Memphis Blues Again

This past week I was in Memphis for a few days at a conference. I had never been there before, so it was fun to see a new city.

There is no skyline to speak of, just lots of three and four and maybe ten story buildings. The tallest one just might be The Peabody Hotel of “The Firm” fame. (Tom Cruise meets the gangsters in a room there in the movie.) They just about literally roll up the sidewalks at dusk, too. I arrived at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday night and had to take a cab to the hotel. The shuttle to the hotel stops running at 6:00 p.m. I had never heard of such a thing. (Well OK, maybe the fourteen story Marriott is the tallest thing around.)

It was hot and steamy outside, but I was in meetings for two days in a hotel conference room and so didn’t spend much time on the streets. When I did break out one evening, I saw their trolley cars, and some fountains shooting up out of the sidewalk, and sculptures around the public buildings. You will remember that Memphis is where Martin Luther King, Jr. was murdered in April 1968. There was a sculpture commemorating his “I Have a Dream” speech.

On Tuesday evening a few of us went for a walk down to see Beale Street—the French Quarter of Memphis, so to speak. It’s a couple of blocks of bars, restaurants and gift shops, kind of like a boardwalk without the boards. The shops had Everything Elvis, and tons of blues CD’s by obscure artists. One place had old concert posters from people like Frank Sinatra, Creedence Clearwater, the Grateful Dead—all kinds of people.

The one poster I might have bought if I thought I could get it home on the plane without ruining it was one from a 1960 Ike and Tina Turner concert that was a benefit for the election campaign of Richard Nixon of all things! There was a clever tag line at the bottom of the poster that said, “Even Democrats will want to come.” Tickets were $50.00.

There are these great people walking around in pith helmets wearing sashes proclaiming them to be members of the Blue Suede Brigade. They answer questions about the city, serving as ambassadors, helping tourists find their way around the landmark sites.

I enjoyed strolling around the streets listening to the blues music pouring out of somewhere. Check out the images below.