Another Day in Paradise or Music City Day 2

Day two in music city dawned well before I pushed back the blankets and rolled my lazy backside down to get the free Hampton Inn breakfast. Nothing special but satisfying anyway. I guess the one twist on the traditional Hampton Inn breakfast was the option to go with the grits in addition to the oatmeal.

Some of the Honky Tonks on Broadway

Needing to do something healthy to start the day, we took a brief walk up to and down Broadway.  It’s not even 11 on a Sunday morning and the bars are beginning to come alive as the bands set up begin singing.

Aaah. Music City.

A quick stop in the store beside Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville suggests that there's a big sign on my back that says: "Take my money. PLEASE!"

Not only that, you can buy such things as a Beer Belly (a Camelbak) that slips under your shirt so you can sneak in beer to events you might not otherwise. Then there’s the Wine Rack (a bra that does the same with wine or any other beverage).

Patrons are already making their way into the bars such as the classic Purple Orchid, Layla’s, Second Fiddle and more. Folks can’t get enough of the country music and I’m still trying to figure out what country they’re from!

Most of the day was spent just wandering around the area including a visit to the Barnes and Noble near Vanderbilt. Couldn’t resist getting a book on making Salumi. Yes I could pick that up in just about any other B & N but . . .

After watching a little football and relaxing a bit, we went to dinner at a new-to-me Tex-Mex restaurant called Chuy’s and their should be famous Chihuahua Bar. 

With NRM friends Lynn Bogle (VP Development)
& Glen Cranfield (CEO)

Have one near you? Then you know what I’m talking about. While I don’t usually lean toward chains, this one has a couple of reasons to not miss. It begins with the jalapeño dip.

This ranch-based dip is to die for. Frankly, it could change your life.  It did mine.  Now I have to figure out how to recreate it. Along with their delicious Mojito I could spend the evening eating chips, salsa and the jalapeño dip.

But there’s much more available. Including their tortilla soup. I only wish a franchise was located in the Chicagoland area. I’m sure I would frequent it too much.

Perhaps the biggest challenge of the evening was keeping the dip and soup off my shirt. That’s because the whole purpose of the trip was coming up that evening. One of the organization’s I have the privilege to serve is the Nashville Rescue Mission.

Tracy Lawrence and Dave Innis prior to the show

This Mission is doing phenomenal things for the Music City and this fundraising event is not one to be missed. Music with a Mission was spearheaded by Restless Heart and friends playing alongside the Grammy-winning Nashville Orchestra.

Now being from Chicago, I’m really spoiled by the quality of the Chicago Symphony. The Nashville Symphony is just that good. Tonight’s lineup included a who’s who of the music world from country to jazz.

Besides Restless Heart there was Tracy Lawrence, Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers, Ricky Skaggs, Amy Grant, Branford Marsalis, Joey Calderazzo and many others.

I confess my main interest in the show was Branford.

Me with Branford Marsalis after the show.

Jazz is one of my favorite forms of music but when you’re listening to a Marsalis family member, they’re equally adept at every form of music. His classical piece was simply stunning in its orchestration.

The silent auction was filled with all kinds of music memorabilia.  I bid on a couple of items and almost left with a guitar signed by all the artists. It was just a bit over my budget for the event. 

Amazing. Signed guitars by Vince Gill and others along with a signed fiddle from Charlie Daniels. I’m not even a big fan but I was bidding anyway.

The performance?

Phenomenal doesn’t begin to describe the evening. I even found myself singing along with some of the country tunes. Gratefully the Mission provided invitations to the pre- and post-event festivities where I had the opportunity to meet several of the artists.

Greg Jennings with my co-worker Denise and me.

I’m planning on taking a trip to New Orleans sometime yet this year or early next year with a good friend from there. It’s in one of just two states I’ve never been in (Hawaii is the other) or through yet. The very gracious Branford Marsalis not only allowed a photograph but provided a couple of must see sights in New Orleans.

As I am leaving this incredible town, I’m still not sure I’m a huge fan of Country music but at least I’ve developed a new appreciation and won’t just change the channel if it happens to come on the radio.

They Don’t Call it Music City for Nothing!

It’s 6:30 am and I’m probably like many of the revelers in Music City . . . just ending the day.  Ok that’s not really true.  I’m just starting my day but this is a city that’s alive with music.

Got up bright and early on Saturday morning (flights were so much cheaper than Friday night!) and arrived early Saturday morning.  I was coming in for an event hosted by the Nashville Rescue Mission called Music for a Mission.

The best thing about this weekend is that I didn’t come alone.  Whereas last weekend I was working my way through California Wine Country, this weekend I’m in Music City.

This city has earned its name.

It begins in the airline terminal as you’re walking toward the exit. There’s a version of the famous Purple Orchid complete with live music. Every time I walk by the restaurant there’s someone different playing – and it’s not only what I would count as country music.

I have a confession to make.  I’m not a huge country music fan. Frankly I’m not a fan at all.  It goes way back (over 35 years).  I used to be an avid fan but then one fateful day a song came on where the chorus included: “there’s only two things that money can’t buy. That’s true love and home grown tomatoes.”

Really?

Over the years I’ve had folks tell me that country music is different today. I guess it is but I’m not sure with songs over the years like “Do you think my tractor’s sexy?”  Perhaps not so different.

I changed the station at that moment and never went back. That’s a bit unusual since my musical tastes are quite eclectic from classical and opera to rock to heavy metal and back to all forms of Jazz and the blues. No rap. No country.

Until this weekend. Maybe.

But I digress.  Since we weren’t able to check into the hotel early, we went over to an old favorite – Noshville – for a quick breakfast. Noshville is a great New York deli in Nashville. The quality of the food and the choices (great lox and bagel) are reminiscent of the fare you’d find in the Big Apple not Music City.

I picked up a magazine that listed all the best places in Nashville. Since I don’t always plan my trips, it provided a little direction for the day. The only thing on the docket was a dinner reservation at Whitfields with a dear family friend.

So a quick drive out to the community of Franklin. This cute little community on the outskirts of Nashville has a little for everyone. We even got in to see the Franklin Farmer’s Market. And, you guessed it; there was live music to entertain the marketers.

Even though there’s a wine road in Tennessee we decided to try something different – we took the whiskey trail.

From Franklin we headed to Lynchburg, Tennessee for a visit to an American institution. As American as apple pie, mom and Harley Davidson, Jack Daniel’s distillery is a must see.

Now here’s a unique twist – the distillery is in a dry county of Tennessee. Yep. Dry. As in no tastings. No regular purchases. Only commemorative bottles are available at the distillery. But we arrived just in time to take the tour – and a few weeks before their BBQ festival.

I was eager to learn what made the difference between Whiskey and Tennessee whiskey (not to mention bourbon etc.) When we arrived there was just one tour ahead of ours and before our tour began, they were taking reservations for tours seven after ours. 

While we have some photos, there were no photos in the distillery. Here’s what we learned. Tennessee whiskey has a minimum of 80% corn in the mash whereas bourbon has to have more than 55%. What separates Tennessee Whiskey from all the others is the charcoal filtering that takes place just after the distilling.

The tour begins with a short movie and then we load up on a bus and they take us to the Rick Yard. This is where they make the charcoal for the filtering from ricks of sugar maple. From there we get a bit of a lesson on the distilling of whiskey. 

It’s a tour I would suggest you take and the best part of it is that the price is right. Yep. It’s free.

After the tour and our free lemonade we went to Lynchburg for a quick lunch. We stopped at the BBQ Caboose Café for a pulled pork sandwich. Pulled pork was good but our side of red beans and rice was disappointing as the rice was not fully cooked. Still crunchy.

After lunch we wound our way to the George F. Dickel distillery. Just in time, as it turns out, for the last tour of the day. The name itself conjures up all kinds of inappropriate advertising slogans. Very similar to the Jack Daniel’s tour only they don’t do the bottling on site anymore.

Both distilleries are owned by huge conglomerates: Jack Daniel’s by Brown-Forman and Dickel by Diageo. Not necessarily bad but it’s not the same when you can visit with the family/owners like those of the Sonoma County wineries.

After the tour it was back to Nashville for a brief nap and to get ready for dinner. We met my dear friend Sue for dinner at Whitfield’s where her friend, Mark Sorrells and his trio, was playing. Whitfield’s is another gem in Nashville.

Seated in the bar so we could hear the music – again, it’s Music City after all – we began with a bottle of Francis Ford Coppola’s Director’s Cut chardonnay. I’m normally a red wine drinker but the Director’s Cut chardonnay was intriguing. 

After my visit in July to the Coppola winery, I’ve had the opportunity to pick out a couple of his wines to go with various dinners.  This one went with an appetizer of their mussels.

A truly delicious pairing.

This gave us time to just catch up and for Sue to meet Roxanne for the first time. After the first set, Mark joined us for a few minutes on his break. What a great opportunity to meet him. Smooth jazz. Standards. Even a little rock and roll. A very eclectic mix.

This is a place where the hours can drift away over good food and wine with friends. Dinner included a couple of their Saratoga Ribeyes and I had the Crab and Chorizo ravioli. The ribeyes were done to a perfect medium rare and the ravioli was delicious.

Dessert?

Absolutely. The perfect end to the meal was their donuts. Easily shareable and incredibly good. What’s wrong with dough dropped into hot fat and then rolled in sugar?  A perfect ending to day one in Music City.

Check back next week for day 2 and some really fabulous music.