Eternal thanks to the entire Whitley family for recently unearthing this gem from their family archives. They have given me their expressed permission to post this entire concert to share with my fellow Keith Whitley fans here on YouTube. The annual Reunion of Professional Entertainers (ROPE) is held in Nashville, Tennessee to recognize and honor classic country artists, country musicians, and country music industry executives for their lifetime achievements. Awards are given in the following categories: Entertainer of the Year, Musician of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, and the special presentation of the Mac Wiseman Nightingale Award for service and dedication to the aging and ailing members of the organization, among others. The 1988 awards show featured Keith Whitley and his band Miami as the featured entertainment for the evening. He was introduced to the stage by Grand Ole Opry presenter Keith Bilbrey. (It is interesting to note that, at the 2004 awards show, Keith’s widow Lorrie Morgan was featured as the entertainment along with her then-husband Sammy Kershaw.) This excerpt was taken from page 459 of the 2004 book “The Encyclopedia of Country Music” compiled by Paul Kingsbury, Laura Garrard, & the Country Music Foundation. The excerpt was written by Walt Trott: “The Reunion of Professional Entertainers (ROPE) is a Nashville-based organization created to care for fellow country music entertainers in time of serious illness, death, or other unavoidable distress