Nashvillest Guide To Tin Pan South 2009

Morgan Levy

Tin Pan South, the NSAI’s 17th Annual Songwriters Festival, is back in town this week. It started last night, but because we’re such slackers, we’re writing about it today. It’s sort of unfortunate that we’re such slackers, because there was a great round of shows last night… But enough crying over spilt milk, because there’s plenty left to look forward to. So what is Tin Pan South?

Tin Pan South is America’s largest festival dedicated to songs and songwriters, and it’s one of those things that we love because it’s so uniquely Nashville. From yesterday (March 31) through Saturday (April 4), over 100 shows will take place at pretty much every venue in Nashville, with each show usually featuring 3-5 songwriters. Do the math. Many of the names you’ll see on the full Tin Pan South schedule may be unfamiliar at first glance, but a bit of poring through the detailed bios and you’ll realize that dozens of these songwriters are kind of a big deal.

We realize that the schedule can be a bit overwhelming, so we’ve picked out a few shows that we think you should take note of. Tickets are available for each show (passes have sold out) at the door and are usually between $7-20 (but most shows seem to be in the $8-12 range). Also, check out The Nashville Feed’s daily picks if you want a second opinion.

Nashvillest Picks for Tin Pan South

WEDNESDAY

  • Natalie Hemby, Mallary Hope, Pat McLaughlin, Angeleena Presley. Early show at 12th & Porter, 6pm, $8. Read more.
  • Andrew Dorff, Steve Dorff, Bill LaBounty, Bobby Tomberlin. Late show at The Listening Room, 9pm, $8. Read more.
  • Gabe Dixon, Josiah Leming, Landon Pigg, Family Tree: (Tofer Brown & Laura Licata). Late show at The Bluebird Cafe, 9pm, $10. Read more.

THURSDAY

  • Tom Douglas, Regie Hamm, Tony Lane, Leslie Satcher. Early show at The Bluebird Cafe, 6pm, $10. Read more.
  • Keith & Adrienne Follese, Sam & Annie Tate. Early show at The Listening Room, 6pm, $10. Read more.
  • Steve Bogard, Kix Brooks, Bob DiPiero, Craig Wiseman. Early show at The Mercy Lounge, 6pm, $15. Read more.
  • Aaron Barker, Ira Dean, Dave Gibson, Chris Wallin. Early show at 12th & Porter, 6pm, $10. Read more.
  • Jim Collins, Wendell Mobley, Tony Mullins, D. Vincent Williams. Late show at The Bluebird Cafe. 9pm, $12. Read more.
  • Casey Beathard, Marla Cannon-Goodman, Kendall Marvel, Phil O’Donnell. Late show at Douglas Corner Cafe, 9pm, $10. Read more.
  • Jeffrey Steele & Band With Special Guest. Late show at The Mercy Lounge, 9pm, $15. Read more.
  • Brett James, Richie Supa, & Special Guests. Late show at The Rutledge, 9pm, $12. Read more.
  • Tommy Sims & Friends. Late show at 12th & Porter. 9pm, $10. Read more.

FRIDAY

  • Pat Alger, Jack Clement, Ralph Murphy, Gordie Sampson, Jelly Roll Johnson. Early show at The Bluebird Cafe, 6:30pm, $12. Read more.
  • Josh Kear, Karyn Rochelle, Sarah Siskind, Mindy Smith. Early show at 12th & Porter, 6:30pm, $10. Read more.
  • Amy Grant, Gordon Kennedy, Wayne Kirkpatrick, Phil Madeira. Late show at 3rd & Lindsley, 9:30pm, $10. Read more.
  • Dave Barnes, Thad Cockrell, Alli Rogers, Derek Webb. Late show at The Rutledge, 9:30pm, $10. Read more.
  • Marv Green, Rebecca Lynn Howard, James Slater, Rachel Thibodeau. Late show at Douglas Corner Cafe, 9:30pm, $12. Read more.

SATURDAY

  • Max T. Barnes, Jim McBride, Craig Monday, John Wiggins. Early show at Douglas Corner Cafe, 6:30pm, $10. Read more.
  • A Benefit for MusiCares: Meghan Kabir, Luke Laird, Michael McDonald, Leigh Nash [Sixpence None The Richer] special guests Kyle Cook [Matchbox 20], Emerson Hart [Tonic], Dylan McDonald. Late show at The Mercy Lounge, 9:30pm, $20. Read more.
  • Dave Berg, Kelley Lovelace, Rivers Rutherford. Late show at The Rutledge, 9:30pm, $15. Read more.
  • Lori McKenna, Liz Rose, Chris Tompkins, Jesse Walker. Late show at 12th & Porter, 9:30pm, $12. Read more.

And there you have it, folks. Our exhaustive-but-not-as-exhaustive-as-the-actual-Tin-Pan-South-schedule picks for Tin Pan South. Now it’s time for the part where you music buffs yell at us about how stupid we are for not including your top picks! But really, we do want to know what Tin Pan South shows you’re hitting up, so let us know in the comments. Have fun!