For most of my life I had no real interest in seeing to Nashville. I’m not sure what changed my mind, but at some point I realized that it was a part of the country I need to visit, if for no other reason than just to say I did. My husband’s family planned a reunion at an estate in Franklin, TN, and it facilitated a week in the area. What a wonderful surprise. When I left after a week, I wanted to go back. This time with some of my country music loving friends. Not to say that the city is only for country music lovers, because it is so much more than that, but it is definitely the home of country music and a place where all fans should spend some time.
The Grand Ole Opry
Turns out that I was wrong all these years, the Opry isn’t a place, it is a radio show. Apparently, it has had several homes and can be produced from anywhere. The current home of the Opry is a building that is known as the Opry House. Prior to this Opry House, the Ryman Theater was home to the Grand Ole Opry. The true essence of the Grand Ole Opry is the feeling that you get glimpsing into the family of musicians that has been created from the show. Artists are invited to join the Opry family, and most say that it turns out to be a highlight of their lives. The tour of the Opry House is led by an energetic storyteller with a passion for the Opry. It will take you to the studio that was the filming venue for many shows, including the long running Hee Haw. You will wander through the dressing rooms and the backstage area while the guide shares stories of the members and show experiences. As you walk across the stage you will get an opportunity to stand in “the circle” and have your picture taken. A true country artist might want to wait until they have a guitar in hand and a mic at the ready, although that opportunity will never happen for me since I can’t carry a tune in a bucket and only play air guitar. Still, it was a cool feeling. A “must see” stop on your Nashville tour.
a night at the Opry 
….lots of seats
The Country Music Hall of Fame
This museum is dedicated to the history of Country Music. Starting at the humble beginning and going all the way to today’s industry. One of the things that is very clear going through this museum is that country music has adapted and changed over the years. Starting with its roots in gospel and changing into something much more mainstream that we listen to today. If you were a country music fan at any time, you will find that era of music represented. You will walk through the various adaptions of the music, including movements by artists. Many chose to depart the Nashville scene to discover a different inspiration for their personal style of music. Interestingly, most return to Nashville to continue their careers in the home of country music. The museum has interactive exhibits, videos, and displays of everything used in music. You will find information on CMA members, including a hall of inductees. Be sure to plan several hours if you have any interest in country music. If you don’t, a couple hours will be enough.
The RCA studio B tour is an add on to the museum. You are shuttled by van to music row where the studio is located. During the drive your tour guide will share the history of the studio and the area surrounding it to help the time go quickly. You will see the studio where many of our favorite country music records were recorded. You will hear stories and see the instruments that were used in the recording. I would recommend adding this on to the museum. It is well worth the 90 minutes and additional cost. Although it is not considered to be a working studio, it is still rented to artists who desire the ambiance of days gone by for inspiration during their recordings.
As long as there have been products to sell there has been a way to advertise those products. The music business is no exception to that rule. Although the product is more often an event than an item, the concept is the same. So, before everyone had a computer in their hands or a television on their walls, what would someone do to advertise? Print media of course. Thus, the birth of Hatch Show Prints, which is set up in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Since 1879 they have printed the advertising for every kind of show imaginable, and they still use the same letterpress method of printing today. During the tour you will hear about the company itself and how the printing process works. They even provide an opportunity to create a portion of a poster that you can keep as a souvenir. If you are just interested in seeing some of their famous prints, the store is available to shop and there is a viewing area to see the printing process without a tour. If you want all the information, take the tour. I can’t confidently say that I am glad we took the tour, I found it to drag on a bit and didn’t find the participation in the printing process to be very exciting. Next time I would skip the tour and use the money to buy a cool poster to take home.
Broadway
The center of all the Nashville music scene is Broadway. The street is full of restaurants, museums, and bars. All rich and famous people need someplace to invest their money and Broadway is a great place to do that if you are a country music star. You will find many recognizable names in lights on the neon signs outside of the bars that line the street of Broadway. Each with a unique personality, they offer live music, drinks and food to the patrons that choose to stop and partake. The people on the street are plentiful and the music streams out of every bar providing an opportunity to dance on the sidewalk if you choose. I even had a moment of singing into my invisible mic as I walked past one of my favorite Trisha Yearwood songs coming out of the open doors and windows of The Bootleg. The energy is vibrant and contagious. Plan on spending your first evening there and you will be back every night to hang out and enjoy the ambiance and bask in the glow. And if you go, “give my regards to Broadway” because I can’t wait to see it again.
Country Music Greats
You will find museums dedicated to some of the greatest country music legends of all times in Nashville. Each of them costs about $20 and will provide background, memorabilia, and music history of the legend you seek. The highest rated of them is the Johnny Cash Museum. We had intended to get there, but never made it due to the extra time we spent at the other museums. We did make the Glen Campbell Museum though, through a back channel. It turns out that the museum offers performances on their Crystal Stage, and looking for entertainment, we happened to stumble into a concert by blues guitarist, Stacy Mitchhart. The show was fabulous and if you ever get a chance to see him perform, go. The tickets to the show provided access to the museum and you get an hour to go through the museum prior to the concert. Since only the concert goers are in the museum, it is very easy to walk around and see everything in that hour. The price of the performance is less than the ticket price to the museum, which made it the best value of our trip. I would highly recommend checking out some of the shows the Glenn Campbell museum offers. Not only do you get a wonderful performance, but you also get into someplace you wouldn’t normally pay the price of admission to see.
Civil War History
When I find myself looking at war history, the Civil War is not the one that I found interesting. That is until this trip. Civil War history is plentiful in the area. Somehow, I always felt more attached to WWII or Vietnam, knowing people that lived through those times and participated in events. Having looked at the history of the Civil War, now I realize that it really isn’t that far removed from my generation. In the south, where the battles happened, the war is still very close to home, literally and figuratively. Franklin TN, just a little south of Nashville, is the area that one of the bloodiest battles of the war took place. You can see the battlefield, along with the houses that stood in the middle of that battle. The Lotz house and the Carter House both offer guided tours of the property. The home that was commandeered as a military hospital for the injured soldiers, Carnton Plantation, also offers an interesting tour. On the edge of that plantation is the confederate cemetery to which the Carntons assumed management after the war, offering the slain soldiers a final resting place. To see the effects of it so up-close it changes your perception of the war that forever changed our country. The history of slavery will always be a regrettable time in our history. For a “northern” girl, my awareness of the atrocities that happened during those times will be greater and more shameful. Perhaps the most inexcusable part of my understanding is how the oppression continues to live on in some areas of the country. At least I am less ignorant of the circumstances of the times and lives of the people in the South.
Plantation Life
Not all the preserved plantations are civil war associated. Hermitage is the former home of President Andrew Jackson. The home is well preserved and offers a good insight into the living situation of the former President and his family. The grounds are lovely to walk around, especially the garden. They have preserved many cottages, including the original home of the Jacksons prior to the construction of the large home. We took a horse drawn wagon ride through the plantation and it was a very good choice. We got to see all the grounds that way. It would have been too hot to make the walk and less interesting without the animated story telling by the wagon master. Be sure to stop in the museum and look through the exhibits there. If you move right to the mansion tour and finish with wine tasting, it is easy to overlook the museum, so make a point to do that first if possible.
Belle Meade is another great historical site. This plantation was made famous for assisting in the history of horse racing in the south. Bonnie Scotland was the plantation’s first stud horse, and he is the ancestor of 11 of the 13 triple crown winners. The plantation was famous for not only breeding but racing horses. The grounds are beautiful to walk, and the stables and carriage house offers some original equipment to view. The home itself is a nice tour with good stories of the family and the history of the plantation. At the time of the Emancipation Proclamation signing Belle Meade had more enslaved people than any other planation in Tennessee. After that time, many stayed on to tend to the grounds and the horses. Be sure to stop by the ice cream store and the restaurant on the upper level of the entrance. The food was good and reasonably priced.
Lane Car Museum
All the car lovers out there would not forgive me for failing to mention this museum. It is two stories of unusual and classic cars from many parts of the world, focusing primarily on European cars but offering others as well. You will wander through the cars and be amazed by the variety. They have all kinds of videos to show information about many of the cars, which are interesting and informative. This is a must stop for any car lover. Be sure to get there early so you can see the basement, otherwise, you will only get to tour the top floor.
wooden, pedal powered car 
little red three wheeler 
Laurel found her favorite!
Guitars
My husband’s favorite stops were the guitar shops. Gibson Garage offers everything Gibson including a custom shop. Although I don’t play, or know anything about guitars for that matter, I enjoyed sitting on a comfortable couch in a cool place while he looked around and played various instruments. We also spent an hour at Carter’s Vintage Guitars, which is set up so you can play any one of the over a hundred guitars in the shop. He enjoyed getting his hands on instruments that he’s never had an opportunity to play, and it was great to see him like a kid in a candy store. If you are traveling with someone that plays, be sure the set aside some time to just go and strum away.
And So…
Nashville has something to offer everyone, music, history, art, food, excitement. It has been relocated from my “why would I go there” list to the “want to go again” list. We spent a week in the area, and I was left wanting more. I’m sure you will find it to be entertaining and energetic with a wide variety of activities to meet everyone’s taste.
What You Will Find There:
Music, museums, dancing, shopping, and entertainment.
