promotional tour and tribute to Charlie, to my brother, and to all the fans that love him so much and have been so kind and loving to him, and for him to be the same, giving back to them since he's been a part of Ireland for so many years. This basically was an idea that was prompted through Hugh O'Brien to give back to the country of Ireland, to the fans of Ireland, and this was a short promotional tour that's going to reflect that. Absolutely, brilliant. Looking forward to that. Tell me you're going... But to answer your question, we haven't... the band... I did not send them any of my songs. This is a total tribute to my brother. Oh, yes, right. And have you got your own band with you? No, ma'am. No, no. These are artists from Ireland. Right, okay, very good. You're a very spiritual person, Stephen. Well, I believe in God. I believe in Jesus Christ. Yes, I would say yes. Yeah, you said, and I quote, you draw unto the Lord to guide you. Yes. Yeah. Every day, I ask that. Yeah, absolutely brilliant. Very good. Okay, I know you have to go. And I know that, to me, you sound like Charlie. You were singing that song, Crystal Chandeliers. Tell me, what do you think? Rosemary, can I just say, I heard him doing a sound check earlier today for the song, he's singing tonight. And if that's anything to go by that show he's going to be doing tomorrow night down in the Mount Argyll, it'll be some show. And he's in Bundour next Wednesday night. He's doing a few gigs around the country, but I'm telling you, just looking at him at stage, looking at him on stage and hearing his voice, you're saying, I know that voice. Yeah, of course. As I said to Steve, Well, thank you, Tony. As I said to Steve and myself when I was talking to him on Friday night, he said, you know, it's grand having the talent and that, and you know, I asked him the story about, you know, whatever field people would be judging him on his brother, but if you haven't got it yourself and he isn't in the Bundins, let me tell you. Absolutely, yeah, absolutely. And you sound so very, you have your own unique style. He has his own unique style as well, Tommy, but he does sounds, once you hear him, you know, you can hear Charlie's voice coming through. Oh, yes. Yeah, it's the genetics and plus and now I'm sure he's probably doing that too. Yeah, absolutely. Up above, you know. I was talking to him earlier and you were saying that you're very like Charlie in every way and you have different traits and you just like Charlie, you know, but Charlie was so funny. Charlie was so funny, remember, Tommy? It's great to see Stephen like that too because you know the way yourself for Rosemary, the way country music is going these days, it's great to see a young man. Yeah. Now, he is a young man, isn't he? He's younger to me anyway, but it's great to see him keeping the traditional sound of steel and that because Nashville has gone to her lately. Stephen was saying to me the other night, Texas is the place to be these days. Absolutely. We were actually talking, we were discussing that earlier on about the song that Alan Jackson and George Strait wrote, Murder and Music Rope. Murder and Music Rope, yeah. And I was asking him about what he thought about the music in National at the moment, you know, but he was saying, he's not going to say anything about it on air at the moment. Any American artist that I mentioned it to, kept gracefully, you know, they wouldn't say as such, I agree with you, but... Yeah, yeah, yeah. They don't want to say. Yeah, absolutely. And he was saying Nashville's not the same at all now as you go to, you know yourself, Tommy, and it isn't the same. But anyway, that's great to have you with us. Hey, I appreciate you having me. Absolute pleasure to have you. Thank you for having me. I really appreciate it. You're very, very welcome. I know you're busy and you took the time out to come up from the Mount Arigal and you're going to play now in a little while or you would perform a little while. So again, thank you very much and I want to wish you the very best of luck with your tour. Thank you very much. And we will see you on Wednesday night because I'm going on Wednesday night. I'll probably go down later as well for a little while. Awesome. I look forward to it. Yeah. All right then, Stephen, thanks very much again. You're quite welcome. Thank you. And enjoy the night. And Tommy, thanks for coming in as well. You're more than welcome. All right.