Some artists make you think. Some make you cry. Ray Stevens has spent more than six decades doing both, and somewhere along the way he made the whole country laugh until it hurt.

Next Monday, November 9, Nashville gives him his due. Don’t Look, Ethel! A Salute to the Musical Genius of Ray Stevens takes over the Opry House at 7 p.m., and the lineup just got deeper. Tanya Tucker, The Bellamy Brothers, John Berry and Jamie O’Neal have signed on, and WWE SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis will drop in for a special appearance.

They join a bill that already reads like a who’s who of country music: Ricky Skaggs, Ronnie Milsap, Jamey Johnson, Gretchen Wilson, Mark Chesnutt, The Gatlin Brothers, Ashley McBryde, Lorrie Morgan, Rhonda Vincent, T. Graham Brown, Collin Raye, Darryl Worley, Dailey & Vincent, Mark Wills, Billy Dean, Jeff Bates and Deborah Allen. Cledus T. Judd, who knows a thing or two about a funny song, will host. Country Music Hall of Famer Randy Travis is scheduled to make a special appearance, and Sixwire will hold it all together as the house band.

And because this is Ray Stevens we’re talking about, the night won’t stop at music. Nancy Jones, widow of the late George Jones, will share remarks, along with wrestling royalty Jerry “The King” Lawler and Mickie James. Only Ray could pull together the Opry, the Possum’s family and the squared circle in one evening and have it make perfect sense.

Best of all, Ray himself plans to be there.

“I’ve always been so fond of the Nashville music community, and I’m truly honored that they would want to do this tribute,” Stevens says. “All my life I’ve wanted to be successful in the music business and have people appreciate what I create. That’s impossible without the fans.”

It’s easy to file Ray under novelty and move on. That would be a mistake. The man who gave us “The Streak” also gave us “Everything Is Beautiful,” and both came from the same place: a songwriter, producer and musician with serious chops and a deep love for an audience. Two GRAMMYs, more than 40 million albums sold, and a spot in the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Musicians Hall of Fame say he was never just the funny guy.

He was the guy who made it look easy.

A limited number of tickets remain at AXS.com. If you’re anywhere near Music City next Monday, go. Laugh loud. Sing along.

And whatever you do, don’t look, Ethel.

The post Don’t Look, Ethel! Tanya Tucker, The Bellamy Brothers, John Berry and Jamie O’Neal Join Ray Stevens Tribute appeared first on Twang Nation - The Best In Americana Music.