Dwight’s All Right

Regarding Michael McCall’s “Nashville Report” item in Pop Eye (Nov. 29), in which he cites several entertainers who have been rejected as guests at the Grand Ole Opry because they proved to be too “rock-influenced”:

McCall included Dwight Yoakam in error; Yoakam made his first appearance at the Grand Ole Opry earlier this year after several attempts to work our scheduling details. This long-awaited first was a success for all involved and proved once and for all that Yoakam is the real thing in every sense of the word, even by Opry standards.

With the sad passing of Roy Acuff and the induction of Marty Stuart into the Grand Ole Opry, a new era begins. Like Yoakam, Stuart is well aware of the musical history that came before him and honors it, and no one is more deserving of Opry membership than he is.

While opening the doors to non-country performers can only serve to give country music a boost, it will never detract from the Opry or the music it continues to keep alive.

JANA PENDRAGON

Long Beach