Dottie Rambo Remembered With A Star On the Music City Walk of Fame

Dottie Rambo Photo by Aaron Crisler / The Judy Nelon Group

Nashville, TN - Nov. 18, 2011 - Dottie Rambo shined brilliantly with pen in hand, so it was a perfectly fitting tribute that she should receive a star on the Music City Walk of Fame on Sunday, November 6, 2011 in a ceremony honoring seven worthy recipients: Manuel (Clothes Designer), Dan Miller (Broadcaster), Dr. Bobby Jones (Gospel Artist), Dottie Rambo (Artist/Composer), Les Paul (Guitarist), Alan Jackson (Singer/Songwriter), and Kix Brooks (Artist/Songwriter/Broadcaster/Philanthropist).

Daughter, Reba Rambo-McGuire, received the star on her mother's behalf. It was presented by friend and world-renowend producer Tony Brown whose musical roots began in the Christian music arena. Rambo-McGuire's poignant words were nearly as beautifully stated as the lyrics to her mother's songs. She expressed that her mother found a song in everything and in everything, a song. Rambo-McGuire shared, "My mom would hear that hammer we're all hearing now in the distance, and she'd say, "Someone pass me a pen and a paper. That sound is part of the orchestra for the song God is about to have me write." She continued. "My sweet mom even made my school assignment to memorize the Gettysburg Address into a melody and guess what? I did it!" She told how Rambo view the world, her lyrics and everything that God created as a musical score that God Himself intended for our enjoyment and His glory.

Reba Rambo-McGuire, daughter of Dottie Rambo, with her family (L-R: Destiny McGuire, Israel McGuire, Dony McGuire) and producer Tony Brown with Dottie Rambo's star on the Music City Walk of Fame. ©Photo by Aaron Crisler / The Judy Nelon Group

We certainly felt that joy with songs such as "I Will Glory in the Cross," "He Looked Beyond My Fault," "I Go To The Rock," and thousands more. Rambo's Grammy®-award winning songwriting was legendary: Recorded by most Gospel singers and music icons such as Elvis Presley, Barbara Mandrell, Carol Channing, Whitney Houston and Dolly Parton. The Music City Walk of Fame on Nashville's Music Mile is a landmark tribute to those from all genres of music who made a significant contribution to the music industry with connections to Music City. It was truly a wonderful moment for Music City, and the world, when her gifts and legacy were celebrated with a large gathering of family, friends and fans in the greatest city for music celebration on earth...Nashville, TN.

Dottie Rambo's career began at the age of 8 when she started writing and she left this world too soon in a tragic bus accident, between tour stops, on Mother's Day in 2008. Her family, Rambo-McGuire, is carrying on her legacy, singing the beautifully penned songs of Rambo, with a recent tribute album, Grassroots Rambo. Every selection on the recording was written by the acclaimed songwriter, including the current radio single, released with Vertical Sky Promotions, and being very enthusiastically received by fans worldwide, called "I Won't Ask For More."

To learn more about the ministry of Rambo McGuire, follow them on Facebook at Facebook.com/RamboMcGuire, Twitter @RamboMcGuire and www.RamboMcGuire.com

Reba Rambo-McGuire and Reba McEntire with Dottie Rambo's Star on the Music City Walk of Fame. ©Photo by Aaron Crisler / The Judy Nelon Group

To learn more about the ministry of Rambo McGuire, follow them on Facebook at Facebook.com/RamboMcGuire and on Twitter @RamboMcGuire.

Reba Rambo-McGuire's full remarks telling the story of her mother, Dottie Rambo:

Growing up, we were so poor… poor people called us poor.

Dad’s family was from Walnut Grove, Kentucky…population 36. Hee-haw! Ma and Pa Rambo had 13 young’uns so you can figure how many neighbors we had by that!
 
My Mom was also born and raised in the hills of Kentucky where her story was very reminiscent of her dear friend, Loretta Lynn.
 
By the way, Mom would be so excited that two of her favorite female vocalists are here today…Connie Smith and Reba McEntire. She loved them both dearly.
 
Mom began writing songs down in the holler by the creek bank at the ripe ole age of 8. By the time she was 10 she had somehow taught herself to play guitar by faithfully listening to The Grand Ole Opry on Saturday nights.
 
When people told Mom that women couldn’t and shouldn’t play lead guitar…well, that was just what she needed to give her the incentive to not only play it, but play it well.
When she started writing songs she was informed that songwriting was a man’s world…but that simply became fuel for her fire.  If she was told she couldn’t…she was determined to prove them wrong. Her pioneering spirit blazed a marked trail for so many grateful female writers and performers who would eventually follow.
 
I remember the first time our family came all the way from Kentucky to Nashville. I was about 8 years old. We explored this city and thought it was the greatest place on this earth. We were downtown on Broadway and my Dad stopped Mom and me in our tracks. “Listen and look,” he said. “This is the place where magic happens; this is the city where dreams come true!”
 
About three years later Governor Jimmie Davis from Louisiana (who wrote “You Are My Sunshine”) heard the Goodmans sing one of Mom’s songs. Somehow, he got hold of our Pastor because we didn’t even have a phone and invited us to fly on his private plane all the way to Louisiana. Talk about a Cinderella story! Mom stayed up for 3 days making us clothes. She made me ruffled starchy dresses that stuck out with huge can-can petticoats.
 
When we got there it was like the Beverly Hillbillies go to the Governor’s mansion! When we walked into that huge marble entryway it was about lunchtime and they hurried us into this mirrored dining room with a china and crystal covered table that looked like it was a mile long. There were butlers in white and gold dress uniforms standing at attention around the walls. When we were seated I looked down and I had five forks…where we were from we were lucky to get a spoon!
 
My mouth must have been hanging open because the Governor picked up his far left fork and winked at me, “Just do whatever I do!” Sitting at that table he began talking to my parents about something called, “song publishing.” Then he went on to explain about royalties. “Do you mean I could actually make money from writing songs?” Mom asked. It had never occurred to my parents that they could do what they loved and actually make a living from it. It was simply what they had to do.
 
In 1965 we moved to Nashville and set our little house trailer up in Madison. We were so thrilled because our lot actually had a tree on it! It was a time when Gospel music was a world of male quartets with bass singers and piano players, but here we were; a family trio with a dad and his girls and guitars. Of course, once again, my Mom had the attitude…don’t tell me we can’t!
 
Mom wrote music for the sheer joy of writing! She taught me everything could be life set to music…whether it was a grocery list or homework. When I had to memorize Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address for school, she made it into a silly libretto for opera. If she were sitting here today at this ceremony in downtown Nashville, she would be listening to the construction hammers ringing, the traffic sirens blazing, the birds singing and would be bumming a pen and paper from somebody to write a song to that rhythm, melody and cadence. All of life was music and she squeezed the notes and lyrics from it.
 
She would be so thrilled to have this star in the center and heart of the city she loved. She told everyone that Nashville was the greatest place in the world and convinced a lot of folks to move here.  All those years ago when our hillbilly family moved from Kentucky to Nashville, we had no idea just how wonderful this city would be to us.
 
My husband, Dony, all our family, her grandchildren and I thank you from the bottom of our hearts for this honor for my mother, Dottie Rambo.