Hello everyone, and welcome to another great round of East Side Storytellin’. Similar to the 36 previous shows we’ve put together from East Side Story, we’re all here, right here smack dab on your laptop or mobile electronic device (welcome to the future, eh?) to provide you with some very inspirational moments of clarity in your busy lives in the form of a local Nashville writer reading from original prose, followed by an amazing local musician performing and talking about their original music, and then a round-up creative conversation with all featured guests of this event to talk about their individual journeys and personal ties to Nashville. This is a recap of East Side Storytellin’ 37. Let us begin.
The first featured guest of East Side Storytellin’ 37 was probably the biggest guest that I was most envious of that I’v ever had on the show as of yet, and that’s saying a lot. This man gets paid to go out and eat and drink some of the best food and drinks that this city, state, and country has to offer. Seriously, this guy has a lot of self discipline because I would surely need gastric bypass surgery if I did what he does on the daily … and then he still has enough energy and vocabulary to write about his experiences too! A University School of Nashville and Stanford graduate, he is currently a food and drink writer for the Nashville Scene, a southern correspondent for FoodRepublic.com, and a food, drink and travel writer for hire on the side (among other things spectacular). Author of the East Side Story’s bestselling book The Southern Foodie: 100 Places to Eat in the South Before You Die (and the Recipes That Made Them Famous), I was so excited to introduce and finally bring to the stage the one and only Chris Chamberlain.
Chris, with kindle notes in tow, was as cool as a cucumber (I guess a cucumber in the fridge, temperature-speaking) up on the microphone. He had scribbled down some notes for a future talk in front of a bunch of ladies in Green Hills later this month, so to say he was prepared to entertain the more easy-going, laid-back, casual crowd filled with people living in various parts of East Nashville might have been quite the understatement. Chris talked about his personal past, upbringing, school, and family business around the area, and worked in the talk about the various steps that got him to where he is today with his appreciation for good food and good writing. Speaking in hindsight, all of the dots connected to point Chris in just the right direction to do what he enjoys most in life. Hearing Chris speak in hindsight, it was reassuring to hear someone tell their personal tale of what they have dared to do from the bottom of their heart, not fully knowing what was next around the corner at the time they decided to leap with blind faith. I’m just saying, the entire talk that Chris revealed to the crowd was very comforting and entertaining. Before he made room for the musical act of the evening Chris took time to draw out some highlights of food and cooking in Nashville during the past handful of years and describe why what we are so fortunate to have in our city at the moment is something truly remarkable and not to be taken for granted one bit. We are lucky to have so much great food and people who appreciate great food in our city right now, and we are lucky to have people like Chris Chamberlain documenting it all as we eat it too!
Next up, the featured musician of the evening originally hailed from Milwaukee WI (pronounced “Mill-e-wah-que”, meaning “the good land”, as Alice Cooper once told Wayne Campbell in Wayne’s World, the movie). Growing up with a love of music by Jim Croce, the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens, Van Morrison, Merle Haggard, and Willie Nelson to name a few, it’s no surprise to me that after leaving his hometown and visiting and living in places for a sec like Boston and LA, that he returned to Nashville after a bit to make more of his own amazing music here in all of our current hometown of Music City. You’ve probably heard several of his songs on major motion pictures without knowing it before right now (as in 2007’s underrated flick of “Feast of Love,” starring Morgan Freeman), or you might have recently heard the album “Enjoy The Ride: Solo Writes 2001-12” that was a retrospective album of this guy’s solo writing skills released by Lakeshore Records in 2012. It’s written on his website that “his music is about all of the things we never say and wish we could have; all the times you let slip through your fingers; and being thankful for the moments where you then realize that maybe, just maybe, that’s just the way it’s supposed to go.” Having never met in person until this night, and introduced together by mutual friend, talented local musician, and East Side Storytellin’ 13 alum in that of Don Gallardo, I was honored and beyond pumped to introduce and enjoy the sounds of Zach Broocke.
Zach was as cool as a cat (in or out of the fridge) in front of everyone. I had listened to many of his songs prior to the show to get a good feel of what to expect, and loved everything I heard, but it is truly amazing how hearing quality music played live and from the heart can immediately make the moment, the songs themselves, and life in general radiate more than usual. Zach’s calm, collected, and poignant playing style and voice delivery were a match that perfectly fit and helped blend the crowd, the weather on the patio with the cool breeze overhead, and everything about this particular evening just right. He stormed through the songs, mostly because he didn’t have to wait for any other musicians to play and tell stories like his usual rounds with other singer songwriters, and he owned the night, quite honestly. Words, notes, and stories inspired by personal experiences and some written specifically for shows on the big and small screens, respectively, I don’t think I was alone thinking I could have sat and listened to Zach play his songs all night long. We all sat in wonder, sharing a laugh or two at some of the funny insights in some of the songs revealed, and had ourselves a solid good time. I don’t think we could have asked for more than that and been more happy than we all were together.
After Zach finished his songs, I had him and Chris back up front and center to talk about a few things on my mind. I asked them about some of the stories behind deciding to pursue and do the wonderful things they do, and they obliged with clever, fun answers that both enlightened and entertained the attentive crowd. On a personal note, it was so nice a feeling to look out into the packed crowd again to see so many fellow local writers, artists, and friends that continue to come out and experience this awesome idea called East Side Storytellin’ in person. Back on track here, Zach and Chris seemed to enjoy themselves to the max as well. Chris even got into the act of asking questions for Zach to learn more about the man behind the music. All in all, yet again, I felt so great after the show because it just felt like these two featured artists were meant to share this stage, this night, and this crowd together to make something extraordinary come out of an ordinary Tuesday night.
Here is the link for the edited recording of the live event we called East Side Storytellin’ 37. Feel free to enjoy it many times, again and again, while sharing it with one and all of your family and friends, again and again.
https://soundcloud.com/eastsidestorytn/sets/east-side-storytellin-37-chris
Before we say goodbye for this round of fun, I’d like to give a big round of thanks for Chris Chamberlain and Zach Broocke for sharing their stories, talents, and time with us.
**You can continue to read more from Chris Chamberlain here (aside from buying his books at East Side Story, of course) – www.facebook.com/TheSouthernFoodie
**You can stay updated with Zach Broocke here – www.zachbroocke.com
I’ll keep the gratitude going for Tom Eizonas, for the recording and sound of the night, Clay Brunton for the art print, for Kevin at 5 Points Digital Imaging (http://5pdi.com) for printing those art prints,and to my lovely wife and everyone that came out live to support the show … and to everyone who has helped continue to spread the word and support the show online afterwards.
You can listen to this show, edited, soon, alongside the previous shows too, on our website, www.eastsidestorytn.com, at our In Our Own Words Tab – see here – http://eastsidestorytn.com/in-our-own-words
But we are not finished.
The NEXT East Side Storytellin’ event will be …
Date- Tuesday, June 3rd, 2014
Time- 7 pm sharp (Central)
Location- Mad Donna’s (1313 Woodland Street)- http://maddonnas.com
With author Jenny Hickman (www.jennyhickman.com) and music by the great Grant Terry (www.grantterrymusic.com)
That’s all for the East Side Storytellin’ 37 show. Thanks for coming out and sharing the good word. Remember to be nice to one another out there. Thanks and good night. Much love.
