Famed author discusses Nashville’s influence in soul music history

By Ron Wynn, rwynn@nashvillecitypaper.com November 11, 2005

Distinguished author Peter Guralnick has written extensively for more than three decades on everything from blues and soul to country and rockabilly. As the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Night Train To Nashville exhibit nears the end of its showing, Guralnick, who will discuss his latest book Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke Saturday at the Hall of Fame, said that Nashville’s importance as a performing site and repository for gospel, soul and R&B has frequently been overlooked. What: Peter Guralnick discusses Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke When: 3 p.m. Saturday Where: The Ford Theater, The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum, 222 Fifth Ave. S. Cost: Free Info: 416-2001 “One of the things that I’ve discovered over the years while researching not only the Sam Cooke book but also Sweet Soul Music was just how important a place Nashville was in terms of both performing and recording. The clubs in Nashville, especially the ones along Jefferson Street, were places that every major R&B and soul musician wanted to play whenever they were in the area. The great thing about the Night Train exhibit has been the attention that it’s brought to someone like Ted Jarrett, who everyone in the soul and R&B world has always admired but isn’t anywhere near as well known as he should be outside that universe.” Besides the Cooke book, Guralnick has done extensive profiles on such famed performers as Bobby “Blue” Bland, the Rev. Al Green, Willie Mitchell, the Rev. Solomon Burke and numerous others. Guralnick acknowledged that some fans wondered why he’d follow his acclaimed two-volume look at Elvis Presley with a book on a supposedly lesser individual like Sam Cooke. “The rich landscape of black radio, the church community, the disc jockeys, the personalities and that entire world that so many whites didn’t pay attention to because of segregation, that world is responsible for some of the greatest music that’s ever been made in this nation and has helped American culture become the most influential in the world. So for me, it’s never been a question of whether some one had a lot of radio hits or had a huge profile. It was a question of exposure, of ensuring that the great musical performers who weren’t household names, whether they were blues or soul or country, got some measure of recognition. “I’ve actually learned a lot from the Night Train exhibit myself,” Guralnick continued. “So many fantastic records were made from the marriage of soul and country here, and the city was a vital contributor during a landmark period in this nation’s cultural evolution.”