Nashville!

The rich cultural heritage of the people of Nashville finds another greater pride as music finds its home in the Grand Ole Opry, a weekly country music radio program and concert broadcast live on WSM radio. It is aired every Friday and Saturday night beginning March all throughout the end of the year. The Grand Ole Opry holds the record as the oldest, continuous, ongoing radio program in the United States, having been broadcast on WSM since October 5, 1925.

The history of the Grand Ole Opry began in the radio studio station of the National Life and Accident Insurance Company as a WSM Barn Dance on November 28, 1925. The Barn Dance was launched by then prominent radio announcer and program director George Hay. He created the Barn Dance in conjunction with the management’s feature program, “Dr. Humphrey Bate and his string quartet of old-time musicians.”

The name Grand Ole Opry was a famous phrase uttered by Hay in response to Harmonica Wizard - De Ford Bailey’s classical renditions of the “Pan American Blues”. Hay commented that, “For the past hour, we have been listening to music taken largely from the Grand Opera. From now on we will present the ‘Grand Ole Opry.’” The phrase ‘grand ole opry’ had a strong recall and has stuck on the memory of many listeners and the name was used ever since.

Some of the bands regularly featured on the show during its early days were the following: the Possum Hunters, the Fruit Jar Drinkers, the Crook Brothers, the Binkley Brothers Clod Hoppers, Uncle Dave Macon, Sid Harkreader, Deford Bailey, Fiddling Arthur Smith, and the Gully Jumpers. As years go on, the featured artists increased rapidly, and the list included Dave Macon, a Tennesse native banjo player, touted as the Grand Ole Opry’s first real star; Roy Acuff, Red Foley, Hank Williams, Sr., Webb Pierce, Faron Young, Martha Carson, Lefty Frizzell, and so many others.

The audience’s response to the show was overwhelming that the radio station moved out of its National LIfe and Accident Insurance Company location to the Dixie Tabernacle in East Nashville. However, the new location still proved to be small and once again the Grand Ole Opry had to transfer. The Opry then moved to the War Memorial Auditorium, a downtown venue adjacent to the State Capitol. It was at this time that the management decided to charge a twenty-five cent admission for its live shows aiming to decrease the number of audience. Still, the same number of audience was willing to pay and come to watch the show. On June 5, 1943, the Opry moved to the Ryman Auditorium. The Ryman was home to the Opry until1974, when the show moved to the 4,400-seat Grand Ole Opry House

It was in 1954 when Elvis Presley, a teenager at that time made his first and only performance in the Grand Ole Opry. The show was considered less successful compared to others as the audience meekly reacted to Elvis’s rockabilly music. The 1950s was an era when the Grand Ole Opry represented purely true country music and Elvis’s music of mix rhythm and blues was found my most country folks as controversial, if not distasteful.

From its conception until the present time, the Opry has stood as a symbol of true American country music. The artists and repertoire of the Opry range from superstars to legends. A membership in the Grand Ole Opry is an equivalent of being identified as a member of elite country music. The membership in the Opry however, remains a grey area and the case of Hank William’s disqualification was considered by many to imply that membership in the Opry expires on the artist’s death. Still, the late artist’s impact is commemorated at special events. For example, the Grand Ole Opry’s 50th anniversary celebrated Hank William’s musical legacy. The longevity of the Grand Ole Opry, spanning decades and years, is also a strong exhibition of the many true artists that it has discovered and featured. It is therefore not astonishing to see that the Grand Ole Opry has become a household word extending beyond the neighborhood of Nashville.