We looked in the barroom door at one guy's dream: A young man played guitar and sang country music in a Broadway honky-tonk in Nashville. But the music had the hard edge of sound waves bouncing off bare wood and brick walls, not being softened and absorbed by the gentle
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When we arrived in Nashville, we went directly to the Country Music Hall of Fame, where we saw Bill Monroe's mandolin (with Lynn, at right), Willie Nelson's bandanna, and Jimmie Rodgers' guitar (below). My favorite was film clips of old-time country stars, like Patsy Montana singing "I Want To Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart" and the white Jordanaires harmonizing on a black gospel song, "Working on a Building." Lynn loved the little newsnotes – Baldemar Huerta took the name Freddy Fender, maybe to sound more Anglo; and Harold Lloyd Jenkins changed his name to Conway Twitty, maybe to sound more ... what? Ridiculous? Authentic? Backwoods?
Then we headed to downtown Nashville to see the real hard-scratch musicians of today. The clubs were mostly blaring really loud music. We poked our heads into the one club with the gentle beckoning sound of a single voice accompanied by a solo guitar. That's where we had that terrible feeling of someone living the dream that wasn't quite what he had dreamed.
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Broadway and Second Avenue are crowded with bars and honky-tonks, but they are outnumbered by shops selling cowboy boots and hats. The music venues aren't the only places where sound waves bounce off the walls without hitting paying customers. Every store had signs out: "50% Off" or "Buy one pair, get a second pair free." One store is offering TWO free pairs. Too bad I didn't want a $1,900 pair of pointy American-made, embroidered, snakeskin boots. There were deals to be had.
The hotels must also be hurting. I went into a Comfort Inn to find how much it would cost. While Lynn and I mulled our options in the car, the desk guy actually came out to the car and flipped through a coupon book for us that would take $10 off the already discounted price he had quoted me. The bill: $59 plus $11 tax. He extolled the virtues of his hotel – the free breakfast, free internet, much nicer rooms than the competitors, safer neighborhood, free parking. OK. OK. We stayed there, and a good choice it was. I'm going to guess that's the only jacuzzi we'll see this trip.
Mileage from Verona, Virginia, to Nashville, Tennessee: 516
Mileage so far: 8,218
2 comments:
Hi Lynn, Hello Margo: Should the gulf states make it back on your itinerary, consider stopping by and spending a few days in New Orleans with us. We have a big living room, a comfy queen-sized futon sofa, towels galore, vino, and a long list of restaurants to try. Join us in the Big Easy, we would love to see you. xo, Curt and Meg
Toshio looked fondly at the picture of Jimmie's guitar.
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