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    Sonny LeMaire of Exile

    Country Music Success Stories

    Thursday, 14 October 2021 - 44 seconds

    The appeal of music for me was playing the music. When you start playing, and that music is blowing by you, around you. It is the most amazing, glorious feeling.  – Sonny LeMaire 
     
    In this episode, we sit down with Sonny LeMaire, bass player, singer/songwriter for the iconic group Exile.  Taped in Sonny’s cozy living room outside of Nashville, we learn all about what it takes to succeed in rock, pop and country music because this is a man who has experienced it all. With one of his rescue dogs napping in his lap,  Sonny led us through the incredible ladder of his career, including the story of his first bass guitar, purchased at a pawn shop, which he played (youguessed it) “til his fingers bled”.  Like so many teenagers growing up in the 60’s, Sonny was forever changed when he saw the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show.  At that moment, Sonny  knew he was wired to play music and Paul McCartney on bass became his first role model.  From playing high school dances to touring the country with major acts, to a bowling alley lounge in Lexington, Kentucky, Sonny had seen it all very quickly. With a wife and 6 year old child to care for, Sonny decided it would be okay if he didn’t hit the big time.  Enter an offer in 1977 from Exile keyboard player Marlon Hargis who recruited Sonny after founding member J.P. Pennington sat in with him at the bowling alley lounge!  To find out how much the band was going to pay him, and what happened next, just hit that download button. This is one of those interviews you just can’t stop listening to.

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