Pat McLaughlin (left) and John Prine at the Grammys (Photo by Fiona Whelan Prine)
Like a magnolia along a winding river, singer-songwriter Pat McLaughlin has blossomed to become one of the most beloved music figures in Nashville, Tn. where he has lived since 1977.
He has released nine solo albums since 1988. He has five co-writes with John Prine on Prine’s breakthrough “The Tree of Forgiveness” record. Two of those songs, “Knockin’ on Your Screen Door” and “Summer’s End” were Grammy nominees for best American Roots Song.
McLaughlin played guitar on Johnny Cash’s final sessions at American [...]
MEMPHIS, TN.—Many of the travel books I have written and the notes I have taken have been about getting there.
What about the art of being there?
I’m being there in my 2015 camper van right now. What is around me? Not many people. I’m at the rugged Graceland RV Park and Campground, across Elvis Presley Boulevard from the fancy hotel Guest House at Graceland.
The campground is about 30 percent full. My refrigerator has a six-pack of Diet Mountain Dew and a six- pack of Memphis High Cotton IPA. Being there is being prepared for fun.
I have trouble getting the heat going on my first trip of the 2019 winter. A simple switch of the outdoor electrical [...]
Winter in North Mississippi.
NESBIT, Ms.—The best rock n’ roll is dangerous so the tip off you are on the best rock museum tour ever is the dozens of knife marks on the inside bedroom door of the Jerry Lee Lewis Ranch in rural Nesbit, about 20 miles south of Memphis.
And then there are the brass bullet casings on the back porch of the two-story brick house. I’m part of a mid-January tour group with two other Lewis fans so there are enough casings to grab for souvenirs.
The 45-minute tour is led by Jerry Lee Lewis III. He doesn’t seem to mind us picking up the blasts from the past.
The small $45 private tours are by appointment [...]
