Nashville

Apologies for lack of blogging lately - just haven't been motivated.

Nashville. Music City. Capital of Tennessee. Home of country music. Home of Sony Music Entertainment (their HQ is here).

Downtown Nashville if full of bars and honky tonks. I did visit a few ;) Country music ain't really my thing, but I don't mind it in small doses. And although a large proportion of the bars play country, there are a few that play blues, bluegrass or rock, but these are definitely in the minority.

Visited the Country Music Hall of Fame and RCA Studio B. Elvis recorded more than half his catalogue at Studio B. Others who have recorded there include Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, The Everly Brothers and Chet Atkins. It is still used by students studying music from the nearby Belmont University.

 

I have found a couple of the pretty cool things here. They have a map of Tennessee in Centennial Park. It is to scale - 200ft wide (12 inches = 2.5 miles) and made of granite.

The WWII Memorial is also pretty cool. It contains huge pillars of black granite, photo etched with images from the battles of WWII. There are also short descriptions below each photo that describe the images and their importance to Tennessee history. These granite pillars surround a very impressive 18,000-ton black granite globe that floats and rotates on a 1/8-inch bed of water. The globe is etched with markings of how a globe would have looked during WWII. Here you will find seven benches that represent the seven Tennessee recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor.

The 'Carillons and Court of 3 Stars', a dedication to the musical heritage of Tennessee is also impressive. Made of red, white and blue granite, this area represents the three Grand Divisions of the state - East, Middle and West Tennessee. This is also the site of a 95-bell carillon representing Tennessee's musical heritage. The 95 bells represent the citizens of Tennessee's 95 counties. A 96th bell, known as the answer bell, is located on the grounds of the State Capitol and rings in answer to the 95 bells, symbolizing government answering to the people. The carillons are some of the largest in the world. They play Tennessee-themed songs at the top of the hour, every hour.

I also visited a Warhol exhibition - showcasing the role of music and dance in his work. Now Warhol was born and grew up in Pittsburgh. I meant to get to the Warhol Museum there but did not write it down and forgot about it. Shame.

Off to Memphis tomorrow.