Transcripts For CSPAN3 C-SPAN Cities Tour- Music Of A Nation

Became a place for political rallies, civil rights events, and home to Country Musics grand ole opry. Today we are at the historic Ryman Auditorium in downtown nashville, tennessee. The nickname of the auditorium is the Mother Church of Country Music, which tells the history of both things it is famous for. It was built by a riverboat captain famously converted under a tent in downtown nashville in may of 1865, and after his conversion, he believed traveling ministers should have a permanent home inside that was large enough to take the large crowds of traveling ministers who came to town. Captain ryman built the Ryman Auditorium, it opened first in 1892 as a tabernacle. That is the church part of the that is the church part of the history. The Country Music part deals with the grand ole opry, which can be renting 43 after being in many different homes in nashville and stayed here until 1974 when the new opry house was built, but during the run of the 1940s, 19 50s, 1960s and 1970s, some of famous people in all of Country Music history debuted here at the grand ole opry, including hank williams, george jones, dolly parton, all of these grand names of Country Music cut their teeth and got their start in this wonderful building. The Ryman Auditorium almost didnt happen because of the 1884 president ial race, Grover Cleveland versus blaine. The democrats had lost literally sixth president ial races and had not won since 1856. Ryman was a bad gambler and he was walking the streets of downtown nashville and he was goaded to bet on the president ial election. The blaine people thought that blaine would win and ryman took the bets for the people that thought blaine would win, he said i will bet 100 for you, 500 to you, 1000 to you, and before captain ryman knew what he was doing, he had bet his entire wealth on the outcome of the president ial election in 1884. Thankfully, for us in nashville, won. R cleveland if not, captain ryman would have been penniless and would not have built this grand billman, would have been penniless and broke his entire life. During his life, he envisioned the building as a whole for all types of religious denominations, and it could be rendered for anybody. It did not have a slant for religion, it was available for anyone. It was the Largest Convention hall when it was built south of the ohio river. Nashville got a lot of groups and people who came here and had their evidence here because this was an incredible indoor space. Grand old oprye neared in another building the state capital, but during that era, we had a contest here at the Ryman Auditorium, and one of the fiddlers, uncle dave ofon, who was later a member the grand ole opry during that era, computed in a fiddling contest here, so the fiddling contest were from earlier versions of Country Music. It is interesting that the ryman had been around about 50 years when the grand ole opry came calling in 1943. The building had seen better days from a physical standpoint. It did not have any airconditioning, of course, or proper heating at the time. Newer buildings were being built in nashville. The War Memorial Auditorium across from the capital, and other venues for concerts. When the grand ole opry move from the War Memorial Auditorium to the ryman, it was perfect marriage. We needed weekly events for the building and the grand ole opry saved the building, in my opinion. If it werent for the weekly concerts every saturday night, the building would not have had the revenue to support it and would have been torn down long ago. But the opry provided new energy to the building and provided a place where literally 30005000 people a week got to hear the most popular and oldest Country Music show in the world. Interestingly enough, there is a Teddy Roosevelt story relating to the assassination attempt in 1912, related to the Ryman Auditorium. Teddy roosevelt was in the Teddy Roosevelt was in milwaukee, wisconsin, and campaigning for president after he left office, campaigning again. An assassin shoots him and the bullet enters his chest. He has this long speech of about 50 pages that slowed down the bullet, but it still enters his chest. Teddy roosevelt goes out and gives the speech anyway. One of the first things he says is i have just been shot and shows the audience. But then gives his long speech in the goes to the hospital. And then goes to the hospital. The person who assassinated him tracked him down, stayed in a hotel a few blocks away from the ryman. In 1912, Teddy Roosevelt had been to memphis, chattanooga and knoxville and was supposed to come to nashville, but an antiTeddy Roosevelt group had booked the ryman and only 200 people showed up. This assassin was down the street thinking the president would be here, and probably the reason Teddy Roosevelt did not come to nashville is this other group had booked ryman. Only 200 people showed up, including the congressman. That kept Teddy Roosevelt from nashville. When they caught assassin in milwaukee after they shot him, the plans he had to shoot Teddy Roosevelt and follow him around were on the back of the hotel stationary from nashville, tennessee two blocks away from the ryman. The Ryman Auditorium played a very key point in the Womens Suffrage Movement in passing the 19th amendment that gave 27 million women the right to vote. Tennessee was the last state to ratify that on august 18, 1920. Before that, susan b. Anthony spoke in this building in 1897, when tennessee was celebrating their 100th anniversary as a state with the centennial exposition. That was the first time women were able to hear from this National Leader and get involved in the movement. In 1914, tennessee had the first womens suffrage parade in the south, and based on that and what the local women did, the National Womens Suffrage Convention that susan b. Anthony started had their convention right here at the ryman. Many people have been to conventions that had more free time than work time. The women who came here in the fall of 1914 wanted the right to vote, they were going to work hard. The sessions lasted until 3 00 a. M. In this building when i got the right to vote when the women got the right to vote. The ryman has always been a little too large for Convention State parties. The democratic and republican parties. In 1920, when it was time to select delegates to go to the Democratic National Convention Held in San Francisco, they met here at the Ryman Auditorium. For the first time, tennessee sent two women delegates to that convention, which was historic. That was months before they passed the 19th amendment so the women could get the right to vote. History was made here even at the ryman before the right to vote was granted. The Civil Rights Movement was very important in nashville, tennessee. A few blocks from here, Young Students from fisk university, tennessee a i, now tennessee university, all did lunch counter sittings, including congressman john lewis. They got arrested and challenge the system going on in nashville, tennessee and the conscience of the country. In 1962, Martin Luther king was here at the ryman to present an award of scholarship money to some of the freedom rider students. One of those students who got a check to go to school from Martin Luther king in the southern Leadership Conference was john lewis. Part of the history of the ryman is also Martin Luther king was here and spoke as well. Jackie robinson spoke a few years later here on the Civil Rights Movement as well. Even before that, booker t. Washington came to the ryman and spoke about three different times, sometimes for graduations. He had a crowd of about 5000 people, the capacity back then. So, if you wanted to hear one of the leading voices in america during any time of the rymans history, they came to the Ryman Auditorium. The Ryman Auditorium is the most interesting place to hear a speech or music in america. It is home of the grand ole opry, a museum, but today it is a thriving concert venue that has over 200 bookings. In the last five or 10 years, people like diana ross, paul simon, aretha franklin, the foo fighters, the list goes on and on. Some people who normally play arenas of 15,000 or 20,000 play the ryman because it is such an interesting building that people want to perform in. The acoustics are some of the best in america. Most people think the mormon tabernacle in utah has better acoustics. The reason people like the Ryman Auditorium is because it is unique, a small venue, there is not a bad seat in this whole place. The great thing about seeing a concert is you get to see one of your favorite performers, but you get to see them in a much smaller space. When you go to a concert now, most performers thank their band and fans. When you walk across the stage at the ryman, you pay homage to the building. Most people, their first words are saying something about the building and how wonderful it is to be in here. I talked to former face the nation host bob schaffer during the president ial debates in 2008. They were at belmont university. Gaylord entertainment, now Ryman Hospitality group, had a special performance of the grand ole opry in this building, and they invited bob schaffer, who has a country band, to perform, and brad paisley was hosting the opry that night. And i talked to bob schaffer about that because later on, he was moderating another president ial debate that cycle of president obama and john mccain. I asked him, were you more nervous moderating the debate or playing at the ryman . It was an easy answer, he said i was so nervous at the ryman, it was my childhood dream and just as excited as i thought it would be. The rymans legacy on a National Level is a venue that has literally had speeches of president s, organized parties here. We have had famous politicians, even in the 20th century. Al gore senior and al gore junior. Another name people may not know is joe burns, speaker of the house during president roosevelts time. He had many debates for congress here at the ryman. When joe burns died, his funeral was in nashville and fdr came to that. The legacy of the ryman is tied to the legacy of the opry. It is now heard worldwide because of the internet. The grand ole opry is the oldest radio show in the world. It comes back here in the winter for a few months and you can still see it where it was famous, in the Ryman Auditorium. For my lord [applause] as the Ryman Auditorium reflects 20th century history, in the mid19th century, a Musical Group called the hutchinson family singers became the most famous entertainers in america as they traveled the country singing about freedom for enslaved african americans. [singing] their 1844 song, get off the track, one of their most popular songs. A Campaign Song for the liberty party, the first antislavery party. It became the anthem of the Antislavery Movement in the 1840s and 1850s. [singing] the book is on the hutchinson family singers, this group of antislavery singers born in New Hampshire in the late 1810s and early 1820s. They are a family group, thus the name. Hutchinson family singers. A group of three brothers and one sister. They are antislavery singers who are one of the most popular musical acts of the 1840s and 1850s. And i wrote it because the uniqueness of the hutchinsons and their story, but also one really big question how does a group that sings for social reform, musical social activists, how does this group become so popular . Initially there is the three brothers. Asaon, jesse, and hutchison, are somewhat captivated by this idea of music. They come from a large farming family in milford, New Hampshire, on the southern border of New Hampshire, the southern border with massachusetts. A large farming family, mainly male children. It is a family of 11 boys and 2 girls. One of the things that happens in the hutchinson family, the two oldest brothers will split the family farm, are in line to split the farm and the next brothers move into what is the west at that time, into ohio and illinois. The youngest series of brothers will form a three quarters of the hutchinson family singers and they moved to lynn, massachusetts, and early industrialized area. In lynn, the hutchinsons connect their background in music developed in the baptist church. They come from a family that was very active in the Baptist Community in New Hampshire. The church taught them how to sing, how to read music. Music is a little bit problematic, particularly in rural new england at the time. Right . It is dangerous. People who are musicians are seen as perhaps immoral in some way. The church provided a moral space to sing because they are singing the word of god. The hutchinson family is active in the Musical Community in New Hampshire through the baptist church. One of the brothers is the choral director of the church and provides Music Lessons for the community. The hutchinsons tried to run with that in lynn and they get the idea that maybe we could become a performing troop. So, in 1841, they decide to try their luck as three brothers and they tour new england and upstate new york and it is a complete flop. They grew up, they claimed, in the mountains of the old granite state, the White Mountains, even though the hutchinsons milford, New Hampshire, i think the highest point is only a couple hundred feet and they dont visit the White Mountains in New Hampshire until 1843. Nonetheless, they present themselves as coming from the mountains of the old granite state. They try an experiment. They bring their youngest sister, 12yearold Abby Hutchinson onto stage with them. Connecting with new england and along with abby creates a family presentation, that instantly resonates with audiences. This quartet creates the foundation for the hutchinson family singers that begins to work. One example, in 1842, they play at dartmouth college. This is one of the early concerts with Abby Hutchinson. The first night, they go out, they play to the audience. It is all men. They applaud, it is all great. The next night, they come out and it is a mixed vendor audience with children, right . Men, wives and their children. The first night, the men are literally checking this out will this concert be acceptable for my wife and children to experience . This is the kind of gender dynamic the hutchinsons are playing around with, in their stage presentation at this moment in time. In 1842, there is an important event in the fall that starts to push the hutchinsons in new directions. In october of 1842, a fugitive slave, george latimer, and his wife, rebecca, arrive in boston. Seven days later, they are recognized by a friend of their virginian master, who then contacts the master, who contacts the u. S. Marshall and boston, and they are immediately thrown into jail as fugitive slaves and there is going to be a trial over whether or not the latimers are fugitive slaves and whether or not they should be reenslaved under the fugitive slave law of 1793. The hutchinsons are living in lynn, massachusetts at the time and they begin their steps toward perhaps becoming antislavery singers. The idea of immediatism, which they pick up on from their christian background, is a factor in play. The idea of social betterment that connects also to a youth movement. Many of their fans from what we can tell were a younger generation, a generation that is increasingly mobile. Socially and geographically mobile. They are moving to cities from rural areas. The u. S. At this time is predominantly a rural nation. Its not until the 1890s and afterward that we consider the u. S. An urban population. Throughout the northeast, itinerant ministers were traveling from town to town, they would stay for one or two weeks, create on a revival. They would have a variety of celebrations, spiritual awakenings. In many ways, these revivals are the earliest example of a kind of Popular Culture in the u. S. These mass entertainments. Thousands of people of the largest ones would show up. These kind of very personal live performances, whether they be of religion or, soon, of music are one of the earliest sites of entertainme