In the last of the Flashback Friday series featuring Jo Dee Messina‘s 1989 demo tapes, the Bostonian sings of Rocky Top, Tennessee. The cover of the Osborne Brothers‘ 1967 Top 20 hit joins Reba McEntire’s “Whoever’s In New England” and Tammy Wynette’s “Stand By Your Man” as the three tunes leaked from the chart-topping artist’s teenage years as she was vying for a break in country music.
Ironically, earlier this week, former Indianapolis Colt and Denver Bronco quarterback, Peyton Manning, visited Music City and performed the same song at Whiskey Jam (with Lee Brice and Shay Mooney from Dan + Shay). However, it is pretty safe to say that the Messina cover of “Rocky Top” proved to be more fruitful in the musical department than Manning’s brief time in the Nashville spotlight.
Listen to nineteen-year-old Jo Dee Messina’s cover of “Rocky Top” here:
