Nashville Tennessee: Music and much more

EXCURSIONS-4-U

By: Ginny and Jim Burke

While music is the lifeblood of Nashville, Tennessee, a/k/a “Music City,” it’s really so much more.

With its warm and friendly atmosphere and countless diverse attractions, it is the perfect year-around destination for a quick vacation visit or bucket-list getaway; however, there is no way to fully explore all its many charms in just a few days. Though one thinks of Nashville as the country music capital, we were told it is only the tourists who walk around in fringed shirts, 10 gallon hats and cowboys boots. Visitors to this sophisticated city will find culture, history, natural beauty and pure Southern charm. In fact, the music industry is only ranked fourth as a revenue source behind health care, tourism and the publishing business.

In 1824, the music publishing industry took root with the printing of Western Harmony, a book of hymns and instructions for singing. That book in no small way helped shape Nashville as “Music City” and the “Buckle of the Bible Belt.” Religion is alive and well here with an abundance of houses of worship scattered throughout the region.

Nashville is also a “foodie” city with a plethora of casual and fine dining restaurants. It is home to pro sports teams (NFL’s Tennessee Titans and NHL’s Nashville Predators), excellent medical facilities, Vanderbilt University and other highly respected institutions of higher learning; however, morning, noon or night, this city is alive with music. Walking down its streets, you will hear musicians practicing their craft in every available open space hoping to be discovered. We found several honky-tonk bars that line downtown’s Broadway had two entertainment venues with group’s simultaneously performing, one in the front of the house and the second a flight up. About every 45 minutes, a hat or bucket would be passed as compensation for the talented but unpaid performers. The music is first rate and all for the price of a beverage or two. There are more than 130 music venues around town ranging from large arenas and concert halls to small clubs which feature nearly every genre. Music is written, recorded and performed in Nashville every single day.

While in Nashville we stayed at the multi-million dollar renovated 340 room Lowes Vanderbilt Hotel located in the city’s West End right across from Vanderbilt University’s main entrance. A mere 1.7 miles from all the action downtown, complimentary shuttle service took care of any concerns of parking or needing a designated driver after visiting the honky-tonk bars.

The 2,362-seat Ryman Auditorium, originally the Union Gospel Tabernacle, is located right behind Broadway’s honky-tonks and often referred to as the Mother Church of Country Music. It housed the Grand Ole Opry radio show from 1943 until 1974. Rumor has it; the Everly Brothers were discovered while harmonizing in the alleyway between Tootsie’s honky-tonk bar and the Ryman’s stage door. The Opry bid farewell to the Ryman in 1974 when it moved to its new spacious and air-conditioned home in the Gaylord Opryland complex. It was then that the Ryman fell vacant and it wasn’t until 1994 that it was restored to its former grandeur. It received Pollstar magazine’s prestigious “Theater of the Year” award four times in the past 10 years as the best auditorium in the nation to experience live music. Tours of the theater are offered daily and top stars perform multiple concerts each week (check www.ryman.com for more information).

The Gaylord Opryland complex is located on the edge of the city within a large shopping complex with lots of parking. The center of the main stage has original floor boards from the Ryman so that today’s performers are standing on the same spot so to speak as the past legends of country music. The Grand Ole Opry, still staged live every week, is America’s longest running radio show. In continuous production for more than 85 years, it advanced the careers of hundreds of country performers and future stars. Nashville has also become a hub for pop, rock, bluegrass, Americana, jazz, classical, contemporary Christian, blues, and soul music. Rolling Stone recently gave Nashville the title of “Best Music Scene.” Tickets for the radio show and back stage tours can be obtained in advance over the internet. Most of the big name country music stars make Nashville their home and often perform at the Opry, when they are not on tour.

In the mid 1940s and early 1950s Music Row began to take shape with the construction of recording studios and record labels. Castle Studio, Nashville’s first recording studio, opened. Capitol Records became the first major company to locate its director of country music to Nashville and the Country Music Association was founded. Soon the famous RCA Studio B opened its doors on Music Row and instantly became famous under the management of Chet Atkins. Here the “Nashville Sound” was crafted and performers like Elvis, the Everly Brothers, Jerry Lee Lewis, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison Eddy Arnold, Dolly Parton and many more icons recorded there. As part of admission to the Country Music Hall of Fame, tourists are able to visit RCA Studio B located a few blocks away from the hall. Even today, the likes of Carrie Underwood and Wynonna Judd still record in Studio B.

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum has been the home of America’s music since its opening in 1967 on Music Row. In May 2001, the Museum relocated to a new $37 million building in downtown Nashville across from the Bridgestone Arena where the Predators play. The facility boasts a vast collection of costumes and memorabilia illustrating country music’s story through the years. In early 2014, the 140,000-square-foot museum will more than double in size and will integrate with the new Omni Nashville Hotel. The $585 million 2.1 million square foot Music City Center (MCC) which opened this past May and includes a 1,800 parking space garage is located right next to the Hall of Fame.

The Schermerhorn Symphony Center, home to the Grammy award-winning Nashville Symphony, anchors the downtown end of the recently designated Music Mile. Lyle Lovett was the featured Symphony performer the night we were in town, however the concert was sold out so we made our way to Tootsie’s to listen to some newbie talent. The Music Mile is a stretch of roadway connecting the $123 million Symphony Center with the Music Row district, the new entertainment venues on Demonbreun Street, the Frist Center for the Visual Arts housed in the former Art Deco U.S. Post Office, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, the Music City Walk of Fame and the Bridgestone Arena.

Nashville, Tennessee’s capital has a population of approximately 650,000 and is the nation’s second largest land mass city with 533 square miles. The surrounding middle Tennessee County has a population of 1.6 million. Other Nashville locations to visit include:

The Parthenon, near Vanderbilt University in the west end of the city, is the world’s only exact replica of the ancient Greek temple, was originally built for Tennessee’s Centennial Exposition in 1897 and reconstructed permanently in 1931. Inside the temple stands the gilded goddess of wisdom. Athena Parthenos at 42 feet tall is the western hemisphere’s largest indoor statue. The goddess Nike in Athena’s right hand is 6 feet tall. The park surrounding the Parthenon is lush and the perfect place for a picnic.

The Hermitage, the home and cotton plantation of war hero and two-term seventh President Andrew Jackson is 10 miles east of downtown Nashville. Interesting fact, Andrew Jackson was the only President in American History to pay off the national debt and leave office with the country in the black. The 1,050 acres encompasses the mansion, gardens, slave quarters, walking trails, Jackson’s tomb, a museum and gift shop. The presidential home has over 95 percent of its original furnishings. Audio guides are available as well as a horse-drawn wagon tour of the slave quarters. 

Belle Meade Plantation, a 150-year-old antebellum home, recalls the history of the Old South from slavery to prosperity to the Civil War. As one of the few homes that can claim to have had a Civil War battle fought on the lawn, it still has craters in the columns of the front porch marking the explosion of cannon fire at the Harding family’s home. The Hardings gained notoriety when they constructed Belle Meade as a thoroughbred nursery. Many famous horses were bred there or can trace their lineage to the farm. Iroquois, arguably the most famous horse bred on the property, is the only American horse to win the English Derby. Seabiscuit and War Admiral, as well as Kentucky Derby winners Funny Cide, Barbarro, and the legendary Secretariat also trace their lineage to Belle Meade’s Bay Colt sire “Bonnie Scotland.”

For more information contact the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau at www.visitmusiccity.com.
For the Love of Music: The Story of Nashville, the story behind the Nashville music scene is told by the musicians, songwriters, producers and artists who live and breathe its inspiration will air on Sunday, Nov. 3 at 3 p.m. EST on ABC TV. Eric Church, The Civil Wars, Ben Folds, Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, The Black Keys, Kris Kristofferson, and Kings of Leon are among the more than 30 artists featured in the hour-long documentary.