Music City USA

By Lou Pastina

My brother moved to Nashville in 1986 to go to Vanderbilt University graduate school. Two years later, he got married to the woman of his dreams and set roots down in “Music City.” He always loved music, but his business was in banking, and he remains in that business today. In those early years before kids, we visited him and his wife several times. Nashville was not the city it is today. It was just the beginning of the great migration south and west, and Nashville, although famous for its country and western sound, was a bit of a backwater. The Grand Ole Opry had moved out to Opryland at least ten years before and the downtown area was a little rundown. There were still great boot stores on Broadway, and Nudie Cohn’s store was still there, but not much else. Printer’s Alley was the big attraction with its former speakeasies, bluegrass music and Honky Tonks. We visited the Blue Bird café and the RCA studios, and then years later, visited the Country Music Hall of Fame.

When kids came along, it got expensive to fly there and after one or two trips, we didn’t get to visit much. But now in retirement with just the mermaid and I to account for, it’s a lot easier and cheaper to get around. So, the last few years, we have put Nashville back on the itinerary. But it’s a very different place than forty years ago, with big sports teams making the city its home, convention centers, and hotels and condominiums sprouting all over the place, the urban sprawl has found its way out to where my brother lives in Brentwood. At one time, the big area to visit was Belle Meade, but now it seems every homeowner has “super-sized” their homes, and the stands of forest once surrounding the outlying areas are now highways and strip malls. Such is the advance of the modern world. But it is still a cool place to visit. And in fact, appears to be a very popular destination for bridal parties. The Ryman Auditorium has been completely refurbished without losing any of its original charm. And downtown is a glittering string of music, restaurants, and hotels that would rival any city.

Vanderbilt is still a big part of the scene in Nashville, and its citizens root for their football and basketball teams. Until recently, they have been perennially terrible. But this year, they won a bowl game, and the fans got so excited, they tore down the goal post and marched it down Broadway to the Cumberland River, where they deposited it. The people at the “Harvard of the South” are smart. They fished it out, carved it up and sold pieces of it, eventually netting over $1 million dollars!

We got to see a basketball game this trip. They play in the Southeast Conference, one of the strongest in the country, and this year they have held their own. We saw them beat Missouri in overtime, very exciting stuff! An NCAA bid could be in the making.

One thing that hasn’t changed is the food. It’s outstanding, on par with any southern city. We did not have a bad meal. I also got to visit several music stores that are based there, like Gruhn, Gibson, Rumble and Carter Vintage. Didn’t buy anything, but fun to look. And every place has a guitar and amp set up, so if you just want to wander up and strum a few chords, no one will stop you. Nashville is so popular that on New Year’s Eve, it is one of the live telecasts, along with New York and Las Vegas, for its countdown and entertainment.

Even though Nashville has grown up to be a big city it’s still a fun place, easy to get to by plane, and very friendly. If you are thinking of going, tell ‘em Laser sent you.