NASHVILLE OR BUST

We left Prizer Point Marina and headed up the Cumberland River towards Nashville. We stopped at Lake Barkley State Marina on Tuesday and had a great run on Wednesday going up the river and encountering lots of barges as we headed to Clarksville . Thursday the Carbon Monoxide Detectors started blaring. Uh oh! Call in the mechanic! Order new battery chargers as it was a low battery warning and not a Carbon Monoxide issue. Chargers won’t arrive until Monday! As we’ve learned from some other loopers, you need to – PIVOT – so we did and rented a car. Friday afternoon Cheri’s cousin Jim drove to the boat to check it out and then we went to dinner.

Saturday} We drove to Nashville and met up with Alexis Gomez and her boyfriend Ryan at the Assembly Hall Food Court. They were great guides and took us to three different Honky Tonks on Broadway Street. It was fun to experience the craziness of the Country Music scene and we so appreciated their guidance. They were heading to an underground Bar and restaurant to watch the Ohio State game and we invited ourselves along and enjoyed the camaraderie of fellow Buckeyes in Nashville. We watched half of the game and then headed over to The Grand Ole Opry! We had no idea who was performing that night but we were happy to have this experience and enjoyed each act. We were entertained by the energetic Opry Square Dancers, Mark Wills, and Jeannie Seely who at 83 has appeared on stage more than any other performer. She sang (Who Needs You) which was quite entertaining. She sings about having her own Whiskey, her own money, and her own weed that she rolls herself! We saw the White Family and their dad is the oldest Grand Ole Opry member and they sang the Sunny Side of Life. Riders in the Sky had a syndicated NPR radio show and were quite energetic and entertaining for an older group. Gary Mule Deer is an hilarious comedian and we didn’t stop laughing throughout his nonstop locker-room jokes. Logan Ledger performed for the very first time and was definitely awestruck and very moved by the honor of stepping into “The Circle”. The group Need to Breathe performed and everyone went wild. The performer who in the end touched us the most was Sam Williams, Hank Williams grandson. He sang a very soulful and haunting rendition of “The River Will Flow” and Pete and I both just stopped and looked at one other. We can so relate to the song as it refers to the Kentucky Dam being built and how the churches were torn down and the graves were dug up and the families were uprooted and had to relocate to other parts. Our other post spoke of Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake and how the dam created The Land Between The Lakes. Whole towns were covered with water and now we boat over them. In one area, we travel over a bridge! The Tennessee River and the Cumberland River both flow and we are currently flowing down the river. So apropos to us.http://The River Will Flow by Sam Williams

Ryan, Alexis, Cheri, Pete

OSU Fun!

Sunday} Back to Nashville and we went to Jim’s home. He is an excellent pianist and gave us our own private concert and performed excerpts from Billy Joel, Elton John, and Chicago. Then he drove us to Nashville and down Music Row. Pete thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the places that he had sent Music Licensing money to when he was creating CD’s.

Jim playing the piano! Very talented!

MONDAY} Bryan the mechanic installed the new Battery Chargers and they did the trick! Everything was charging once again as it should! The interesting part of this, was that the Battery Chargers came from a business less than a mile from our house in Centerville! Who knew??!!

TUESDAY} Back to Nashville for a full fun day. We took the Backstage Tour at the Grand Old Opry and stepped upon the treasured six-foot circle of hardwood that was salvaged from the original Grand Ole Opry broadcasts from the Ryman Auditorium known as, “The Circle”. On to The Country Music Hall of Fame which was so fascinating, educational, and interesting. We ended the day at The Listening Room with cousin Jim and listened to 3 music artists who are trying to break into the business. Thoroughly entertaining!

“The Circle” from the Ryman Auditorium

The Listening Room