MEMPHIS

October, 2018

Often called “home of the blues, soul, and rock ‘n’ roll”, Memphis more than lived up to the hype.  This city eats, breathes and screams music unlike any other city we have visited so far on this journey started so long ago.  The music heritage of Memphis begins with sitting on the porches of Mississippi sharecroppers who “come up north” to country to blues, to rock-a-billy and rock ‘n’ roll.  This eclectic city is proudly home to all.  Barbara did a great job of researching all of the things to do in the Home of The Blues, and as a result we decided to stay a week.  We wanted to hear and see it all!  But where to begin?

When in Memphis you have to pay homage to Elvis – or at least find Graceland and take a look.  The entry price for the museum and house is $50 plus parking; steep.  We were not interested to say any more than we came and we saw so our Elvis experience was just that.  Curious that Graceland is in a rather plain, if not run down neighborhood south of the downtown area.

Despite the calendar, October in Memphis was incredibly hot – 90-95 most days – with no relief. With incredibly meaningful (and air-conditioned) museums to visit the heat didn’t deter us.

Our first stop was the Blues Hall of Fame.  In the lobby of the museum is a gallery of contemporary art that greets visitors.  These colorful and lively portraits depict artists who have made significant contributions to the Blues.

The Blues Hall of Fame is a small museum dedicated to icons like Bessie Smith, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker, Howlin’ Wolf, B. B. King, and Memphis Minnie, just to name a few.  You can take all the time you want to put on any of multiple headsets and hear original recordings by early honorees; nostalgic sounds; clear and soulful voices.  Some artists recorded as early as 1920, and these now re-mastered scratchy renditions still make your foot tap and your body sway.  Family members and friends of the artists have generously shared memorabilia that is on display and complement the stories and available music. The museum staff are passionate about this place, and we thoroughly enjoyed our visit.

Next we headed to the famous Beale Street and the Memphis Music Hall of Fame. The Memphis Music Hall of Fame is a small museum, but one that featured the works of over 70 Memphis artists and groups.  The most recent inductees included the Memphis hometown Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin who died in September.  Miss Aretha may be more famously associated with Detroit, but the City believes that her heart belonged to Memphis.  From rock ‘n’ roll to gospel and soul, inductees have included solo artists as well as groups like the Box Tops and rap star 8 Ball & MJG.  This museum is home to an eclectic collection of music and memorabilia, including Jerry Lee Lewis’ car – well half of it anyway! Some critics say other Memphis museums outshine this one and we tended to agree.

It was lunch time, and although locals recommended Central Barbecue, we asked the receptionist at the Memphis Music Hall of Fame for her favorite barbecue place; she said the Blues City Cafe.  We checked it out on line, and it had 4.5 stars so we headed across the street for lunch.  The restaurant was filthy.  The wait staff were totally uninterested in their customers.  The food tasted like it had been cooked earlier in the day and had been sitting for hours under heat lamps.  The dry, flavorless ribs were smothered in barbecue sauce, and the French fries were soggy and barely warm.  Brian was so disgusted that he gave a “don’t bother” review on Yelp.

Locals had recommended strolling Beale Street during the day and suggested other places to go at night for music, so we headed down Beale Street, rich in history and “the Home of the Blues” where many famous musicians mingled and shared their love of music.  We were looking forward to hearing some live music. It was a hot Tuesday afternoon, and perhaps that was one of the reasons we found the three blocks of shops, restaurants and bars so empty or closed.  But more than that we felt the disdain and cavalier attitude projected by the citizens of this great city toward its guests.  There were many homeless people looking for a handout, and it lacked the southern hospitality we had experienced other places.  Perhaps we would have had a different experience on Beale Street had we ventured back at night, but nothing enticed us to even remotely consider returning to this over-rated, tourist trap.

The next morning we found our way to Stax Records.  Home to southern soul, Memphis soul, gospel, funk and blues recordings, this eclectic museum was founded in 1957 by two siblings: Jim Stewart and his sister, Estelle Axton (STewart/AXton = STAX).  The artists in the videos of the early days of Stax Records speak proudly of the cultural diversity of the ethnically and racially integrated mix of artists and management that drew so many musicians to its doors.  Jim Stewart says the emphasis was on creating the distinctive southern soul sound that became the hallmark of Stax Records.  The people at Stax Records were blind to race and ethnicity.  Musicians flocked to the single recording studio with only one basic set of equipment and a small band of songwriters.  Together they helped to create and establish the careers of Booker T. and the MG’s, Otis Redding, Brenda Holloway, Carla Thomas, Rufus Thomas, Charlie Musselwhite, Mavis Staples and The Staples Singers, Sam & Dave, and Melissa Ethridge, just to name a few.  The death of Otis Reading in 1967, the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King in 1968, the change of leadership at Stax Records and increased competition from Motown Records and other recording companies lead to the insolvency and unfortunate closing of Stax Records in 1975.  The bounty of material and recordings in this fabulous museum was a nostalgic reminder of our teenage years spent watching American Bandstand on Saturday mornings or Friday night dances at the high school after a football game. A great trip down memory lane!

We decided to find some lunch at Central Barbecue before we went to the National Civil Rights Museum.  Located just a block away from the Museum, we had to wait in line for a seat – a good sign that awesome barbecue was about to happen!  As you wait in line, you can preview the menu so you’re ready when it’s your turn to order.  We had a pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw and two sides; ribs and smoked wings.  OMG!  Fabulous food, terrific wait staff and the place was packed despite the fact that it was the middle of the week.  Can’t say enough good things about this small barbecue joint.

 

The National Civil Rights Museum and historic buildings were dedicated on July 4, 1991. The Lorraine Motel, the site of Dr. King’s assassination 50 years ago in April 2018 is the foundation for the museum.  The memory of Dr. King and his premature death caused us to pause and to remember where we were 50 years ago.  The motel and museum is part of a complex of buildings that includes the Young and Morrow building, the site where escaped convict James Earl Ray fired the fatal shot.  There has been a lot of controversy over the years about what the Museum should be: Should it just be a historical collection of events and memorabilia? Should it inspire activism?

The Museum closed in November 2012 for renovation, and the Board invited a group of recognized civil rights scholars to help in recreating the Museum visitors see today.  The Museum reopened in 2014.  Walking into this place felt like treading on sacred ground, and it evoked strong emotions for both of us.  The self-guided tour is the remarkable journey of black Americans from enslavement and abuse at the hands of rich white landowners; civil disobedience, and the peaceful and unrelenting demand for freedom and justice.  The story culminates in today’s controversial headlines of violence and injustices still prevalent on the streets of America in 2018.  One reviewer described the renovated Museum: “The powerful, visceral exhibits set the tone for an evocative, newly immersive museum experience that chronicles the history of the civil rights struggle in America.”

The exhibits also pay honor to the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement and so much more. This was such an emotional experience that we didn’t realize we had spent 4.5 hours in the museum.  It was a draining experience as well as we relived in graphic uncensored detail the unthinkable torment, affliction, bodily harm and mental suffering Black Americans have had to endure to claim their dignity and full entitlement as citizens of the United States.  Without their soul-wrenching, back-breaking, life-draining labor in the cotton and tobacco fields of the South, this country would not be what it became.  From the brutality of enslaving human beings to create this country, to the torture, rape and dehumanizing treatment of generation after generation of Black Americans, the totality of the human suffering that has been our disgraceful legacy for over four hundred years is one we should all be ashamed of.  For any of us to point racist fingers at plantation owners or staunchly proud, greedy, self-serving and ignorant segregationists and to somehow feel exonerated because we didn’t do any of “that” is no comfort once you come face-to-face with the daily violence and terror inflicted on those who dared to speak truth to power.  Despite a commitment to non-violence on the part of courageous people who marched and rode busses, many were willing to give their lives for their rightful place in this country that boasts freedom, liberty and justice for all. Voting rights, freedom from daily oppression, securing civil rights for all continue to make the news in 2018.  Black lives matter.  Some say all lives matter.  I say all lives will matter when Black lives matter.

A sunny morning greeted us the next day as we drove to Shelby Farms Park for a much-needed bike ride.  This park spans 4500 acres and is one of the largest urban parks in the country.  Among the best places for biking in Memphis, the park is incredible and has many paved pedestrian and biking trails.  If you don’t have a bike, the park will rent one to you.  And the park is home to a bison herd!  We had a casual ride around the lake and even saw an egret or two.  After a brief stop at the Visitors Center, we headed out to find the bison.  What a beautifully wooded, peaceful landscape.  It was wonderful to see so many moms with little ones in jogging strollers, walkers of every age, and families on bikes with kids and/or dogs in tow.  The park also offers a ropes course and visitors can rent kayaks, canoes, pedal boats, and stand-up paddle boards.  There is a playground and so much more.  In one far off corner of the park, bandstands were being erected for a weekend concert.

On Friday we met our friends, Carole and Art in the lobby of the legendary Peabody Hotel.  A city-block long, the hotel was built in 1924, and it has maintained the old-world charm of a bygone era when hotels catered to the wealthy and affluent. Even if you choose not to stay at The Peabody, it’s worth a visit to experience what it must have been like in the hotel’s heyday.  The most recognizable features are large red neon “The Peabody” signs atop the Skyway ballroom and the central elevator shaft.  Be aware that if you decide to take the elevator to the top floor of The Peabody to look out over the city of Memphis, you will push the button marked “S” instead of 13

The beautifully and ornately crafted interior favors the Renaissance revival style of architecture with its rich dark woods, arched doorways, and magnificent ceilings of stained glass.  You often see this style of architecture in turn-of-the-century university or public buildings like the State Capitol building in Austin, Texas.

By far the most popular attraction was the ducks in The Peabody fountain! What began as a gag In 1930 has now become a daily tradition enjoyed by visitors from all over the world. Every morning at 11:00, the ducks promptly arrive from their roof-top home via the elevator, and they are marched on a red carpet into the lobby fountain where they spend the day to the delight of everyone. At 5:00, the ducks are marched back to their home on the rooftop. It was so much fun to watch the excitement build as the hour of the arrival of the ducks grew closer and closer. Children squealed with delight and cameras flashed. What a unique and fun event.

We left The Peabody and walked the short distance to the Memphis Rock and Soul Museum.  It was a pretty muggy day, but we were soon inside.  The tour begins with a short film that tells the critical story of the musical pioneers “who overcame racial and socio-economic obstacles to create the music that changed the cultural complexion of the world.”  This museum includes some of the same information as is found in other museums we visited, but it went so much further.  Following a short film, the museum staff hand you an audio guide that allows you to walk and listen at your leisure as you stroll through the seven galleries that feature a comprehensive collection of rock and roll history.  Displays include a front porch from a sharecropper’s home, juke boxes, period clothing and household items, and various and other items associated with each period. From the sharecroppers who created the soulful tunes and the beat and rhythms played on primitive instruments in the cotton fields and tobacco fields to porch music and then to the urban streets of Memphis and Stax Records in the 50s, 60s and beyond, we were totally immersed as we listened to the evolution of some incredible music.  We spent a couple of hours listing to familiar and not-so-familiar recordings made in and around Memphis from 1930-1970.  It wasn’t possible to hear everything that was available, but we walked away totally satisfied.

Hungry for some lunch, we headed to Charles Vergos’ Rendezvous, a Memphis dry-rub, barbecue restaurant where ribs are cooked over charcoal; a tradition dating back to 1940.  The Rendezvous has been in its current location since 1968.  We could smell the restaurant before we got there!  We were directed down an alleyway to a big red and green-striped awning then headed down the stairs to the large dining room where we were totally transported back in time.  We learned that some of the wait staff have been proudly taking care of customers for over 30 years.  We opted for ribs and brisket baskets with cole slaw that had a vinegar base.  Our appetizer was a small dish of red beans and rice – delicious!  The pork ribs are more grilled than smoked, and they have a chewy texture with delicious bits of pit-charred flavor.  The meal was outstanding!

We bid our friends farewell. They had a three-hour ride back to Madison, Mississippi where Art had an early morning “up” with other volunteers at a Habitat for Humanity build.  It was wonderful to see our friends, and we hope to stay in touch with them throughout our time on the road.  We spent the rest of the day on a drive-by of Sun Records, relaxing and getting ready to go to a free concert at Overton Park and the Levitt Shell to hear one of our new favorite bands: Squirrel Nut Zippers.  What a wonderful way to end our week in Memphis, under the stars in a beautiful park surrounded by people who appreciate the bawdy, playful, energetic music of a group of musicians who totally enjoy entertaining a crowd.

Saturday found us taking a couple of early morning bicycle rides.  The first ride is called the Big River Crossing – yup – started in Tennessee and ended-up in Arkansas!  The second to Mud Island, a small body of land connected to Memphis by a pedestrian bridge that allowed bicycles.  We hurried home to get decked out in our Michigan gear, ready for the big homecoming game between Maryland and Michigan. It was a bit of a rocky start, but the final score was Michigan 42, Maryland 21.

There was one more place on our agenda.  Stax recording artist Al Green was one of the best soul singers of the early 1970s.  In 1976 he left the music business to become an ordained minister.  His church is in Memphis and we were determined to visit.

Nothing left to do but to say goodbye to Memphis and continue our trek south.  Next stop: Hot Springs, Arkansas!

Barbara and Brian