Kiser+Vogrin Design Wins Four State Design Awards from American Society of Landscape Architects

By Chuck Whiting

MCAU Editor

            NASHVILLE, Tenn. (October 2015) – When landscape architects Dwight Kiser and Gary Vogrin joined forces to found Kiser+Vogrin Design in 2010, they had no idea they would soon be designing the sites of some of the largest construction projects in Middle Tennessee history.

            KVD landscape architects were soon tapped to develop master plans for City Park, Ovation and Capitol View. In just five years, this fast-growing Franklin, Tenn., firm has become one of the most respected companies in the Southeast for its landscape architecture, urban design, and land planning.

            The eight-member KVD staff felt a great sense of pride when they were recently honored for those projects, winning four awards from the Tennessee Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects.

            "We're thrilled to have reached a point in the history of KVD where our projects have been recognized for excellence by peers in the field of landscape architecture," Kiser said with a smile.

The KVD team celebrates after winning four awards from the Tennessee Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. (L-R) Gary Vogrin, Diane King, Dwight Kiser, Jeff Rosiak, Johnson Bullard, Kennon Lorick, Katie Rudowsky, and Chris Wood. (Photo by Yates Bateman)

            During an awards dinner at the Cordelle in downtown Nashville, KVD was honored for its work on

            * City Park (Built Environment/Commercial), a sprawling suburban office park that is being transformed into a much-needed town center in Brentwood, Tenn.

            * Ovation (Planning and Analysis/Mixed Use; Natural Resource Conservation/Sustainable Design), a 147-acre property in Franklin described as the "most comprehensive mixed-use community in Middle Tennessee."

            * Capitol View (Planning and Analysis/Mixed Use), a 34-acre mixed-use development currently under construction on a brownfield site in the North Gulch adjacent to Nashville's urban core.

        “We have spent a tremendous amount of time and effort working on assembling the right people and building a culture where we can all be creative but work hard to serve the needs of our clients,” said Jeff Rosiak, principal for KVD. “None of this would have been possible without the collaborative efforts of our clients, architects, engineers and others in the Nashville community.”

            For City Park, KVD’s architects created the design for a dynamic streetscape flanked by a robust mix of restaurants, retail vendors, and open spaces. The plan features a new boutique hotel that surrounds the historic Mooreland Mansion on three sides.

City Park

            “Ovation and Capitol View are universally considered favorite projects by our staff,” said Vogrin, who serves as KVD vice president.

            Ovation features a thoughtful blend of residential, office, retail and entertainment uses in a variety of indoor and outdoor spaces. The project will transform the McEwen/Carothers Parkway corridor into one of the most environmentally and economically sustainable public gathering areas in the region.

            “The attraction to the Ovation project starts with its magnitude,” Kiser added. “With an estimated $770 million construction budget, Ovation has been described as a downtown for the Cool Springs area of Franklin.”

Ovation

            KVD’s conceptual master plan for Capitol View includes residential, retail, office and green space on an urban brownfield site. The firm's detailed site design includes a brick paver-clad "festival street" with three large plazas, a park, rain gardens, pedestrian pathways, and biking trails connecting to the Gulch and to the Nashville Greenway System. The project boasts nearly 280,000 square feet of retail space, more than 1 million square feet of office space, 120 hotel rooms, and 1,200 residential units.

            “Festival Street, in particular, is an amazing space where true landscape architecture was applied to an urban streetscape,” Vogrin continued. “The streetscape and corner park are still in design development, but it is anticipated to have a small performance stage and a kiosk that may contain trail maps and serve as a trailhead to the Nashville Greenway system.”

Capitol View

            Kiser+Vogrin Design continues to play a major role in Middle Tennessee’s unprecedented growth. The firm recently expanded into music event-related design by developing the layout for Franklin’s inaugural Pilgrimage Festival. In late October, the firm’s architects will unveil the preservation plans for the historic Carter House in Franklin. KVD is also continuing to work on the 600-acre Berry Farms, a project that includes office, retail and residential connected by a pedestrian-friendly streetscape.

            “This is our fifth anniversary, and we have a lot to be excited about,” Vogrin said. “Our staff has a broad range of expertise. Our roots are in large-scale residential master planning. We also have parks and recreation experts and a growing portfolio of historic preservation.”

            Other KVD team members include Project Manager/Landscape Architect Chris Wood, Chief Financial Officer Diane King, Project Manager/ Landscape Designer Johnson Bullard, Landscape Designer Katie Rudowsky, and Landscape Designer Kennon Lorick.

            “We’re proud to be a part of the evolution of Middle Tennessee,” Vogrin noted. “Just 10 to 15 years ago, the vast majority of development was on the outskirts of Nashville.  Residents were content to commute to a sleepy downtown. Now more people are moving to the city every day. We have a dense and thriving downtown residential market and a palpable sense of energy throughout the city.”

            Founded in 2010, Kiser+Vogrin Design is a landscape architecture, urban design and land planning firm located in the Cool Springs area of Franklin, Tenn. Founders Dwight Kiser and Gary Vogrin have been successfully designing, entitling and building projects in Middle Tennessee since 1996. KVD strives to consistently provide innovative and sustainable project solutions tailored to meet the specific needs of clients in real estate development, construction, historic preservation, amusement, city government, parks and recreation, and related fields. Services include development feasibility and carrying capacity analysis, land use planning, site master planning, zoning and site entitlement, design guidelines and development books, grading and drainage concepts, landscape design, storm water solutions, and green infrastructure implementation. The firm's work spans all facets of residential, mixed use, commercial, retail, office, resort, and recreational planning and design.

            "What makes Kiser Vogrin's designs stand out is that they balance practicality and affordability to the design, yet deliver something that will stand out above the competition," said client David Wilson of Fifth Lane Real Estate in Franklin.

            To learn more about Kiser+Vogrin Design, visit www.KiserVogrin.com. You can contact a KVD representative directly at (615) 813-0862 or kvd@kiservogrin.com.

TSU Professor Dr. Harriet Kimbro-Hamilton Honors Father with 'Daddy's Scrapbook: Henry Kimbro of the Negro Baseball League'

By Chuck Whiting

MCAU Editor

          NASHVILLE, Tenn. (October 2015) -- Tennessee State University Associate Professor Harriet Kimbro-Hamilton's mother challenged her with the sacred task of preserving the memory of her father, Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame member Henry Kimbro. Shortly before her death, Cuban-born Erbia C. Mendoza-Kimbro gave Harriet an old scrapbook filled with articles, pictures and other items from Henry's career as a star in the Negro Baseball League.

            "No one in my family ever saw it with the exception of my mother," Harriet said with a smile. "When she placed it in my hand, she told me to do something with it. 'You know what to do,' she told me. The look she had on her face at that time was, 'I trust you.'"

            Harriet's efforts to honor her father started in 2003 with a challenging but successful campaign to have her father inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. Now she is about to honor his life again with release of the new book, "Daddy's Scrapbook: Henry Kimbro of the Negro Baseball League, A Daughter's Perspective." She will celebrate with family members and friends during a special exhibition, storytelling and book signing at the Robert Churchwell Museum Magnet Elementary School Library from 2-3:30 p.m. on Oct. 24 (Saturday). Admission is free.

            "It was a great joy to write this book because, through the process, I became good friends with other Negro League heroes such as Butch McCord, Jim Zapp, Shannon Jones, and Sydney Bunch, who knew and worked with my dad," Harriet added. "My siblings also contributed. The toughest part of the book was the chapter on my mom. I had a connection with her that most family members were not aware of. This book has given me such a peace with my mother's wish."

            Attendees of the school event will enjoy a special exhibition honoring players in the Negro Baseball Leagues. Several items on display were donated by Harriet, the McCord family, and others. 

            Her heartfelt family tribute honors a legendary outfielder once dubbed the "Black Ty Cobb" of the NBL. According to The New York Times, Henry played mostly with the Baltimore Elite Giants. The Negro Leagues were disbanded in the 1960s when African-American players began joining Major League Baseball. After Henry's death in 1999, Erbia gave Harriet the tattered, 60-year-old scrapbook her father had assembled during his life.

            The book includes insights on Henry's Nashville upbringing, controversial off-the-field shenanigans, baseball stardom in Latin America, marriage to Erbia, role as the father of five children, and induction into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.

 

            "My favorite story was when my father gave me a left-handed glove," noted Harriet, who wanted to show the humble side of a man who loved his wife and children. "I don't think he knew what an impact he had on a little girl's confidence, someone who loved learning how to play baseball alongside her brother. I look back and see a man ahead of his time in terms of gender equality, and I truly appreciate that."

            The professor also recounts other stories, both funny and sad, about her son's temporary disappearance at a hotel before the 1993 Baseball All-Star Game and her father's awkward courting of Erbia during visits to Cuba.

            "During their dates, he had to take her chaperones along with them and pay their tabs," Harriet laughed. "He would always smile or laugh when telling that story. He truly loved my mother."

            Harriet drew more quiet when talking emotionally about her mother, whose touching story is recounted halfway through the book. 

            "My mother was the foundation of our family," she said. "She was a very loving, caring and supportive person to her children. I can't remember anytime she wasn't there to see us participate, compete or complete an endeavor. For me, my mother was my first teacher. I was also my father's child in many ways because I inherited many of his ways both good and bad, but she made me more of a lady, too."

            Harriet also uses the book to recognize some of the individuals who helped Henry Kimbro succeed. She said her efforts to have her father posthumously inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of fame would not have been possible without the lobbying support of former Negro American League Manager Buck O'Neil, Canadian Major League Baseball star Larry Walker, former Nashville Sounds owner Larry Schmittou, and former Nashville Councilman Ronnie Greer. 

            "Daddy's Scrapbook" includes a host of pictures, including Henry's baseball days, family snapshots, and post-career activities in the latter part of his life. The last photo of Henry on Page 125 shows him waving a baseball cap at fans while being recognized at the 1993 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Baltimore. 

            "Before the game began, 24 surviving Negro League Baseball players were paraded onto the field wearing replicas of their team uniforms," Harriet remembered. "It was blistering that day, and I worried about the effects of the heat on those guys. As each player was introduced, a giant picture of them was shown on the scoreboard while the announcer described their accomplishments as a player. When it was my father's time, he stood up straight with a huge grin and tilted his Baltimore Elite Giants hat to the crowd. The crowd, I felt, gave him the loudest response because he had played for Baltimore, and he relished this, his finest hour."

            During her athletic career, Hamilton served as head coach in various sports and athletic director of Fisk University. The author also chaired the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Committee and served on the ABA-USA Committee that selected the 1984 USA Olympic Gold Medal Women's Basketball Team. She has received awards from the Women's Sports Foundation; the National Association of Girls and Women in Sports (the Dr. Nell C. Jackson Award); and the Temple University League for Entrepreneurial Women (Hall of Fame inductee). 

            "Daddy's Scrapbook", which retails for $14.95, is available at Amazon.com and other major online retailers. For more information about the book, call (615) 963-5581 or send an e-mail inquiry to harrioo@hotmail.com.

 

Country Artist Scott Coner Releases Music Video Cover of Wadsworth Mansion's 1971 Rock Hit 'Sweet Mary'

            NASHVILLE, Tenn. (October 2015) – Country/Americana artist Scott Coner is honoring the late singer/songwriter/musician Steve Jablecki by releasing a music video cover of Wadsworth Mansion's 1971 rock hit "Sweet Mary".

            The simple, catchy, hook-oriented tune was released on You Tube and Facebook on Oct. 6. A "Sweet Mary" single will be released at iTunes and other online retailers later this month. Coner, who has worked with legendary artists such as T. Graham Brown, Tanya Tucker and Charlie Daniels, was joined in this studio this time by Christopher Cross's background vocalist Marcia Ramirez.

            "I discovered 'Sweet Mary' in a stack of 45rpm records as a young kid in Nancy, Ky.," said Scott, who plans to release a new EP in early 2016. "My dad's little sister Janice had a small record player and a stack of music she had left behind after she got married. I spent a lot of time there as a kid, and 'Sweet Mary' kind of attached itself to me."

            To watch the video, visit https://youtu.be/YTEesJ2amtA .

Scott Coner (Photo by Cyndi Coner)

            For Wadsworth Mansion, the original version of "Sweet Mary" was a "one-hit wonder". It quickly climbed into the top-10 on various charts, then essentially disappeared. Various misfortunes, including flooded equipment, forced the popular Providence, Rhode Island, rock band to break up in 1972. The legendary group was largely forgotten until a local TV feature story aired in 2014. Jablecki died of unknown causes in 2005.

            "The song was written about a soldier in Vietnam that got a letter from his wife or girlfriend," Scott added. "She says in the letter that she 'has a stomach full of love' and he needs to get home to his family. I understand that Steve wrote it on a piano and pitched it around New York. I have been told that he actually hitchhiked from Rhode Island to New York to do the vocal cut.

            To get approval for his video and single covers, Coner had to track down members of the Jablecki family. Sons Matt and Marc quickly endorsed the project, with Matt saying "it's something (his) dad would have been just so excited by."

Photo provided by the Steve Jablecki family.

            For the recording and video, Coner wanted a laid-back, garage band kind of feel. Joining him at Nashville's Java Jive for the daylong session on Sept. 15 were Ramirez, guitarist/background vocalist Matt Morgeson, guitarist Jake Widenhofer, bass player John Davis, and drummer/percussionist Bryan Tewell. Studio engineer Logan Schlegel co-produced.

            Scott's wife, Cyndi, shot the video during the session to create a playful, feel-good production for all ages. The video opens with Scott reminiscing in his music room at home while listening to the original 45rpm Wadsworth Mansion single. The video then fades into his upbeat studio performance. Scott says he especially enjoyed singing the "doo-wops" with Ramirez, which took him back to childhood times.

            "I came into the studio with a beat I wanted to start the song with," Scott continued. "I didn't want too much B-3 on the song because I wanted a bar chord rhythm. The original bass line was cool, so I didn't want to deviate too far from that. I felt like the original cut kind of tipped its hat to The Kinks both musically, as well as vocally. I wanted to carry the song away from that direction just a little with a warmer bottom and vocally change the dynamic with myself and Marcia doing the whole song."

            Scott says he hopes the video and single will give listeners the opportunity to experience a little of the joy and excitement he had when he discovered it on his grandparents' farm as a young boy.

            "I think the song was different from anything else I had been subjected to at that early stage of my life," he said. "I don't remember ever hearing it on the radio. I only heard it at the farm in Kentucky. Maybe that was the reason I loved it so much."

"Sweet Mary" single.

            A self-proclaimed family man, Scott Coner lives with his wife and two daughters on rural farmland near Franklin, Ind. He has recorded songs with a who's who of country legends including Tanya Tucker, T. Graham Brown, and Charlie Daniels. Scott's single "Maybe She Lied", a duet with Tucker on Reedy's Dream Records, hit number one on the United Kingdom's Hot Disk Top 40. Other songs, including "Sanibel" (a duet with Brown) and "Reedy's Dream" (with vocal and instrumental contributions from Daniels) have been heard on terrestrial and online radio stations around the world. Also an emerging author, Scott recently penned the book "Lynyrd Skynyrd: Ronnie Van Zant and Me" with Gene Odom, a survivor of the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash.

            To learn more about Scott Coner or to download his songs and videos, visit www.ScottConer.com or www.Facebook.com/ScottConerMusic, or www.YouTube.com/user/ScottConer.

Wadsworth Mansion in 1971 (Photo provided by the Steve Jablecki family).

'Tunesmithing' to Celebrate Songs and Poems on Oct. 21

     NASHVILLE -- "Tunesmithing" will celebrate songs and poems with a special show from 7-9:30 p.m. Oct. 21 (Wednesday) at WXYZ Restaurant/Bar at the Aloft Nashville Hotel, 1719 West End Ave. (near Music Row).

     Attendees will enjoy original songs and poems by poet Butterfly, poet Forest Crawford, singer-songwriter/poet Jamie Collins, singer-songwriter Gordon Ellis, songwriter/musician Mark Horwitz, singer-songwriter Linda Louise, singer-songwriter Antoinette Olesen, and singer-songwriter Bill Warrington.

Antoinette Olesen

     Admission is free. Food and beverages will be available for purchase. Publicist Chuck Whiting will emcee the show. Songwriter/audio engineer AJ Bigler will handle sound. "Tunesmithing" songwriters showcase is sponsored by Whiting Publicity & Promotions, Music City Arts Update, and Shine Time Records and Books.

     The monthly show was founded in 2003 to spotlight emerging, professional and hit songwriters, as well as artists of all kinds. The event offers mentoring, career growth and networking opportunities for artists at all levels.

     For more information about "Tunesmithing", call (615) 423-9857, write Info@Tunesmithing.com, or visit http://www.Tunesmithing.com.

Alison Brown to Celebrate Release of New Album 'The Song of the Banjo' on Oct. 7

            NASHVILLE -- With her new album, "The Song of the Banjo" (officially out Oct. 9 on Compass Records), GRAMMY Award-winning musician-composer-producer-entrepreneur Alison Brown plants another flag in her ongoing journey of sonic exploration.

            Alison Brown will perform at the City Winery on Oct. 7. Tickets, which range from $15 and $25, are available by calling (615) 324-1010. Along with her Compass Records co-founder, husband, bassist and co-producer Garry West, Brown has assembled an all-star cast for the album including Indigo Girls, Keb’ Mo’, Colin Hay, ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro, as well as some of acoustic music’s most adventurous session players, including legendary drummer Steve Gadd, fiddler Stuart Duncan, Dobro player Rob Ickes, upright bassist Todd Phillips and, on guitar and bouzouki, Irish phenom John Doyle.

            Of the 12 tracks on "The Song of the Banjo", seven are Brown originals, including the melodic, pop-flavored title piece that opens the set, as well the gravity-defying piano/banjo duet, “Musette for the Last Fret.” Then there are her trademark compositions written in Cinemascope - grandly sweeping melodies like “Long Time Gone” and the Celtic-tinged "Airish." "The Moon in Molly’s Eyes" brings in bossa nova, with lush strings by Andrea Zonn. “Stuff Happens,” written by Brown and West, turned into an accidental tribute to Gadd’s old band of studio aces, Stuff, which set the bar for ‘70s pop-funk-jazz fusion. 

            Brown’s choices for cover songs are even more surprising, from her bouncy take on Orleans’ soft-rocker “Dance With Me” to Cyndi Lauper’s hauntingly beautiful “Time After Time” to 1980’s instrumental chart-topper Chuck Mangione’s “Feel So Good,” featuring Shimabukuro’s tenor uke and the drumming of Gadd, a boyhood friend of Mangione. In Brown’s masterful hands, all three sound as if they were written for the banjo. “Time After Time” is particularly stunning. “It just lays out so beautifully on the banjo,” she says, “and I figure if it was good enough for Miles Davis, it’s good enough for me.” Brown’s unique cover versions work two very different kinds of magic, revitalizing these rock and pop classics while stripping away stereotypes of what a banjo can or can’t do. “Familiar music allows folks to understand an instrument that they may not be overly familiar with. The banjo is complex, with melodic ideas normally surrounded by rapid fire arpeggiated chords, but when you play a familiar tune it allows the audience to more clearly hear the voice of the instrument, and to understand how the playing style is integrated into, and around, the melody.”

          Brown and West keep those surprises coming, as Colin Hay wryly sings Dionne Warwick’s 1970 Bacharach/David hit, “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again” accompanied by Brown on her custom-built wooden banjola. Keb’ Mo’s Americana-soul version of Marvin Gaye’s seminal “What’s Going On” is another unexpected pleasure. The bonus track, recorded after the album was finished and rush-released as a free-standing single, will be available on the CD’s Deluxe Edition. Along with Keb’s warm vocals, the song features instrumental sparks between Duncan and Brown, as well as an explosive piano solo by Joe Davidian. But it’s Brown’s understated backup and exploratory solo on low banjo that quietly steals the show.

            For those who came of age in the ‘70s and ‘80s, Brown’s re-invention of these familiar songs makes them sound brand new. For younger listeners hearing them for the first time, her versions may well set the new standard. That’s all part of the alternative banjo universe that Alison Brown occupies so beautifully on "The Song of the Banjo:, reaching into the past as she looks to the future, creating an album for people who didn’t know how much they liked the banjo, while giving banjo fans new reasons to love the instrument.

            “It’s amazing to me how much the banjo changed in the 20th Century,” Brown says. “And here we are in the dawn of the 21st; who knows where it may go?”

For one answer to that question, look no further than The Song of the Banjo.

            To learn more about the CD and Brown's new CD, visit http://www.CompassRecords.com.

'Fourth Annual Gospel Brunch' Brings Joy of the Lord to Americana Music Fest

(Editor's Note: City Winery hosted the "Fourth Annual Gospel Brunch" on Sept. 20 to help wrap up the Americana Music Fest. Here is an overview by MCAU contributing writer Wil Comstock.

 

By Wil Comstock

MCAU Contributing Writer

            I arrived with the faithful 50 minutes early, full of anticipation and an empty stomach. Chicken and waffles with piping hot coffee is on the menu. This is going to be good. The McCrary Sisters, who rocked the house at the Awards Show, are scheduled to perform. Everyone is smiling and full of the Joy of the Lord.

            Church begins with The McCrary Sisters. “Hallelujah” sweet heartfelt vocals reaching up from the well and serving up living water. Deborah wrote “Let It Go” while she was recovering from a double stoke. With Ann on vocals, we are encouraged to let it all go and let God take over. The house band, who I believe were the McCrary’s own band, were all tasteful and incredible musicians. 

            Surprise guest Bonnie Bishop treated us to “Ain’t Goin Back” with The McCrary’s on background vocals. She reminds me of Bonnie Raitt, certainly someone to watch out for.

            Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the Richer took the stage with her husband on accompanying guitar. My favorite was the autobiographical “Tell Me Now Tennessee”, the struggle of leaving home and loved ones in Texas to move to Tennessee to pursue her dream.

            Ruby Amanfu knocked me out with “Anyone Who Knows What Love Is Will Understand”...  Killer song and killer vocals, it doesn’t get better than this.

            Jonathan Tyler wrapped up the service with his modern Southern rock sound with songs like “Holy Smoke” and  “Working on a Building”.  After the latter he said,  “We play to the edges and fringes of society... The bars are our church”.

            Everyone took the stage and exchanged vocal lines on “I’ll Fly Away” as the parishioners clapped hands and joined in. There was no doubt we had been to church!

            To learn more about the Americana Music Fest, visit http://www.AmericanaMusic.org.

Americana Music Fest: Henry Diltz and Pattie Boyd Charm and Inspire During 'Behind the Lens'

By Chuck Whiting

MCAU Editor

            NASHVILLE -- Some people are meant to be famous. They have a remarkable gift (something they love to do) and make themselves available for cool things to happen -- without pushing the envelope too hard. Photographer Henry Diltz is one of those people. It's almost as if he stepped out of the shower one day into rock 'n' roll legend. Of course, it wasn't as simple as all that. He just happened to be at the right place at the right time. When opportunity knocked, he said "yes".

            Diltz shared his incredible and remarkably fun stories during a show-and-tell "Behind the Lens" audiovisual presentation on Sept. 13 at Nashville City Winery during the Americana MusicFest. Before going on, I have to say that Jed Hilly and his staff have done a terrific job putting together one of the best conferences and festivals in recent memory. The "Behind The Lens" event proves that the AMF has grown up and then some.

Henry Diltz and his famous "Morrison Hotel" photo (Photo by Chuck Whiting)

            The photographer perched on a stool to the right of a large screen, sharing fascinating stories in sync with the passing frames.

            "I'm an observer," said Diltz, looking up at a photo of a beautiful girl in high heels pumping gas. "I also was a fan of cannabis".  His down-to-earth, good-natured talk drew applause and laughter from the audience.

            There were photos of Buffalo Springfield, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, Michael Jackson, The Turtles, Jimmy Webb, Graham Nash, Blondie, George Harrison, and other superstars of the '60s and '70s.

            Diltz more or less got his start with a surprise album shoot for the Hollies. His notoriety grew when he was hired to shoot the Monkees for Tiger Beat. Other projects for the Partridge Family (David Cassidy), Linda Ronstadt (Stone Poneys), and Cream (Eric Clapton) followed. During the '70s, musicians were seeking him out for album covers, as well as hang time (as they still do). They enjoyed the company of a man who was somewhat like them. He could write and play songs, and he enjoyed smoking a little weed. He didn't force them into unnatural poses.

            All of his photos were amazing, but three stood out to me especially.

            * Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash looking so much in love during their tender romance in the late '60s. (Diltz spent a lot of time with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.)

            * An accidental shot of James Taylor leaning on a post in his early days. The shot was used as the cover for his second album, "Sweet Baby James".

            * The cover shot for the Doors' "Morrison Hotel". Diltz took the shot through a window into the lobby of a run-down hotel. But getting the photo wasn't easy. The hotel clerk ordered the band to leave when they began posing on a couch in front of the window. They obeyed but quickly returned (at Diltz's urging) after the employee left the room. The photo is one of the favorite items in his collection.

            What inspires me most about Henry Diltz is that he knew, hung out with, and made art with some of the greatest acts that ever took the rock 'n' roll stage. Yet, he's about as relaxed and charming as anyone you might meet. Don't push too hard, and let things happen naturally. Perhaps that's the answer for those of us who aspire to bless others with our artistic talents.

***

By Wil Comstock

MCAU Contributing Writer

            I couldn’t have been more excited about seeing Pattie Boyd. I was not disappointed. Model, actress, first wife of George Harrison and Eric Clapton. Sister-in-law of Mick Fleetwood and photographer extraordinaire.

            Pattie started her presentation by showing us her modeling photos.  She graced the cover of Vogue many times. Pattie explained that in those days the models did their own makeup and had to carry several outfits and wigs.  She noted, “Today they have all of that done for them, and they make an absorbent amount of money."  

Pattie Boyd talks photography at City Winery Nashville (Photo by Chuck Whiting)

            One day she went on a modeling interview. Later that day she received a call from her agent saying she got the role in the new Beatles film, "A Hard Day’s Night".  She said at the time, “But I can’t act.” How did I get that?"  Her agent said it was the interview she had gone on earlier in the day.  Pattie went to the wrong interview!   She did take the small part and met the Beatles during her train scene.  George Harrison asked her out.  On their first date, Brian Epstein accompanied them. While dating and later marrying Harrison, she continued to pursue her modeling career.  At the same time, she started taking up photography. George was a natural subject.  We saw lots of wonderful photos of George and Pattie with George. 

            While the Beatles were in Australia, Pattie and her sister Jenny, also a model, went to a Transcendental Meditation meeting  in London. She told George and the other Beatles about her experience when they returned. Paul learned that the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi was going to be in London in two weeks. The Maharishi invited the Beatles to visit him in the foothills of the Himalayas. Pattie documented this time in India with stunning photos of the Beatles, their wives, and Donovan.  It was during this time that most of the "White Album" was written. Pattie explained that this was the last time she saw George totally relaxed and at peace.  

            Eric Clapton and George became friends and toured with Delaney and Bonnie. We were treated to lots of great photos of Eric and George. Around this time, George wrote "Something" for Pattie. Eric had a crush on Pattie, who at the time rebuffed his advances. Later, when she and Harrison divorced, she starting dating and later married Clapton, who wrote "Layla" and "Wonderful Tonight" for her.   Eventually, Eric and Pattie divorced, but she continued to take photos for magazines and later have exhibitions of her photography shown around the world.

            For more information about the Americana Music Festival, visit www.AmericanaMusic.org.

Americana Music Awards: Seeing Buffy Sainte-Marie Perform on Stage for the First Time

By Wil Comstock

MCAU Contributing Writer

            It’s not like me to get places early, yet here I am in my seat and observing.  What could be more Americana than the Ryman Auditorium? The stage is set for the Americana Music Awards. Soon Buddy Miller will be leading the all-star band, and Jim Lauderdale will emcee the show. Tonight I am biased, biased and not ashamed. The girl I have listened to since eighth grade, and that was a long time ago, will accept a lifetime achievement award.  I cannot wait to see her. I had tickets to see her in Philly in the spring, but she canceled. This will be my first time... first times are always unforgettable.  Tonight I will breath a little of the same air as Buffy Sainte-Marie. 

Buffy Sainte Marie speaks at Middle Tennessee State University (Photo by Chuck Whiting)

            Robert Randolph kicked, and I do mean kicked off the show with his red steel guitar. He was soon joined by The McCrary Sisters and The Fairfield Four with a hair-raising performance of “Rock My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham”. They brought the house down!

            Highlights of the award show for me were seeing Don Henley graciously accept the Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award.  We were all pleased to hear a cut from his new album, Cass County “Pray for Rain”.  Acts that were new to me were Shakey Graves singing “Dearly Departed”. This guy has a new fan in me.  Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate Drops) and Hubby Jenkins gave unforgettable performance mixing roots, blues and operatic styles. I had never heard anything quite like this before. If I had to pick a new favorite, it would be The Lone Bellow. This trio with accompanying horns and strings reminded me of the classic first time performance Ricky Martin gave on the Grammys years ago.  They were that good.

            Keb Mo walked onstage with his guitar slung over his shoulder and told us this would have been BB King’s 90^th birthday. He and Lucille, BB’s guitar, gave a tribute to the last of the great Delta blues men... an incredible tribute and performance.

            Blacklisted by the Johnson and Nixon administrations and here tonight for the Lifetime “Spirit of Americana Free Speech Award”, I rise to my feet as Buffy Sainte-Marie takes the stage.  She explained that her blacklisting was not because of her protest songs but because she was outspoken about the Vietnam War and the outrageous treatment of Native Americans by a government that was still plotting to take their land. Everyone left the stage as she stood alone and performed “Universal Soldier”. I was in tears.

Wil Comstock with Buffy Sainte-Marie (Photo by Chuck Whiting)

***

            From MCAU Editor Chuck Whiting: Buffy Sainte-Marie visited Middle Tennessee State University the following afternoon to speak to students in the College of Entertainment and Media. Here are a few highlights:

            * Write "dumb" (simple) to make your songs understandable to everyone.

            * "Play, play, play... Never turn down a gig."

            * Some students gasped when the youthful Buffy told her audience she is 74 years old. "Age doesn't matter," she told them. "For me, every day is better."

            * Always copyright your work. Buffy lost the publishing for her classic song "Universal Soldier" when she accepted a $1 publishing offer on a napkin by an unscrupulous shark. She later bought the publishing back for $25,000.

            * Despite her success, very few Americans know who Buffy Sainte-Marie is (which makes it easier for her to roam freely in the United States without being recognized).

          To learn more about the Americana Music Festival, visit www.AmericanaMusic.org. Visit Buffy Sainte-Marie's website at www.buffysainte-marie.com. 

Americana Music Festival: Outstanding Music That Cannot Be Pigeonholed

By Wil Comstock

MCAU Contributing Writer

            NASHVILLE -- Excitement builds as the early arriving crowd sips wine and munches on snacks waiting for the first big night of the Americana Music Fest.  Long beards, salt and pepper hair, T shirts, and plaids dot the crowd...  All here to celebrate the music that cannot be pigeonholed by the radio programmers.   JD and the Straight Shot have left a copy of their new CD at each of the place settings.  I make a mental note to give them a good review.  : )     

            JD and the Straight Shot kick off the show by telling us they will play through the entire CD they have given us.  “Empty” draws me in with its sweet harmonies and delta blues feel.  I hear a New York accent as JD speaks between songs.  He is flanked by a suburb violinist on stage left and two acoustic guitars on the right, one of which is his son.  All four harmonize.  Behind them the steady and solid sounds of the upright bass player drives the band on.  We are treated to the lighthearted “Glide” and the wonderful Celtic and title cut “Ballyhoo”, my favorite.  “Here He Comes”, a tribute to Johnny Cash, and the sweet “I’ll See You Again” close the set. I have to admit I would give them a good review even if they didn’t give us a CD.  What a pleasant surprise to discover this band.

JD and the Straight Shot (Photo by Chuck Whiting)

            Multi-platinum artist and new author Jewel begins her set with an a cappella version of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow”, starting with the seldom-heard introduction.  Wrapping her voice around the lyrics milking the song to soaring heights and gentle nuances. Jewel, wearing short jean cut-offs, white halter-vest top, and a black, lightweight fringe jacket, looking much the same as she did 20 years ago.  She introduced her second song as a sort of love song, which took 20 years to write.  Sounds like the title is “You are Here”, but investigation turns up nothing.   Jewel tells us she and her then husband were camping in the California desert with no radio reception when they started to see “God Bless America” signs.  When they reached civilization, she heard on the radio about the towers falling. The DJ dedicated her song “Hands” to the victims.  A moment she will never forget... a rendition the audience will not forget. Telling us her background: Raised in Alaska on a commune; Mother left when she was eight; Won a scholarship to attend high school in Michigan; Her trip to Mexico where she started to write “Who Will Save Your Soul”.  Closing with her first hit, we were left with no doubt why Jewel is a part of  Americana. 

Jewell (Photo by Chuck Whiting)

            Americana icon (songwriter for the some of the Eagles' biggest hits, sometime Eagle himself, actor, and singer) JD Souther entered the stage looking trim, in a grey suit with an open-collar, light grey shirt.  The crowd gives an ovation before he opens his mouth.  JD on guitar accompanied by a sax, upright bass, piano, and rhythm box.  We soon find what excellent players they are. JD opens with the jazz-tinged “Something in the Dark”,  the first release from his new album 'Tenderness'.  We sit mesmerized as he plays “I’ll Be Here at Closing Time”, "New Kid in Town”, and another cut from his new album, “Dance Real Slow”.  JD tells us that his father, who was in a big band, used to play him the next song when he was young.  While playing in San Francisco 20 years ago, JD heard Tony Bennett sing it at the Fairmont Hotel -- a song that now takes on new meaning, “Saving All My Love For You”.  I just shook my head in disbelief knowing this was the best show of the week.   The hits keep coming with “”Prisoner In Disguise”, “Heartache Tonight”, and “Only Lonely”. The audience claps and yells their approval after each song.  Closing, JD says, “We have one more song... this is Americana right? " and leases us with “Oh Lonesome Me”. I slowly emerge from my trance!

JD Souther (Photo by Chuck Whiting)

            My friends are tired and leave, but I decide to stay for a couple of songs from the next act Donnie Fritts and John Paul White (a former member of the Civil Wars).  John Paul says he was asked to put together some music for the premier of the film "Muscle Shoals".  He called Donny, to whom he had never met, to ask him to play.  Donny wasn’t a huge fan of the movie (since he and other songwriters were left out), but he did consent to play. This was the beginning of Donny and John Paul’s friendship.  John Paul was blown away by his songs and eventually produced Donny’s upcoming album. They started out with “Errol Flynn”. These guys sound like Levon Helm and the Band. I love them! John Paul took lead vocals on Dusty Springfield’s “Breakfast in Bed”,  a song of Donnie ‘s she recorded for the "Muscle Shoals" sessions. The songs kept getting better with “We Had It All”, recorded by Dobie Grey, Ray Charles, Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan.  They closed the set with the fun number “Down in Tuscaloosa in 1962, Roll Tide”.  I sure am glad I stayed to hear these guys.

          To learn more about the Americana Music Fest, visit www.AmericanaMusic.org.