Events « The Nashville Muse

Events

EVENTS FOR 2013

GREAT times in Nashville Music Community!!

February celebrated 10 years of the Nashville Muse – THANKS!!

Upcoming Artist Workshop Tuesday, May 7th and June 11th Artist Workshop at Two old Hippies 6:00 hosted by Rick Barker. This is a workshop for Artists to learn how to build a fan base, engage with fans, learn the ins and outs of touring, the important things for the artists. Rick’s site www.musicindustryblueprint.com has a couple great videos. You can also watch highlights of the Artist Workshop on www.musicstartshere.org

MAY – Spring celebration with Nashville Muse subscribers contest for a bicycle from Regions Bank – details soon!

April 24th Benefit for Theresa Lawton at Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville – 2nd Floor!

May 31-June 2nd Nashville Screenwriters Conference sponsored by Nashville Muse and Music Starts here.org

Wednesday, June 5th is CMT Awards at Bridgestone Arena. Look for information on where you can obtain your wristbands – from the Nashville Muse to get into the event!

Details of above events are in the weekly Nashville Muse!

THANKS for the 112 months of 3rd Sunday at 3:00 which ended July 15th at 701 Brook Hollow Road. We are looking for a new place and will let you know – let me know if YOU have any ideas for the next home of the 3rd Sunday at 3:00 tradition – OK?

THANKS for YOUR support of the events over the years! There will be NO MORE 3rd Sundays at 3:00 at the house.

To see the American Songwriter Magazine article written by Rand Bishop in his Makin Stuff Up column, in the May/June issue, please continue reading below:

Comments from 3rd Sunday at 3:00 and info on the event:

Kevin So (Keb Mo keyboard player) – “Doak’s 3rd Sunday is not only a place to try out new songs amongst friends, but it’s also one of the only events in Nashville to experience such a diverse community. Folks from all walks of life congregate here. You can hear it just by listening to the songs. I’ve gotten so much closer to my friends here in Nashville by hanging out at Doak’s. If I’m not on the road, I make sure I make a little time to head over there.”

Loni Rose – I am “new” in town but I just have to say that I really value and appreciate everything that you bring to Nashville. I LOVED your event yesterday and will make time as often as possible to join in on 3rd Sundays of the month. It was so awesome! Made me want to cry!!!! Listen, I have nothing to hide so really, that’s the truth. Anyway….I loved it.

Sheree at NSAI – I personally admire that with passion, consistency and sheer determination, Doak has created and carved out for himself a 3^rd Sunday Event that meets the needs of new songwriters who may disconnected once they arrive in town. Doak is the ultimate connector helping the songwriter who may feel like an outsider quickly convert to an insider by attending just one 3^rd Sunday event. Doak is a reflection of the inclusive heart and spirit of NSAI. Our members tell us over and over how comfortable and at home they feel at the 3^rd Sunday event. NSAI is honored to support and be a part of his 3^rd Sunday Event and his many other visionary projects. If all of us had a dollar for every time we heard the words “DOAK SENT ME.” Oh wait…we DO!

Gary Hannan - #1 hit Songwriter – I have attended 3rd Sunday for about 7 years now…..Thanks to this event, I have made many lasting friendships….and actually reconnected with someone from my high school in Africa from over 30 years ago! Doak has been such a blessing to the songwriting community….This event has a permanent mark on my calendar and I look forward to it every month! Great songs, friends , food and networking !

Chasing Lovely – Taylor and Chloe Turner – Since we were relatively new to Nashville the first time we went, it was a great place to network and make connections. It still is. New people show up every time, and if you exchange cards/information you can follow up and keep in touch with the people you meet. The incredibly delicious part of 3rd Sunday is that everyone brings a food or drink item to share. There’s always Bojangles chicken, which is one of the foods we most look forward to. Have you tasted that crispy goodness? Mmmm-mmm! 3rd Sunday at 3 is the perfect combination: great food + great music = one heck of a good time.

Phil Sweetland, Music and radio contributor, The New York Times. Editor and publisher, Country Insider – “Doak Turner’s Third Sundays are truly a Nashville treasure. Each month for nearly a decade, Doak has welcomed both rookie and star songwriters to enjoy a tasty meal and several hours of networking, song sharing at Turner’s West Meade home. Out-of-town writers also often stop by Third Sundays on their way through Music City. At a time when songwriters are being besieged on all sides by shrinking budgets, vanishing labels and publishers, and Internet piracy, Third Sundays are a wonderful monthly breath of fresh air and encouragement. I’ve met and heard dozens of exciting new talents and songs at Third Sunday over the years, been blessed with new clients for my Bio writing business, and for one afternoon a month felt at home in a town where so many gifted writers and artists feel rootless.”

Michael Lovett -For me, the Third Sunday at 3 is the physical representation of the Nashville Songwriting Community. In fact, it was my first introduction to Nashville as a whole and the wonderful sense of support and community that seems to rain down from the southern sun in this town.

I was blown away when streams of people, and instruments, came pouring down the driveway and into the house. Before I could catch my breath, every room in the house was filled with people, singing, playing, and smiles of friendship. Three months later I was a newly minted resident of Nashville Tennessee, and I am grateful everyday to the Third Sunday at 3 for introducing me to me new home town.

Bob Paterno – 3rd Sunday is a unique and wonderful event. It’s like sitting around the campfire and speaking one language, music. I’ve made so many new connections, new friends, and have been offered several gigs just showing up and playing. It truly is a gift that Doak Turner gives to the writing community every month. Thanks, Doak!

Robin and Gary Earl – We have met hundreds of great fellow industry people over the 100+ ’3rd Sundays’ at Doak’s. Great times, great networking, great food! We always recommend Third Sundays to artists and songwriters we produce.” Elle Bijet – When I first started writing songs in 2006 after my little brother gave me a guitar for Christmas, I felt too shy to call myself a “songwriter,” but I knew that I was very interested in music and in meeting other people who loved music and creating it. 3rd Sunday at Doak’s gave me an outlet to meet others and feel the support and encouragement to try out my songs for the first time. I had been too scared to go to a writer’s night yet, but I felt comfortable at Doak’s. If it weren’t for him providing a starting point for me, I am not sure that I would have ever made it to a writer’s night, let alone start booking my own gigs. There is always an array of awesome people at 3rd Sunday. From the unpolished beginners to the amazing professionals, Doak makes everyone feel welcome. I have met some of my best friends in Nashville at Doak’s and would have never had the courage to play at the Bluebird Cafe, where I met my husband, if it weren’t for him! I feel eternally grateful to him. He is a connector and a lover of music and people. Thank you, Doak.

Tom Shinness- Although I had played music professionally of and on for years, I decided to embark upon a new season of full time music making in Nov of 2002. Not long after that I started attending the 3rd Sunday at 3, usually 9-10 a year since that time. I have been making music full time ever since. As I look back on the contacts that I have made that have helped me to do this, many of my successes can be traced back to people I’ve met at the 3rd Sunday.

The 3rd Sunday is a fun and nurturering environment where people can feast, share their songs, and just hang out. I’ve gotten a lot of insight about the music business just listening to people tell their stories. I’ve never been to anything quite like it! This is one of the things that makes being a songwriter living in Nashville so great!

Some of the songwriters and Artists that have attended over the years, Alex Harvey (Delta Dawn), Robert Lee Castleman - (Grammy Award Winner with and writer of several Alison Krauss songs, “The Lucky One, “Let Me Touch You Awhile” and “Like Red On A Rose” – top 5 for Alan Jackson), Rand Bishop (250 cuts “My List” #1), John Robbin (#1 I Breathe In, Breathe Out, Guess You Had To Be There). Gary Hannan - (#1 Montgomery Gentry – where he first played the song “Back When I Knew It All” and Joe Nichols – Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off), Joe West (Toby Keith, Jimmy Wayne and Keith Urban #1′s), Dave Pahanish – (Toby Keith and Jimmy Wayne #1′s), Alan O’Day (Righteous Brothers “Rock N Roll Heaven”, Undercover Angel”), noted author John Braheny (The Craft & Business of Songwriting), Byron Hill 6 #1 and 600+ cuts), Bud Tower (Lynyrd Skynyrd “God and Guns”), Jimbeau Hinson (Fancy Free, Hillbilly Highway, Party Crowd), Joie Scott (Not That Different) Marc-Alan Barnette (Too Much Blood In My Alcohol Level). Rory Bourke (Songwriters Hall of Fame songwriter class of 1989), Jerry Foster (Hall of Fame songwriter 1982), Denny Sarokin ( guitar player,songwriter CSNY cut, Ricky Nelson’s Stone Canyon Band, Every Mother’s Son “Come On Down To My Boat Baby”). Gary Talley (guitar player The Box Tops “The Letter, Cry Like A Baby, Soul Deep). Lisa Aschman (author, 500 Songwriting Ideas and 1,000 Songwriting Ideas and many songs in TV and Film). Ira Dean (Trick Pony), Ed Salamon (radio legend). Pat Pattison – Berkley College of Music instructor and author of several songwriting books! John Braheny – author of The Craft and Business of Songwriting – which is in it’s Third Edition. Ezra Mohawk – (School House Rock, Mothers of Invention, Jerry Garcia and songwriter including cut with Cyndi Lauper).

Artists over the years before they had their deals, Josh Thompson, Meghan Lindsey (Steel Magnolia), Frankie Ballard – Warner Brothers artists and opened for Bob Seger on his recent tour.

Article in American Songwriter Magazine May/June issue 2012 written by Rand Bishop:

As competitive as the songwriting/music-publishing game is (and, it gets more so every day), Nashville remains a place where songwriters can find real community. While continuing to develop his or her song craft, every tunesmith’s next job is to make friends. Whether or not your songs climb the charts will eventually depend on the relationships you develop now and maintain throughout your career.

So … Now that you’ve carted your axe and your chart-topping dreams to Music City from the cornfields of Iowa or the swamplands of the Sunshine State, where do you begin creating those all-important friendships and alliances?

For well over 100 consecutive months, between 50 and 200 songwriters, carrying guitar cases, covered dishes, homemade cookies, and six-packs of coke or PBR have converged on a modest brick house in West Nashville. “As the head of the Charlotte (NC) chapter of NSAI, I’d always heard that a peer network was important,” host Doak Turner explains, sitting at the computer desk where he sends out The Nashville Muse to more than 5,000 subscribers. Turner’s slogan for his weekly, online listing of local gigs: Friends don’t let friends play to empty rooms. “So, when I moved here, I decided to get the Class of ’03 together. About 30 writers showed up. It just happened to be on a third Sunday. We’ve been doing it every third Sunday since.” March 18,2012 marked the tradition’s ninth anniversary.

A big persona with an ever-present smile, Turner’s background in promotion and marketing (radio, NASCAR, professional tennis) equips him to act as matchmaker for his guests. Typically, four separate rooms are crammed with writers sharing their songs. During warmer months, a deck, the driveway, and the backyard provide more spots for song circles to form. Scottsburg, Indiana’s Holly Stewart was barely 16 when she first heard about Doak’s event. Soon, accompanied by her father, she was making regular three and a half hour treks down I-65, always planning her trips to include the third Sunday of each month. Now a 19-year-old sophomore at Belmont University, Holly recalls her favorite Third-Sunday memory. On spring break of her 11^th grade year, she asked the circle to chime in on her song, “Walking In The Clouds.” This singalong inspired everyone else to break out their chorusy tunes resulting in an instant-choir bonding experience for all.

Third Sunday devotees, however, are not all fledglings. Tunesmith Gary Hannan, from South Africa, first unveiled “Back When I Knew It All” at Turner’s house. That song went on to become a chart topper for Montgomery Gentry. Since then, Hannan has considered Third Sunday his good luck charm. A string of Hannan cuts have debuted at Turner’s house, including Joe Nichols’ #1, “Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off.”

During the first hour, the throng filters in, pals catch up, newbies get orientated, and everyone chows down on potluck and free fixin’s from event sponsor, Bojangles’ Famous Chicken ‘n Biscuits. The host can be found circulating, hugging old and new friends alike, and always making introductions. Music commences in one of two ways. A lone renegade will begin serenading the wallpaper, thus drawing others to gather round. Or, in a room crowded with folks too timid to kick off the afternoon’s hootenanny, one bold soul will just start belting out an opening number. So it was in a room on the lower level as a gregarious, 40-something fellow in dark shades pounded out a raspy, southern-rock-styled mid-tempo. After he had used the same three-chord pattern to accompany at least six, consecutive, musically identical verses, sidelong glances communicated the unspoken question: “Is this song ever gonna end?” Finally, the boisterous troubadour hammered his refrain four more times before finishing – to tepid, but respectful applause.

It was clear that the next two young ladies were first timers. Earlier, I’d spied them schlepping gig bags and potluck items back and forth in front of the house, unsure if they’d found the right address. I soon learned that black-tressed Stephanie is a Vanderbilt student, while strawberry-blond Meaghan attends Belmont. Mercifully – compared to the opener – the girls’ songs were tidy and well-structured, while Meaghan’s sweet, high, breathy voice showed genuine promise. Most importantly, here were two co-ed pals encouraging and supporting each other in their tunesmithing aspirations.

Gathered in the upstairs living room were members of another class. Kurt Fortmeyer, a six-year Third Sunday vet, had the room entranced with a Dave Gibson co-write titled “The Box.” On one past Sunday afternoon, the red-bearded Fortmeyer hit a lick of good fortune when he played a tune in the presence of guitar guru Dave Isaacs, who recorded the song on his next CD. Most every regular recalls making important friends, meeting co-writers, and scoring gigs at Turner’s house. One couple became collaborators of a different kind. They got married.

“Is it my turn?” asked a lanky brunette, her left knee poking through a rip in her jeans. Hannah Aldridge, a tomboyishly beautiful, 24-year-old ’Bama girl, proceeded to wail a stunning, heart-rending country waltz. Poised and confident, Hannah commutes regularly between Music City and her hometown of Muscle Shoals, where she is recording an album with the help of her father, famed country songwriter Walt Aldridge. Much like previous stand-out, up-and-coming Third-Sunday attendees, like solo artists Frankie Ballard and Josh Thompson and Steel Magnolia’s Meghan Linsey, young Ms. Aldridge seems primed to move into the big leagues. Her “Stars Fell On Alabama” plates were not the only out-of-staters parked in the church lot cattycorner from Turner’s house either. Tags with “Live Free Or Die,” “Land Of Enchantment,” and “Famous Potatoes” have occupied those spots as well. And, on this particular, damp, chilly Sunday in February, Doak proudly tallied representatives from six foreign countries.

“You’re gonna hafta expand your house,” jibed a writer who couldn’t seem to locate a single free chair. While Turner admits to grandiose visions, i.e. building a heated shelter over his driveway and deck to facilitate more cold-weather rounds, I couldn’t help but wonder why other towns haven’t mimicked Doak’s initial dream of providing a monthly home where songwriters can create true community.

Past Events