Rocks Off sat down with Miss Leslie to see what we could learn about Houston's reigning queen of country in 30 seconds.
Rocks Off: What is the worst song in the world?
Miss Leslie: So many songs to choose from, but I'd have to say "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" because I like Jamey Johnson, and he should know better... but considering what his royalty checks have been, maybe he did.
RO: What is the best lyric in the world?
ML: So many songs to choose from again, but I'll go with the lyrics to "He Stopped Loving Her Today," written by Bobby Braddock and Curly Putnam that starts off with "He said, 'I'll love you till I die'..." It captures you and doesn't let go from start to finish.
There's a Web site dedicated to the entire song. Interesting note from the Web site, Jones said that "Nobody will buy that morbid S.O.B." So, be careful how you judge your writing.
RO: Someone throws a beer bottle at you onstage. What do you do?
ML: Ask them to make sure it's full next time and toss it slower so I can drink it.
RO: Without worrying about space, time, or the laws of physics, what would be the ultimate gig to play?
ML: My guitar player is Wayne "Animal" Turner, who played for 25-plus years with Hank Williams Jr. and I've perused some old YouTube videos of him. I have to say that I would have loved to have opened for them at a four-day festival in San Bernardino, Calif., in June 1983 that was put on by Apple computer pioneer Steve Wozniak.
Willie and Waylon and Riders in the Sky were also there. If you see the videos, it was an incredible crowd energy, and to me, that's what live music and performing is all about. The energy.
RO: What would you buy with a million dollars?
ML: As the old joke about the musician that won the lottery goes, "I'd play music as long as the money would last."
RO: What would you buy with your last dollar?
ML: I'd give it to someone who needs it worse than me. There usually is.
RO: If you could canonize another musician, who would it be and of what would they be the patron saint?
ML: Waylon Jennings. The Patron Saint of Musicians. My favorite quote in the world is from him:
You've got to care. You've got to care about the music. You work with other musicians who care, and your audience cares. You better care too, hoss, and if you don't, you shouldn't be doing it.You better not be doing it for the publicity, the fame, or the money. And you sure better not be doing it because it's a way to make a living, 'cause that ain't always gonna be easy. You got to believe it, believe in the music, you got to mean it, that's all.
RO: What will be written on the plaque at the bottom of the giant statue future generations erect in your honor?
ML: Ha. Probably "Unknown Artist" (the title of a book that I'm currently writing). But I'd love it if it said, "She followed her heart."
Miss Leslie and Her Juke-Jointers play the Continental Club Saturday with Ricky Stein and the Warm Guns.