Back in Baby’s Arms, My Return to Country Music

I recently went on a trip to Nashville, TN. It is a city filled with neon signs, batman buildings and rich history. The outlying towns of Franklin and Spring Hill are magical and if their town clocks could talk, I’m sure they would have enough stories to write a million country songs.

A Rich Musical Heritage

Tennessee is best known for their rich musical heritage. From Memphis, to Bristol to Nashville, the state is responsible for spreading tunes dating back from the 1920’s. Music City, USA is home to the Grand Ole Opry, the Country Music Hall of Fame and a perfect pitch of singers like Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline, Keith Urban and Johnny Cash.

A Wide Range of Fans

It amazes me that country music reaches such a wide range of fans. As a young girl, I loved the Gatlin Brothers, EmmyLou Harris and Barbara Mandrell. Songs like All the Gold in California, To Know Him is to Love Him and Sleepin Single in a Double Bed were turned round and round again in my “butterflies-are-free” bedroom.

But then as a teen I grew too cool for country music. Instead, I began to collect albums by Fleetwood Mac, The BeeGees, KC and Elton John. I’ve prided myself throughout my adulthood on staying up to date with pop music.  When my kids were young, I listened to  the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Matchbox 20 and Britney Spears. Even after they left home for college, I continued to listen to Kelly Clarkson, Katy Perry and One Direction.

Back in Baby’s Arms

Then I blinked and the beat changed. The chorus of my life reached a new note. I began to miss harmonious voices, ballads that reached the charts due to the story they told and melodies that got stuck in my head for days on end. Who would have thought that a little trip to Nashville would take me back to my childhood? After a tour of the Patsy Cline and Johnny Cash museums, I was “back in baby’s arms!”

My pulse seemed to skip a beat or two when I listened to Walking After Midnight, Crazy and Jackson. I left Nashville on a jet plane and don’t know when I’ll be back again. But, somehow I made it home with a cowgirl hat like Patsy Cline’s and a list of country music artists I can’t wait to download. As well as… something magical.

After flying all the way into Pensacola airport, driving an hour home and sleeping a very sound 8 hours; I awoke the next morning to Alabama’s Dixieland Delight. The perfect ending to a wonderful trip and the perfect return to my roots. Roots grounded in the good ole red clay of Alabama, tracking the sweet sounds of Tennessee all over the white sandy beaches of Baldwin County.