1 00:00:00,966 --> 00:00:05,033 ♪♪ 2 00:00:05,033 --> 00:00:10,133 ♪♪ 3 00:00:26,666 --> 00:00:29,300 [ "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" plays ] 4 00:00:29,300 --> 00:00:30,600 -It's not Christmas if I don't hear 5 00:00:30,600 --> 00:00:31,966 "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree," Brenda Lee. 6 00:00:31,966 --> 00:00:35,833 People can't really believe it's been that many years. 7 00:00:35,833 --> 00:00:37,866 -She's in our house at every Christmas. 8 00:00:37,866 --> 00:00:39,233 -It's true. 9 00:00:39,233 --> 00:00:40,533 -She's, like, sitting next to the tree with a present. 10 00:00:40,533 --> 00:00:43,666 -That song didn't go number one over all those decades 11 00:00:43,666 --> 00:00:46,566 and finally went number one. Crazy. 12 00:00:46,566 --> 00:00:49,000 -She just had the number-one record at Christmas. 13 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:52,366 I mean, she's just -- Come on. Who does that? 14 00:00:52,366 --> 00:00:55,733 -And I got the honor of being in her first video she's ever -- 15 00:00:55,733 --> 00:00:57,033 she ever made in her whole life. 16 00:00:57,033 --> 00:01:00,233 -Her only video, and it goes number one. 17 00:01:00,233 --> 00:01:02,566 -And she has tenacity and perseverance. 18 00:01:02,566 --> 00:01:05,666 -Is she country? Yes. Is she pop? Yes. 19 00:01:05,666 --> 00:01:07,266 Is she rockabilly? Yes. 20 00:01:07,266 --> 00:01:10,200 And she sings it all effortlessly. 21 00:01:10,200 --> 00:01:11,566 -My mother told me, 22 00:01:11,566 --> 00:01:13,433 "Don't let anybody tell you who you are. 23 00:01:13,433 --> 00:01:16,033 You know who you are. Now go be it." 24 00:01:16,033 --> 00:01:17,800 [ Projector whirring ] 25 00:01:17,800 --> 00:01:21,233 -Friends, here's Little Miss TNT, Brenda Lee! 26 00:01:21,233 --> 00:01:22,666 [ "Dynamite" plays ] 27 00:01:22,666 --> 00:01:23,666 -♪ Dynamite ♪ 28 00:01:23,666 --> 00:01:24,866 -♪ You're dynamite ♪ 29 00:01:24,866 --> 00:01:26,900 ♪ Dynamite ♪ 30 00:01:26,900 --> 00:01:28,633 -I just always think of her going, "Dynamite!" 31 00:01:28,633 --> 00:01:31,133 with that little growly thing she does all the time. 32 00:01:31,133 --> 00:01:32,866 Just unbelievable. 33 00:01:32,866 --> 00:01:35,100 -♪ Hold me tight ♪ 34 00:01:35,100 --> 00:01:37,700 ♪ I just explode like dynamite ♪ 35 00:01:37,700 --> 00:01:39,700 -I thought, "Brenda can't be this young." 36 00:01:39,700 --> 00:01:42,033 By the time she got 14 or 15 years old, 37 00:01:42,033 --> 00:01:44,533 she had a much lower register. 38 00:01:44,533 --> 00:01:46,833 She was always in control of everything, 39 00:01:46,833 --> 00:01:50,633 both rhythmically, emotionally, pitch. 40 00:01:50,633 --> 00:01:53,833 -I must have been 12 years old. 41 00:01:53,833 --> 00:01:57,333 And to hear another 12-year-old sound like that...? 42 00:01:57,333 --> 00:01:58,900 -From age 8 to 18, 43 00:01:58,900 --> 00:02:01,666 when she's an active professional, 44 00:02:01,666 --> 00:02:04,500 those first 10 years, she's a kid. 45 00:02:04,500 --> 00:02:06,166 She didn't know what the heck's going on. 46 00:02:06,166 --> 00:02:07,600 She's just going, "Go there and sing," 47 00:02:07,600 --> 00:02:10,200 and she goes there and sings, and everybody's happy. 48 00:02:10,200 --> 00:02:12,500 -♪ Make history tonight ♪ 49 00:02:12,500 --> 00:02:14,333 ♪ The power of one hour of love's delight ♪ 50 00:02:14,333 --> 00:02:16,466 It was like, "Is this really happening? 51 00:02:16,466 --> 00:02:18,300 Am I really doing this? 52 00:02:18,300 --> 00:02:21,266 Am I going to be able to do this and help my family 53 00:02:21,266 --> 00:02:23,033 and help my siblings?" 54 00:02:23,033 --> 00:02:25,133 And that's how it felt to me, and I loved it. 55 00:02:25,133 --> 00:02:26,900 I loved to sing. 56 00:02:26,900 --> 00:02:29,133 Now, and I didn't care if anybody listened. 57 00:02:29,133 --> 00:02:31,400 I would sing all day long if they let me. 58 00:02:31,400 --> 00:02:33,166 I loved it. Still do. 59 00:02:33,166 --> 00:02:38,233 -You have sold over 100 million records. 60 00:02:38,233 --> 00:02:42,933 And it's all genres, right? -It's pop and country and rock. 61 00:02:42,933 --> 00:02:45,033 And started out rockabilly, 62 00:02:45,033 --> 00:02:47,700 then went full bang into rock 'n' roll 63 00:02:47,700 --> 00:02:50,266 when it first started, along with Elvis, 64 00:02:50,266 --> 00:02:52,833 and I was the first female rocker. 65 00:02:52,833 --> 00:02:54,533 Then went into pop, 66 00:02:54,533 --> 00:02:58,100 and then had a wonderful career in country. 67 00:02:58,100 --> 00:03:00,333 -We think about all these raucous kind of rockabilly songs 68 00:03:00,333 --> 00:03:03,166 that she did, but she really was a torch singer. 69 00:03:03,166 --> 00:03:06,066 -When I was little, my mother would sing me to sleep. 70 00:03:06,066 --> 00:03:08,900 My mother was a pretty darn good singer. 71 00:03:08,900 --> 00:03:13,800 And I didn't know the songs, but I knew I loved the songs. 72 00:03:13,800 --> 00:03:15,700 And when I got old enough to say, 73 00:03:15,700 --> 00:03:20,433 "Mom, what songs were those?" 74 00:03:20,433 --> 00:03:22,433 she told me they were Hank Williams songs. 75 00:03:22,433 --> 00:03:25,666 So I cut my teeth on Mr. Hank. 76 00:03:26,000 --> 00:03:29,066 -♪ I got a feeling called the blues ♪ 77 00:03:29,066 --> 00:03:30,100 ♪ Oh, Lord ♪ 78 00:03:30,100 --> 00:03:32,166 ♪ Since my baby said goodbye ♪ 79 00:03:32,166 --> 00:03:34,333 -We couldn't afford batteries all the time. 80 00:03:34,333 --> 00:03:36,200 Daddy had to listen - and Mama, too -- 81 00:03:36,200 --> 00:03:38,766 the Yankees and the Dodgers play. 82 00:03:38,766 --> 00:03:41,300 Daddy was Yankee, Mama was Dodger. 83 00:03:41,300 --> 00:03:44,466 And I wanted to listen to the Grand Ole Opry. 84 00:03:44,466 --> 00:03:46,933 -Back in the '40s, and even into the '50s, 85 00:03:46,933 --> 00:03:48,533 the radio was what -- 86 00:03:48,533 --> 00:03:50,066 What we think of television today 87 00:03:50,066 --> 00:03:53,700 is what radio was to that generation of Americans. 88 00:03:53,700 --> 00:03:55,166 People would rather give up their refrigerators 89 00:03:55,166 --> 00:03:56,566 than give up their radios. 90 00:03:56,566 --> 00:03:58,766 It was your entertainment, it was your source of news, 91 00:03:58,766 --> 00:04:00,500 it was everything. 92 00:04:00,500 --> 00:04:03,733 -Every small city in the United States 93 00:04:03,733 --> 00:04:05,400 had a radio station. 94 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:08,300 -Radio made so many artists. 95 00:04:08,300 --> 00:04:10,233 Radio was our bible. 96 00:04:10,233 --> 00:04:14,400 We had a variety of different types of music 97 00:04:14,400 --> 00:04:15,833 all on one station. 98 00:04:15,833 --> 00:04:19,666 -♪ I looked over Jordan and what did I see ♪ 99 00:04:19,666 --> 00:04:21,300 -Being a little girl in a small town 100 00:04:21,300 --> 00:04:24,133 where no one did this for a living, you know, 101 00:04:24,133 --> 00:04:25,966 if you sang, you were in the church choir. 102 00:04:25,966 --> 00:04:29,266 -My mother would get us ready for school every morning. 103 00:04:29,266 --> 00:04:33,566 My sister would come home looking as pristine as she left. 104 00:04:33,566 --> 00:04:36,933 I would come home with my sashes torn out of my dress. 105 00:04:36,933 --> 00:04:39,733 My -- you know, my shoes all scuffed up 106 00:04:39,733 --> 00:04:41,466 'cause I'd climb the trees with the boys 107 00:04:41,466 --> 00:04:43,466 and do everything the boys did. 108 00:04:43,466 --> 00:04:45,466 My dad was a carpenter. 109 00:04:45,466 --> 00:04:48,866 My mom was a stay-at-home mom. 110 00:04:48,866 --> 00:04:52,433 I had two siblings, a brother and a sister. 111 00:04:52,433 --> 00:04:57,400 At our grade school, we used to have a talent show. 112 00:04:57,400 --> 00:04:59,033 I was in first grade. 113 00:04:59,033 --> 00:05:01,700 The winner got a trophy, 114 00:05:01,700 --> 00:05:04,166 and the second runner-up got a box of, 115 00:05:04,166 --> 00:05:05,733 uh, peppermint sticks. 116 00:05:05,733 --> 00:05:07,800 I wanted those peppermint sticks. 117 00:05:07,800 --> 00:05:09,800 I really did. 118 00:05:09,800 --> 00:05:13,633 But I won talent, so I got the trophy, 119 00:05:13,633 --> 00:05:16,100 and it was bittersweet because I was like, 120 00:05:16,100 --> 00:05:18,033 "Mama's so proud, and I'm proud, 121 00:05:18,033 --> 00:05:21,033 but I want those -- I want those sticks." 122 00:05:21,033 --> 00:05:23,333 Because I'd never had any before. 123 00:05:23,333 --> 00:05:28,533 My dad died at a -- at an early age for me, 124 00:05:28,533 --> 00:05:33,233 and my mom raised, uh, my brother and my sister 125 00:05:33,233 --> 00:05:35,266 and me by herself. 126 00:05:35,266 --> 00:05:38,833 My mother started working 14 hours, 127 00:05:38,833 --> 00:05:42,166 16 hours a day, almost, in a cotton mill. 128 00:05:42,166 --> 00:05:47,033 A lot of my memories of my childhood are sad, in a way, 129 00:05:47,033 --> 00:05:50,866 because I lost my father, but glad, too, 130 00:05:50,866 --> 00:05:55,700 because I -- I had a plethora of relatives. 131 00:05:55,700 --> 00:05:59,033 My favorite teacher, her name was Norton, Miss Norton, 132 00:05:59,033 --> 00:06:01,000 but I called her Miss Snorton. 133 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:04,400 We really never had the money for the lunchroom. 134 00:06:04,400 --> 00:06:06,033 And we really didn't have the money 135 00:06:06,033 --> 00:06:09,933 to pack a lunch, but Miss Snorton knew that. 136 00:06:09,933 --> 00:06:16,266 So, Lucille Norton always brought a bag full 137 00:06:16,266 --> 00:06:19,666 of lunch for me and her. And she always said, 138 00:06:19,666 --> 00:06:22,433 "Brenda, you're not gonna believe this, 139 00:06:22,433 --> 00:06:25,200 but I brought too much food today. 140 00:06:25,200 --> 00:06:29,733 Can you -- you want to help me eat this food?" 141 00:06:29,733 --> 00:06:33,466 I used to go to the little country store on the corner, 142 00:06:33,466 --> 00:06:35,333 and I would stand up on the counter and sing, 143 00:06:35,333 --> 00:06:36,933 and I'd get pennies. 144 00:06:36,933 --> 00:06:39,966 So that's when I first realized, "Ooh! 145 00:06:39,966 --> 00:06:43,133 Maybe I could sing, you know and get money for my family." 146 00:06:43,133 --> 00:06:45,733 And that's how that idea got into my head. 147 00:06:45,733 --> 00:06:52,600 -So, just by osmosis, she became the breadwinner of the family. 148 00:06:52,600 --> 00:06:57,733 -I won a contest to be on a TV show, 149 00:06:57,733 --> 00:07:00,366 and I started traveling with the band called 150 00:07:00,366 --> 00:07:02,566 John Farmer and the TV Ranch Boys, 151 00:07:02,566 --> 00:07:04,466 out of Atlanta, Georgia. 152 00:07:04,466 --> 00:07:07,066 And that was the first money I ever made. 153 00:07:07,066 --> 00:07:08,400 Was not much. 154 00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:12,866 I think my first gig was 20 bucks. 155 00:07:12,866 --> 00:07:16,033 But even at that young age, I saw that 156 00:07:16,033 --> 00:07:18,000 that helped our life. 157 00:07:18,000 --> 00:07:20,133 It put some food on the table. 158 00:07:20,133 --> 00:07:23,766 It -- It helped. And I loved it. 159 00:07:23,766 --> 00:07:26,333 -She was the one person in that family that had to take over. 160 00:07:26,333 --> 00:07:27,566 Again -- -It's fortitude. 161 00:07:27,566 --> 00:07:29,566 It's, you know... -And it's the universe 162 00:07:29,566 --> 00:07:31,866 telling -- making the path for her, 163 00:07:31,866 --> 00:07:34,566 and she was -- she was the one to do it. 164 00:07:34,566 --> 00:07:39,800 -My first TV appearance, it was like, "I'm doing that? 165 00:07:39,800 --> 00:07:42,100 They're letting me do that?" 166 00:07:42,100 --> 00:07:45,133 And it -- it -- it really was surreal. 167 00:07:45,133 --> 00:07:47,800 It was almost an out-of-mind experience. 168 00:07:47,800 --> 00:07:50,566 It was like, "Okay. I think that's me. 169 00:07:50,566 --> 00:07:51,933 Let me look again." [ Laughs ] 170 00:07:51,933 --> 00:07:53,666 I did one in Atlanta, Georgia. 171 00:07:53,666 --> 00:07:56,433 It was sponsored by an ice-cream company, 172 00:07:56,433 --> 00:07:59,366 and I got all the ice cream I could eat on Saturdays. 173 00:07:59,366 --> 00:08:00,766 So that was my pay. 174 00:08:00,766 --> 00:08:03,633 And then I traveled with a, uh, gospel group 175 00:08:03,633 --> 00:08:06,266 called the Master Workers Quartet 176 00:08:06,266 --> 00:08:09,700 because I was raised in the Southern Baptist church. 177 00:08:09,700 --> 00:08:13,033 A lot of my heritage and my roots in singing 178 00:08:13,033 --> 00:08:15,100 came from the field of gospel. 179 00:08:15,100 --> 00:08:17,366 -From the crossroads of country music, 180 00:08:17,366 --> 00:08:20,900 here's the "Ozark Jubilee," starring Red Foley! 181 00:08:20,900 --> 00:08:23,900 -Mr. Foley came to town, Red Foley. 182 00:08:23,900 --> 00:08:26,966 And he let me sing a song on the show, and at that point, 183 00:08:26,966 --> 00:08:31,666 he had the first network country television show, 184 00:08:31,666 --> 00:08:33,666 and it was called the "Ozark Jubilee," 185 00:08:33,666 --> 00:08:35,833 from Springfield, Missouri. 186 00:08:35,833 --> 00:08:39,300 He asked me if I'd like to come back and do the Jubilee, 187 00:08:39,300 --> 00:08:41,600 and, of course, we just chomping at the bit. 188 00:08:41,600 --> 00:08:43,533 We said, "Absolutely." 189 00:08:43,533 --> 00:08:48,066 So for a year or more, we took the Greyhound bus 190 00:08:48,066 --> 00:08:53,533 after school on Friday, rode all night long, got to Missouri, 191 00:08:53,533 --> 00:08:57,100 did the show -- it was live -- got back on the bus, 192 00:08:57,100 --> 00:09:01,833 rode all day long Sunday, got in school Monday morning. 193 00:09:01,833 --> 00:09:03,633 I was only 10. 194 00:09:03,633 --> 00:09:06,100 A columnist by the name of Jack O'Brien, 195 00:09:06,100 --> 00:09:09,200 the great Jack O'Brien out of New York, 196 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:12,166 wrote this glowing -- 197 00:09:12,166 --> 00:09:14,800 Nobody could believe it, much less me. 198 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:18,033 After I did the Red Foley show, at the "Ozark Jubilee," 199 00:09:18,033 --> 00:09:21,566 that's where I met my manager, 'cause he managed Red. 200 00:09:21,566 --> 00:09:24,400 And he was from Nashville, Dub Allbritten. 201 00:09:24,400 --> 00:09:26,266 -And he heard her sing and said, 202 00:09:26,266 --> 00:09:28,233 "Boy, I need to tell Paul Cohen at Decca Records about you." 203 00:09:28,233 --> 00:09:30,366 They quickly realized this girl's got more talent 204 00:09:30,366 --> 00:09:33,033 than any of these other kids that are here. 205 00:09:33,033 --> 00:09:35,500 She was a child prodigy. 206 00:09:35,500 --> 00:09:38,700 -That's how we came to move to Nashville. 207 00:09:38,700 --> 00:09:42,833 To be in the center, to have a recording contract. 208 00:09:42,833 --> 00:09:47,700 Dub took me over. He had a vision for me. 209 00:09:47,700 --> 00:09:49,733 He was like my dad. 210 00:09:49,733 --> 00:09:53,233 -She had a fully fledged, a fully formed career 211 00:09:53,233 --> 00:09:55,733 by the time she signed a record contract. 212 00:09:55,733 --> 00:09:57,400 -And Owen took me over. 213 00:09:57,400 --> 00:10:00,333 -Owen Bradley, her producer, also had the, 214 00:10:00,333 --> 00:10:03,433 I think now, visionary idea of marketing her 215 00:10:03,433 --> 00:10:07,266 to adult audiences and teen audiences at the same time. 216 00:10:07,266 --> 00:10:08,733 -And the rest is history. 217 00:10:08,733 --> 00:10:12,166 ♪ My baby whispers in my ear ♪ 218 00:10:12,166 --> 00:10:15,300 ♪ Mm, sweet nothin's ♪ 219 00:10:15,300 --> 00:10:16,433 -♪ Yeah ♪ 220 00:10:16,433 --> 00:10:19,066 -So, for me to be able to say, 221 00:10:19,066 --> 00:10:22,300 "Mom, you don't have to go to the cotton mill today. 222 00:10:22,300 --> 00:10:24,900 It's okay," that was a great thing. 223 00:10:24,900 --> 00:10:29,433 ♪ Things he wouldn't tell nobody else ♪ 224 00:10:29,433 --> 00:10:30,633 ♪ Secret, baby ♪ 225 00:10:30,633 --> 00:10:32,333 ♪ I keep 'em to myself ♪ 226 00:10:32,333 --> 00:10:34,800 ♪ Sweet nothin's, mm ♪ 227 00:10:34,800 --> 00:10:37,566 -When I first heard Brenda Lee, I thought, 228 00:10:37,566 --> 00:10:40,900 "How can this be coming out of this person?" 229 00:10:40,900 --> 00:10:45,033 She was a crossover before we even knew what the word was. 230 00:10:45,033 --> 00:10:46,066 ♪♪ 231 00:10:46,066 --> 00:10:49,533 -♪ Yeah, we both understand ♪ 232 00:10:49,533 --> 00:10:52,900 -Her records were hits on any station 233 00:10:52,900 --> 00:10:54,900 that played music. 234 00:10:54,900 --> 00:10:58,566 My goal as a songwriter was to write for Brenda Lee. 235 00:10:58,566 --> 00:11:01,700 I had to have her record my songs. 236 00:11:01,700 --> 00:11:04,366 -♪ My baby give me that special look ♪ 237 00:11:04,366 --> 00:11:07,100 ♪ Sweet nothin's, mm ♪ 238 00:11:07,100 --> 00:11:09,200 Owen once told me something. 239 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:12,300 He said, "Brenda..." -- and we listened to everything together. 240 00:11:12,300 --> 00:11:14,566 He'd say, "Be careful of what you choose. 241 00:11:14,566 --> 00:11:17,800 Don't prostitute yourself to choose a song 242 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:21,033 that you think commercially is gonna to be a hit. 243 00:11:21,033 --> 00:11:22,800 Especially if you're not crazy about it. 244 00:11:22,800 --> 00:11:24,200 Because if it is a hit, 245 00:11:24,200 --> 00:11:26,433 you're gonna be singing it the rest of your life." 246 00:11:28,933 --> 00:11:32,600 What was so special about Owen... 247 00:11:32,600 --> 00:11:35,133 He didn't know how talented he was, 248 00:11:35,133 --> 00:11:37,200 and that's 'cause he loved what he did. 249 00:11:37,200 --> 00:11:40,133 It was not a business to him. 250 00:11:40,133 --> 00:11:44,600 He loved his artists. He loved his musicians. 251 00:11:44,600 --> 00:11:48,600 Buddy Harman, Bobby Moore, Grady Martin, 252 00:11:48,600 --> 00:11:53,266 Hank Garland, Floyd Cramer, Ray Edenton. 253 00:11:53,266 --> 00:11:58,600 It wasn't contrived. There were no overdubs. 254 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:01,933 You either got it in one or two takes or you just didn't get it. 255 00:12:01,933 --> 00:12:04,033 If you can't get it in the first couple of takes, 256 00:12:04,033 --> 00:12:05,633 it's not the song for you, 257 00:12:05,633 --> 00:12:08,466 so we'd just quit and go -- we go to something else. 258 00:12:08,466 --> 00:12:11,566 It was just magic. It was the A team. 259 00:12:11,566 --> 00:12:13,233 -They both had great ears. 260 00:12:13,233 --> 00:12:15,633 They both knew kind of the path. 261 00:12:15,633 --> 00:12:18,000 Owen credited Brenda with really showing 262 00:12:18,000 --> 00:12:20,400 that pop music could be done in Nashville, 263 00:12:20,400 --> 00:12:22,166 and I mean international pop music. 264 00:12:22,166 --> 00:12:24,066 She had hits all over the world. 265 00:12:24,066 --> 00:12:26,633 Much more than anybody else coming out of Nashville. 266 00:12:26,633 --> 00:12:29,066 -I'm certainly grateful for Owen Bradley. 267 00:12:29,066 --> 00:12:33,100 And I'm grateful for that little pair-up. 268 00:12:33,100 --> 00:12:36,033 -I felt a -- a connection to Owen. 269 00:12:36,033 --> 00:12:39,966 I was like his child, really. One of his children. 270 00:12:39,966 --> 00:12:43,000 And when we weren't workin', I'd be up on the boat with -- 271 00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:46,500 with Owen and Katherine and the rest of the kids. 272 00:12:46,500 --> 00:12:49,766 -And because they treated her as though she was an equal, 273 00:12:49,766 --> 00:12:54,766 not as some stupid little kid, I think that was her schooling. 274 00:12:54,766 --> 00:12:57,933 That was her college, so to speak. 275 00:12:57,933 --> 00:13:00,800 He never handed her a song and said, "Okay. 276 00:13:00,800 --> 00:13:02,600 This is what you're going to do." 277 00:13:02,600 --> 00:13:05,133 They decided together. 278 00:13:05,133 --> 00:13:10,366 But he was also very much a life mentor, 279 00:13:10,366 --> 00:13:12,533 a life influence for her. 280 00:13:12,533 --> 00:13:15,100 He did sit her down at one point and said, "Look, you know, 281 00:13:15,100 --> 00:13:18,500 as we move toward different things in your career, 282 00:13:18,500 --> 00:13:20,733 you need to understand you're not always going to be 283 00:13:20,733 --> 00:13:22,200 America's darling. 284 00:13:22,200 --> 00:13:23,566 You will not always have 285 00:13:23,566 --> 00:13:26,500 the number-one record in America. 286 00:13:26,500 --> 00:13:29,933 So you need to figure out, 287 00:13:29,933 --> 00:13:34,066 as things change, where is your place? 288 00:13:34,066 --> 00:13:36,400 Where are you happy? 289 00:13:36,400 --> 00:13:38,266 And then you take that path, 290 00:13:38,266 --> 00:13:41,700 and don't worry about anything else." 291 00:13:41,700 --> 00:13:45,233 -I wasn't the pretty girl. I wasn't the Annette Funicello. 292 00:13:45,233 --> 00:13:48,000 I was 4'9" and overweight. 293 00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:50,066 'Cause that was really who I was. 294 00:13:50,066 --> 00:13:52,533 I had my first single date with my husband. 295 00:13:52,533 --> 00:13:54,700 -There were some women that stepped up and helped her. 296 00:13:54,700 --> 00:13:56,566 I know she's talked about Patsy Cline, 297 00:13:56,566 --> 00:13:58,366 how Patsy helped her. 298 00:13:58,366 --> 00:14:02,666 -Patsy was just... I loved her. 299 00:14:02,666 --> 00:14:07,166 She was just in the greatest sense of all, 300 00:14:07,166 --> 00:14:09,233 the greatest broad I've ever met. 301 00:14:09,233 --> 00:14:11,533 I loved her. 302 00:14:11,533 --> 00:14:14,033 And she was like my sister. 303 00:14:14,033 --> 00:14:17,633 I'd go and clomp around in her boots, 304 00:14:17,633 --> 00:14:21,833 in her clothes that were way too big for me. 305 00:14:21,833 --> 00:14:25,666 Lot of times, songs would come in with just a vocal guitar. 306 00:14:25,666 --> 00:14:29,700 Well, Owen could always hear it because he was an orchestra guy. 307 00:14:29,700 --> 00:14:33,000 He could hear things in his head that I couldn't. 308 00:14:33,000 --> 00:14:35,866 But I was a lyric girl. 309 00:14:35,866 --> 00:14:38,900 -Teen magazines, that was a connection. 310 00:14:38,900 --> 00:14:43,533 All of these magazines were very much our Google, you know, 311 00:14:43,533 --> 00:14:46,200 to find out what someone was doing 312 00:14:46,200 --> 00:14:49,466 and to see your picture or a story about you 313 00:14:49,466 --> 00:14:53,366 in one of those magazines. That's top of the line. 314 00:14:53,366 --> 00:14:57,466 -Georgia Winters wrote me up and became my dear friend, 315 00:14:57,466 --> 00:14:59,333 and she had one of the hottest mags 316 00:14:59,333 --> 00:15:01,566 in the country for teenagers. 317 00:15:01,566 --> 00:15:04,400 You know, I could put out the greatest song in the world, 318 00:15:04,400 --> 00:15:09,500 but if you don't hear it, and nobody writes about it, 319 00:15:09,500 --> 00:15:11,633 it might be great, but... 320 00:15:11,633 --> 00:15:13,333 -If you liked that kind of music, 321 00:15:13,333 --> 00:15:15,933 you bought those magazines with any money that you had. 322 00:15:15,933 --> 00:15:17,266 You wanted to know about the artists 323 00:15:17,266 --> 00:15:18,766 that you liked to hear sing. 324 00:15:18,766 --> 00:15:20,300 And she actually had a -- 325 00:15:20,300 --> 00:15:23,566 There was a comic book that was made on Brenda, 326 00:15:23,566 --> 00:15:25,233 which was pretty popular. 327 00:15:25,233 --> 00:15:27,533 -♪ Well, won't you come home, Bill Bailey ♪ 328 00:15:27,533 --> 00:15:29,833 ♪ Won't you come home? ♪ 329 00:15:29,833 --> 00:15:32,066 ♪ I'm on the whole night long ♪ 330 00:15:32,066 --> 00:15:36,866 I never was, like, the -- the sex symbol. 331 00:15:36,866 --> 00:15:38,766 I was like the girl next door. 332 00:15:38,766 --> 00:15:40,600 You cried on her shoulder and said, 333 00:15:40,600 --> 00:15:43,066 "He doesn't like me anymore. What can I do?" 334 00:15:43,066 --> 00:15:46,133 ♪ With nothin' but a fine-tooth comb ♪ 335 00:15:46,133 --> 00:15:48,300 ♪ Yeah, I know I'm to blame ♪ 336 00:15:48,300 --> 00:15:50,033 ♪ Well, ain't it a shame ♪ 337 00:15:50,033 --> 00:15:52,700 ♪ Bill Bailey, won't you please come home? ♪ 338 00:15:52,700 --> 00:15:53,733 -She was relatable. 339 00:15:53,733 --> 00:15:55,833 When you're performing as a female, 340 00:15:55,833 --> 00:15:57,266 you wanted to be taken seriously, 341 00:15:57,266 --> 00:16:00,433 so you wanted to look good, but not that good. 342 00:16:00,433 --> 00:16:01,566 You know what I mean? 343 00:16:01,566 --> 00:16:03,600 You were singing to the females in the audience, 344 00:16:03,600 --> 00:16:05,400 and I wanted them to be able to relate. 345 00:16:05,400 --> 00:16:06,900 That was always a fine line. 346 00:16:06,900 --> 00:16:08,633 -♪ Come home, Billy Bailey ♪ 347 00:16:08,633 --> 00:16:10,333 ♪ Won't you come home? ♪ 348 00:16:10,333 --> 00:16:12,633 Guys always headlined shows. 349 00:16:14,100 --> 00:16:17,200 Girls hardly ever headlined a show. 350 00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:18,900 -I always wondered why they didn't 351 00:16:18,900 --> 00:16:21,700 put more than one girl singer on a show. 352 00:16:21,700 --> 00:16:24,966 They just figured that the girls bought the records 353 00:16:24,966 --> 00:16:28,500 and they only wanted to hear young, handsome guys. 354 00:16:28,500 --> 00:16:31,766 -I think a 45 was like 99 cents. 355 00:16:31,766 --> 00:16:34,766 I had to mow a lawn, for a dollar a lawn, 356 00:16:34,766 --> 00:16:37,800 and then I could buy my brand new Brenda Lee song. 357 00:16:37,800 --> 00:16:40,133 -She becomes, then, a rock 'n' roll princess, 358 00:16:40,133 --> 00:16:42,200 and she starts touring with the Bobbies -- 359 00:16:42,200 --> 00:16:45,600 Bobby Rydell, Bobby Darin -- you know, all the Bobbies. 360 00:16:45,600 --> 00:16:47,533 And they were all teen idols like her. 361 00:16:47,533 --> 00:16:50,933 -In show business, Bobby V. was my really good friend. 362 00:16:50,933 --> 00:16:53,133 Bobby Rydell, Fabian. 363 00:16:53,133 --> 00:16:55,800 All the youngsters that were in my age group, 364 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:59,100 Paul Anka, we all hung out and everything. 365 00:16:59,100 --> 00:17:00,866 So, yeah, I had a lot of boy-friends, 366 00:17:00,866 --> 00:17:02,833 but not boy boyfriends. 367 00:17:02,833 --> 00:17:07,966 -As she became a teenager, she desperately wanted to date. 368 00:17:07,966 --> 00:17:09,833 And she had this crush on Fabian. 369 00:17:09,833 --> 00:17:11,700 She kept throwing him hints to ask her out. 370 00:17:11,700 --> 00:17:15,300 Well, he finally did. They were in San Antonio, 371 00:17:15,300 --> 00:17:18,733 and they were walking along the canal there. 372 00:17:18,733 --> 00:17:22,766 And Brenda said that she noticed the bushes shaking. 373 00:17:22,766 --> 00:17:26,300 Lo and behold, her manager, some of the band members, 374 00:17:26,300 --> 00:17:29,366 were following them just to make sure 375 00:17:29,366 --> 00:17:33,066 that Fabian and Brenda Lee were on their best behavior. 376 00:17:33,066 --> 00:17:35,566 -I was singing all those unrequited love songs. 377 00:17:35,566 --> 00:17:38,833 I'd never had a date. I did -- I never kissed a boy. 378 00:17:38,833 --> 00:17:40,300 I didn't know what I was -- 379 00:17:40,300 --> 00:17:42,200 But I loved the lyric. 380 00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:44,066 -And for a kid especially, 381 00:17:44,066 --> 00:17:46,633 you can't do the things everybody else does. 382 00:17:46,633 --> 00:17:49,800 You got to -- can't stand here, you can't be in the casino, 383 00:17:49,800 --> 00:17:51,800 you can't be out in the bar. 384 00:17:51,800 --> 00:17:55,466 You have to be backstage at all times. 385 00:17:55,466 --> 00:17:57,533 And that can be a lonely existence. 386 00:17:57,533 --> 00:18:00,600 -So, Brenda didn't get to have much fun. 387 00:18:00,600 --> 00:18:04,433 -I started in rock, and I knew a song that I could sing. 388 00:18:04,433 --> 00:18:06,833 And so we just did it and put it out. 389 00:18:06,833 --> 00:18:08,700 And let them call it what they may, 390 00:18:08,700 --> 00:18:11,500 just go out and buy it, please. [ Chuckles ] 391 00:18:11,500 --> 00:18:13,033 That's all we thought about. 392 00:18:13,033 --> 00:18:15,166 -So she would have heard the Grand Ole Opry. 393 00:18:15,166 --> 00:18:20,166 She would have heard the R&B station in Nashville, WLAC. 394 00:18:20,166 --> 00:18:22,933 -A record promoter would go into radio stations 395 00:18:22,933 --> 00:18:25,200 in every city around the United States. 396 00:18:25,200 --> 00:18:28,100 If Brenda had a brand-new song on, 397 00:18:28,100 --> 00:18:29,566 they were going to hype that song. 398 00:18:29,566 --> 00:18:32,200 If you had a hit, you were making some money, 399 00:18:32,200 --> 00:18:33,800 and you were selling some records. 400 00:18:33,800 --> 00:18:37,100 -My experience was positive, because we were all -- 401 00:18:37,100 --> 00:18:39,900 especially in the rock movement. 402 00:18:39,900 --> 00:18:44,533 That was a whole new thing that we were all novices at. 403 00:18:44,533 --> 00:18:47,733 So we were all trying to buoy each other up. 404 00:18:47,733 --> 00:18:50,100 -That happens, and it takes people 405 00:18:50,100 --> 00:18:53,466 that are brave in the business to kind of take a chance. 406 00:18:53,466 --> 00:18:56,700 -I got my start in Europe before I got it here, 407 00:18:56,700 --> 00:18:59,500 much like Tina Turner. 408 00:18:59,500 --> 00:19:01,833 I recorded in their languages. 409 00:19:01,833 --> 00:19:05,666 Toured all of South America, all of Japan, all of Europe. 410 00:19:05,666 --> 00:19:08,966 -She was a star all over the world. 411 00:19:08,966 --> 00:19:13,866 And when she was touring different countries, 412 00:19:13,866 --> 00:19:16,866 she would learn a little bit of their language. 413 00:19:16,866 --> 00:19:20,800 -I had gone into the studio with Owen. 414 00:19:20,800 --> 00:19:25,966 I recorded a song called "One Rainy Night in Tokyo." 415 00:19:25,966 --> 00:19:30,500 [ Brenda Lee singing in Japanese ] 416 00:19:30,500 --> 00:19:33,700 And he had a student from Vanderbilt come over 417 00:19:33,700 --> 00:19:37,300 to teach me the correct Japanese to do a verse 418 00:19:37,300 --> 00:19:41,233 and a chorus in that song, and I did. 419 00:19:41,233 --> 00:19:43,400 And we released it. 420 00:19:43,400 --> 00:19:47,066 Well, I really didn't hear any more about it. 421 00:19:47,066 --> 00:19:50,533 But we went to do a tour, 422 00:19:50,533 --> 00:19:54,566 because I used to go overseas and tour all the time, in Japan. 423 00:19:54,566 --> 00:19:58,466 And the plane lands, and over where the people used to, 424 00:19:58,466 --> 00:20:01,466 they could stand on the tarmac a little ways back 425 00:20:01,466 --> 00:20:03,866 and meet you at the steps of the plane. 426 00:20:03,866 --> 00:20:06,433 They were all wearing these little blue hats, 427 00:20:06,433 --> 00:20:09,533 and it said BLFC. 428 00:20:09,533 --> 00:20:12,266 And I thought, "What does that mean?" 429 00:20:12,266 --> 00:20:16,366 I turned around to Dub, I said, "Dub" -- that was my manager -- 430 00:20:16,366 --> 00:20:18,933 I said, "What does that mean, Dub, BLFC?" 431 00:20:18,933 --> 00:20:23,133 He knew, but he said, "I don't have a clue." 432 00:20:23,133 --> 00:20:25,000 Brenda Lee Fan Club. 433 00:20:25,000 --> 00:20:29,533 I got off the plane, and they just hugged me and loved me, 434 00:20:29,533 --> 00:20:32,566 and that was my introduction to Tokyo. 435 00:20:32,566 --> 00:20:34,666 -She sang in French. She sang in Italian. 436 00:20:34,666 --> 00:20:38,233 She sang songs that she knew would hit that market. 437 00:20:38,233 --> 00:20:43,733 -It was a great time and period in music 438 00:20:43,733 --> 00:20:48,766 which we will never see again, because it was so new, 439 00:20:48,766 --> 00:20:52,000 so wonderful, so exciting, 440 00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:56,266 so inventive, and I'm sorry that we won't. 441 00:20:56,266 --> 00:20:58,900 -Well, now, this is our little teenage delegate, 442 00:20:58,900 --> 00:21:00,566 Miss Brenda Lee. [ Cheers and applause ] 443 00:21:00,566 --> 00:21:03,566 Isn't that something right there? 444 00:21:03,566 --> 00:21:05,766 -Least she's cute. -Yes. 445 00:21:05,766 --> 00:21:09,366 [ "Ballin' the Jack" plays ] 446 00:21:09,366 --> 00:21:13,000 -♪ Well, first you put your two knees close up tight ♪ 447 00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:14,333 ♪ And then you swing them to the left ♪ 448 00:21:14,333 --> 00:21:16,800 ♪ And then you swing them to the right ♪ 449 00:21:16,800 --> 00:21:19,700 ♪ Step around the floor kind of nice and light ♪ 450 00:21:19,700 --> 00:21:21,666 ♪ And then you twist around and twist around ♪ 451 00:21:21,666 --> 00:21:23,133 ♪ With all of your might ♪ 452 00:21:23,133 --> 00:21:25,100 -♪ You better spread your loving arms ♪ 453 00:21:25,100 --> 00:21:26,633 ♪ Way out in space ♪ 454 00:21:26,633 --> 00:21:30,000 ♪ And then you do the eagle rock with style and grace ♪ 455 00:21:30,000 --> 00:21:32,633 -So, let's think about what was going on in '56. 456 00:21:32,633 --> 00:21:35,000 Elvis had signed with RCA Records. 457 00:21:35,000 --> 00:21:36,433 So there was a lot going on. 458 00:21:36,433 --> 00:21:38,466 Rock 'n' roll was really starting. 459 00:21:38,466 --> 00:21:41,366 You know, but she started out as a rockabilly singer. 460 00:21:41,366 --> 00:21:45,600 She could do gospel and country, also. 461 00:21:45,600 --> 00:21:50,933 Rockabilly is a hopped-up form of country boogie. 462 00:21:50,933 --> 00:21:54,233 People would dress up and, you know, bring their 463 00:21:54,233 --> 00:21:57,100 fancy hot rods down, and they'd do dancing. 464 00:21:57,100 --> 00:21:58,666 Brenda didn't know about any of that. 465 00:21:58,666 --> 00:22:00,700 She couldn't have. She was 9 or 10 years old. 466 00:22:00,700 --> 00:22:02,966 -And she had a pretty cool rockabilly look, too. 467 00:22:02,966 --> 00:22:04,033 I mean, I must say. 468 00:22:04,033 --> 00:22:05,033 She had the hair. 469 00:22:05,033 --> 00:22:06,566 I mean, it worked. 470 00:22:06,566 --> 00:22:09,300 I mean, listen, all those things gotta line up. 471 00:22:09,300 --> 00:22:10,466 You gotta have a great name. 472 00:22:10,466 --> 00:22:12,400 You know, that's a great name, Brenda Lee. 473 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:15,100 That's -- that's working, you know? 474 00:22:15,100 --> 00:22:16,866 You have to have a great voice. You gotta have -- 475 00:22:16,866 --> 00:22:19,733 And it just -- it just -- it's meant to be. 476 00:22:19,733 --> 00:22:22,433 -Definition of "rockabilly"? 477 00:22:22,433 --> 00:22:24,266 It's not country, it's not rock. 478 00:22:24,266 --> 00:22:29,066 It's kind of a marriage between several genres. 479 00:22:29,066 --> 00:22:31,266 Whatever it is, I love rockabilly. 480 00:22:31,266 --> 00:22:35,400 ♪ Ballin' the jack ♪ 481 00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:36,833 [ Cheers and applause ] 482 00:22:36,833 --> 00:22:40,833 -They were used to just a woman just standing there, singing. 483 00:22:40,833 --> 00:22:42,400 But Brenda moved around a little bit. 484 00:22:42,400 --> 00:22:44,600 She's a mover and a shaker. 485 00:22:44,600 --> 00:22:47,033 -She was an anomaly at that time, so that really -- 486 00:22:47,033 --> 00:22:48,866 You know, when you're different and unique, 487 00:22:48,866 --> 00:22:51,300 that goes -- that gets you a long way. 488 00:22:51,300 --> 00:22:53,166 -By the time of the 1950s, 489 00:22:53,166 --> 00:22:56,000 American show business is getting kind of sophisticated. 490 00:22:56,000 --> 00:22:59,633 I mean, they're figuring out television and... 491 00:22:59,633 --> 00:23:02,733 The tools that we now use in the entertainment business 492 00:23:02,733 --> 00:23:04,666 are all coming into play in the early '50s, 493 00:23:04,666 --> 00:23:06,566 just as was Brenda's career. 494 00:23:06,566 --> 00:23:09,000 Groundbreaking only begins to scratch the surface of it. 495 00:23:09,000 --> 00:23:10,700 I mean, the records would come out, 496 00:23:10,700 --> 00:23:13,066 one side would be this torrid ballad, 497 00:23:13,066 --> 00:23:16,000 and the other side would be this storming rockabilly growler. 498 00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:18,733 She had more double-sided hits than anyone in history, 499 00:23:18,733 --> 00:23:20,433 before or since. 500 00:23:20,433 --> 00:23:23,766 She was the largest-selling female vocalist of the 1960s. 501 00:23:23,766 --> 00:23:25,366 -We had each other's backs. 502 00:23:25,366 --> 00:23:27,900 It was not all about the bottom line. 503 00:23:27,900 --> 00:23:32,566 And that started from the top, from the record executives down. 504 00:23:32,566 --> 00:23:35,533 Careers were built, then, by companies. 505 00:23:35,533 --> 00:23:38,733 They didn't just throw a record against the wall. 506 00:23:38,733 --> 00:23:42,266 And if it stuck, "Oh, okay, we'll push it." 507 00:23:42,266 --> 00:23:43,866 They built careers. 508 00:23:43,866 --> 00:23:45,733 When I started touring England, 509 00:23:45,733 --> 00:23:49,133 I was popular before I ever was here. 510 00:23:49,133 --> 00:23:51,133 There was this group that opened the show for me 511 00:23:51,133 --> 00:23:56,233 known as the Silver Beatles, who became the Beatles. 512 00:23:56,233 --> 00:23:58,166 -There's not very many people you can be in a room with 513 00:23:58,166 --> 00:24:00,366 and they talk about that time they hung out with the Beatles. 514 00:24:00,366 --> 00:24:02,366 -John was my favorite Beatle. 515 00:24:02,366 --> 00:24:06,200 I loved them all, but John was, to say the least, irreverent, 516 00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:08,466 had a great sense of humor. 517 00:24:08,466 --> 00:24:12,600 He was magical. He was a genie in a bottle. 518 00:24:12,600 --> 00:24:14,266 And he let me have the cork. 519 00:24:14,266 --> 00:24:17,266 John Lennon says I was the first female rocker. 520 00:24:17,266 --> 00:24:19,833 -Yeah, she deserves that. Of course. 521 00:24:19,833 --> 00:24:22,233 John Lennon doesn't give out compliments easy. 522 00:24:22,233 --> 00:24:25,133 -She seemed so astute, you know, when I watch her. 523 00:24:25,133 --> 00:24:27,266 I mean, she's so young, but she's so comfortable. 524 00:24:27,266 --> 00:24:29,133 -Oh, yeah. 525 00:24:29,133 --> 00:24:33,600 -She was very fortunate that she had good people around her 526 00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:34,966 and that protected her. 527 00:24:34,966 --> 00:24:37,066 That's, I guess, the luck of the draw. 528 00:24:37,066 --> 00:24:38,800 That is so essential. 529 00:24:38,800 --> 00:24:40,800 -The musicians, everybody in Nashville 530 00:24:40,800 --> 00:24:42,166 were protective of her. 531 00:24:42,166 --> 00:24:44,533 She ended up going to Maplewood High School here, 532 00:24:44,533 --> 00:24:46,166 which is a public high school. 533 00:24:46,166 --> 00:24:48,400 She really tried to have a normal life. 534 00:24:48,400 --> 00:24:50,500 -One of my best friends was Rita Coolidge. 535 00:24:50,500 --> 00:24:52,266 Rita went to high school, 536 00:24:52,266 --> 00:24:54,133 and at that time, she wasn't -- she was singing, 537 00:24:54,133 --> 00:24:56,400 but not like later on. 538 00:24:56,400 --> 00:24:57,833 I loved riding the school bus. 539 00:24:57,833 --> 00:25:01,566 I loved the whole experience of public schools. 540 00:25:01,566 --> 00:25:04,133 -Brenda has a lot of street smarts. 541 00:25:04,133 --> 00:25:06,466 She's aware of what's going on. 542 00:25:06,466 --> 00:25:08,700 She was a cheerleader in high school, 543 00:25:08,700 --> 00:25:10,600 so she was obviously well-liked. 544 00:25:10,600 --> 00:25:13,066 -Rita Coolidge and I went to the old 545 00:25:13,066 --> 00:25:17,166 Nashville Fairgrounds Coliseum to see Jackie Wilson. 546 00:25:17,166 --> 00:25:19,733 I was 17. 547 00:25:19,733 --> 00:25:25,966 -Brenda had had enough of her band following her around 548 00:25:25,966 --> 00:25:27,766 while she tried to date. 549 00:25:27,766 --> 00:25:29,833 -Rita and I, we're just talking and having a good time, 550 00:25:29,833 --> 00:25:32,366 and I look over, 551 00:25:32,366 --> 00:25:35,100 and there's this drop-dead gorgeous guy over there, 552 00:25:35,100 --> 00:25:40,000 and I said, "Rita, I want to meet him." 553 00:25:40,000 --> 00:25:41,966 She said, "Well, you've lost your mind. 554 00:25:41,966 --> 00:25:45,100 You cannot go up and introduce yourself." 555 00:25:45,100 --> 00:25:47,800 I said, "I'm not. I'm sending him a note." 556 00:25:47,800 --> 00:25:52,266 So I wrote a note on there, and I said, "Hi. My name is Brenda. 557 00:25:52,266 --> 00:25:54,533 I'm going to England for the next three months, 558 00:25:54,533 --> 00:25:59,100 but here's my number. Call me." 559 00:25:59,100 --> 00:26:01,333 Well, I didn't hear from him, didn't hear from him. 560 00:26:01,333 --> 00:26:03,666 Went to England, didn't hear from him. 561 00:26:03,666 --> 00:26:06,933 Came back. Got a call. 562 00:26:06,933 --> 00:26:09,133 We had a date. Nice, nice date. 563 00:26:09,133 --> 00:26:12,200 Met his parents. He met my mom. 564 00:26:12,200 --> 00:26:14,900 We cruised Shoney's like everybody else did. 565 00:26:14,900 --> 00:26:18,233 It's the first time I'd ever cruised anything. 566 00:26:18,233 --> 00:26:20,966 So I did tha-- 'Cause I didn't date. 567 00:26:20,966 --> 00:26:24,233 And he was 6'4", so I really liked that part. 568 00:26:24,233 --> 00:26:25,800 [ Laughs ] 569 00:26:25,800 --> 00:26:27,600 And he had a Corvette. 570 00:26:27,600 --> 00:26:29,300 That pretty much sealed the deal. 571 00:26:29,300 --> 00:26:32,800 I kept the engagement ring in the box in my purse 572 00:26:32,800 --> 00:26:36,733 for three months before I ever said anything to anybody. 573 00:26:36,733 --> 00:26:38,033 'Cause I was scared to death to. 574 00:26:38,033 --> 00:26:40,100 Because, number one, 575 00:26:40,100 --> 00:26:43,633 I was the breadwinner for a lot of people. 576 00:26:43,633 --> 00:26:46,000 So I thought it's gonna wear a hole in my darn purse 577 00:26:46,000 --> 00:26:48,333 if I don't get it on my finger. 578 00:26:48,333 --> 00:26:53,133 So, finally I -- I got up enough courage, and I told mama. 579 00:26:53,133 --> 00:26:55,033 So we eloped. 580 00:26:55,033 --> 00:27:00,666 You know, Southern women especially are very 581 00:27:00,666 --> 00:27:03,966 go by the -- you know, the rules, 582 00:27:03,966 --> 00:27:07,266 and I didn't, and that upset her, and -- 583 00:27:07,266 --> 00:27:10,066 and I'm sorry to this day about that. 584 00:27:10,066 --> 00:27:15,566 I married April 24th, 585 00:27:15,566 --> 00:27:19,033 and I had Julie April 1st of the next year. 586 00:27:19,033 --> 00:27:20,833 I have two daughters. 587 00:27:20,833 --> 00:27:23,200 -She knew what she wanted, got married at 18. 588 00:27:23,200 --> 00:27:25,300 The next year, started having her babies. 589 00:27:25,300 --> 00:27:31,300 -He had his own career, and he wasn't in the music industry, 590 00:27:31,300 --> 00:27:33,166 and that's what I was looking for. 591 00:27:33,166 --> 00:27:36,033 He didn't want to go on the road, he didn't like the road, 592 00:27:36,033 --> 00:27:38,466 so I said, "Okay. You don't have to." 593 00:27:38,466 --> 00:27:40,533 He didn't mind if I did. 594 00:27:40,533 --> 00:27:42,333 He never asked me to quit. 595 00:27:42,333 --> 00:27:45,100 I was looking for roots. 596 00:27:45,100 --> 00:27:50,000 I wanted stability in my wonderful, unstable life. 597 00:27:50,000 --> 00:27:54,600 -Brenda Lee has always wanted to be a regular person. 598 00:27:54,600 --> 00:27:57,066 Family was very important to her 599 00:27:57,066 --> 00:28:00,933 as she was growing up and remained so. 600 00:28:00,933 --> 00:28:04,900 The problem was, her husband, Ronnie, 601 00:28:04,900 --> 00:28:07,533 was not enthralled with show business. 602 00:28:07,533 --> 00:28:14,300 She told me it took years of working out the compromises. 603 00:28:14,300 --> 00:28:17,900 -I made sure I was always home for the biggies. 604 00:28:17,900 --> 00:28:19,666 Anytime the girls had something 605 00:28:19,666 --> 00:28:23,600 that was important to them, I was there. 606 00:28:23,600 --> 00:28:26,700 When my daughter Julie was in the sixth grade, 607 00:28:26,700 --> 00:28:29,266 Frank Sinatra came to town, 608 00:28:29,266 --> 00:28:33,300 and I was invited to a private party. 609 00:28:33,300 --> 00:28:37,433 But Julie was also in the statewide 610 00:28:37,433 --> 00:28:40,633 sixth grade science fair. 611 00:28:40,633 --> 00:28:42,366 So there was no choice. 612 00:28:42,366 --> 00:28:43,666 And she won! 613 00:28:43,666 --> 00:28:47,366 And -- and I didn't get to meet Mr. Sinatra, 614 00:28:47,366 --> 00:28:49,300 but that's okay. 615 00:28:49,300 --> 00:28:52,933 -I can't even imagine what this was like at this -- in this era. 616 00:28:52,933 --> 00:28:55,133 I mean, it was so difficult for us. 617 00:28:55,133 --> 00:28:57,600 And, um -- and no handbook. 618 00:28:57,600 --> 00:28:59,533 -Hollywood Professional School. 619 00:28:59,533 --> 00:29:02,700 That's where professionals went. 620 00:29:02,700 --> 00:29:05,500 'Cause all these kids were either singers, actors. 621 00:29:05,500 --> 00:29:10,200 Whatever they were, they were in the field of show business. 622 00:29:10,200 --> 00:29:12,133 Now, that was an education. 623 00:29:12,133 --> 00:29:13,966 Kept my grades up and everything 624 00:29:13,966 --> 00:29:16,800 while I was appearing at the Olympia Theater 625 00:29:16,800 --> 00:29:19,433 with Gilbert Bécaud, 626 00:29:19,433 --> 00:29:21,600 the Frank Sinatra of Europe. 627 00:29:21,600 --> 00:29:24,866 Colonel Tom and my manager were the best of friends, 628 00:29:24,866 --> 00:29:28,200 and they were in business in the carny days. 629 00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:31,266 That's how I got to know Elvis, through the Colonel. 630 00:29:31,266 --> 00:29:33,400 -Dub, who was friends with Colonel Tom Parker, 631 00:29:33,400 --> 00:29:36,766 Elvis's manager, saw that same vision that -- 632 00:29:36,766 --> 00:29:40,533 What Colonel Tom had done for Elvis, Dub wanted to do -- 633 00:29:40,533 --> 00:29:41,933 "I'll do that for Brenda." 634 00:29:41,933 --> 00:29:43,766 -I went to Los Angeles. 635 00:29:43,766 --> 00:29:45,800 Colonel Tom wanted me to do movies. 636 00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:49,400 We moved out there for a year to explore that possibility. 637 00:29:49,400 --> 00:29:52,133 I did do one, did not like it. 638 00:29:52,133 --> 00:29:54,833 It was called "The Two Little Bears." 639 00:29:54,833 --> 00:29:57,266 It's a cute little movie. 640 00:29:57,266 --> 00:30:00,266 Look, Timmy and Billy did it with my chignon. 641 00:30:00,266 --> 00:30:02,133 What's a chignon? 642 00:30:02,133 --> 00:30:04,833 -It's a coil of hair, Harry, that goes right here. 643 00:30:04,833 --> 00:30:07,000 -I bought it for a blind date tonight, 644 00:30:07,000 --> 00:30:09,600 to sorta take away the emphasis from my freckles. 645 00:30:09,600 --> 00:30:11,866 -She just was not an actor. 646 00:30:11,866 --> 00:30:15,700 Brenda would much be rather out there singing for the people. 647 00:30:15,700 --> 00:30:19,866 -I was taken to get vocal lessons, and thank God 648 00:30:19,866 --> 00:30:22,333 the vocal coach said, "That would just get in her way. 649 00:30:22,333 --> 00:30:26,100 She's fine. Don't mess with her. She's okay." 650 00:30:26,100 --> 00:30:31,033 I did take breathing lessons, and I did take things like that 651 00:30:31,033 --> 00:30:35,066 to preserve the cords, but never vocal. 652 00:30:35,066 --> 00:30:39,133 That's just a God-given thing. 653 00:30:39,133 --> 00:30:40,433 -People in Nashville would go, 654 00:30:40,433 --> 00:30:42,700 "Why are you cutting so many Jackie DeShannon songs?" 655 00:30:42,700 --> 00:30:44,600 Because Jackie, when she turned in her demos, 656 00:30:44,600 --> 00:30:46,566 they were like little records. 657 00:30:46,566 --> 00:30:48,766 You could hear how soul-- You could even -- 658 00:30:48,766 --> 00:30:50,766 Jackie's voice is very soulful. 659 00:30:50,766 --> 00:30:53,066 -Jackie DeShannon had written some songs 660 00:30:53,066 --> 00:30:55,633 specifically for Brenda and had tried to -- 661 00:30:55,633 --> 00:30:57,433 had tried to get them to her. 662 00:30:57,433 --> 00:31:00,133 And as soon as Brenda heard them, she loved the demos. 663 00:31:00,133 --> 00:31:02,333 She said, "This is exactly how I want to do them." 664 00:31:02,333 --> 00:31:04,000 They were huge records. 665 00:31:04,000 --> 00:31:06,866 They were huge for her, worldwide hits. 666 00:31:06,866 --> 00:31:08,933 -Brenda was among the first 667 00:31:08,933 --> 00:31:10,933 to make hits out of Jackie DeShannon's songs, 668 00:31:10,933 --> 00:31:13,566 and that led to Jackie having her own recording career, 669 00:31:13,566 --> 00:31:16,200 "Heart in Hand" being one of the great ones. 670 00:31:16,200 --> 00:31:20,133 -She wrote some of my biggest records. 671 00:31:20,133 --> 00:31:24,233 She wrote, "Dum Dum," "Heart in Hand"... 672 00:31:24,233 --> 00:31:25,633 Oh, many of them. 673 00:31:25,633 --> 00:31:29,100 'Cause she could sing, and she sure as heck could write. 674 00:31:29,100 --> 00:31:31,033 -I'm so grateful that 675 00:31:31,033 --> 00:31:34,400 she liked the songs that I wrote. 676 00:31:34,400 --> 00:31:39,000 And my proudest moment was having her record my song 677 00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:40,566 'cause she gave me my break. 678 00:31:40,566 --> 00:31:41,866 [ "Heart in Hand" plays ] 679 00:31:41,866 --> 00:31:45,233 -♪ Here I stand ♪ 680 00:31:45,233 --> 00:31:48,366 ♪♪ 681 00:31:48,366 --> 00:31:53,400 ♪ Heart in hand ♪ 682 00:31:53,400 --> 00:31:55,233 -"Heart in Hand." 683 00:31:55,233 --> 00:31:56,966 That's my favorite. 684 00:31:56,966 --> 00:31:59,933 She's so powerful with her vocals. 685 00:31:59,933 --> 00:32:02,700 -Owen had heard a song called "Fool #1" 686 00:32:02,700 --> 00:32:04,466 that somebody had written. 687 00:32:04,466 --> 00:32:08,066 -♪ Am I fool number one ♪ 688 00:32:08,066 --> 00:32:15,000 ♪ Or am I fool number two? ♪ 689 00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:17,066 -And, you know, the Nashville players, 690 00:32:17,066 --> 00:32:19,100 great players, and as a producer, 691 00:32:19,100 --> 00:32:21,066 you come in with Brenda and you come in there and you go, 692 00:32:21,066 --> 00:32:22,966 "Okay. Here we're gonna do this." 693 00:32:22,966 --> 00:32:25,100 You could tell those people, 694 00:32:25,100 --> 00:32:27,233 "If this is the click and this is your beat, 695 00:32:27,233 --> 00:32:29,100 you want to be a little this side, a little this side. 696 00:32:29,100 --> 00:32:30,600 What would you like? This side? Okay," 697 00:32:30,600 --> 00:32:31,800 and then it's done. 698 00:32:31,800 --> 00:32:33,666 -♪ ...is far from... ♪ 699 00:32:33,666 --> 00:32:35,400 -The musicians felt the same way. 700 00:32:35,400 --> 00:32:37,133 They couldn't believe -- 701 00:32:37,133 --> 00:32:38,766 You know, she would just stand in the room with them 702 00:32:38,766 --> 00:32:42,400 and sing on mic, live, with everybody. 703 00:32:42,400 --> 00:32:44,200 -Bobby Moore might say, 704 00:32:44,200 --> 00:32:46,266 "Well, I think this lick might be good here." 705 00:32:46,266 --> 00:32:49,533 We had no arrangements. 706 00:32:49,533 --> 00:32:51,700 We did what was called head arrangements. 707 00:32:51,700 --> 00:32:54,833 Everybody put their head into it and said what they thought, 708 00:32:54,833 --> 00:32:57,266 and, boom, we had a record. 709 00:32:57,266 --> 00:32:58,833 That's how it happened with us. 710 00:32:58,833 --> 00:33:03,866 -Even at 11 and 12 years old, in the recording studio, 711 00:33:03,866 --> 00:33:07,200 with the A team here in Nashville, 712 00:33:07,200 --> 00:33:10,800 they listened to what she had to say. 713 00:33:10,800 --> 00:33:12,700 She was involved in her own career. 714 00:33:12,700 --> 00:33:14,600 She wasn't a puppet. 715 00:33:14,600 --> 00:33:17,533 -She walked into the studio with that right relationship, 716 00:33:17,533 --> 00:33:20,433 and 13, 14, whatever age it was. 717 00:33:20,433 --> 00:33:22,833 When she walked out of that studio, she was 21. 718 00:33:22,833 --> 00:33:26,133 -She had heard "I'm Sorry," that record from Ronnie Self, 719 00:33:26,133 --> 00:33:27,300 who'd written the song. 720 00:33:27,300 --> 00:33:28,700 She'd wanted to record it for Decca, 721 00:33:28,700 --> 00:33:30,566 but the Decca executive said, 722 00:33:30,566 --> 00:33:33,233 "No, we don't think you can be believable doing that song. 723 00:33:33,233 --> 00:33:35,800 You're just, you know, 14 years old. 724 00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:37,233 That's not gonna work." 725 00:33:37,233 --> 00:33:39,866 -♪ I'm sorry ♪ 726 00:33:39,866 --> 00:33:42,866 ♪ So sorry ♪ 727 00:33:42,866 --> 00:33:48,400 ♪ Please accept my apology ♪ 728 00:33:48,400 --> 00:33:53,466 -"I'm Sorry" really, uh, hits me. 729 00:33:53,466 --> 00:33:54,766 I like the way she sings it. 730 00:33:54,766 --> 00:33:57,366 And plus, I hear it in every dang movie I see. 731 00:33:57,366 --> 00:33:59,366 I call her up and say, "I just heard you 732 00:33:59,366 --> 00:34:02,366 on this movie I'm watching right here," you know, 733 00:34:02,366 --> 00:34:03,900 in case she didn't know. 734 00:34:03,900 --> 00:34:05,200 -She did a few sessions in New York. 735 00:34:05,200 --> 00:34:07,166 She did some in London. 736 00:34:07,166 --> 00:34:08,766 They were trying to figure out what to do 737 00:34:08,766 --> 00:34:10,433 during the middle of "I'm Sorry." 738 00:34:10,433 --> 00:34:11,966 They were running it down and just, 739 00:34:11,966 --> 00:34:14,333 she started doing a recitation. 740 00:34:14,333 --> 00:34:15,700 And they said, "That's perfect." 741 00:34:15,700 --> 00:34:17,700 Well, she had heard that from the Ink Spots. 742 00:34:17,700 --> 00:34:20,633 -I'm sorry. 743 00:34:20,633 --> 00:34:22,066 So sorry. 744 00:34:22,066 --> 00:34:29,466 Please accept my apology, but love is blind. 745 00:34:29,466 --> 00:34:31,700 -And she just knew that's what's going to fit. 746 00:34:31,700 --> 00:34:33,400 They finally agreed, "Okay, you can do it," 747 00:34:33,400 --> 00:34:36,033 but even then, they put it on a B side. 748 00:34:36,033 --> 00:34:41,266 So it's lucky that a DJ flipped it over 749 00:34:41,266 --> 00:34:43,366 and played it. 750 00:34:43,366 --> 00:34:47,800 -If you had an opportunity to be on "American Bandstand," 751 00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:51,466 so many kids, which is the market, basically, 752 00:34:51,466 --> 00:34:53,033 that we were all aiming for, 753 00:34:53,033 --> 00:34:58,066 is to have our fellow friends and associates love our music. 754 00:34:58,066 --> 00:35:00,166 Dick Clark was everything. 755 00:35:00,166 --> 00:35:02,300 And to be on "American Bandstand" 756 00:35:02,300 --> 00:35:06,166 gave you an opportunity to reach out to such a big audience. 757 00:35:06,166 --> 00:35:09,400 -It was a huge cultural touchstone 758 00:35:09,400 --> 00:35:11,200 for American teenagers. 759 00:35:11,200 --> 00:35:14,000 -Dick Clark. Ladies and gentlemen, 760 00:35:14,000 --> 00:35:17,100 Little Miss Dynamite, Brenda Lee. 761 00:35:17,100 --> 00:35:20,733 You had to be on Dick Clark's "American Bandstand." 762 00:35:20,733 --> 00:35:24,133 -That was such a -- such a big show. 763 00:35:24,133 --> 00:35:27,466 It was a lot of teenagers dancing and records playing. 764 00:35:27,466 --> 00:35:29,100 -I remember her on stage, 765 00:35:29,100 --> 00:35:31,866 and I just watched every move she made. 766 00:35:31,866 --> 00:35:35,266 -♪ Oh-oh, oh, yes ♪ 767 00:35:35,266 --> 00:35:39,200 ♪ I'm sorry ♪ 768 00:35:39,200 --> 00:35:43,166 -I was brought a song much like the ballads 769 00:35:43,166 --> 00:35:46,966 that I had recorded in the '60s that were huge, huge hits. 770 00:35:46,966 --> 00:35:49,033 And the song was called "Nobody Wins," 771 00:35:49,033 --> 00:35:52,000 written by Kris Kristofferson. 772 00:35:52,000 --> 00:35:55,000 We recorded it. It was 1972. 773 00:35:57,100 --> 00:35:59,600 And it went to number 1, country. 774 00:36:02,033 --> 00:36:03,966 All of a sudden, I'm a country singer. 775 00:36:03,966 --> 00:36:06,800 So, all of a sudden, I have a new career. 776 00:36:06,800 --> 00:36:09,600 -She blended it all together -- rockabilly, rock, 777 00:36:09,600 --> 00:36:12,933 pop, and then country. 778 00:36:12,933 --> 00:36:16,366 You know, she did a great version of "Nobody Wins." 779 00:36:16,366 --> 00:36:18,133 Kristofferson's song. 780 00:36:18,133 --> 00:36:20,666 -We went in and recorded "Nobody Wins," 781 00:36:20,666 --> 00:36:22,533 much like we had all the ballads like 782 00:36:22,533 --> 00:36:25,133 "All Alone Am I" and "Losing You" 783 00:36:25,133 --> 00:36:27,333 and "Break It To Me Gently" and "I'm Sorry" 784 00:36:27,333 --> 00:36:30,200 and "I Wanna Be Wanted," and, I mean, 785 00:36:30,200 --> 00:36:34,900 we did it the same way, but it was country. 786 00:36:34,900 --> 00:36:37,766 -Brenda Lee, several times, 787 00:36:37,766 --> 00:36:42,966 was caught in between shifts, in musical movements. 788 00:36:42,966 --> 00:36:44,766 By the time she was in the '70s 789 00:36:44,766 --> 00:36:47,233 where she was moving into country music, 790 00:36:47,233 --> 00:36:48,933 that had been shifting. 791 00:36:48,933 --> 00:36:50,733 The Nashville sound kind of moved on. 792 00:36:50,733 --> 00:36:53,533 We were now into the outlaw days. 793 00:36:53,533 --> 00:36:55,700 -No one says "Country artist Brenda Lee," 794 00:36:55,700 --> 00:36:59,500 or "Rock 'n' roll star"... It's -- she's just Brenda. 795 00:36:59,500 --> 00:37:03,400 -I don't see Brenda Lee in any box. 796 00:37:03,400 --> 00:37:06,700 She'd kick out the sides anyway if she was ever put in one. 797 00:37:06,700 --> 00:37:13,033 -I don't think she ever chased any trend. 798 00:37:13,033 --> 00:37:16,233 I don't think she tried to conform. 799 00:37:16,233 --> 00:37:18,533 -With women in this industry, 800 00:37:18,533 --> 00:37:21,333 she did it before anybody did it. 801 00:37:21,333 --> 00:37:24,766 And she -- I think she broke the rules, actually. 802 00:37:24,766 --> 00:37:27,000 -We try very hard, all of us now, 803 00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:32,300 to stop labeling ourselves as "female rockers," you know? 804 00:37:32,300 --> 00:37:33,733 And we just -- we just make music. 805 00:37:33,733 --> 00:37:36,833 You can't deny the fact that it's still lopsided. 806 00:37:36,833 --> 00:37:38,933 It's lopsided everywhere. 807 00:37:38,933 --> 00:37:40,800 There were people that went before us 808 00:37:40,800 --> 00:37:45,466 who were really just trying to hammer out that path. 809 00:37:45,466 --> 00:37:48,400 The next ones came and walked the path. 810 00:37:48,400 --> 00:37:51,066 -In the time period and with all the things that -- 811 00:37:51,066 --> 00:37:55,633 all the adversity she faced, to still be able 812 00:37:55,633 --> 00:37:59,300 to make it and then to sustain it over time and to -- 813 00:37:59,300 --> 00:38:00,866 as the business changed and as the world changed, 814 00:38:00,866 --> 00:38:02,433 Brenda Lee changed. 815 00:38:02,433 --> 00:38:04,066 -If you listen to Brenda's early records, 816 00:38:04,066 --> 00:38:05,466 obviously she doesn't sound the same 817 00:38:05,466 --> 00:38:07,400 as she did five years later, 818 00:38:07,400 --> 00:38:09,166 and then 5 years later, and then 10 years later. 819 00:38:09,166 --> 00:38:12,766 -♪ I'm sorry ♪ 820 00:38:12,766 --> 00:38:15,100 ♪ So sorry ♪ 821 00:38:15,100 --> 00:38:17,433 -Brenda just got a, um... 822 00:38:17,433 --> 00:38:19,033 It's sass. 823 00:38:19,033 --> 00:38:21,766 She's got a sass in her tone. 824 00:38:21,766 --> 00:38:25,100 So you immediately like her. 825 00:38:25,100 --> 00:38:27,333 Even before you know who she is, what she looks like, 826 00:38:27,333 --> 00:38:29,033 what her name is, anything, 827 00:38:29,033 --> 00:38:35,166 that voice has just the right blend of fun, spirit, 828 00:38:35,166 --> 00:38:39,200 toughness, sexiness, relatability. 829 00:38:39,200 --> 00:38:48,533 -♪ But that don't right the wrong that's been done ♪ 830 00:38:48,533 --> 00:38:50,933 ♪♪ 831 00:38:50,933 --> 00:38:56,466 -I remember talking to her in the mid '80s, 832 00:38:56,466 --> 00:38:59,433 and she was a woman who was still a young woman. 833 00:38:59,433 --> 00:39:01,866 She had been around 30 years. 834 00:39:01,866 --> 00:39:05,566 -♪ Me gotta go pole the pirogue down the bayou ♪ 835 00:39:05,566 --> 00:39:07,766 -She couldn't get a record deal in Nashville. 836 00:39:07,766 --> 00:39:12,400 She had to keep convincing people, "No, I'm still late 30s. 837 00:39:12,400 --> 00:39:15,266 I'm still early 40s. I'm still at it." 838 00:39:15,266 --> 00:39:18,566 -♪ Crawfish pie and fillet gumbo ♪ 839 00:39:18,566 --> 00:39:21,800 ♪ 'Cause tonight I'm gonna see my ma chère amie-o ♪ 840 00:39:21,800 --> 00:39:24,733 -I didn't realize at the time we were doing the interview 841 00:39:24,733 --> 00:39:26,233 that, a few months later, 842 00:39:26,233 --> 00:39:29,266 she would be filing a lawsuit against MCA -- 843 00:39:29,266 --> 00:39:33,300 $20 million lawsuit -- because she had discovered 844 00:39:33,300 --> 00:39:38,500 that they were going against a very long contract. 845 00:39:38,500 --> 00:39:41,433 They'd been putting out music, some things overseas, 846 00:39:41,433 --> 00:39:44,333 and she was not getting those royalties. 847 00:39:44,333 --> 00:39:46,766 -The whole business is stacked against you as an artist. 848 00:39:46,766 --> 00:39:50,400 From day one, they're out to get you. 849 00:39:50,400 --> 00:39:52,300 And when you do audit those record companies, 850 00:39:52,300 --> 00:39:54,800 what you find out is, "Oops! There's a whole lot of sales 851 00:39:54,800 --> 00:39:56,733 that haven't been accounted for." 852 00:39:56,733 --> 00:39:59,466 And you have to sue. It's just business. 853 00:39:59,466 --> 00:40:02,466 It's not anything acrimonious. It's not anything, "I hate you." 854 00:40:02,466 --> 00:40:06,566 It's none of that. It's just good business. 855 00:40:06,566 --> 00:40:11,000 -All of us come to a pivotal moment when we know, 856 00:40:11,000 --> 00:40:20,500 in our heart, that it's time to pull back and say, "Okay. 857 00:40:20,500 --> 00:40:23,133 Let's let the kids have it." 858 00:40:23,133 --> 00:40:25,700 -I thought she was such a strong person. 859 00:40:25,700 --> 00:40:28,933 Her vision was so strong. 860 00:40:28,933 --> 00:40:35,100 And she just overpowered things around her. 861 00:40:35,100 --> 00:40:37,600 -It was just non-stop. 862 00:40:37,600 --> 00:40:39,566 You can do that when you're young. 863 00:40:39,566 --> 00:40:42,533 Maybe that's why I worked all the time, because I knew 864 00:40:42,533 --> 00:40:46,200 that, at one point, I just wouldn't be able to 865 00:40:46,200 --> 00:40:48,133 or wouldn't want to. 866 00:40:48,133 --> 00:40:54,200 I had what is known as a pulmonary embolism. 867 00:40:54,200 --> 00:40:58,600 And, um, that was pretty serious 868 00:40:58,600 --> 00:41:03,266 and kept me sidelined for a bit. 869 00:41:03,266 --> 00:41:08,566 Uh, and then I had a pretty serious, um, kidney surgery. 870 00:41:08,566 --> 00:41:11,500 But that's all good. I'm fine. I'm healthy. 871 00:41:11,500 --> 00:41:13,900 ♪ You ain't nothin' but a hound dog ♪ 872 00:41:13,900 --> 00:41:15,300 ♪ Cryin' all the time ♪ 873 00:41:15,300 --> 00:41:20,366 -If you look at her as this little kid on TV in 1957... 874 00:41:20,366 --> 00:41:23,666 -♪ Cryin' all the time ♪ 875 00:41:23,666 --> 00:41:25,466 ♪ You ain't never caught a rabbit ♪ 876 00:41:25,466 --> 00:41:29,066 ♪ You ain't no friend of mine ♪ 877 00:41:29,066 --> 00:41:33,900 -...the stage presence, the confidence, belting it out, 878 00:41:33,900 --> 00:41:36,533 knowing when to look at this camera and that camera. 879 00:41:36,533 --> 00:41:40,966 -♪ Well, that was just a lie ♪ 880 00:41:40,966 --> 00:41:43,166 ♪ You ain't never caught a rabbit ♪ 881 00:41:43,166 --> 00:41:46,900 ♪ You ain't no friend of mine ♪ 882 00:41:46,900 --> 00:41:48,500 -Fast-forward to just, 883 00:41:48,500 --> 00:41:50,833 let's say, her performance at the 884 00:41:50,833 --> 00:41:54,633 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2002. 885 00:41:54,633 --> 00:41:57,100 She is exactly the same. 886 00:41:57,100 --> 00:42:00,800 -♪ My baby whispers in my ear, Lord ♪ 887 00:42:00,800 --> 00:42:03,766 ♪ Ah, sweet nothin's ♪ 888 00:42:03,766 --> 00:42:05,333 ♪♪ 889 00:42:05,333 --> 00:42:09,033 ♪ He knows the things I like to hear, oh ♪ 890 00:42:09,033 --> 00:42:11,666 ♪ Ah, sweet nothin's ♪ 891 00:42:11,666 --> 00:42:13,400 -It's kind of hard to be in the -- 892 00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:17,000 to be voted to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. 893 00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:20,500 Brenda got in in 2002. 894 00:42:20,500 --> 00:42:26,833 She also got a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009. 895 00:42:26,833 --> 00:42:32,566 And that's how the industry thinks how important she was. 896 00:42:32,566 --> 00:42:34,633 -She was rock and roll. 897 00:42:34,633 --> 00:42:37,233 -It's rightly so that she ended up in the Hall of Fame. 898 00:42:37,233 --> 00:42:39,433 ♪♪ 899 00:42:39,433 --> 00:42:42,466 -I have to say that, after it happened, it does change. 900 00:42:42,466 --> 00:42:43,600 It changes the way you think of it. 901 00:42:43,600 --> 00:42:45,200 You are -- You're thinking like, 902 00:42:45,200 --> 00:42:46,833 "That's kind of cool." [ Laughs ] 903 00:42:46,833 --> 00:42:48,033 -And you kind of feel like, 904 00:42:48,033 --> 00:42:51,466 "Oh, we're in the club now," or something. 905 00:42:51,466 --> 00:42:54,466 -But I never thought I'd get in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. 906 00:42:54,466 --> 00:42:56,666 I never thought I'd get in any hall of fame. 907 00:42:56,666 --> 00:42:57,933 I never dreamed 908 00:42:57,933 --> 00:42:59,233 that I would be in the Rock, 909 00:42:59,233 --> 00:43:01,433 the Rockabilly, the Pop, 910 00:43:01,433 --> 00:43:02,633 and the Country. 911 00:43:02,633 --> 00:43:04,933 -She's what the Hall Of Fame is about. 912 00:43:04,933 --> 00:43:08,966 -Her and Connie Smith, two of my biggest heroes, 913 00:43:08,966 --> 00:43:12,866 you know, welcomed me into the Hall of Fame. 914 00:43:12,866 --> 00:43:15,733 And I tell you what -- Connie was almost like a straight -- 915 00:43:15,733 --> 00:43:21,633 a straight man, and Brenda had everybody laughing so hard. 916 00:43:21,633 --> 00:43:23,966 I -- I just -- My gut was hurting. 917 00:43:23,966 --> 00:43:26,200 -This is very special to me. 918 00:43:26,200 --> 00:43:28,866 I started to say we're not that far apart in age, 919 00:43:28,866 --> 00:43:31,266 but, hell, I think we are. [ Laughter ] 920 00:43:31,266 --> 00:43:36,433 When I was first starting out, we lied so much about my age. 921 00:43:36,433 --> 00:43:40,766 We did! Hell, I don't know how old I am. 922 00:43:40,766 --> 00:43:44,433 -She's hilarious and so sharp. 923 00:43:44,433 --> 00:43:48,233 -We had that "getting started at an early age" connection. 924 00:43:48,233 --> 00:43:50,066 So we have that in common. 925 00:43:50,066 --> 00:43:52,233 -It turns out that my very first 926 00:43:52,233 --> 00:43:55,833 awareness of her was not being aware that it's her. 927 00:43:55,833 --> 00:43:57,833 "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree," 928 00:43:57,833 --> 00:44:00,233 hearing that as a kid, but I didn't know who sang it. 929 00:44:00,233 --> 00:44:03,066 I was too little at the time. I just loved the song. 930 00:44:03,066 --> 00:44:05,866 -I recorded "Rockin'" when I was 12. 931 00:44:05,866 --> 00:44:07,900 Johnny Marks wrote it. 932 00:44:07,900 --> 00:44:10,200 I said, "Johnny, you don't even believe in Christmas." 933 00:44:10,200 --> 00:44:12,333 And I said, "Tell me how you wrote 'Rockin'." 934 00:44:12,333 --> 00:44:15,866 He said, "I was laying on the beach in New York, 935 00:44:15,866 --> 00:44:19,333 and pine trees were over to this side," 936 00:44:19,333 --> 00:44:23,333 and he said, "I kind of went to sleep to take a little nap, 937 00:44:23,333 --> 00:44:26,333 and I woke up, and I was facing the pine trees, 938 00:44:26,333 --> 00:44:29,300 and they were just kind of swaying like this." 939 00:44:29,300 --> 00:44:32,000 And he said, "And I thought 940 00:44:32,000 --> 00:44:36,133 'Rockin' around the Christmas tree,' and there it was." 941 00:44:36,133 --> 00:44:37,866 -They put it out, it didn't sell. 942 00:44:37,866 --> 00:44:39,966 Then she had some big success in Europe, 943 00:44:39,966 --> 00:44:41,566 and they released it in Europe, 944 00:44:41,566 --> 00:44:44,600 and it then became a huge seller. 945 00:44:44,600 --> 00:44:47,300 -I got a call on the phone. 946 00:44:47,300 --> 00:44:50,266 And they said, "Brenda, Brenda, there's a movie out. 947 00:44:50,266 --> 00:44:53,433 It's called 'Home Alone,' and your song's all over it!" 948 00:44:53,433 --> 00:44:56,233 And I said, "Which song? What are you talking about?" 949 00:44:56,233 --> 00:44:58,800 They said, "'Rockin' is all over it." 950 00:44:58,800 --> 00:45:02,066 Well, it just went from there. 951 00:45:02,066 --> 00:45:05,700 -Brenda Lee is a part of millions of families 952 00:45:05,700 --> 00:45:08,433 and has been a part of their life their entire life. 953 00:45:08,433 --> 00:45:11,066 That's an extraordinary accomplishment 954 00:45:11,066 --> 00:45:12,366 with just one song. 955 00:45:12,366 --> 00:45:14,066 -I love just the way that she's kinda hittin' 956 00:45:14,066 --> 00:45:15,766 that little cadence. 957 00:45:15,766 --> 00:45:17,233 Like, it reminds me of, like, some certain parts -- 958 00:45:17,233 --> 00:45:18,366 Like, we've heard rockabilly before. 959 00:45:18,366 --> 00:45:19,633 -Mm-hmm, yeah. 960 00:45:19,633 --> 00:45:20,866 -And we've heard some artists kind of do that. 961 00:45:20,866 --> 00:45:22,366 It's so cool the way that she does that. 962 00:45:22,366 --> 00:45:24,000 -That quick breath in-between. -Duh-a-duh-a-duh-a-duh-a-duh. 963 00:45:24,000 --> 00:45:25,766 -Yeah. 964 00:45:25,766 --> 00:45:27,100 -We did a Christmas song a few years ago, 965 00:45:27,100 --> 00:45:29,966 and I was channeling -- I was channeling her 966 00:45:29,966 --> 00:45:31,000 because I wanted to get that 967 00:45:31,000 --> 00:45:32,733 little hiccup thing that she did. 968 00:45:32,733 --> 00:45:34,866 But I mean that it's just -- it's such a -- 969 00:45:34,866 --> 00:45:35,933 "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," 970 00:45:35,933 --> 00:45:37,500 it's such an iconic song. 971 00:45:37,500 --> 00:45:40,033 -I can hear the Brenda Lee influence in Pat Benatar. 972 00:45:40,033 --> 00:45:42,166 -There's certain perennial songs that just stand 973 00:45:42,166 --> 00:45:45,233 the test of time, and Brenda's got one of them. 974 00:45:45,233 --> 00:45:46,866 -It knocked Mariah Carey 975 00:45:46,866 --> 00:45:49,366 off the charts. 976 00:45:49,366 --> 00:45:50,533 You hear Brenda Lee singing 977 00:45:50,533 --> 00:45:53,133 "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," 978 00:45:53,133 --> 00:45:55,466 and it's Christmastime, baby. 979 00:45:55,466 --> 00:46:00,733 -I was thinking Broadway years, years and years and years ago. 980 00:46:00,733 --> 00:46:02,933 And I did the show at Opryland two shows a day, 981 00:46:02,933 --> 00:46:06,466 six days a week, for three years. 982 00:46:06,466 --> 00:46:08,100 Unh-unh. 983 00:46:08,100 --> 00:46:10,866 I'm glad I didn't choose Broadway. 984 00:46:10,866 --> 00:46:13,466 Because it is hard. 985 00:46:13,466 --> 00:46:16,533 Even if you love it, it's hard. 986 00:46:16,533 --> 00:46:18,233 -For the longest time, one of my -- 987 00:46:18,233 --> 00:46:19,466 one of the earliest songs I heard 988 00:46:19,466 --> 00:46:21,233 was by Golden Earring, called "Radar Love." 989 00:46:21,233 --> 00:46:23,366 -♪The radio's playing some forgotten song ♪ 990 00:46:23,366 --> 00:46:25,566 ♪♪ 991 00:46:25,566 --> 00:46:28,166 ♪ Brenda Lee's "Coming On Strong" ♪ 992 00:46:28,166 --> 00:46:30,400 ♪♪ 993 00:46:30,400 --> 00:46:32,933 -And I would sing that in my cover-band days. 994 00:46:32,933 --> 00:46:34,833 That's -- that's not some made-up name. 995 00:46:34,833 --> 00:46:37,533 She's coming on strong. Perfect. 996 00:46:37,533 --> 00:46:40,933 And what a great use of her name in that context. 997 00:46:40,933 --> 00:46:44,566 Who else would be coming on strong through the radio? 998 00:46:44,566 --> 00:46:48,333 -Her line was, "I pump my hair up to the heavens, 999 00:46:48,333 --> 00:46:51,333 and I pray that I'm gonna be six feet." 1000 00:46:51,333 --> 00:46:53,200 -I'm still short. 1001 00:46:53,200 --> 00:46:58,666 I still sing, in the house and at church and whatever. 1002 00:46:58,666 --> 00:47:00,966 I have loved my career. 1003 00:47:00,966 --> 00:47:04,166 My singing has been my tranquilizer. 1004 00:47:04,166 --> 00:47:06,633 I haven't had to be on pills... [ Chuckles ] 1005 00:47:06,633 --> 00:47:09,300 ...because all I have to do is sing. 1006 00:47:09,300 --> 00:47:12,800 And that makes me happy. 1007 00:47:12,800 --> 00:47:14,033 -She said the reason 1008 00:47:14,033 --> 00:47:16,633 she never got involved with drugs or alcohol 1009 00:47:16,633 --> 00:47:19,900 was because she knew she would like it. 1010 00:47:19,900 --> 00:47:22,000 She knew it was around her. 1011 00:47:22,000 --> 00:47:25,900 But she didn't do it because she knew she'd like it. 1012 00:47:25,900 --> 00:47:30,000 -I have never wanted to do a celebrity biography, ever. 1013 00:47:30,000 --> 00:47:32,933 But Brenda? That's something different. 1014 00:47:32,933 --> 00:47:38,533 I mean, we spent all day, every day, for a year together, 1015 00:47:38,533 --> 00:47:40,666 working on her book. 1016 00:47:40,666 --> 00:47:43,266 If I had to spend that much time with most celebrities -- 1017 00:47:43,266 --> 00:47:46,266 "celebrities" -- I would strangle them. 1018 00:47:46,266 --> 00:47:49,566 You know, I never got tired of being around her. 1019 00:47:49,566 --> 00:47:52,433 I never got tired of being around her. 1020 00:47:52,433 --> 00:47:54,600 And when it was over, she cried. 1021 00:47:54,600 --> 00:47:57,033 -When you get a chance to spend time with Brenda Lee, 1022 00:47:57,033 --> 00:47:58,200 you're going to school. 1023 00:47:58,200 --> 00:48:01,033 She has this history that most people don't, 1024 00:48:01,033 --> 00:48:03,100 that most people that have that history are gone. 1025 00:48:03,100 --> 00:48:05,433 She is sort of the last man standing with those stories 1026 00:48:05,433 --> 00:48:06,966 who experienced it all. 1027 00:48:06,966 --> 00:48:09,000 She's not what we typically hear of from child stars. 1028 00:48:09,000 --> 00:48:11,700 This is not how this -- this is not how it goes for most people. 1029 00:48:11,700 --> 00:48:14,433 -It's always about honoring where we come from, 1030 00:48:14,433 --> 00:48:16,266 who we come from, musically. 1031 00:48:16,266 --> 00:48:19,600 Particularly in our genre, it's always evolved over the years, 1032 00:48:19,600 --> 00:48:22,300 and it's evolved extraordinarily, 1033 00:48:22,300 --> 00:48:24,733 but it's always maintained a strong thread 1034 00:48:24,733 --> 00:48:27,533 throughout all of its evolution. 1035 00:48:27,533 --> 00:48:29,800 I always put that down to knowing where it came from. 1036 00:48:29,800 --> 00:48:33,566 -♪ Well, goodbye, Joe, me gotta go, me, oh, my, oh ♪ 1037 00:48:33,566 --> 00:48:37,166 -She's so generous with the female artists in her life. 1038 00:48:37,166 --> 00:48:38,500 ♪♪ 1039 00:48:38,500 --> 00:48:41,700 ♪ My Yvonne, the sweetest one, me, oh, my, oh ♪ 1040 00:48:41,700 --> 00:48:43,533 -Gratitude and confidence is a great mix, 1041 00:48:43,533 --> 00:48:45,833 and she really personifies that. 1042 00:48:45,833 --> 00:48:49,733 -She forged the path, definitely. 1043 00:48:49,733 --> 00:48:53,166 -♪ Jambalaya, a crawfish pie, and fillet gumbo ♪ 1044 00:48:53,166 --> 00:48:56,933 ♪ 'Cause tonight, I'm gonna see my ma chère amie-o ♪ 1045 00:48:56,933 --> 00:48:59,033 -I would like for somebody to say, "You know what? 1046 00:48:59,033 --> 00:49:01,700 I met her, and she was really nice to me." 1047 00:49:01,700 --> 00:49:04,700 Because I really try to be, and it's sincere. 1048 00:49:04,700 --> 00:49:07,600 Because the people have -- Well, God made me, 1049 00:49:07,600 --> 00:49:10,900 but the people have continued His work 1050 00:49:10,900 --> 00:49:15,733 and have let me do what I want to do for a long, long time. 1051 00:49:15,733 --> 00:49:17,366 ♪ And be gay-o ♪ 1052 00:49:17,366 --> 00:49:18,633 ♪ Well, son of a gun, we'll have... ♪ 1053 00:49:18,633 --> 00:49:20,333 I know what I believe, 1054 00:49:20,333 --> 00:49:23,633 and most of my friends and I differ in our beliefs, 1055 00:49:23,633 --> 00:49:25,633 but that doesn't stop us from being friends 1056 00:49:25,633 --> 00:49:27,500 and having a conversation. 1057 00:49:27,500 --> 00:49:30,333 And it just keeps me balanced. 1058 00:49:30,333 --> 00:49:33,266 -She has done things that I don't think anybody else 1059 00:49:33,266 --> 00:49:35,866 is ever gonna do. 1060 00:49:35,866 --> 00:49:37,700 Ain't gonna happen. 1061 00:49:37,700 --> 00:49:39,900 -The universe had a destiny for her. 1062 00:49:39,900 --> 00:49:41,400 There's no question. 1063 00:49:41,400 --> 00:49:46,933 The universe had a special goal for her, and she fulfilled it. 1064 00:49:46,933 --> 00:49:50,700 -To convince record-company executives at the time 1065 00:49:50,700 --> 00:49:54,300 when I was recording, it was -- you know, 1066 00:49:54,300 --> 00:49:58,266 it was all down to the power you had on the page. 1067 00:49:58,266 --> 00:50:01,600 And if it's not there, you're not going to have it, 1068 00:50:01,600 --> 00:50:06,100 especially as a woman coming up at that time. 1069 00:50:06,100 --> 00:50:09,433 -For somebody to be a child prodigy like that, 1070 00:50:09,433 --> 00:50:15,800 to progress as an artist, as a musician, as a singer, 1071 00:50:15,800 --> 00:50:19,500 I think it says a lot about who she thought she was 1072 00:50:19,500 --> 00:50:21,500 and who she wanted to be. 1073 00:50:21,500 --> 00:50:24,400 That's pretty amazing. 1074 00:50:24,400 --> 00:50:26,400 Based out of Nashville. 1075 00:50:26,400 --> 00:50:32,200 -There's not those kind of recognizable voices anymore. 1076 00:50:32,200 --> 00:50:36,200 -Brenda Lee, over the years, has been honored for her talent 1077 00:50:36,200 --> 00:50:40,433 and the ability to tell a story, 1078 00:50:40,433 --> 00:50:45,333 the ability to make people cry, to make people laugh. 1079 00:50:45,333 --> 00:50:48,433 -I don't think she really understands what she's -- 1080 00:50:48,433 --> 00:50:50,333 what she's brought to the game 1081 00:50:50,333 --> 00:50:53,800 and what she has accomplished because she's so humble. 1082 00:50:53,800 --> 00:50:55,733 -The people really in the early years 1083 00:50:55,733 --> 00:50:58,200 that really looked at a little girl 1084 00:50:58,200 --> 00:51:03,466 and saw something further than just a little girl, 1085 00:51:03,466 --> 00:51:04,866 I can't ever -- 1086 00:51:04,866 --> 00:51:08,500 There are -- there are no words to thank them. 1087 00:51:08,500 --> 00:51:11,500 No words. 1088 00:51:11,500 --> 00:51:13,733 The only thing that I can attribute that 1089 00:51:13,733 --> 00:51:16,833 to was good songs. 1090 00:51:16,833 --> 00:51:20,700 The A team of musicians that I had. 1091 00:51:20,700 --> 00:51:23,466 It was just all a group thing. 1092 00:51:23,466 --> 00:51:28,700 It just was never me. It was everybody contributing. 1093 00:51:28,700 --> 00:51:31,300 ♪ ...sorry ♪ 1094 00:51:31,300 --> 00:51:34,100 I never say, "I did that. Oh, that was --" 1095 00:51:34,100 --> 00:51:36,500 It's, "We did it." 1096 00:51:36,500 --> 00:51:38,833 ♪♪ 1097 00:51:38,833 --> 00:51:47,500 I'm just blessed that they took an 11-year-old seriously. 1098 00:51:47,500 --> 00:51:55,233 -♪ Sorry ♪ 1099 00:51:57,266 --> 00:51:58,633 [ "Dynamite" plays ] 1100 00:51:58,633 --> 00:51:59,966 -♪ Dynamite ♪ 1101 00:51:59,966 --> 00:52:07,133 ♪♪ 1102 00:52:07,133 --> 00:52:09,633 -When I worked with Don Rickles 1103 00:52:09,633 --> 00:52:13,733 and all, I was like 12 years old. 1104 00:52:13,733 --> 00:52:17,266 He would say on the stage at the Fontainebleau 1105 00:52:17,266 --> 00:52:23,133 in Miami, he'd say, "Well, I'm about through with my show now." 1106 00:52:23,133 --> 00:52:26,500 Said, "I guess we'll just call little Brenda Lee. 1107 00:52:26,500 --> 00:52:30,066 She's upstairs in her room playing with her paper dolls." 1108 00:52:30,066 --> 00:52:32,566 [ Laughs ] 1109 00:52:32,566 --> 00:52:36,200 ♪ The power of one hour of love's delight ♪ 1110 00:52:36,200 --> 00:52:40,600 ♪ Just knocks me out like dynamite ♪ 1111 00:52:40,600 --> 00:52:43,266 ♪ Because you're dynamite ♪ 1112 00:52:43,266 --> 00:52:44,666 ♪♪ 1113 00:52:44,666 --> 00:52:47,000 ♪ Because you're dynamite ♪ 1114 00:52:47,000 --> 00:52:49,966 -♪ You're dynamite ♪ 1115 00:52:49,966 --> 00:52:51,666 ♪♪