My 100 Favorite Charted Country Songs: There’s a Big Wheel

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Oh, now you’re in for it! We’ve had all of these great 60s country music wigs, and now you get a country music DRESS! Look at that hoop skirt!! And I’ll warn you now, the song matches that hoop skirt, so be forewarned before you listen. Here’s today’s song. There’s a Big Wheel - Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper By the way, I have a photo of myself with Wilma Lee Cooper in the early 90s, and she was still wearing those. She was probably buried in one. This is the “old-time mountain” side of country music. Wilma Lee and Stoney were from West Virginia, and for a long time they were on the Wheeling Jamboree before migrating to Nashville and the Grand Ole Opry. They also performed in a gospel act (which is where they met, with Wilma Lee being a vocalist and Stoney playing fiddle for the group). This is a gospel song, cleverly written by Don Gibson (who’s been on the list as a songwriter and a performer). In the clip you see the bass fiddle player hitting the bass with his fist; however, on the record, it was a bass drum. (Also in the video you’ll see legendary banjo player Curtis McPeake. You’re welcome. ) Wilma Lee’s voice wasn’t “pretty” but it was powerful, and that’s what always endured her to me. There’s a Big Wheel Written by Don Gibson Recorded by Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper Released as a single, 1959 Peak chart position: #3 Today’s rock song: “Take It to the Limit” Everything you do is a whiz: