Rhonda Vincent has an early Christmas present for us all, a hilarious video version of I Ain’t Been Nowhere from her current Music Is What I See album.
It features Rhonda, the members of her touring band, The Rage, her husband, Herb, and a special guest appearance from Dolly Parton.
For those unfamiliar with the song, I Ain’t Been Nowhere is a reworking of a country music classic, I’ve Been Everywhere. In the original, the lyrics are a long list of cities and towns delivered in a tongue-twister fashion, which had been recorded by a number of popular artists. The genesis of the song traces back to Australia, and following its success there in the early ’60s, was quickly rewritten for New Zealand and the US. Hank Snow had a big hit with it in 1962. Other country artists like Lynn Anderson and Johnny Cash famously covered it as well. Now there are versions for just about every spot on the planet, in a wide variety of languages.
Vincent’s cut not only grasses it up, but modifies the story to carry a COVID theme about how she didn’t get to go anywhere in 2020.
She explains a bit about the song, and how the video came to include her friend, Dolly Parton.
“Chuck Mead wrote the parody to I’ve Been Everywhere. I saw his version and thought there should be a bluegrass version, so I rewrote a few lines to make it family friendly. We recorded it for Music Is What I See – which is now a Grammy nominated project.
I was recording a song for an upcoming Dolly project, and she sent me a message that said, ‘let me know if you ever need me for anything.’ I wrote her back and asked if she would sing a video chorus of I Ain’t Been Nowhere. She did it the next week.
I hope everyone likes it. I am hoping it’s a video that will lift everyone’s spirits.”
The video is both clever and extremely funny, with Rhonda and the guys playing the fool to great comedic effect.
Music Is What I See is available from popular download and streaming sites online. CDs can be ordered directly from the Rhonda Vincent web site.
Rhonda and The Rage are doing their Christmas in Branson shows all this week at The Mansion Theater, and will follow those with a three night run of Christmas in Renfro Valley in Kentucky. See full details online.
