Stories from 2003

• "Hey! My name is Allie Derocle and I am 17 years old. When I was a kid, my uncle (who I was very close with), listened to Patsy Cline on his juke box, and would dance with me to all of her songs, and I grew up to love her!!!!"
  Allie Derocle, Oct 27, 2003.
• "My name is Bernard Green and I live in Bedfordshire in the UK. November 1962 and I was listening to the BBC radio and this song 'Heartaches' was played. It enthralled me and I saved up my pocket money to buy it as a single. I was hooked and saved up to buy the LP 'Showcase'. Probably changed my life that track on the BBC all those years back. Introduced me to a vocal talent that has never been surpassed.

  March 1963 and the Daily Mail carried the news of the plane crash, the saddest thing I recall was knowing that I would never be able to see Patsy live in concert. But in all the years since then the sound of Patsy and the emotion in her voice is so strong that there isn't really a need to see her perform. The talent is that voice and as long as I can hear it the presence and emotion of Patsy will be there."
  Bernard Green, Oct 15, 2003.

• "Hi, I really at first wasn't a fan, I only liked two of her songs, 'Walking after midnight' and 'I fall to pieces'. It was my older sister in around 1986 that got me into likeing her more, she bought this record of Patsy Cline's at a flea market and played it for me and I ended up likeing the songs on it and got into listening to her more, I now have two CDs of her's, but at least 10 cassettes. 'Walking after midnight' is still my favorite song of her's. I was not quite a year old yet when she was killed, I turned a year old six days after she was killed. Now I can't get enough of listening to her, I saw 'Sweet dreams' at least ten times, and 'Coal miner's daughter' about ten times too. I have this book called 'The life & times of Patsy Cline."
  Lorraine Thachuk, Sep 27, 2003.
• "My name is Dia Nalani Takahashi. I grew up in Southern California listening to my Hawaiian-born parents singing and playing with Hawaiian transplant friends. I started playing music professionally in '82 and moved to Washington. I would listen to a public radio station that would play all New Wave music except for one artist... Yep, Patsy Cline. It always struck me as a pleasant surprise at how beautifully and hauntingly her music fit right in with the Smiths and with Crowded House.

  As time went on, I found myself performing more and more country music and loving it. My hypothesis is that it is because it is similar to Hawaiian music in so many ways, rhythm-wise, harmonywise, pedalsteel-guitarwise!... And the more I played country music, the more requests I got for Patsy's songs. So much so that now I'm moving towards becoming involved in a tribute dedicated to this remarkable lady.

  With each song of Patsy's that I study, I am more and more in awe at how flawlessly she carried out every last detail of every song. I'm working with a songwriter now to create new 'Patsy' style songs. I'm pretty impressed with the first song he wrote. If anyone's interested in listening to it, please let me know. Also, I'd appreciate any information from anyone on whom I might contact to become involved in any existing or emerging Tributes to our favorite singer! I put some samples here."
  Dia Nalani Takahashi, Jul 3, 2003.

• "My name is Maggie. I first heard Patsy's music on the movie 'Sweet Dreams'. I instantly fell in love with her voice. 14 years have passed by and I still listen to her music. Just a few months ago I talked to Charlie I asked him if he'd please send me a picture of Patsy, and he said that he would. About two weeks passed by and one day I went out to check the mail and there in the mailbox was a envelope addressed to me from Patsy's husband charlie. He sent me two pictures of her. I have had dreams where I have met Patsy and asked not to get on the plane, and she would ask me why? I would tell her the plane is going to crash. Before she could respond to my warning, I would wake up. I know that someday when I go to heaven I will get to meet her. Thank you for taking time to read my story of how I became a Patsy fan."
  Maggie Medford, Jun 11, 2003.
• "When I was a baby, my dad used to play Patsy cassettes all the time. I have home videos of me playing with my little dolls, and 'Have You Ever Been Lonely' is playing in the background. My dad told me her name was Patsy Cline. I tried my best to copy what he said, but it turned out as 'Patsy Climb'. And those were some of my first words. Later, I was digging through my Grandpa's cassettes right before he died. I must have been three or four years old. I reached way back in the cabinet and pulled out 'The Best of Patsy Cline'. (The name later changed to 'Heartaches', but is the same exact thing). I don't think I could read then, but I asked my grandpa if I could have it, 'Because the lady on the cover is pretty.' I didn't know that this was what I listened to at home every day. But I was happy when I realized it was.

  A year or so later, I always begged my dad to take me to the local K-Mart so I could pick out a new Patsy tape. I didn't know most of the songs yet, so I picked out the tape I wanted based on which cover Patsy looked prettiest on. It was long before I owned all the Patsy tapes at K-Mart. I remember vividly, running around the dining room table singing along to 'Back in Baby's Arms'. Patsy Cline wasn't just a part of my childhood... she WAS my childhood. And she had died 23 years before I was even born.

  I was the most talkative little girl ever, anyone will tell you. I used to walk up to strangers since the time I could talk and ask them if they ever heard of Patsy Cline, and if they liked her. This happened one day in gym when I was talking to my gym teacher. I forget her name, but she reminded me of Willie Nelson. Anyhow, we used to have to run around the gym every day for almost ten minutes while she played a tape of The Beach Boys or something like that. The next day, I brought in the tape that my grandpa gave me before he died. We listened to it as we ran and I've never been happier. I loved sharing my Patsy with anyone, anywhere. But I felt bad for my gym teacher because she had no Patsy tapes. Even though this particular tape meant a lot to me, I let my teacher have it. I wanted everyone to hear the beautiful voice that I grew up with.

  In the third grade, (I must have been around 8 years old) I bought this now out-of print biography about Patsy from the library for 25 cents. I was a really good reader and I brought this thick paper-back to school one day to read during lunch. I showed the kids around me the pictures of Patsy in the book, because I thought (and still think) she is the most beautiful woman that ever lived. Well, one little girl told the teacher one day that I was reading a Patsy Cline book, I don't know why or what the big deal was. But the teacher took the book out of my backpack and said 'You shouldn't be reading this.' I didn't understand and I was almost in tears. Patsy was all I listened to until I was about 10 years old. When my grandma tried to play Garth Brooks for me, I'd get defensive of her and tell her 'Gramma, no one sings better than Patsy.' Then I'd go and put in the very first compact disc I ever owned: Patsy Cline, 12 Greatest Hits.

  My grandparents have taken me to see 'Just A Closer Walk With Patsy Cline' twice at the Fireside theater in Wisconsin. I still have about a million little promo posters that I took from there. I hope to go again if they still have it. (I e-mailed someone at the Fireside a couple weeks ago and begged them to bring it back. They said it's one of their most popular shows and they might soon). If something has to do with Patsy Cline, I made sure I get it. She's always been an important part of my life and always will be. I love you ALL.. and God Bless."
  Stephanie, 17, Apr 1, 2003.

• "My name is Karolina. I discovered Patsy Cline’s music ten years ago, while watching TV. An ad for a collection of her songs came on, featuring short samples of several of her songs, including 'Crazy', 'She’s Got You', and 'Walkin’ After Midnight'. When I first heard this ad, I immediately leaned forward in my chair, and listened intently. I was struck by this beautiful, honest voice coming from my television, a voice unlike any I’d ever heard! It was unbelievable! After hearing the ad a few times, I memorized the short snippets of songs and often sang them to myself. About a couple of months later, I went to Ireland, and while there I bought three cassettes of Patsy’s music. I listened to them constantly, both in Ireland, and when I arrived back home. I was completely mesmerized by Patsy, not just by the beauty of her voice, but by her total downright honesty. Well, I subsequently bought CDs of her music, including a box set, and kept buying them, and now own about 15 CDs! I’m still looking for new material!

  As you can probably tell, she's still my very favourite singer!! I mean, no one can beat Patsy!! For me, listening to Patsy Cline is like going on an emotional roller-coaster ride. One moment she’s rock-‘n-rolling and having fun, and the next she’s crying her heart out over lost happiness. One song that overwhelms me every time I hear it, is 'Imagine That'. Another is 'Lonely Street'. These are among the most painful to listen to for me, because Patsy pours her heart out in them, and in every song actually! I feel a special spiritual kinship with Patsy, like we’re sisters or best friends, even though I was born over a decade after her death. Sometimes when I’m listening to her I grieve her death, but then realize that such grief can only come from the abundant joy and blessing she has given me! Patsy’s body is dead, but Patsy is still very much alive! The proof for this is just a CD or radio away! I plan to one day go to the Cline museum and to visit her crash site and grave. I venture that in the not-too-distant future, Patsy will be studied as widely and seriously as Bach and Mozart!! Thank you for your awesome web site for sincere fans like myself!!"
  Karolina M, Feb 19, 2003.