By the time Anthony Johnson sent us his bio information he already had a bona fide hit in our catalog with the corporate-but-not-cheesy “#0183 Tie Dye Satin”, which is definitely NOT country music. So we were concerned about the accuracy of our FAX machine when his credits appeared to include a 1992 Keyboardist of the Year nomination by the Academy of Country Music, performances with Alan Jackson, and a house gig at the Grand Old Opry with country music legend Bill Anderson.

This suspicious bio went on to say” We do three shows a week at the Grand Ole Opry which go out on Clearchannel 650 AM, Sirrus Satellite radio, Country Music Television. It’s totally live. Just plug-in and play. You only have the length of a radio commercial to change acts. Make a mistake and it goes out to the world!”

Several e-mails later confirmed that, yes, Johnson was the composer of “#0183 Tie Dye Satin” and apparently, even country and western musicians will try anything once. But we’re pretty sure that the success of “Tie Dye Satin” is no accident. Stylistic boundaries are of little consequence to great musicians.

Says Johnson, “One of our favorite jokes around the Opry is that people who don't care for country music sometimes say it's because the music is just "too country". You won't hear that about any other genre; too jazz? Too rap? Too classical? Regardless of how you feel about it, there are only a few places on Earth such as Carnegie Hall or The Metropolitan Opera that instantly project a vividly defined image and heritage like The Grand Ole Opry.