Prayers are needed for songwriting legend Hank Cochran. He is recovering in a Nashville hospital after undergoing surgery for removal of cancerous tumors from his pancreas and lymph nodes. “I feel so blessed”, says Hank, “The diagnosis was made very early and the doctors expect me to make a full recovery.

We remember Hank’s great compositions “Don’t Touch Me”, “I Fall to Pieces”, “Make the World go Away”, “Oceanfront Property”, “The Chair”, etc. Hank and I were friends during my days at Monument Records while he was married to Jeannie Seeley. We had a smash with “Don’t Touch Me” with Jeannie. It has become her career song. There was never a dull moment with those two around the office. Those were great days with great friends.

The merger of XM and Sirius Satellite Radio outlets looks like it is going to happen, unfortunately. Both these operations are absolutely great for exposing new talent and exposure of new records, along with the great amount of oldies they play. It now means, once this happens, half the staff will be out of jobs and only half the music will be heard. Make no mistake about it; this is simply about the money. Once this happens, it would be nice to see another company kick in a new satellite station and give this conglomerate some competition.

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