John Foster is paying tribute to a country legend. The season 23 American Idol runner up took the Grand Ole Opry stage during a tribute concert to Don Williams, and revealed his family’s special connection to the late star.
After opening the show with a performance of “Tulsa Time,” Foster spoke to the crowd about Williams, whom he called “one of country music’s greatest artists.”
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Foster went on to reveal Williams’ song “Amanda” served as the inspiration for his mom’s name. He went on to play the 1973 tune for the crowd.
Before he left the stage, Foster, who marked his 17th Opry appearance during the show, played one more song for the crowd—”It Must Be Love.”
Foster wasn’t the only star to honor Williams at the concert. Rodney Crowell, Brandy Clark, The Isaacs, Jamey Johnson, Trisha Yearwood, and Keith Urban also performed.
What to Know About Don Williams
The tribute concert came after the release of Epilogue: The Cellar Tapes, Williams’ posthumous LP.
The album came to fruition after Williams’ family discovered decades-old, unreleased recordings in a storm cellar on their property. The tapes featured never-before-heard tracks that the legend recorded between 1979-1984.
After coming to find out that Williams’ vocal tracks were in near-perfect condition, Williams’ son, Tim Williams, teamed up with his dad’s longtime producer, Garth Fundis, to produce an album.
“More than anything wanted it to sound like, ‘What do you know? Daddy actually did a another record back in 1980 that nobody’s heard,’” Tim Williams told American Songwriter. “We just wanted it to sound like that, so it was real important that people understood what what it was supposed to sound like.”
As for how his dad would feel about the LP, the younger Williams said, “I think he would be proud of it… He felt like he owed the listener, the fans, the very best that he could give them.”
Fundis agreed, stating, “As somebody who spent a lot of time in the studio over the years with Don, I can tell you he’d be tickled for everybody to hear this.”
Epilogue: The Cellar Tapes is out now.
Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/WireImage