Thoughts of a Thirsty Troubadour: Part 12. Nashville, Cashville, and other things...

Glenn Groves 2025

I Haven't written one of these for quite some time. And over that time, really not much has changed when it comes to my career. I'm still slugging it out in bars, and although I complain sometimes, I still love it. It is a constant struggle to find rooms that appreciate what we solo musicians can bring to the table...mainly food and drink sales, haha. As prices continue to escalate in all sectors of business, we troubadours often find ourselves being asked to play for less and less money. So, I wanna start by giving a MASSIVE and GRATEFUL shoutout to the venues that hire me! I am in such a good place with the rooms that I play. I feel good working hard for them because they also work hard for me and treat me and the Hardest Working Woman in Country Music very well. Could I be playing more often? Yes! But I'm just not willing to practically give away a show that I have spent 25+ years pouring my heart and soul (and voice) into.

Let's get into Nashville.

NASHVILLE

As a lot of you know, I am fairly active on social media. It is a great, free tool for promoting my job and that is mostly what I use it for. I just arrived back from Nashville after a long break from visiting there (around 7 years) and I feel like this blog is a more sensible place to talk about it rather than making a huge post on Facebook or Instagram.

Let me preface what you are about to read with this: I know that I am old. I don't feel old, I don't act old but 55 is a biggish number. So, let's dive in.....

Nashville (more specifically Broadway) has turned into a circus. A fucking expensive, greedy circus. If you visit Broadway, which is where all the action is, here is what you can expect:

People.

Thousands of them. Tens of thousands of them. The streets, the bars, the hotels, all rammed with bodies. It used to be that you could walk into a honkytonk at ten in the morning and listen to someone sitting on a stool with an acoustic guitar. Not anymore. It is balls-to-the-wall full bands from 10am until what seems like eternity. A constant barrage to the senses.

Most bars now have famous names attached to them. Garth Brooks, Jason Aldean, Luke Combs, Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, Alan Jackson, Luke Bryan, I could go on....Kid Rock, John Rich, Morgan Wallen, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, phew, my fingers are tired. These bars are MASSIVE. Sometimes five floors of music, and a rooftop patio is now a must!

Cashville

So let's get into why I am now referring to the city as "Cashville".

As I stated above, virtually all of these bars are filled with people all day and all night. Bands are pounding out the latest Morgan, or Luke, or Zach Top songs from morning til, well, the next morning (2am-3am). From the time you enter one of these venues it won't take very long for you to notice a few things.

Firstly, the price of a beverage.

I like a couple of beers when I'm in a bar but I am mostly a rum and coke guy, same with my wife. The minimum price that I paid for my Cuba Libre was a whopping $14 US. This was a single shot, in a small plastic cup, or a "four-sipper" as I started calling them. Most regular sized beer was $9 US. I bought my wife a vodka and some kind fruit juice drink (literally one ounce of vodka with some kind of grape juice poured in it) and myself a "four-sipper" of rum at Eric Church's place...36 fucking US dollars! What in the name of Waylon Jenning's mother? Seriously?

Secondly, "What do you mean I have to pay the band?"

This one is a touchy subject because I most assuredly appreciate being tipped when I perform. It is a sign that I'm performing well and that people appreciate what I am throwing down. Here is my issue. As I said, these bars are owned (at least in part) by multi MULTI millionaire celebrities. They are packed morning til morning with people clamouring for $15 drinks and food yet they don't pay their bands ANYTHING? Every single band is very aggressive in stating that they charge $20 per request. They put a price on it. One band at Garth Brooks's place wanted $200 to play Devil Went Down to Georgia! They wouldn't play it until $200 was collected. Shameful in my opinion (especially for that song, Lol). Shameful because why can't the bar pay them something so they can be less pushy with the tourists and fans? You are reminded after every song, that they are playing for tips. I even heard a band say that it's $50 for them NOT to play "Wagon Wheel". It offends my sense of right and wrong in so many ways.

Thirdly

I suppose this is where my age is a factor. There is a severe lack of acknowledgement to the people whose shoulders Nashville was built on. It took quite awhile for me to find someone who could play me some Waylon, George, or Merle. Although I did hear Patsy Cline once or twice. Thankfully Robert's Western World came through for me. Robert's in the morning did my soul good!

That was a lotta negativity. Here is some of the good!

Security and Police presence was VERY noticeable. It was very reassuring. Nashville is a busy place with people walking everywhere. Sober people, drunk people, pushy people, gay people, trans people, straight people, people with mobility problems, walkers, wheelchairs, beggars, homeless, you name it. It felt safe! They have even installed steel bollards along the sidewalks to prevent any kind of vehicle from accidentally or purposely jumping onto the walkways. Sometimes our bags were checked and we were even frisked before entering a venue.

BRAVO!

The Music

It's the reason we go. Most bands were fantastic. The talent is there. You just have to search around for what suits you. Believe me, you will find it. There's as much rock and roll and blues as there as there is country.

It's a Good Time

We were fortunate enough to visit with great friends. We had a blast. Lotsa laughs and singing along. It was beautiful and only a 90 minute flight!

The Shopping

If you're after some country style swag, it's definitely the place to be! Top quality clothing, boots, hats, belts and assorted bling. Also expensive but it's beautiful stuff that is hard to find in the Great White North!

All in all, I am probably done with Nashville until maybe that seven-year itch kicks in again. I want to focus my efforts on smaller towns and re-engaging with true hole-in-the-wall honkytonks that breathe character like its oxygen. They are in small towns and they dot dirt roads from Yukon to Key West, and I wanna see'em all. Who's with me?

GG