Sunday Night in Crashville: Everybody Plays, Everybody Sings

It wasn't long after arrival and check-in at the hotel in Nashville that it was time to find dinner and then catch some kind of live music. Gary told me that in Nashville, "everybody sings, everybody plays" - and it surely is true. Due to the fact that the lines at the historic Bluebird Cafe were out the door, we opted for the songwriter showcase at the Holiday Inn.  

I found the sound system to be outstanding. The songwriters had varying degrees of fabulosity. In the first set were 3 very talented songwriters - a younger guy with a trendy, touseled hairdo ( I call it "The Nashville Look" because I have observed it with some frequency here), a Taylor Swift-ette, and  a seasoned songwriter who obviously felt he was beyond introductions, since he wore his hat low so that it mostly hid his face. He was more of a "this-is-a-song-I-wrote-back-when-with-billy-bob-jim-john-jones-that-was-cut-by-merle-haggard-right-before-he-decided-to-disinclude-it-from-his-historic-award-winning-record-but-I-forgive-anyway"  kind of guy.

In the next set, the songwriting sort of tapered off. One guy sang a sort of redneck song about a knife carrying gal who was just apparently really tough, with the chorus ending "She's hell's bells."  The next guy had a song that went something like, "Yadda yadda yadda - I don't know what to do-o-o-o, Yadda yadda yadda - I'm in love with you-u-uu." Or something like that.  God knows I celebrate creativity wherever I find it! GOD knows this! You may not know it, but I tell you, it is known -- so let's say the writing prompted a religious moment, in that context.

Making the evening interesting (for me) was a dude who was walking around looking like a pirate, complete with tricorn hat. Does this happen to anyone besides me? I decided I wanted to take a picture but - like a phantom clipper ship - he kept drifting in and out of sight. Finally, I asked him to take a picture with me, because it's just not every day that you get a photo op with a free agent pirate. 

It should be noted here that HE said he was dressed as a Civil War soldier.  "Uh, no. I don't think so. Not so much." That's what I wanted to say, but you just don't argue with a stranger dressed like a pirate. I mean......would you?

And anyway, I needed to get ready for a full day of recording on Monday. So while Nashville played and sang... I slept.