September 26, 2006
Ain't Nothin' Wrong With Nashville Mix & IBMA Awards 2006
Posted by Larry Karnowski at September 26, 2006 9:30 PMI'm headed out to Nashville to check out the International Bluegrass Music Association's (IBMA) yearly award ceremony and World of Bluegrass festival! I'm stoked! If any of y'all are going to be in Nashville, please drop me a line, and we'll get together!
I'm going to check out as much as I can while I'm there. I've been through Nashville a couple of times of course, having grown up in Knoxville. However, having grown up in Knoxville, I never really did all that much in Nashville. I'm hoping to check out the Ryman, maybe the Country Music Hall of Fame, and drive down Music Row, etc. At the festival I'm going to check out Hot Rize, Cherryholmes, Michael Cleveland, Martha Scanlan, and tons and tons of other folks! Woohoo!
In honor of my Nashville trip, I threw together some Nashville songs -- just off the top my head. Please, please tell me what else to add!
1) Nashville by Todd Snider ("There ain't nothin' wrong with Nashville!")
2) Nashville Blues by Norman Blake with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
3) WSM(650) by Chatham County Line ("Daddy, won't you take us down to Nashville?")
4) Tear Down The Grand Old Opry by John Hartford ("Broad Street will never be the same...")
5) Wayside/Back In Time by Gillian Welch ("Drink a round to Nashville, before they tear it down...")
6) Nashville Cats by Flatt & Scruggs ("Well, there's thirteen-hundred and fifty-two guitar pickers in Nashville...")
7) Wayside (Back In Time) by Chris Thile ("And when I got to Nashville, there was too much soldiers' joy...")
8) Alcohol and Pills by Todd Snider ("But Nashville TN, they didn't understand him...")
Oh man... good call! How'd I forget that? I guess cause I don't have a copy of it. Hmm, that'll have to be remedied. And James, which version of Music Row do you recommend? Aren't there several?
Posted by: larry at September 26, 2006 10:13 PMThere's Hank III's song "Trashville," but it's not very good. Joe Ely's "Neon of Nashville" on the Flatlanders' last studio record is OK. I like Steve Earle's "South Nashville Blues."
Be sure to visit the Great Escape, a terrific used record store on upper Broadway. You could spend a whole afternoon there. Also see if you can get the tour of RCA Studio B. Bring us back some posters from Hatch Show Print. Ah, I'm jealous.
Posted by: Brendan at September 27, 2006 9:59 AMIt's tangentially related, but you've also got "200 More Miles" by the Cowboy Junkies. Not quite my favorite either.
Grimey's on South 8th Ave is a good place to search for used music as well.
I live in Nashvegas, but I'm always a little flustered when people ask me what to do there. Lots of possibilities, but it really depends on what you're looking for. Bobby's Idle Hour on Music Row was the beloved local dive for some of the best musicians to come out of the city, but the original location was torn down a couple of years ago and the current version is rather a depressing concrete echo of its previous glory. The Station Inn on south 12th is a must-visit if you've got an evening free, as is the Bluebird Cafe out in Green Hills. Of course, if you're going to be there on a Friday or Saturday, it can be fun to just wander around lower Broadway and check out the freakshow. Be aware that they charge admission at the Ryman even when there's nobody playing there; you have to pay just to see the building.
I've heard done tell that Gillian Welch lives somewhere on Sweet Briar Ave., in case you want to cruise the area in hopes of a sighting. Apparently a lot of bigshot country music folk habitually breakfast at the Pancake Pantry in Hillsboro Village as well, but the line is always around the block, so meh.
Posted by: Dee at September 27, 2006 10:30 AMI second the nomination for a drop-in at the Bluebird, Thursday or Sunday nights there are lots of songwriters there to listen to. Amy Kurland's been running the place for 20 years or so, and a lot of my friends play there on their way thru town.
I've heard complaints that the material allowed onstage at the Bluebird isn't edgy enough - but I personally don't consider myself a shock junkie. I like good stories put to music, if I want to her cussin' I'll stand in line at the DMV.
Posted by: Jim Pipkin at September 27, 2006 11:51 AMMeet Me in Music City -- Bobby Bare Jr
Posted by: Amanda at September 27, 2006 6:43 PM
