Florence Alabama - 24 July
There was music in the streets, the park, the mall and restaurants. Everywhere we went people were really friendly.
Music and trucks in the park
Travis Wammack @ On the Rocks
Blues fans @ On the Rocks
The Shoals - Great band @ On the Rocks - see Video clip
Florence Alabama - 25 July
Great night of country rock music
at 'On the Rock's.
Jamie Grooms @ On the Rocks - video clip below
video clip:
Blues fans
Wood Ave Inn (where we stayed)
New Orleans
Louisiana
31
July
Music on the street and in a pub
Enjoyable jazz on the street at the Market Cafe: Larry Scala (guitar), Jimi Burtchaell (bass), Eddie Veatch (sax), Chris Lacinak (drums). Video clip will follow.
Classic Rock @ the Famous Door on Bourbon Street - bit like the Mustang Bar in Perth. We had a bit on a dance on the crazy paved tile floor...but were not joined by locals.
New Orleans
Louisiana
1
August
Music, Bourbon Street and the famous Rock & Bowl N'awlins
As y'awl walk down Bourbon Street in the afternoon you hear music from tightly packed venues competing with street performers - tap dancers, blues players and jazz musicians.... also plenty of good ol' time rock'n'roll.
Plenty of local cuisine available - French sugar donuts, jambalaya, rice an' beans, gumbo, crawfish, po'boys, muffulettas - for us Aussies, you need a local dictionary, or a local guide, to decode the menu.
Great afternoon jazz show @ Maison Bourbon on Bourbon Street.
Some pics of the French Quarter and Bourbon Street.
Rockabilly night @ the Rock & Bowl: the Creole String Beans and Clockwork Elvis Our style of dancing was definitely different, but the other dancers seemed intrigued.
New Orleans
Louisiana
2
August
Spent the morning listening to a variety of Jazz bands at the Satchmo Fest down at the Ol' Mint. There were four stages: trad Jazz, Classical Jazz, Contemporary Jazz and a kids stage.
Spent the evening wandering Bourbon Street. Jazz, blues and rock - music everywhere! It was like Northbridge at New Year's Eve on steroids!!!!
Satchmo Fest activities down at the Ol' Mint
Amazing car and Satchmo statue down at the Old Mint Building.
Mo'Lasses New Orleans (mostly) Women's Band - trad jazz stage
Vavavoom - contemporary jazz stage
Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville was a great place to eat. Good food (Cheeseburger in Paradise, Last Mango in Paris ...), awesome decor and great music.
Satchmo Summerfest @ New Orleans, kaleidoscope of blues, jazz and rock
Pub hoppin' an' dancin' the night away on ol' Bourbon Street: extended visit at the Jazz Emporium and the Blues Club. Both had great music.
Tennessee
5 & 6
August
There was lots to do around Memphis. Sun Studios runs a free shuttle service to various sites.
Lansky's is well worth a look. Great gear!!!
Good music on Beale Street at night.
Gary Hardy and the Memphis 2 @ Blues City Cafe. Absolutely awesome performance by all band!!! Loved the music. Lots of Johnny Cash songs.
"In 1987 he [Gary Hardy] reopened the now world famous Sun Studio after it had been closed for 27 years.
During his ten year presence at Sun as owner and Chief recording engineer Gary accumulated credits as producer, engineer or performer with artists that include U2, Def Lepper, Rufus Thomas, Bonnie Raitt, Carl Perkins, Johnny Rivers, B.B. King, Booker T. Laury, Ringo Starr, Jerry Lee Lewis, and many others, earning two Grammy certificates for his efforts" - more here
Gary Hardy & the Memphis 2 @ Blues City Cafe, Memphis
Rum Boogie Cafe on Beale Street - large collection of autographed guitars
Josef @ Rock and Soul Museum. Best $10 spent. Great exhibits. Great music!!!!
Around Memphis
Elvis statue and street musicians
Lansky's - where Elvis shopped.
With Mr Lansky. See
links page for shopping details and website.
Sun Studio tour. Really entertaining. Great to visit original site where it all happened.
Tennessee
6
August
Huge numbers of people at Graceland. Tours are well organised and lots to see. Ate at Rockabilly's @ Gracelands. Had peanut butter and banana fried sandwich!!! Lot of on site shops with Elvis gear. The trophy room is amazing - to see what he achieved in his short time.
Elvis and Priscilla's wedding outfits.
Trophy room
Tennessee
6
August
Bike Night at Beale Street in Memphis - this happens every Wednesday.
Celia signing a Morgan Freeman get well card in his
Ground Zero Blues Club. Josef in front of gigantic guitar at Gibson guitar factory.
Dancers rockin' on to blues at Wet Willie's.
The Blind Ducks at Morgan Freeman's Ground Zero Club.
7 August
Not much in the way of photos because we were too busy dancing and taking video.
The music was awesome with Rockabilly history makers all over the place!
Rockabilly Festival @ Bobby Jo Swilley
Bobby Jo Swilley was awesome...and we loved his lyrics!!! "You take a little bit of country, a little bit of rhythm and blues, and mix it all together and out comes Blue Suede Shoes" (from Go Cat Go Carl Perkins)...the lyrics of this song are featured on a billboard outside the Rock-a-billy Hall of Fame.
8 August
Really enjoyed Rock-a-Billy Hall of Fame. So authentic after touristy, tacky Graceland!!!!
Once again not much in the way of photos because we were too busy dancing and taking video. The music was totally awesome.
Travis Wammack - "the fastest guitar player I have ever heard in my life, and not just fast but good. Brilliant, even. His stage show is flamboyant and exciting." Quoted from Rolling Stone's Greg Shaw. We saw Travis Wammack at the WC Handy Blues Festival @ On the Rocks and at the International Rock-a-billy Festival....what a pleasure!!!
Rockabilly Festival @ Sonny Burgess & The Pacers with Travis Wammack
Rockabilly Festival @ Jason D. Williams
Sonny Burgess and The Pacers formed in 1955. They had five singles on Sun Records: "Red Headed Woman", "We Wanna Boogie", "Thunderbird", "Ain't Got a Thing" and "Bucket Got a Hole in it". They had a hit in 1965 on Razorback Records called "The Short Squashed Texan". "Red Headed Woman" and "We Wanna Boogie" were voted "the wildest record ever recorded". They traveled with Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Elvis Presley, Conway Twitty, Patsy Cline, Ace Cannon, Charlie Rich and Narvel Felts....just to name a few!!! Since reforming they have recorded "They Came from the South" and "Still Rock 'n' Rollin'". Also voted "best new albums in the country and roots field in Europe". (Extracted from "Sonny Burgess and the World Famous Pacers").
Celia and one of the local Rockabilly Rockers
Jason D. Williams will "turn you upside down with Jerry Lee Lewis' Greatest Hits!" (2008 Rock-a-billy Festival Program). There is a photograph in the International Rock-a-billy Hall of Fame with Jerry Lee Lewis and Jason D. Williams....the resemblance is incredible...and not just the performances!
Local people we met on the street, who've seen him perform over the years said, "Jason is in a quiet period, you should see him when he really goes off"....well we reckon he's really going off right now!!! Awesome performance. We loved it and so did the audience.
9 August
Last day of Rock-a-Billy Festival was loads of fun!!! Great bands, good car show and our first experience of Mississippi Surfing (also called "Red-Neck Surfing")!
Last Day in the sun @ the Rock-a-billy Hall of Fame
Band outside Rock-a-billy Hall of Fame
Car Show @ Rock-a-billy Hall of Fame
Al Springer and his Rat Rod
Mississippi Surfing - got to see it to believe
it!!! (see video clip below)
No water - surfing
on a modified ironing board behind a moving vintage truck. Didn't give it
a go as our travel insurance doesn't cover risky experiences - we were told
"accidents aren't a probability....they're a sure thing in Red-Neck Surfing"
Rat Rods, Hot Rods &
Mississippi Surfing -
Jackson, TN
Final night concert
Narvel Felts from Sun Records studio (Rockabilly and Country Rock) got the crowd going.
Celia with Sonny Burgess and Jim Aldridge - of Sonny Burgess and The Pacers. Awesome band with hit "Red Headed Woman" (see video below). Such nice guys!!! So down to earth and friendly!!!!
Red Headed Woman
Jack rockin' on in Jackson with English and local kittens.
Jack and sheilas with Scottish rockabilly fan.
Josef and group of enthusiastic dancers from Arkansas and Buffalo New York
Red Hot and Blue - regular band @ Rock-a-billy Hall of Fame. Great music. Reminded us of Rusty.
11 August
Hanging out at the Honky Tonks
John England & the Western
Swingers
@
Robert's World, Nashville,
Tennessee
Western Swing is a hybrid of musical styles first popularized in the American Southwest during the 1930s. It allows for plenty of improvisation by soloists.
About John England & the Western Swingers: They've played at the Grand Ole Opry, New York's Lincoln Centre and Legends of Western Swing Festival. They've performed with Dolly Parton, Patsy Cline and many others. Gene "Pappy" Merritts (fiddle & vocals) sings the song on our video "Don't be Ashamed of Your Age". He's performed in person for President Ford and Nixon, for troops in Korea and was featured in Opryland's Country Music USA show for 24 years....and he still rocks!!! John England (guitar & vocals) has performed in the Waldorf-Astoria and the Royal Albert Hall. Tommy Hannum (steel & vocals) has featured on records with Tammy Wynette and Mary Chapin Carpenter. David Spicher (bass & vocals) has performed with Crystal Gayle, Merle Haggard and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra and Nashville Swing Band. Walter Hartman (drums) became one of the "most sought after drummers in town" and played with the Drifters and Dr Hook to name a few! Neil Stretcher (piano & vocals) Did a 14 year run at the Grand Ole Opry. For more info on the band visit www.westernswingers.com or www.myspace.com/westernswingers.
The band would love to do an Australian tour you can contact them through Walter Hartman on hartman@mindspring.com.
Band in The Second Fiddle
Melbournians visiting Nashville
John England and the Western Swingers
12 August
Cruise on the General Jackson Paddle Steamer Showboat with NashVegas Show. Tina Turner, Elvis and Elton John Tribute Artists.
NashVegas - a tribute artists' show on the General Jackson Paddle Steamer Showboat, while cruising on the Cumberland River.
15 August
Visit to the Grand Ole Opry and the Honkytonks on Broadway.
Went to visit the original Grand Ole Opry (now called Ryman Auditorium). Fascinating tour with some very interesting little stories about the stars. One particular story about Minnie Pearl, a Grande Ole Opry comedienne, tells how she went down the back stairs during a break. Here she was accosted by a robber who told her to "hand over her money". She said she didn't have any. He asked again, and got the same response, so he extensively frisked her. He then said "you have no money!" She said, "I told you that, but if you'll do it again, I'll write you a cheque".
Many of the local t-shirts also demonstrate the quirky local sense of humour. Today we passed one that said "Red Neck Statistics - 98% of people in the USA say 'Oh Shit' when riding off the road into a ditch. The other 2 % are from Tennessee. They say "Hold my beer and watch this!"
Visited the Wild Horse Saloon. Great venue where horses (and some guests) "Will dance for Food!". Other photo shows some of the honkytonk bars on Broadway. Music from every pub - bluegrass, country rock, country blues - from 2pm onwards!