The Grand Ole Opry: Something For Everyone

Last Saturday night was WKDQ night at the Grand Ole Opry in the historic Ryman Auditorium in downtown Nashville. It was a packed house mainly because both Trace Adkins and Toby Keith were set to perform. Trace is an Opry member and actually hosted the final segment of the night and brought out Toby Keith. During the show it occurred to me how special this show is and how much mass appeal it has for people of all ages as evidenced by the screams for Trace and Toby by all age groups. Trace Adkins decribed the Opry during his segment as a constant passing of the torch from old to young and sometimes vice versa. No other music genre has a showpiece like the Opry is for country music. It is generally packed evey Friday and Saturdaywhen the performers range from Little Jimmy Dickens to Easton Corbin and The Band Perry. It covers all musical stops in between and offers something for every musical taste. During his performance, Toby brought out a new trio on his label, Carter's Chord, made up of three very young sisters who did their new single "A Little Less Comfortable" much to the delight of the entire crowd. Every single person in the auditorium was swaying back and forth to this incredible sibling harmony. The girls in the group may be young, but their roots are firmly rooted in country music because their parents were both members of Waylon Jennings' band for more than 25 years. If you have never seen the Opry, it is an experience you won't soon forget; and if you have been there, you know exactly what I am talking about. We give away tickets to the Opry every Saturday morning on our Country Classics show. Country music comes full circle every weekend at the Opry right in front of your eyes when performances by Bill Anderson, John Conlee, Jan Howard and Charley Pride are followed by the likes of Carrie Underwood, Josh Turner, Luke Bryan and many more. It's an experience like no other.