Memphis

[The Leigh]

Taking the wife to Memphis in a fortnight for 4days, looking for things to do?

Obviously we will be doing Graceland and Sun Studios with Beale Street at night, anyone ever been?

[Brian Whittaker's Tache]

Went a few years ago myself

 

The usual suspects have to be done.

 

If youre doing Graceland do the full bhuna tour not the cheap ones as you're unlikely to go again so you might as well spend the extra 20 dollars. To be honest Graceland's a wee bit disappointing, the house isn't that big and you only see downstairs and every bit you leave you exit into a gift shop where every bit of tat (and I do mean tat) is twice the price it is on Beale Street. The bit over the road his family bought is quite an eye opener with his planes, cars, bikes and costumes. He must have been a brilliant guy to have been mates with. If Elvis fancied getting a Harley, he'd get 10 so all his mates could have a go on one too!

 

Sun Studio imho is much better. It's run by enthusiasts and was a diving shop until a few years before I went but they've restored the entire place. The tour is much smaller and they let you hear a load of old recordings that Sam Phillips kept of things like Jerry Lee Lewis ripping the pi$h out of Elvis and stuff like that and its all played on the original recording kit. Quite mad really. When you've finished go into the wee cafe at the side of the shop and sit in one of the booths and have a Fried Peanut Butter and Banana sandwich. Apparently it was Elvis' favourite and he ate there occasionally.

 

Beale Street was rebuilt a number of years ago and has a wee whiff of Disneyland about it. BB King's bar is at the far end but it's a pretty hefty cover charge for whats really just another bar. I was a student when I went so I was going to avoid it as every bar has a band in it but we met the manager in a shop and he got us in for free.

 

If you do have time try and get a day and a night in Nashville as I think its a better than Memphis. If you do go, do the Country Music Hall of Fame and the bus tour round the city. Also try and find the bar thats a boot shop by day and a bar at night. Definetely the weirdest bar I've ever been in in my life. (if it still exists)

[Brian Whittaker's Tache]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_museums_in_Tennessee

 

Here's the bar in Nashville

 

http://www.robertswesternworld.com/

[Jambo1874]

If you do have time try and get a day and a night in Nashville as I think its a better than Memphis. If you do go, do the Country Music Hall of Fame and the bus tour round the city. Also try and find the bar thats a boot shop by day and a bar at night. Definetely the weirdest bar I've ever been in in my life. (if it still exists)

 

Totally agree, thought Memphis was a bit of a hole tbh, Graceland is probably good if you are an absolute Elvis die-hard, but, although interesting and nice to say I've been - to me it was just a total rip-off.

 

Also, in the car park of the Heartbreak Hotel across the road, I saw a van with the number plate 'Hibby'

 

Nashville on the other hand is just brilliant! Good times had there. I think the bar you are talking about is called Roberts, it's brilliant, does good burgers as well!