Nashville, Tennessee on Next to Nothing: The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

In this episode of Nashville on Next to Nothing, Part 4, Country Music Hall of Fame, we'll cover another of the MUST SEE spots in Nashville. Located at 222 Fifth Avenue South in Downtown Nashville, the Country Music Hall of Fame appeals to visitors of all ages and musical tastes. I recommend you consider combining your visit downtown for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum with other attractions in the same area, in order to maximize your parking dollars. A walking tour of Broadway, the Ryman Auditorium, and Musician's Hall of Fame are all just a stone's throw away for those who can do "marathon museum tours" or if you have just a few days to tour the city.

I encourage you, if you have not already done so, to check out my Nashville on Next to Nothing, Part 2 article, to find out how to get reduced-price admission to the CMHOF and Part 3, The Ryman Auditorium, for great information on where to park in the area (and who NOT to pay when you park!). In case you wonder why I have recommended visitors buy the "Music City Total Access" attraction pass, you get your choice of four attraction admissions for $45, which works out to $11.25 each, versus the regular admission fees, which are typically at least several dollars more, sometimes even double plus.]

A visually impressive display greets visitors as soon as they enter the Country Music Hall of Fame; a wall of gold and platinum records three stories high lines the lobby the full length of one wall. The Hall of Fame Rotunda is also awe-inspiring, so take that in if you can. Check in at the Guest Services Desk in the lobby and also look for the calendar of events near the ticket booths to see what live entertainment is appearing during your stay.

During two past visits, I have been treated to a live concert by recording artist Jimmy Wayne, a steel guitar demonstration by master instrumentalist Pete Finney, and a performance/question and answer session with Grand Ole Opry background musicians legendary guitarist Charlie Collins and the amazing Mike Webb, a multi-talented instrumentalist. Webb was a dobro student of Bashful Brother Oswald, and he actually was given the Grand Ole Opry dobro played by Oswald at the Grand Ole Opry, and Webb played it during the demonstration we attended. Mike was so kind as to let my husband hold that legendary dobro and get his picture taken with it, which to him was worth the price of the trip. Some pretty amazing things have happened on our Nashville vacations . . . Holding Bashful Brother Oswald's dobro, shaking hands with the Oak Ridge Boys as they boarded their tour bus in front of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and even getting photos taken with the legend of country music George Jones at a fan club party in nearby Franklin, Tennessee to name a few of the most memorable. The hardest part of all is trying to remember, and relate, all that we saw; thank goodness for our extensive photo collection.

No matter your particular taste in artists and their music, the Country Music Hall of Fame offers something for everyone. George Jones, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Hank Williams and Hank Jr., even the cast of Hee Haw. Elvis Presley's Solid Gold Cadillac and Webb Pierce's Silver Dollar Cadillac are on display for the pleasure of auto junkies, and a 24-karat gold grand piano commissioned for Elvis by Priscilla Presley sits nearby.

Costumes, musical instruments, albums, and pieces of celebrity lives line three floors of exhibits that show and tell the history of country music. Permanent collections of recorded sounds, moving images, costumes, and oral history complement the personal exhibits of the entertainers and those who made them famous. Over 800 stage costumes and 600 instruments are contained in the permanent artifact collection, according to the website's Collections page (http://countrymusichalloffame.com/site/explore-exhibits-collections.aspx). Allow plenty of time to take in this museum because you won't want to miss a thing.

Through December 2009, "Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy" is a must-see display containing family memorabilia from the Williams family, beginning with the legendary Hank Williams and his wife Audrey, to his children Hank Jr. and Jett Williams, and Hank's children, some of whom have followed him into the entertainment spotlight.

In my opinion, The Country Music Hall of Fame contains the largest and most comprehensive collection of country music history and memorabilia in Nashville. If you only have time to see one museum, this must be it. I encourage you, though, to spend a few days taking in all that Nashville has to offer. If time permits, you might consider taking the RCA Studio B Tour; tickets are available in the CMHOF Lobby, and the bus departs from the lobby area also. [I have not yet attended the Studio B Tour and so, until I have, that part of this series is "on hold" because I am unable to personally recommend it.]

I welcome your feedback on these articles and hope you will use this information to plan your own trip to Nashville very soon. Call the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum at 800-852-6437 or 615-416-2001 for more information about the museum and exhibits. For Nashville tourist information, call the Nashville Convention and Visitor's Bureau at 615-259-4747 or 615-259-4730 (and ask them to send you a free Vacation Guide!).

Sources:

2008 Nashville Vacation Guide, Journal Communications Inc. (Available free from Nashville Convention Visitor's Bureau or their website, www.visitmusiccity.com)

Collections, (http://countrymusichalloffame.com/site/explore-exhibits-collections.aspx). Countrymusichalloffame.com