Trip to Tennessee

Sunday, November 06, 2005
Road Trippin' in Charles
Paris to Memphis and then back...

Well, let me start by saying that it's a little longer a drive then I had expected. As I mentioned in the previous blog we were heading to Memphis to pick up Shad's guitar for an upcoming video shoot. He was meeting us half-way by driving in from Nashville with his dog, Lucky.

Dr. Jacob Hooker was kind enough to “truck up” and drive us all the way there with O’Neal taking the helm on the way back, so I just lucked out hogging the whole ass end of the van all to myself. The hangover that a gig at L&W in Grapevine produces is sometimes monumental in it's magnitude.

We arrived and met up at the visitor’s center there on the Mississippi River. After the exchange was made we headed over to the historic Sun Studios, opened by Sam Phillips in 1950. Many famous people cut their teeth at Sun in the 50’s, BB King, Muddy Waters, Jr. Parker, Elvis, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison,

Jerry Lee Lewis, and even long down the road such people as Billy Bob Thornton and U2. They wouldn’t let us unload our shit and lay down a few tracks so I just decided to drop $20 on a souvenir t-shirt and then split.

We drop into the downtown area and find a parking lot next to an Irish Pub. We walk in and the place looks really cool, authentic from how I remember them be

ing when I lived in Austin. Anyway, we are making our way to the back and we see what looks to be a nice and quite patio section out the back door so we make b-line for it. We have a seat and it’s only then that it dawns on all of us that we are sitting in a shopping mall. Odd indeed, and even odder, I never had a beer with the other guys. I mean me, Irish, in an “Irish Pub” and not slamming Irish Car Bombs. I should’a been shot for ordering so much water. Oh well, the night before in Grapevine had killed me and I needed some time to recuperate.

Well, that’s the trip in a nut shell. Thanks again for the loaner on the guitar, Shad. I hope to see you sooner than later.

Lp.

This was the cheapest that I had seen gas in a long time.
(Bogota, Texas I think...)

Here's the view that bald head that I've had for literally thousands of miles over the last six months.

Shot of the bridge over the Mississippi River between Arkansas and Tenn.

BB King at the visitor's center.

Check Elvis out, he's got more package than UPS.
He had to stuff...

A Hooker I saw in the parking lot just outside the bar.

Rolling into Sun

Shade on the Sun.