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From: Duke Gilleland
Date: September 05, 2008
I always claimed my senior class trip was to San Antone to see Bob on March 6 1973. This was the big tribute KBUC put on down there. Local Belton radio station KTON chartered a bus for the trip. Then there was the first time Cindy and I saw Leon Rausch July 6, 1974. It was at the Bluestem Ballroom in Copperas Cove Texas. We had never danced to a Texas Playboy up till then. We was just teenagers. It was booked as "and The Texas Playboys". We had been given tickets to see Cal Smith the same night and were sitting in the parking lot in Killeen waiting to get in to cal's dance. Ad came on the radio for Leon's dance while we were waiting. Cindy looked at me and said, "might as well go on down the road to Cove 'cause that is where you want to be. I dropped them Cal Smith tickets out the window and away we went to C Cove. Being broke, I nearly had to hock my pocket watch to cash a check to get into Leon's dance at the local 7-11. We made it and danced every song Leon sang that night! He would finish one and I would be there to request another one! Going out that night, I picked up a schedule card from the club. 25 years later, Leon signed that card down at San Marcos. He said we should have gone seen Cal, BUT we knew better! And I thank the Lord every day for my woman who loves the music as I do!