By Frank Roberts

I had the pleasure to become close to a couple of real country musicians through the years, as they both made several Hampton Roads appearances.

First, there was Faron Young, who made many appearances at my favorite club, Michael’s in Virginia Beach. A fine singer and actor, he had a reputation for feistiness.

I recall one time when I was with him in club owner Michael Christian’s office. Airline reservations got messed up, and he was on the phone telling a company representative, in no uncertain terms, that he was — using my own translation — very, very unhappy. I got along fine with him. He was a fun guy.

Sadly, he killed himself after a long illness, at the age of 51.

Second on my good friends list was Conway Twitty, who sometimes came to Norfolk on his own and sometimes with his long-time singing partner, Loretta Lynn. He was a quiet, low-key guy and most likeable. He had hit after hit after hit but, for whatever reason, he was never a member of the Grand Ol’ Opry.

One of his sons, Michael, tried following in his footsteps, but it didn’t work out. I met Michael when he played an area fair. He was quite a nice young man.

My favorite female singer acquaintance was Lynn (“I Never Promised You A Rose Garden”) Anderson. I met her at an outdoor concert in Tennessee, spending some time with her in her trailer.

An English writer was with me for a story in a supermarket tabloid, The Star. Lynn had a wild sense of humor, and she was telling him some of the craziest things about her life — wild things that never happened. He knew zilch about country music and feverishly took down notes on everything she said — nothing nasty, but some of it politically incorrect. When we left her, I told him not to write anything about the interview — that she was just pulling his leg.

Lynn, for several years, was the country singer on The Lawrence Welk Show. Her mom, Liz, was a songwriter.

During a 60-year career spanning newspapers, radio and television, Frank Roberts has been there and done that. Today, he’s doing it in retirement from North Carolina, but he continues to keep an eye set on Suffolk and an ear cocked on country music. Email him at froberts73@embarqmail.com.