Hello, my name is Terry Wendt. I feel fortunate to have been in Nashville and working as a professional steel guitarist for the past twenty years or so. I grew up in a small town called Marlette, centrally located in the thumb of the lower peninsula of Michigan (The lower peninsula of Michigan is shaped like a mitten, and we were in the "thumb" of the mitten.) that’s located about one hour from Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.

Growing up was fun! I have a younger brother and sister. Farming was the economy for the community in which we lived; and my father and mother owned and operated a farm equipment business to provide for our family’s income. We weren’t rich, but we weren’t poor either. We were somewhat spoiled with toys and playthings as children (compared to most kids I guess), but we all pulled together as a family and worked hard in order to have them.

From the time when I was born, I have experienced the wonderful spirit of music. When I was still a baby, to help me fall asleep at night, my mother would play the Grand Ole Opry. (The "Opry" is a live radio broadcast on WSM radio here in Music City, piping 50,000 watts on the AM radio dial.) On the clear evenings, we could receive the signal well! While I was still very young, Mom would often direct my attention to the smooth, gliding sound of the steel guitar, playing with the music on the radio.

The instrument soon became my favorite, and by the age of seven, I started attending a group instruction class for beginning "Dobro" or "Hawaiian-steel guitar" players. (We were able to rent a used instrument by the week from the instructor, as that was all we could afford at that particular time.) I became disinterested within only a few brief months, due to the Saturday afternoon class schedule. (I wanted to watch cartoons on Saturdays!) We returned the instrument, though my love for the sound of the steel guitar would continue to grow.

Our family (during my grade school years) attended an Evangelical United Brethren Church (which later merged with the United Methodist Church) until our pastor relocated to another city far away. We then started attending a local Luthern Church, where I attended confirmation class (but was never "confirmed") and sometimes served as altar boy. Music was always a particular portion of the religious service I enjoyed, but, the unanswered questions I was able to contrive about "religion" and "denomination" would send me spiritually searching as on a journey, like many others before me. I needed to know for myself!

I started to play the coronet in the middle school band for one year during the sixth grade. The first song I learned was "When the Saints Go Marchin’ In." (I loved jazz and swing music!) My mother and father frequently played their guitars and sang at family outings with relatives and friends. The only problem with my playing the coronet was that the instrument rarely "fit" into folk style music. It wouldn’t be easy to join in the music with them if I continued to play this instrument. I remained, however, intrigued by the pedal steel. I would presume my parents playing and singing attributed to my love for music and the steel guitar rather greatly.

Dad soon made a deal with Howard, and I was the proud owner of my first pedal steel! Dad pitched in a quite a bit of extra money to buy an amplifier and helped a little on the steel, too. I purchased a Sho-Bud brand, "Professional" series. The total package used went for about $2200.00, so you know this was a major deal for a kid of fourteen years old! I couldn’t eat or sleep the rest of the evening!

I started playing with my family at outdoor parties and pig roasts shortly thereafter. I was learning to play as I went along to the "live jams" with Dad, Mom, and anyone else that felt like belting out a couple of lines! My whole family is very musically inclined, and we really enjoyed the music and song at the cookouts!

Our family took our first trip to Nashville when I was about fifteen years old. I knew right then that I had found a new home! We went from one night club to another. There was music everywhere! (Some of the night clubs, generally those not serving food, wouldn’t let us stay because my brother, sister, and I were underage.)

We saw Music Row, the Grand Ole Opry building (Ryman Auditorium), George Jones’ Possum Holler Club, and Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge on Broadway. Along with the world famous Printer’s Alley, there were lots of other night spots. The experience was unbelievable and overwhelming! Nashville definitely had a familiar feeling, like I had been here before!

Because of my parent’s business, we traveled some throughout the U.S. and Canada. We had taken other vacations... but there was something very spiritually friendly and familiar about this particular place! (You would have thought I was visiting the "new Jerusalem," or something!) Music had been everything to me, and here in Nashville, Tennessee, music was everywhere!

In the fall of 1978, my parents took me to Detroit, Michigan, to audition for Nashville’s Opryland U.S.A. Theme Park. This would be an opportunity for me to try out for a position to play as a musician in the park. Initially, I really didn’t think I was good enough yet, but I felt sure that if given the opportunity, (and with eight to ten hours a day practicing) ...I could handle it!

So, this is where my story picks up. It’s where many characters will intermingle and participate on their journey through what is commonly called... "The Music Biz!"