Of all the weird things: On a trip to Nashville with my wife about 20 years ago, we stopped in at a Dippin’ Dots place (when Dippin’ Dots were still new) and there, at about 11 in the morning, was a guy with a guitar and a small PA singing his heart out for tips. No, I didn’t give him the tip that read “Get a job” or anything like that. But with seemingly almost everyone in Nashville trying to get discovered if they weren’t already a big name (ask my stepson about being in line behind Reba McEntire at the Super Walmart), here was this guy singing country in an ice cream joint.He did come out of the joint behind me and asked me if I had left a note in his bucket along with our tip; I admitted as much. He then shook my hand rather vigorously and thanked me profusely. What I had written was, “It may not be my kind of music, but I gotta hand it to you for being a gigging musician.” I don’t remember his name, so I don’t know if he ever made it. He was hoping to sell some songs he had written to Garth Brooks and the like. I hope he’s successful at whatever he’s doing these days.
Of all the weird things: On a trip to Nashville with my wife about 20 years ago, we stopped in at a Dippin’ Dots place (when Dippin’ Dots were still new) and there, at about 11 in the morning, was a guy with a guitar and a small PA singing his heart out for tips. No, I didn’t give him the tip that read “Get a job” or anything like that. But with seemingly almost everyone in Nashville trying to get discovered if they weren’t already a big name (ask my stepson about being in line behind Reba McEntire at the Super Walmart), here was this guy singing country in an ice cream joint.He did come out of the joint behind me and asked me if I had left a note in his bucket along with our tip; I admitted as much. He then shook my hand rather vigorously and thanked me profusely. What I had written was, “It may not be my kind of music, but I gotta hand it to you for being a gigging musician.” I don’t remember his name, so I don’t know if he ever made it. He was hoping to sell some songs he had written to Garth Brooks and the like. I hope he’s successful at whatever he’s doing these days.