The East Nashvillian 8.3 Jan-Feb 2018

K N O W Y O U R N E I G H B O R : Niko Gehrke A R T I S T I N P R O F I L E : James Threalkill

JANUARY | FEBRUARY VOL.VIII, ISSUE 3

BIG BEAT FOR THE 21ST CENTURY JD MCPHERSON DOES WHAT HE WANTS AND

2017 EAST NASHVILLIANS OF THE YEAR PLUS

NORTHBOUND

An East Nashvillian in Alaska

SIGN O’ THE TIMES

For more than 50 years, Weiss Liquors’ neon has been a beacon for thirsty East Siders

BLUE AS SHE WANTS TO BE Chloe Stillwell likes to push it till someone says, ‘Whoa!’

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Let our team focus on your full recovery so you can focus on what matters to you.

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COVER STORY

42 BIG BEAT FOR THE 21ST CENTURY JD McPherson does what he wants

By Randy Fox

FEATURES

COVER SHOT

52 2017 EAST NASHVILLIANS OF THE YEAR 62 BLUE AS SHE WANTS TO BE

By Randy Fox

JD McPherson

By Jeremy Harris

Chloe Stillwell likes to push it till someone says, ‘Whoa!’

By Holly Gleason

72 SIGN O’ THE TIMES

For more than 50 years, Weiss Liquors’ neon has been a beacon for thirsty East Siders

By Tim Ghianni

80 NORTHBOUND

An East Nashvillian in Alaska

By Tim Easton

Visit

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

CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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EAST SIDE BUZZ

17 Matters of Development

IN THE KNOW

By Nicole Keiper

Your Neighbor: 31 Know Niko Gehrke

Challenges Metro’s Home 22 Lawsuit Studio Ban

By Tommy Womack

By Randy Fox

in Profile: 32 Artist James Threalkill

Marker Honors Nashville 24 Historic LBGT Pioneer Penny Campbell

By Warren Denney

By Devin Ross

91 East Side Calendar 106

25 Rising From the Ashes — Literally

By Emma Alford

By Michael DeVault

26 Future of Cloud IX Uncertain

PARTING SHOT

By Michael DeVault

ROCKY Performing at The 5 Spot

COMMENTARY

by Travis Commeau

14 Editor’s Letter

By Chuck Allen

28 Astute Observations

By James “Hags” Haggerty

104 East of Normal

By Tommy Womack

Visit

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

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The Y has everything you need to achieve your health and fitness goals—and the chance to support the values and programs that are strengthening your community every day of the year.

For more than a workout.

For a better us.

Come see how you can be part of something more as a Y member.

Join us today at the Margaret Maddox Family YMCA 2624 Gallatin Road or online at TrytheY.com/more Our Mission: A worldwide charitable fellowship united by a common loyalty to Jesus Christ for the purpose of helping people grow in spirit, mind and body.

January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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PUBLISHER Lisa McCauley EDITOR Chuck Allen MANAGING EDITOR Daryl Sanders ONLINE EDITOR Nicole Keiper CALENDAR EDITOR Emma Alford CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Warren Denney, Michael DeVault, Tim Easton, Randy Fox, Holly Gleason, Tim Ghianni, James Haggerty, Devin Ross, Tommy Womack CREATIVE DIRECTOR Chuck Allen DESIGN DIRECTOR Benjamin Rumble PHOTO EDITOR Travis Commeau ILLUSTRATIONS Benjamin Rumble, Dean Tomasek CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Ash Adams, Travis Commeau, Chad Crawford, Eric England, Jeremy Harris STYLING/MAKEUP Kim Murray

Kitchen

Table Media Company Est.2010

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theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

ADVERTISING SALES Lisa McCauley lisa@theeastnashvillian.com 615.582.4187 ADVERTISING DESIGN Benjamin Rumble

©2018 Kitchen Table Media P.O. Box 60157 Nashville, TN 37206 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, LLC unless otherwise noted. Reprints or any other usage without the express written permission of the publisher is a violation of copyright.

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EDITOR’S LETTER

Absolute elsewhere ...

“

So keep on playing those mind games together Faith in the future out of the now ...

M

— John Lennon, “Mind Games”

y cat went missing a few weeks back.

Just ... vanished. Although shocked and saddened by his disappearance, what caught me completely off guard was the outpouring of sympathy and offers of help from my community. So, I’m starting off this new year with a refocused sense of gratitude.

There’s something about our culture these days that dissuades us from being thankful for what we have. This, despite the fact that ours is the most prosperous nation on the planet; in the history of civilization, for that matter. There are, of course, reasons to be concerned about our current state of affairs. But one can’t change the macrocosm without first getting the microcosm in order.

Those who strive for power over us seek to divide us. If we choose to be divided, they win. It’s as simple as that.

Hop on Facebook for 15 minutes if you disagree. Oddly enough, the outpouring of sympathy and offers of help with regards to my missing cat I mentioned earlier were, in large part, via Facebook. Ironic, isn’t it? Let me be the first one to say when I signed on to Facebook some eight years ago, the temptation to engage in political debates was impossible to resist. Guilty as charged.

It’s an admission I believe necessary to save myself from accusations of being hypocritical. To this day, I feel the pull. Who doesn’t? I see even the staidest individuals get sucked into the fray.

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But for what? To be aggravated? To convince the other side they’re wrong? Or stupid? Not likely. I don’t remember ever having had a political debate on Facebook which ended in bringing someone over to my side. And the winner is? Facebook, of course. It’s most certainly not the body politic. While I might walk away feeling smug in my unassailable righteousness, I wouldn’t consider such moments to be of lasting value. Honestly, it seems any feelings at all about participating in political discourse through social media are suspect and dubious at best.

Whatever happened to revolutions percolating in cafés anyway? Oh, duh, everyone’s on Facebook!

Anyway, enough of all that. Back to my cat. Maybe he decided to show me through his disappearance that, with a heart of love and service to others, even Facebook can be a means to a loving end. And that’s really up to us. Each of us. Individually.

Right? Yeah, I know I’m reaching, but it’s worth a shot. After all, how can we get rid of the shackles that bind us when we’re the ones making the shackles to begin with?

It’s OK to be outraged. Get mad, by all means. But if you really want to put your money where your mouth is, I’d argue Facebook ain’t where it’s at. In the meantime, if you happen to see an orange-and-white tabby polydactyle cat roaming the streets, please holler.

You can find me on Facebook.

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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 East Nashville’s share of fabulous hair is about to be on a serious upswing, based on the recent spate of new salons opening here. Lots more beyond good looks happening, too, from good tastes to good health and more.

NEW AND NOTEWORTHY Among the new salons joining the East Nashville landscape: Darling Salon & Blow Out Bar, now open at the new The Eastland development, 1049 West Eastland.

Stylist/makeup artist Laura Beth Boles helms Darling, coming East Nashville’s way after stints in over-the-river climes (like Green Hills). She and her team are

offering a variety of salon services for both men and women in the new place, from the titular blowouts to cuts, color, makeup, and brow shaping.

They’re open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 to 4 on Saturdays. Find more/book your appointment online at darlingsalon.com.

A name that’ll be familiar to longtime East Siders brought a new salon brand to the East Nashville hair-care game recently, too. Jeff Gensemer — leader of Studio Green Organic Salon here from 2010 to 2014 — teamed up with business partner/ former Deer Willow Salon head Tara Lexx Hampton to launch Wild Sage Salon and Makeup Boutique, at 914-A Woodland St. Like both Gensemer’s and Hampton’s previous businesses, Wild Sage has a focus on “greener, more healthy alternatives to

hair care and color,” Gensemer says, with vegan, ammonia-free products.

“We had a vision for a healthier way of beauty care in the industry and are excited to bring it to life,” Gensemer told us in advance of the shop’s grand opening in early December.

Hours at Wild Sage are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Tuesday through Saturday, and you can grab more info at facebook.com/wildsagesalon.

Another familiar East Nashville name, Jaiya Rose of Good Sister Bad Sister, is back in action there, too, offering makeup services (from general to bridal to theatrical) out of a space in the same building as Wild Sage, under the name Makeup Ninja Studio and Boutique.

Ninja hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. More at makeupninja.biz.

East Side gentlemen aren’t getting short shrift in the salon blitz: Nashville Beard

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EAST SIDE BUZZ and Barber, specifically geared toward men’s hair/beard care needs, opened in November at 726 Mcferrin Ave. The new shop, led by business partners Kevin Hagewood and Eric Miller, offers more than your basic snip/sendoff, too — the vibe is a mix of old-fashioned barber shop and masculine spa. Think sharp and stylish cuts, steam towels, the option for a mini-facial, and tumbler of whiskey while you wait.

They’re open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 to 3 on Saturday, and you can learn more and/or book your appointments at nashvillebeardandbarber.com.

From another indulgence angle: The corner of Mcferrin and West Eastland, long home to Mas Tacos and The Pharmacy, got a cute new addition in the form of The Sweet Bean, a cozy place to grab retro candies, spin-your-own cotton candy, madeto-order Aeropress coffee, hot chocolate, and more.

The business is tucked in a little carriage house at 924 Mcferrin Ave. — homeowners Julia and Dave Carlson, who’ve been there for the better part of the decade, saw an opportunity to build “something for

the community to do as a family” in their backyard, and bit by bit, turned opportunity into reality.

The renovation of the main house helped spur the Bean’s rebirth — old wood got new life in the carriage house, helping to turn the little space into a refreshed “covered pavilion atmosphere,” Julia told us, where neighbors can pop in and indulge in a little sugar and caffeine.

Down the line, the Carlsons are hoping to complete the main house and move The Sweet Bean into the bigger space.

“We had to start somewhere,” Julia said, “and we figured, ‘Why not?’ ” Hours at the Sweet Bean are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday. Learn more at thesweetbean.com.

Fitting way to follow Nashville Beard and Barber: Nashville Brain & Body, a new “comprehensive and innovative health care” business for adults and children, open now at 1601-C Riverside Drive (the former LAVA Home Design space near Pied Piper Eatery).

Treatments they offer there range from chiropractic and clinical neurology to acu-

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puncture, but leader Dr. Melissa Brown Wenrich has a particular focus on pediatrics and pregnancy, so East Siders looking for prenatal and postnatal chiropractic might want to give a look.

If Dr. Brown Wenrich’s name sounds familiar: She’s not brand new to East Nashville — Nashville Center for Alternative Therapy visitors might’ve met her there, too.

For more info or to schedule a consultation: nashvillebrainandbody.com.

Related feeling-good follow-ups: We had a coming-soon heads up in a past issue for CrossFit East Nashville at 400 Davidson, Suite 410. They’re now up-and-going, with classes and open gym hours galore.

Check out the rundown at crossfiteastnashville.com. Same goes for “float center and alternative therapy spa” Float Horizen: Doors are now open at 1012 Russell St., and East Siders in need of relaxation can book float sessions, salt therapy, harmonic meditation, and more. Info/scheduling at floathorizen.com.

Oh and hey: If by some wonder of 1996 somebody forces you to send a fax, you won’t have to head up to Madison anymore.

East Nashville has a new UPS Store at 707 Main St. (across from GReKo Greek Street Food), and they’re doing all that good UPS stuff that they do, from packing and shipping and mailboxing. (They can handle all your large banner/poster/etc. needs, too.)

Hours are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

CLOSINGS & MOVES A big goodbye on the East Nashville dining scene: Craft beer/hot dog hang The Hop Stop closed its doors in November after four years at 2909-B Gallatin Pike. Owner Jesse Hamilton told us that he felt the restaurant and bar’s time had just come.

“I always knew every business I opened is going to have a life cycle,” he said.

The business went on the market over the summer, Hamilton said, and meeting an interested group that he felt would “really bring some great new energy to the space and to the community” made the decision to move on and move forward feel like a positive one.

That group — Robyn Donnelly and Katie MacLachlan of business coaching company Crush it Harder — aims to get a new bar concept open in the space in 2018.

Hamilton remains at the helm of Riverside Village’s Village Pub & Beer Garden, and he said no changes are planned there.

EAST SIDE BUZZ Exiting East Nashville but not ending: fashion brand Any Old Iron. The Tennessean reported that owner/stylist/designer Andrew Clancey is moving his business to Cannery Row, so the space his boutique occupied, at 1627 Shelby Ave., is welcoming new blood.

In the works there, the paper reported: a new bike biz from Green Fleet Bicycle Shop’s Austin Bauman, called Shelby Ave. Bicycle Co., offering repairs and rentals and stocking bikes and accessories. (We should have more on that soon, at theeastnashvillian.com.)

A big bead change: Regular Idea Hatchery shoppers might’ve noticed that the Red Dog Beads sign is gone. In early December, longtime owner Dottie Landry retired after years of providing East Nashville crafters and artisans with all their bead-y ingredients.

The business, however, isn’t gone: It’s been reborn as Black Dog Beads, with RDB employee Kim Hussey at the helm.

Same space (1108 Woodland St., Unit D), same excellent inventory for jewelry makers and crafters, new-but-similar name.

Black Dog Beads is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. all week; more at facebook.com/blackdogbeads.

Other small-but-big changes: Black Shag Vintage has expanded: They took over the engine bay at The Station, 1220 Gallatin Ave. So, same building, same address, just a larger space.

One short move to note: Hosse & Hosse Safe & Lock Co. shifted over to 914 Woodland Ave., from 918.

space, one of East Nashville’s better-known food-scene names, Barista Parlor’s Andy Mumma, is working on another new business. This one, though: nothing edible.

Mumma’s latest endeavor: 4 SPEED, a boutique car dealership, also aiming for a spring opening, at 946 Main St. Don’t expect a sea of 6-year-old Camrys: 4 SPEED’s focus is restored hot rods and muscle cars, all hand-chosen, all thoroughly returned to their glory. Mumma told us he and collaborator/Gym 5 owner Adam Wright are expecting to have four to eight cars in the shop at any given time, plus a lot more to offer car enthusiasts and budding hot-rod aficionados.

“We are both car enthusiasts and wanted to create a space to hang and talk cars with other enthusiasts,” he said. “The dealership part is just a natural extension, so we can pay the bills and continue to have a hideaway.”

You can expect the style-forward aesthetics we see in Barista Parlor locations to flow through to 4 SPEED — it’ll “present like a very clean garage,” with a lounge, retail pit, photo prints display, and more. As things get moving, they hope to have a monthly show to spotlight cars, and inspire and inform car

lovers, too.

“We hope it can be a space for not only folks who are way into cars but also for people who like muscle cars but don’t know where to go to learn more,” Mumma said, “… Maybe we can help guide them on what to buy and make some dreams come true.”

To follow along as things rev up, check out 4 SPEED on Instagram: @4SpeedShop.

With all those new hair salons, you might worry nails are getting left out. Worry not: “luxury nail salon” CURED Nails is shooting for a spring (if not sooner) opening at 813 Gallatin Ave. Owners Mallory McIlwain and Melissa Bednarik “saw a void in Nashville for a salon where customer service and cleanliness mirrors the expectations of a luxury spa experience,” so they aim to fill it, offering a customizable menu of services for East Nashville fingers/toes.

To learn more/keep up with opening news: facebook.com/CUREDNails.

Just a little down Gallatin from CURED’s new space, New Orleans-bred coworking company Launch Pad is readying their own East Nashville place.

The Nashville Post reported that the

COMING SOON Until the warm weather returns to Nashville, we’ll be thinking of Hawaii. Particularly since Kawai Poké Co. — aiming to bring “a taste of Hawaii to Music City” — is shooting to open its doors next spring, at 901 Woodland St., Ste. 105.

Chicago-bred chef Yev Mikhailov is captaining the kitchen at Kawai, and he’s planning to serve up lots of Hawaiian favorites, from poké bowls (made with raw, marinated fish, rice, and vegetables) to tropical breakfast bowls, baked goods, and more. Good news for local vegans: There’ll be ample options for you, too.

For early looks at what they’ll be serving up (and pretty, pretty pictures), check out Kawai Poké Co. on Instagram: @ kawaipokeco.

A quick walk away from Kawai’s future

LOCAL EYECARE. INDEPENDENT EYEWEAR.

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EAST SIDE BUZZ company has a smallish coworking hub in the works (3,500 square feet, housing 40 or so folks in about a dozen offices) in the building that houses Divine Art Cafe, Chiro Nash, and other local businesses.

That’ll expand East Nashville coworking options for neighborhood entrepreneurs/ solopreneurs/remote workers/etc. — other neighborhood spots include Sparkworks

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Union on East Trinity Lane and the new WeWork at 901 Woodland. — Nicole Keiper

theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

Have any East Side development news to share?

Reach out to: nicole@theeastnashvillian.com

Lawsuit Challenges Metro’s Home Studio Ban A lawsuit filed on Dec. 5, 2017, challenges Metro’s long-standing ban on some “home occupations,” including for-profit recording studios. The lawsuit was filed by the Beacon Center of Tennessee and the Institute for Justice on behalf of Lij Shaw, owner of Toy Box Studio, and Pat Raynor, a workat-home hair stylist. The suit challenges the ban on a variety of constitutional grounds.

Home recording studios have been a Nashville tradition since country legend Hank Snow constructed one of the first in his “Rainbow Ranch” home in Madison in the early 1950s. For decades, music has been recorded in spare rooms, garages, and converted utility sheds throughout Nashville.

While recording in one’s home isn’t a crime, a 1998 city ordinance expressly forbids home-based businesses from working with paying clients in person. Steep fines and potential imprisonment threaten work-fromhome entrepreneurs, and the law endangers one of Nashville’s most entrenched musical traditions.

In 2012, Mayor Megan Barry cosponsored legislation to reverse the policy while she was serving as a member of the Metro Council. The proposed bill exempted home recording studios following specific guidelines regarding parking, number of clients per day, noise, and other matters. The bill fizzled in the face of a variety of objections and was indefinitely deferred in May 2013, leaving scores of home studios operating outside the law.

In the fall of 2015, Lij Shaw received a cease-and-desist letter from the Metro Codes Department. The action was the result of an anonymous complaint regarding his business, Toy Box Studio, located in a detached garage at his Renraw neighborhood home. “They made me stop working commercially in the studio,” Shaw says. “I was ordered to remove the address from Google Maps, shut down my YouTube channel, remove my prices, rates, and a welcome video of myself from my website.

It was a series of restrictions all targeted at my ability to freely promote myself on the internet.”

Shaw says he spent more than a year applying for a commercial zoning waiver for his property. Despite support from many of his neighbors, his appeals were rejected.

With no other options available, he turned to the courts. “My business is not a walk-in storefront,” he says. “It’s strictly by appoint-

During these cold winter months, stop by the Groove and let music warm your hearts.

Or just come in out of the cold. We have heat. Mostly.

1103 Calvin Ave, Nashville TN 37206 Next to Porter Road Butcher 615.227.5760 info@thegroovenashville.com Mon-Sat 11am - 8pm

Sundays 12 - 6

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EAST SIDE BUZZ ment only. My studio is professionally soundproofed. I have plenty of parking in my drive, there’s no signage, there’s no additional building going on. It would be perfectly all right to invite friends over to record every single day as long as I didn’t accept money to record them. The essence of the suit is a defense of my constitutional right to work and make a living from my home.

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“The reason they call this Music City is because it’s one of the few remaining places where professional musicians still get together to make music face to face,” Shaw continues. “So I believe that I have a right to earn a living and support my family from my home. I’m at the forefront of this issue, but I’m representing everybody I know.”

— Randy Fox

theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

Historic Marker Honors Nashville LBGT Pioneer Penny Campbell Lockeland Springs is well known for its rich cultural history and its streets lined with welcoming bungalows and small businesses.

Now, it also has the distinction of having Tennessee’s first publicly sanctioned historical marker commemorating the efforts of the LGBT movement: a breakthrough not only for Tennessee and the South, but also the country at large.

On Dec. 9, a dedication ceremony was held on the 1600 block of McEwen Avenue in front of the former residence of Penny Campbell, a pioneer in the fight for LGBT rights and a tireless advocate for equality and justice.

“Any gay person involved in LGBT activism over the last couple decades has been pretty surprised at the rate of change,” says Pippa Holloway, the MTSU professor and LGBT activist who led the efforts for the marker. “I think (Campbell) would share in our surprise and true pleasure, yet would still be frustrated with the many legacies of homophobia, violence, etc., that persists.

My guess is that she would be happy with the progress, but still not see the fight as being over.”

Campbell is perhaps best-known for her role in Campbell v. Sundquist, the landmark 1996 trial which overturned state level laws that criminalized private consensual sex between same sex partners. She also organized Tennessee’s contingent for the Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights and Nashville’s first gay pride parades in the late ’80s, when such events were the subject of much public scrutiny and even the threat of violence.

Penny Campbell’s personal work can be seen as part of the legacy started by her father, Will D. Campbell, the famous civil rights activist who was integral to the movement from its inception and a member of Martin Luther King’s inner circle. Aside from spearheading the advancement of LGBT rights in Tennessee, she more generally was a bridge from the ways of the old South to what Mayor Megan Barry calls the “warm welcoming culture” found in Nashville today.

The idea for the marker was born after Holloway ran into Jesse Correll and Jeanne Moran — the home’s current owners — while she was walking her dog through the neighborhood. They informed her of the home’s history, and while she was aware of

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EAST SIDE BUZZ Penny Campbell, she was not aware of the extent of her work nor that she lived just around the corner.

Inspired, Holloway set the ball in motion.

She went to the Nashville Public Library, compiled all the articles she could find on Campbell, wrote her case for the marker’s implementation, and brought it before the Metro Historical Commission. Although the process was concise and bureaucratic, the motion passed almost unanimously.

The speakers at the marker’s dedication included Mayor Barry, District 6 Councilman Brett Withers, and Abby Rubenfeld, longtime Nashville LGBT community leader and Campbell’s attorney in Campbell v. Sundquist. Also in attendance were Correll and Moran, who were kind enough to facilitate the whole event.

“Frankly, a lot of the social activism we used to see so much here in East Nashville is dwindling, and that is part of why it is so important to document people in the community who just got involved in things because they thought it was the right thing to do,” Withers says, reflecting on Campbell’s leadership. “It wasn’t always that easy. If you talk to people who attended pride parades when they began in Nashville in the late ’80s, they weren’t on the public square, they didn’t have a mayor speaking at them, they didn’t have corporate sponsors.

“It took people getting involved and making these things an issue to bring about what Mayor Barry calls the ‘warm and welcoming culture’ of Nashville today,” he continues, “and I think a lot of people now take that for granted and aren’t always as willing to get involved in causes or even just helping their neighbors as they were just a few years ago. I just hope this is a reminder that we stand on the shoulders of people who made our city possible, and it’s more than just a place to go and party.”

rebuild his home in the historic Lockeland Springs neighborhood.

“Ultimately, we fell backwards over the goal line,” Austin tells The East Nashvillian, just days after the city’s permits department issued a demolition permit for the structure.

“The house is down, and now we have to get the building permits to start construction.

That’s when we get to rebuild my home.”

In the wake of the fire, Austin applied for the demolition permit. That’s when his nightmare began, according to Nashville attorney Adam Dread, who represented the musician’s reconstruction efforts before the historic zoning commission, whose approval he needed before tearing down what remained of the gutted structure.

“The staff could not have been less com-

— Devin Ross

Rising From the Ashes — Literally There’s finally light at the end of the tunnel for East Nashville funkmeister Todd “Toddzilla” Austin, who lost his house, car, and seven beloved cats when a fire destroyed his Forrest Avenue home last June. After more than seven months of legal wrangling, political posturing, and a petition drive that garnered some 10,000 signatures of support, he has won approval from the Metropolitan Historic Zoning Commission to demolish and January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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EAST SIDE BUZZ passionate about a guy who had just lost his home and who had always been a good neighbor,” Dread says.

Austin wanted to demolish the structure and rebuild a nearly exact duplicate of the home in its space, complete with original lapboard siding, rather than the asbestos shingles that had been added in the 1950s or ’60s. He also wanted to restore the origi-

nal posts on the porch rather than late-’60s wrought iron.

“In a lot of ways, the house will look more like it did in 1925 than it did in 2017,” Austin says of his plans. The commission staff had different ideas, though. They demanded Austin preserve the facade and portions of the rooms behind it, amounting to less than a third of the total structure,

work that would have required hundreds of thousands of dollars in restoration, smoke remediation, and asbestos removal — costs that Austin’s insurance company would not provide.

Metro Councilman Brett Withers serves on the historic zoning commission and points out the many challenges facing historic preservation. “Demolitions of historic structures are always carefully scrutinized — as they should be,” Withers said.

To that end, the commission received a report totaling almost 200 pages detailing reasons portions of Austin’s home required preservation. That report marked the low point for the conflict, according to Dread.

The attorney noted the first expert the commission hired recommended demolition, after which a second expert was hired to reassess the structure. Among the irreplaceable architectural details of the home singled out by the second expert was 100-year-old bead board on the eaves.

“We showed them the receipts where that bead board was purchased from Home Depot in 2011,” Dread says. “Their expert was just a quack and didn’t know what she was talking about.”

Once the case made its way to the full commission, only six of the nine commissioners appeared, barely enough for a quorum. After hearing testimony, the commission voted 3-2 with one abstention to deny the demolition permit, one vote shy of the required majority. The failure of the motion effectively granted Austin’s request to demolish the home and pursue a complete reconstruction.

Shortly before Christmas, Austin received preliminary approval to build a nearly identical replica of his home, complete with original lapboard siding and wooden columns. He’s in the process of applying for the needed building permits now. Until the permits clear, the man affectionately known as Toddzilla is just thankful for the support of the community he’s become an integral part of over the past 22 years.

“I respect the historical commission for what they do,” Austin says. “It was just a really bad situation all around. If I hadn’t had the notoriety and that overwhelming public support, I’d have gotten buried.”

— Michael DeVault

Future of Cloud IX Uncertain The shooting death of a customer in the parking lot of Cloud IX Hookah Bar and 26

theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

EAST SIDE BUZZ Lounge at 3807 Gallatin Pike — the second in less than a year, has rocked a quiet, East Side neighborhood and renewed community efforts to have the club shuttered as a public nuisance. Area residents and business owners are now demanding Metro Council padlock the club.

Their position is bolstered by recent reports from Metro Nashville Police Department, which has answered at least 12 calls for assistance at Cloud IX since the bar opened in May. But those calls are just the tip of a very large iceberg, according to MNPD spokesman Kristin Mumford.

“Year to date, we have conducted 106 proactive engagements at Cloud IX and the adjacent properties,” Mumford says.

“As issues arise, citizens are encouraged to contact the police.”

The Dec. 10 shooting death of Jason McClain is just one more example of why the bar has to go, according to local landlord John Harris, who owns rental property adjacent to the Cloud IX property. “I have dealt extensively over the last nine or 10 months with numerous issues at Cloud IX, working with local police, Metro Council, and area residents,” Harris says. “I’ve just received tremendous feedback from the community via phone calls, email, and Facebook.”

The stories Harris hears are all the same: Residents and businesses are faced each night with a steady barrage of noise, violence that frequently spills outside, and crowds of customers that far-outstrip the club’s posted capacity. Then, neighbors awake the next morning to litter in the street and cars parked illegally, which creates its own problems.

Harris recalls one incident in which he and a tow truck operator were approached by a man from Cloud IX who demanded they stop towing vehicles. The man then flashed a gun tucked in the waistband under his shirt. Harris is disturbed that two shooting deaths have occurred in the parking lot since the club opened, and he sees it as part of an escalating pattern of violence at Cloud IX. The most recent incident began when guards at the club asked McClain to leave.

“McClain refused and was escorted out of the bar by security at 12:45 a.m.,” an MNPD news release states. “McClain allegedly retrieved a handgun from his pickup truck and fired at the security guards. He was fatally wounded during an exchange of gunfire with them.”

Investigators determined that the May 13

shooting death of Nigel Phill was a justifiable homicide, and no charges were filed.

Metro continues to investigate McClain’s death as a homicide, though the security guards have asserted the shooting was self-defense, according to the release issued in the wake of the shooting.

Meanwhile, property owners Ben and Ann Mitchell have filed papers to evict the

owner of Cloud IX, saying the bar owes them more than $175,000 in back rent.

That matter is set to go before the courts on Jan. 4, 2018.

Cloud IX owner Erica Fenton could not be reached for comment, and calls to an attorney representing the Mitchells were not returned.

— Michael DeVault

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Astute OBSERVATIONS by

�ᚒᚔᚒ�

Past observations,

future resolutions

he year’s end has me feeling nostalgic for columns past and resolute for the coming year. In that spirit, I have gone back and read each of my missives in chronological order. I’ve also have been checking to see how astute my observations actually were.

My inner Andy Rooney first reared his ugly head back in May of 2013. I expressed concerns about zealous crossing guards, and I offered some advice for the newly arriving hipsters: Dudes, you’re in East Nashville — center of creativity. Stop following trends. Set them! Instead of affecting the look of Frank Serpico undercover at Big Pink, why not emulate the style of another ’70s icon, fictional NYC detective Theo Kojak? Go for the Savalas look. You can keep your fedoras!

Sadly, my advice was not heeded. Shaved heads and “Who loves ya, baby?� have not supplanted the man bun. What can I say? Sometimes greatness is not recognized in its time. As for the future, I resolve to open a 24-hour tattoo removal shop on Gallatin Avenue. I’ll call it Gone in a Bl(ink).

On parking: In 2015, I referred to parallel parking in East Nashville as the erectile dysfunction of the driving world. Of course I was late for a gig. My progress was impeded by a parade of beards and ankle boots. I felt my blood pressure begin to rise. A few beads of sweat dotted my brow. Where are you, parking space? Let me in!

Perhaps you remember the rest. It didn’t end well. Two years on and my parallel parking performance anxiety has not abated, and now we have pay lots! I resolve to not put one dime in a pay lot in my neighborhood, ever! You shouldn’t either. I don’t think business owners should charge customers a parking fee to spend money at their stores. It’s like paying twice. Here’s another resolution: Lets all bike more!

On beer: Brew and serve your craft beer. Pat yourself on the back.

Sniff approvingly at the complexity of your beverage. Spend mightily! If you simply cannot abide having the likes of a Miller Lite or Budweiser mingling in the same ice with your raspberry

Have a hankering for more Hags?

We suggest visiting theeastnashvillian.com for all of his previous observations.

áš?áš’áš?

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theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

wheatcake amber lager, charge a corking fee!

I’m going to declare a win on this one. As more bars open in the neighborhood, I have happily noticed the inclusion of low priced domestic beer alongside all of the hoppy insanity. I resolve to support these businesses with my hard-earned dollars. You should, too, as long as you don’t have to park in a pay lot when patronizing them.

On unscrupulous real estate developers: 2014. I hate you.

You suck.

Resolution? They still suck.

On music, 2016: To be able to make music with some of the best musicians playing today blows my mind. The scene we have going on in East Nashville right now is the stuff that gets written about in history books.

This was true then as it is now. Resolution? Keep rocking!

On cooking: In July of 2014 I gave my mom a call to ask her about her tomato sauce recipe. August 1950. The Bronx, New York. My mom, Mary Moffitt, fresh outta high school with typing and steno skills sharpened, lands a job as a secretary in the advertising department of the biggest newspaper in the world at that time, the New York Daily News.

It was there that mom learned good friend and coworker Anne Galdi’s recipe for the tomato sauce I grew up eating and cook to this day. Anne’s mom shared the old country goodness with my mom, and she shared it with me. It’s a great sauce.

I lost my mom in June of 2016. In looking back at my past columns, the one about the tomato sauce is particularly special to me because it made Mom laugh to remember the story, and it made her happy that I wanted to write about her. These days, I’ve got her pots and pans and recipes. When I cook with them, I remember her.

It’s good to look to the past and bring the good times with us into the future. I resolve for the coming year to savor the good times and appreciate the people and places that make our community the beautiful place that it truly is. You should, too. Happy New Year, neighbors!

�

Hags is a part-time bon vivant, man-about-town, and resolute goodwill ambassador for The East Nashvillian.

He earns his keep as a full-time bassist extraordinaire.

�

illustration :

T

J ames “Hags� Haggerty

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KNOW your NEIGHBOR

“I

PH O T OG R APH BY CH A D C R AW FO R D

co-own the Cobra Nashville, used to be the FooBar. The old owner got to where he was ready to make a change. I was working there, and so me and the other bartenders co-opted. There are four of us. We bought the place together, re-opened as The Cobra Nashville, and let the old owner move on with his life. Other than that, everything’s good, my brother and sister are doing great, parents doing great. Things are really good at the bar, we’ve been open a year under the new name, and we’re way in the black with money in the bank. Just trying to keep building up the name brand, which is why I added the “Nashville” to it. You remember like Bar Nashville? The Bar Charlotte, Bar Atlanta, so, crossing my fingers, maybe there’ll be a Cobra Chattanooga or a Cobra Louisville someday, I don’t know.

But everything’s good. I’m working on motorcycles in my time off, trying to see more shows. I’m having a good time.” — Niko Gehrke

Niko GEHRKE

get another person in the door — all the while pollenating the whole area as East

by Tommy Womack Nashville took to blooming like the lilies in the field.

“I’ve kind of had my foot on this side of town since 2000,” Gehrke says. “I mean, I was one of the first customers at Bongo (East) when they started making coffee. I was one of the first customers of the Rosepepper. I took everybody there for lunch. So I feel like a lot of the staples here, I was there when they started, and it’s a beautiful thing to watch them grow. I’m hoping one day the Cobra Nashville can become a staple just like a lot of these other places. We are what the Slow Bar used to be.”

48 years old, Gehrke is a native of Greece, where he was born and raised until he moved to America with his family at the age of 15.

“My mother’s Greek and my dad was in the army,” Gehrke says. “We moved to, of all places, Tennessee! I was so mad at my dad. There are lakes here, but I didn’t want to swim in a lake. I Niko Gehrke could scare the grew up on oceans.” denizens of a biker bar just by Gehrke gets back to Greece walking in the front door. Long fairly often. “I go back there, and black hair cascades down past his even if it’s cold, I want to go put shoulders, framing sinister blue my feet in the water every chance eyes and a beard, while the tattoos I get,” he says. start at his hands and run all the When he got out into the adult way up to his chin. He’s not the guy world — and looked quite a bit Buffy brings home to meet Dad. If this different than he does now — he actually were a sitcom, he’d be the craven-looking moved up North and got a straight job marshmallow with a heart of gold; life is as an Assistant District Manager for an sometimes a sitcom. He could frighten entertainment company in the greater the poop out of you if he wanted to, but New York area. But after a while, that was he’d rather share jokes and pour you a beer a little too straight. He wound up back in from behind the bar, which is where he Nashville and got into running restaurants spends a good deal of his time. and tending bar, until eventually Slow Bar Gehrke was instrumental in changing happened, and the rest is history.

East Nashville into the place it is now.

“I would love to be married and have It’s a simple as that. Nearly 20 years ago, Five Points was not children,” he muses, “but I’m very old fashioned. Unless I meet the somewhere you walked after dark. Then Mike Grimes and David right girl, I’m not going to have any children. Even though I may Gehrke (Niko’s brother) opened Slow Bar — the very existence of look a little gruff with the beard and tattoos, my mama raised me which changed the whole landscape of the neighborhood. “Brian right, so ‘fun uncle’ works for me. Hopefully one of my nieces or [Bequette], this gal Liz, and I were the OG employees,” he recalls. nephews will remember me when I’m old, so they can take me in, Behind the bar, Gehrke watched it go from being a small watering and I can live over their garage someday.” hole for musicians and locals to become a place hosting some muNot bloody likely. The Cobra Nashville is in the black, and sic, to a place hosting some great music, to the place you couldn’t everything is good.

“ I’m hoping one day the Cobra Nashville can become a staple just like a lot of these other places. We are what the Slow Bar used to be.

The Cobra Nashville can be accessed in the virtual world via facebook.com/sweepthelegjonny/. While its Facebook page is certainly loaded with fun goodies, the lords of digidom have yet to figure out how to make a real drink. For that, one must actually visit the joint in the flesh.

2511 Gallatin Ave., Nashville, TN 37206 January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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Artist in Profile

James

Threalkill The power of art, the power of hope

By Warren Denney

B

uried roots run underground, unseen, feeding life above. People.

Communities. The power of art when strongly rooted manifests in many ways, inspiring, often quietly building, with the potential to change lives.

One such life is that of James Threalkill, artist and former star athlete, who benefited from deep and nourishing connections to the East Nashville community, and who continues to give back to it today.

“The foundation of East Nashville is a strong sense of community,” Threalkill says, sitting down for lunch recently at The Family Wash. “It still is. It has been that way for a long time. Oprah Winfrey. (Former Nashville mayor) Dick Fulton. (Actor of Gomer Pyle fame) Frank Sutton. People like that came from East Nashville. These were proud neighborhoods, where families looked after each other’s children, that sort of thing.

“We grew up in that environment,” he continues. “That’s what we had. Oprah’s dad was the neighborhood barber. She was a fellow student at East. It was the kind of place where that kind of talent, that kind of creativity, could thrive. A lot of the negative stuff, we knew that wasn’t what East Nashville was all about. The thing I’m pleased about here today is that East Nashville is being looked at with the appeal and attractiveness it deserves.”

Threalkill’s story is unlikely and uplifting, tracing a path that led him from J.C. Napier Court to East Nashville to the offices of a Nashville mayor, to sharing a stage with Nelson Mandela in Soweto, South Africa. He managed to flourish under a steady upbringing in a tricky setting. He considers himself a product of public housing, but also a product of neighborhood and community caring — placed on a path in life that reflected the power of his community, his athletic talent, and his gift as an artist. His parents played a role in all, especially his mother. His community played a role, a public trust in which he gained traction, fueled by teachers, coaches, → and guides.

Photography by Travis Commeau 32

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Sporting a Gil Scott-Heron T-shirt and paintstained jeans, James Threalkill poses in his studio next to his painting, “Waiting to Dance.�

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Artist in Profile

“Beach Stroll” 34

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Artist in Profile

“I Surrender All”

“It Takes Two To Tango”

“Erykah Badu” January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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Artist in Profile

“Kirk Whalum in a Smooth Jazz Mood” 36

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Artist in Profile

“Oprah” January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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Artist in Profile

“Waiting to Dance” 38

theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

Artist in Profile Public trust includes a willingness for the government to put its money where its mouth is, in our schools and community programs that offer a road to learning and hope. That trust also includes a willingness by individuals to help others. Threalkill gives himself, through his art, and through real time in working with young people, to a warm embrace of friends.

He is a celebrated artist, a painter of portraits that represent a sense of global community — with subjects that range from Tupac to Nelson Mandela. He is well known for his mural work and his involvement in pushing students far and near toward art as a means of growth and social awareness. Today, his medium is primarily acrylic with an accented knife-work that fills his pieces with a texture and life that is tangible.

Many in Nashville remember him from his schoolboy stardom of the 1970s, on the basketball court and football field at East High, and then beyond — he earned an athletic scholarship to play football at Vanderbilt. But through his art and through formal work raising diversity awareness, Threalkill has traveled the world, teaching kids to embrace mural painting in Cartagena, Colombia, to sharing a portrait of Mandela with the man, himself. All has shaped him, and carried him a long way from the old Napier School.

“I grew up in three different public housing areas,” Threalkill says. “I was a scrawny little kid living in J.C. Napier Court, and I had a dad who loved sports — NFL and NBA, mainly. So [I was exposed to sports early on], but my identity was more associated with being an artist.

“My first-grade teacher at Napier School contacted my mother and told her I was doing my schoolwork, but I was drawing all day. She told her I might be pretty good. That alerted my mother, and she bought art materials for me and enrolled me in art classes at the old Children’s Museum behind Howard School.

“I had excellent art teachers through the public school system who gave me assignments and would get me to draw,” he continues. “We’d study the presidents and do portraits, things like that. Then my life-changing moment came when I was 13 — my mother took me down to Hillsboro Village and bought me an oil painting set. I was the oldest of six kids, so we didn’t really have a lot of money laying around to spend on extra things like that. It gave me the chance to learn the nuances of that medium at an early age.”

Threalkill flourished and grew, both as an artist, and literally. Between his sophomore and junior years at East High, he grew from 6 feet 1 inch to 6 feet 4 inches and began attracting the attention of coaches.

“I had begun to play sports earlier,” he says.

“When I finished the eighth grade, my mother moved us to East Nashville, and I went to East Junior High. Right outside our apartment

in Lane Gardens was a basketball court. And, I would just go out there and hone my game.

Sometimes, I would be out there until midnight shooting. I tried out for sports the first time at East Junior High — but I was a benchwarmer in football and basketball.”

Threalkill found stardom in both by his junior year, making all-district and all-city in basketball, and ultimately, All-America as a wide receiver in football. He ran some track, but football was where he attracted the most attention from colleges. 6-feet-4-inch wide receivers with speed are attractive to everyone, Threalkill found himself being recruited by many of the big programs, including Notre Dame, Indiana, and Arizona State, among others, and locally by the legendary Big John Merritt at Tennessee State and Steve Sloan at Vanderbilt. Legendary Super Bowl-winning coach Bill Parcells was one of Sloan’s assistant coaches.

“Bill Parcells was on the staff at Vanderbilt, and he recruited me,” Threalkill says. “They offered me a scholarship — I had come close to signing with coach Lee Corso at Indiana; you know, the Big Ten. But Bill Parcells and Steve Sloan were personable coaches, and they really swayed me to stay here and play. I did have a dream of playing close to home so my family could come to the games.

“People around me were telling me I was probably going to be a pro athlete,” he adds. “But my mother always told me that no matter how many accolades I received, or how my life was going in football — she always told me to never neglect my art. I already knew I had fallen in love with it enough for it to be my major when I went to college. Regardless of whatever I did, I would always devote time to art. My mother would encourage me when she knew I hadn’t done anything in a while.”

A cruel fortune, however, intervened in Threalkill’s athletic life. After a stellar freshman year at Vanderbilt, he broke a leg and sustained ligament damage during a preseason practice.

Though he continued to play, it was never at the same level. That dream ended on a final cut with the Birmingham Stallions of the old USFL following his senior year at Vandy. The end of one dream, allowed the other to come more into focus.

“I got [football] out of my system, maybe,” he says. “Art affects the way you look at the world — people, nature, anything — in a creative way.

That’s one of the great things about having art as a part of your essence. You can make beauty out of anything you see. It might seem an unusual situation playing football and being an artist — like (songwriter and former Cincinnati →

January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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DREAMING BIG: today’s dreamers are tomorrow’s leaders.

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Artist in Profile Bengal) Mike Reid, and (acclaimed artist and former pro lineman) Ernie Barnes, people like that — great examples of people who did that.”

Threalkill had not only majored in art at Vanderbilt, but had kept himself busy painting portraits for coaches and players, and for covers of scouting reports and odd publications. “My art went hand-in-hand with everything I was doing,” he says. “It was a great education. I was fascinated with the different art forms, and I had access to a thriving environment.”

Following Vanderbilt, Threalkill went to work at the Edgehill Community Center as Community Services Director, and began setting up youth programs, summer employment programs, alcohol and drug prevention programs, and beyond.

“Edgehill had a pretty rough reputation,” he says. “But we had a lot of success. People took notice — we began to spread our award-winning mural painting programs throughout the city. We were selling some student artwork and teaching them they could make a living with art — as opposed to being out on the street corner selling drugs. Something you could do that was productive and safe.

“We took kids to Washington, D.C. For many of them, it was the first time out of their community. I’ll never forget the looks on their faces when they saw some of the places and the structures — the Washington Monument, the White House, the Lincoln Memorial — it’s just priceless to me. Mayor [Phil] Bredesen contacted me during his second term and said he wanted me on his staff to help him connect to local communities. I was his community affairs person. I’d go to community meetings and hear what their concerns were, and communicate those back to the mayor.

“I ultimately became part of the founding board members for the Frist Center for the Visual Arts. I ended up being on the Metro Arts Commission, and a part of those forums exploring how Nashville could become a cultural arts center. That’s when I connected with people like Ann Brown and Michael McBride, great artists, who were doing murals and bringing attention to public art.”

As people discovered the work Threalkill was doing in the community, they discovered his own artwork. And he was part of a movement that was bringing artists together to move a city.

He connected with Jim Ed Norman at Warner Bros. Records and through that relationship was brought into a project with South African musicians, most notably bassist Victor Masando.

Threalkill had painted a portrait of Mandela in 1990, based on a photograph run by USA Today when he was released from prison. Norman sent an image of the portrait to Mandela’s people, and Threalkill produced the cover for the record.

They loved both, and upon discovering his mural paintings, invited him to an event

honoring Mandela in Soweto in 1995. “They brought me to South Africa to paint some murals and to teach students how to do it,” he recalls. “I traveled with the music producer and director, Gail Hamilton, and connected with Victor Masando.

“There was a sea of people (at the event in Soweto). I sat onstage four rows back from Nelson Mandela. Who in the world would believe? I’ve come a long way from East Nashville! … I was able show him the painting I had done five years before.”

His work would land him far-flung jobs working with various global companies, coordinating diversity outreach programs, and connecting with local artists, and bringing art workshops and English language classes. The U.S. embassy in Bogota, Colombia, arranged for him to speak in six cities across that country about his home and the power of art.

Today, from his studio in Murfreesboro, Threalkill remains true to his nature of community service. He travels to East Nashville often to honor the support he was given early, giving through a group he had been a part of many years ago.

“There’s a group of guys I played ball with,” he says. “Lifelong friends. When we were younger, we all used to hang out at the Fred [now

Frederick] Douglas Center. There was a mentor and Parks and Recreation employee named Edward Mullins — his nickname was Junebug, and he was a role model for a lot of the young men in the neighborhood. He formed a group called the Unique Gents. We used to meet down at the community center and emphasize discipline and schoolwork.

“We’ve gotten back together, maybe 25 years later. Unfortunately, Junebug suffered an untimely death, but we’re committed to staying together and helping anyway we can here. We have many Saturdays when we come in and talk to young men about careers and education, finances. About possibilities.

“We want to keep them on track — we’ll do things like provide meals after the games like hot dogs and pizza, so they can have something after. We look for ways to support the young people in this community the way we were supported when we were growing up.”

And, yes, Threalkill talks to them about the power of art. The power of hope. “Because of art, I’ve been able to stand with some of the greatest men on the planet,” he says. “I’ve come from the public housing community, but that hasn’t held me back. ... I’m lucky in that people cared about me. My mother. The first-grade teacher.”

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BIG BEAT for the 21st Century

JD MCPHERSON DOES WHAT HE WANTS

by Randy Fox

photography by Jeremy Harris

January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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JD McPherson eyes his musical future through retro lenses.

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W

hile recording his new album, Undivided Heart & Soul, at Historic RCA Studio B, JD McPherson discovered some unexpected collaborators. “The first day we recorded the song ‘Undivided Heart & Soul,’ ” McPherson recalls. “We had all the bells and whistles ready to make it sound like a classic Roy Orbison record, but it wasn’t working. The longer we were there, the louder and fuzzier it got. It honestly felt like there were ghosts in the walls with a rope around me pulling me in the direction of something different.”

Setting a course for the familiar, but ending up with “something different” aptly describes McPherson’s musical career.

Since the release of his first album, Signs & Signifiers, he’s become a leading advocate for the original, undiluted excitement of 1950s-style rock & roll, while avoiding the gabardine-lined trap of nostalgia and retro-culture idolization. Mixing the energy and passion of first generation rockers like Little Richard, Buddy Holly, and Roy Orbison with contemporary lyrics and concerns has gained him a following across a wide spectrum of music aficionados, including rockabilly cats, punk blues pounders, alt-country rockers, and more.

McPherson’s fearlessness and hardheaded refusal to stay in the musical pigeonholes created by seven decades of rock compartmentalization is rooted in isolation. When there’s no one around to tell you the rules, you’re never restrained by them. A native Oklahoman, McPherson grew up on a 160-acre cattle ranch in rural southeastern Oklahoma, near the small town of Talihina.

The youngest of five siblings, his sister and three brothers had already left home by the time he started school.

“I grew up very isolated,” McPherson says. “I went to a very rural school, only 11 kids in my class. It was geared toward agricultural science, no art or music programs. It was a horrible situation if you are wired toward the arts, but a great place because it grants you isolation. When I had time, I could devote myself completely to what I was interested in — listening to music, playing guitar, drawing, and making videos.”

Learning to play guitar at the age of 13 without a musical mentor to guide him, McPherson became a diligent researcher and a ravenous consumer of music. “We weren’t near any towns, and there wasn’t any internet yet,” he says. “I had to call the Hastings in Fort Smith, Ark., to order CDs, which was 70 miles away. I’d buy rock magazines to read and figure out what I was going to order for the next trip. Any time we’d go to Tulsa, I’d go to Mohawk Music or other record stores and pick up ’zines to piece together my musical knowledge. I’d order punk records directly from indie labels like SST and Sub Pop over the phone, and I’d talk to the person taking the order about music. I had no one else. My parents weren’t interested, and none of the kids I ☞ knew were either.”

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n high school, McPherson acquired one music-obsessed friend, Mitchell Hamilton, and the duo soon turned to making their own music. “It was just us recording tapes on a Tascam four-track, and we played shows for two or three friends. Mitchell wanted it to be Nirvana, and I wanted it to be like Siouxsie and the Banshees. That’s where I first learned that being in a band means a lot of pushing and pulling.”

McPherson’s passion for punk soon found a new direction as he discovered the unrefined, original power of the big beat through the music of Buddy Holly. “I was all about playing guitar at that time, so when I discovered Sonny Curtis’ playing on Buddy Holly’s early records, it blew me away,” he says. “It was focused and simple, a short burst of just incredible playing that was never self-indulgent. Early rock & roll had everything I liked about punk. It was high energy, but with really good guitar playing. I started wearing black, high-water jeans, white socks, and trying to make everything sound like ‘Rock Around with Ollie Vee.’ But naturally Mitchell got into Jerry Lee Lewis, and he wanted everything we played to sound like that.”

McPherson’s band options and exposure to varied influences exploded when he entered college at University of Tulsa in the mid-’90s. “I was standing in the lobby of Walker Tower on the first day after moving in, and I met this guy who had a Social Distortion T-shirt on. I was like, ‘OH, MAN!’” For the next decade McPherson divided his time between academia and rock & roll. While he eventually earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Tulsa, his true passion was music. “I was never without a band from the time I was 16,” he says. “I always had some kind of musical project going, and almost everything suffered at the hands of it. I took off two weeks to tour when I was an undergrad and really didn’t understand why I was in trouble when I got back. I had blinders on about everything except music.”

McPherson was particularly attracted to Oklahoma City’s thriving rockabilly scene, performing in such bands as F.B.I. and local neo-rockabilly legends, The Poison Okies. McPherson sharpened his performing and songwriting skills, and got the opportunity to back Oklahoma rockabilly legends Wanda Jackson and Big Al Downing. Although McPherson was deeply ensconced in the rockabilly revival scene, his egalitarian views of American music remained strong. In 2007, he formed The Starkweather Boys, a first attempt to scratch his many musical itches.

“The Starkweather Boys reflected my desire to do more than just rockabilly — Western swing, pop, R&B, and more,” McPherson explains. “We made one record, but it wasn’t what I really wanted it to sound like. We tried to do one of everything, and we confused a lot of people.”

The Starkweather Boys sole album, Archer St. Blues (2007), is a musical scattershot. Filled with great original songs and performed with gusto, the album is a Whitman’s Sampler of styles, with compartmentalized servings of varied retro-rock styles rather than a unified musical vision. Although reconciling multiple musical influences proved frustrating, it plugged the band into the European rockabilly touring circuit, leading McPherson to an important connection. “I met Jimmy Sutton of The Del Moroccos at a rockabilly festival in Spain,” McPherson recalls. “He was a hero of mine. All of his bands — The Del Moroccos, The Mighty Blue Kings, The Four Charms — had top shelf players and their records sounded amazing. He also came from a punk background. We started talking about music beyond the roots scene, and he loved the idea of bringing in a lot of outside elements. He had built his own studio in Chicago, and he invited me to come up and record.”

The album that resulted from those sessions, Signs & Signifiers, brought immediate attention to McPherson’s retro-roots rock & roll infused with modern sensibilities. Avoiding both the fashion

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January 23

DAVID RAWLINGS

January 28

WALK THE MOON February 15

BLUES TRAVELER with Los Colognes

February 16

JOSH RITTER & THE ROYAL CITY BAND with Mandolin Orange

February 17

TOMMY EMMANUEL

fetishism prevalent in some neo-rockabilly and the goth-horror excesses of psychobilly, McPherson navigated a simple yet powerful course — creating back-to-basics rock & roll for the here and now with an eye cast toward the future. The album’s first single, “North Side Gal,” echoed the classic New Orleans sound of Fats Domino and Little Richard records, adding a timeless urgency immediately attractive to non-roots rock fans. Other cuts, such as the sublime “Your Love (All That I’m Missing),” invoke the charm and swagger of a young Jackie Wilson transposed to the 21st century.

Although McPherson successfully captured the sound he wanted, delivery to a wider audience proved complicated. With a family to support, quitting his day job as an art and technology teacher in a Tulsa middle school didn’t seem an option. Then the great motivator of music careers came along, unemployment.

“I had been getting calls from a booking company that wanted me to tour,” he says.

“Jimmy Sutton wanted me to do it, but I didn’t want to just be back on the old rockabilly club circuit. On the other hand, when I was teaching fourth graders how to type, I had them copying essays about the Collins Kids or

with Jake Shimabukuro

JONNY LANG with Doyle Bramhall II

February 27

NOEL GALLAGHER’S HIGH FLYING BIRDS

— McPherson on the making of Undivided Heart & Soul

March 17

THE WOOD BROTHERS with Valerie June

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100.1 fm

May 21 & 22

FLEET FOXES May 23

MARGO PRICE with Colter Wall

.

100.1 fm

DISNEY JUNIOR DANCE PARTY! ON TOUR

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cPherson’s departure from his record label coincided with a decision to relocate his family to Nashville. He had already made several Music City connections, and the move felt right. First landing in a less than comfortable Cool Springs apartment, McPherson, his wife Mandy, and their two daughters are now settled into a comfy home

It wasn’t a deliberate choice to make a really loud, fuzzy, jaggededge record. We just turned on the faucet and that’s what came out.

February 18

March 28

“

and No. 161 on the magazine’s overall album chart, Billboard 200.

McPherson’s second album, 2015’s Let the Good Times Roll, continued the pattern of smart, literate, and contemporary songs set to a classic rock & roll beat, this time with the assistance of producer Mark Neill (The Black Keys, Los Straitjackets). Although the album scored higher on the charts, hitting No. 17 on Billboard’s Rock Albums chart and No. 142 on the Billboard 200, sales were slightly less than the first album.

“The second record came out at a time when Rounder was going through some major changes, and we got lost in the shuffle.”

McPherson explains. “That’s why we left.

Fortunately, we had built our reputation on live shows, and they got even bigger.”

Charlie Christian. I was forcing that round peg into a square hole and something had to give.

When I lost my job, I kind of saw it coming.”

With the buzz generated by good reviews and the video for “North Side Gal” a viral hit on YouTube, McPherson hit the road with his band. “The first shows we played were to rockabilly crowds in Europe, and they really responded to the music,” he says. “That’s to their credit because there is some weird stuff on that first record, things that just don’t fit in that scene. In the U.S., we began to build our own following. I think it was off-center just enough to catch people’s attention.”

The next step came in the spring of 2012 when McPherson signed with Rounder Records. Rounder reissued Signs & Signifiers, and with a push from the label, the record debuted at number one on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart, eventually reaching No. 47 on the Billboard Rock Albums chart

theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

in East Nashville. McPherson soon signed with Nashville-based New West Records.

For his third album, McPherson planned to explore new directions, but finding the right course proved to be a challenge.

“I didn’t have any ideas for a new record when we signed with New West,” he says. “This record was really hard to make. There was a lot of pressure, a lot of band infighting. We had one producer cancel on us. The songs weren’t ready, and I was going through a depression.

I’m sure the label was wondering, ‘Why did we sign this guy?’ We were out of options, but we needed to get something out this year, because we needed the work.

“That’s when our engineer, Scott McKuen, suggested we try booking time in an out-ofthe-box place like an isolated cabin or maybe an old studio like RCA Studio B. I didn’t think Studio B was a real option, but I emailed the Country Music Hall of Fame, and they said

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yes. It was completely out of left field, and it was the best thing that could have happened.”

Since Historic RCA Studio B operates as a museum and tourist attraction during the day McPherson was limited to evening hours, with sessions often running until 3 or 4 a.m. Burning the midnight oil proved inspiring, especially with the knowledge that similar hours produced some of Elvis Presley’s greatest recordings.

“Every night was special,” he says. “They had the tour music playing, so we would hear Elvis, Roy Orbison, and The Everly Brothers every night while we were loading in. I was still struggling to get songs finished, but when we sat down at that grand piano, (McPherson band member) Ray Jacildo and I wrote ‘Jubilee,’ ‘Hunting for Sugar,’ and ‘Let’s Get Out of Here While We’re Young’ like that. It was such an inspiring place.”

The inspiration flowed beyond songwriting as McPherson found the sonic architecture of his basic rock & roll taking on new shapes. “It wasn’t a deliberate choice to make a really loud, fuzzy, jagged-edge record,” he says. “We just turned on the faucet and that’s what came out.

Knowing where we were recording, it felt like I was in church saying dirty words, but every time we leaned more left of center it felt right.

I needed to shake off some rust, and everything was coming from a more deeply personal place than before.”

McPherson and his band’s collaboration with the ghosts of Studio B resulted in his most impressive record to date. Throughout Undivided Heart & Soul, his sharp, passionate lyrics are complemented by his back-to-basics rock & roll sound, coupled with a new degree of musical fearlessness. The songs are sprinkled with references from decades of musical history — the big, bass fuzztone solo from “Crying’s Just a Thing You Do” invokes the golden age of garage punk, while “Hunting for Sugar” summons the ghosts of lush, ’60s soul ballads, and the romantic rocker “On the Lips” combines surf reverb with the drive of late ’70s new wave. Far more than musical footnotes, these elements combine to create a dramatic and personal reinvention of rock & roll for the 21st century.

While such fearless fusions seemed sacrilegious to McPherson at the time of recording, they’re actually perfectly in line with the royal legacy of Studio B. Hits like Elvis Presley’s “It’s Now or Never” and Roy Orbison’s “Only the Lonely” weren’t recycled and reverent tributes to the past. They were bold steps forward by artists unafraid to create records that broke the rules and upended expectations.

“It was a difficult record to make and it felt weird making it, but to me it’s been a natural progression, just following the rabbit,” McPherson says. “I’m not saying my sound will always be this from now on, but it felt right at this time. My booking agent told me he could hear shackles falling off of me when he listened to the record, so we’ll see.

“We just played a sold-out show in Toronto that was really badass,” he continues. “We were tearing down when one girl came up and said, ‘You know nobody likes this new record.’ I wanted to say, ‘Well, why did we just sell out this show?’ My biggest worry is that people who love my first two records might feel like I’m turning my back on them, but it’s still a rock & roll record, and it makes sense to me.

Besides, I’m from Southeast Oklahoma, and I do what I want.”

AVA I L A B L E N O W O N New West Records

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2017

T H E S TA R T O F 2 0 1 8 C A N O N LY MEAN ONE THING: The announcement of the 2017 winners for East Nashvillians of the Year!

∑

Awarded by the Historic East Nashville Merchants Association (HENMA) from nominations submitted by the general public and selected by HENMA members in a secret

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ballot, these awards recognize contributions to the local community that stand out — individuals that “pay it forward” and exemplify the values we share in our humble neighborhood.

The awards are presented in two categories: Business and Citizen.

The recipients in this year’s Business category — Travis Collinsworth and Todd Sherwood, proprietors of The 5 Spot — have steadfastly guided the local music venue for

PAST WINNERS 2008 BUSINESS: Meg & Bret MacFadyen, Art and Invention Gallery CITIZEN: Bob Acuff

2009 BUSINESS: Dan Heller, Riverside Village CITIZEN: Carol Norton

2010 BUSINESS: Alan Murdock, ArtHouse Gardens CITIZEN: Catherine McTamaney

2011 BUSINESS: The Green Wagon CITIZEN: Eric Jans

2012 BUSINESS: The East Nashvillian CITIZEN: Elizabeth Chauncey

2013 BUSINESS: March Egerton, Developer CITIZEN: Carol Williams

over a decade, providing a welcoming spot for hometown musicians.

This year’s Citizen recipient — photographer and videographer Stacie Huckeba — is a passionate and outspoken activist, fundraiser, and booster for the East Side’s creative community, as well as the less fortunate and sometimes forgotten inhabitants of the “It City.”

We’d like to offer our congratulations to the winners and wish them all the best in the coming year.

2014 BUSINESS: Powell Architecture + Building Studio CITIZEN: Brett Withers

2015 BUSINESS: Matt Charette, Restaurateur CITIZEN: Darrell Downs, Kelly Perry

2016 BUSINESS: The Basement East Dave Brown & Mike Grimes CITIZEN: Bonnie Bogen

Travis Collinsworth (right) reacts skeptically to Todd Sherwood’s eureka! moment, while Rocky looks on with bemusement.

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2017 ENOTY B U S I N E S S

THE 5 SPOT TRAVIS COLLINSWORTH & TODD SHERWOOD

“S

ome venues are rock & roll bars, and that’s all they are,” Travis Collinsworth, co-owner of The 5 Spot says. “We’ve never seen it that way. From day one, our goal has been to be as inclusive as possible. As long as you have good people and good music, we love to have you.”

It’s 11 a.m. on a Thursday morning at the club. Collinsworth and fellow co-owner Todd Sherwood are preparing for another night at East Nashville’s steadfast watering hole and friendly neighborhood music venue.

“That cross-pollination of people and musical styles is where cool things happen,” Collinsworth continues. “Why pigeonhole yourself ? That philosophy is reflective even in our seating. We can move tables around, move seats out to the patio, clear up floor space — we can accommodate different parties, different shows, all that was very much by design.”

That design began with The 5 Spot’s founder Diane Carrier and continues under Collinsworth and Sherwood’s stewardship. Carrier was an East Side music venue pioneer when she opened Backwoods Studios to live shows in the early months of 2000. Although Carrier initially planned a recording studio for the cement block storefront at 1006 Forrest Ave., the response to the freewheeling and diverse shows convinced her and her husband, William “Bones” Verhiede, to renovate the space into a more formalized music venue.

At the time, trying to tempt music lovers to cross the river was not an easy task, despite the buzz surrounding other pioneering East Side venues like Radio Cafe and Slow Bar. But East Nashville was becoming a neighborhood of musicians who desperately needed a neighborhood hangout.

In 2002, with Carrier and Verhiede working to transform the building into a full-fledged music venue, Miami-native and Nashville musician Collinsworth joined the business. “I came on board right when they were trying to get all the permits lined up to get The 5 Spot open,” Collinsworth says.

“It took us about a year to get everything through codes.”

Officially opening in 2003 as a beer-only bar, The 5 Spot quickly became known for its welcoming atmosphere and community-focused booking. Although touring acts were occasionally on the bill, The 5 Spot focused on extended artist residencies, impromptu jam sessions, oddball side project bands, and absolute beginners. The music ranged →

BY RANDY FOX PHOTOGRAPH BY TRAVIS COMMEAU

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from old timey string bands, green-as-gooseshit punk bands, ad hoc jazz combos, and rockin’ soul revues. In short order, The 5 Spot and another newbie at the time, The Family Wash, became twin landmarks for one of the hottest, up-and-coming music neighborhoods in the world.

Maryland native and musician Todd Sherwood joined the staff in 2006 to run sound for shows, but soon was learning the music venue business from top to bottom when Carrier and Verhiede’s house was destroyed in the April 2006 tornado that struck Gallatin, Tenn.

“Travis and I were left to take care of everything,” Sherwood says. “For two years, it was basically just us bartending, running sound, booking acts, and making sandwiches. They made us partners, and we ran the business, but we were still learning. When we got our liquor license in 2007, we really had no idea what

I’ve enjoyed that we’ve become a tourist stop.

You meet people and find out where they’re from, but sometimes they’d get a surprise when a group comes by expecting to see country music and the Queer Dance Party was that night.”

The 5 Spot gained more fame in October 2016 when it was chosen as the venue to kick off Lady Gaga’s “Dive Bar Tour.” Despite the international attention, the changing nature of East Side neighborhoods presents special challenges. As rents go up and older homes are replaced by multiple six-figure tall and skinnies, both the pool of local talent and potential patrons has changed.

“It used to be if someone canceled, I could call someone else that lived down the street,” Sherwood says. “We could have a great night of music from just a few phone calls. Many of the new people that have moved into the neighborhood don’t play music or go out to hear live

“

We provide a venue for musicians who live down the street — a place they can refine their skills so when they play elsewhere they will amaze people.

—Todd Sherwood we were doing. Someone would order something fancy, and we’d say, ‘How about a Jack and Coke?’ ” Around the same time, Carrier’s health problems resulted in her and Verhiede stepping away from the business completely, eventually transferring full ownership to Collinsworth and Sherwood. Carrier passed away from cancer in January 2017.

Under Collinsworth and Sherwood’s ownership, The 5 Spot continued its eclectic and locally focused booking. East Nashville-based musicians became weekly fixtures — Two Dollar Tuesdays with Derek Hoke, Tim Carroll’s Friday night Rock & Roll Happy Hour, and Jason Eskridge’s Sunday Night Soul.

These weekly events, along with a series of month-long residencies by some of Nashville’s finest musicians and DJ dance parties catering to different segments of music fans, became cornerstones of The 5 Spot’s programming.

Despite the lack of major names, The 5 Spot’s reputation as a fun and freewheeling music venue welcoming to all led to national fame. In 2012, it was chosen by the producers of the Nashville TV series as one of the real-life venues featured on the show.

“Two times on the show a character was playing at 5 o’clock at The 5 Spot,” Sherwood says. “We still have tourists show up at 5 p.m. and wonder why there’s not music going on.

music. I’m always trying to reach out to new people in the neighborhood and get them to realize what made this neighborhood great.

I always encourage them to come on by and point out we have great early shows. We’re still doing it, but it is more of a challenge.”

Despite that challenge, Collinsworth and Sherwood remain committed to The 5 Spot’s original business model — a local community venue for one of the greatest music communities in the world. It’s a vision that continues producing special moments.

“The first couple of times Derek Hoke played here, I thought he was great,” Sherwood says. “But one night some band cancelled, and he just got up on stage and started playing. He was a little shy at first, but we all started calling out songs, and he would play them. That’s when I realized he could do something more.

Over the years, he’s gained this stage presence from playing every Tuesday night, talking to crowds, and introducing bands — just being a host. I’ve seen other bands play here on a regular basis and get better each time. Margo Price played here a lot, met other musicians, and got to know everyone, and she’s still a regular.

We’re not trying to bring in headlining acts.

We provide a venue for musicians who live down the street — a place they can refine their skills so when they play elsewhere they will amaze people.”

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2017 ENOTY C I T I Z E N

STACIE HUCKEBA

“L

ast year I took my friend Doug Williams on a couple of runs to deliver supplies to homeless camps,” Stacie Huckeba says. “He was really down because of the election, and I thought showing him how he could make a difference locally would cheer him up. At the end of the day he said, ‘It’s amazing. Going in today I was just thinking we’d help homeless people, but now I’m thinking about getting a sleeping bag for Jerry, and hoping that we can get enough propane to Happy. They’re not just homeless people now, they’re people that I know. How can you just walk away?’ ” Just walking away has seldom been the choice for Huckeba.

As a first-rate photographer and videographer, a tireless supporter of Nashville’s music community, and an advocate for the homeless, women’s issues, and her neighborhood, she’s become an ubiquitous presence in East Nashville’s arts and music scene. She’s acquired friends and courted controversy with her outspokenness, but for Huckeba, it has never been a matter of seeking attention — it’s a matter of having a story or cause too exciting not to share.

A native of Odessa, Texas, Huckeba can’t remember when she wasn’t capturing moments in time through a camera lens. “I had a Kodak Instamatic or a Polaroid from the time I was tiny,” she says. “I had a photography business by the time I was 15 — taking senior portraits for the kids in my school and shooting weddings. While I was in college I was working in a bar and started shooting bands. I got my degree in commercial photography, and I pictured myself shooting Giorgio Armani ads, but I got a job with 7-Eleven, stuck in a basement shooting pictures of hot dogs and ice cream cones. It didn’t take long to realize that being on tour with Pearl Jam would be way more fun.”

Huckeba’s pursuit of a music photography career led to her living in San Diego for more than a decade. In 2006, she moved to Nashville, thanks to the encouragement of singer-songwriter Todd Snider. “I worked for a small record label doing PR and marketing when I first moved to Nashville, but that job fell through,” Huckeba says. “Luckily, there were a lot of people who needed their picture taken, and Todd encouraged me to get into video. People kept giving me work. I’m humbled and grateful to be here and to work with the people I do.”

→

BY RANDY FOX PHOTOGRAPH BY CHUCK ALLEN

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Stacie Huckeba, seen here amidst the pastoral splendor of Middletree Studios, embodies the loving, giving spirit of East Nashville.

Hair/makeup by Kim Murrey. Wardrobe: jacket courtesy Elizabeth Cook; sweatshirt by Pony Show; boot selection by Aaron Lee Tajsan.

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Huckeba expresses a portion of her gratitude through fundraising and volunteer work for homeless assistance. “I don’t have much family, and they live really far from here,” she says. “I usually spend my holidays alone, so I wanted to give my holidays to someone else. Four years ago, I was planning to drive around and hand out shampoo or whatever at homeless camps, but Skip Anderson, who worked with The Contributor, connected me with Laurie Green at SAFPAW.” SAFPAW is the Southern Alliance for People and Animal Welfare, an organization founded by Green that addresses rural homelessness in Middle Tennessee by providing assistance and necessities to people who have little or no access to social support systems found in urban areas.

“I started going with her on her supply runs, and it changed everything for me,” Huckeba continues. “I took my camera on the first several runs with the idea of shooting pictures, but once I met them, it felt exploitive, weird, and wrong at the time.”

with the Trump Administration — designed to only fit a very narrow margin of society,” she explains. “I wanted to do portraits of people wearing the shoes and have them tell me why this administration doesn’t fit them. I posted on social media that I was looking for people who felt like they were part of a marginalized group, and in eight days, I shot 50 portraits, all within 11 miles of my house. If that is the diversity that makes up Nashville, just imagine the diversity of the entire country. It was powerful, and the showing raised almost $3,000 for Planned Parenthood and the ACLU.” Huckeba’s passion and outspokenness has sometimes led to controversy, especially in the opinion pieces about sexual harassment, fat shaming, and other political, social, and neighborhood issues she has penned for Huffington Post, The Guardian, and The East Nashvillian.

“I’ve gotten in trouble for my mouth since I was a kid,” she says. “I always spoke my mind and had something different to say from the people around me since I was really young, but

“

CONCERTS | RESTAURANT | PRIVATE EVENTS | WINERY

I did not move to Nashville; I moved to East Nashville. It was a specific choice to live in this community.

—Stacie Huckeba Now in her fourth year fundraising for SAFPAW and assisting with supply runs, Huckeba has developed friendships with homeless individuals and recently began posting a series of portraits and personal stories on Instagram (@eastsidestacie) titled The Face of Homelessness.

“I take a white backdrop with me and photograph them head and shoulders against that backdrop,” Huckeba says. “People have to look at them as human beings rather than their surroundings. Then I ask them to tell me about the first night they remember being homeless.

They’ve been really gracious in letting me tell their stories, and it seems to have made a difference. The donations have really increased this year.”

Huckeba also combines her photography with other activist causes. Her April 2017 showing at Art and Invention Gallery in East Nashville, This Shoe Doesn’t Fit — Celebrating Culture and Diversity in a New Era, began with a pair of ridiculously ostentatious Ivanka Trump brand stilettos she received as a gift.

“As I looked at the shoes with their rhinestones and gold, Ivanka’s name carved in the leather and the Made in China sticker on them, they seemed to sum up everything that is wrong

I think all of it stems from the fact that I really love people.”

One of the most obvious examples of Huckeba’s love for people and her community are her frequent “deck hangs.” They’ve become a fixture of the East Side music and arts community. Open to friends old and new, she sees the impromptu gatherings as integral to creating a community where special moments in time are both created and shared.

“I did not move to Nashville; I moved to East Nashville,” she says. “It was a specific choice to live in this community. In spite of all the changes, I still really love this neighborhood. There’s so much building in my neighborhood that I’m being completely swallowed by tall skinnies. I rent my house and there’s probably no way I’ll be there in another year, but I want people who are living in the tall skinnies around me to one day tell stories about a crazy lady who had a billion Christmas lights on the back of her house and had people sitting around a bonfire on her deck playing music. No matter how much East Nashville changes or when people move here, there will always be, ‘I remember when’ stories. The only way they’ll get me out of East Nashville is to run me out.”

1/5 Webb Wilder & The Beatnecks presented by WMOT/Roots Radio 1/6 Steve Earle’s Annual Winter Residency with Opener Mike Mattison (Of Tedeschi Trucks Band) presented by WMOT/Roots Radio 1/6 Inebriated Shakespeare In The Lounge 1/7 Kevin Whalum Presents…

Giovanni Rodriguez & Paula Champion 1/9 The Grammy Award-Winning Rebirth Brass Band 1/10 Chuck Mead’s Nashville All-Star Revue featuring Special Guests Nikki Lane, Warner Hodges of Jason and The Scorchers, & JD Wilkes From The Legendary Shack Shakers presented by WMOT/Roots Radio

1/10 Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal in the Lounge 1/11 An Evening with Hot Tuna Acoustic presented by WMOT/Roots Radio 1/11 Blind Tasting Workshop 1/12 An Evening with Mac McAnally 1/12 Jenny Talia In The Lounge 1/13 Syleena Johnson - The Rebirth Of Soul Tour 1/14 “For Pete’s Sake” featuring John Oates, John Jorgenson, Jack Pearson, Joe Robinson, Lee Roy Parnell, Herb Pedersen, Pat Bergeson, Sean Della Croce, Baillie & The Boys with Alyssa Bonagura, Antsy Mcclain and more TBA! 1/14 Minton Sparks with Opener The Skipperdees in the Lounge!

1/15 Funk & Soul Dance Party Throw Down!

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BLUE AS SHE WANTS TO BE

Chloe Stillwell likes to push it till someone says, ‘Whoa!’

By Holly Gleason | Photography by Eric England

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C

urled up like a cat on a bar stool, mahogany hair falling in an Egyptian sphinx meets Beat poet cut, Chloe Stillwell could be any transplanted sophisticate on a Saturday night at the counter. The quiet din at Cafe Roze offers a lo-fi cloud of ennui or sangfroid, yet she appears in relaxed juxtaposition. Animated, well-modulated, leaning into a bevy of topics, she is the ultimate free spirit in a room of the well-put-together, self-conscious middle-agers.

Ahhh, the new Nashville, where the veneer is often deeper than the depths/content so many hipster-come-latelies embody. To look at the lithe young woman with the black clothes, the perfect batwing eyeliner, it’s hard to tell. Serious intellect? One more pretentious, poseur intellectual? Looks can be deceiving, or even more confusing, spot-on correct.

Chloe Stillwell, you see, has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. For an essay. About her mother who had a stroke, who had 43 percent of her mental capabilities compromised, who sent her a Valentine. It is rich writing, dense with detail and a narrative sense of the emotions that had passed between them.

A Pushcart Prize, for those who don’t dangle over the literary abyss, is a big deal. Selected by the Pushcart Press to recognize the best work of small, independent presses, it celebrates “poetry, short stories, essays, memoirs, pieces of novels and what not.”

“Narratively does such amazing work, and to be one of six pieces (submitted) that represents them?” she says of the Pushcart honor.

“I have a writing degree, a literary degree. You have to read every book from here to Genesis in that, and so there’s that. Writing feeds comedy, you know? But I think (the education) is what sets me apart.

I write a set, but I’m a trained writer.”

This is the young feminist firebrand whose comedy tackles anal?

Titty fucking? Waxing? This is the woman, with her small, fragile-seeming bones and ninja laser eyes, who almost created a local comedy meltdown by introducing a feminist comedy night at The 5 Spot? This is the instigator lobbing Molotov cocktails of sex and hypocrisy at the good ole boys doing the exact kind of humor you’d expect? The Pushcart Prize? Sure. Blow job jokes? Beneath her seeming intellect, and yet … scandalous when delivered by the person supposed to be giving, not mocking fellatio? Um, uh, yeah, guilty as charged.

Stillwell gets that joke, too. Even as she recoils in mock-horror over the stir the notion of a roomful of women comics getting real in the (pre)face of today’s “Me, Too” world, she mostly shrugs her shoulders. Comedy ain’t pretty, or dancing school.

Beyond her degree from Manhattan’s prestigious New School, the frequent Playboy contributor shakes her head and considers the double standard. “As someone who defends blue comedy, I so resent it. You know? When we did the night at The 5 Spot, a place →

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People hear their fears, and things they’ve thought about privately — and (they) let the fears go when they start laughing.

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that doesn’t do comedy as an established thing, there was a definite sense of being blacklisted.

It’s passed now, but it was felt. People were telling me, ‘You’re too feminist and you’re too dirty.’ ” And there was the night she finished her set, only to have the male host return to the stage with dismissive commentary, disguised as humor. “He’s calling me out with ‘Isn’t it just like the women’s lib girl to get up here and start talking about her pussy?’

“Why would he do that? A guy who does jokes about the vaginas of women in wheelchairs and fucking his girlfriend and driving at the same time?”

She has a point.

C

hloe Stillwell, though, is hardly that simple. Born to a pair of traveling hotel singers, who settled down in Nashville when her mother was nine months pregnant, calling her childhood unorthodox would be like saying Alice in Wonderland is a weird story. It’s true, but you’re really just nicking the surface.

Stillwell & Holland, as her parents were known, had resort contracts all over America, playing in high-end hotels, singing a mix of contemporary hits and classics for tourists getting away from it all and businessmen killing time. Everything from Patsy Cline to Billy Joel populated the repertoire, and the pair — a “full-blooded, Oklahoma native, American Trail of Tears Cherokee” woman and a declared bisexual man — killed on the road.

Settling down, her father opened a recording studio, started a publishing company, and flourished on the creative side of life, while his wife began a work trajectory that saw her rise to CEO of an insurance company. These were people who had big personalities and were born to achieve; little Chloe didn’t fall far from the tree.

“I was never afraid to be the center of attention,” she says with an in-on-the-joke eye-roll. “I was always a funny kid, never in a theatrical way, but in a real-life way. I’d make my parents laugh, sometimes to break up the fights and bring the level down.”

Growing up on Love Circle, where Hillsboro Village served as her own little Greenwich Village, the tiny blonde flourished as an unusual child. She was enrolled in University School — “when I think of what my parents gave up so I could have that education” — and soaked up all the late nights, creative types, and processes she could find, watching the excess without realizing how excessive it was.

Everyone from Dobie Gray to Porter Wagoner put the child to bed on a cot in the studio’s basement, recognizing the hours were often too late for a little girl. The partying, though seemingly fun, didn’t appeal to her then.

“I remember climbing up on a chair, then the counter, knowing there were hot chocolate packets above the microwave behind the whiskey bottles,” she says and laughs. “Taking those whiskey bottles down to get to the hot chocolate packets!”

Her determination to get what she needed set a pattern for life. With the classic “mean Mommy, fun Dad, which as a kid I took at face value” paradigm in place, Stillwell was also aware her mother’s drive — and demons — came from a deep place. “It was hard being on the reservation with a mom who was so incredibly abusive because she was mentally ill.

She was so successful, because of that drive.

“She was super Virgo, super hardass, who had a brother die at 38. She was also, like a lot of Native Americans, allergic to alcohol; she’d hold her face differently after even just one drink.”

Add to that the real truth about her father.

Though a declared bisexual, the man who saved her mother from the reservation really preferred men. “My dad was emotionally abusive (to her mother) because he was gay, and he wanted her to leave him. She loved to make scenes. Like any child, there’s just so much to all of it.”

Well, maybe not like any child. All families have dysfunction. But Stillwell’s family was a smelter that forged her comedic sense into

something more focused, a tool to diffuse and distract. It also saw the acerbic kid land in rehab at 17 for cocaine addiction, while still making the kind of strong grades that earns admission to NYC’s prestigious New School.

That kind of formidable intellect can’t be stopped by a house of flamboyant people enjoying the party, and the after party, and the after-after party. At the New School, Stillwell aborted from the Parsons School’s photography/design curriculum — “I didn’t want to make art on a computer screen” — to the writing program on the advice of her University School advisor. There she worked with critic/ cultural commentarist Margo Jefferson, poet and critic Albert Mobilio, film/music critic Charles Taylor, and historian/noted author Greil Marcus at the Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts.

Moving from New York City to Los Angeles, Stillwell honed her writing chops, as well as studied comedy, with United Citizens Brigade (UCB). As a means of focusing on the way the unspoken uncomfortable yields large masses of hilarity, she found her apotheosis.

But Stillwell, appearing regularly in Narratively, Salon, Spin, Nerve, Mic, and Paste, felt the pull of home. Not entirely sure why, she found herself feeling the need to return to Nashville. Of the 2014 decision, she says, “I remember thinking, ‘You need to go back. →

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You’ve been rambling. You got your degree.’ I wanted to start a life, to be closer to my family.”

She pauses. “I never intended to do comedy,” she continues. “I settled into freelancing, was spending time with my family and my boyfriend. And that’s when my mom had a massive stroke; wheelchair bound with cognitive challenges. I got to have that time with her before. I cherish it.”

I

t was a Valentine her mother painstakingly wrote out after it happened that inspired the Pushcart Prize-nominated essay for Narratively. Stillwell also found her writing for Playboy creating a wave; suddenly “Ed Sheeran Has a Toxic Masculinity Problem” was being discussed in the United Kingdom’s Guardian, as well as feminist blogs everywhere. “I got death threats over the Ed Sheeran,” she marvels. “I queefed that one out, never expected it to go viral. Who knew?”

But even realizing her education, her renewed family connection, the acclaim for — and response to — her writing, Stillwell felt something was missing. Though she didn’t think she wanted to be “a star,” the self-proclaimed introvert knew she craved more.

“Writing was going great, but it wasn’t satisfying that part of my life,” she explains.

“The funny part — and the performing part.

It takes a certain kind of writer to talk about dirty stuff, and make people laugh. I kinda did it to test my waters, to see how far can I go before someone says, ‘Whoa!’ But I realize anyone who’s not comfortable with dirty comedy, their trick is to shame it.”

Now aligning with Chicago’s nonprofit Women In Comedy, Stillwell recognizes the power comedy wields in terms of catharsis, as well as laughter. “The things we don’t talk about are hilarious,” she says. “People hear their fears, and things they’ve thought about privately — and (they) let the fears go when they start laughing.”

Raised on Jim Carey, Robin Williams, and Andy Kaufman, as well as female comics from Janeane Garofalo to Joan Rivers, the ability to dig in like a man reflects her influences. The notion of wearing makeup and looking pretty is an homage to Rivers, whom she declares, “the ultimate female comic.” Beyond those cornerstones, there are the original women of Saturday Night Live, especially Gilda Radnor “who mystified me how she held a camera while doing goofy stuff,” as well as the more contemporary Jen Kirkman, Eliza Schlesinger, Ali Wong, and Kristen Whig, who Stillwell calls “such an underrated comedy genius. Bridesmaids turned the tide; people went, ‘Oh! Women can be funny! They can write funny movies!’ ” But even more than following in anyone’s footsteps — and don’t mention Amy Schumer, which earns the rancorous rebuke, “any

woman doing dirty comedy gets compared to her” — Stillwell seeks to blaze her own trail.

Discordant, real, borderline offensive, touching the raw spots in so many women’s psyches, it builds a base. But it has also help build a scene for comediennes in Nashville.

The Crying Wolf. Acme Feed. Zanies. But also, Memphis, Baltimore, New Orleans, D.C., New York City. They’re all places for Stillwell to stake her claim in 15-, 20-, 45-, 60-minute increments. Razing sacred

cows, speaking the unthinkable, scalding the norms so many cling to, there is power in shocking, as well as dismantling people’s entrenched notions.

“I like to write about pop culture in terms of contemporary reality,” she explains, drawing a line between published writing and her sets. “We’re talking about low-brow things from a high-brow point of view, mixing perspectives like this, things people don’t see coming, that’s where the impact is.”

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Anne Nicholas Weiss (left) and her father, Kenneth, represent two of the three generations of Weises who have kept East Nashvillians in good spirits.

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SIGNo’ the

TIMES For more than 50 years, Weiss Liquors’ neon has been a beacon for thirsty East Siders

T

he sign — or really its potential disappearance from a venerated perch overlooking 824 Main Street — is one of the things keeping Weiss Liquors thriving into a third generation.

“It bothered me to think that Weiss Liquors sign would come down, that some other name would be on this building,” says Anne Nicholas Weiss, 38, who recently took over the store, a Main Street landmark as much for its sign as for the spirits dispensed within. “It bothered me and my dad.”

Dad — 71-year-old Kenneth Weiss, the second-generation owner of the liquor store that has its roots in a Meridian Street Prohibition speakeasy — → knew it was time to get out of the business. He could have cashed in.

By Tim Ghianni Photograph by Eric England

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Photos courtesy of Anne Nicholas Weiss

Arthur Weiss (second from right) in front of one of his planes, which he used to fly to Chicago for liquor runs.

Robinette and Anne Nicholas Weiss

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(L-R) Judy theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018Weiss, Sen. Jim Sasser, Ken Weiss, Anne Nicholas Weiss, and Rep. Bill Boner, circa 1985.

“This property around here is really valuable,” he says, nodding at a customer who comes in and hollers, “Kenny, Ken-nay,” on his way to the refrigerated spirits. “I’ve been getting a lot of offers from people who have been interested in it for the last two years.”

After all, this is East Nashville, where real estate prices surge.

Even so, no one met the price that would separate him from his heritage and that beloved pink sign with its yellow and green neon lettering (his mother’s favorite colors) blazing into the East Nashville night.

His daughter — who remembers “growing up” in this liquor store — listened to her dad talk about the possible sale.

That’s when Anne Nicholas decided the “Weiss” name needed to remain as one of the most-visible and viable landmarks in East Nashville.

Anne Nicholas knows a bit about real estate, East Nashville or otherwise, because of her day job: “I oversee commercial construction for a development firm,” she says. “It’s commercial real estate.

We build grocery stores and shopping centers.” And, she adds, they build liquor stores, too.

It remains a good job, and she enjoys it. “I really thought that was the path my life was going to take,” she says, admitting lately she’s been getting a bit sidetracked by melancholy while listening to her dad talk about selling this place.

Anne Nicholas spent a lot of her life below that Weiss Liquors sign. “When I was little, about 5, I’d get up early on Saturday to come here with my dad,” she recalls. “The only decision I had to make then was whether I was going to order one biscuit or two at Mrs. Winner’s” en route to the store.

She laughs, and adds the store became even more of a “home’’ for her after her pop built a “tree house” in the storeroom for her and big sister Robinette Weiss Gaston.

The tree house was there to keep the girls out of trouble while dad and mom, Judy — “my name’s really Julia, but everyone calls me Judy” — worked at the family business.

That tree house was “planted” by parental fear, Anne Nicholas notes, soft lament flavoring her words. “One day my sister and I were jumping over boxes back there (in the storeroom), and we dumped about 10 over,” she explains. “At least they didn’t break.”

To protect his girls and likely his spirits, Kenneth built the tree house. “It’s been gone a long time,” Anne Nicholas says. “He needed more room in the stockroom,” and, of course, her and Robinette’s tree house youth is long in the mist.

The store itself could have vanished, until October when Anne Nicholas and her wife decided it worth a gamble. Once Kenneth decided it was time to retire, he began fielding offers from land speculators and developers.

“

I didn’t want him to be taking down that sign.

Anne Nicholas knew her dad deserved to give up the long days and crazy nights demanded of a liquor store owner, and spend even more time on the Hillwood Country Club links.

She also began thinking about her lineage and what Weiss Liquors has meant to the neighborhood no matter the economic climate.

“I didn’t want him to be taking down that sign,” she says, smiling brightly on an afternoon when winter’s cruel promise flavors wind blowing down Main Street.

“So I went home to my wife, and I said ‘What do you think if we asked my dad if we could buy the store?’ My family had been in

business for two generations, and it hurt me to think about seeing it end.

“We think the neighborhood is going to grow around here,” she adds, looking toward the door of the liquor store as another regular enters. Rather than let the Weiss store go away and become another chess piece in the game of “it city” change, she and her wife “wanted to maintain the feel we have around here.”

And she is a businesswoman, wise to the pluses of such an establishment.

“It’s not recession-proof, but people always are going to drink,” she says, noting that when the economy finds itself in times of trouble → “they just drink less expensive” labels.

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Photo courtesy of Anne Nicholas Weiss

A vodka promotion at the store in the mid-’80s included an elephant that Kenneth Weiss (L) rode around the parking lot.

Robinette and Ken Weiss in the store, circa 1980.

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Ken Weiss (R) with John Elkins, Christmas 2000. Elkins is now the warehouse manager.

If she and wife Kristin hadn’t decided to save it, condos, sparkling new commercial construction, a restaurant, or trendy gin joint could have overtaken this Ninth-and-Main corner of East Nashville.

“We’ve been married two years and four months,” says Anne Nicholas, whose sparkling black Infiniti SUV often can be seen parked in a nook of driveway tucked against the store’s Main Street wall.

“We have been together for six years, but we had to wait to get married until they made it (same-sex marriage) legal.

“It became legal on June 26, 2015, and we were married July 31 at the courthouse,” she says. “Just us. We wanted a marriage. We really didn’t want a wedding.

“I was six months pregnant with twins, and I’m old-fashioned enough that I didn’t want my children born without their parents being married,” she says. “After the ceremony, we wore our wedding dresses to Mas Tacos and celebrated.”

The twins, Locke and his sister Jones, results of intrauterine insemination, were born into a loving household, not far from the family liquor store.

“Who knows, they may grow up and want to run this business,” becoming a fourth generation of Weisses to stand by the counter she leans against while washing down her story with a can of flavored, sparkling water.

Well, it actually probably won’t be this exact counter, as Anne Nicholas and Kristin want to do some updating.

“We’ll probably get rid of the ceilings,” she says, looking up at the acoustic tiles about eight feet off the floor. “My dad won’t like that, because he’d think I was wasting electricity.”

The removal of the tiles to open up the ceiling will mean bills for heating and cooling will increase, “but the way it will look with the higher ceiling will be worth it,” she says.

They also plan additional up-to-date styling, including adding a larger office Anne Nicholas can use for both her commercial development duties and her spirits business.

What won’t change is the basic neighborhood liquor-store feel that greets customers as varied as the woman who walks in to buy a pint of early-afternoon gin and the multiplying gentry seeking, perhaps, 12-year-old Scots Whisky.

That neighborhood “family” feel is enhanced by the loyalty the staff has for the Weiss family.

“They treat you fair,” says John Elkins, a 20year employee. “You don’t get rich here, but you make a decent living and (the Weisses) treat you good. They treat you like family.”Elkins goes on to note that his previous job — at a liquor store torn down to make way for what is now Nissan Stadium — had become risky.

“I got robbed three times there,” he says. “I haven’t had any problems here.”

He shakes off the question when asked if he should be called “manager.” “We all manage

the store,” he says. “This is a team effort. I’m just the senior man.”

Kenneth says he now works for his daughter and is her proud landlord, collecting “fair rent” from Anne Nicholas and Kristin.

Anne Nicholas stops in most mornings before going to her “real” job and often swings back in the afternoon. “Then I go home, she says. “We put the twins down at 7, so I’ll usually come back and work here from 7-10 p.m.

I want to keep a good work-family balance.”

Family always has been the forefront of this

business, going back to the bootlegging and speakeasy days. While this is a third-generation family package store, you can trace the Weiss clan’s East Nashville liquor legacy to 1890, when Kenneth’s Grandpa Nick ran a saloon on North First.

Weiss Liquors was birthed when “whiskey became legal in 1938 and dad opened up the store in ’39,” Kenneth says, referring to the first generation of this liquor store dynasty: his father, Arthur, and his Uncle Nick.

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Street, had been a speakeasy from 1931 to ’38”….until Prohibition was snuffed, according to Kenneth.

“I was born in ’46. I do remember the old store on Meridian Street. I was 12 when they closed it up” in 1958.

The family then built a store at Fourth and Main, but it was short-lived, as it was in the path of I-65. “That’s when we moved to the current location. In 1961.”

He admits the speakeasy business wasn’t the family’s only battle with Prohibition. They also were bootleggers.

“Daddy’s older brother, Nick, raced greyhound dogs, and that would take him up to Chicago. He could get Canadian whiskey there, so he would always come home with a load of whiskey.” Most of that product was sold to other bootleggers.

Nick and Arthur also had a connection in New Orleans who could get them pure, grain alcohol.

“They mixed the grain alcohol with the Canadian whiskey,” he says, describing his elders’ alcohol alchemy.

The second-oldest Weiss brother, Rene, worked in the family business from the 1940s until dying in 1992.

A sad chapter in the family history was the death of Arthur, who had been a World War II pilot-training instructor and continued doing that after his discharge.

In March 1966, while flying a friend’s airplane to Gallatin, “he lost the one engine that ran the hydraulics” and he (and a passenger) crashed and died.

“I was going to Georgia Tech, but I was home on spring break when that happened,” Kenneth recalls.

Anne Nicholas chirps in with a bit of the story as it’s been told over the decades. “I’ve heard that he (her dad) and some friends had been out the night before and they drank a little too much.” So Kenneth stayed home and slept it off rather than going ahead with plans to travel with his dad on that fatal flight.

After things settled down, Kenneth went back to college and worked on his civil engineering degree, never figuring he’d go into the family business.

In fact, after he graduated in 1969, he got a job in his field working for McDonnell Douglas in St. Louis.

“I came back to Nashville in the summer of 1970,” he says. “I had taken a job with Quaker Oats over in Memphis.”

That’s when his mother, Lucille – who had been running the liquor store with Uncle Nick – “asked if I would stick around for three weeks.”

He never punched in at Quaker Oats, instead immersing himself in Weiss Liquors.

“You do whatever it takes in life, but everything would have turned out differently if I’d have gone to the job in Memphis,” he says.

“I got married, and we started having kids, and when that happens, you gotta figure out a way to make it.”

And he knew his future was bright. “People have been drinking alcohol for many centuries,” and he doesn’t expect that thirst to dry up anytime soon.

“This neighborhood greatly changed in the 1960s and 1970s,” thanks largely to urban renewal, he says. Now he sees it changing back, getting gentrified, giving him a chance to cash

in on his property if desired, “but I really don’t need to.”

Instead, Anne Nicholas picked up the generational baton.

“I think the best thing is we’ve kept it in the family, and we are not walking away” from this changing neighborhood, she says.

She had feared seeing that bright Weiss Liquors sign extinguished.

Now it’s her job to keep it shining over Main Street.

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Tim Easton hitches for a ride on the side of the highway in Palmer, Alaska

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NORTH

BOUND An East Nashvillian in Alaska

By Tim Easton | Photography by Ash Adams

Journal entry: Aug. 1, 2017 My first and only lift today was from Max, a tugboat skipper from Homer, who was on his way to Valdez. I’d slept in, but knew I only had to hitch three hours down the road back towards Anchorage. I wasn’t standing on the road long enough to let my coffee cool off before Max pulled up. He had John Prine on the stereo; I had a John Prine sticker on my guitar case.

We were birds of a feather, no doubt. He was going the full distance to my destination, and I ended up arriving for my gig at the Brown Bear Saloon a few hours early, enough time to check out the fishing at Bird Creek.

We talked about everything under the sun. Fishing, politics, music, the state of the world … it was like catching up with an old friend.

Alaska delivers again. ...

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T Easton walks down a street in Palmer, Alaska, headed for the highway to hitch a ride down to his next show in Cooper Landing. For most of his 2017 tour, Easton hitched from place to place.

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he normalcy of long distance travel and immersion in foreign cultures was established early in my life. I was only 9 years old when my father’s company transferred him, and therefore my family, from Akron, Ohio, to Tokyo, Japan. We lived overseas for three years.

On one of our annual returns to the States, we had a layover in Anchorage, so my first views of Alaska were from the window of a Boeing 747. I was struck silent by majestic sights of sweeping glaciers, braided rivers, and mountain peaks blasting through scattered clouds. I saw massive ice fields, countless lakes and streams, vast forests, and an apparently infinite wilderness. This experience stayed

Left: Easton works on a sign to hitch from Talkeetna to Palmer.

Below: The merch table for Easton and Bow Thayer at the Fairview Inn in Talkeetna, Alaska.

with me and ignited my initial attraction to Alaska. The fires were further stoked by literature. All of this traveling and reading I did throughout my youth kickstarted a strong case of wanderlust that has yet to wane.

Years later, after my university years and a lengthy stint as a street musician in Europe, chased with some requisite time in a traveling band, I donned a vintage Alaska T-shirt for the cover photo of my second solo album, The Truth About Us. This started a chain reaction whereupon an Alaskan promoter invited me up north to play some shows. I accepted the invitation and have been returning every year since to sing my songs, go hiking, build campfires, mush dogs, pick blueberries, raft down rivers, fish, go sightseeing, hitchhike long distances, run songwriting workshops, record songs in cabins, fish some more, and generally have a blast hanging out with my amazing Alaskan friends.

As of this writing, I have visited Alaska 17 consecutive summers — and a few winters, too. The people and places of Alaska undoubtedly hold a special place in my heart. For me and so many travelers and residents, Alaska represents freedom. Alaska represents escape.

Of course, what Alaska represents and what it truly is are two different things, but after investing this much time visiting and traveling around various regions of the 49th state, I feel like I am able to truly appreciate both the reality of the freedom and the fantasy of the escape. I also feel my “honorary Alaskan” title is warranted. After a few more winters, perhaps I’ll get it in writing. Until then, I am just

another awestruck and fascinated visitor, passing through the most transitory of American states.

Alaskans themselves are the strongest reason for my prolonged fascination — both the Native Alaskans and those that migrated there. The striking and unforgiving land itself is certainly part of the allure, but as an armchair anthropologist, or a poet or songwriter, it’s the people that draw me back time and time again, The land and sea provide ample opportunity to get away from the people, and I accept those opportunities often, in order that I might get my life’s work done, but I am reminded of the age old question: What is better than having a remote cabin on a lake or river in Alaska? The answer is, of course, having lots of friends with remote cabins on lakes and rivers in Alaska. Often times, there are also boats involved, smoked salmon, and the occasional sauna.

After this many visits, friendships both personal and professional have been established. My journeys to Alaska are basically three- or four-week-long working vacations. I’ve managed to make time for a decent amount of fishing in between the musical performances, which is how I pay for the journey, and earn a living. There are purely recreational days on the water, of course, but in the last few years I’ve begun participating in the harvesting of fish — mostly salmon and some halibut. I send the bounty home to my family in East Nashville.

This wouldn’t be possible without the help of the many Alaskans who have taken me under their wing while showing me the ropes, not to → mention sharing in their own bounties of fish and game.

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“

To the lover of the wilderness, Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world. — John Muir

Steve Poltz on stage with Jewel at Salmon Fest, Ninilchik, Alaska.

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here’s a somewhat famous Alaskan expression that goes, “Alaska is only 15 minutes from Anchorage.” Heading out of the town where more than half of all Alaskans live (there is only one road) will prove this to be true. In the summer, many tourists head north towards Denali, the highest mountain in North America, or south to Alaska’s summer playground: the Kenai Peninsula. The drive south is guaranteed to be spectacular, even in rainy weather. It’s often breathtaking for first-timers, winding along the Turnagain Arm of the Cook Inlet, pinched in between the Chugach Range and the world’s second strongest bore tide, gliding through our country’s northernmost of mountainous rainforests, down into a paradise of nature for hikers, bikers, hunters, and songmakers.

This last summer, more than any other year, I actively choose to hitchhike many of the miles that needed to be traveled in order to get from town to town and show to show. It’s part of the anthropologist in me, and also part Woody Guthrie-esque, road-dog dream of a time gone by when that kind of transportation was more accepted.

It’s not a difficult thing to hitchhike around Alaska. There are only one or two ways in and out of each town, and me — with my pronounced Calton flight case — can usually get a lift pretty quickly. Oftentimes, all I have to do is mention needing a lift while on stage the night before. Somebody is bound to be traveling the same direction at the right time on the next day. This year’s pro-hobo tip came from a man in Talkeetna who noticed that, while making a sign to alert drivers of my destination of choice, my Sharpie was running out of ink. He told me to find a campfire and use the stubs of charcoal in order to finish the job. I took his advice. Before I was done making the sign, however, someone had offered me a lift in that direction.

Here’s an idea of how small the biggest state in the union can be when it comes to population: Of the 11 rides I hitched with total strangers, seven of them were from people who were acquaintances with someone I knew; two of them were listening to John Prine on the stereo when I got into the car; many of them were fishermen or fisherwomen, some with children in the vehicle. These “total strangers” are → no longer strangers at all.

Clockwise from left: Easton during the soundcheck at the Fairview Inn, Talkeetna.

The bathroom at the Brown Bear Saloon in Indian, Alaska.

Outside the Fairview Inn.

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“

Don’t leave fun for fun.

— Overheard from an Alaskan fisherman

Dylan Lee Johnson making music around the fire with fellow musicians during Salmon Fest.

Steve Poltz fires up the Salmon Fest crowd.

Representing the East Side at Salmon Fest: Steve Poltz, Megan Palmer, and Easton.

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Easton on stage with Megan Palmer at Salmon Fest.

F

or the last six years, I have participated in a gathering called Salmonfest. It takes place in the town of Ninilchik on the first weekend in August. This is an experience that involves music and environmental stewardship with all the great food, local arts and crafts vendors, and activist booths that are standard in today’s festival culture. I often perform at this festival with the great Alaskan/Inuit drummer James Dommek Jr. The two of us have also toured Spain together and are hoping to perform at more Alaskan villages on the next adventure.

This year’s Salmonfest also featured performances by a few of my East Nashville neighbors. Steve Poltz, Megan Palmer, and Dylan Lee Johnston all traveled to the Kenai Peninsula to perform their original tunes, and at one time or another we sang songs together on stages and by campfires. The photojournalist Ash Adams was there to document the experience, and she went out on a couple of the hitches with me, as well.

Touring songwriter and violinist Megan Palmer feels a kinship with the 49th state. In describing her relationship with Alaska to me, she articulates the effects of what it’s like to be truly off the grid and in touch with the natural self again. “I’ve made five trips to Alaska since 2012,” Palmer says. “Each time I’ve returned, I’ve fallen in love with the state a little more. Each time I go, I meet

people who have also fallen in love with it, and many never return to their previous lives. So, I guess I’m in danger of that happening as well. There is just something about being so intimately close to nature that I haven’t found anywhere else I’ve traveled so far.

The vulnerability that exists there is palpable, and it creates an excitement about being alive that inspires me to be a more present person in the activities of my life.”

In this world of clicks and likes, unplugging from the machine and traveling through Alaska has a way of shocking your somewhat dormant senses. You just feel more alive, because you are constantly forced to focus on survival or at the very least make sure to not make stupid mistakes while in the wild. Having wandered down a few wilderness trails on my own, or blasted through a few class five rapids, I can testify: You simply don’t feel the same while floating down an Alaskan river or walking in the Alaskan woods. The water is faster and colder, and the critters are bigger and hungrier. You are continuously forced to be more aware, always paying closer attention, and it invites a new kind of excitement followed by fatigue that you don’t get on a basic float or walk in the woods in many of the lower forty-eight states. The fact that it stays fairly light all summer long is another curve ball to the system, but you get the hang of it, → and you get exhausted, because survival is exhausting.

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“

I’ve been traveling so long that I can’t stand still.

— Darrin Bradbury

O

n that first tour, 17 years ago, my cell phone quit working just outside Anchorage. I knew then that I had found a paradise on earth. Today, cell phone coverage, and therefore internet coverage, is far more widespread, but there are still places where it does not exist, and after a little bit of withdrawal, you’ll find that talking to other humans is good for all concerned.

I’m just as addicted to the internet and social media as anybody, and have an increasingly active Instagram account that chronicles my adventures, but I have also been able to reap the clear benefits of shutting it down every now and then. The internet certainly helps the world progress, but it also can cripple many a fragile artist’s ego, sometimes fueling the narcissism that stunts creativity. Time will tell what effect all this hollow notoriety derived from social media will have on the art-making and communication skills of future generations. I have a feeling some are witnessing the potential damage and will withdraw completely into their art, like the true woodshedding cabin dwellers of Alaska.

Easton grabs breakfast in Palmer, Alaska, before hitting the road.

“Lay Down Your Weary Tune” is Tim Easton’s latest single on CAMPFIRE PROPAGANDA. Available now as a download at: timeaston1.bandcamp.com/releases All proceeds go to SAFPAW, the Southern Alliance for People and Animal Welfare. safpaw.org 2017 East Nashvillian of the Year Stacie Huckeba directed the accompanying video, which is available on Easton’s Facebook page: www.facebook.com/TheTimEaston/

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR EMMA ALFORD CALENDAR EDITOR

J A N U A R Y | F E B R U A R Y 2018

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

UPCOMING OUR KIND OF DOC Film Screening: East Side of the River

7-10 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 9, The Family Wash

Our fair East Side has changed quite a bit over the last two decades, heck, it’s even changed since Ron Coons’ documentary East Side of the River hit the screen in 2014 (though the work began in 2012). The film is an homage to this ’hood and the ways in which it has transformed since the ’90s and early aughts. You’ll hear loads of interviews with locals on the music scene who had a pulse on the area back in the day. If you’ve seen it before, see it again — if you’re a newbie to the East Side, enlighten yourself. The Family Wash (whose original location makes a number of cameos in the doc) will be screening the film, cover-free. familywash.com 626A Main St., 615.645.9930

RUNNING FOR A DREAM Fourth Annual 5K4MLK

Monday, Jan. 15, East Park Community Center In search of another worthy cause to lace up those sneaks for? “Join the Cause. Stand for unity. Run for diversity” is the mantra of this 5K in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.

The race is hosted by Barefoot Republic, a nonprofit Christian summer camp that works to build cross-cultural relationships among kids of “diverse racial, cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.” This annual run on the MLK holiday promotes and funds the camp’s activities. Registration is $30 through Jan. 13; $35 on event day (6:30-7:30 a.m. only).

5k4mlk.com 700 Woodland St.

SCIENCE FOR SHELBY

Mr. Bond and The Science Guys Fifth Annual Science Spectacular

10 a.m., Jan. 13, Feb. 10, March 10, April 14, Shelby Bottoms Nature Center This year, the little science buffs will have four opportunities to see a Science Edutainer in action. Register in advance to secure your edutainment. Donations are encouraged. mrbondscienceguy.com 1900 Davidson St., 615.573.2702

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RESIDENCIES =

DEE’S COUNTRY COCKTAIL LOUNGE deeslounge.com 102 E. Palestine Ave., Madison 615.852.8827

Worldclass Bluegrass Happy Hour

SAVE A DANCE FOR MOM

Ninth Annual Valentine’s Day Dance Hosted by MOMS Club of East Nashville-Rosebank

3-5 p.m., Friday, Feb. 9, South Inglewood Community Center

shake a leg. The Rosebank chapter of MOMS Club of East Nashville is hosting its annual V-Day soiree. There will be a bake sale, photobooth, crafts, a raffle, and of course, a dance. $2 suggested donation at the door.

All donation proceeds will benefit South Inglewood Community Center. Old and young are welcome to this family-friendly, bootscootin’ boogie.

1624 Rebecca St.

Calling all moms, dads, and kiddos who can

Mondays, 6-8 p.m

Madison Guild

Mondays, 8:30-11 p.m.

Jim Oblon Band

Tuesdays, 8-9:30 p.m.

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Open Mic Comedy Night Hosted by Mikah Wyman

Tuesdays, 10-12 p.m.

The One and Only Bill Davis Happy Hour

Wednesdays 6-8p p.m.

Rich Mahan

Wednesdays in January, 8:30-11 p.m.

Don’t Ease at Dee’s

Wednesdays in February, 8:30-11 p.m.

Kenny Vaughan Trio

Thursdays, 8-10 p.m.

DLW Happy Hour Hoedown

Hosted by Daniel Lawrence Walker

Fridays, 5:30-8:30 p.m. =

RADIO CAFE

radiocafenashville.com 4150 Gallatin Pike., 615.540.0033

Songwriter Night

Mondays, 6:30-10 p.m.

Good Friends Comedy Hour

Third Wednesday of the month, 8:30 p.m. =

THE COBRA NASHVILLE

thecobra.plusvanvelzen.info 2511 Gallatin Ave., 629.800.2518

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THE FAMILY WASH familywash.com 626A Main St., 615.645.9930

Lightning 100 Writers’ Night

Wednesdays, 6 p.m.

Not Another Open Mic

Happy Hour w/Crackerboots

Sundays, 7 p.m.

First Thursday of the month, 8:30 p.m.

An evening of open mic comedy Curated by MK Gannon

Jazz Variety Show

Curated by Charles Kay

Mondays, 9 p.m.

Fine Lines

Curated by Chris Probasco

Tuesdays, 9 p.m.

Western Wednesday with The Cobra Cowpokes Curated by Brendan Malone

Wednesdays, 9 p.m.

First Saturday of the month, 5-6:30 p.m Robbie Hect

Valentine James

with Special Guests

Fridays, Jan. 5, Feb. 9, March 9, 9 p.m. =

THE 5 SPOT

the5spot.club 1006 Forrest Ave., 615.650.9333

Sunday Night Soul

Hosted by Jason Eskridge

Second & fourth Sundays of the month, 6 p.m.

Stolen Faces

Sunday, Jan. 21, 8:30 p.m.

(Final show of residency)

Two Dollar Tuesday Hosted by Derek Hoke

Tuesdays, 9 p.m. to close

Anthony Da Costa & Maya de Vitry with Special Guests

Wednesdays in January, 6-8:30 p.m.

Tom Mason & The Blue Buccaneers

Thursday, Jan. 11, 6-8:30 p.m.

Joe Pisapia

Thursdays, Jan. 18 & 25, Feb. 1, 8, 15, 22 6-8:30 p.m.

Fats Kaplin

Third Saturday in January and February 6-8:30 p.m.

Tim Carroll’s

Rock & Roll Happy Hour

Fridays, 6-8:30 p.m.

Strictly 80’s Dance Party

First Friday of the month 9:00 to close

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Funky Good Time

Evenings and weekends are open to the public.

h

nashvillechildrenstheatre.org 25 Middleton St. ∏

First Saturday of the month, 9 p.m. to close

THEATER|OPERA

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NASHVILLE REPERTORY THEATRE

ART EXHIBITS

STUMBLE ON TO ART 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 showcase some of the fabulous work they have gracing their walls. 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.

RED ARROW GALLERY

presents

Smart People

presents

The Barefoot Children in the City of Ward

Feb. 8-11

Feb. 10-24

thetheaterbug.org 4809 Gallatin Pike ∏

Inherit The Wind

March 24-April 21 Johnson Theater at Tennessee Performing Arts Center

NASHVILLE OPERA presents

nashvillerep.org 505 Deaderick St. ∏

Hercules vs Vampires

NASHVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE presents

The Snowy Day & Other Stories

Jan. 18-Feb. 11

Mockingbird (Mok’ing-burd)

March 1-18

THE THEATER BUG

Saturday, Jan. 27, 8 p.m.

Jackson Hall at Tennessee Performing Arts Center nashvilleopera.org 505 Deaderick St.

☛

Dax Van Aalten’s Transmission

Opening Reception 6 p.m., Jan. 13 Through Feb. 4 Georganna Green

Opening Reception 6 p.m., Feb. 10 Through March 5 theredarrowgallery.com 919 Gallatin Ave. Ste. 4, 615.236.6575

ART & INVENTION GALLERY

11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday through Saturday; noon to 5 p.m., Sunday artandinvention.com 1106 Woodland St., 615.226.2070

RAVEN AND WHALE GALLERY Works by Kate Harrold and Jason Brueck

Noon to 5 p.m., Thursday through Sunday 6-10 p.m., second Saturday of every month ravenandwhalegallery.com 1108 Woodland St. Unit G, 629.777.6965

Classes start January 16 Join us for affordable classes in languages, cooking, business, art + much more.

Spring 2018 registration is ongoing.

Now offering evening classes at Amqui Station in Madison.

Register now at nashville.gov/ce January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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CONCERTS

Lightning 100’s Chocolate Affair Benefitting MusiCares

MARATHON MUSIC WORKS

marathonmusicworks.com 1402 Clinton St.

Friday, Feb. 9 , 7 p.m. ∑

EXIT/IN

exitin.com 2208 Elliston Place

Saved by the ’90s

Saturday, Jan. 13, 8 p.m.

An Evening of Cheap Thrills: Celebrating Janis Joplin’s 75th Birthday

Friday, Jan. 19, 8 p.m. ∑

RYMAN AUDITORIUM ryman.com 116 Fifth Ave. N

Dwight Yoakam

Jan. 16-17, 7:30 p.m.

David Rawlings

Tuesday, Jan. 23, 8 p.m.

Blues Traveler with Los Colognes

Thursday, Feb. 15, 7:30 p.m.

Dan Auerbach & The Easy Eye Sound Revue

Sunday, Feb. 25, 7:30 p.m. ∑

NASHVILLE SYMPHONY

nashvillesymphony.org One Symphony Place

Let Freedom Sing!

A Celebration of MLK

Sunday, Jan. 14, 7 p.m.

The Songs of Elvis Presley

Jan. 18-19, 7 p.m.; Jan. 20, 8 p.m.

Music and Magic

Saturday, Feb. 10, 11 a.m.

Simply Sinatra

Friday, March 2, 8 p.m. ∑

COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM countrymusichalloffame.org 222 Fifth Ave. S.

Hatch Show Print Block Party

Saturday, Feb. 3 6-8 p.m.

Musician Spotlight

Pete Finney, Pedal Steel 94

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EAST SIDE CALENDAR

Sunday, Feb. 4, 1 p.m.

Musician Spotlight Mac Gayden

Sunday, Feb. 11, 1 p.m.

Musician Spotlight

Norbert Putnam, Bass

Sunday, Feb. 18, 1 p.m.

“Come On Out of the Cold” Classroom Fun

nashville.gov/Parks-and-Recreation/ Nature-Centers-and-Natural-Areas/ Shelby-Bottoms-Nature-Center 1900 Davidson St., 615.862.8539

EVENTS & CLASSES

1-3 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 13 All ages

Mr. Bond and the Science Guys

10-11 a.m., Saturdays, Jan. 13 and Feb. 10 All ages, registration required

Storytime

2-3 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 17 All ages, registration required

Film Screenings at the CMA Theater

Admission is included with museum ticket or museum membership. Seating is limited.

Shania Twain’s Winter Break (1999)

Sunday, Jan. 14, 11 a.m.

Country Music Hit Parade (1973)

Sunday, Jan. 21, 11 a.m.

Faith Hill — When the Lights Go Down (2002)

Sunday, Jan. 28, 11 a.m.

Old Crow Medicine Show 50 Years of Blonde On Blonde: The Concert (2017)

Sunday, Feb. 4, 10:30 a.m.

The Johnny Cash Show “New Nashville Sounds” (1971)

Sunday, Feb. 18, 10:30 a.m.

Program Pass (free with museum ticket or museum membership) required to guarantee admission.

Austin City Limits Loretta Lynn (1984)

11 a.m., Sunday, Feb. 25

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SHELBY BOTTOMS NATURE CENTER 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday Noon to 4 p.m., Wednesday and Friday Closed, Sunday and Monday

The Nature Center offers a wide range of nature and environmental education programs and has a Nashville B-Cycle station where residents and visitors can rent a bike to explore Nashville’s greenways. For more information, as well as the online program registration portal, visit: January|February 2018 theeastnashvillian.com

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Winter Birds: Backyard and Meadow

From the Mat to the Stage

Ages 10 and up, registration required

Body Works

9-11 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 20 Don’t be SAD

2-3 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 20

Ages 18 and up, registration required

2-4:30 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 21

Ages 18 and up, registration required

10-11 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 27

Ages 18 and up, registration required

Seed Swap with the Nashville Public Library

1-3 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 27 All ages

Wild Winter Hike

2-3 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 27 All ages

Once in a Blue Moon

5:30-7 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 31 All ages, registration required

Shelby Bottoms StoryWalk Kickoff

Noon, Saturday, Feb. 10 All ages

Wild Things: YEAST Side!

5-6:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 10

Ages 21 and up, registration required

For The Love of the Vine

6-7:15 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 13

Ages 21 and up, registration required

Storytime

2-3 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 13

Ages 21 and up, registration required

“Year of the Dog” Night Hike

6-7 p.m., Friday, Feb. 16

All ages, registration required

Body Works

10-11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 17

Ages 18 and up, registration required

Winter Birds: Ponds & Wetlands

11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 17 All ages, registration required

Chinese New Year Open House

1-3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 17 All ages

Bird Friendly Coffee Social

8-10 a.m., Saturday, Feb. 20 All ages

Songbird Journeys: A book discussion

9-10 a.m., Saturday, Feb. 24

All ages, registration required

Come in and Color

Noon to 4 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 24 All ages

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RECURRING SHOP AROUND SUNDAY Sundays at Porter East

Noon to 4 p.m., First Sunday of every month, Shops at Porter East The Shops at Porter East open their doors the first Sunday of every month for a special little parking lot party. You can expect to enjoy a selection of rotating food trucks (and a flower truck), fixups from Ranger Stich, and occasionally catch some good tunes. Amelia’s Flower Truck will let you build your own bouquet while Ranger Stich weaves some amazing chain stich on your favorite denim.

700 Porter Road

BRING IT TO THE TABLE

Community Hour at Lockeland Table

4-6 p.m., Monday through Saturday, 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.

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. lockelandtable.com 1520 Woodland St., 615.228.4864

RINC, Y’ALL

Scott-Ellis School of Irish Dance

Sundays at DancEast: 2-2:30 p.m., Beginner Class; 2-3 p.m., Intermediate/Advanced Soft Shoe Class; 3-4 p.m., Intermediate/Advanced Hard Shoe Class M ondays at Eastwood Christian Church: 5-5:30 p.m., Beginner Class; 5-6 p.m., Intermediate/Advanced Class 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.”

DancEast

danceast.org 805 Woodland St., Ste. 314, 615.601.1897

Eastwood Christian Church, Fellowship Hall 1601 Eastland Ave., 615.300.4388

ANSWER ME THIS Trivia Nights

8 p.m., each week, various locations 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.

Drifter’s Edley’s BBQ East Lipstick Lounge (7:30 p.m.)

Wednesday Noble’s Kitchen and Beer Hall Thursday 3 Crow Bar

Monday Tuesday

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SHOUT! SHIMMY! SHAKE! Motown Mondays

9:30 p.m. until close, Mondays, The 5 Spot

For those looking to hit the dance floor on Monday nights, The 5 Spot’s Motown Mondays dance party is the place to be.

This shindig, presented by Electric Western, keeps it real with old-school soul, funk, and R&B. 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. Get up and get down and go see why their motto is: “Monday is the new Friday.” motownmondays.club 1006 Forrest Ave., 615.650.9333

TELL ME A STORY East Side Storytellin’

7 p.m., first and third Tuesdays, The Post East

Looking for something to get your creative juices flowing? East Side Story has partnered with WAMB radio to present an all-out affair with book readings, musical performances, and author/musician interviews in just one evening. Look for this event twice each month. 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.

The Post East

theposteast.com 1701 Fatherland St., Ste. A, 615.457.2920

East Side Story

eastsidestorytn.com 615.915.1808

GET YOUR GREEN ON Engage Green

First Wednesday of each month, locations vary

Tap into your eco-consciousness every month when Urban Green Lab and Lightning 100’s Team Green Adventures join forces for Engage Green. Join these enviro-crusaders for a discussion that highlights government agencies, businesses, and organizations that practice sustainability. They will provide you with info on these trends and a way to make them an affordable and a convenient part of your own life. You can expect an hour-long presentation or demonstration with a fun, hands-on component. Green looks good on you! urbangreenlab.org

TRANSFORMING AT THE POST Free Conscious Transformation Groups

7-8:30 p.m., second Wednesday of every month, The Post East

Looking for a supportive environment to focus on your professional and personal development? These monthly meetings foster a place to focus on conscious transformation teaching, tools, and meditation practices to promote and hone in on a plan of action to support your transformation. The meetings are led by Energy Healer Ben Dulaney. Think of it as conscious coupling with other likeminded folks. theposteast.com 1701 Fatherland St., Ste. A, 615.457.2920

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ART IS FOR EVERYONE John Cannon Fine Art Classes

1-3 p.m., Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 1 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. johncannonart.com 1108-C Woodland St., 615.496.1259

stats, trends, and various other issues with East Precinct’s 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.

East Precinct

615.862.7600

Turnip Truck

701 Woodland St., 615.650.3600

CAN’T FORCE A DANCE PARTY Queer Dance Party

9 p.m. to 3 a.m., third Friday of every month, The Basement East

On any given month, the QDP is a mixed bag of fashionably clad attendees (some in the occasional costume) dancing till they can’t

WALK, EAT, REPEAT Walk Eat Nashville

1:30 p.m., Thursdays; 11 a.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. walkeatnashville.com Corner of 11th and Woodland Streets 615.587.6138

FIND YOUR STATION Songwriters Night at The Station

7 p.m., third Thursday of every month, The Engine Bay of The Station

They’re not fighting fires anymore, but the folks at The Station are on to something hot. Every third Thursday, they host a writer’s round of local musicians. You can check the monthly lineup on The Station’s Facebook page. Tip: There is limited parking behind the building, but overflow parking is available across the street at Eastland Baptist Church. thestationnashville.com 1220 Gallatin Ave.

HONESTLY, OFFICER ...

East Nashville Crime Prevention Meeting

11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Thursdays, Turnip Truck Join your neighbors to talk about crime

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dance no mo’. The dance party has migrated over to The Beast, which gives shakers and movers even more space to cut up. Shake a leg, slurp down some of the drink specials, and let your true rainbow colors show. thebasementnashville.com 917 Woodland St., 615.645.9174

SHELBY HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

NEIGHBORHOOD MEETINGS & EVENTS

MONTESSORI EAST ADMISSIONS OPEN HOUSE

5:30-7 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 17 801 Porter Road

HISTORIC EDGEFIELD NEIGHBORS historicedgefieldneighbors.com 700 Woodland St.

LOCKELAND SPRINGS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

6:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 18, The Post East lockelandsprings.org 1701 Fatherland St.

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6:30 p.m., third Monday of every month Shelby Community Center

Meeting times and dates TBA Metro Police East Precinct

shelbyhills.org 401 S. 20th St.

greenwoodneighbors.org 936 E. Trinity Lane

MAXWELL HEIGHTS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIAITON

6 p.m., second Monday of every month Metro Police East Precinct

6 p.m., third Thursday of every month Trinity Community Commons

936 E. Trinity Lane

204 E. Trinity Lane

ROLLING ACRES NEIGHBORS MEETING

CLEVELAND PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

6:30 p.m., second Tuesday of every other month Eastwood Christian Church (Sanctuary)

7 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 28 East Park Community Center

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GREENWOOD NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

1601 Eastland Ave.

EASTWOOD NEIGHBORS

Social: 5:30-7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 9 Business Meeting: 6:30-7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 13 Eastwood Christian Church eastwoodneighbors.org 1601 Eastland Ave.

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

INGLEWOOD NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

7 p.m., first Thursday of every month Isaac Litton Alumni Center inglewoodrna.org 4500 Gallatin Pike don’t bitch, vote.

EAST SIDE CALENDAR

MCFERRIN NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

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

ROSEBANK NEIGHBORS

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

do you know your Metro Council representative?

HENMA

Dates and locations vary

Historic East Nashville Merchant’s Association (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 each quarter. eastnashville.org

MOMS Club of East Nashville

Monthly business meetings at 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 four 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

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☟ 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

{ } shop local

☝

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Misty Waters Petak M.S., CFPÂŽ, CLUÂŽ Financial Advisor (615) 479-6415 mistypetak.nm.com

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East of NORMAL ⟿ by Tommy Womack ⟿

W

Oh, for the love of Moloch!

henever I submit this column, I get one of three responses from my editor, Moloch: 1) “That’s great. Thanks, Tommy!” 2) “That’s great, Tommy, but what if we put in a comma on line 17?” 3) “What the fuck? Do you expect us to print this shit?” Okay, maybe No. 3 is not usually that strongly worded, but the point is the same: Get your ass back to the drawing board and bring us something we can print, because this ain’t it.

The first column I submitted for this issue was all about one of my favorite topics: amplifiers — specifically, guitar amplifiers. I figured that such a topic wouldn’t be criminally esoteric, given how this is Music City and all, but it fell with a thump in Moloch’s office. The reason being nonmusicians wouldn’t know what the hell I’m going on about. Looking at it now, I concede that devoting an entire paragraph on how power tube distortion is preferable to preamp tube distortion would maybe fly over the heads of civilians and drummers. Not to mention how I went into detail regarding the fallacy of combining a speaker rated at 100 watts with a 40-watt amp. I fought for the idea that gear nerds are people, too, but apparently, they aren’t.

Not in this magazine anyway.

I tried to rewrite it to no avail. The column was already perfect, even funny. I’d written a great column about a topic near-and-dear to my heart. There was not a word misplaced.

The comparison between a Fender Twin Reverb and a Mesa Boogie Mark III was spot on. It couldn’t be dumbed down. I tried, but it wasn’t possible.

So here I am, in bed, which is where I do most of my writing. I understand that Woody Allen also writes in bed — when he’s not schtuping stepchildren, of course — and this is where I get most of my ideas. Few, if any of them, have anything to do with being in bed. I drink my coffee, put Oasis on my stereo, and write. I suppose I could write about … my bedroom. Why not? My only alternative is a detailed treatise on guitar amps.

It’s not a big bedroom, but it’s not cramped, really. We have more clothes than closet space, so various articles of apparel are often hanging from the bedposts. There’s a flat-screen TV on the dresser in front of me. On that same dresser is the cable box, a DVD player, a mason jar full

of quarters, nickels and dimes, a coffee cup full of pennies, a plastic cup full of pencils and pens (about 25 percent of which work), two lint rollers (for some reason, you’d think one would do), a picture of Beth on our wedding day, a candle, and a little wooden trinket box. If that sounds crowded for the top of a dresser, that’s because it is. Oh, and there’s a mirror on the wall above it. I can’t see myself in the mirror from my angle, and this is a good thing. A glance in the mirror of what I look like in bed would take my concentration off the writing and leave me wondering what I’m doing with my life.

Next to me is my nightstand, which groans under its weight.

Sitting on it is an alarm clock, a table lamp, a 4-inch-high collection of papers of various vintage, two or three CDs, three Time magazines, and four thick books. From top to bottom, these are: a bio of Leonardo da Vinci; one of Elvis Costello; one of Benjamin Franklin; and a complete collection of the poems of Arthur Rimbaud. The latter is also the smallest, leaving the others teetering above. I wish I had a better command of poetry, the volume on my nightstand testifying to that, but I think I like the idea of poetry more so than the poems themselves. I guess I’m just not as smart as the people who enjoy that sort of thing. Oh, and there’s a coffee cup on the nightstand, too. There always is.

Well, there you have it. I’m drained. I can carry no further this Seinfeld column-about-nothing. Perhaps you’d like to hear me riff on how vintage amps work better on a lower voltage than what is offered by modern wall current, and how you can buy an attenuator to deal with that. Or perhaps you’d like to learn that you can lower the risk of blown fuses by swapping out the tube rectifier for a solid-state one. It might even boost your wattage! Who doesn’t love that? Perhaps we could compare and contrast 6V6 tubes with EL84s. That’ll kill an hour.

What do you think, Moloch?

Editor’s note: Moloch prefers KT66 tubes in his Marshalls and preamp tube distortion, although he admits there’s nothing like an early Vox AC30 running on 220-volts. The best concert he ever saw was Queen at the Municipal Auditorium at which Brian May ran nine AC30s at 220-volts through a custom, Pete Cornishbuilt, step-up transformer the size of a refridgerator.

Tommy Womack is a Nashville singersongwriter, musician, and freelance writer.

Keep up with his antics on Facebook and at tommywomack.com.

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PARTING SHOT

ROCKY

Performing at The 5 Spot, Dec. 11, 2017 Photographed 106

by

Travis Commeau

theeastnashvillian.com January|February 2018

your nashville symphony Live at the Schermerhorn

ELVIS PRESLEY The Songs of

Rachmaninoff & Tchaikovsky Featuring Joyce Yang

With the Nashville Symphony & special guest Priscilla

january 18 to 20

february 1 to 3

MUSIC AND MAGIC: A FAMILY CONCERT WITH THE NASHVILLE SYMPHONY

QUINTET

february 9

february 10 the music of

& THE

with the

NASHVILLE SYMPHONY

nashville symphony

february 13 & 14

february 15 to 17

BEETHOVEN’S SECOND PIANO CONCERTO february 18

february 23 & 24 with support from:

615.687.6400 • NashvilleSymphony.org

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