A musical road to history

 

                                                                Statue outside the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville

Music is often in the background of our lives except for the chosen few who make it their life's passion. Most people can remember tunes from different phases of their lives. Indeed hearing certain tunes can evoke those memories along with feelings of joy or sorrow. Music plays a part in the history of our lives and takes us back beyond our own pasts to that of those who came before us.

I recently had a chance to remember this when I embarked on a tour called The Tennessee Music Trail to New Orleans run by Intrepid Travel. Our aim was to spend some time in New Orleans and this seemed like an interesting way to do it, taking in more cities in the American South and following up on the musical theme. Besides the destination city, we also had brief stays in Nashville and Memphis.

Beale Street in Memphis

All the stops had claims to fame and their own flavour to add to the musical past. For that's what was celebrated in all the stops, the birth and evolution of different forms of music. Nashville featured the history of various forms of musical expression from the gospel to hip hop strains showcased in the National Museum of African American Music to the various artists spotlighted in the Country Music Hall of Fame. The history of blues in Memphis was harder to come by on the ground although a visit to Sun Record Shop filled in some of the backstory as did a stop at Graceland. A walking tour of the Bourbon Street area of New Orleans rounded out our musical history exposure with a taste of Jazz.

One of the few quiet spots at night on Bourbon Street in New Orleans 

 

The tour was a reminder of how music brings back memories for all of us and how listening to it and being with others on the same quest can create a history of its own.