By: Marcia Abramson
On my recent visit I found that the Grand Ole Opry actually got its start on the 5th floor of an insurance company building on Nov. 28, 1925 as radio station WSM's Barn Dance. The radio announcer, George D. Hay, invited a 77-year-old fiddler Uncle Jimmy Thompson to play an hour of uninterrupted music. Uncle Jimmy boasted that he knew a thousand tunes and could "fiddle the bugs off a tater vine." He was a huge success with the listeners as well as Tennessee fiddle players, banjo pickers and guitar players who wanted to participate in the "barn dance music show." It did not take long before a radio show of Grand Opera music was supplanted by the Grand Ole Opry, a name given to the music program in jest by George Hay. Some of the troubadours who made the Grand Ole Opry the mainstay of country music include legendary Red Foley, Mother Maybelle Carter, Earl Scruggs, Hank Snow, Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn (The Coal Miner's Daughter), George Jones, Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, Minnie Pearl and Tammy Wynette. Interestingly, Elvis Presley, known as the rockabilly, only made one guest appearance at the Opry to a luke warm response. Bill Anderson, a 39-year member of the Opry says that The Grand Ole Opry, to a country singer, is what Yankee Stadium is to a baseball player, and Broadway to an actor - it's the top of the ladder, the top of the mountain. You don't just play the Opry, you live it. Over the years, the Opry moved many times to accommodate an average of 3,000 people on a weekend evening. In 1943 the Opry moved to the Ryman Auditorium. The Ryman was built in 1892 as the Union Gospel Tabernacle by generous contributions from a wealthy benefactor, Sea Captain Thomas Ryman. The acoustics at the Ryman are superb and synonymous with the Grand Ole Opry for 31 years until 1974 when it moved to its present location. Even before the Opry, Bob Hope, Katherine Hepburn and Mary Pickford, Mae West, Rudolph Valentino and W.C. Fields performed at the Tabernacle. The Ryman Auditorium became known as the Mother of Country Music during its reign as the home of the Grand Ole Opry. Even today it is a National Historic Landmark a 100-year music tradition of presenting the best in entertainment with a wide variety of musical performances. I did get to the majestic Ryman on my recent visit to Nashville and saw a brilliant performance of Tammy Wynette's "Stand by Your Man." It was a real treat and I can understand why it has been called one of the 10 coolest venues in the world and one of the five Best Places to Hear Live Music in America.During my five-day stay in Nashville, I did get to the Grand Ole Opry on a Friday night for the 2-1/2 hour show and saw the delightful Martina McBride, the Opry Square Dance Band with the fabulous Opry Square Dancers. The theater was packed with an appreciative audience of what appeared to be people perhaps 40 years and older. The philosophy and words of Opry announcer George D. Hay 75 years ago still holds true today. He espoused, "play from the heart, keep your performances kind, love your audience and they love you right back, and above all else, keep it down to earth, boys and girls!" Very close to my hotel, the Hilton Suites was the Country Music Hall of Fame. A unique building of brick, glass and limestone which from the air looks like a bass clef. It is in the heart of the city, a few steps from Ryman Auditorium and the Lower Broadway honky tonks. I marveled at the artifacts from Minnie Pearl's hat with its price tag, Willie Nelson's bandanna, Elvis' gold-encrusted Cadillac with TV and record player 1960, Naomi Judd's washer, Patsy Clines' cowboy suit, Dolly Parton's glitzy TV dress and Dixie Chick Natalie Maines' punk-country Grammy Awards costume. There is a plethora of music clubs in Nashville. The one I think I enjoyed the most is the Bluebird Cafe where I heard some great new singers and accomplished award winning stars who come to play and try out their new songs. I was fortunate to come on an evening when there were groups of songwriters trying out new songs and musicians enjoying a "guitar pull." This wonderful happening was in a non-descript strip mall little store. But the sound was magnificent and the close proximity to the performers was an ideal setting. The place can be crowded. Therefore a reservation is a must. Call (615) 383-1461.
© Copyright by Marcia AbramsonE-mail: mascribe@aol.com
