“Nashville Cats” for FMU
May 13, 2021
The other evening, I was reminded of a 1971 song by John Sebastian of the Lovin’ Spoonfuls, Nashville Cats. He was a New Yorker, and his band was down in Nashville for a performance. Afterwards, they retired to their Holiday Inn, where they happened to hear a teenaged guitar player working out in the lounge. (His name was Danny Gatton, and he went on to have a remarkable musical career as both a country and jazz guitarist.) Stunned by the kid’s excellence, Sebastian wrote a piece celebrating the conglomeration of musical talent in “Music City.” (BTW, I’m told the label was assigned, not by country music enthusiasts, but by Queen Victoria when she heard the Fisk Jublilee Singers from Nashville on their English tour.)
Here are some of Sebastian’s lyrics:
Nashville cats, play clean as country water
Nashville cats, play wild as mountain dew
Nashville cats, been playin' since they's babies
Nashville cats, get work before they're two
Well, there's thirteen hundred and fifty two guitar pickers in Nashville
And they can pick more notes than the number of ants on a Tennessee ant hill
Yeah, there's thirteen hundred and fifty two guitar cases in Nashville
And any one that unpacks 'is guitar could play twice as better than I will
Well, sure enough, Sharon and I heard a couple of these cats the other evening at a dessert party/fundraiser in Franklin, just south of Nashville. It was sponsored by Future Marriage University, run by Michael and Julie Johnson, who are in our church’s small home group. Great folks with a great ministry. You can check ‘em out at f-m-u.com.
So there we were enjoying the music of Robert Arthur and his son Noland, the dad a seasoned veteran of the country music scene, whether in the studio or on the road. Afterwards, I picked up a copy of his Caught By Surprise CD, and the opening track, “Hot Chicken,” featuring Brad Paisley along with Robert, almost melted the player in my car. (You can get it here).
Our thanks to Michael, Julie, Robert, and Noland. “Clean as country water,” indeed.