The undeniable beast has returned – as summer fades into a slow pallid burn, Nashville’s preeminent (and gargantuan) free live music series brings the proverbial house lights up on Live on the Green.
Once a local source of pride, the concert series has now become a traffic-congesting, civic logistics nightmare, “Hey mister” free for all – but in the end, the music is undeniable in terms of quality, quantity, and price.
Considering the fact that its free, and always free; a fact that should never be forgotten or taken for granted, and every week the Regions bicycle giveaway guy is there to remind us just how fortunate we are to have a top-of-the-line free music week after week as we creep out of the dog days of Summer.
2016’s inaugural installment of Live on the Green featured a systemically soulful lineup covering every possible angle of the genre – White Denim transitioning into the straight up dad soul groove they were born to play, Allen Stone bringing along some Pacific Northwest quirk to coincide with his hippie Jarvis Cocker “golf cart shimmy,” and Ms. Andra Day closing out the night, invoking Nina Simone and maintaining a “continual conversation” with her audience.
As far as Live on the Greens go, the first Thursday was wholly manageable, despite the 10,000 attendees – as purported by Woman about Town, Mayor Megan Barry – and an ultimately enjoyable and excellent start to 2016’s installment of the concert series.
Lockeland Springsteen 