A Collection of Life Stories for Those Who Believe

(And Especially for Those Who Don’t)

By Sandy Samples-Jones

THE BUS

“WHERE B-FLAT LIVED”

B-flat was a good old hound dog. When my touring bus pulled into a new town, folks would not remember the name on the front of the bus….but they would sure remember old B-flat hanging out the window with his big old ears flopping in the wind. My musicians and stage crew treated him like one of the boys…he loved to drink beer and eat grapes! To Don and I…he was our baby boy and the best durn road dog in the country.

Now for a little about B-flat’s mom…..I was born again on January 8^th, 1983 after living a life as a heathen. And I promise…I always tell the truth now. I was a heathen! I had been a musician/singer for many years…in a bar every night and living the life. And by God, it was my way or the highway! I was respected because I was a good bass player and entertainer. And I had a lot of people who loved me…my musicians, my manager who later became my husband, my family and my friends. But I didn’t have many who really liked me. The only thing I can figure out is that God had given all of these folks a forward vision of what He was finally going to do with me! And believe me, all of them were rewarded for their prayers. But that change He brought me through was painful, lengthy and sometimes brutal…and I thank Him every day for His grace.

The only way of life I had known for years consisted of my crew, the next town on the venue, miles and miles of the most magnificent scenery anyone should have a right to witness and of course, B-flat! And my touring bus was home to one and all! I remember nights between gigs when we would pull into a national park, hook the bus up and sit and watch a magnificent lightning show or pull into the badlands when the sun was going down and the moonscape was turning purple and yellow and gold. So, even after I was saved, I stayed out on the road touring as usual…but everyone could see the change. I was a kinder, gentler girl child in absolute wonder at the things that the Lord was showing me in my young walk with Him. And my music took on a whole different meaning to me as well…I never knew that there was scripture in “Welcome To My World”…an old Eddie Arnold song I had done for years. “Knock and the door will open…Seek and you will find….Ask and it will be given”. But I guess God decided that I could no longer straddle the fence.

On December 8^th, 1985, on my way into Gallup, New Mexico for a two week engagement at the Shalimar Club (one of my regulars), my bus burnt to the ground on I-40...out in the middle of nowhere where there was no possibility of getting any help. We all got out in time but we all lost everything we had on the side of the road that day. Except for B-flat and the instruments that we were able to pull out from the under-bins as the top of the bus was consumed. Several truckers had stopped to try to help…but, I believe, God had started my trial by fire, and His will be done! One of the truckers came over to this devastated girl and put his hands on my face and made me look him in the eye. And he told me that God had a plan for me and that in order to have a new beginning, I had to have an ending. After 11 years of trial by fire, the We Are One CD was ready to roll out there and start saving souls. And I am proud to announce that here in 2006, ten years after the first CD rolled off the press, it is still reaching people in the name of Jesus. And I am a full time follower with a servant’s heart.

B-flat died at the age of 9 with heart problems. And I had a few myself several years ago. I had a near death experience during that time and I found myself on a path that was overgrown with beautiful grass and flowers, and my guiding post was the white tip of B-flat’s tail as he foraged on ahead of me!