La. Hayride coming back to S’port/Bossier area

I've been waiting for someone to do something w/the name/franchise for decades -- perhaps a LA Hayride Roots Music Festival

Who currently owns the LH rights?

LINK ]Louisiana Hayride: Cradle Of The Stars - LPB TV documentary c. 1984

I've seen several live concerts at the renovated S'port Municipal Auditorium. Solid venue, great acoustics, not a bad seat in the house with 3,200 seating capacity

Municipal is a great venue for small concerts.

The woman who tried so hard to revive the Hayride prior to her passing was Maggie Warwick. I met her back in the 1990s and my professions seemed to keep us in touch through the years. She performed on the Hayride as a regional artist waaay back when, that was her connection and her push to revive it. She tried for years and years to get the LH back up and running but there was always a hassle. First no venue (that was before the SMA renovations, it was targeted for demolition at one point it was so run down). Then no backers, not even the city of Shreveport. They wanted a revamped multi-genre, multi-generation Hayride if I recall correctly, where Maggie and her circle wanted more of a historic and cultural preservation endeavor. So heads butted and things never got past talks.

Maggie introduced me to Horace Logan before he passed, he was a character. Horace was the Hayride's emcee back in the day and even as a very old fella he still spoke like a boxing announcer even in casual chat over a quiet dinner. Ask me how I know haha.

Trivia: Horace told me when the Hayride originally signed Elvis to his Hayride contract, it was an extended duration contract with multiple dates locked. Six months or a year, I can't remember. Elvis was still an up and coming regional act so it made since for both the Hayride and for Elvis. But his popularity grew FAST (the Hayride was broadcast over half the US via high-power KWKH-AM radio) and Elvis alone was filling the Municipal before his contract had lapsed.

At one of the last shows, the crowd was SRO, girls screaming, people rushing the stage and spilling into the aisles on the verge of rioting awaiting an encore. No encore was planned so in an attempt to calm the chaos and disperse the screaming kids, Horace got on the mike with that giant booming voice ... "ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING," he affirmed to the crowd. "ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING." And Horace cemented his place in American history in doing so.

My grandparents used to go the Hayride in the late 40's and early 50's.

I remember as a kid my dad bringing me to the LHR but it was somewhere in Bossier City. I don't think that lasted long.

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I remember as a kid my dad bringing me to the LHR but it was somewhere in Bossier City

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That was probably the Hayride Kitchen. Great ribs and bean soup. This was the 70’s so they had those red candle holders going at each table.

Tedeschi Trucks, Jack White, Bob Dylan, Modest Mouse

I saw Don Henley and the Black Crows there, awesome venue.

I expect to get screwed on prices at a venue, but damn gimme something other than Ultra, Bud Light, and Miller Lite type crap.

They used to have Dos Equis, but that has disappeared. Even Yuengling would be a major step up. I’m about ready to switch to whiskey and start smuggling a plastic flask of Woodford Reserve through the metal detector.

Pretty sure those little old ladies with the metal detectors would tase you