In the News

Happy Policemen in a Clean City full of Smiling Visitors!
June 14, 2010

As a Metro Music Teacher volunteering to drive a van for the CMA Festival for two shifts, I feel Nashville is a very special place to live and work.My job was to drive a 3.5 mile route with five designated pickup and drop locations of CMA employees, volunteers, and people from the press here from throughout the world to write about what they were experiencing in Music City. The only negative comments I heard in my van the entire time were about our humidity.

I was amazed that both days behind the wheel, I drove exactly 70 miles in a sea of music fans, policemen and police women, fire trucks, food vendors and medical attendants. While dodging huge musician buses with band roadies muscling tons of musical equipment to and from the venues in all areas of the city, I realized that everyone looked happy and having fun. We all were on a mission.

Saturday morning about 7:15 AM while driving up 2nd Avenue, I could not believe how clean our city’s streets and sidewalks appeared. I couldn’t help but imagine the litter there only hours before. Hats off to all the cleanup crews for really making us look good.

Each trip up 1st Avenue, I would stop before crossing Broadway and wait for the policeman to address me with a nod and a smile, in his black heat absorbing uniform, sun beaten face, with sweat streaming from his forehead and down both sides of his face. Then, while walking in front of my van, making hand gestures in a mass of hurriedly moving people, focused only on what they might be missing somewhere, the sea of sun parched fans would part. I had the feeling only comparable to following Moses parting the Red Sea. These competent yet pleasant appearing authorities controlled all the traffic and fans at all the intersections downtown for hours without end. Guys, you Rock!

To Mayor Dean, the CMA administrative staff, Nashville Alliance helpers, Metro Schools teachers, drivers and dispatchers, I say a hardy thank you. Smooth and together are words that come to my mind. In fact, even the food provided for all the workers was tremendous. Wow! (Especially the BBQ)

As I sat moving slowly in my air conditioned van, I sometimes would hear the thump of the bass guitars, sustain of the steel guitars, the crash of the cymbals, and the intense soul in the voices of the singers. Like the lure of Nashville to musicians from all over the world, I couldn’t help but think of lines that I could piece together in a song to describe what I was living; it would probably include these words:

Guitars, Straw Hats, Spaghetti Straps, Cut-off Jeans, Fancy Cowboy Boots, and yes, there’s nothing like a Country Smile!

I can relate my CMA Festival experience to my first Band Concert Festival while teaching in a small town of 2500 people in Centre, Alabama. The year was 1969. This was my first teaching job and having started the band the year prior, was the band’s first Concert Festival. Concert Festival is where three Music Adjudicators rate the band’s performance with Superior being the highest rating. Superior ratings are usually accompanied with a trophy.

After the announcement of our rating of Superior, and the presentation of our first trophy, a little eighth grade girl came to me beaming with pride, joy and tears in her eyes, clutching the trophy to her chest with both arms and all she could say was, “We did it Mr. Gore, we did it.”

Although my part in this event was like that of a little eighth grader sitting on the back row of the clarinet section, playing the 3rd part, I say to Nashville with the same pride and joy, “we did it Nashville, we did it!”

– W.C. Gore, Metro Public School Teacher in a Letter to the Editor about his experience driving a "Press Express" van at the 2010 CMA Music Fest

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