Bobby Wright and I visited John Wayne Raley in St. Mary’s Hospital a couple weeks ago and I’m glad we did so. It was a good visit as we sat with him for about an hour. John, despite being very weak and very tired, was able to reminisce, talk and even laugh about things both past and present. He finally told us “I’m gonna have to ask to fellas to give me a break here so I can get some rest but I appreciate you coming by to see me.” With that, we said goodbye and slipped out.
A week later, I went to see John at his home but his daughter Colby said he was sleeping. Then, yesterday I went by the Hospice House to see him but he was asleep. Colby and John’s sister-in-law Mary Ruth were there and it was good to talk with them even if John was not awake during the time I was there.
As I left the Hospice House, I thought “Sure am glad I got to see and talk to John when I did.”
Iris Roberts discussed on her FB page also visiting John a couple days ago.
It sent me to my photo files to find these pics of John at Buzzy’s Country Store in his dune buggy:
Last time John was in Buzzy’s, he presented me with this replica of Bart’s Cobra. I offered to pay him for it but he wouldn’t take anything and said “No, this belongs here in memory of Bart.”
I have several other photos of John in Buzzy’s, but here is one of my favorites of him with Grace Pratt and Joe Cullison taken by Barbara Demko:
Bruce wrote this song in memory of his bandmate Danny Federici who died on 17 April 2008: