THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 11, 1994 TAG: 9409090132
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E16 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: SOUNDCHECK
SOURCE: BY SUE SMALLWOOD, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines
I HALF-EXPECTED to be awed or at least a little intimidated by Nashville and Memphis, given their cultural credentials. Nashville is the country music capital and Memphis is the cradle of blues and generally accepted birthplace of rock 'n' roll. Instead, I was reminded of home.
Physically, the Norfolk area is not too unlike Nashville and Memphis; all three are proud riverfront cities striving to reconcile their crumbling war-era pasts with gleaming skyscraper futures. But where Memphis' once-decaying Beale Street is alive with trendy restaurants and well-attended nightclubs boasting fine live musical entertainment, Norfolk's similarly historic and charismatic Granby Street lies practically vacant. Where Nashville's beautifully refurbished Ryman Auditorium, a historic landmark, hosts national recording artists, Norfolk's Attucks Theatre houses only cobwebs.
Surprisingly, though, I departed Tennessee with an odd sense of hope for our region's music community, a sense of excitement and enthusiasm which, I must admit, I'd been faking for years now. For in the Tennessee cities, the fierce pride in and celebration of musical heritage is practically tangible - and downright contagious.
In Nashville, the cultural self-respect is obvious walking down Music Row, a powerstrip of mega-music biz offices disguised as a pretty residential area, or visiting the Country Music Hall Of Fame or music theme park Opryland. In Memphis, it's evident with a simple stroll down Beale or a tour of the Sun recording studio where Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis got their start.
Of course, one could argue that the gentrification of Beale Street or the construction of a revenue-producing Hall Of Fame is simply crass commercialism. But the very fact that regional music history can be transformed into tourist dollars in these cities only proves the point of pride: These locales take their musicmaking very seriously. Consequently, so does the rest of the world.
Granted, Hampton Roads is hardly home to the critical mass of music industry addresses as is Nashville, nor does the area boast a rich legacy of elemental, influential music idioms, such as the blues and nascent rock that have emerged from Memphis.
But over the years, our area has spawned its own impressive share of luminaries: Ruth Brown, Ella Fitzgerald, Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps, Gary U.S. Bonds, Clarence Clemons, Tommy Newsom and Bruce Hornsby, among many others. And in addition to an ever-expanding pool of credible music talent in our area, there is currently a growing crop of pro-quality recording studios, a handful of tiny but determined independent labels, performance venues large and small, talent buyers, bookers and music-centered publications that already take homegrown music quite seriously.
More can be done, though. Imagine hearing the local music-supporting WODU beyond the Old Dominion campus. Imagine other local radio stations giving consistent airplay to area artists instead of relegating them to dismal Sunday overnight shifts. Imagine other local media - TV and print outlets, this one included - devoting more time and space to exposing area musicians. Imagine city governments recognizing and honoring their hometown music stars with lasting monuments.
Imagine area clubs actually promoting their shows. Imagine the local music community beginning a professional organization (like WAMA, the Washington (D.C.) Area Music Association) to support, acknowledge, encourage and publicize musicians. And imagine if area music fans vigorously supported local artists by attending their performances, purchasing their tapes, T-shirts and CDs and demanding to hear local music on local radio.
Like they say, nobody can respect you if you don't respect yourself.
Now this is not to suggest some grand campaign of unqualified regional cheerleading; after all, slop is slop whether it comes from your own back yard or someone else's. But the Nirvanas, Aerosmiths, Whitney Houstons and Barbra Streisands of the world had to come from somebody's hometown. Why not ours? A public spotlight focused on this area's musical talent could only benefit us all. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
SUE SMALLWOOD
Nashville's refurbished Ryman Auditorium hosts national recording
artists.
by CNB