Hank Cochran – The Legend
Jul 21st 2010ChloeCharacters I have Known & In the News-Media
We sailed into Green Turtle Cay in the Abaco Islands in 1978 and I met Hank Cochran that day. Hank was lounging on the back of his Grand Banks 50, aptly named "The Legend."
Photo by Chloe Tuttle
Garland Perry "Hank" Cochran was born in Isola, Mississippi in 1935. Hank moved to Nashville in 1960, and with Harland Howard he wrote "I Fall to Pieces." Patsy Cline recorded it in November of 1960 and, as we know, it became a big hit.
Hank wrote many songs including "She's Not You," "Don't You Ever Get Tired of Hurting Me?" "Little Bitty Tear," "Why Can't He Be You?" and "Make the World Go Away."
Hank Cochran (left), Chloe Gurkin McHorney Tuttle (middle) and Captain Joe (right) 1979
(Photo by Joy Greyer)
Hank invited us to go fishing one Sunday afternoon – we didn't get back until Wednesday. But that was Hank. It was fun to watch his creative process – it would just happen. Someone would say something, or a thought would come to him. He wrote it down on anything handy, and soon it was a song. He told me heartache made writing easier. He surely knew how to do that.
Hear no evil, See no Evil and Speak no Evil… photo of
Chloe Tuttle, Captain Joe, and Joy Greyer
(Photo by Hank Cochran using Joy's camera)
When I met Hank, I had no clue I was meeting such a character. That same day I also met a wonderful woman Joy, who would became a cherished lifelong friend. We weathered many wet days that winter in the Bahamas, the guys played lots of Crazy Eights and Hearts. We took many trips to Miss Emily's Blue Bee Bar.
Back then I was cleaning conch and making slaw. Now I am an Innkeeper growing blueberries and making jam. What a great life, eh?
Some times when I am here on the farm that is now Big Mill Bed & Breakfast, my mind wanders back to my sailing days. I remember places I went but mostly the people I met. And Hank Cochran, The Legend, the Man…is high on that list.
The world lost Hank on July 15, 2010. He left behind a legacy in country music. We will miss you, Hank. And you made it to the Rolling Stone.
7 Comments »
Aura on 21 Jul 2010 at 8:37 pm #
Loved seeing these pictures from your past, Chloe. You looked so beautiful too. It was a very nice story and I'm glad you have these pictures to remember that special time in your life.
Guy Livesay on 21 Jul 2010 at 9:55 pm #
Wow, Chloe !! That's quite a story. To have met and actually spent some time with a songwriting legend like that is something that most folks could only dream about…..and to do it in the Bahamas !!!
Chloe on 22 Jul 2010 at 12:07 am #
Funny, but it seemed so normal at the time. I was a cook aboard a 54 foot sailboat…Learned as I went!
Chloe on 22 Jul 2010 at 12:09 am #
thanks, Aura, and to think that Joy (who was in the photo with me) just spent last week here with me. We still did water stuff-went on Gardner’s Creek, the Pamlico River, The Roanoke River, Albemarle Sound and the Cashie River (all in one week!)
Carol Tiffany on 06 Aug 2010 at 11:38 pm #
I am so amazed that you actually met and hung out with Hank. I absolutely love the song "I Fall to Pieces"!
Memories is what life is made of and you have some great ones!
We were in the Bahamas for two months but it was for my husband's cancer treatment. We had some great conch though. That was one of my best memories!
Chloe on 07 Aug 2010 at 9:18 am #
I learned how to make all those conch recipes…my favorite was the conch fritters.
Nancy Webb on 01 Nov 2010 at 9:47 am #
Chloe, Joy was a good friend of mine, starting in Junior High in Miami. I have lost contact with her. Would you let her know that I'm looking for her? I'm in Boca Raton and my email is nancyflies@yahoo.com. Thanks!