Hustle’s the name of the game

Nothing in common?“Rhinestone Cowboy" is a song written by Larry Weiss and first recorded and released on his 1974 album Black and Blue Suite on which a certain James Hendrix had earlier played dobro and acoustic guitars.

Subsequently, Glen Campbell recorded a version on his own 1974 album, Houston (I'm Coming To See You), that topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in September 1975, later becoming Campbell's signature song and winning numerous awards.

"I heard 'Rhinestone Cowboy' on the radio," Campbell said. "It was a track off Larry Weiss' album, and I immediately got a cassette of it. I actually learned the song while we were on a tour of Australia in November of '74. When I got back to the States, I went into Al Coury's office at Capitol and he said, 'I've got a great song,' and he played 'Rhinestone Cowboy' for me. Well, I was familiar with the song by that time. I could've whistled it backwards. But I related to the lyrics immediately. In the first verse he says, 'There's been a load of compromising on the road to my horizon.' Then later he says, 'There'll be a load of compromising on the road to my horizon." And the truth in that struck me; I think that's what sold me on the song, much more than even the hook itself, the 'rhinestone cowboy' stuff."

We’ll be on the road to our horizon tomorrow night, Wednesday, at Tuck Shop, from 8.00 pm. Our regular programme resumes.