Over the weekend, musicians were allowed into the buildings at Soundcheck, the rehearsal and storage facility where most of Nashville's musicians kept their equipment. Brad Paisley posted photos of his ruined tour equipment, including this acoustic guitar. His 1968 Paisley Telecaster wasn't damaged...it was at his house when the flood happened. Steve Azar estimates he's lost $100,000 in musical eqipment, and the owner of Soundcheck, Ben Jumper, lost a 1952 Les Paul Gold Top, valued at $100,000. Joe Glaser, owner of Glaser Instruments, figures he'll be up to his eyeballs in guitar repairs for at least the next year.Brad Paisley and Alan Jackson were at the Ryman Auditorium over the weekend, supporting the Grand Ole Opry by playing shows. This Sunday, Brad headlines a concert at the Ryman called "Music City Keep On Playin' - A Benefit for Flood Relief." Along with Brad are Lady Antebellum, Dierks Bentley, Rodney Atkins and more performers. The tickets are on sale today. And on June 9th, Marty Stuart's Late Night Jam will benefit Nashville Flood Relief. So far, Keith Urban is the biggest name on the bill, but Marty's promising surprise guests from the Country Music Hall of Fame and also the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. And crews cleaning up the Grand Ole Opry have taken the historic 6-foot circle of wood from the Opry stage and it's getting some special clean-up and TLC. President of the Grand Ole Opry Group, Steve Buchanan, says that the circle will be back in place on the Opry stage when the complex re-opens. That probably won't happen for at least 4 months.
Tomorrow in Nashville, there's a concert in Owen Bradley Park to raise money for flood relief. Darius Rucker, Steel Magnolia, Dailey and Vincent and New Orleans jazz band Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue will perform.
Danny Gokey's charitable foundation, Sophia's Heart, is working on renting an empty Best Buy store and stocking it with the supplies that flood victims need. Danny says, “We put a contract together and got insurance and got some organizations together, and want to sign on the dotted line for a 30-day lease on it. (The flood) is all over the news now, but what happens when it’s not on the news and people forget? We have trucks and volunteers lined up if we get the building. This isn’t about us — it’s about love. And love is action.”
Justin Moore gave up some details of his wedding day that are slightly less romantic than most wedding days. He came home from his bachelor party in the wee hours of the day and had to climb through a window to get into his house. His dogs seized the opportunity for escape, so Justin spent a couple of hours out looking for his dogs. While he was doing that, he was also on the phone with his manager, who was negotiating his record deal. The negotiations continued right through the ceremony (Justin ditched the phone before the ceremony, of course!) and the deal was signed after Justin and his new bride cut the wedding cake.
