No, I haven't rediscovered Tootsie's Orchid Lounge or begun frequenting Robert's Western World. No, I haven't gone out and bought a pair of eel-skin boots, a ten-gallon hat, tight-fitting, straight-legged blue jeans, or a belt buckle the size of a waffle iron. No, sir. For the most part, I leave Nashville's lower Broadway haunts to the surrounding county cruisers, the out-of-towners who buy overpriced CD's at Ernest Tubb's Record Store just to say they did (when they can score the same album on Amazon.com for $11.99), the Nashville Predators fans, and the college-aged kids that file into the likes of Graham Central Station, Buffalo Billiards, Red Iguana, and whatever the heck else is down there these days luring 'em in with $1 longnecks and day-glo, test-tube shooters.Sure, I've gone to see Sportin' Paddy at Mulligan's on 2nd Avenue, and I contend that you haven't seen a concert until you've seen a show at the Ryman Auditorium, but over the course of the last decade, my concert attendance has dwindled to an all-time low. The reasons are twofold.
1. For all its bluster about being Music City U.S.A., the smaller non-country venues in Nashville have had a checkered past. The famous Exit/In has closed and re-opened at least twice in my 13-year residence. 328 Performance Hall which was a staple for shows during my college days has been gone for years. Mercy Lounge in the old Cannery Building has been revitalized, but it still offers terrible sight lines (unless you're 6' 4") and stifling heat, even on a cool night. I've always been a fan of 3rd and Lindsley's intimate surroundings and Sunday night WRLT shows, but if you don't get there early, you'll be in for a long night on your feet being jostled about by servers making their way to tables with trays full of drinks and people making their way to the restrooms with bladders full of drinks.
As for outdoor festivities, Uptown Mix, which started as a free concert series about 5 years ago brought some great acts to Nashville during the Summer months, but the powers that be ran that into the ground by charging $10 at the gate. At least Jamye and I will have fond memories of several shows we attended there, including one in particular. River Stages (our answer to Memphis in May) folded too, as evidenced by their blank webpage. Dancin' in the District is still around, but it's only a shadow of what it once was. It used to be free, but $8 is still a good deal if you can fight your way downtown (and find a place to park) on a Thursday night. The Cannery Row Revival stepped in this summer and offered some good shows in a large sloped parking lot outside the Cannery Building for a mere $5 with free parking, but give it time, and it will probably go the way of the dodo as well.
2. In general, concerts are too d@#* expensive these days. Jamye and I thought about going to see Rilo Kiley open for Coldplay this fall at Starwood Amphitheater, but for two lawn (?!!?!) seats it was going to run us $80 (after you factored in Ticketmaster's $10+ handling and delivery charges, which I could stomach if a uniformed guy on a scooter personally delivered the tickets to our door). Just a few years ago, 80 bucks might have gotten you two front row seats instead of the pleasure of sitting on a blanket 200 yards away from the stage, watching the musicians on a Jumbotron, and drinking $6 Miller Lites. I blame Napster.
So, having said all that. Jamye and I recently did 3 concerts in 6 days. More on that later...
Today's Relevant Quote: "Men profess to be lovers of music, but for the most part they give no evidence in their opinions and lives that they have heard it. It would not leave them narrow-minded and bigoted." Henry David Thoreau
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