TOE-TAPPIN’, FOOT-STOMPIN’, COUNTRY MUSIC MECCA : NASHVILLE

The residents pronounce it Neh-yush-ville and they proudly call it Music City, U.S.A. . . . which was, I was told, a rat fur piece (a right far piece) from California. But to the millions of country music fans from all over the world and the 7 million of them who make pilgrimages here annually, miles don’t matter. It’s mecca, where they can come to see, hear, applaud and pay homage to their favorite performers.

The casual devotee of country music will find the enthusiasm of the dedicated fans contagious and the performances scheduled all over the city outstanding.

How can anyone help but become slightly infatuated with a musical genre that produces such engaging song titles as: “She Got the Gold Mine, I Got the Shaft,” “Your Wife’s Been Cheating on Us Again,” “The Opera Ain’t Over Till the Fat Lady Sings” or “Drop Kick Me, Jesus, Through the Goalposts of Life.”

Music is the big draw here, of course, and it’s presented in all its forms--from traditional wailing laments and tear-your-heart-out blues to the (praise heaven) non-electronic, toe-tappin’ blue grass and today’s modern “cross-over” songs and country rock--to hit just a few notes on the overall country music scale. You can enjoy them all “live” here in Middle Tennessee.

On the minus side, some of the attractions built around the many superstar performers may be a bit much for the sophisticated West Coast visitor who is about 1,500 miles removed from the heart of this southland and from the zealous ardor of the fans who religiously follow the sometimes soap-operatic lives of their favorite performers.

First suggested stop should be the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum on Music Row. Don’t let the name throw you. It’s not a graveyard of stone faces and plaques, but a lively, excellently chronicled exhibit of country music and all its forms and faces, not just in displays but in film and kinescopes and recordings of all-time greats.

I found myself mentally trying on the performing costume of Dolly Parton (I’m taller than she is, but comparisons end there) and guffawing at Ferlin Husky in a Hollywood epic called “The Hillbillys in a Haunted House” while husband, Bill, finally got to see Hank Williams in his only TV performance.

There’s Elvis’ “solid gold” Cadillac (actually 24K gold dust, diamond and pearl dust along with special ground fish scales from the Orient), the blazing blue suits of Hank Snow, Minnie Pearl’s first straw hat and 1,001 other mementoes that capture the spirit of country music from its Appalachian beginnings to today’s many-faceted sounds.

There are special exhibits on the 60-year history of the Grand Ole Opry and another on Willie Nelson. It’s more than worth the $6 adult admission, which also includes entry to nearby Studio B, an early RCA recording studio where such stars as Elvis, Parton, Eddy Arnold, Snow and Charlie Pride recorded their first hits. Elvis alone recorded here more than 25 times.

The museum gift shop also has significant recordings, some of which are hard to find in ordinary outlets.

The next logical stop should be the old Ryman Auditorium, shrine of country music, where for 31 years the music of the Grand Ole Opry came into living rooms across the nation through the magic of radio. From the 1920s to the 1950s, some of the stars who performed on the Ryman stage before the Opry took it over were Isadora Duncan, Will Rogers, Mae West, Helen Hayes, Katharine Hepburn, Orson Welles, Ethel Barrymore, Jascha Heifetz.

In 1943 the Grand Ole Opry moved in and for three decades entertained packed houses of 3,000 with such performers as the Gully Jumpers, the Fruit Jar Drinkers and later, Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb, Hank Williams, Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, Hank Snow, Grandpa Jones and Porter Wagoner, all of whom became Saturday-night radio favorites across the nation.

In 1974, at one of the last performances at the Ryman, I was taken backstage, where complete bedlam and chaos reigned. Hundreds of people milled around calling to one another, and in the confusion, I was pushed and shoved until, aghast, I found myself on the stage standing right behind Johnny Cash, who was belting out “Folsom Prison.” There were so many people on the stage that I wasn’t even noticed.

Today, for $1.25, visitors can take a self-guided tour of the dilapidated old building, explore backstage and slide into the church pews, (where hundreds of thousands of fans sat even on 100-degree evenings with no air conditioning), and then listen to a lecturer on the historic stage tell about the building and the early days of the Opry.

The tradition of the Grand Ole Opry is still being continued in a new auditorium just adjacent to Opryland, about 10 miles from downtown Nashville. The shows, even some of the music, haven’t changed all that much and the audiences are among the most enthusiastic in show business. More than 60 country-music entertainers still bring the crowds to their feet in standing ovations.

Mr. Roy Acuff, as he is respectfully called hereabouts, is today regarded as the King of Country Music and still performs capably, as does Porter Wagoner, stunning in his brilliant costumes. Present-day stars include Dolly Parton, Barbara Mandrell, Tom T. Hall, Loretta Lynn and many others; more than a million people come from all over the world to hear them in this new mother church of country music.

Admission is $10 for evenings, $8 matinees for reserved seats. For the peak summer season, tickets should be ordered a year in advance.

sh Opryland a Treat Another of the outstanding musical treats in Nashville is Opryland, the 120-acre entertainment park that has 20 adventure and amusement rides as diversions, mostly for youngsters who become bored with a steady diet of music. But the heart and soul of the park is in its dozen top live musical productions.

Not all are country music. There’s “For Me and My Gal,” a rousing, 45-minute revue of American music from the Gay ‘90s to World War I. Another is “I Hear America Singing,” a 45-minute song-and-dance show capturing the tunes and times of such composers as Kern, Gershwin, Berlin, Porter and Ellington.

Of course, several productions are themed to country music, including Blue Grass, Gospel, Rockabilly of the ‘50s and Hot Country, today’s modern country sound.

But the best of the bunch, the one that had me and the rest of the audience hand-clappin’, foot-stompin’ and begging for more is “Country Music U.S.A.” This one show alone is worth the price of admission to the park.

Impressions of Legends

In a 45-minute extravaganza, talented young people recruited from all over the nation give their impressions of the great legends of bygone years and present stars. The costumes are great, the choreography is terrific and the skill and showmanship of these kids are award-winning--spellbinding enough to hold an audience glued to their seats during a hard rain.

All this for $15.50 for Saturday and Sunday until Nov. 2 when the park closes for the season. This includes all the shows and rides. (Parking is $2.50.) The only show not included and also worth the price of admission is “Music! Music! Music!” a lavish 75-minute stage production at the Acuff Theater adjacent to the park. Seats are $4.95.

There’s also the elegant, photogenic General Jackson paddle-wheel showboat that operates on the Cumberland River. Its Victorian Theater can seat 630 people for banquets and can accommodate 1,000 for theater-style presentations. The showboat offers cruises all year. Early morning and midday cruises are $9.95; evening cruises, which include dinner, $29.95.

Museums for Individuals

So far it’s been applause for Nashville’s musical offerings. But there is a peculiarity of the city, and country music in general, that I found slightly flat: the many individual museums honoring specific country stars, most of them built by the stars themselves.

There are no fewer than nine--or 10 if you count another that shares space with a wax museum--museums or memorial showcases. Eight of these are dedicated to country stars very much alive and performing at the peak of their careers.

They range from modest to good grief! and cost an average of $3 to $5 per person. However, I tread lightly here. While it seems ludicrous to pay $5 to see more than I really ever wanted to know about the life and times of Barbara Mandrell or Conway Twitty, there are hundreds, even thousands, of ardent fans who walk through these premises mesmerized with awe and admiration.

The museums are those of Barbara Mandrell, Minnie Pearl, Marty Robbins, Bill Monroe, Jim Reeves, Ferlin Husky, Johnny Cash, Conway Twitty and Hank Williams Jr. and Sr.

Mementoes and Wax

There are, in addition, two rather bad wax museums dedicated to country stars. The better of the two, the Country Music Wax Museum ($3 to see some very paraffin-looking figures) also has the Waylon Jennings private collection (another $3, please), which permits you to see many of Jennings’ mementoes, including the donated braids of Willie Nelson.

As for accommodations: Many of the popular chain hotels/motels are here, but the top of the heap is the splendid Opryland Hotel. No kitsch here, but a stunning 1,068-room property that would be striking anywhere in the world. It has a two-acre garden under glass known as the Conservatory crowned by a one-acre skylight, one of the largest glass roofs in the world.

To one side of the garden is a Southern-themed restaurant called Rhett’s and a lounge named the Jack Daniel’s Saloon. There’s the seven-tier Stagedoor Lounge often used for radio and TV broadcasts and tapings, Rachel’s Kitchen and the Veranda for informal dining, and the Old Hickory restaurant for formal evening dining. Rates run $99 to $119 a night, double occupancy.

Autumn Also Performs

If you’re heading for Nashville during October, you’ll get the bonus of autumn performing in her most brilliant display. The city will also host a fundraiser for the Tennessee Artist-Craftsmen’s Association Oct. 31 to Nov. 2. More than 150 craftspeople will show and sell their wares and, of course, live music will be featured.

For information about the Opry: Grand Ole Opry Information, 2802 Opryland Drive, Nashville, Tenn. 37214, (615) 889-3060. For Opryland: Opryland Customer Service, 2802 Opryland Drive, Nashville, Tenn. 37214. For Nashville: Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, 161 4th Ave. N., Nashville, Tenn. 37219, phone (615) 259-3900.