BACK IN 1981: It began with a single flag gently waving above the tour bus, a quiet promise of what was to come. Don Reid stood at the front of The Statler Brothers that summer — not just as a lead singer, but as a storyteller carrying the heartbeat of a nation. From tiny fairgrounds to packed civic centers, their harmonies rolled across 30 states like a warm July wind, stirring memories of front-porch evenings, folded hands, and hometown pride. In every crowd, someone wiped away a tear — a veteran, a mother, a child hearing hope in four voices for the very first time. And as the tour rolled on, it became clear: patriotism wasn’t a performance. It was a song passed from heart to heart, still echoing long after the lights dimmed.
phil THE SUMMER THAT WOULD NOT LET GO — THE STATLER BROTHERS’ QUIET TOUR THAT AWAKENED A NATION There are seasons…