I’m really not sure how many times I’ve driven through Nashville, Tennessee. The city has always been a pass-through for me on the way somewhere else. I had obviously heard of all the sights and sounds of Nashville, I just had never taken the time to roll down an exit ramp and see them for myself.
A few months ago I was all set to make my first trip into the city itself. My favorite band, the Old 97's, was going to make a tour stop at the Mercy Lounge. I was all set to go, alas when I got online to buy my ticket the show was already sold out. My plan was scuttled. I put it out of my mind for a couple of months until I read the good news on the band’s website that more tour dates had been added and they were coming right back again July 8 and 9.
After consulting my calendar I knew I’d be going on the 9th. Friday the 8th I had a wedding reception to go to. This time I made sure to get my ticket early to avoid any “sold out” issues. With that, I decided to head down a few hours early and take a look around downtown.
I even had a tour guide lined up, a friend from high school who knew Nashville well and would make sure I would catch the highlights. We were going to meet up outside of town and roll in together to save on parking. Everything sounded good. I woke up Saturday after the reception, had a big breakfast and a few Excedrin to knock out my hangover (it was a really good reception) and headed south.
I should have checked my email first. Why? Well, then I would have seen that my tour guide had been stricken by illness and was out of commission. I learned this from an apologetic text message I received while roughly in the vicinity of Bowling Green. So now I had directions to a meeting place where there would be no meeting, a ticket to a concert but no idea where the venue was and no clue at all where to go for anything in Nashville. Other than that, I was all set.
Thankfully, I still hadn’t reached Tennessee, so when I crossed the border I quickly hopped off to the rest stop/welcome center. I had enough time on interstates to know you can usually stock up on brochures there, and maybe some of them would have maps showing me where the hell I was going. I could also use my phone to google the concert venue and find directions to it.
I walked into the welcome center to find the usual gaggle of people milling around, using the restroom, dropping change into vending machines and popping their joints and backs after hours of road time. Sure enough, I found a rack of brochures about tourist attractions in Nashville and started flipping through them. A map on the brochure for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum looked promising as I took one and spread it out on the large information desk in the middle of the building. I had taken out my phone and googled the Mercy Lounge when I heard a SMACK followed by a woman’s voice saying, “Got you that time.” I looked up to see a woman in her 20s pop up from behind the desk wielding a fly swatter, her face a mask of intense insect-homicidal concentration.
Her face softened when she saw me. “Can I help you with something?”
I told her of my predicament. She reached under the desk and pulled out a detailed bus route map of downtown Nashville, along with a yellow highlighter. While she didn’t know where the Mercy Lounge was, my googling had produced an intersection, which she was familiar with. She highlighted a recommended route, wrote directions in the margins, circled a few good sights to see and even told me where the cheap parking was. She only stopped momentarily when she honed in with laser-like focus on another fly and whacked it.
I thanked her and was on my way out as she resumed target practice. As it tuned out, she knew her stuff. Her directions and information were right on. I found a good parking lot, grabbed my camera and started off toward the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
The Hall was bustling, with tour groups and others buzzing all over it. I decided not to fight the crowd and save that attraction for another day, so I snapped a couple of pictures.
Like this one, for instance
I hiked a few blocks to the legendary Ryman Auditorium. Now this was pretty cool. The Ryman was the home of the Grand Ole Opry for over 30 years and still hosts the occasional concert. It was also the home of Johnny Cash’s variety show as well as who knows how many classic live recordings. It was a bit strange to see in person as it is crammed into a downtown block. The front entrance is right up against a two-lane street and the building across from it is right up against the sidewalk as well, so no matter what you do, you can’t stand across the street and get far enough away to take a picture that actually gets the whole damn building in frame. You have to walk down the street to find a little nook or cranny and then try to stand tilted halfway sideways to get an angle since the street is slanted so steep the picture looks like you were drunk when you took it. The sidewalk was lined with people holding cameras in one hand and confused looks on their faces trying to find a decent angle.
Taking a pic of the Ryman is a lot trickier than it should be
After that, it was off to Broadway, where in a span of two or three blocks you can find around 20 live music bars, many of which are open to all ages during the daytime. No DJs here, bring a band or don’t come at all. It was pretty impressive to pass door after door with live music blaring from inside. It certainly brought a feeling of energy to the hot and sunny street. I poked my head in several including the Stage, Cadillac Ranch and Whiskey Bent. There was real variety in those places. A traditional country singer would be playing next door to a more rock-country act, next to a place featuring bluegrass. Being in Music City, competition was strong and the talent level was impressive even in the smaller venues during the daytime.
Another highlight was a record store that sold almost exclusively vinyl albums. There was a small CD rack but 95% of the place was devoted to vinyl, from albums to 45s. Very cool.
Spinning the platters that matter in Music City
The bars on Broadway are busy all day long, and really pick up at night. I couldn’t stay, though. I had tickets for the show. The Mercy Lounge is on the second floor of a brick building in the industrial district. The acoustics there were excellent, and the show started right on time, which may be some sort of first. Robert Ellis led off with his backing band, playing straight country and doing a pretty good job of it. He even threw in a George Jones cover.
Those Darlins came up next. I saw them open for the Old 97’s a few months ago in Louisville and I was greatly impressed. This band of three women and one guy have a punkabilly, garage rock sound that I liked immediately. Since I saw them in Louisville their album “Screws Get Loose” has received good reviews and the band has been singled out numerous times as up and comers. I say seriously this band may be really big someday. I might be bragging about seeing them before they were huge.
The Old 97’s were the headliners and as always, they did not disappoint. This is an outstanding live band, full of energy and charisma. Front man Rhett Miller is dynamic on vocals while Ken Bethea and Murry Hammond tear it up on guitar and bass, respectively. Philip Peeples keeps the beat wonderfully on drums. The band released two albums in the last year, The Grand Theatre Vol. 1 and 2. They played a set heavy on new songs while still keeping audience favorites. The crowd was loud and enthusiastic all night, and the band responded to the energy.
By the time it was all over, the show ran four hours of great country, garage rock and alt-country. I was wiped out by the time I made my way back to my car, but as I drove through the night back to New Albany, I felt satisfied I had done it up right for my first day-trip to Nashville.
No comments:
Post a Comment