Undertaking a pilgrimage to visit some of eastern USA’s most historic musical landmarks – Bourbon Street, Beale Street, Honky Tonk Highway, The Grand Ole Opry and Gracelands – should be on all passionate travellers’ bucket lists.
Nashville – ‘Honky Tonk’ Highway & Grand Ole Opry
Nashville – capital of the US state of Tennessee and a 14-hour drive southwest of New York – is globally famous as the home of both the comprehensive Country Music Hall of Fame/Museum and the legendary Grand Ole Opry House stage and radio show.
But for live music aficionados, the great discovery upon arrival in downtown Nashville is the extraordinary non-stop reverberation and energy – generated 15 hours daily (10am-3am) live and loud – along the half dozen mid-city blocks leading from the Riverfront up permanently pulsating Broadway, which make up the ‘Honky Tonk Highway’.
This discovery is live music heaven. Each block boasts seemingly endless, side-by-side live music venues, pumping live music into the streets 365 days a year to create a non-stop raucous cacophony and invigorating rhythm that accompanies an extravagantly multi-coloured backdrop of partying visitors in all manner of outrageous dress and costume dancing wildly up and down the sidewalks.
A ‘Honky Tonk’ is a venue that contains at least one rockin’ stage, cold beverages, exotic cocktails and live music that lasts all day, every day; these very bars and music venues launched the careers of many legendary local performers, including Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Gretchen Wilson and Dierks Bentley.
Venturing indoors, a ‘bar crawl’ along Broadway involves a wild trip where you’ll visit iconic venues like the Paradise Park Caravan Resort, Nashville Underground, Nudie’s Honky Tonk, Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge (3 storeys, 3 stages, 3 bars, including rooftop), Kid Rock’s Big Honky Tonk, Johnny Cash’s Bar & BBQ (next door is the Johnny Cash Museum, celebrating the singer’s life), Whiskey River Saloon, Jason Aldean’s Kitchen & Rooftop Bar, Tequila Cowboy and Lucky Bastard Saloon; none of the bars along the Honky Tonk Highway has a cover charge.
Outside the high-spirited Honky Tonk district, Nashville also offers an amazing historical library at the Country Music Hall Of Fame and Museum (daily 9am-5pm). You’ll need most of a day to tour its massive collections of photos, videos, artefacts and music, all celebrating works of Hall Of Fame inductees like Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard and Dolly Parton.
Nashville’s two other legendary country music venues are the Grand Ole Opry House (home of the iconic ‘Grand Ole Opry’ stage and radio show, first broadcast in 1925) and the historic Grand Ole Opry at Ryman Auditorium (where contemporary country music legends perform live four nights of the week).
Memphis – Gracelands & Beale Street
Memphis – on the Mississippi River in southwest Tennessee – is famous for the influential strains of blues, soul and rock ‘n’ roll that originated there.
It’s mandatory to book a tour of Elvis Presley’s home Gracelands; alongside the mansion, the Meditation Garden is where Elvis and relatives are laid to rest. The tour includes access to the huge adjacent exhibition centre which displays over a dozen of Elvis’s exotic car choices, plus a multitude of his motor bikes, converted golf buggies and other transport choices (including two aeroplanes), as well as hundreds of his flamboyantly-sequinned concert outfits.
These buildings also include large displays relating to both Elvis’s own life story and those of his family members, as well as an ever-changing array of exhibitions on pop culture and related subjects. It takes a full day to view all the displays.
In downtown Memphis, neon-lit Beale Street is the historic vibrant artery of the city, with each club and bar pulsating with live music, the blues’ soulful strains and the buzz of excited visitors.
Nearby Sun Studio, still preserved in its original state, is where Elvis recorded his first song; it’s also where the giants of rock ‘n’ roll laid down tracks, launching the careers of Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and B.B. King. The guided tour is a captivating story of how a small studio in Memphis became the launching pad for the music that would define a century.
Stax Museum of American Aoul Music, housed in the original site of Stax Records, includes exhibits relating to soul music legends like Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes and Booker T & the MGs. It Includes Isaac Hayes’s custom Cadillac and a dance floor where visitors can dance to classic soul hits.
The Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum (a Smithsonian Institution affiliate) offers a journey through the agricultural fields of the Mississippi Delta to the neon-lit avenues of Memphis, where the fusion of blues, country and gospel gave birth to the soul-stirring genres of rock and soul. The galleries unveil the story of a city that danced in the face of segregation and adversity.
The Blues Hall of Fame, full of personal memorabilia, tells a similar story of struggle and triumph, painting a vivid picture of the blues’ journey from the Mississippi Delta to the global stage, celebrating the genre’s iconic figures.
The Memphis Music Hall of Fame documents the city’s musical heritage, where visitors explore the stories and sounds of Memphis legends ‘from the soulful melodies of Otis Redding to the revolutionary rockabilly of Elvis Presley’ in an immersive environment that brings the music to life.
EMBODYING THE MUSICALLY-DOMINATED FESTIVE SPIRIT OF NEW ORLEANS MUSIC IS ITS WORLD FAMOUS MARDI GRAS, THE LATE-WINTER CARNIVAL RENOWNED FOR RAUCOUS COSTUMED PARADES AND STREET PARTIES.
New Orleans – Mardi Gras & Bourbon Street
Nicknamed ‘The Big Easy,’ modern New Orleans – on the Mississippi River near the Gulf of Mexico, in the US south-eastern state of Louisiana – is known for round-the-clock nightlife, vibrant live-music scene and spicy, Creole cuisine reflecting its history as a melting pot of French, African and American cultures.
The beating heart of the city is the French Quarter, known for its French and Spanish Creole architecture – many of the beautiful buildings, featuring famous wrought-iron balconies, date back two or three centuries – and vibrant, live-music- inspired nightlife along bustling, internationally renowned Bourbon Street. It’s loud, animated, jovial and ‘party time’ here every night of the year.
Beyond the neon signs of Bourbon Street, Saint Claude Avenue is home to numerous lively spots with outstanding local talent, including Siberia which showcases all kinds of bands. Fritzel’s European Jazz Bar and Preservation Hall are other famous music venues in the French Quarter for live music.
The city’s incredible brass bands play daily in Jackson Square (in the shadow of St Louis Cathedral) and often progress up and down the action-packed streets. Visitors can also see world-class musicians every evening at the jazz clubs along Frenchmen Street, where it’s easy to bounce between nightspots.
Treme/Lafitte is one of the most historic African-American neighbourhoods in the US; jazz evolved there in Congo Square in Louis Armstrong Park, which now hosts regular concerts; in 1994, the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park was established here.
Embodying the musically-dominated festive spirit of New Orleans music is its world famous Mardi Gras, the late-winter carnival renowned for raucous costumed parades and street parties (from first week in January until the start of Lent).
Anong other year-round, music-themed festivals in New Orleans are Jazz Fest in Spring, which attracts world-famous musicians for live music at French Quarter Fest, while the city also goes ‘all in’ for Halloween (late October), highlighted by a 4-hour city-centre parade featuring hundreds of music-backed floats and marching bands.
Austin – Continental Club & Antone’s
Austin – state capital of Texas – is known as the ‘Live Music Capital of the World’ for its eclectic live-music scene centred around hundreds of live music venues offering rock, blues, country, jazz, hip hop, punk or Latino shows nightly.
First-time visitors might be surprised to find themselves entertained with live music as they walk through the terminal at Austin’s airport, and music (in many other forms) is everywhere from the airport terminal to local grocery stores.
The Continental Club has showcased blues, rock and folk music since 1957, earning the title ‘Granddaddy of Austin music venues’; the iconic ‘Hippie Happy Hour’ at The Continental Club is a must-visit while you’re in town.
Antone’s, Austin’s ‘home of the blues’, opened in 1975; it’s where Stevie Ray Vaughan cut his teeth and is known for its music-themed parties – legend has it both the music and the party could often last until 5am at this happening 6th Street hot spot. Emo’s helped shape the music scene in Austin and continues the city’s rock ‘n roll tradition, while the Armadillo World Headquarters (opened in 1970) is considered a centre of Austin’s modern music scene and Parish features up-and-comers along with cult favourites.
Newer stages like those at the Mohawk (unique indoor/outdoor multi-level live music downtown venue opened in 2006 to showcase the best emerging talent from Austin) and 3TEN showcase local acts alongside big-name touring artists.
Sahara Lounge (formerly the historic TC’s Lounge) is owned and operated by musicians and offers live music nightly, from Indie to African to Blues and everything in between.
The Speakeasy offers three levels of entertainment (music lounge, mezzanine overlooking the stage and rooftop Terrace59 lounge) while the Elephant Room has nightly jazz jams, sit-in singers and veteran trios.
Less intimate is the ‘two-venues-in-one’ Empire Control Room & Garage where music lovers ‘headbang’ in the open-air garage stage or crowd the stage in the control room.
The Cactus Café is one of Austin’s original ‘hush-hush’ spots where musicians like Lyle Lovett, Robert Earl Keen, Lucinda Williams and Ani DiFranco played early in their careers.
The Broken Spoke (designated an official Texas historic landmar) is Austin’s original honky-tonk and known as ‘the last true Texas dance hall’. It features great country acts, and guests can also take a Texas Two-Step lesson on its sunken dance floor. Other venues with ‘music to make you dance’ include Flamingo Cantina (hosting Latin reggae and world-beat acts since 1991) and little Longhorn Saloon.
Outdoor music venues include Stubb’s Bar-B-Q (large outdoor amphitheater packs in crowds nightly), Scoot Inn, Far Out Lounge & Stage, Cedar Street Courtyard, the two clubs Hotel Vegas and The Volstead (which share a backyard for outdoor concerts), and the architecturally stunning 15,000-seat Moody Ampitheater in the heart of beautiful Waterloo Park hosts Austin City Limits (America’s longest-running music television series).
Austin also boasts a huge calendar of annual music festivals including Spring (Austin Blues Festival, Austin Psyche Festival, Austin Reggae Festival, Besame Mucho Festival, HONK!TX, Hot Luck Festival, iHeartCountry Festival, Luck Reunion, Old Settler’s Music Festival Spring Pickin’ Party, Two Step Inn, Urban Cultural Festival, UTOPiAfest Down in the Oaks), Summer (Fourth of July Fireworks & Symphony, Hot Summer Nights, Oblivion Access Music Festival, Sips & Sounds Summer Festival, Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic), Autumn/ Fall (Austin City Limits Music Festival, Eastside Kings Festival, Seismic Dance Event) and Winter (Free Week).
Other ‘East Coast’ music highlights – Milwaukee
The largest city in the state of Wisconsin, Milwaukee is famous for ‘Summerfest’ annual music festival featuring 600+ artists performing from noon to midnight across 12 stages over 3 consecutive long weekends in late June-early July at the 75-acre Henry Maier Festival Park on the Lake Michigan shore. First held in 1968, annual attendances vary between 500,000-850,000 depending on each year’s headline act ensemble and weather (the record is 1,000,563 attendees in 2001). Music covers all genres and Summerfest has hosted many of the world’s most famous music icons, including Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Jackson 5, Frank Sinatra, Prince, Fleetwood Mac, Diana Ross, Tina Turner, Whitney Houston, Rod Stewart, Britney Spears, The Doors, INXS, Sting, Metallica, Bon Jovi, Stevie Wonder, Aerosmith, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, James Taylor, Christina Aguilera, Roy Orbison, Pink, Nine Inch Nails, The Ramones, Billie Eilish, Willie Nelson, Keith Urban, Ed Sheeran, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Beach Boys and Alanis Morissette.
Lancaster
This city in Pennsylvania features the American Music Theatre, a live music venue with 1,600+ seats, and the unique Sight & Sound Theatre that produces Bible stories live on stage. Each year more than a million people from around the world attend its performances (considered the largest faith-based theatre company in the US).
Biloxi
In this Mississippi city on the Gulf of Mexico, the Ground Zero Blues Club (co-owned by actor Morgan Freeman) opened in 2022 inside the historic 20,000-square-foot Kress Building and features live music from internationally acclaimed blues artists and regional musicians.
