Places: Nashville, Night and Morning

After navigating a Friday evening of 'hot tub bus' revelry, the AM is a hush of neon

The last time I ventured into downtown Nashville was to see John Hiatt play with the Jerry Douglas Band at the Ryman Auditorium. I had flown into the city, rented a car, and was staying overnight before heading down to Muscle Shoals, Ala., for a music festival.

Catching and photographing Hiatt at the “Mother Church of Country Music” was an unexpected bonus, the fulfillment of a lifetime dream to shoot a show at the Ryman. It also was something of a curse; to get there, I had to cut through the bro-country scene that has turned the Broadway area into a Southern version of Times Square.

Perhaps you can blame my age, but I’ve never been a party scene guy who enjoys drinking overpriced lite beers and sugared down mixed drinks in a place where being loud and obnoxious is valued. The fake nature of the theme park environment — think Las Vegas and Times Square as well — is just not for me.

And on this Friday night, a fall evening without a cloud in the sky, the crowd overflowed with bachelor and bachelorette parties and singles and college students just looking for a good time. As Hiatt said during the show, “I didn’t realize you could get here on the hot tub bus.”

As I worked my way back to the hotel two blocks from the theatre, I took a handful of pictures. Here are three:

The next morning, I woke up just before sunrise, something that often happens when I’m out of town. I decided to see and photograph downtown when it was quiet. Broadway was finally, fitfully taking a nap. Bars were closed and exhausted staff members were finishing their cleanup, knowing in a few hours that it would start all over again.

Here are some photos I took on that cloudy morning.

Nashville is changing so rapidly that I’m sure some of these places — especially the older ones — are no longer in business as the strip becomes more and more corporate and the town loses some of its character(s). It’s the same thing that has taken place in Austin and other cities around the country, and losing that character/those characters is a shame.

I’m just glad I was able to capture some of it before it’s gone.

What do you think of these photos? Any favorites? Do you enjoy going to these different “places” with me?