Blame it all on my roots...

NASHVILLE, TN...CONTINUED

Length of visit: Saturday, Dec. 18, 2010 - Tuesday, Dec 21, 2010
Hotel: Holiday Inn Express on Broadway

Transportation: Car, Train, Plane, Taxi, and Foot

Purpose: Garth Brooks' Flood Relief Concert

Activities

Ryman Theater

The original "Grand Ole Opry", it was an interesting place to see. We were all a little skeptical that we would enjoy this but everyone we talked to/everything we read said the backstage tour was the best attraction in town. The tour consists of a look at the actual theater plus a backstage tour of dressing rooms, the stage, etc.and some special historical exhibits. We enjoyed the backstage tour the most, I think that was mainly because of our tour guide. I don't know his name (I need to get better about that), but he was an older gentleman and was shared many stories from his 70+ years of going to the Opry and some of the entertainers who have performed there. He talked about seeing Hank Willams (the original) play several times and says he is still the best entertainer he's ever seen, also said he has his autograph, but never tells anyone where it is hidden. I think the Johnny/June Cash exhibit was the most popular (The Corrigans are big Cash fans, especially Cheryl). Here are some photos, sadly no photos were allowed backstage. 

Highlight for all of us, the Johnny Cash exhibit.

The view from backstage. 

Beautiful stained glass windows along the back of the theater. 

Cheryl and Joanna in front of the stage.

Joanna showing the view from the "cheap seats"!

Be warned, if you travel with Jo, she will make you partake in the souvenir photo opportunity.

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

The outside of the Country Music Hall of Fame - see how it is an upside down piano!

Again, we all enjoyed this attraction much more than we thought we would. For someone who is not a country music fan, I recognized many more names/faces/music than expected. Again, any mention of Johnny Cash easily caught our attention, but also George Strait, Alabama, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Tammy Wynette, Dolly Parton, and MANY others. For some reason, I never realized how much Elvis was considered a country singer. The line between country/rock is so blurred nowadays, but I thought it was more defined back then, you were considered one or the other. There was also a large exhibit for the Hank Williams family. To see the descriptions and stories of so many artists was very cool for someone who didn't know many of the stories behind the music.

Curt with one of many Hall of Famer's quotes carved on the outside of the building. 

The actual Hall of Fame filled with the plaques of those who have been inducted into the Hall.

Elvis' Plaque

Elvis Presley's Gold Caddy. Complete with  gold phone and TV. 

Elvis Presley's Gold Plated Piano. Apparently he went through a stage where he wanted to gold plate everything!

Touring Downtown Nashville
In addition to the must see Ryman Theater and Country Music Hall of Fame, we spent a lot of time exploring the downtown area of Nashville and checking out what else they had to offer besides music. First stop was the Frist Center for Visual Arts, Nashville's local fine arts museum, for a special Impressionists exhibit. This museum was housed in a former bank and made an interesting use of space. It hosts traveling exhibits on a regular basis and we would return if there was something there that interested us. Another non music site we visited was the historic Hermitage Hotel. This is a 5 star hotel that has been in Nashville since 1910. It has a grand lobby that was decorated beautifully for Christmas. Here are some photos of those places plus some other random street shots. 

For Alex. =)

There was lots of very impressive architecture in Nashville, check out those gargoyles!

 

Bill and Jo

The Corrigan Kids

Garth Brooks Concert

And finally we reach the purpose of the trip, the Garth Brooks concert! The concert was on our last night in town and it was a perfect way to cap off a great trip! When buying the tickets you didn't have a choice of where you ended up. The tickets were $25 each (!) so you really can't complain too much. We were up in the nosebleed section however we were almost directly over stage right so we had a great view of all of the action. The arena also had great video screens that gave a close up view of what was happening onstage. To say that Garth Brooks is a great performer is an understatement. He was unbelievable. He was on his fifth show in a row and admitted after the first song that he was tired. You wouldn't have known it from all of the action onstage. He was running all over the place making sure that every end of the stage got a view of him, even the back! He was joined onstage a few times by his wife Trisha Yearwood and once by country legend Steve Wariner. We were hoping to see more special guests before the show started but once he got going, he did not need it. He spent most of the show playing his greatest hits with a few covers thrown in and came out for two encores. (He said he would have made it three but decided he was too tired too go back and forth again so just stayed out longer after the second one!) I was able to find a set list online. Take a look and you will see what a great show it was!

Excited for the show to begin!

This gives you a good idea of our view. Not too bad. 

If you squint you can make out Garth and Tricia singing a duet. They were very cute together on stage. 

 'Cause I got friends in low places,
Where the Whiskey drowns,
And the Beer chases my blues away,
But I'll be okay,
Now I'm not big on social graces,
Think I'll slip on down to the oasis,
Oh I got friends,
In low places.

Happy Travels!

Bill (w/ editing by Joanna)