The Ryman Auditorium was conceived in 1895 by a Nashville riverboat captain named Thomas Ryman, who had recently been converted to Christianity by a southern evangelist, and decided to build a church to serve Nashville’s revivals.  In 1892, the first part of the auditorium was opened, named the Union Gospel Tabernacle, which included the pews that remain there to this day.  Construction was completed in 1899, and the total cost – $100,000.

In 1943, the Grand Ole Opry moved to the Ryman Auditorium, where it remained full-time until 1974, when it moved to the Opry House, which was built adjacent to the Opryland Hotel for the purpose of being a dedicated auditorium for Grand Ole Opry performances.

The Grand Old Opry returned to the Ryman in 1999, for winter season performances, which continue to this day.

Of course, there’s much more than country music performed at the Ryman.  Virtually every type of music has been celebrated and performed here, and it’s been voted one of the best places to hear music in America.

TPAC is in the heart of downtown Nashville at 505 Deaderick St., in the James K. Polk Cultural Center, taking up the entire block bordered by 5th and 6th Avenues and Deaderick and Union Streets. The cultural center is also the home to the Tennessee State Museum.

TPAC contains three performance halls, ranging from the 256 seat Andrew Johnson Theater, to the James K. Polk Theater, with 1,075 seats, all the way to the large room, Andrew Jackson Hall, with a capacity of 2,472.

The historic landmark War Memorial Auditorium is located adjacent to the main TPAC building, just across 6th Avenue, and has a capacity of 1,661.

TPAC hosts Broadway shows, many special engagements,  as well as with the Nashville Ballet, the Nashville Opera, and the Tennessee Repertory Theatre.

If you’re planning a visit to Nashville, you owe it to yourself to check the TPAC event schedule to see what’s scheduled to play during your visit.

The Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum is right near downtown Nashville, at 301 6th Ave. South, just a couple of blocks south of Broadway, and one block west of the Country Music Hall Of Fame.

Some of the musicians featured, like Jimi Hendrix are famous, while others  are not.  How about drummer Hal Blaine?  This LA session drummer isn’t well known, but has played on many many hit records.  The Museum is dedicated to the actual players on hundreds of hits from Elvis, Frank and Nancy Sinatra,The Byrds, The Mamas and The Papas and The Beach Boys, to name a few.  Also on exhibit at The Museum you’ll find the actual  instruments that were used in the recording of many of these classic hits.

They are always adding new exhibits, from all music genres, for you to enjoy.  The layout of the museum is based on the cities with a great recorded music history. Like Detroit, Nashville , Muscle Shoals, Los Angeles , Memphis and New York. In all these cities, there were musicians who were able to play any style that was needed,  back when the recording industry was evolving.  They had nicknames – The Swampers, The A TEAM, The Memphis Boys, The FUNK BROTHERS, and The WRECKING CREW.  You’ve heard of “Booker T and The M.G’s” and” TOTO”?  Guess what?  They started out as one of these studio bands. Up until the mid 1980’s, studio bands like these played on the majority of all the recordings made in these cities.

The Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum is proud of Nashville’s musical heritage also. Nashville, aka Music City, is well known for country music, but many other styles of music have always been recorded in Nashville. “Dust In The Wind” (Kansas), “Heart Of Gold ” (Neil Young) and “Lay Lady Lay” (Bob Dylan) – to name a few.

Whether you’re partial to Hank Williams Sr., or the Red Hot Chili Peppers, or anything in between, you’ll find something of interest at the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum .

It’s the most colorful building in the 2nd Avenue Historic District (pink, purple, yellow, green, red & blue).  To be just a bit more noticeable, you’ll hear Dolly’s music coming from the store.

Fans of all ages will be able to find all sorts of Dolly Parton items and loads of Dolly’s music, too.

The store is open to visitors now, but there’s a Grand Opening event planned for Spring of 2010.

Located at 315 Union, the hotel has 87 rooms and 18 extended stay suites, and is located in the downtown business district, Printer’s Alley and 2nd Ave., close to all the major downtown attractions and entertainment venues.  Pets are welcome.

For more information, check out Hotel 315.

HOTEL 315
315 Union Street
Nashville, Tennessee 37201
Phone: 615.891.6001
http://thehotel315.com

Today’s revival of roller derby keeps the athleticism of the original sport and adds punk attitude and showmanship and sassy, feisty, aggressive competition.

The Nashville Rollergirls (NRG) are an amateur all women flat track roller derby team.  They knock each other down, they look good doing it, and they skate away smiling.  This sport is real, and the girls have real fun doing it.

The NRG started in 2006 and has three teams who compete with each other on an intra-league basis: the Assault Rivals , the X-Pistols, and the Damsels of Distress. Traveling to compete with other cities is the NRG’s all-star team, the Nashville RollerGirls.

The roller girls are completely do-it-yourself, running on the work of the skaters, friends, family, and volunteers.

The girls have all sorts of backgrounds, and get together with a single goal – to knock some skaters down and taste some blood. Most of them are college educated, some grad students, and some are moms.  They have all sorts of careers and lifestyles by day, and by night they don fishnets and miniskirts, when they hit the rink practice training and a good time.

The fan base is also a varied mix of characters, including all ages, with tatoos, mohawks, polos, biker helmets, cowboy hats, families and singles from all walks of life.

NRG’s cheerleaders, excuse me, “jeerleaders”, known as the Rhinestone Ruckus, entertain during the jams and at intermissions.

If you want some extra excitement you can sit in the “Suicide Seats” – set up on the floor right beside the track, (warning – you assume all liability for injury by sitting here…).

So come out to the historic Tennessee State Fairgrounds Sports Arena in Nashville Tennessee on a Saturday night when there’s a Nashville Rollergirl bout scheduled. You’ll be glad you did!

Two golf courses are here, too – Percy Warner and Harpeth Hills. There are many structures here that were built in the 1930’s as part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), including 2 stone bridges, 7 limestone entrances, miles of retaining walls of stone, along with the drives, overlooks and trails, and even a steeplechase course.

Nashville’s oldest model plane flying field, dating from the 40’s is here, as is a short stretch of the Natchez Trace, a historic network of ancient trails used by early Native Americans.

This is a great place to walk, ride a bike, hike, picnic, and just enjoy the great outdoors, just a hop, skip and jump from downtown Nashville.

Located at 7311 Highway 100, the Nature Center at Edwin Warner Park is an environmental education center that’s open all year. Here you may enjoy the museum of local natural history, a library, an organic vegetable and herb garden, beehives, and a wildflower garden.  Hikers can go to the trailhead at the Nature Center for maps.

Map of Edwin Warner Park, Nashville

Map of Percy Warner Park, Nashville

Gaylord Springs At Gaylord Opryland Resort, 18 Springhouse Ln, Nashville, TN 37214, (615)458-1730, Public, 18 hole, 7,007 yds, Par 72, CR-74.1, S-133

Harpeth Hills Municipal Golf Course, 2424 Old Hickory Blvd, Nashville, TN 37221, (615)862-8493, Municipal, 18 hole, 6,868 yds, Par 72, CR-73.1, S-126

Harpeth Valley Golf Center, 7629 Old Harding Rd, Nashville, TN 37221, (615)646-8858, Public, 9 hole, 1,088 yds, Par 27, CR-N/A, S-N/A

Hermitage Golf Course, 3939 Old Hickory Boulevard Old Hickory, TN 37138, (615) 847-4001, Public, 36 hole,

Hillwood Country Club, 6201 Hickory Valley Rd, Nashville, TN 37205, (615)352-5600, Private, 18 hole, 6,903 yds, Par 72, CR-73.2, S-131
McCabe Field Golf Course, 100 46th Ave N, Nashville, TN 37209, (615)862-8491, 18 holes

South Nine Course, Municipal, 9 hole, yds, Par , CR-N/A, S-N/A

North Nine Course, Municipal, 9 hole, 3,490 yds, Par 36, CR-N/A, S-N/A

Middle Nine Course, Municipal, 9 hole, yds, Par , CR-N/A, S-N/A

Nashboro Golf Club, 1101 Nashboro Blvd, Nashville, TN 37217, (615)367-2311, Public, 18 hole, 6,950 yds, Par 72, CR-73.6, S-134

Percy Warner Golf Course, 1221 Forrest Park Dr, Nashville, TN 37205, (615)352-9958, Municipal, 9 hole, 2,655 yds, Par 34, CR-33.9, S-107

Richland Country Club, 1 Club Dr, Nashville, TN 37215, (615)370-0030, Private, 18 hole, 6,863 yds, Par 72, CR-71.5, S-139

Shelby Golf Course, 2021 Fatherland St, Nashville, TN 37206, (615)862-8474, Municipal, 18 hole, 5,800 yds, Par 72, CR-68.2, S-110

Ted Rhodes Golf Course, 1901 Ed Temple Blvd, Nashville, TN 37208, (615)862-8463, Municipal, 18 hole, 6,660 yds, Par 72, CR-71.8, S-120

Two Rivers Golf Course, 3150 McGavock Pike, Nashville, TN 37214, (615)889-2675, Municipal, 18 hole, 6,595 yds, Par 72, CR-71.5, S-120

VinnyLinks, 2009 Sevier St, Nashville, TN 37206, (615)880-1720, Municipal, 9 hole, yds, Par , CR-N/A, S-N/A

This ride is more like a traveling comedy show and cocktail party than a city tour, and you don’t have to be a country music fan to have loads of fun on this laugh-riot.

Climb aboard the Big Pink Bus for a truly unique Nashville experience! This country musical / comedy tour is guaranteed to have you laughing ’til your face hurts as the Jugg Sisters, Sheri Lynn and Brenda Kay, show you Nashville like you never dreamed.

You’ll learn a lot, but not so much about Nashville landmarks…

These two wacky ladies dish the dirt on all the country stars as the Big Pink Bus prowls the streets of Nashville. You start at the Farmer’s Market and Germantown, then turn towards Nashville’s downtown area. The Juggs will tell wild stories and sing wilder songs.

As the bus passes the jailhouse, the Juggs will tell you which of your favorite stars spent a night or two there.

They’ll even teach some foreign language – example – “sober” in German is “farfrompuken”.

Never a dull moment, and never a serious moment on the Big Pink Bus with the Jugg Sisters!

The Juggs, always displaying their Southern-fried hospitality, will offer their Fancy Cheese Hors D’Oeuvres for your snacking pleasure. And you can wash ‘em down with whatever drinks you bring aboard the bus.  Tennessee’s open container laws don’t apply on the Big Pink Bus, so don’t forget your beer or wine coolers or…?

This is a grownup tour, with plenty of adult-type humor, so leave the kids under 13 at home.

Make sure to book a reservation well in advance, this tour is often sold out months in advance. But it’s worth the wait.

This new $37 million location was opened in 2001, and the monumental appearance of this unique building livens up the skyline in Nashville’s downtown entertainment area.

The Museum has an incredibly vast collection to record country music’s history, and inside, the crown jewels of the collection are presented, illustrating the story of country music spanning centuries.

You’ll find treasures of historic recorded music, rare video footage, changing exhibits, live performances and other public programs, live broadcasts, as well as dining at SoBro Grill & Catering and shopping at the Museum Store.

Seeing the exhibits of the Hall educates and excites country music fans of all ages and experiences, from the newest fans to those who’ve loved country music for many years.

As you walk through the exhibit halls, you’ll see the progress of country music starting in the fields and honky-tonks of the south, all the way the Grand Ole Opry and the blockbuster hits of our country stars today.

The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum is self-guided, so you can view it at your own pace – folks generally take 2-3 hours.  The Museum offers an Audio Tour (70 minutes), narrated by Eddie Stubbs (WSM Radio & Grand Ole Opry announcer), including features hosted by Dolly Parton, Vince Gill, and Trisha Yearwood.

The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum presents “Sing Me Back Home” as a permanent exhibit covering two entire floors of the building, an exciting trip through the life of country music.

Using original recordings, objects, photos and video, and interactive touchscreen panels, Sing Me Back Home steeps visitors in the sound and history of country music, and the lives and voices of its esteemed stars.

As the “Sing Me Back Home” tour ends, you’ll enter the Hall of Fame Rotunda, another permanent exhibit.  This is the sacred space where Country Music Hall of Fame® members are honored with bronze plaques recognizing their induction into the Hall of Fame.

A visit to the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum is an essential part of any trip to Nashville. You’ll find it is both educational and fun. And with the appreciation of the history of Nashville’s music you’ll gain a better appreciation of Nashville.

There’s lots of public parking around the museum, and the entire building is accessible to wheelchairs, with elevators to all floors.