The Grand Ole Opry: The Making of an American Icon.

The Grand Ole Opry: The Making of an American Icon

Colin Escott

Center Street (Hachette Book Group USA)

1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020

1931722862 $24.99 http://www.hachettebookgroupusa.com 800-759-0190

There are few entertainment institutions that have experienced the longevity of the Grand Ole Opry. The format of the show has remained virtually the same since it's inception in 1925. The stars that have passed across the Opry stage could fill a book with only a listing of their names. Fortunately, author Colin Escott fills in the blanks rather than supplying only a list. Using many documents and personal interviews, Escott provides a fantastic overview of the history and importance of the Grand Ole Opry.

Nashville was not always synonymous with Country Music, especially in the early 1920's when Edwin Craig started WSM as a way to advertise for its owner National Life and Accident Insurance Company (taking its call letters from the company's slogan: "We Shield Millions"). Craig's original programming idea was to create a station which would be the equivalent to the NPR network we have today, playing classical music and providing cultural programs.

But then he hired George D. Hay, the Solemn Ol' Judge (and, I'm proud to say, fellow Hoosier), away from his job at a Chicago station to come to the fledgling station as its first Program Director. While at Chicago's WLS, Hay had seen success with a Barn Dance program which proved popular with displaced Southerners looking for a way to connect to home.

The Solemn Ol' Judge decided that if the idea would work in Chicago, then it would surely work in the Athens of the South, Nashville. And we know the rest?

Escott, author of perhaps the cream of the Hank Williams biography crop, fills in the story from that initial hiring to this year in the Opry through thorough research to bring quotes from the actual players in the establishment of the Opry. Using those quotes, Escott himself pops up only to serve as a narrator to the story, much like watching a well constructed documentary. Reading the exact quotes lends something special to the story by giving you the point of view of the artists and staff members who were there.

The book also includes many great pictures from the history of the Opry giving a look at the artists in the different settings of the Opry (did you know the current Opry House is the fourth home of the Opry?). One great picture in 1956 shows the whole cast backstage and includes Ernest Tubb, Jimmy Dickens, Webb Pierce, Minnie Pearl, The Louvin Brothers and Johnny Cash among the group.