The East Nashvillian 6.5 May-June 2016 by The East Nashvillian

Artist in Profile: SARA LEDERACH + KATIE WOLF | Know Your Neighbor: KATY MCWHIRTER

MAY | JUNE VOL.VI ISSUE 5

Wild Feathers in the Wind An American band chases the dream

Raising the Bar Development doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to be a dirty word

How Does Your Garden Grow? Lessons in enlightenment through gardening

Faith In Music The Rev. Keith Coes spreads the gospel of rock & roll in Music City

Venus In Exile The emancipation of Elizabeth Cook

PASSIONATE PROFESSIONAL

Student-Focused Curriculum

Students are at the center of every decision.

COMMITTED TO FAMILY VALUES

Educator Advocacy Educators feel supported, conﬁdent and professionally developed to advocate for students.

Parent Peace of Mind

Parents always have a voice in their student’s education.

EXPERIENCED EDUCATOR

System-Wide Collaboration

CIVIL SERVANT

Collaborations between schools and stakeholders are regularly developed and supported.

VOTE

ELECT

Election Day

Christiane Buggs

August 4

SCHOOL BOARD DISTRICT 5

• Former MNPS math teacher • M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction • BS. in Physics Tennessee State University

• M.Ed. in Urban Education Vanderbilt University

• MLK Magnet High School graduate • YMCA Black Achievers board member • Basketball, cheerleading, and track coach

Paid for by the campaign to elect Christiane Buggs. Treasurer: Chrystal Love Cunningham

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‘‘

Early Voting July 15 - 30

My experience as a classroom teacher and time spent studying education has given me a unique insight into the needs of Nashville schools. I am a leader whose goal is to always put children ﬁrst.

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May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

average joe “the hardworking”

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May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

PUBLISHER Lisa McCauley EDITOR Chuck Allen ASSOCIATE EDITOR Daryl Sanders COPY EDITOR John McBryde CALENDAR EDITOR Emma Alford CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Rebecah Boynton, Sarah Hays Coomer, Randy Fox, Holly Gleason, James Haggerty, Stacie Huckeba, Nicole Keiper, Tommy Womack CREATIVE DIRECTOR Chuck Allen DESIGN DIRECTOR Benjamin Rumble ADVERTISING DESIGN Benjamin Rumble

ILLUSTRATIONS Benjamin Rumble, Dean Tomasek

STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Stacie Huckeba

SOCIAL MEDIA Nicole Keiper Kitchen

Table Media Company Est.2010

ADVERTISING SALES Lisa McCauley lisa@theeastnashvillian.com 615.582.4187 ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Jaime Brousse, Nikkole Turner DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Christina Howell

Sun. 10a @ Margaret Maddox YMCA

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The East Nashvillian is a bimonthly magazine published by Kitchen Table Media. This publication is offered freely, limited to one per reader. The removal of more than one copy by an individual from any of our distribution points constitutes theft and will be subject to prosecution. All editorial and photographic materials contained herein are “works for hire” and are the exclusive property of Kitchen Table Media unless otherwise noted. Reprints or any other usage is a violation of copyright without the express written permission of the publisher.

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Concerts at the Schermerhorn THE Isley Brothers

PAUL ANKA

The Music of

ELTON JOHN & MORE

I N C O N C E RT

with Michael Cavanaugh & the Nashville Symphony

may 8 | Mother’s Day

may 17

may 31

SETH M ac FARLANE WITH THE NASHVILLE SYMPHONY the with

june 23

ville

Nash

hony

Symp

july 1

LEGENDS OF MUSIC SERIES

july 8

Movies at the Schermerhorn | with the nashville symphony

june 12

june 17

june 24

Symphony Under the Stars | at ascend amphitheater THE MUSIC OF

WITH THE NASHVILLE SYMPHONY

with the Nashville Symphony

may 21

june 4

september 11

615.687.6400 • NashvilleSymphony.org • 10

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

WITH SUPPORT FROM

FEATURES

COVER STORY

42 HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW?

VENUS IN EXILE

The emancipation of Elizabeth Cook

Lessons in enlightenment through gardening

By Holly Gleason

By Rebecah Boyton

52 FAITH IN MUSIC

The Rev. Keith Coes spreads the gospel of rock & roll in Music City By Randy Fox

COVER SHOT

RAISING THE BAR

THE EXODUS

Development doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to be a dirty word, as four East Siders have proven

Elizabeth Cook

Photograph by Stacie Huckeba

By Randy Fox

70 WILD FEATHERS IN THE WIND An American band chases the dream By Holly Gleason

Visit

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM for updates, news, events, and more! CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

EAST SIDE BUZZ

IN THE KNOW

17 Matters of Development By Nicole Keiper

Your Neighbor: 29 Know Katy McWhirter

COMMENTARY

By Tommy Womack

14 Editor’s Letter

in Profile: 30 Artists Sara Lederach + Katie Wolf

By Chuck Allen

24 Astute Observations

By Randy Fox

By James “Hags” Haggerty

79 East Side Calendar

27 Simple Pleasures

By Emma Alford

By Sarah Hays Coomer

PARTING SHOT

77 w.t.f.?

Stuttering Shutter

By Stacie Huckeba

By Eric England

114

112 East of Normal By Tommy Womack

Visit

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM for updates, news, events, and more!

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May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

EDITOR’S LETTER Dazzle ’em with bullshit

o the utter horror of the party establishment, it appears a narcissistic billionaire whose entire message has been equal parts misogyny, bigotry, racism, xenophobia, and empty platitudes will almost certainly be the GOP nominee. Although watching the punditry and media mavens behave like a circus contortionist while trying to wrap their brains around the rise of Donald Trump has made for some one-of-akind political theater, from here on out things get very real. I’m not interested in dancing on the grave of the GOP or gleefully throwing rocks at its existential dilemma. Our system of government is built on the tension between individual liberty and the common good. Our strength is in our ability to bend without breaking and adapt to change while staying rooted in these core principles. Without strong, educated voices advocating for each side of this duality from factually based viewpoints, we run the risk of bringing the adage “democracy is the ultimate form of tyranny” into reality. What I am interested in seeing is where the voices on both the right and the left go from here. To pronounce the GOP dead and a Trump presidency a nonstarter at this point would be a mistake, although I do believe Movement Conservatism is a dead man walking. The great bloviator shot its sacred cows with a smirk on his face while his base cheered. Meanwhile, Cryin’ Glen Beck suggested Lyin’ Ted Cruz was

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

ordained by God. Ted’s demise further supports mounting evidence that God just might be a black woman. Leave no doubt Trump will gladly put this theory to a test. What this should point out to Movement Conservatives is the fragile coalition created by Reagan has fractured, and the chickens have come home to roost, although Tennessee’s Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey’s recent endorsement of Trump suggests they might not go gentle into to that good night. Having grown up in Mississippi during the civil rights era, the post-Southern Strategy has always come off latently racist to me. I’ve never been able to square the often heard “well … I’m a fiscal conservative” with voting for a party that continually seeks to marginalize anyone that isn’t a straight WASP. It’s all by design, of course, because Nixon knew the GOP wouldn’t be able to pull in the white working class voter without demonizing “The Other.” Throw in tax cuts for the wealthy and sprinkle some Evangelical moral outrage on top and you’ve more or less got the formula they’ve used for 40-plus years, often with spectacular results. It’s a shame fear is more successful than principle at getting out the vote. And now there’s Trump. He’s done away with the dog whistles and innuendo, driving straight to heart of the base the GOP has been cultivating and lying to for decades. For the beltway operatives whose gravy train is threatened, this amounts to apostasy. Their incredulity at “how this could have happened” is cognitive dissonance at its finest. They created Frankenstein’s monster and, like Frankenstein, can’t control him.

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EAST SIDE B U Z Z FOR UP-TO -DATE INFORMATION ON EVENTS, AS WELL AS LINKS, PLEASE VISIT US AT: THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Matters of Development NEW AND NOTEWORTHY HAVE YOU GOTTEN BORED WITH national publications praising our neighborhood’s offerings on the restaurant front? Gird yourself — East Nashville’s only becoming more and more of a top stop for shopping, too, so it might get worse before it gets better. Early spring brought a bunch of new shops to the neighborhood, and it doesn’t sound like summer/fall should be too shabby on that front, either. Just as winter was wrapping up, the Porter East space that was once home to Vinnie Louise’s women’s wear moved in a masculine direction: men’s clothing boutique Jack Randall — “where basics are born and style is bred” — now calls 729 Porter home.

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The shop stocks everything from laidback jeans and T’s to dressed-up buttonups and boots, and is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday and Friday, noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. For more, check out jackrandall.com. A recent addition to the Shoppes on Fatherland: Illinois-bred Galena Garlic Company, whose gourmet spice blends, rubs, and seasonings, and ultrapremium extra virgin olive oils are now up for grabs at 1000 Fatherland St. The small chain has multiple Midwest locations, but this is the first Tennessee shop. Local shop leader Nina Marton told us that a 2013 visit quickly locked in a draw toward our neighborhood. “I noticed the sense of community in East Nashville immediately,” she said. “We have stores in a lot of small towns.

None of them are as big as Nashville, yet there was such a strong culture in the East Nashville neighborhood. It was something that I have never felt in any of the other towns that we have our businesses in.” Awwww, shucks. While yes, you will find Galena’s titular garlic on shelves (it’s grown in Illinois, though hopes are to get some Tennessee garlic in the ground down the line), the spice blends and seasonings really underline the Galena Garlic intent: to make gourmet cooking more approachable. “We want to make cooking easy,” Marton said. “No one has time to cook these days so we have the blends and seasonings ready for you to sprinkle on to meat, fish, or vegetables. No recipes needed, keeping everything super simple so people are not intimidated in the kitchen.”

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EAST SIDE BUZZ

The shop is open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more, visit Galena Garlic Nashville on Facebook at www.facebook. com/galenagarlicnashville. In mid-April, HGTV star Lex LeBlanc — cohost of the new, Nashville-based renovation show Listed Sisters — opened

the doors at her new East Nashville homestuff hub, LAVA Home Design. The space, at 1601 Riverside Drive (next to Pied Piper Eatery), serves as the home base for LeBlanc’s interior design firm of the same name and is stocked with highstyle furniture and other bits and pieces that’ll help get a home fit for prime time.

Patio now open.

“We’ll carry an eclectic mix of furniture and home decor in all different price ranges, so there will be something for everyone,” LeBlanc told us of the new shop. “It’s a place to find everything you need for your home, from sofas to dining tables, or just the finishing touches.” The new show she hosts with twin sister/ realtor Alana LeBlanc Barnett is in the middle of its first season, airing Mondays at 7 p.m. (We’ve already seen multiple East Nashville homes in this debut season, and word is we may see more, too.) For more on the shop and the sisters LeBlanc, visit lavahomedesign.com. New creative/maker space The Warren hosted its grand opening in early April at 1002 Fatherland St., Suite 201, during that month’s installment of the East Side Art Stumble. In addition to being a full-time studio for five Nashville artists (Hannah Beasley, Ava Puckett, Rebecca Green, Zie Darling, and Kayla Stark), The Warren was created to also serve as a workshop home, gallery space, pop-up-shop stop, and community events hub. For more, visit thewarrennashville.com. In mid-March, new health and wellness store Be Well Nashville hosted its grand opening celebration at the Shoppes on Fatherland (1006 Fatherland St., Suite 104). The shop stocks supplements, essential oils, herbal cleanses, and more, along with hosting regular wellness events. It’s open noon-6 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday. More at bewellnash.com. Congrats are due to the folks behind stylish East Nashville kids shop Rich Hippies, which branched out in April, opening a second space in Germantown. (The East Side location is at 725 Porter Road.) CLOSINGS AND MOVES

Nashville’s Japanese-style pub and social house twotenjack.com

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

IN MARCH, VINTAGE/CONSIGNMENT shop Hang the Moon, previously located at 1108 Gallatin, split in half, in a manner of speaking. Building damage, owner Susan Moon said, made her “have to mosey,” so Hang the Moon moved in with some like-minded neighbors. Moon’s everyday vintage stuff now lives upstairs in the Hen House at Hey Rooster General Store (1106 Gallatin Ave.); her more fancy “stage pieces” are up

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EAST SIDE BUZZ

for grabs at Pony Show (723 Porter Road). In late March, Fat Crow Press moved from The Idea Hatchery to the Art and Invention Gallery, a swap that owner Julie Sola told us would bring some fun corresponding changes. “I will be able to work with (Art and Invention owners) Bret and Meg (MacFadyen) on workshops and new events,” she said. “I will start giving

Lino carving classes and fabric printing workshops. I will still organize my annual Proto Pulp Children’s book show and my printmaker festival plus a few new events to take place in the Idea Hatchery courtyard.” Crafty bead-slingers Red Dog Beads took over the old Fat Crow space, at 1108 Woodland St., Unit D. Nest 615 Antiques & Vintage did some

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bouncing around in East Nashville — it was on Fatherland, then on Gallatin. It bounced again recently, though this time out of the neighborhood. The shop, which carries vintage and reimagined furniture and home goods, recently moved up to Madison, at 213 Brawner Ave. Artisan chocolatier Chocolate F/X also changed locations, but East Nashville hasn’t lost owner Andrea Smith’s sweettasting and sweet-looking creations. She’s just moved a few doors down, from 1006 Fatherland to 1004 Fatherland St., Suite 101. Her Fatherland District neighbors at spoil-your-pet palace Baxter Bailey & Co. made a similar short move, from 1006 Fatherland to 1002 Fatherland St., Suite 102. Eyewear/optical shop Specs Optical closed its doors at 224 S. 11th St. in late April. The shop launched back in 2003, and was formerly located in Green Hills, but came our way in 2013. Moxie Fearless Furnishings — the stylish home goods/furniture shop that called the Fatherland District home for a good minute — also shuttered in late April. Co-owner (and Emmy-winning art director) Elaine Hensley told us work’s been increasingly busy with Art Dogs Props, the film production company she and partner Scott Moore helm. “We are committed to that first,” she said. That business is based in WedgewoodHouston, and we may see pop-up shops and the like from the team over on that side of town, with our same eclectic, unexpected, modern vibe. No word yet on what’ll take over their space at 1006 Fatherland St., Suite 303.

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

12/16/15 10:37:12 PM

THE SPACE THAT ONCE HELD BELOVED Riverside Village sushi-and-more haunt Watanabe is set to see new life at long last: Dose Coffee and Tea plans to open a second location there, with nearly double the square footage of the flagship West Nashville shop. Proprietors Keith Steunebrink and Heath Henley told us the new Dose at 1400 McGavock Pike should be open by early June. And although it’ll echo its older sister’s clean, minimal design and foundation in quality coffee, we should see some special East Nashville touches.

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

EAST SIDE BUZZ

Steunebrink and Henley hope the larger kitchen will set the stage for expanded food menu offerings — including a broader from-scratch bakery haul, and according to Steunebrink, “a fairly small, but well-curated, small-plates menu” in the evenings, plus weekend brunches, for starters. That should include table service, plus a beer and wine (and potentially spirits)

program, and they aim to grow from there. For more, visit dosecoffeeandtea.com. Also this summer, we’re expecting to see the doors open at new boutique cycling studio Verticity, located in the new Farrow at Five Points development at 10th and Russell. At 1010 Russell, coleaders Lindsay Brooker and Kimberly Novosel said we’ll

be able to break a sweat via workouts and cycle-centric classes (plans were for about 30 bikes and dressing rooms with showers), and eye/buy a line of fitness apparel and accessories. Verticity should be one of several businesses setting up shop at the mixedused Farrow at Five Points, which includes 16 brownstone-style two- and three-story residences and three commercial spaces. For more, visit verticitynashville.com. More to look forward to this summer: Greko Street Food — serving “classic Greek street food, with an emphasis on the meats that make it so distinct” — is aiming to open at 704 Main. That building was most recently an office supplies place. Keep up with the restaurant’s progress at grekostreetfood.com. Speaking of looking forward: The former Lost Century vintage space at 1011 Gallatin is set to become the home of Look East Eyecare and Eyewear. Opening date is likely a little ways off, but things are moving along — last update we caught from Look East leader/Doctor of Optometry Kathleen Brasfield (in March) said designs were complete, awaiting Codes approval. Keep up with Look East’s progress at lookeastnashville.com. Andy and Chad Baker — the brothers behind The Dog Spot, Spot’s Pet Supply and other local businesses — shared news in April that a Smoothie King franchise is in the works for their property at 2803 Gallatin Pike. No word on an opening timeframe yet. At press time, Nashville real estate company Rudy Title & Escrow was looking at July for the opening of the reimagined multiuse space at 608 Shelby. That location was previously home to the Eastview Church of Christ. — Nicole Keiper

Have East Side development news to share? Reach out to nicole@theeastnashvillian.com

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Astute OBSERVATIONS James “Hags” Haggerty

Feelin’ fine on the East Side

ver the last few months, my observations have been more political than personal. It occurs to me that I did not write a New Year’s column. No reflections or resolutions for this young year. “Springtime, I feel fine.” Thank you, Joe Pisapia, for those words. … As the blossoms bloom and the grass grows, as my eyes itch and my nose runs, the familiar refrain Gesundheit! fills the air, and I am feeling grateful. I am grateful to be a musician, alive and well in East Nashville, Tenn., in the spring of 2016. Why, you ask? By the time this issue hits the stands, these events will have already occurred, but right now, as I have missed my deadline, I am in the middle of a four-week April residency at The 5 Spot with the sometimes band Hags-A-Nova. You see, I love this music, bossa nova. Artists like Antonio Carlos Jobim, Joao Gilberto, Astrud Gilberto, Frank Sinatra, and Stan Getz formed the forefront of this movement in the late 1950s and early ’60s. These songs of Brazil and Portugal are the pop songs of jazz, if you will. Their melodies sail by on a bittersweet breeze, wistful, beautiful songs of love and longing, both happy and sad at once. Sounding simple, the changes are deceptively complex and challenging, filled with lovely string arrangements. Each instrument complements the other and leaves just the right room for each voice to be heard. This big band of friends, 12 in number, called Hags-ANova has remained largely unchanged since our first gig back in 2005, and we have been playing together in various projects for an average of 20 years. The first gig was a co-bill with The Ornaments at The Family Wash. At the time, I wanted to play more upright. What better way to motivate oneself than to book a gig you are not sure you can pull off? The possible agony of defeat is a powerful motivator. But it was a success. Folks loved it. This music is romantic. In the

words of our pianist, Jen Gunderman, bossa nova makes you happy. I realized, as I was piloting Frank Sinatra Junior on a prerehearsal Miller Lite run, how lucky I am to live in a neighborhood surrounded by friends who are also brilliant, passionate musicians, always up for a challenge and excited to go for it. To be able to call on friends and say, “Hey, would you like to get up on stage and sing a song in Portuguese?” and to hear “Absolutely!” is literally music to my ears. It’s as if I turned up my stereo and opened the windows and doors as “Desafinado” played. The people who stopped by to groove are in this band. They are doing it because they love this music too. They are doing it because it’s an opportunity to create a beautiful live event, an opportunity to hang with friends and play and sing some songs that won’t be heard anywhere else for an audience that is excited to hear them. One cannot exist without the other. That is East Nashville’s musical essence, and I am proud to be a part of it. The spring and the sunshine and the music have me filled with optimism. Playing these songs for enthusiastic people and sharing a drink and a chat remind me of what I love about our neighborhood: openness. The folks at The 5 Spot called and asked, “Hey Hags, why don’t you do a residency gig?” “How about a bossa nova happy hour?” I asked. How many rock clubs in America would go for that? Not many. I love it. The thing that continually attracts me to the East Side is the creativity, the art for art’s sake, the “go for it and figure out the details later” mentality that makes great things happen. As I pop another Zyrtec and type, I remind myself that tall skinnies and entitled brats will come and go. Creativity, freedom, and the joy of community will remain and shine. Musicians will play, singers will sing, chefs will chef, shopkeepers will keep shop, crossing guards will gesture wild admonishments, and we are all in it together. Thank you, East Nashville. Nothing could be finer!

Hags is a part-time bon vivant, man-about-town, and contributor to The East Nashvillian who earns his keep as a full-time bassist extraordinaire. He can often be found haunting stages throughout the East Side and beyond; that is, when his editor isn’t cracking the whip about deadlines.

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

simple PLEASURES By Sarah Hays Coomer

Give me shelter

finished all of my meetings on a recent Thursday at 5 p.m., 30 minutes before I had to be back home for my sitter. I was heading in the back door to bury my nose in the computer for a few clandestine moments of research and writing before my son discovered my presence, but as my foot hit the last stair leading to the back door, something in my deepest, aching heart-of-hearts called out for me to stop. Half an hour stretched out before me, so instead of going inside, I turned and sat on the step directly under my feet. The sun had dipped behind the edge of the neighboring house, still bright, but not overbearing. The leaves were back in their full glory after a brief but real winter, gracing me with verdant shelter. I imagined I would find silence there, but instead I was met with a cacophony of bird sounds: steady banter, chatter overhead. I don’t really like birds. They scare the living hell of out me when they get too close. Their sharp beaks and primordial legs are just fine kept at a distance. But in this moment, on this day, I listened. And they spoke. And I wondered what they were talking about. Their conversations persisted urgently, rhythmically, and I was uncharacteristically transfixed. What were they talking about? What was so important up there? Were they scouting locations for nests? Looking for love? Grieving the loss of an egg that never hatched? As I sat, listening to them, I had a creeping sense of exactly how far removed I have become from the natural world, the hushed and thundering world that exists beyond the boundaries of my insulated home and numerous devices. I’m a city person, always have been. I love it all: sidewalks and people, morning showers and soft sheets. I don’t long to lay my head down in a sleeping bag on hard dirt at night, but there is something increasingly missing in the drumbeat of “when” and “how” and

“how-much” that populates my city-dwelling days. I dragged myself away from the birdsongs that evening and wandered back inside, thinking I still had time to “accomplish something.” But time had flown away. I was due upstairs, but my head was still in the trees. What were they talking about? The next night, in dead-stopped gridlock in the heart of downtown, I was confronted with the stark truth that my gentle, midsized city was rapidly evolving into a full-throated metropolis — which both thrilled me and broke my heart. I gazed at the sea of brake lights and realized that if that’s how it’s going to be, I need a counterbalance to the pull of urban life. I need birdsongs and clouds and leaves on trees, and if I don’t take the time to see and know those things, I will lose something of enormous value — and my son will, too. Another email, another hour spent staring at a blank screen in search of ideas, is not only fruitless, it’s heartless. It’s a vortex of pixels. Don’t get me wrong. I adore my screen time. I love connecting with friends old and new, and I value this maddening laptop that enables me to purge my thoughts. I fill it up with all kinds of inventive things when I have something to fill it with, but when I look to it, or to my phone, for inspiration, they leave me cross-eyed and lifeless. The birdsongs, on the other hand, are very much alive, full of intrigue. I’ve hugged a few trees in my day and will definitely be hugging a few more in the years to come. In fact, the bigger the city gets, the more trees I plan to embrace, sap and all. Bring on the chaos of a city in flux. Come what may, I’ve got birds in my backyard, and trees and leaves overhead, ready and willing to give me shelter from the steady hum of Wi-Fi forever worming its way through my skull. And to discover what the birds are talking about, I’ll turn to the experts. My 4-year-old and his trusty pit bull will most definitely have a theory or two on that.

Sarah Hays Coomer is an author, certified personal trainer, and nutrition and wellness coach. She kind of likes to exercise, kinda not. She runs a free wellness group in East Nashville for anyone looking to raise a glass to good health, and her book, Lightness of Body and Mind: A Radical Approach to Weight and Wellness, will be published in May 2016. You can find her strengthoutsidein.com, Instagram@strengthoutsidein, or Twitter@strengthoutside

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

KNOW your NEIGHBOR

PH O TO G R APH BY CH U CK A LL E N

t’s not every day you run across a “historian for hire.” Katy McWhirter’s one, though, and she’s currently on deadline, writing the history of the Iroquois Steeplechase.

Katy McWHIRTER

A Mississippi native, McWhirter’s passion for history was piqued as a student at Belmont University. Dissatisfied by Tommy Womack with the office work she had to find after school, she sought to, essentially, create her own job. “As it “The event is celegoes when you start brating its 75th annisomething like this, versary this year,” she you have a bunch of says. “It has a really random clients at interesting history, first, writing blog pulling in details of articles about travel steeplechasing and destinations and environmental sustainthe history of Middle ability and all sorts Tennessee. It goes of different things,” a lot farther back she explains. “Then, than the first event just as I was about in 1941. Middle to question my deTennessee was actually a really rich area cision, I got my first for horse racing — it long-term client.” goes back to Andrew What with the Jackson.” She stirs her Condo Monster coffee at Bongo East eating structure after on this early-spring structure, business morning, the interest is good right now. clear in her eyes. “It’s People want to remember. “Nashville been a very quick has gone through so turnaround. I’ve had many iterations and a month to research seen so many changand write the book. I es,“ McWhirter signed the contract on says. “Everyone is March 2, finished the interested in hislast chapter last night, torical preservation and it has to go to the and making sure printers on April 8.” McWhirter’s credits include an oral history of Music Row, stories are told and kept, so I think it’s a very exciting time to be a historian in Nashville — whether it’s individuals wanting to tell which is kept at the main branch of the Nashville Public their family story, or events like the Iroquois wanting to make sure Library downtown; and last summer, she did a project with the their history is told, [or] corporate histories; there are so many Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation. stories that people want to make sure get told right now. And so I “I did the script for a huge three-day event called Nashville think that’s going to keep me busy.” Salutes,” she recalls. “Twenty-five Medal of Honor recipients had McWhirter writes every day. The “what do you do on your day come into town, and the culminating event was a scripted awards off ” question prompts laughter. “I don’t have days off,” she says, show-type gala in which they wanted to marry Nashville history “I have pockets of time. I don’t know how to delineate between to military conflict history, to show how the city was about to continue growing and thriving while members of the military were Monday through Friday, and Saturday-Sunday. It all runs together out fighting. So I got to research Nashville for about three months for me and I wouldn’t have it any other way.” and write this script. Future plans would be more of the same, only better. “I think, “The stories that come out of Nashville are just mesmerizing,” probably in five years, I’d like to have some writers I work with and she continues. “And it makes you very appreciative for all that’s contract things out to, like education pieces, and I think I want to here, but also as a historian, very aware of how much history is focus on the history myself. I think that’s something I will always being taken away from us every day, and how many stories are want to keep close. I’ve had so many people say, ‘Oh, you should being demolished. Trying to talk about the factory that produced hire some college students, get them to do some research, have the shoes Gen. MacArthur was wearing when he accepted the them go down to the library,’ and I say, ‘No!’ I want to sit in the Japanese surrender, you now have to say, ‘Well it used to be here, dusty archives and I want to hold each piece of newspaper from but they tore it down.’ ” the 1940s. That’s the stuff that I live for.” You can keep up with Katy at thenative.me.

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Artist in Profile

SARA KATIE +

Lederach Wolf

Providing a focal point for the East Side’s art community with the monthly East Nashville Art Stumble B Y R A N DY F OX

In October 2014, artist and photographer Katie Wolf rented a small storefront in the 604 Building on Gallatin Road. Her original plans for the former barbershop were simple. “It was just going to be a studio space for me, a darkroom and a place to get away and work,” Wolf says. “But it evolved into a lot more.” A year and a half later, Gallery Luperca is the central hub of the monthly East Nashville Art Stumble that just recently celebrated its first year of connecting East Side art lovers and artists. Held the second Saturday of each month, the Stumble draws over 300 art fans to a jumble of East Nashville galleries, shops, restaurants, coffee houses, and pop-up art showings. Although the Art Stumble has quickly become a central part of Nashville’s arts scene, it was not the result of a grand plan, but rather a series of coincidences that live up to the accidental nature of its name. A native of southern Florida, Wolf moved to Nashville a decade ago and found her way into Nashville’s local art scene. But it was shortly after renting her workspace off Gallatin Road that the dominos began to fall. “I place a lot of value on community in the art scene,” she says. “It began as a workspace for me, but I wanted to do what I could for the art community on the East Side, so I started holding monthly art markets.” At one of the first art markets, Wolf met artist Sara Lederach. Lederach found her way to Nashville through a well-traveled path. “I was living in Texas and met my husband, who is a musician, and he wanted to move to Nashville,” she says. “I’d been doing art on my own — sculptural rope rugs and ceramics — without any academic background. After we moved here, I began working on a BFA at Austin Peay State University, and that’s when I met Katie. We hit it off immediately, and it wasn’t long before I had a key to the gallery.” Together Wolf and Lederach sponsored several monthly art markets. Low attendance was a persistent problem, so they soon turned to the idea →

P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y J O H N J A C K S O N

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

Sara Lederach and Katie Wolf stumbling towards ecstasy

May May | | June June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

Artist in Profile

of curating shows by artists they admired. “We decided to do our first exhibition with Michael Dickens, who was my teacher at Austin Peay at the time, and his wife, Dawn,” Lederach says. “Since we had trouble getting people out to the art markets we decided we needed some sort of event centered around our openings.” As Lederach and Wolf searched for ways to promote their first show, the idea of an East-centric art crawl emerged, but there were challenges. Not only did they need to schedule their event on a different weekend from the well-established downtown and the Wedgewood-Houston art crawls, but the East Side event needed its own personality; and geography also presented a problem. Both established art crawls featured galleries within easy walking distance, which was not the case in East Nashville. “It just made sense to do our event on a separate weekend, but convincing people to come to East Nashville and drive around was going to be a super hard sell,” Lederach says. “We included many non-gallery spaces, and we had to coerce some artists into setting up exhibits because we didn’t have enough. Then we needed a name that would make us stand out. We were brainstorming and my husband suggested calling it the Art Stumble. It was perfect. Of course, on the East Side you stumble!” In addition to the support of East Side galleries, Lederach and Wolf also found support from many people throughout the Nashville art community, and on the second Saturday of April 2015, the Stumble did anything but. “Between 200 and 300 people turned out for the first one,” Wolf says. “We were thinking if we had 20 people we’d be a success.” In the last year, new galleries have joined the monthly event, along with several multipurpose art spaces, highlighting work in a multitude of mediums. Pop-up galleries in individual artists’ homes, studios, and work spaces have become an especially notable feature, giving the Art Stumble an eclectic flavor in both the type of art and the expressions of individual artists. “There are more artists doing pop-up exhibits, which we definitely encourage,” Wolf says. “We love that organic feel of people doing a show in their garage or studio. We don’t want people to feel like they don’t have a means to show their work other than galleries. The Stumblers really enjoy that variety, especially studio visits because you feel like you’re seeing behind the scenes and everything is more authentic.” “It also gives artists a lot more leeway to do braver art,” Lederach says. “At our gallery, we have to be aware of the commercial appeal of the art we showcase in order to keep the lights on, but if you’re showing in a garage or shed, you can show whatever you’re passionate about.” With more art venues opening and more artists joining in the monthly Stumble, Lederach and Wolf are both hoping for big things for their own gallery as well as the East Nashville art scene. “We would really like to see even more venues,” Lederach says. “We’ve already met the goals we set for this year, but would like to see more. We’d also like to build a community of spaces along Gallatin Road, from 5 Points north to the Nashville Community Darkroom, that would be within walking distance, even if it was a long walk.”

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Artist in Profile

“We’d also love to expand into some type of community space,” Wolf adds. “I would love to find an old church with exhibit space in the sanctuary and studios in classrooms, a location where we could also hold other events.” Although Lederach and Wolf stumbled into a good thing at just the right time in East Nashville’s cultural development, they attribute a big part of their success to the greater Nashville art community. “People really like what we’re doing,” Wolf

says. “We’ve had a lot of support from the get-go. That’s something that I didn’t expect. I thought it would be so hard to get people to pay attention, but this month alone, we had four new collaborative art spaces that have moved into the neighborhood contact us wanting to become a part of the Stumble.” “The support we’ve received from the community of gallery owners has been incredible,” Lederach adds. “All of the gallery folks are on the same team — trying to advance the art

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

scene in Nashville. The goal may eventually be that we’re all competing for the same market, but that’s not the case now. We continue to have people who not only come to the Art Stumble, but ask what we need help with. All the art nerds have come out to support us. Nashville is a place where collaboration is important, and if we had tried to do this in another city, it would have been a lot harder. It really does feel like our success is everybody’s success.”

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Elizabeth Cook at Eastside Manor Studios Wardrobe provided by Goodbuy Girls 36

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

Ven

“M

y assistant called me,” the haute hillbilly diva/songwriter says. “She said, ‘What is going on? I heard two women in line at the Belcourt talking about how you and Todd Snider ransacked the back of the Belcourt, tore it all apart and stole $3,000.” Cook’s voice trails off. Silence dangles, equal parts disbelief, frustration, and a bit of quiet anger about gossip that has just enough eau du truth that people can’t get enough. Sighing, she offers, “The truth is: I got driven to and dropped off at my boyfriend’s house. I was long gone before it supposedly even happened.” But for Elizabeth Cook, there was trouble. Not the obvious gacked-out, street queen kinda stuff, no matter the gossip. No, the lithe woman with long wheat-colored tresses was getting smacked around by life — and the chemicals causing trouble weren’t ingested, but brain-derived. She’d buried her parents. Got a divorce. Parted ways with her manager, then agent. Went to rehab — only to find substance abuse was the least of her problems. It kept stacking up, and swirling around. The normally sunny hostess of SiriusXM’s Outlaw Country’s daily wake-up show, Elizabeth Cook’s Apron Strings, felt hurled into the brink, chewed up and tossed around like a dog toy. “During the years when people were dying, and houses were burning down, and I was in divorce court, and David Letterman was calling, AND doing shows with Anthony Bourdain, the whiplash was almost too much,” she concedes. But there’s more than just the mere what happened. There’s the issue of betrayal. What people slinging gossip never think about, much less ever bother to consider whether what they’re repeating is close to the truth. “It felt like a massacre,” Cook recounts. “It’s strange to be written about, to be riding down the road and to see my name coming up in a Google Alert that I’m engaged or I’m still married. It would just shatter me. How do you explain it? Or understand?

“These people have been around me, so loving and supportive. But to see them, they were poised on a dime to hate me and tear me down. ... [I] went from being beloved to being hated. It’s an occupational hazard, I guess, but it was sick.” She pauses, weighing her words. Then the unsinkable Elizabeth Cook does the unthinkable — she laughs and reframes her story: “But it was also a lesson in resilience.”

Gonna be a diamond, gonna make hay If you don’t like it, gonna do it anyway Gonna put on the pistols, gonna cause a scene Gonna goddamn save the queen — “Dyin’ ”

More than a lesson in resilience, it was the depth charge that shook Exodus of Venus into being. For all nine kinds of hell she went through, once Cook hit the wall, she came back far stronger, clearer, and more willing. If Hey, Y ’all was hard retro, Balls Dogpatched her throwback country to higher aesthetics, and Welder offered a grittier take on the Florida-born songstress’ roots attack, then Exodus drills straight into the churning essence of a woman buffeted by reality, hanging on by a chipped manicure, and ultimately, surrendering in the name of what next? The songs blaze with want, rage, yearning, fear, and brio. No diminutive flower, sweet and Southern though Cook may be, Exodus roars and shouts without barrier. In 11 songs, Cook takes listeners through the looking glass and down the rabbit hole of her life unraveling, more importantly reweaving it into something even finer. “I feel heavier,” she admits as a late Saturday afternoon quietly settles over her home. “Everything that was around me and could pose a problem in functioning with life — emotionally, mentally, my physical health — has been tested. It set me up straight. And it was hard.

us In Exile The Emancipation of Elizabeth Cook By Holly Gleason | Photography by Stacie Huckeba May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

“All of it is in the record. Being able to push it out — it transforms, it really does. That’s a real lesson in resilience. There are things I couldn’t re-sing.” From the foreboding, almost sinister tones that are lacerated by an ominous, murky electric guitar, “Exodus of Venus” crawls toward the listener in a way that suggests “much is going to happen.” Falling into a rocking back and forth groove, Cook’s voice emerges — haunted, steeped in life, torn satin and sweet claret wine — exhorting a gospel of surrender to flesh, love, and the overwhelming. “Won’t you come to me,” she invites, “Hand me the bottle, come on/ Ask for forgiveness while you still can pray/ And I will lay you down, no matter what your pain is/ You can fall to pieces on some other day.” “If you’re going to make shit up about me,” she says, unapologetic as a double-stripe home pregnancy test, “I’d like to have some say in it! I don’t want to leave what happened open to interpretation. “Fun’s gone, family’s gone, marriage is gone — there’s really nothing left to lose. That’s where the reckless or the brave both say, ‘Yeah, why not?’ ”

to find her way in. Though dramatic, Cook’s about being true instead of tabloid. “It was crippling. No one wanted to hear me, but over time they started pulling away layers and trying to figure it out. If you could see I had a broken leg that would’ve been easy. This? You couldn’t see it. “Part of the catastrophe was nursing people on their death bed. I was with some of these people when they took their last breath. Just because I’m able to be rationale and function, it doesn’t mean [illness is] not present. “It came down to acceptance of life on life’s terms,” she continues. “I’m fucked up, maybe chemically, but the other is a lack of understanding. Healing, working, trying to make sense of it — that was the road out.” “We were joining the Cayamo Cruise,” manager Burt Stein remembers, “and Todd (Snider) said to me, ‘I think Elizabeth’s going to need some help.’ ” Stein didn’t know what that meant. As an experienced manager who’s worked with Bonnie Raitt, Ronnie Milsap, Rodney Crowell, the Crickets, and Nanci

‘‘

he wasn’t always so focused, or flexing such moxie. When she first cut “Methadone Blues,” which debuted to tease the album on NPR in April, the scene was anything but propulsion away from the wreckage or defining a woman rising. “That song I’d been writing for four years,” she marvels. “So there I was in the studio, trying to cut it, trying to prove to everyone around me I was OK and didn’t need to go to rehab. The players all had some energy left; I ran into the next room to try and finish it up.” In the end, she caved. In part to make people stop, in part from exhaustion, and in part not knowing what else to do. Rehab, it turns out, wasn’t what was needed; but it provided the gateway to sorting out what was really going on. “It was the worst blow,” she confides softly. “They stripped me of every bit of self-worth. I’m trying to tell them, ‘Hey, I’m just a simple, small town, show business entertainer. ...’ They’re like, ‘Take your sunglasses off ! Give us your razors! What’s this?’ ” When she said “baking soda,” she received a terse, “What’s THAT for?” Her reply, “Brushing my teeth,” amused none of them; they took it, too. After the usual 12 Step dance, the break ’em down to build ’em up shuffle, a few things became clear. Drugs and alcohol weren’t the culprit. The woman who wrote the aching “Heroin Addict Sister” understands what rehab is for. She knew that wasn’t what she needed. Pressing them, they found the inconsistencies in her brain. Mental illness sounds horrible. Really, all it means is chemicals in the brain aren’t manufactured at the proper level. For Cook, all visceral detail and sensitivity, it shouldn’t be surprising. Yet, it took a stay at Detox Manor to identify. “The paranoia, the relationships,” she pauses, trying

The lesson is I’m fucked up, and love me anyway.

Griffith, he understands the mercurial reality of artists. Cook was at wits’ end with business, life, music. Snider, Stein’s client and Cook’s long-standing compadre, looks out for his friends. If he is Townes Van Zant to her Susanna Clark — one of the truest, most enduring friendships of the Heartworn Highways era — he wasn’t gonna watch her drown. Snider explains by email: “I think (Exodus) is a master story teller at a time in her life when her story is epic and truer than ever, a la The Missing Years or Car Wheels (On A Gravel Road), that album I’m still trying to make. “As she would be telling me about her life these days just hanging backstage, I was thinking to myself that when she makes this rhyme, it’s going to be Car Wheels. I mighta told her that, too, cuz she was stuck for a minute. “I was never worried about Shug,” he continues. “She’s like the Leather Tuscadero of folk. ... If you want to knock that bitch down, you better bring a lunch.”

s the dust settled, the songs started to come. Not a torrent, but in a flow. “I’m slow and getting slower,” she offers. “I’m really taking my time, this time. There were nine versions of ‘Methadone Blues.’ I’ve never done that before. But I love that entrenchment and dedication, I really do.” May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

Part of it is eschewing her shamelessness and quippy humor. “I didn’t want anything clever,” she explains. “I wasn’t gonna be funny. I love to laugh. I love humor and being lighthearted. But that’s not where I’ve been. “There’s not been a lot to laugh about in recent years. Every song is about compassion — either requiring it, or exhibiting it — for myself, as much as anything, and from a place of experience.” Seven years since her last full album and four since the Gospel Plow EP, that time wasn’t spent on tension and contretemps. Living in many ways is writing; the woman who’s appeared on various compilations, collaborated on the East Nashville Tonight mini-movie, and was 2014’s Ameripolitan Music Awards Outlaw Female knows that. “Sometimes I don’t always have my pen on paper when I’m writing,” Cook says. “I’m not ready to force out 12 songs just because. I’m not going to make an album if they’re not ready. “When I had a publishing deal on Music Row, everybody’d be there at 10 a.m., standing around the coffee pot, going, ‘Martina needs a power ballad.’ Then you’d go in a room with two people to try to write. It made me sick to my stomach — and I’m terrible at it. You learn what you can’t do that way.”

Shall we die today? Laissez bon temps rouler I’ll slide off in the river Underneath the levy, we are dead already I’m surprised to see you, this deep in the bayou

— “Evacuation”

“The lesson is I’m fucked up, and love me anyway,” Cook says, vintage Ronnie Milsap T-shirt throwing light on how far back her kind of country runs. “I’m learning to apply a level of sophistication to my writing. I can go back through layers, and see how much songs can mean.” “Evacuation,” a brooding song that sneaks up, takes the metaphor of New Orleans’ spirit and jubilant fatalism into a dark room with a veiled mirror that reflects the once ruins of her own life. If small details conjured larger scenes and emotions in her writing, Exodus shows a leaner, more evocative voice emerging. Cook, who’s boasted The Whites and the Carolee Singers, Bill Anderson, and Dwight Yoakam on her records, has a strong, hard country grounding. She’s not a retrosexual looking to harvest the past, nor is she trying to make a claim about what she is. Still there’s no getting away from history. Born to a scrappy pair of folks solidly gripping the bottom rung, Cook was a fated child long before the delivering doctor slapped her bottom. Her father was 48, a sometimes country singer gadabout who sold ’shine, did time, and couldn’t make ends meet. Her mother was 42 CONTINUED ON PAGE 95

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How Does Your

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

Garden Grow? LESSONS IN ENLIGHTENMENT THROUGH GARDENING

By Rebecah Boyton Photography by Kelli Dirks

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

I really feel that tomatoes love me, and that’s what I can grow. I don’t try to mess with anything I don’t do well with. I know what I know, and I know tomatoes. — Tracy Herron

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2 for 1

mimosas

“I really feel that tomatoes love me, and that’s what I can grow. I don’t try to mess with anything I don’t do well with. I know what I know, and I know tomatoes.” About five years ago, she began selling her plants at the East Nashville Farmers Market, and after a couple years decided to set up shop in her own yard. “After a while, I felt like I just wanted to sell them out of my house. I set out a tent, put it on the East Nashville listserv, and every year it’s a success. I have so many return customers, especially men buying for Mother’s Day.” Every year, Herron sets about 200 tomato plants in her garden, and struggles to keep up with their prolific productions. “I’ll have thousands and thousands of tomatoes covering my kitchen in the summer, so I can what I can and give a lot away to friends.” Though Herron isn’t interested in straying too far from her tomato garden, she does add hot peppers so she can make the Tomato Queen’s famous hot sauce. “I don’t have an official name for my hot sauce, but it’s incredible,” she says. “I add roasted mangoes and peaches with chipotle pepper. I’ve mastered it, but I don’t want to mass produce it.” When asked what Herron is looking forward to the most this year, like most tomato growers, she hopes for a better season than last year. “The weather last year was very rough — the plants bloomed and then it got really hot and dry, so the flowers died and never flowered again,” she says. “So I’m hoping for better weather. Which brings me to another point. If there is anything my tomato garden teaches me every year, it’s patience. You have very little control on how it will turn out. No matter how much fertilizer you apply, soil testing you do, Mother Earth is really the only one in control.” Herron closes by shedding some light on how her title of Tomato Queen came to be. “When people started calling me the Tomato Lady and the Tomato Queen, I took it and ran with it,” she explains. “My husband is a musician, my ex-husband is a musician, and I wanted something for me, something that was mine. I’ll say it again: Tomatoes just love me. And in turn, I love them.”

n a gilded age mansion on what was once a 150-acre farm, the Tomato Queen of East Nashville lives with her 800 baby tomato plants. “I grow an average of 1,000 heirloom tomato plants each year, with an average of 75 different varieties,” admits Tracy Herron, who has been selling her plants in East Nashville for about five years. “This year I’m only growing 800 plants, though. I’m going to be doing some traveling so I told myself I might just share with friends instead of try and sell any.” Herron began her tomato rein about nine years ago when she and husband Patton James moved into the old Oakland Farms farmhouse off Rosebank Avenue. From the beginning, Herron claimed that tomatoes simply loved her, and that the soil around her home was excellent for tomato growing. “This was once the farmhouse for a working 150acre farm built in the late 1920s,” Herron says. “It was called Oakland Farms. So the soil is very rich. Plus, we’re pretty close to the river.” After picking up her tomato habit during the first year she lived in the old Oakland Farms house, Herron began to try her hand at different varieties — the whites, the purples, the bicolors, the cherries. During this time of trial and error, she realized how much she felt an affection for a particular flaming yellow bicolor. “The Hillbilly Flame is by far my favorite heirloom tomato,” she says. “It’s beautiful and delicious, and it never fails. Everyone else likes the Cherokee Purple, but I love the Hillbilly Flame. Plus, I love the name.” As a child, Herron would take trips with her dad to her grandfather’s garden and watch him harvest fresh watermelons and cantaloupes. It left a mark on her and influenced her to become a gardener herself. “I still picture that garden,” she says. “To me, gardening represents respect for Mother Earth. It is such a beautiful thing to watch a tiny thing grow into a flower, a tree, or an actual plant that will feed or clothe us. It’s spiritual for me to have my hands in the dirt.” Herron isn’t your typical gardener; she knows what she can grow and she grows it well, and is not interested in adding anything else to her repertoire.

Tomato Queen

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The advantage of my need for organization allows me to get the most out of my small garden. The disadvantage is that sometimes it takes a failure to make me change my ways. — Scot Lyle

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Gentleman Gardener

hen he’s not lending his talents to major projects like the Music City Center or the Country Music Hall of Fame, mechanical engineer Scot Lyle can typically be found in either one of two capacities — trying his hand at a new recipe in his kitchen, or nurturing the crops in his backyard garden. “I’m out of town managing projects in other cities almost half my week,” he says. “When I’m home, I want to spend my time doing the things I enjoy.” For Lyle, doing what he enjoys almost always involves food. Whether he’s starting flats of vegetable seeds beside his brightly lit kitchen window or preserving his summer garden bounty in colorful jars of jellies, he has an unmistakable love and talent for cooking and agriculture. Yet along with his passions comes his propensity for order. “I don’t like things that I perceive as out of place,” he says. “I like organization. It can be a blessing and a curse.” This proclivity can be found in most every space Lyle has created for himself — the simple and open design of his remodeled Victorian, his impeccably clean Nissan Cube. But nothing reflects Lyle’s personality like his pristinely kept garden. “My gardening style can best be described as analytical control, or anal, to be frank,” he says. “As a mechanical engineer, I analyze every aspect of my life. It’s deeply engrained into my personality.” And like any good engineer, Lyle designed his backyard plot to resemble a perfect Cartesian grid. The tetrad of 8-foot by 8-foot raised cedar beds form a coordinate plane of detached quadrants, which allows him to plot plants like points along an x and y axis. It’s a technique that allows him to rotate crops easily, minimize spacing, and maximize his limited space. “The advantage of my need for organization allows me to get the most out of my small garden,” Lyle explains. “The disadvantage is that sometimes it takes a failure to make me change my ways. And I have had many failures in the garden.” To lessen his alleged failures, Lyle carries maps and notebooks with him into his garden to record his journey. He jots down notes in leather-bound journals and methodically records his successes and hiccups every year. He is not a by-theseat-of-his-chinos kind of gardener. Lyle is thoughtful, intentional, and a skilled, knowledgeable grower.

“I love growing herbs like basil, tarragon, and lavender,” he says. “And peppers — they’re so prolific, especially here in the South. I dry them and make my own hot pepper flakes, hot pepper grind, and chili oil. They’re a very beautiful plant.” In many ways, he is a paradoxically unique individual. His Southern drawl lays thick as he describes his sixth visit to France, and his technicolor tattoos slip from beneath the cuffs of his pressed oxford shirts. But as a gardener, Lyle is most endearing when his conversation swings from topics like mapping and graphs to the most sensual poetic prose about his passion for garden plants. He describes the curves of Turkish eggplants and the aromas of summer tomato vines he experienced as a child. He can talk about the color of a simple golden beet as if he were describing an oil painting. He remembers the first time he enjoyed a Parisian radish with butter on a simple baguette. The smells and colors of his garden seduce him, and he recalls his first memories in the garden. “Gardening to me reminds me of my paternal grandmother and my maternal great-grandmother working in the garden when I was a very young child,” Lyle says. “Memories of canning parties with the neighbors. Hands purple from shelling peas — a chore I hated then and still do 40-plus years later. Gardening holds a very special memory of my maternal great-grandmother. She was at her most vibrant then.” When asked what his favorite pepper is, he answers the Thai chili. His favorite root vegetable is the golden beet (and can eat them at every meal, he admits). But when asked what is his favorite tomato, he hesitates as if suffering from an inner emotional struggle. “I do like the yellow pear which is a cherry type of tomato,” Lyle says. “I also love an orange strawberry which is a beefsteak tomato and is beautifully colored. When it’s ripe, it’s like cutting into summer in 1970 when I was a kid. The scent is perfect.” When asked how gardening makes him feel, Lyle’s response is humble and gentlemanly. “I’m a very untalented person,” he says. “But when I see something that I’ve grown in the garden … I sense that it’s what a craftsperson must feel like when they create something. It gives me a nice sense of satisfaction to see something that I’ve nurtured and created with my own hands.”

May 18

SILVERSUN PICKUPS AND FOALS with Joywave

May 23 & 24

DYLAN FEST

BENEFITING THISTLE FARMS with Boz Scaggs, Moon Taxi & many more

June 25

THE WILD FEATHERS with Jamestown Revival

July 2

NOEL GALLAGHER’S HIGH FLYING BIRDS

July 17

MELISSA ETHERIDGE

August 6

CASE/LANG/VEIRS NEKO CASE/K.D. LANG/LAURA VEIRS with Andy Shauf

August 20

BILL MAHER

September 30 and October 1

JOHN PRINE

with Amanda Shires (Sep 30) and Holly Williams (Oct 1)

October 8

KANSAS

The Leftoverture Tour

October 22

TRAILER PARK BOYS

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

My gardening style can be described as a wing and prayer. Put it out there and hope it grows. Pretty much how people have farmed throughout the ages. — Jami Anderson

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THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

THE

“O

Homesteaders

ur backyard looks like a thirdworld country,” Jami Anderson says as she covers her eyes in feigned shame. She’s referring to the smattering of culinary and medicinal herbs, flowers, food crops, and free-roaming hens that cohabitate behind her home. And though it might seem discordant and unkempt to an uptight suburbanite, to a romantic East Nashvillian or anyone with a touch of horticultural know-how, it is a harmonious, intentional space forged by a skilled, seasoned duo. Jami Anderson and Russell Kirchner’s home is nothing short of a Cleveland Park Secret Garden. When approaching the couple’s front gate on Stainback Avenue, visitors are immediately greeted by a mixed bag of ornamental plants. Numerous rainforest succulents and dessert cacti like African milk plant and aloe cover the bungalow’s front porch. Bearded purple irises and native spiderwort lie at the base of the steps, as a kiwi vine meets you at the entrance to the garden. It is a space that the couple began to cultivate nine years ago when they first bought the property. “We were at the lawn and garden show that year, and there was a Davidson County Master Gardener booth,” Anderson says. “We were curious, signed up, completed the 14-week course, and gained more knowledge than we ever thought we would. It was incredibly interesting.” The course was a jumping-off platform for the duo. They learned from specialists skilled in areas such as soil composition, fruit trees, organic practices, beneficial insects, and companion planting, and the couple left as certified master gardeners. They moved into their home, and began building their urban garden the first year. “Our backyard was nothing but grass and a 1980s satellite dish back then. So I planted a trailing moonflower vine around it and used it as a trellis,” Kirchner recalls. “I would guerilla seed the alley,” Anderson says, “and we basically started battling the grass from day one. There’s no more grass anymore — just herbs and other plants.” The couple began their organic gardening journey through a series of trial-and-error processes, and would eventually launch their business, Slocal, at the East Nashville Farmers Market. This year marks their fifth year as dedicated vendors. “Before we joined the East Nashville market as vendors, we were shoppers, and

noticed that no one was selling herbs. We had more herbs than we knew what to do with at home, so we decided to create Slocal and essentially fill a void,” Kirchner says. “We have always been huge supporters of the East Nashville Farmers Market, and we also love that it is a Delvin market. We love Delvin Farms — their produce is top notch. So it’s easy to promote a market when you have them behind it. We want them to do well.” At the market, Slocal sells anything and everything from luxurious bundles of fresh organic herbs, to potted vegetable plants, and icy cold cups of handmade teas and Jun (a kombucha tea fermented with honey instead of sugar). As a graphic designer, Anderson loves to create recipes with catchy names, and has had the most success with her popular Arnold Balmer — a lemony tea blended with her homegrown lemon balm. “I like to grow varieties that are difficult to find, such as salsify, sorrel, skullcap, lemongrass, holy basil, and hyssop,” she says. There’s also cat mint that lies at the base of a sprawling rose in full bloom. Lemon balm and mint spill out of raised wooden beds. A stand of cilantro spreads without boundaries, and clumps of feathery yarrow are found in a random rhythm. Last year, Anderson and Kirchner welcomed a new addition to their family. “My greatest day in the garden with baby Harper was watching her taste all the herbs. She really liked mint. She really liked lemon balm. Parsley was just OK,” Anderson says. “I’m really looking forward to working with Harper in the garden as she gets a little older,” Kirchner adds. When asked to describe their growing styles, the two answer differently. “I think my creativity in the garden comes from being a prepper,” Kirchner says with a half-kidding smirk (a “prepper” being someone who prepares for disasters). “A lot of things can be taken from you — your money, your house, your farm, but nobody can take your know-how. That’s the good thing about knowing how to grow your own food.” “My gardening style can be described as a wing and prayer,” Anderson adds. “Put it out there and hope it grows. Pretty much how people have farmed throughout the ages. It’s so dependent on weather, animals, circumstance.”

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I enjoy gardening like my grandmother. It’s my way of connecting to Mother Earth and giving back. It’s my meditation time. — Nicole Mattingly 50

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

THE

Urban Farmers

icole Mattingly emerges from her half-acre urban farm to greet guests beneath a tulip poplar that she planted in the third grade. She is a warm, welcoming soul as she pulls an icy beer from her cooler and hands it over to be enjoyed during the farm tour at her home. “This is actually the house I grew up in,” she says. “My grandmother used to have her garden here, and I began to bring it back to life a little every year beginning about 10 years ago. I enjoy gardening like my grandmother. It’s my way of connecting to Mother Earth and giving back. It’s my meditation time.” The home is on Greenwood Avenue where Mattingly’s parents still reside, but she and husband Nick live not too far away, allowing her to bike to the farm every day. She swoops a soil-covered hand across her rows of spring crops and begins to describe what’s in store for their business, Double N Urban Farm and Apothecary, this year. “Here are beds for beets, radishes, carrots, and onions,” Mattingly says. “We’ll have 10 varieties of lettuce. I’ve planted a 100-foot row of potatoes over there. Here are more than 1,000 plants that we’re hardening off. These will either go in the ground or we’ll sell them at our upcoming plant sale.” She sips her beer, smiles, and exudes a genuine fulfillment. The Mattingly’s farm is impressive, and her hard work shows in abundance. The farm is neat, plants are healthy, and measures have been taken to keep varmints and deer at bay. Though Nick helps out with projects like building fences, greenhouses, and tilling, he has his own business — Double N Lawn Care — which means most of the farm responsibilities are managed by Nicole herself. Yet nothing seems to deter her enthusiasm as she begins to run through a list of her latest projects that excite her the most. “We’re establishing a new asparagus bed at the moment, lots of new varieties of tomatoes, and — oh! Bees! We’re getting bees this week! Mainly for pollination, but eventually for infused honeys, as well, which I am really looking forward to.” This year marks Double N Urban Farm and Apothecary’s third season to host a CSA, with a diverse selection of food to choose from. “For spring, we should have mizuna, mustard greens, arugula, kale, collards, spring onions,

peas, and radishes,” she says. “Then we’ll start incorporating beets, carrots, strawberries, garlic scapes, tomatoes, and several varieties of squash, eggplant, sweet and hot peppers, bush and pole beans, and okra.” The first year, the farm had six members in their CSA. The next, it grew to nine, and this year Mattingly has 12 CSA members to feed — demonstrating a steady growth and rising demand. “It can be challenging to feed 12 families from a half-acre farm in addition to your own,” she admits. “We also will be donating a CSA to a family in need every week.” To ensure maximum yields, Mattingly adopts urban bio-intensive practices, squeezing in as much sustainability within her row crops as she can. She composts heavily and shields the soil with a dense planting method that promotes a healthy amount of water retention. In addition to her vegetable growing skills, Mattingly is a seasoned herb grower and herbalist, with more than 40 medicinal herbs in cultivation. “I prefer to call myself a folk herbalist,” she says. “It’s a lot of botany and a lot of folklore, which is fun. It’s a nice marriage of those two.” Her handmade apothecary products have been growing in popularity, and can be found at the East Nashville Farmers Market, Gardens Of Babylon, Old Made Good, and more. “We offer our normal skincare line, plus aromatherapy rollers, tinctures, balms, and salves,” she says. “Everything is infused with our homegrown herbs for four weeks.” When asked what she is most excited about for the upcoming growing season, Mattingly replies like a true East Nashvillian: “Tomatoes. More accurately, the new Michael Pollan variety. We will have more than 19 varieties of heirloom tomatoes for our CSA this year, including lots of oranges, greens, stripes, pinks, and whites. That’s exciting. “I am also looking forward to meeting and spending time with our new CSA members. I love the new faces and hearing all about the new recipes people are trying out with our herbs and veggies.” Mattingly’s biggest challenge as an urban farmer? She doesn’t even hesitate. “Squash bugs!” she says. “I don’t even have to think about it. They’re horrible. I spend an hour every day picking them off the plants and dunking them in soapy water. They’re evil.” May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

FAITH IN THE MUSIC The Rev. Keith Coes spreads the gospel of rock & roll in Music City

n 1980, Keith Coes was a student at Tennessee State University in Nashville. A diehard rock & roll fan, Coes kept his radio tuned to WRVU, Vanderbilt University’s student radio station. One day, he heard an offer he couldn’t refuse. “I heard them talking about needing more DJs,” Coes recalls. “So I went down to the station and signed up. They didn’t ask me if I was attending Vanderbilt. I was the same age as the other DJs and hung out with them, so everyone just assumed I was a Vandy student.” That small bit of deception by omission was the launch of an amazing career in radio. For over 35 years, the Rev. Keith Coes’ easy-going, rock-solid baritone has been laying down the gospel of rock & roll in Nashville. Along the way, he’s been an eyewitness to the ups and downs and multiple permutations of Music City’s rock scene. Currently spinning platters every Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to noon on Lightning 100, WRLT-FM, the good Reverend also serves as music director and

advertising traffic director for the station. As it has for many rock & roll acolytes who have made their passion a profession, Coes’ long musical pilgrimage began in front of a radio as a teenage rock fan. Although Coes was born in sunny Los Angeles, he grew up in the quite different climate of Minneapolis, eventually moving with his parents to Nashville in 1976. “In the late ’70s, Nashville was kinda sleepy,” he says. “There weren’t a lot of good shows to go to or really good restaurants. I was used to Minneapolis, which was a big happening town, and Nashville seemed pretty boring. WKDA-AM and WKDF-FM were the only commercial rock stations, and that was pretty much it until I discovered WRVU.” The student radio station of Vanderbilt University was the only source for alternative rock in Nashville. “You might hear Frank Zappa or The Allman Brothers or The Police,” Coes says. “It was all kinds of stuff, but it was the only place you could hear what they called new wave back then. → It was very cool.”

By Randy Fox | Photography by Eric England

May May | | June June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Study in contrasts of a rock Rev. The & rollinlifer: his lair at Lightning The Rev.100.

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

Although he was attending TSU at the time, Coes jumped at the chance to become a part of WRVU. Joining the staff of the station, he found himself in the perfect place for a young, adventurous rock fan with cosmopolitan tastes. With a weak, but steady signal that blanketed Nashville, WRVU became instrumental in the birth of Nashville’s alternative rock scene and a major player in the era that would become known as the Golden Age of College Radio. It was a scene centered around a former drive-in restaurant known as Cantrell’s, just a few blocks from WRVU’s studios. “I used to go to Cantrell’s all the time,” Coes says. “I saw R.E.M., the Stray Cats, and lots of other bands there. The Stray Cats actually had to play in a tent behind the building because they sold more tickets than the place could hold. I ended up giving R.E.M. a ride when they played here in 1982 — five guys squeezed into my Volkswagen Rabbit. Another time, the local band Simmonz was playing at Cantrell’s right after Judas Priest was scheduled to play at the Municipal Auditorium. The guys in the band plastered show flyers all over Municipal, and then ( Judas Priest’s lead singer) Rob Halford showed up at their show in a limousine. “WRVU was very much a part of the local scene,” Coes explains. “We worked with a lot of local bands to help build the local rock scene — Jason and the Scorchers, The Questionnaires, Royal Court of China, Jay Joyce’s band, In Pursuit. We also worked to promote a lot of concerts — the Talking Heads, Divinyls, Psychedelic Furs, Joan Armatrading, and more.” In 1984, Coes’ tenure at 91 Rock came to a close, but not by choice. “After being at WRVU for four years, they found out I didn’t go to school there and that’s how I got kicked out,” he says. “Until then, no one ever asked. That’s when I got a radio job that actually paid money.”

hat first paying job was at one of Nashville’s most historic stations, WLAC. Founded in 1926 by the Life and Casualty Insurance Company of Tennessee, WLAC rose to prominence

“

in the late 1940s when it became one of the first Southern radio stations to regularly schedule R&B and black gospel music during nighttime hours. With its powerful 50,000-watt clear channel signal pumping out jump, jive, and sanctified tunes across the U.S., Canada, and into the Caribbean, the station became instrumental in the birth of rock & roll and soul music. When Coes joined WLAC in 1984 as a board operator and engineer, the station was broadcasting news and talk radio during daylight hours, and gospel and religious programming at night. Although the rockin’ soul era of the station had ended in the early 1970s, one legendary figure from those halcyon days remained. “That’s when I began working with Hoss Allen,” Coes says. “He had a lot of good stories, most of which I can’t tell you for publication. He was one of the first DJs to play Elvis, James Brown, and many others. Most people thought he was a black guy, and it wasn’t until he did a TV show in the ’60s that most people found out that he was white. He was a legendary figure and listeners just loved him. I would pick up the station’s mail from the post office because it was a way for me to be late to work every day. There was always a giant bag of mail and there would be letters addressed to just ‘Hoss Man’ or even ‘Horse Man’ with just WLAC or Nashville, Tenn., for the address. The post office just knew where to send them. That was amazing.” Although Coes was working in radio professionally, WLAC’s format didn’t allow much opportunity to work with his first love, rock music. But that didn’t stop him from maintaining his connections to Nashville’s local music scene. His musical tastes were very diverse, but he had a particular affection for hard rock and heavy metal. When Nashville’s first heavy metal club, Sal’s Rock-n-Roll Club (aka Sal’s Rock Block), opened in the mid-1980s, Coes became a fixture of the scene. “Sal’s originally opened in Antioch by the Brunswick bowling alley off Haywood Lane,” he recalls. →

I like to think Lightning 100 made a real difference in the local scene. We’re all about being a local station.

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“It was run by Sal of Sal’s Pizza. Then it moved close to Vandy at Division and 20th across from the Bound’ry. Everyone but me had crazy long hair and looked like they were sponsored by Aquanet.” In business between 1985 and the early ’90s, Sal’s became the central hub of Nashville’s small, but vital metal scene. The club nurtured local acts and became a stop for many future superstars. “I saw a lot of great bands at Sal’s,” Coes says. “Malice, Anthrax, Megadeth, Faith No More — and all in a club that held 250 people. I got my face rocked off.” Sal’s wasn’t the only location where faces were being removed by the power of rawk. Cantrell’s closed its doors in 1986, but several local clubs and venues kept the rock a-comin’ — The Exit/In, Elliston Square (now known as The End), The Cannery, 328 Performance Hall, and others. Coes was a ubiquitous presence at many of these shows. “There was good stuff going on all the time and you could always find good bands playing in Nashville,” he says. “I pretty quickly found out that if you work at a radio station you could meet the bands, go backstage, and hang out. That was great. While I was working at WLAC, I was also working with a lot of different bands around town, helping with radio promotions. Even more so after Preston Sullivan and Laura Frazier with Carlyle Records hired me for college radio promotions. I would call stations and encourage them to play the records and arrange in-studio appearances for local bands like Dessau, The Grinning Plowman, The Shakers, The Stand, Marky and the Unexplained Stains, and F.U.C.T.” Coes’ return to rock radio came in 1987 with the debut of Rebel 100 WWRB-FM on the Nashville airwaves. Throughout the early ’80s, more rock radio stations entered

the Nashville market, but all were firmly committed to mainstream classic rock and Top 40. Rebel 100 chose a different path as it became Nashville’s first commercial alternative rock station. “We were probably one of the first stations to play Guns N’ Roses, but we also played The Cure,” Coes says. “My neighbor worked there and suggested I apply. I got a part-time job at first, and then I got a specialty show playing heavy metal. Back then, if you had a metal show, record labels desperately wanted to set up interviews, so I met a lot of bands.” Although Rebel 100 was a hit with many Nashville rock fans, its time on the air proved to be fleeting. “Rebel 100 was on on the air maybe a year and a half when the station was bought,” Coes says. “The new owner changed the call letters to WRLT and turned it into a wimpy Adult Contemporary station called Lite 100 that was completely automated. They fired everybody and just let the machine run it. That format flopped and the station went into receivership, and Ned Horton bought it.” Horton reformulated the station as Lightning 100 in March 1990, pulling inspiration from the former Rebel 100, along with hiring several of the old Rebel 100 staff. He also relocated the station’s studio from a nondescript Brentwood office park to the heart of downtown Nashville. “Ned had a vision to play cool rock & roll,” Coes says. “We were a small station, but people believed in us, and we’ve thrived and had a hand in many cool events over the years — Dancing in the District, Live on the Green, Nashville Sunday Night from 3rd & Lindsley, and more.” Leaving WLAC for a full-time position with Lightning 100 in 1993, Coes became one of the station’s cornerstone voices.

Along the way, he also acquired his righteous title as a minister of rock & roll. “I was doing a metal show in the mid’90s,” Coes says. “There was a radio promotion company called The Syndicate that specialized in metal bands. One of their guys was kind of a wiseass, and he decided to have all the heavy metal DJs around the country ordained as ministers in the Universal Life Church. After that, if you looked in (radio trade publication) CMJ magazine, every metal director at every station was listed as a reverend. So I just go with it, and everyone remembers me as a result of it.” It’s been a long road since Coes showed up for a roll call of would-be DJs 36 years ago, and he takes pride in the part he has played, not only as a fan, but as one of the stalwarts of Nashville’s ever-changing music scene. “I like to think Lightning 100 made a real difference in the local scene,” he says. “We’re all about being a local station. Most of our advertising is local, as well as our listeners, fans, and friends. Sometimes we’ll play five or six local bands in one hour, and then there’s our Friday Afternoon Live show that spotlights local bands. That’s an advantage of being in Nashville. You go to other cities and you just don’t find original bands like you do here. It just seems to get bigger and bigger every year.” Although Coes’ faith in Nashville’s music scene has never wavered, he does admit that its growth and current success have even surprised a true believer. “I never thought the rock scene would get as big as it is today,” he says. “I’ve always had four or five clubs that I would frequent a few times a month. Now there are often two or three amazing shows you want to go to in the same night. There’s just a lot of amazing music in Nashville.”

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

The “Wall of Heads” at Center 615

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

Raising the

BAR Four East Siders demonstrate that ‘development’ doesn’t have to be a dirty word By Randy Fox Photography by John Partipilo

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

“Other cities had specific neighborhoods that were thought of as great places for food, so why couldn’t East Nashville be like that?” — March Egerton describing the idea that drove his initial approach to commercial development. Pictured above is Phase II of the Walden development on Eastland Avenue, home to Two Ten Jack. Below: The beautifully appointed interior of Butcher & Bee, located in the Fluffo Factory development.

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

n the spring of 2006, Dan Heller was working at the corner of Riverside Drive and McGavock Pike in Inglewood. The property had once been a grocery market, but had become a neighborhood eyesore, a place where drug deals went down and shady characters congregated. From the window of his home across the street, Heller witnessed the urban decay infecting the intersection. He often saw cars slowing down for the stoplight on Riverside, refusing to stop completely, and then speeding away quickly when the light changed to green. Despite the advice of his friends and many neighbors, Heller bought the abandoned building with hopes of revitalizing it. “The Saturday morning that I was taking the bars off the window, I thought I heard gunfire,” he says. “I immediately thought, ‘Oh shit, I’m making the worst mistake of my life!’ But I had a friend who was an educator in inner-city areas of Los Angeles who always said, ‘If you want to make an impact, you have to set the bar higher and expect good things.’ I took a lot of inspiration from that idea.” Ten years later, the intersection is an exemplar of a-wing-anda-prayer urban redevelopment. The commercial properties that comprise Riverside Village have revitalized the neighborhood and served as an inspiration for other East Side neighborhood commercial centers. Although Heller doesn’t own all the properties at the intersection, his decision to raise the bar and hope for the best was the first step in transforming a dated, largely abandoned retail cluster into the crossroads of a thriving neighborhood. As Nashville continues to lurch forward as an “It” city, the word “developer” has become an invective, evoking images of greed-powered outsiders descending on Nashville to demolish the city’s history, genericize the landscape, and get out of town quick with sacks of ill-gotten greenbacks clutched tightly in their fists. While that nefarious stereotype may be true in some cases, growth is a quality of both cancer cells and mighty sequoias. A large part of East Nashville’s success and reformation was directly the result of individuals who made investments in the neighborhood at a time →

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Being able to walk out of your office and be on Woodland Street is a lot better than being downtown or in Brentwood. — March Egerton May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

“The Saturday morning that I was taking the bars off the window, I thought I heard gunfire. I immediately thought, ‘Oh shit, I’m making the worst mistake of my life!’ “ — Dan Heller, reflecting on an early experience while redeveloping Riverside Village. Pictured is Rudie’s Seafood and Sausage, which occupies the spaces formerly inhabited by Sip Café and Mitchell Deli. Both of those businesses quickly outgrew their spaces, which speaks to Heller’s ability to carefully select tenents he believes will not only be succesful, but also add value to and uplift the neighborhood.

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

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I wanted to send a visible signal to the neighborhood that something different was happening

when many did not value the area. While many East Siders have had a hand in this transformation, Heller, March Egerton, Mark Sanders, and Christian Paro have all built careers combining the search for profits with visions of a better tomorrow.

or Nashville native Egerton, reinventing the East Nashville landscape came after his journey to escape Nashville. Growing up in Green Hills, Egerton never set foot in East Nashville during his formative years. It was not until after he moved away from the Music City, and returned in the fall of 1997, that he discovered the appeal of the East Side. “I was ambivalent about moving back to Nashville,” Egerton says. “I knew I didn’t want to live on the West Side, which I was very familiar with. So I started looking around. When I came over here, it reminded me of a more ragged form of the neighborhoods where I had lived in Portland and Seattle. It got me to thinking, and I ultimately ended up buying a house in Inglewood.” Egerton returned to Nashville with the intention of trying his hand at real estate investment after witnessing the transformation of older neighborhoods in the Pacific Northwest. What he found was a buyer’s market of solid, often historic homes in neighborhoods that could be dodgy in places, but offered tremendous value for homeowners who wanted something different from the suburbs or mass-produced McMansions. “There was lot of activity in East Nashville before I got back to town,” he says. “There was good housing stock over here, and people were starting to buy that up, but a lot of the houses were still rental property. I bought a house in Inglewood. Then I bought two on Ordway that I flipped. I learned a lot about residential real estate and then got interested in commercial.” What Egerton began to notice was a “river crossing” culture that many people had accepted as a part of their choice to live on the East Side. Traversing the river to eat at nicer restaurants, hear live music, or shop at specialty shops was just a way of life for East Nashvillians. Despite this, the common belief

— Dan Heller was that such businesses would never succeed on the East Side. “That seemed very odd to me,” Egerton says. “I thought there should be more new businesses because of all the people moving in and renovating homes. I started looking around at commercial properties and there were a lot sitting around derelict — even more so after the tornado.” In early 1999, just months after the 1998 tornado wracked devastation on the East Side, Egerton purchased a cement block building at 107 S. 11th St., but rather than throwing up a “FOR LEASE” sign and waiting to see what happened, he became a prospector for potential tenants. Egerton approached the owners of established businesses he personally liked with

the idea of opening new locations on the East Side. It wasn’t an easy sell, but he soon found his first commercial tenant in the Belmontbased coffee shop Bongo Java. “Bongo needed more room for their roasting operations,” Egerton says, “but they were very ambivalent about it as a retail spot. I had to do some convincing for them to give it a try. East Nashville was enough of an island that it heightened people’s interest in new businesses and their willingness to support them. Just to be able to get a bagel at Bongo Java was a big deal.” With his first commercial property leased, Egerton bought more unloved real estate in the 5 Points area, buildings that have subsequently become landmarks of the neighborhood

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

“There was an abandoned meat warehouse, a carburetor shop, and a beer store, along with a laundromat across the street where drug deals would go down. All the property owners were absentee landlords, and they just wanted the rent money. They didn’t really care about what happened in the neighborhood.” — Mark Sanders describing the conditions at 11th St. & Fatherland, three corners of which he and his wife, Patti, have since redeveloped. Pictured clockwise from top left: the Shoppes on Fatherland, home to over a dozen businesses, as well as The Pavilion EAST; a reclaimed building occupied by Wax Nashville and Far East Nashville; the 37206 Building, which is a multi-use development providing a home to Platinum Salon and Kali Yuga Yoga, among others; and 1100 Fatherland, which has tenants that include Thrive and The Local Taco.

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

“

We fell in love with the house and kept our blinders on about the neighborhood. People thought we were fools.

— Margot’s Café and Bar, The Red Door Saloon, and PizzeReal. As with Bongo Java, Egerton says he was actively seeking businesses that fit his vision for the neighborhood. “Other cities had specific neighborhoods that were thought of as great places for food,” he says, “so why couldn’t East Nashville be like that? A lot of chefs were already living here, so I tried to think of what would move it in that direction.” Over the next several years, Egerton continued with his plan of buying commercial properties, renovating them, and looking for businesses that would appeal to specific needs or desires of the neighborhood. “I would buy stuff, renovate it, and either sell or rent it,” he says. “I wasn’t dealing with banks much because banks were not interested in what I was doing. Everything got rolled back into something that I was working on or buying something new.” Following that business plan, Egerton transformed such landmark locations as the Walnut Exchange building (home to Marché Artisan Foods) and the Kingston Building (No. 308 Bar and Sherwin-Williams). One of Egerton’s greater strengths was his ability to look at older buildings that often had little appeal on the surface and see the possibilities contained in old mortar and brick. “A lot of buildings that are not super exciting are perfectly functional,” he says. “The trick was to get people to stop thinking of them as shitholes. I drove by plenty of corners eyeballing them. It often felt like I was the only one buying [commercial] property over here. When I would call someone about a vacant lot or a crapped-out building, I was the first person they’d ever heard from.” Egerton opened a dramatic new chapter of his commercial real estate career in 2006 when he began development of seven acres on Eastland Avenue that he named “Walden.” “There was a former nursing home on the property that was still a functional building,” Egerton says. “My first instinct was to rehab it like I had other commercial properties. As I thought it through, I saw greater opportunities even though I knew very little about new construction. That led to an overall site plan.” The plan that Egerton developed was

— Mark Sanders centered on a mixed-use development that would serve as a commercial hub for the surrounding neighborhoods. Projected to eventually include five phases of residential, commercial, and shared-common spaces, Phase I was completed in 2008, and Phase II in 2014. With such favorites as The Wild Cow, Ugly Mugs, and Two Ten Jack, Walden has become an integral part of the East Side eatery culture.

hat sense of real estate development that complements and cements neighborhoods together has been one of the guiding principles for Egerton’s friend and sometimes business partner, Dan Heller. Also a native Nashvillian, Heller moved to

Colorado after high school where he built a career in marketing before moving back to Middle Tennessee in 1995. A few years later, after a conversation with Egerton, Heller decided to invest in the East Side. After buying several rental properties, he moved into a house on McGavock Pike across the street from the future Riverside Village. “When I moved into my house, where I still live, people said I was crazy,” Heller says. “I didn’t tell my parents about the neighborhood because they would have shit their pants if they had known what was going on across the street.” Watching the Riverside-McGavock intersection from his front window, Heller decided to take matters into his own hands

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

“I had a gut feeling that Main Street would become an important corridor and destination, possibly even overtaking 5 Points.” — Christian Paro recalling intuitive moment the lead to his foray into commercial development on Main Street. Pictured clockwise from top left: Paro’s first commercial endevour, the building at 1701Fatherland St., home to the popular coffee shop The Post East, among others; architectural detail of the former Hardaway Construction building, part of Paro’s flagship commercial real estate complex, Center 615; The Family Wash & Garage Coffee, located in the latest addition to Center 615 at 626 Main St.

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

“

I call what we’ve created here an incidental business incubator.

and purchased the corner building in partnership with Egerton (Heller eventually bought Egerton’s interest in the property). Heller soon acquired all of the adjacent properties and began transforming the corner. “I wanted to send a visible signal to the neighborhood that something different was happening,” Heller says. “I took the bars off the windows, cleaned the buildings, painted them, and put in more lights. The physical act of brightening up the location made it less scary. I had no new tenants, but I just moved forward with turning the junk pile behind the building into a courtyard. I wanted it to be a fun place for the community. There was a real risk. I could lay out the vision for what the area could look like, but it took tenants with imagination too.” As the changes at the corner became more apparent, Heller began to find tenants. Within two years of the bars coming off the windows, the newly christened Riverside Village was home to the Sip Café, Mitchell’s Deli, and Olive & Sinclair Chocolate Company — all businesses that would be instrumental in transforming the reputation of the neighborhood and that would eventually leave their original spaces for larger locations. “I hate to lose great tenants,” Heller says, “but if they’re doing their job right, they’re going to outgrow the development.” Heller continued to follow the same playbook for the other commercial properties he acquired at Riverside and McGavock. He then moved south to the intersection of Riverside and Porter Road, transforming another shady street corner into the home for Pied Piper Eatery and other businesses. While not every business that sets up shop in his buildings has succeeded, Heller applies the same rules to them all. “The question shouldn’t be just who’s going to be paying rent?” he says. “The first and most important question should be, is this tenant right for the neighborhood? Do they fit into what the larger market will respond to? Can they execute their business plan? You have to find businesses that support the larger vision and offer some value.” Heller’s philosophy of selecting businesses that bring value to the neighborhood and

— Christian Paro Egerton’s sharp instincts for less-than-obvious investment opportunities combined when the two friends set their sights on the Fluffo mattress factory and warehouse on Main Street. “March has more of an imagination than I do and sees opportunities quicker than I do,” Heller says. “I had to walk through that building a dozen times before I could even entertain the idea of moving forward with it. It was a pretty terrifying, overwhelming beast. There were so many problems, I would never have attempted it on my own, but we thought the building had some value and a lot of character.” Before construction could begin, Egerton and Heller had to navigate the daunting maze of codes and planning regulations as they laid out their plan for a dramatic reimagining of the

space. They found their first potential tenant in the start-up Fat Bottom Brewing before they were certain codes would allow a brewery in that location. “March is incredible at navigating codes,” Heller says. “We just moved forward with the faith that if we made improvements, we would get some interest. We worked with Steve Powell and Powell Architecture to block out the basic spaces. Then we prioritized what needed to be done to reimagine the building as a multitenant food and drink destination.” Powell proved to be a particularly valuable partner in the process. Both Egerton and Heller had worked with Powell previously in the renovation of the No. 308 bar space in the Kingston Building and other projects. Powell’s

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

sense of preservation of existing character and practical renovation was instrumental in the transformation of the Fluffo building into the complex that now houses Edley’s BBQ, Butcher & Bee, The Filling Station, Scout’s Barbershop, and Powell Architecture’s offices. The next project for Egerton and Heller is the construction of a new office and retail complex directly behind the Fluffo building. Dubbed “The Wabash” (a nod to country music pioneer and former East Nashville resident Roy Acuff ), the building will bring 40,000 square feet of office and retail space to the heart of the Main Street/Woodland corridor. “We’re very excited about the office component,” Egerton says. “That wouldn’t have been feasible not very long ago. Being able to walk out of your office and be on Woodland Street is a lot better than being downtown or in Brentwood. And if there’s a beer garden right outside your office, that’s not the worst day of your life.”

he integration of residential, retail, food, and office space in a way that strengthens the existing neighborhood is a goal that Mark Sanders

has been pursuing for over a decade in the area surrounding 11th Street and Fatherland. A native of Decatur, Ala., Sanders moved to Nashville in 1976. In 1981, he and his wife, Patty, became East Siders when they purchased their home on South 11th near Russell Street. “We fell in love with the house and kept our blinders on about the neighborhood,” Sanders says. “People thought we were fools.” As an accountant working for commercial real estate developers, Sanders learned about property investment firsthand. In 1986, he began working for a property management company, eventually launching his own business, S&S Property Management, in 1988. In addition to living in East Nashville, Sanders kept his business on the East Side when he purchased a house neighboring his residence and converted it into offices in 1991. Although Sanders had deep roots in the neighborhood, his entry into full-scale real estate development did not occur until 2004. “I had a neighbor approach me about trying to do something with all the derelict property in the neighborhood,” Sanders says. “I had some development experience from my previous job. Living here and working here,

I knew things were going to improve, especially after the tornado. Every time we would have a neighborhood home tour, new people would come in and buy houses, and the area was slowly changing that way. I knew getting rid of some of the blighted areas would make a difference.” Starting with four acres of vacant property on Fatherland Street behind the Bill Martin Corner Foods store, Sanders envisioned a U-shaped residential development of eight cottages surrounding a shared courtyard. The development would fit the existing character of the neighborhood while appealing to middle-class families. “We thought it would be easy,” Sanders says, “but no one in codes liked the idea. They just wanted us to build four duplexes. They were still stuck in the past and couldn’t see the greater vision. After we got it approved, many people began to follow the same design.” After the completion of Fatherland Court, Sanders turned his attention to commercial property at the intersection of 11th and Fatherland. Dubbed “Martin’s Corner” after the longstanding East Nashville supermarket, CONTINUED ON PAGE 101

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

The Wild Feathers make their debut appearance at Ryman Auditorium Saturday, June 25. 70

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016 2016

Wild Feathers in the Wind An American band chases the dream

“W

e’re in a confined space, of course,” Taylor Burns, The Wild Feathers’ guitarist/vocalist, marvels, calling from somewhere between Kansas City and Minneapolis. “There’s a guy literally 12 inches above me in this bunk — and I can reach across the aisle and touch Ricky.

“It’s that kind of close quarters,” he continues. “You will get on each other’s nerves, but you also learn to let things go and just be.” For the harmony-laden genre-blurrers, the journey to Lonely Is A Lifetime — like The Wild Feathers before it — has been a study in faith, patience, and running up the odometer. As the roots band beyond radio formats chased their dream, Burns, guitarist/vocalist Ricky Young, bassist/vocalist Joel King, and drummer Ben Dumas made the decision along the way, being true to the music — as cliché as it sounds — was more important than the vast amounts of work it would take. “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Young explains, calling from somewhere outside San Francisco. “We’re very blue collar when it comes to rock & roll. I wouldn’t have it any other way, either, because we know how to appreciate things — even things we don’t have yet. I don’t think things should be handed to you, they should be earned. →

By Holly Gleason Photography by Eric England

May May | | June June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Joel King

Taylor Burns

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

Ricky Young

Ben Dumas

“

“People who think otherwise — they’re not pushing amps in for the show, or carrying things up stairways in the rain. It’s not glamorous, but it’s real.” The proof for the band, whose self-titled debut hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Heatseekers Chart, is in the routing. The Wild Feathers never called from the same place, and if allergies, exhaustion, or tedium ever got to them, it never dampened their spirits — or enthusiasm for working beyond the easy labels modern record companies seem to thrive on. The band evokes ’90s power pop acts like Gin Blossoms and The Rembrandts as much as anything. They cite Tom

We can write about sunshine and going to parties and picking up chicks, but it’s very empty and shallow — and no one cares. — Ricky Young Petty, Gram Parsons, The Band, The Beatles, and The Black Crowes as influences — if you want a prism through which to view the no-frills attack they employ. Add a lush wave of thick cream harmonies, layers of shimmering guitars laced with that one Ginsu knife lead line, beats that crack like a fistful of Black Cats — that’s the essence of The Wild Feathers. “I kinda introduced them,” begins Warner Brothers VP of A&R Jeff Sosnow. “I really missed harmony in music. I felt with Kings of Leon ... or in that post-Wilco world in which we live, there wasn’t any. Or there was space for voices to interact. “It’s really an extension of my A&R philosophy: When everyone else is looking right, look left.”

s their tour bus rolls up Pacific Coast Highway from an SRO gig at LA’s famed Troubadour, King recalls his first meeting with his future bandmate. “I thought (Taylor) had an awesome hat on,” he says. “We were all hanging out at the Mercy Lounge, when they’d have eight, 10 bands on. I was way into what he did.

... Jeff had had me and Ricky cut a few sides, and we were still looking. “My band was pretty hard rock, like Led Zeppelin — and wanted to be even harder. I’m a diehard Ryan Adams fan. It felt like a fit, though it came together by writing songs together and alone, then bringing them in for everyone to work on.” A test-tube group — three front men, all writers, good musicians — waiting to happen, The Wild Feathers’ course was gusty. Signed originally to Interscope, headed by Jimmy Iovine, who helmed seminal albums for Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks, as well as label-chiefing The Wallflowers’ breakthrough, this apparent blessing became their first snag. Working with Dave Cobb, being flown to Vancouver and London, writing and getting ready for their debut, it was all systems “Go.” Except, as King says, “They were trying to find our sound or our hit. ... The attitude then was the Kings of Leon thing, because they’d got big — or the Black Keys. But then Jimmy Iovine bought American Idol — and our A&R guy was gone. “We were gonna be assigned Lady GaGa’s A&R person. Jeff was like, ‘Please. I’ve worked so hard developing this band. ...’ They didn’t seem to care. He swore, ‘When I get somewhere else, you’re going to be the first band I sign.’ ” The dream popped. Promises made, everyone knows, are worth less than the breath used to make them. The band responded the only way they knew: They got in the van. They hit the South, anywhere within a 10- to 12-hour radius of Nashville. They hit bottom in Birmingham, Ala. “We were playing the Nick on Valentine’s Day,” King recalls. “It was the most depressing show.” Divine intervention — or at least an agent who believed enough in the band to personally hand Paul Simon a copy of their music — arrived with an offer for Simon’s Southern tour. As King explains, “It turned everything around.”

nce Sosnow landed at Warner Brothers, he did, indeed, sign The Wild Feathers. Though still a band without a format, Sosnow believed. “They’d never even started making a record,” the A&R man explains. “So it’s not like they’d put out a record and it sold poorly. “There’s a number of things: No. 1, they’ve just hired me. I figured if they tell me ‘no,’ I say, ‘Fuck you! Why’d you hire me?’ and walk out the door; →

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Classes start May 31

View schedule and Join us for affordable classes in languages, cooking, art at + much more. register now Registration is ongoing throughout the summer. nashville.gov/ce View schedule + register now at nashville.gov/ce (615) 298-8050

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

No. 2, they trusted me; No. 3, I believed in this band.” Sosnow had a vision. He knew Jay Joyce, who’d worked with Cage The Elephant, Coheed & Cambria, Eric Church, and The Wallflowers, would get it. “Jeff was thinking, ‘Here’s a guy who’s done both (country and rock) and it’s working,’ ” Joyce says. “The intention was not to bring ’em to country, but to make a rock record that has that harmony thing to it. That rocking thing of Stills and Young in CSNY. It was something more street than, say, Poco or the Eagles.

“And I’ve always been a big Neil Young fan, the dissonance he brings to things. For that first album, they’d been on the road, so we messed with arrangements a little, but it was all pretty formed. Figure there were three writers, a lot of choices, and trying to get cohesion was the driver.” “Jay is an incredible musician and technician,” Young says of the choice. “But he really gets what it means to be in a band. He gets it all — and in the studio, he knows how to get you to be a real human being giving a real human performance — even if it means all on

one mic with one guitar in the middle of that cathedral room with all the acoustics.” Burns concurs. “Jay is the master of weird sounds and surprising things happening,” he says. “On the first record, he scared the shit out of me. He can be intense and really pucker me up, but he’s able to be seamless with ideas, just slip in and out of something without even stopping down. We’ll try something — and then move on.” To that end, Lonely takes a giant step forward. Tougher than their debut, the album CONTINUED ON PAGE 106

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

STACIE HUCKEBA

PHOTOGRAPHY & FILM PRODUCTION THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME FOUNDATION, THE AMERICANA MUSIC ASSOCIATION, SONY MUSIC GROUP, YEP ROCK MUSIC GROUP, REDEYE DISTRIBUTION, GOLD MOUNTAIN ENTERTAINMENT, MIKTEK AUDIO.

USA TODAY, ROLLING STONE, VINTAGE GUITAR, COUNTRY WEEKLY, SOUND ON SOUND, THE HUFFINGTON POST, TNN, CMT

+1 615.516.4664 // stacie@staciehuckeba.com

staciehuckeba.com

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

w.t.f.? By Stacie Huckeba

What we’ve lost

here is an undercurrent in East Nashville lately. It is sort of becoming an “us vs. them” situation. It’s the old-timers versus the newcomers. The old-timers are in survival mode and freak out over the slightest change, and the newcomers are all butt-hurt because they haven’t been completely welcomed with open arms after all they’ve done for property values and neighborhood amenities. They think we are just a bunch of old fogies who are stuck in our ways. We think they just want to destroy everything. I think we are both wrong. I’m not against change. I’ll trade one Hair World for Nomzilla. Totally. Those blistered peppers — mmm! The newcomers have brought lots of good stuff, but what they aren’t able to comprehend is what we’ve lost. Important things — like affordable housing. When I moved to East Nashville, I figured I would live here the rest of my life. I’ll be lucky if I make it in my rental through the end of the year. The rising costs have impacted our homeless population; elderly people are being taken advantage of; and people who need access to public transportation are losing jobs and access to resources as they are pushed further out. And you can’t talk about affordable housing without talking about diversification. Seriously, what have you done with all the black people? I used to live across the street from a black church. Sunday mornings on my porch listening to the music was ritual. That church is gone now. So is the black barbershop on the other corner. I remember standing outside one day chatting with the barber. He was saying how business was slow, and I chirped back that it would pick up. He told me, “No. The more of you that move in, the less customers I’ll have. I won’t make it the year.” I sent friends in for shaves after that, but he was right. He didn’t.

And regardless of color, for every person we lose, we gain 10. Multifamily units on lots that originally contained single-family homes infuriate me. There are just too many people. There are traffic, lines, and crowds everywhere. Everything is jammed elbows to assholes. And with all those people, there is no privacy left. They even build decks now on the second floors of those new houses that look right down over standing privacy fences. I still can’t figure out how that’s legal. It kind of defeats the purpose of a privacy fence by definition, doesn’t it? Four of them peer down in my backyard now. It’s lit up like Studio 54 back there. You want a show? I’ll give you a show! We’ve lost the ability to drive anywhere. If you’re not risking your life on Gallatin, you are playing back road Tetris around all the construction sites. The side streets near popular areas are so congested that cars just get stuck there. Then there is parking. You’re either circling like a vulture or shelling out money. When did all the lots go to pay anyway? People are making money — that’s good, but people are also losing money. People don’t understand why we get upset when they tear down “old” or “ugly” houses. I know for me personally, it’s gut-wrenching to watch a home that you worked in after the floods come down with the swipe of a bulldozer. It’s hard to not remember the people, tearing out drywall and flooring, trying to beat the clock against mold — all of us, together, with one purpose. Save that house. Save that dream. There isn’t a $9 coffee you can serve me that soothes that ouch. And that is the main thing that we’ve lost — that sense of unity. There really was something magical about the unity of this neighborhood for a moment. There was no “us” and there was no “them.” It was just “we.” And personally, that’s the thing I miss the most.

Stacie Huckeba is a photo-taking, rock star wrangler who is a teller of tales and a notorious instigator. Her hobbies include shenanigans, cocktails on the patio, pottery, and properly planned capers. In spite of her ramblings here, she thinks you are perfect. Go to staciehuckeba.com for pictures of famous people and links to her social media.

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

4 1 y Ma Happy Fest

May

11am-4pm

Health & Wellness Screenings, Live Bands, Raffle, International Foods, Vendors, and Family Fun

3pm KidzBlitz Show

11am KidzBlitz Show 12pm Free Hotdogs 510 Woodland St

& Hamburgers

An Amazing Weekend for the Entire Family! Ages 3 years – 5th Grade

East Nashville’s Community Church

510May Woodland Street • Nashville, TN 37206 • 615-255-1289 www.nfcn.org THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM | June 2016

EAST SIDE CALENDAR M A Y | J U N E 2016

EMMA ALFORD CALENDAR EDITOR

FOR UP-TO -DATE INFORMATION ON EVENTS, AS WELL AS LINKS, PLEASE VISIT US AT: THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

UPCOMING FARM FRESH

East Nashville Farmers Market 3:30-7 p.m. Wednesdays, Shelby Park Amqui Station Farmers Market 12-3 p.m., Sundays through August, Amqui Station, Madison

The East Nashville Farmers Market will kick off again for another fresh season on May 4 in Shelby Park near the baseball diamond. Take a detour from your usual trek to Kroger and stop by these markets. They offer the “cream of the crop” in locally grown organic and fresh foods. Peruse the local cheeses, milk, breads, herbs, fruits, vegetables, jams, and jellies. A few merchants even sell handmade goods, such as soaps, candles, pottery, and jewelry. Go out and meet the farmers who make your

food. They also accept SNAP (food stamp) benefits. Grocery shopping has never been this fun — or homegrown. The East Nashville Farmers Market will run through the end of October, Amqui will run until Aug. 30. Double down and visit both.

IT’S A MADHOUSE

Madhouse Comedy Jams 8-11 p.m. May 11, June 23, Mad Donna’s

We’re all mad here, at Mad Donna’s Madhouse Comedy show. This comedy jam is a bimonthly themed variety show featuring local comics, improvers, and “comedic” musical guests. The show normally costs $5, but May’s installment is free and calls for an open mic. Step up with your jokes. 1313 Woodland St.

❦

A HEAPING HELP

Second Harvest Food Bank’s Annual Generous Helpings 6 p.m., Thursday, May 12, City Winery

What to expect: a smorgasbord of samples from the city’s top chefs and foodsters. What to know: Generous Helpings isn’t just gratuitous to your belly, it’s all for a great cause. Proceeds from the event go toward Second Harvest Food Bank, so nobody goes hungry this evening. You can expect to see fare from the East Side’s Butcher & Bee and Porter Road Butcher, plus many, many more restaurants from across the city. Wine and beer offerings will be provided by some of your local favorites as well. Tickets are available online. 609 Lafayette St.

→

Nathan Colburn, attorney

May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

EAST SIDE CALENDAR

COME ON, GET HAPPYFEST

Health and HappyFest 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, May 14, Nashville First Church of the Nazarene

Friends of Haiti is hosting its annual event celebrating holistic health and clean living at Nashville’s First Church of the Nazarene. This multicultural fest will offer free health and wellness screenings, samplings of international cuisines, live music, and family-friendly games and activities. You can catch the KidzBlitz show at 3 p.m. The festival helps raise funds to support local educational programs, such as English Learner Language (ELL) and life skills courses. 510 Woodland St.

DROP THOSE KEYS

Bike to Work Day Time varies by location, Friday, May 20, citywide

As part of Nashville’s Bike Month, Walk/Bike Nashville is hosting a citywide “Bike to Work” day. Save the gas, call off your carpool and grab your helmet. There will be more than 20 meet-up points across the city, so find the one closest to you and meet up with other cyclists to make your commute together. At 7:45 a.m. a free breakfast will be served at Public Square Park. Burn some calories, avoid traffic jams, and get a chance to take in the city. Scope out the meet-up points in East Nashville below to find the one nearest you. Check online to find all locations and times.

ENJOY $50 IN RIDE CREDIT. GET STARTED AT:

lyft.com/invited/enmag Code valid for new users only for 30 days.

Tom Joy Park 7:30 a.m. Mas Tacos Por Favor 7:40 a.m. Yeast Nashville 7:50 a.m. Mitchell’s Deli 7:20 a.m. Portland Brew 7:35 a.m. Eastside Cycles 7:45 a.m. Two Rivers Skatepark 7:05 a.m. Shelby Bottoms Nature Center 7:30 a.m.

SLAYING THE AIR

2016 Air Guitar Southern Qualifier 8 p.m., Saturday, May 21, Foobar

Calling all imaginary axe players: The air guitar Southern qualifying round is finding its home in Nashville for the fifth year. Nashville Air Guitar and Nashville Burlesque are bringing this no-strings-attached show. While air pickers put on their acts for a chance to move on to national finals, the burlesque

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

beauties will be taking it off for theirs. You can expect to see a few string-free legends, such as international champs C-Diddy and Nordic Thunder. Enter the competition online or stop by for this one of a kind show — tickets are $15. All proceeds benefit Notes for Notes, a music-driven nonprofit that helps Boys and Girls Clubs equip and provide studios for community youth to explore the art of recording. Strap on those sightless six-strings. 2511 Gallatin Ave.

PINCH THE TAIL

East Nashville Crawfish Bash 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday, May 21, side lawn @ Bongo Java East

We like to pinch tails here in East Nashville — crustacean tails, that is. Palaver Records is hosting a crawfish boil in 5 Points, complete with kid-friendly activities, Yazoo brews, and plenty of heads to suck from Sehrt Seafood. Local tunes from ELEL, The Gills, The Jag, KiND, The Beech Benders, Twiggs, Whoa Dakota, and Glen Martin. This crawfishcracking bash goes all day, and it’s free to attend. Come on, mudbugs. 109 South 11th St.

CUT A RUG

An evening with The Moonlighters Big Band 5:30 p.m., Saturday, May 21, Amqui Station, Madison Hey, toots, want a dancehall night filled with throwbacks to yesteryear? The Moonlighters are a 20-piece jazz big band with a knack for playing all the iconic tunes from that era. You can expect to hear some tunes from the catalogs of Glenn Miller, Duke Ellington, and Benny Goodman, to name a few. Put on those dancing shoes and swing on over to Madison. $5 ticket donation. 303 Madison St.

WINING AND DINING

Nashville Wine and Food Festival 12-4 p.m., Saturday, May 21, Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park

Nashville is taking it to the Capitol steps for another wine and food festival. There will be winemakers from around the globe, with over 200 wines to taste. Some of Nashville’s own chefs will be pairing their best cuisines with all that vino. There will be plenty of wine to put color in your cheeks (and teeth), food to fill your belly, and music to please your ears. You’ll have the chance to indulge your mind, too, with talks and seminars from top winemakers throughout the day. The

EAST SIDE CALENDAR event will help raise funds for the Nashville Symphony. You can toast to that! 600 James Robertson Parkway EAST SIDE EDUTAINMENT Mr. Bond and the Science Guys Science Shows Locations and times vary Mr. Bond and his crew are here to remind you that science IS fun. The East Side has its very own Bill Nye of sorts. Mr. Bond is back again, touring around East Nasty pushing his own scientific agenda — he calls it “edutaining” –educating and entertaining. He and his “Science Guys” are hosting shows across the East Side and two science camps for those kids who can’t get enough of his wacky science shows. See the different locations for the performances below, plus information on the summer camps they’re offering to young Einsteins.

10 a.m., Saturday, May 21, Shelby Bottoms Nature Center 4 p.m., Wednesday, June 8, East Branch Library 4 p.m., Wednesday, June 15, East Branch Library Space Camp: June 20-24, Eastwood Christian Church Crazy Chemistry Camp: July 11-15, Eastwood Christian Church

EAT (EAST) FOR THE CAUSE

Yum!East 6-9 p.m. Thursday, June 2, Pavilion East

Yum!East has us salivating again. This year there will be over 30 of East Nashville’s culinary neighbors in one yard. Guests will have the chance to sample bites from all over the East Side in one spot, while enjoying some live music and sippin’ craft beer and wine. No pets or kids; they want your full attention so you don’t miss a single sample. Most importantly, proceeds from the event will benefit Fannie Battle Day Home for Children. Tickets cost $45, and it’s worth the bill. Admission will include an open bar, samples of food and drink from oodles of East Nashville businesses, and live music. You’ll even leave with a nifty souvenir glass. Buy your tickets on the Yum!East website. 1006 Fatherland St.

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ITS FUN TO STAY AT THE YMCA Maddox Y Urban Park Ribbon Cutting 11:30 a.m., Tuesday, June 7, Outdoor Park at Margaret Maddox YMCA

You know all that construction going on behind the Y? Well, the fruits of labor will finally arrive this summer when East Nashville’s Margaret Maddox YMCA opens its outdoor urban park. Join them for the ribbon cutting and be the first to blaze the new walking trails. 2624 Gallatin Pike.

WE ALL SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM Martha O’Bryan Center’s 31st Annual Miss Martha’s Ice Cream Crankin’, 3-5 p.m. Sunday, June 12, First Presbyterian Church

It is time for the sweetest fundraiser of the year, Miss Martha’s Ice Cream Crankin’, the annual ice cream social with Purity Dairy. This sweet soiree helps raise funds for all the work the Martha O’Bryan Center does throughout the year. With hundreds of gallons of the good stuff on site, you can double down on ice cream scoops through the afternoon. There will also be plenty of other fun activities for the kids once they have their fill. Individuals, churches, and groups are also encouraged to whip up their own batch of ice cream to enter in Purity’s contest. The flavor deemed “Best In Show” will be made by Purity next year. Don’t let your chance to see your own flavor on the shelf “melt” away. Discounted presale tickets can be purchased on the center’s website. 4815 Franklin Pike.

• UPCOMING

ART EXHIBITS East Side Art Stumble 6-10 p.m., second Saturday of every month, multiple East Nashville galleries

We don’t art crawl on the East Side, we art stumble. Every month, local galleries and studios will open their doors after hours to

609 LAFAYETTE ST. NASHVILLE, TN 37206 | 615.324.1010

UPCOMING SHOWS 5/7&8 An Intimate Solo / Acoustic Listening Performance by Citizen Cope opener Maeyin 5/8 Mother’s Day Brunch 5/9 Tweet 2nd show added 5/10 The James Hunter Six opener Nicole Atkins 5/11 Cracker 5/11 Victor Wooten ft. Dennis Chambers, Bob Franchescini, and Anthony Wellington 5/13 Emmylou Harris & Friends: A special engagement benefitting Bonaparte’s Retreat Special Guests: Sam Bush & John Randall SOLD OUT 5/15 Songs and stories featuring Art Alexakis of Everclear and Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the Richer 5/17 Snarky Puppy 2 shows 5/18 Joshua Davis from NBC’s The Voice 5/20 Emmylou Harris & Friends: A special engagement benefitting Bonaparte’s Retreat Special Guests: Pam Rose and Mary Ann Kennedy sold out 5/21 Emmylou Harris & Friends: A special engagement benefitting Bonaparte’s Retreat Special Guest: Rodney Crowell 5/22 Don Felder formerly of The Eagles An Evening At The Hotel California 5/23 Musicians Corner Benefit: Sierra Leonne’s Refugee All Stars performance and movie screening

wine events 5/11 Wine Class Wednesday: Oregon Wines 5/23 Cheese & Wine 101 with The Bloomy Rind 5/25 Summer Class Series: Identifying Wine Flaws and Faults

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR

showcase some of the fabulous work they have gracing their walls. Participating venues stretch across East Nashville — Gallery Luperca, Modern East Gallery, Red Arrow Gallery, Sawtooth Printshop, and Main Street Gallery, to name a few. You can expect to see a diverse, eclectic mix of art, affording the opportunity to meet local artists and support their work. Local retail stores are stumbling in as well, with some businesses participating in a “happy hour” from 5-7 p.m., offering discounted prices on their merchandise to fellow stumblers. Be sure to check out the happy hour deals in The Idea Hatchery.

Main Street Gallery 625 Main St, Nashville

• S EHV EENLT SB&YC LPA SAS ERS K Story-Craft-Activity: Creeping and Crawling 12-1 p.m., Friday, May 13 All ages, registration required

Trail Days!

11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Saturday, May 14 All ages, Registration required

Mr. Bond and the Science Guys

Birds in the Airport performance and art showing

10-11 a.m., Saturday, May 21 All ages, registration required

Red Arrow Art Gallery

2-3 p.m., Saturday, May 21 All ages, registration required

7:30 p.m., Saturday, March 19

Wildflower Walk

919 Gallatin Ave., Suite 4

Mark Stockton (Chicago), Amy Herzel (Roanoke, Va.), and Casey Promise (Nashville) “PLUMBAGO” May 14-June 6

Tara Walters

June 11-July 3

Wine & Design

5:30-8:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 24 and June 21

Modern East Gallery

Attack of the Aerial Insectivores!

7:30-8:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 25 All ages, registration required

Body Works

9:30-10:30 a.m., Saturday, May 28 Ages 18+, registration required

Picking and Planting: Music and Seed Swap!

1006 Fatherland St. #203

1-3 p.m., Saturday, May 28 All ages, registration required

Through end of May

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May 6-28

RECURRING

Encore showing of Beth Gwinn’s “For the Love of Music and Photography, 70s Rock and Roll” Wanderlust Imagery’s “Blue Sphere-Female Form and the Practice of Yoga” Nina Covington’s “Movement”

Opening reception 6-9 p.m., Saturday, June 11

Gallery Luperca

604 Gallatin Ave. #212

Randy Toy and Kate Maderia “Crafted Narratives” Saturday, May 14-Saturday, June 11

Pop Up Exhibit, Coop Gallery Artists Saturday, May 7, 6-9 p.m.

Caitlyn Stolley (of Lily Guilder Design) Fashion Show Thursday, June 16 – details to come Fashion show will be a ticketed event

Wine & Design

5:30-8:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 24 and June 21

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TELL ME A STORY

East Side Storytellin’ 7 p.m., the first and third Tuesdays, The Post

Looking for something to get your creative juices flowing? They’ve partnered with WAMB radio to present an all-out affair with book readings, musical performances, and author/ musician interviews in just one evening. If you want some adult beverages, feel free to BYOB. Check the website to see who the guests of honor will be for each performance. The event is free, but you may want to reserve a spot by calling East Side Story ahead of time. 1701 Fatherland St. Suite A, 615.915.1808

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR

ANSWER ME THIS

Trivia Time! 8 p.m., each week, 3 Crow Bar, Edley’s East, Drifter’s, Edgefield, Lipstick Lounge

East Siders, if you’re one of the sharper tools in the shed (or not, it’s no matter to us), stop by one of the East Side locales to test your wits at trivia. They play a few rounds, with different categories for each question.There might even be some prizes for top scoring teams, but remember: Nobody likes a sore loser. Monday at Drifter’s Tuesday at Edley’s BBQ East, Edgefield Sports Bar and Grill, and Lipstick Lounge (7:30 p.m.) Thursday at 3 Crow Bar

laugh, check it out. Five bucks gets you in the door. They usually have some music planned for post-laughs, so stick around to see the bands. 2412 Gallatin Ave.

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BRING IT TO THE TABLE

Community Hour at Lockeland Table 4-6 p.m., Monday through Friday, Lockeland Table Lockeland Table is cooking up family-friendly afternoons to help you break out of the house or away from that desk for a couple of hours.

SING US A SONG

M.A.S.S. (Mutual Admiration Society of Songwriters) 7-10 p.m., every other Sunday, Mad Donna’s

Join Mad Donna’s for their night dedicated to all you songwriters out there (which is most of Nashville, right?). The first half of the night is dedicated to a singer-songwriter set, with an open mic at the end of the night. Check out the sweet drink specials, too. 1313 Woodland St.

HIP-HOP AT THE SPOT The Boom Bap 9 p.m., fourth Sunday of every month, The 5 Spot

Once a month, The 5 Spot brings the beats and you bring the moves. Think of it as a hip-hop roundtable. A mess of DJs — resident hosts and guests — spin their favorite tracks, rotating throughout the night. Let their records bring the ruckus to you. This soiree was so popular it’s spread to other cities, but you can catch it where it started here in East Nashville. 1006 Forrest Ave., 615.650.9333

EAST ROOM HAS JOKES Spiffy Squirrel Sundays 6 p.m., Sundays, The East Room

The East Room is making a name for itself in Nashville’s comedy scene in part through Spiffy Squirrel Sundays, started up by The East Room head honcho Ben Jones through NashvilleStandUp.com. Hosted by local comedian Chad Riden, the shows bring in an array of national and local funny guys and gals, and it’s quickly become one of the best places in town for up-and-coming comics to flex their funny bones. If you’re looking for a May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

EAST SIDE CALENDAR Throughout the week, they host a community happy hour that includes a special snack and drink menu, as well as a menu just for the kiddies. A portion of all proceeds benefits Lockeland Design Center PTO, so you can feel good about giving back to your neighborhood while schmoozing with your fellow East Nashvillians. 1520 Woodland St., 615.228.4864

SHAKE A LEG

Keep On Movin’ 10 p.m. until close, Mondays, The 5 Spot

For those looking to hit the dance floor on Monday nights, The 5 Spot’s “Keep on Movin’” dance party is the place to be. This shindig keeps it real with old-school soul, funk, and R&B. Don’t worry, you won’t hear Ke$ha — although you might see her — and you can leave your

Apple Bottom jeans at home. If you have two left feet, then snag a seat at the bar. They have two-for-one drink specials, so you can use the money you save on a cover to fill your cup. 1006 Forrest Ave., 615-650-9333

RINC, Y’ALL

Scott-Ellis School of Irish Dance 4:30-5 p.m., ages 3-6, and 5-5:45 p.m., ages 7 & up, Mondays, Eastwood Christian Church Fellowship Hall You’re never too young — or too old — to kick out the Gaelic jams with some Irish Step dancing. No experience, or partner, required. Just you, some enthusiasm, and a heart of gold will have you dancing in the clover before you can say “leprechaun.” 1601 Eastland Ave., 615.300.4388

JAZZY BOTTOM FOR YOUR BUCK East Nashville Jazz Jam 7-9:30 p.m., Tuesdays, Fat Bottom Brewery

Q: What’s even better than cheap craft beer and a tasty meal? A: Cheap craft beer, a tasty meal, and a jazz jam. Fat Bottom Brewery offers their $10 pint and entrée special accompanied by a jazz jam hosted by local drummer Nicholas Wiles. It’s a chance to meet some other jazz cats and play your poison. Peruse their menu and beer garden and pick a brew. 900 Main St.

DRAG B-I-N-G-O WAS HER NAME-O Drag Bingo 8-11 p.m., Tuesdays, Mad Donna’s

Drop by Mad Donna’s Loft for the rotating cast of Drag Bingo-callin’ queens. Each week, they’ll have prizes for the first to get to B-I-N-G-O, plus drink specials. They’re calling your name — and possibly your number/letter combo. 1313 Woodland St.

NO LAUGH TRACK NEEDED Ultimate Comedy Show by Corporate Juggernaut 8:30 p.m., Tuesdays, The East Room

Local jokesters have taken up residency in The East Room for Corporate Juggernaut, a weekly series of open-mic comedy shows put on by Gary Fletcher, Jane Borden, and Brandon Jazz. Brad Edwards is your host and his backing 86

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR

band is The Grey Grays. Doors and sign-up are at 8 p.m. Help support Nashville’s growing comedy scene. 2412 Gallatin Ave.

GONE IN 60 SECONDS

60 Seconds to Show 9 p.m., third Wednesday of every month, The 5 Spot

FLYING STAND-UP

see a fresh lineup each month full of local and national funny dudes and dudettes. Laughs with just a $5 price tag. 1313 Woodland Ave.

Another evening of stand-up takes off the third Wednesday of every month, hosted by local comedian Mary Jay Berger. You can expect to

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Flying with Jaybird 7:30 p.m., third Wednesday of every month,Mad Donna’s

You can drop in at the Spot pretty much any night and expect to catch some live music. This evening is no different. Another monthly staple for you music lovers, “60 Seconds to Show” features David Newbould & The Stowaways hosting the evening and backing friends, plus performances from other acts each month. You can typically expect 3 bands bringing some Americana, folk, and rock sounds. You can catch a different earful each installment. Just $5. 1006 Forrest Ave.

SPINNING SMALL BATCHES

Small Batch Wednesday and Vinyl Night 6-9 p.m., Wednesdays, Fat Bottom Brewery

Fat Bottom has plenty of things happening on Wednesday nights — reason enough to move your own bottom over there. Each Wednesday they have food specials and a small batch brew release. They’re called small batch for a reason, so get there early enough to sip one. They’ll also have special guest DJs every week spinning their own vinyl, but you can even bring your own records if you’ve got a special song request. It’s an excellent way to get through hump day. 900 Main St.

TOAST TO MOTHER EARTH

East Nashville Green Drinks 6-9 p.m., third Wednesday of every month, Village Pub & Beer Garden

Tired of talking sports and gossip every night out? Village Pub has something in mind for the greener East Nashvillian. Once a month, they host an evening for environmentalists to sit down for a drink and discuss ideas for a more sustainable future. Think about it like this: You’ll be saving the planet, one drink at a time. 1308 McGavock Pike, 615.942.5880

• May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

EAST SIDE CALENDAR

ART IS FOR EVERYONE John Cannon Fine Art classes 6-8 p.m., Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2-4 p.m., Saturdays, The Idea Hatchery

If you’ve been filling in coloring-book pages for years, but you’re too intimidated to put actual paint to canvas, it might be time to give it a try. Local artist John Cannon teaches intimate art classes at The Idea Hatchery, and the small class size keeps the sessions low-pressure and allows for some one-on-one instruction. If you’re feeling like you could be the next Matisse with a little guidance, sign yourself up. 1108-C Woodland St., 615.496.1259

WALK, EAT, REPEAT Walk Eat Nashville 1:30-4:30 p.m., Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Fridays, 5 Points

What better way to indulge in the plethora of East Nashville eateries than a walking tour through the tastiest stops? Walk Eat Nashville tours stroll through East Nashville, kicking off in 5 Points, with six tasting stops over three hours. You will walk about 1.5 miles, so you’ll burn some of those calories you’re consuming in the process. This tour offers the chance to interact with the people and places crafting Nashville’s culinary scene. You even get a little history lesson along the way, learning about landmarks and lore on the East Side. Sign up for your tour online.

PALAVER RECORDS POW WOW Palaver Thursday Showcase 9 p.m., Thursdays, fooBAR Too

Looking to hear some fresh new tunes without paying a pretty penny to do it? Head over to fooBAR on Thursday nights — East Nastybased record label Palaver Records hosts a weekly showcase to promote both local and traveling acts. It gives them a chance to scout performers, bands an opportunity to promote themselves, and music lovers a cheap show to catch during the week (only $5 at the door). There’s an array of different genres from week to week, and the beer always flows easy at foo Too with $3 Yazoo drafts. 2511 Gallatin Road

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HONESTLY, OFFICER ...

East Nashville Crime Prevention Meeting 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Thursdays, Beyond the Edge

Join your neighbors to talk about crime stats, trends, and various other issues with East Precinct commander David Imhof and head of investigation Lt. Greg Blair. If you are new to the East Side, get up to speed on criminal activity in the area. If you are a recent victim of crime, they want to hear your story.

ROCKIN’ AT THE SPOT

Tim Carroll’s Friday Night Happy Hour 6-8:30, Fridays, 5 Spot

Your local watering hole has rocker Tim Carroll’s band playing their way through happy hour every Friday. It’s a great Spot to grab a beer and hear some tunes to kick off the weekend — drinks are discounted and the music is free. 1006 Forrest Ave., 615.650.9333

SHAKE YO’ FOOBAR Sparkle City 10 p.m., Friday, fooBAR

Foo’s best dance party with their freshest DJs happens every Friday night. Spinmasters David Bermudez and Jonas Stein drop the needle on vinyl all night with the numbers that’ll make you shake what ’yer mama gave you. 2511 Gallatin Road

CAN’T FORCE A DANCE PARTY

Queer Dance Party 9 p.m. to 3 a.m., third Friday of every month, The 5 Spot

On any given month, the QDP is a mixed bag of fashionably clad attendees (some in the occasional costume) dancing till they can’t dance no mo’ at The 5 Spot, which was coincidentally named the second-best place to dance in Nashville. Help pack out the cozy club, shake a leg, slurp down some of the drink specials, and let your true colors show. 1006 Forrest Ave.

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR

THERE’S A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING … First Time Stories 7-10 p.m., first Friday of every month, Actor’s Bridge Studio

We all have our firsts, some better than others. Whether it’s a story about that first prom night when you weren’t crowned king or queen, your first concert, or maybe that first kiss, these stories are the stuff of the stage. Actors Bridge hosts an open mic night for which such soliloquies are made. They call it “storytelling karaoke,” and they only ask that you tell it straight from the heart in less than five minutes. Admission is $5 (bring a few extra bucks for the cash bar). 4304 Charlotte Ave.

CALL IT DIVINE SONGWRITING

Divine Art Café’s Songwriter’s Round in the Fireplace & Brunch 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturdays, Divine Art Café

Every Saturday gather round the fire with the toffee gurus at Divine Art Café. The Café serves up their brunch, smoothies, coffee, AND toffee for the afternoon while East Nashville songwriter David Llewellyn hosts special musical guests each week. Take your brunch with a side of music. 604 Gallatin Ave., Suite 109

SAY YES TO IMPROV Yes and Improv 7 p.m., second Saturday of every month, Mad Donna’s

The crew of Yes and Improv are sticking to their guns about true improv. They go into each performance blindly, only knowing what stage their supposed to show up on. Their set consists of short form games that last 4-5 minutes, which are fueled entirely by audience suggestions. We think that opens the door to some pretty hilarious possibilities. Show up early for a good seat and throw back some of those 2-4-1’s. 1313 Woodland St.

POETS WHO KNOW IT Poetry in the Brew 5:30 p.m. Second Saturday of every month, Portland Brew

Wordsmiths out there: East Nashville’s own open mic poetry night goes down at Portland Brew once a month. A poet is featured every

month, with a chance to promote their work and read for 15 minutes — all the other poets get five minutes live. Arrive early because this poetry powwow fills up fast and there is limited seating. Sign-up for the open mic begins at 5:30 p.m., with reading starting at 6. 1921 Eastland Ave.

CYCLE OF LIFE

Cycle Nashville 6 p.m., first Saturday of every month, Eastside Cycles

Let the good times roll … or pedal. Cycle Nashville is a meet up for East Side pedal pushers that love to ride and want to meet other cyclists. You’ll take a laid-back romp through the city. All riders welcome — expect things to move at a slow pace with good tunes and good peeps. If you don’t have wheels of your own, you can rent some right there in 5 Points from B Cycle. After a leisurely ride, everyone will head back to 5 Points to grab dinner and drinks. Pedal on. 103 S. 11th St.

NEIGHBORHOOD MEETINGS & EVENTS Lockeland Springs Neighborhood Association

6:30 p.m., second Monday of each month Quarterly meetings are held at Mad Donna’s Locations vary, visit lockelandsprings.com for more information.

Shelby Hills

Neighborhood Association 6:30 p.m., third Monday of every odd numbered month, Shelby Community Center 401 S. 20th St. shelbyhills.org

Maxwell Heights Neighborhood Association

6 p.m., second Monday of every month, Metro Police East Precinct 936 E. Trinity Lane May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR

Eastwood Neighbors

6:30 p.m., second Tuesday of every month, Eastwood Christian Church 1601 Eastland Ave. eastwoodneighbors.org

Greenwood Neighborhood Association

Inglewood Neighborhood Association

7 p.m., first Thursday of every month, Isaac Litton Alumni Center 4500 Gallatin Road inglewoodrna.org

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McFerrin Neighborhood Association

6:30 p.m., first Thursday of every month, McFerrin Park Community Center 301 Berry St.

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6 p.m., second Tuesday of every month, House on the Hill 909 Manila St. greenwoodneighbors.org

Highland Heights Neighborhood Association 6 p.m., third Thursday of every month Kipp Academy 123 Douglas Ave.

East Nashville Caucus

6 p.m., quarterly meetings on Wednesday July 6, Oct. 5 Metro Police East Precinct The East Nashville Caucus provides a public forum for East Nashville community leaders, representatives, council members, and neighbors. 936 E. Trinity Lane

Chamber East

8:15-9:30 a.m., first Wednesday of every month, location changes monthly The Chamber East meets every month for a networking coffee to discuss community updates and how to grow and improve the East Nashville area. nashvillechamber.com/calendar

East Hill Neighborhood Association

6:30 p.m., second Wednesday of every month, Metro Police East Precinct 936 E. Trinity Lane

Cleveland Park Neighborhood Association

6:30 p.m., second Thursday of every month, Cleveland Park Community Center 610 N. Sixth St, facebook.com/groups/ClevelandPark

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR

Rosebank Neighbors

6:30 p.m., third Thursday of every month, Memorial Lutheran Church 1211 Riverside Drive

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Dickerson Road Merchants Association

4 p.m., last Thursday of every month, Metro Police East Precinct 936 E. Trinity Lane dickersonroadmerchants.com

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HENMA

6-8 p.m., second month of every quarter, locations and days vary HENMA is a cooperative formed among East Nashville business owners to promote collaboration with neighborhood associations and city government. Check the association’s website to learn about the organization and where meetings will be held. eastnashville.org

MOMS Club of East Nashville

10 a.m., first Friday of every month, location varies by group MOMS (Moms Offering Moms Support) Club is an international organization of mothers with three branches in the East Nashville area. It provides a support network for mothers to connect with other EN mothers. The meetings are open to all mothers in the designated area. Meetings host speakers, cover regular business items of the organization including upcoming service initiatives and activities, and also allow women to discuss the ins and outs, ups and downs of being a mother. Check their website for the MOMS group in your area. momsclubeast.blogspot.com

Better together.

ﬁn. • Would you like to have something included in our East Side Calendar? Please let us know — we’d love to hear from you. Reach out to us at calendar@theeastnashvillian.com Avenue and Pinnacle will soon be joining forces, bringing together two local banks recognized as Top Five “Best Banks To Work For” in the country by American Banker magazine. Separately, we’ve spent years serving our clients, empowering our people, and adding value and growth to our community. Now we’re bringing Nashville the best of both banks, blending the knowledge of our past experiences with the possibilities of our future. And that’s a powerful combination. We hope to see you there.

Locations in Cool Springs, Cummins Station, West End, and Green Hills EQUAL HOUSING LENDER

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Early Voting: July 15-July 30 Election Day: August 4

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Miranda Christy for School Board, J. David Wicker, Treasurer

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Venus in Exile CONTINUED FROM 41

when she had Elizabeth, and uterine cancer was discovered during the pregnancy. The two sibs who were still at home were girls 11 and 13 years older. “Daddy was a roaring alcoholic, and to Mama, I was this miracle child sent to heal my father. I was a princess, but the King was a monster and if everything wasn’t OK, then I was failing,” she recalls of her earliest years. “It was a very contradictory message: be strong, be brave, please us. Or be full of yourself, but don’t let us down.” Cook started singing at a young age in the kind of busted honky-tonks that populated outlying redneck communities around central Florida. Her mother wrote her the charming “Does My Daddy Love the Bottle More Than Me?” A cute kid in a grownup world, she watched her protectors circle the drain. “They used me,” she marvels, hindsight being 20/20. “I was their country music fix. I didn’t know. So much of music was to keep my daddy sober. My job was to keep everything OK. We didn’t sweep things under the rug, mind you, so much that people didn’t see it, but more so we didn’t have to look at it.”

Her father went into the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary and came out richer than he started his sentence; largely by working in the store and running a numbers game on the price of eggs and butter. Beyond that ingenuity, AFP taught their men welding so “they could go out and build more prisons.” That honest skill gave her father a reason to exist, and demonstrated a truth about the valedictorian’s bloodline. “He could barely write his name,” she says. “It’d be so much pressure, so hard; he’d press down on that pencil! But he designed equipment that had never been engineered before. He came up with hydraulics that didn’t exist.” He also welded stills so legendary that Cook’s actually met the son of a prison guard who knows where one of her father’s stills is. “He made stills for the prison management,” she says. “There’s pictures of him driving the warden’s cars, in a band, and going outside.” As Elizabeth came into her own, the family wasn’t quite sure what they thought about the maverick songwriter and her off-kilter country. When she played her mother “El Camino,” a song about getting freaky with an older dude in a janky car, her response →

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“Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship. If you worship money and things, if they are where you tap real meaning in life, then you will never have enough, never feel you have enough. Worship your body, beauty, and sexual allure, and you will always feel ugly. Worship your intellect, being seen as smart, you will end up feeling stupid, a fraud, always on the verge of being found out." —David Foster Wallace— We agree with David Foster Wallace. Everybody worships….something. Why? Because we are hard wired for worship and we have discovered that Christ is the only Object of our worship that really satisfies the longing in all of us. Sunday Mornings at 10:30 South Inglewood Community Center Childcare Provided midtownfellowship.org

THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM May | June 2016

Venus in Exile was, “Oh, Elizabeth! REALLY?” “El Camino” was nominated for Song of the Year in 2014 by the Americana Music Association. For the couple whose done-good daughter was a home brew scandal, it was only a matter of time. Cook learned pride in who she is, and saw a community 30 miles south of Gainesville respond. “We were poor, and we were trashy,” she laughs, unrepentant. “But we were gonna be beloved in this city anyway. If Daddy was on a drunk, she’d call City Hall — and they’d figure out how to bring him home.”

supersede style, you know? To do that, I can’t keep myself handcuffed to a genre. I’d rather be honest than be consistent.” With “Straight Jacket Love” featuring serious mountain harmony from Patty Loveless, even the hardest country bristles with rock intensity. Blind emailing the Country Music Association Female Vocalist and Album of

the Year winner, Cook sent her three songs and said, “If you hear anything you’d wanna sing on ...” Loveless came back, drilling down on “Straight Jacket Love.” Cook thinks, “Maybe it felt like some kind of dark Appalachia, but Patty went right for it. She has such an authentic texture and power when she →

It does feel like it’s raining fire But that don’t make me or you a liar Let’s part the waters, let’s walk the seas Let’s laugh in the face of modern disease — “Exodus of Venus”

ith the ghosts of her family receding, her marriage to collaborator Tim Carroll crumbled, and life after rehab unsteady, Cook turned to music. She also turned to guitarist Dexter Green, who produced Collective Soul’s “Better Now” as a child, progressed to high-dollar jingle work and has produced a myriad of indie acts. The two met floating through the East Nashville scene. He eventually recorded two Townes Van Zandt songs — “Tecumseh Valley” and “Pancho + Lefty” — on Cook and Jason Isbell as a gift for longtime supporter David Letterman. One thing, as they say, led to another. “He has a way of translating vibe into tone,” Cook begins, addressing his production acumen. “Also, he’s into curating my voice and applying it to very different arrangements. That all made me dig deeper lyrically, ’cause the music isn’t trite. You have to be heavy when the arrangements and guitars sound like this, because the cute tricks won’t work.” Bringing in a core band of drummer Matt Chamberlain and bassist Willie Weeks meant deep pockets, precise high hat work that hit hard, something for Cook’s vinegar ’n’ fire voice to bounce off of. Add Ralph Lofton’s steamy B3 and Jesse Aycock’s lap steel, and you had the recipe for combustion — all lashed together by Green’s live wire guitar parts. It was a whole new world, a whole new sound. Emerging from the dark, Cook found herself immersed in a different kind of sonic template. She loved it. “I’ve gotten these tweets saying, ‘You’re keeping it country’,” she says. “And I’m like, ‘Well, no. I’m not keeping it anything but real and what it needs to be.’ “I aspire to be to more than clever or dark or poignant,” she continues. “I want to May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

Venus in Exile sings. She’s showing me what I’m trying to do.” Raw-nerve, white soul singing. Unadorned, unexamined — open your heart and go. Loveless has excelled at smearing the lines between bluegrass, rock, and hard country. Cook steps into that light on Exodus and shivers off much of that past. “We’re going from Little Feat to R.E.M,

then put Appalachian harmonies on it,” she says. “All these funky grooves with dark guitars. That’s what this record is.” “Heroin Addict Sister” returns in the shuffling “Methadone Blues,” while “Cutting Diamonds” slinks and stop-times as it captures romantic reorganization, and “Orange Blossom Trail” celebrates life on the sketchy side. Growing up near the

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undeveloped outskirts of Orlando, where the Orange Blossom Trail is a cavalcade of hookers, swap meets, immigrants, and grifters, Cook learned that topography inside out. “That road is to Orlando as Dickerson Pike is to Nashville, and the East Nashville I moved to when we’d all be at the Family Wash, eating our Shepherd’s Pie between shootings,” she says. “Truth is: I’m more comfortable there, in those kinds of places. Living on the shady side, with shady people, the comfort level I have in those environments suits me.” Like a cat stretching, there is pleasure in this report. There is also the acceptance of who she is, no matter how many fancy dresses or big TV shows she does. That acceptance speaks to the real core of Exodus, an almost existential kick-out-the-jams truth that reflects the realignment. “That’s one theme: the rebuttal against judgment,” she explains. “Telling people, ‘You know I’m OK here. I know what it’s like, and I like it.’ There’s a real liberation to not trying to be the good girl. It brought back some joy, and I almost care more or maybe differently about this record because of it.” She pauses as the pieces fall together. Some of this wasn’t planned out beforehand, but standing with some distance, certain truths are becoming self-evident. With a laugh, she proclaims, “I’ve been in some Courtney Love situations, but I’m deserving my respect. And I’m saying all this on two feet solidly planted on the ground. “This record, these songs were a necessity. It’s the only power, the only tool, the only weapon I have. I had to blow (what was) up to make it my own. The force of Dexter firing up: He’s a lot of the inspiration at a time when I was stunned like a fly that’s been swatted by a screen door smacking into it. “I hope these songs are emboldening people who’re down. I hope it makes them feel less alone, supported; maybe even something to push off the bottom. To me, it’s sorta like a Pledge of Allegiance for the bad girls, those homecoming queens who got caught in a scandal. “I was always the good girl who got away with more than she should. The songs I’m known for, I can’t really sing on the Opry — but they invite me all the time. I get away with saying stuff on the radio to a demo who’s rigid and can get away with it — and I don’t know why. I’m fortunate. But it catches up. “That’s the thing (about this record). And I love that: get out there and make mistakes and don’t apologize. You know, I’m not ashamed! This has happened, and I’ll tell you all about it.”

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Raising the Bar CONTINUED FROM 69

the once-thriving corner had deteriorated into a neighborhood eyesore. “There was an abandoned meat warehouse, a carburetor shop, and a beer store, along with a laundromat across the street where drug deals would go down,” Sanders says. “All the property owners were absentee landlords, and they just wanted the rent money. They didn’t really care about what happened in the neighborhood.” As Sanders acquired property, the transformation began. First up was the construction of the 37206 Building on the northwest corner of the intersection. Completed in 2006, the three-story building combined 20 residential units with seven retail spaces. That was followed by the Sanders’ building at 1100 Fatherland that combined two restaurant spaces with three retail units. “We’re in a historic overlay and a redevelopment district, so it was very important that the new construction at the 37206 Building match the character of the neighborhood,” Sanders says. “In the case of 1100 Fatherland, there was an existing building, but the only part worth saving was the front façade and the brick wall on the side. Everything else was collapsed and much of the wood was infested with termites.” With three corners occupied by businesses, Sanders turned his attention to the south side of Fatherland between 11th and 10th streets. After renovating the corner building, Sanders moved down the street to create the Shoppes on Fatherland — an expansion of the concept behind another East Nashville development success story. “We had worked with Bret MacFadyen on his business incubator, The Idea Hatchery, on Woodland Street,” he explains. “We looked at a couple of spots where we could do something similar. Then I realized it would be easy to do right here on Fatherland.” Completed in 2012, the Shoppes on Fatherland is host to 20 small retail spaces, along with Pavilion EAST, a 3,200-squarefoot, open-air event space, located immediately behind the development. The next step was the recently completed 8,000 square feet of retail/office space located on the corner of 10th and Fatherland. “We’ve had a lot of success stories,” Sanders says. “Two of my retail shops at 1100 Fatherland, NancyBGoods and Thrive, moved from the Shoppes on Fatherland into the larger spaces they’re in now. We had five of our tenants that were in the Shoppes move to the new locations at 10th and Fatherland because they needed bigger spaces. I’ve had other Shoppes renters move out to larger spaces elsewhere, and we’ve been able to quickly fill their old spots — starting the process over again with

new businesses.” In addition to the commercial spaces, Sanders also developed the 20 condo units that compose the MC3 development on the corner of 11th and Russell Street. In slightly over a decade, the changes Sanders has helped bring

to the neighborhood are breathtaking. “We’ve brought in 60 families and about 45 businesses into the neighborhood,” he says. “We’ve tried to build something that would appeal to different people — houses for families, one- or two-bedroom condos for younger

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Raising the Bar people, and then a little more expensive and upscale housing. The retail businesses are thriving, and there’s definitely a demand for more small office space.”

ulfilling that demand for East Side office space is a goal that Christian Paro has focused on for the last six years. A native New Yorker, Paro worked in park management for the New York municipal government for several years before moving to Nashville in the summer of 2005 to enter real estate investment. “A friend of mine from college and I wanted to start new careers,” Paro says. “Like everyone at that time, we were trying to flip houses. We didn’t do too well. The only house we tried to flip is one on Boscobel that I’m still living in — 10 and a half years later. But that turned out to be a good thing, since I love my house.” Parting amicably with his business partner, Paro moved his focus to buying residential property at bargain prices, making repairs and utilizing them for rental income. In 2008, he made the jump to commercial real estate with the purchase of the building at 1701 Fatherland that would become home to The Post East coffee shop in the heart of Lockeland Springs. His experience of building out property for commercial tenants soon combined with a hunch he had about the next boom for East Nashville. “I was riding my bike down Main Street,” Paro says, “looking at the skyline and thinking how East Nashville is bordered on the east by Shelby Park. My experience with the New York City Parks Department taught me that people like living in areas with easy access to parks. I had a gut feeling that Main Street would become an important corridor and destination, possibly even overtaking 5 Points. Not long after that, I asked my real estate agent if he could find me a commercial property on Main to renovate.” The brick office building at 625 Main St. was just what Paro wanted. Paro bought the building in late 2010 and began reworking it into a Main Street mini-kingdom for local start-ups. “I didn’t have a firm vision at first,” Paro says. “It just evolved organically. My realtor suggested that I rent out to small businesses since the building was already divided into small office spaces, and offer short-term leases. At first I only advertised on the East Nashville listserve and put flyers in the local coffee shops. I wanted to find people with small businesses who were ready to get out of their spare bedroom and into a more professional office space, and it worked.” Paro’s next acquisition was the 43,000-square-foot Hardaway Construction building, his next door neighbor on Main May | June 2016 THEEASTNASHVILLIAN.COM

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Raising the Bar Street. Purchasing the property in December 2012, Paro undertook a $1.5 million renovation on the building, transforming it into an expansion of the model he had followed with its smaller neighbor. “I call what we’ve created here an incidental business incubator,” Paro says. “Because of the low cost and our open door policy among tenants, our businesses often end up either doing

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business with each other or getting the bulk of their referrals from their neighbors.” Renamed the “Center 615,” the building’s tenants include attorneys, stock traders, marketing firms, real estate brokers, social media marketing firms, event planners, and more. The facilities include shared meeting rooms, break rooms, and a fitness area. Event spaces are available to both tenants and outside parties.

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A solitary business person can start with a seat at a coworking table, move up to various size desks in common areas, and eventually into a private office. “The idea is that as you progress and grow your business, you can stay within the community,” Paro says. Paro acquired the third portion of Center 615, 626 Main St., in April 2014. At first, his main interest was purely aesthetic. “The building across the street was looking worse and worse.” Paro says. “It was in a direct line of sight from my office, and I just got tired of looking at it every day. My realtor approached the owner, and we finally agreed on a price. It was in rough shape on the inside. Based on the way Main Street was progressing, I figured I’d be able to attract a restaurant tenant. It was soon after we closed on the property that I started talking to the Family Wash.” Moving into the newly renovated space in August 2015, the beloved East Side watering hole and live music venue has had a dramatic effect on the look, culture, and nightlife along Main Street. For Paro, it’s a fulfillment of the vision he experienced while riding his bike down Main Street just six years ago. “I had a complete selfish interest in changing the landscape of Main Street because I live four blocks away,” Paro says. “I envisioned this whole corridor from Fifth to 5 Points being a very pedestrian-friendly, tree-lined urban thoroughfare, hopefully with a mass transit artery, and I felt it was my responsibility to get it started in that direction. Being here every day and talking with people who are growing small businesses is pretty exciting. Currently we’re at 57,000 square feet with all three buildings and that’s home to about 60 small local businesses. I’m very proud of that.” Like many of his fellow East Side-based commercial developers, Paro understands that transforming a neighborhood and city is a process of building on a foundation of history, character, and culture. It’s a viewpoint that requires respect for the past, pragmatism for the present, and faith in the future. When the uniquely American mix of commerce and opportunity is applied in equal portions, it’s a path for lasting success and pride in one’s accomplishments as opposed to the fleeting and ultimately shallow thrill of short-term profits. “I like to think one reason I’ve been successful is that I’ve never been greedy,” Paro says. “I’ve priced my properties where they are accessible. At 626 Main, I could have built more on the property beside it, but instead the Family Wash has 13 dedicated parking spaces. It’s not a lot, but that is 13 cars that don’t have to park on the street. When you leave a little bit of room to win, then everybody wins.”

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Wild Feathers in the Wind CONTINUED FROM 75

has a terseness that underscores the grit of a record that captures the real tides and emotions of a band trying to find its place in the world. From the drugs, loss, rootlessness, and seeking things to fill the void of road life, the songs are interjected with the musical euphoria the band finds playing live. Young understands the juxtaposition of the buoyant melodies and thick harmonies with the tales the songs contain. Laughing, he admits, “The overall theme is desperation and trying to get somewhere you think you belong — whether it’s physically, mentally, spiritually. “The majority of us have family back home, wives, girlfriends, friends. The rock & roll life is great — but you can start to feel real isolated. It’s a strange sensation, not fame, but the idea that people know you because they’ve listened to the songs, but don’t know you.” There is also the notion of drugs, which inform the record with an honesty not always copped to. Focused on success, living the life, but not drowning in it, The Wild Feathers have seen enough — and avoid specificity at all costs when discussing songs like the silkenly unrepentant “Don’t Ask Me to Change,” the undulating bass-driven “Happy Again,” or the 8-minute power jam “Good-Bye Song” that opens “Stolen marijuana and some pain pills in a hotel room/ Talking to myself ’cause I can’t talk to you.” There’s no blood on these tracks, just cleareyed reporting from the scene. As Burns concedes, “(‘Happy’) is all about drug addiction and chasing the high. But it’s whatever you’re addicted to: a housewife drinking martinis at 4, taking her Xanax, or someone who can’t stop social media, can’t get out and live their life. It’s about escape. “As for us, we’re all pretty focused on the music; we’re not a rock & roll cliché yet. But every one of us has had parents or close friends go through it. ... It’s real to us, to people around us, to everybody on some level. I think it’s something we should be talking about more in this country, instead of swept under the rug.” Burns pauses, weighing his word. The Wild Feathers don’t want to preach, don’t wanna act like they have all the answers — or are some kind of straight-edge band. “We’re not like Motley Crue, drinking Jack Daniel’s onstage and glorifying that lifestyle. ‘She Talks to Angels’ was about heroin addiction, which I didn’t get, but the melody and energy pulled me in.”

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f they’re addicted to anything, it’s music. After incessant touring, the band retired to Muscle Shoals, Ala., then Barcelona

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— not to vacation, but to immerse in the history of those places and write. Chasing their music is like chasing the dragon, wherever it might lead.

“I want my songs and our songs to be around forever,” Young says. “I want someone to feel something, like songs have made me feel. We can write about sunshine and going to parties and picking up chicks, but it’s very empty and shallow — and no one cares. “When it comes to real life, that’s where it matters. Everyone knows, is related or dealt with addiction or a serious medical issue or depression — that’s real life shit. It’s what people need to hear (to know they’re not alone).” Beyond the promise of that elusive place to return to — which turns the album with “Leave The Lights On,” “On My Way,” and “Into The Sun” — there is also the spectre of Gram Parsons. Music geeks to the core, when the three primary writers found themselves in Los Angeles on Parsons’ birthday, there was only one place to celebrate: Joshua Tree. Young marvels, remembering, “I called (the Joshua Tree Inn) and asked, ‘Is Room No. 8 taken?’ They said, ‘No,’ and I was like ‘You’re serious?’ I gave them my credit card, and we were on our way.” Pilgrims, they were seeking something beyond the room where the chief architect of the real merge between hillbilly country, hard bluegrass, and Keith Richards’ rock & roll breathed his last. What they found — beyond a room that didn’t particularly stand out — was “Good Bye Song,” which marks Lonely’s climax. “That cosmic California country sound and a guy who burned out too soon,” Burns says. “You could feel the energy. We wrote the song in like 15 minutes. No one was trying, didn’t want to put too fine a point on it — or look it in the eye.” And when it came time to record, the spirit boiled over. Steel guitar, finger-picked acoustic, and that sense of lonely build to an almost Britpop feel, until by the extended instrumental, the band — like Crazy Horse — embarks on its own exploration of melody and form. “We thought we were going to try and get three or four more jams — and create one great take,” King begins. “But when we listened back (after the first)? That’s what you hear. There are hardly any overdubs.” “When you hear that, you can tell,” Young explains, “that’s a real band playing real music in an actual room. To be part of something like that is pretty special. You can’t just throw that together.”

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East of NORMAL TOMMY WOMACK

Getting right with God

’m a preacher’s son; I grew up so deep in the Bible Belt, I didn’t know there was one. I thought everyone everywhere went to church three times a week and worried about going to hell. That was normal to me. But as I got older and traveled the world, and made the mistake of reading the Old Testament, I was beset with a host of troubling notions regarding a text my mother insisted was the infallible Word of God. Like in the Book of Joshua when God orders the Israelite army to sweep into a rival tribe’s valley and kill every man, woman, and child they found there. The God of Ethnic Cleansing. Nice. I stopped reading at that point and haven’t cracked the Old Testament since. There are other things. Things that made me think the first verse of Genesis ought to be: In the beginning, God was a jerk. He designs the Garden of Eden, installs two naked people, and fills the place with fruits and veggies — plus one tree from which they’re forbidden to eat. This begs the question: Why the hell did he put that tree there in the first place? He’s God! He knew they’d eat from it. If I put two kids in a room with a bowl of assorted nuts, platters of diced cantaloupe, grapes, and pineapple, and a bowl full of Skittles, tell them they can’t eat the Skittles and then leave the room, what do you think is going to happen? I know what’s going to happen, and I’m not even God! Yahweh just set the whole thing up so he’d have an excuse to punish his two naked guinea pigs. A God who looks for ways to punish people. Nice. It gets better. Later on, there was a guy named Abraham who had a son he loved. God spoke to Abraham and said, “You know that son you love? Kill him.” Abraham knuckles under, but he’s as broken up about it as you would expect him to be. He takes his son out to the boonies, makes him lay his head down on a rock (confirming his son to be one dumb son of a bitch) and Abraham whips out a sword to behead his son with. At just the last moment, God steps in and

says, “Woah, Nellie! Hold on there. I was just kidding! Heh! Just testing you! Go home. Have some dinner!” Things like this made me come up with a fundamental tenet for my belief in God: If I’m going to venerate a higher being, it’s going to be one worth worshipping. Not some trickster treating his subjects with contempt. It’s going to be a God who responds to love with love. I still believe in God. Worse yet, for some readers, I believe in Jesus. But I have my own lopsided catechism I go by now. Some of it is a variation on a theme, and some of it is downright heresy. I call myself a Fuzzy Buddhist Methodist. The Methodist part is comfort food: hymns, sermons, organ music, all the stuff I grew up with; and I go to maybe the most left-of-center traditional denomination you can find in Nashville. You can have a traditional service, but be surrounded by gays, blacks, and Laotians. The Buddhist part comes from my having gained more comfort from Buddhist texts than I’ve ever gotten from the Bible. Now, Christianity is based on the existence of the soul, Buddhism is predicated on the absence of one. That’s the Fuzzy part. The next time someone comes at you about the Bible’s infallibility, remind him or her of this. According to the Bible, Jesus said, “It will be easier to put a camel through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” The Greek word for “rope” is kamilos, and the Greek word for “camel” is kamelos. Some sleepy monk transcribing this document for posterity made one misspelling and now centuries later we have people quoting some loopy analogy of a sewing tool and cramming a massive single-humped dromedary through one. Better to remember this, a passage that’s much easier to translate. When asked to boil down the glut of laws to follow into something digestible, Jesus said, “Love the Lord with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself.” That’s about it. Hook that, and you’re in like Flynn.

—Tommy Womack is a Nashville singer-songwriter, musician, and freelance writer. His new album, NAMASTE, will be released May 20. Keep up with his antics on Facebook and at tommywomack.com.

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PARTING SHOT

STUTTERING SHUTTER The Wild Feathers Nashville, February 2016 Photographed by Eric England 114

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