Day ten...Memphis

Before leaving Nashville, I stopped off to see home of the Titans.  I couldn’t be this close and not just drive by!

Then I grabbed some coffee and hit the road.  It started raining almost immediately, and I took that as a sign I shouldn’t leave Nashville.  I seriously considered staying.  But I had a date with a little city called Memphis.  So I kept going!

First stop was French’s in Dickson for my first real pair of Cowboy boots!  The ladies were so helpful and I fell in love with the first pair we looked at.  I was so excited I wore them out!!!  What better way to land in Memphis TN than with a new pair of kicks!

The rest of the day was all about music

• Loretta Lynn’s Dude Ranch!  This was an unexpected find.  It’s an RV part, and small Vacation land, and home to the Coal Miner’s Daughter Museum!  I remember watching Coal Miner’s Daughter growing up, and I’ve always been a fan of Loretta Lynn.  Especially after attending the Country Music Hall of Fame, this was fun!  But I didn’t have a lot of extra time, so it was a quick stop. 

• Next on the list was Graceland.  That’s right, the home of the one and only Elvis.  Of course I did a little research before attending and funny thing.  There were a few words that came up consistently when talking about Graceland.  Words such as Tacky, Gaudy, Phony, etc…  I thought I knew the definition of those words.  And then I went to Graceland.  I can honestly say I’ve never seen anything like it!

• After Graceland, I made a Mad dash to STAX recording studio.  This was one of the major recording studios in Memphis that had a role in Soul Music.  It started at a record shop and grew.  It was interesting to see the evolution of Soul, R&B, etc…  What was even cooler was the fact that several of the artists talked about being influenced by the Grand Ole Opry…I had just been there!

• Next was the Memphis Rock N Soul Museum where I got an education on how Country, Gospel and Rock came together.  It’s been fun seeing all this that I’m learning about coming together!

It was a long day of running from place to place, reading and learning, so I went to find a place to sit, a good meal, and some music.  This is Memphis after all!  I made my way to Beale Street…and fell in LVOE!!!  There was music coming out of every location.  There were people flooding the streets.  It was alive!  I found just that at the Blue Plate Café.  Ribs, Catfish and Blues!  What more could a Girl ask for!

After the band wrapped up their set, I decided to find out what was in downtown Memphis along with Beale Street.  I found my way to the Cultural Center of Memphis where they were celebrating an older songwriter.  It was old school blues and it was good.  When they wrapped up, I found another band to enjoy.  When they were done, I needed a midnight snack so I found my way to Rendezvous…and they lived up to their reputation.

All in all…a Great night!