Nashville: Music To Your Ears
by Michael Quinlan



There's no denying that Nashville, Tennessee is Music City, U.S.A. Visitors don't have to venture very far from their gate at Nashville International Airport to see just how appropriate that name is--every Friday afternoon, newly arriving passengers are treated to live performances by local musical acts.

A few blocks outside downtown Nashville tourists can stroll down "Music Row," considered to be the business capital of America's country music industry. Nashville also is home to the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Grand Ole Opry, the Hank Williams Jr. Museum, the Loretta Lynn Ranch, and even the Willie Nelson & Family General Store. Why, just talk to the folks at the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau for a few minutes and you might get the impression that music is the only thing Nashville has to offer. (Ask them yourself. Their e-mail address is " nashcvb@musiccityusa.com")

But who can blame them? After all, with country music by far the most popular format for radio stations across the U.S., it makes sense for Nashville to capitalize on its extensive country roots. The problem is that when all else is forsaken in the name of promoting "the business" (as the country music industry is called by the locals), then much of Nashville's gentle charm is lost.

Nowhere is this more evident than at Opryland USA, a sprawling, 120-acre musical theme park which offers five of the most unabashedly commercial tourist attractions in all of Nashville: the Grand Ole Opry (the centerpiece of Opryland); the Opryland Hotel; the Opryland Amusement Park (now closed); the General Jackson Showboat on the Cumberland River; and the broadcasting studios for TNN and CMT television networks. As one might expect, Opryland is immensely popular, taking in millions of tourists and raking in hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

The Opryland Amusement Park (which was shut down in January 1998) is expected to reopen in the year 2000 with about 40 acres of redesigned rides and attractions. In addition, Opryland's parent company, Gaylord Entertainment, signed a deal with the Arlington, Virginia-based Mills Corporation to develop Opry Mills, a $200 million entertainment and shopping complex which will feature themed restaurants, food courts, theaters, and over 200 retail outlets. It's set to open in the year 2000.

As for the Opryland Hotel, staying there is like entering another world. Front desk agents hand out full-size maps of the hotel to every guest they check in, but it's still easy to get lost. The property boasts close to 3,000 guest rooms in addition to more than 600,000 square feet of meeting and convention space. The hotel features a 4.5 acre atrium; a 1.5-acre garden conservatory; a 1.5-acre water park called the Cascades; 15 food and beverage outlets including a food court; three swimming pools; and 29 retail shops. In addition, guests can take boat rides on the hotel's indoor river, gawk at an 85-foot-high water fountain, and stare at the massive glass-domed ceiling. It's also appropriate to note that live, local musical acts occasionally grace the lobby of the Opryland Hotel, singing standard tunes such as "The Tennessee Waltz," "Rocky Top," and "The Nashville Blues."

Outside of Opryland--or as some guests refer to it, "Faux Nashville"--Music City, U.S.A. finds even more interesting ways of exhibiting itself. Perhaps the best place to experience Nashville's music scene is at the Bluebird Cafe, which offers live performances nightly, plus a writers' night every Sunday and an open-mike night every Monday. Songwriters for the Sunday shows must audition before they get to perform, and the amateur acts must sign up starting at 5:30 on Monday. This is the sort of place you visit to get away from the manufactured glitz of Opryland. Cover charges for feature shows are between $5 and $10.

For traditionalists, there's the Ryman Auditorium--the original site of the Grand Ole Opry--and known by some as "The Mother Church of Country Music." The acoustics in the hall are legendary, and performers who have been on stage say the experience is awe-inspiring. Major musical acts (not all of them steeped in the country tradition) have played at Ryman, including Bruce Springsteen, James Brown, Bob Dylan and Sheryl Crow. However, with shows such as "Bye Bye Love" (a musical biography of the Everly Brothers starring two overly-energetic, local budding songwriters) the day-to-day quality of entertainment at Ryman is a bit weak.

The Wildhorse Saloon is a more casual location where visitors can two-step to live musical acts and dine in the 190-seat restaurant. The massive dance club also doubles as a concert hall and occasional television studio. The attitude there is friendly, but the place does bow to crass commercialism with its souvenir shop. (It should be expected considering that it's owned by Opryland parent company Gaylord Entertainment). Still, the Wildhorse isn't as bad as the Hard Rock Café, or the other flashy themed restaurants that have popped up in Nashville in recent years.

A major reason behind the revitalization of business in downtown Nashville is the growth of the music industry. Not so long ago, country music was just a minor hill on Nashville's economic landscape. As late as the 1960s, banks and insurance companies were the most powerful institutions in town. Over the years, however, because of the prevalence of recording studios in Nashville, up-and-coming musical acts from across the country began drifting toward the city much in the same way budding actors head to Los Angeles looking for their chance at stardom.

Today, country music is a vital part of the city's economy, but it shares the spotlight with health care companies, computer start-ups, and automobile manufacturers. In addition, the city recently acquired a new professional football team (the Tennessee Oilers) and a hockey franchise (the Nashville Predators), a move that hopefully will broaden Nashville's appeal as a major tourist destination.

The summer is the peak tourist season in Nashville, and the city offers a wide variety of special events geared to visiting country music fans. One of the biggest spectacles is the International Country Music Fan Fair. The event is sponsored by the Grand Ole Opry and the Country Music Association, and features a full week of live musical performances, picture-taking and autograph-signing sessions with country music stars, and events such as the Grand Masters Fiddling Championship. The 1999 Fan Fair will be held from June 14-19. For more information, call the Fan Fair office at (615) 889-7503.

If you need a place to stay, Nashville offers very attractive hotel rates (considering it's among the 25 biggest hotel markets in the country). For the cheapest of the cheap, try the Quality Inn Hall of Fame, located across the street from the Country Music Hall of Fame. Rooms run between $62 and $72. If you plan to stay during the summer, be sure to make your reservations about a month in advance, because rooms get taken up quickly.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau, 161 Fourth Avenue North. Telephone (615) 259-4700.

Country Music Hall of Fame, 4 Music Square East. Telephone (615) 242-4433.

Opryland USA Inc., 2804 Opryland Drive. Telephone (615) 889-6611.

Opryland Hotel, 2800 Opryland Drive. Telephone (615) 889-1000.

The Bluebird Cafe, 4104 Hillsboro Road. Telephone (615) 383-1461.

Ryman Auditorium, 116 5th Avenue North, between Broadway and Commerce Street. Telephone (615) 254-1445.

Wildhorse Saloon, 120 2nd Avenue North. Telephone (615) 251-1000.

International Country Music Fan Fair, Telephone (615) 889-7503.

Quality Inn Hall of Fame, 1407 Division Street. Telephone (615) 242-1631.