About a month ago, my grandmother asked me if I wanted to go to Memphis to see Graceland and Beale Street. I said," Yes, but, while we're in the neighborhood, why not go to Nashville?" So, off we went. (We left on July 13 and came home on July 16.)
In Nashville, we went to the Gibson Banjo Factory, Grand Ole Opry Museum and then Corner Music.
At Corner Music, (Sorry, no photos.) I played a 330MG and 360FG, both of which were nice, although I spent more time playing the 330, because it was in better tune. (They also had a 350V63 and 330/12, but I didn't play them because they were high on the wall and I'd already played those models.) I also picked up a Jerry Jones electric sitar and Trinity College Irish Bouzouki, which were both kind of interesting. The sitar did what it was supposed to do - sound like a sitar. I played "Norwegian Wood" on it and it sounded pretty good. I played "Gerryowen" on the Bouzouki and got a nice, Irish-jig-meets-Roger-McGuinn-type sound. Nobody noticed but my Grandma, who was bewildered (more than usual).
In Memphis, we visited both Graceland and Sun Studios on the same day. Both were very interesting. At Graceland, it was fascinating to see all of Elvis' gold, silver, and platinum records, white suits, cars, and guitars, as well as the house. The Jungle Room was hideous with all of the fur, animal sculptures, and bad curtains, but the rest of the house was both historic and more attractive. They had several rooms filled with awards, which really illustrated how successful the King truly was.
At Sun Studios, I learned that it is still a working studio. It appeared that they had both an older tape machine that was probably still being used as well as a newer digital recording setup. They had a wall of guitars, drums, and two pedal steels, all of which we were instructed not to touch. There was an "x" on the floor where Elvis stood to record, "That's All Right Mama". The tour was very informative with lots of information on Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, etc., as well as Elvis.
Here are some photos. They start at Gibson Factory, The Grand Ole Opry, Graceland, and Sun Studios. You can probably tell from the photos where each was taken. I don't have Photobucket (yet!), so I will do this in a couple of posts.
Matthew
