Back in October, Mike took me on a surprise date to the Opry to see Vince Gill and Allison Krauss. I have loved both artists my whole life, growing up under the wing of my bluegrass and country music loving family. I loved to sing along with Vince's classically smooth voice and, I admit, I cried every time I heard the song "Go Rest High (On that Mountain)." We saw him in concert at the Allentown Fairgrounds when I was young, probably around 10, and I developed a huge crush on him... which hasn't exactly gone away! Allison Krauss was a huge inspiration to me, especially in my choir days. Her range and unique sound are nothing short of incredible and I remember listening to her Allison Krauss and Union Station CD on a loop in the basement while Dad worked out.
Anyone that has attended or listened to an Opry show before knows that each artist only plays a few songs and there are a number of different artists that play each show. We got to see Riders in the Sky (Mike's favorite), Vince, Allison, a few others, the Opry Square Dancers, and the Charlie Daniels Band. It was an awesome show and we enjoyed it from the 'cheap seats' on the far side of the stage.
Vince Gill looking good and pickin' his mandolin.
Charlie Daniels said a lot of obnoxious political things during his stage time, but made up for it by playing "The Devil Went Down to Georgia." It was AWESOME.
Love. When she broke into "Down to the River to Pray" I cried. Mike thought I was nuts.
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In November, my Mom took a weekend and came to visit us! We met her in Nashville and stayed at the Hilton Downtown, courtesy of her many many Hilton Points. We saw the sights and drank in some of the bars listening to local musicians trying to make it big. We also went to the Country Music Hall of Fame, which was a little pricey, but a fabulous collection of memorabilia and history. It was really neat to watch old black and white video and hear recordings from the early days of the genre.
There were platinum and gold records covering the walls. It was quite a sight to see!
Of course, Mom found Keith's Walk of Fame Star and needed at least 3 photos of herself with it. Haha, Keith's Biggest Fan!
I'm not the type of person that believes in the supernatural, but I could feel Poppie's presence when we walked into the Ryman for our backstage tour before the show. I remembered the building (it seemed so much larger the last time I was there!) and even the smell seemed familiar. I stared at the stage, trying to pull those memories of his performance from the cobwebs in my brain as we walked through the auditorium and through the dressing rooms backstage.
The Mother Church of Country Music. One of Poppie's album covers is a photo of him in front of the building from about this same view.
The first few artists went by and I was having a blast taking photos and enjoying the view from literally right next to the stage. We laughed at Little Jimmy Dickens' same jokes he told a month ago at the October show, marveling at the fact that the tiny 90+ year old man could still stand, much less hold a guitar and sing a little.
And then it happened. The announcer introduced the next artist: Holly Williams, granddaughter of the great Hank Williams. Mom and I turned to look at each other, mouths gaping open in shock. Seriously? If Poppie's presence wasn't felt before, it certainly was now! Of course, she hops on up to the microphone and sings one of her original songs, a classic Williams-style song about drinking. She finished the song and everyone clapped. Then she said she felt compelled that night to sing one of her grandfather's famous hymns, and as the first few bars of "I Saw the Light" began to play, I completely fell apart.
My Poppie loved that song and sang it almost anytime I can remember him having a guitar in his hand. I was raised listening to the words, "I saw the light, I saw the light, no more darkness no more night. Now I'm so happy, no sorrow in sight. Praise the Lord, I saw the light." The lyrics took on a much more significant meaning now that he was gone and I sat there shaking and sobbing, watching the granddaughter of my grandfather's hero sing one of his favorite songs. I could feel his arms around me and through my tears I smiled, feeling at peace. It was one of those moments where you just know you were meant to be in a certain place at a certain time. It was a beautiful two minutes - it was as if he was sitting right there next to me, tapping his toes and singing right along.
The only photo of Holly Williams that wasn't blurry. Photography fail.
The rest of the show was great! We had the pleasure of listening to two artists/actors that star in the new show Nashville that people seem to be crazy about. Claire Bowen and Sam Palladio play Scarlett and Gunner on the show and their voices were absolutely beautiful. Their chemistry on stage was palpable, it was riveting to watch them! Darius Rucker was pretty good too, although I kept referring to him as Hootie the entire night.
Claire and Sam (Scarlett and Gunner). Her hair isn't really pink, that's just the weird stage lighting.
Hoooooootttttiiiiiiiiieeeeeee!!!
All in all the weekend was wonderful. It was great to see my mom and spend time in Nashville enjoying it as an adult. ;)
I don't know if I'll ever be able to set foot in the Ryman again without crying, but that's okay. Poppie left us all the wonderful gift of his music, which will play on in our hearts and iPods forever. It's still so hard to believe that he's gone; there are so many things I wish I had asked or could ask him, especially now that we live in Tennessee. He was a Mighty Good Man, a champion of country music, and when I find myself missing him, I can just hear his voice singing with joy, "Then Jesus came like a stranger in the night, Praise the Lord, I saw the light!"
Love you, Pine Baron. <3
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