NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — People have known this for ages. If you love old country music, Nashville is the place to visit. Something is letting people get especially close to that country music history.
The red on the flowers, shutters, and door just leaps out at a home in a Madison neighborhood. It's a home belonging to country music legend, Hank Snow. How about a little history lesson?
Hank Snow is from Canada and moved to Nashville in 1949. He played the Grand Ole Opry for the first time in 1950. Years after that, Elvis was one of his opening acts. Hank had nearly 90 hits on the Billboard Country Chart. All of this was remembered at his funeral which NewsChannel 5 covered in 1999.
"He would always rehearse I'm Movin' On, even though he'd sung it for however many years," Ralph Emery told NewsChannel 5 in 1999. "It was a hit in 1950. He would always rehearse it as if it were a new song."
Something else about I'm Movin' On, it helped Hank buy that Madison home he called The Rainbow Ranch in 1950. It's now owned by Cal and Sandy Blakney
"My grandmother was Hank's little sister,"" Cal said. "It was always Uncle Hank in my house. Proud of the fact my whole life. I tried to play guitar like him. I didn't succeed!"
What sort of connections to music history are in this house?
"This piano has been played by everybody from Elvis to Moon Mullican to Marty Robbins, Hank Williams," Sandy said.
"Randy Travis has been here," she continued. "Jim Glaser's been here."
Now, Cal and Sandy say anyone can share this space that played host to greats. A stay at Hank Snow's house is available through Airbnb and Vrbo. Four bedrooms. Five beds. Two bathrooms. A ton of country music history.
A picture sits on a shelf of Hank's dog Peanut. There's a painting in a room Hank was working on under the guidance of a friend, a friend named Bob Ross.
Several of Hank's album covers were taken on the property. Cal and Sandy said the people who stay here love that. Many of them are die-hard fans of classic country.
"We actually keep it booked 250 nights a year," Sandy said. "The barn is painted with the 'Rainbow Ranch' in front of it. It's been that way since the 50s."
Speaking of Elvis connections, Cal and Sandy remember a few years ago when the Madison office of Elvis's manager, Col. Tom Parker, was torn down. Cal and Sandy know a lot of music history has been lost in middle Tennessee. They see owning the house and letting people stay here as one way of sharing history.
"They are so thrilled to be able to walk in his shoes cause that's what it feels like," said Sandy. "It's really a living museum."
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
