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The Good Hearted Woman

Home Cooking & Cozy Living

  • SOURDOUGH RECIPES & RESOURCES

Hattie B’s Nashville Hot Chicken {Step-by-Step}

November 10 By Renée 97 Comments

This amazing Nashville Hot Chicken recipe (adapted from Hattie B’s famous recipe) results in a crispy, tender, fiery fried chicken with a spicy kick that is positively addictive.

Nashville Hot Chicken, Corn, and coleslaw on a plate.

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.

I love fried chicken. I don’t eat it often, but I love it. Back when I was a kid, my BFF’s Gramma Barbara made THE BEST southern fried chicken I’ve ever eaten, or ever hope to eat, in my life. Tender, juicy, crispy, and seasoned just right, Gramma B’s chicken was so finger-licking delicious that it tasted like it had been fried in heaven. It was Perfect.

Warning: Content contains a meandering, flagrantly nostalgic recipe-origin narrative. Read on for the story. [Click here to go directly to the recipe.]

Gramma B

My Southern Fried Sensei, Gramma Barbara.

As a young teen, Gramma B kind of adopted me. She was fun and irreverent, and to this day I love her like my own.

Gramma B taught me how to make fried chicken a couple of times, and I think I got the basics down fine, but I could never make it quite as good as she did. I don’t know if was her skillet, or the lard (of course it was the lard) or some other sublime combination of environmental and mystical factors, but her fried chicken was absolutely divine and mine was, at best, pretty darn good.

In my quest to scratch my fried chicken itch, I’ve ordered fried chicken at nearly every place from Portland to Memphis that serves it. While some places turn out a very decent chicken plate, nothing has ever come close to ringing that elusive Gramma B-worthy, southern fried chicken bell for me. There’s always something missing.

Then we went to Nashville and discovered Hot Chicken.

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What is Nashville Hot Chicken, and what makes it so awesome? 

Nashville Hot Chicken is a hyper-regional specialty with a long, colorful, sordid history involving a philandering man, a jealous woman hell-bent on revenge, and a whole lot ‘a hot pepper juice.

Nashville Hot Chicken cooling on wire rack

Nashville Hot Chicken is heaven and hell in a one transcendent bite.

The origins of Nashville Hot Chicken is a finely-woven tale that I simply can’t do justice and still keep this post under ten thousand words, so I’m not even going to try. (And I don’t need to, because The Bitter Southerner has done a bang-up job telling the story for us: when you have a minute or ten, I strongly encourage you to read about how Nashville Hot Chicken really came to be!)

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The minute Mr B and I heard the term “hot chicken,” we were all over it like red beans on rice. We did a little research, and discovered that Nashville’s Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack is the acknowledged home of the original hot chicken, so we made plans to check it out. However, so many of the Nashville locals we asked pointed us toward relative newcomer Hattie B’s that we decided to try it instead. [Like slider-eaters in the Great Southern Slider Debate, hot chicken-eaters, we learned, have a fierce loyalty to their chosen chicken fryer!] 

Hattie B’s has three locations in Nashville, and reviews said that the lines at West Nashville location (closest to where we were staying) could be very long at peak times. However, we arrived relatively late for a weekday (around 8:30 pm) and had a less than five minute wait: just long enough for us to check out the menu. 

Collage made up of interior shots of Hattie B's in Nashville

After studying the menu for a few minutes, we ordered two small plates, which turned out to be a ton of food! Each plate came with a whole chicken quarter (dark meat for Mr B, light for me) and two sides. Mr B got baked beans and I ordered the potato salad, and we both got coleslaw.  

Our chicken arrived in less than ten minutes, stacked in a basket between the traditional slice of white bread, topped with a dill pickle. It only took me one bite to know that Hattie B’s Hot Chicken was absolutely amazing. Possibly addictive. 

Hot Chicken Plate at Hattie B's, Nashville, Tennessee

Hattie B’s Nashville Hot Chicken is the first chicken I’ve eaten in at least twenty years that even comes close to Grandma B’s fried chicken – with one important caveat: instead tasting like chicken sent from heaven, it tastes more like the devil himself cooked up a batch of fried chicken on his day off. 

Wavy LineI need that fried chicken recipe!!! 

Fried & True book coverWhen we got back to our hotel room, I immediately searched for a Nashville Hot Chicken recipe, and was absolutely thrilled to discover Hattie B’s recipe in Lee Brian Schrager’s cookbook Fried & True: More than 50 Recipes for America’s Best Fried Chicken and Sides. 

Well, you can bet that it took me less than a Tennessee minute to order it. (Which, come to think of it, is probably substantially longer than a New York minute, but still…)

When my copy of Fried & True arrived, I opened it to find the pages bursting with great recipes, valuable tips and cooking methods, personal stories, and a true love of fried chicken.

Post Updated Novemeber 10, 2019 (Originally published July 28, 2017)

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How to Make Nashville Hot Chicken – Step-by-Step 

The following Nashville Hot Chicken recipe, adapted from the aforementioned recipe in Fried & True, results in a crispy, tender, fiery fried chicken with a spicy kick that will keep you coming back for more.

The recipe itself is relatively straightforward, but after making hot chicken myself, I have some wisdom to pass along that will make the process go more smoothly. 

Nashville Hot Chicken on white bread with a dill pickle slice on top

For ingredients and amounts, please refer to the recipe card below.

Step 1: The Dry-Brine

  • In a medium bowl, toss together the chicken pieces, salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate overnight. (Up to 24 hours)

Dry Brining Chicken

NOTE: The first time I made this chicken, I had a scheduling conflict and ended up dry-brining it for 3 days. (Stuff happens.) It was totally fine. 

Step 2: The Dredge-Dip-Dredge 

  • In a 9×9 pan or baking dish, whisk together the milk, eggs, and hot sauce. In a separate 9×9 baking dish, combine the four and salt. 

Nashville Hot Chicken - Dredging station

  • [1] Drag the chicken through the flour mixture, coating evenly.

Dredging chicken

  • [2] Dip the floured chicken in the milk mixture.

Dredging Chicken - Wet Dip

  • [3] Drag once again in the flour mixture.
  • Shake off excess between each step. Allow chicken to rest on drying rack while you prepare the rest of the chicken pieces for frying. 

Step 3: The Fry 

For this step, you will need either a deep fryer, a large deep skillet, or a deep electric skillet. You will also need tongs, and a deep-fry/meat thermometer. I suggest using using a combination of canola and soybean oil for deep frying.

WARNING: Deep frying can be dangerous! Carefully prepare the area before you begin deep frying. Always make sure that whatever you are deep frying in is stable so that it won’t tip. Always use a tongs, a skimmer, or a deep-fry basket to add and remove chicken pieces from the hot oil. Chicken pieces can slip from forks or spoons and splash hot oil. 

REMEMBER! When you add your chicken, it will displace a lot of oil. If you are using a frying pan or electric skillet, it is vital that you DO NOT OVERFILL it with oil or it may or it may overflow when you add the chicken. 

How to easily figure out the necessary level of the frying oil.

    1. Put one batch/fryer full of chicken pieces in a large ziplock bag. Squeeze as much air out of the bag as you can and seal it shut.
    2. Lay the bag of raw chicken pieces flat in the bottom of the frying pan. 
    3. Add water to the level that you want the oil to be when you deep fry.
    4. Remove bag of chicken from the pan.
    5. Note level of the water.
    6. Pour the water out, and carefully dry out pan.
    7. Add oil to that same level.
    8. Now you’re ready to fry without fear of overflowing your frying pan!

(Thanks, Archimedes!)

Cooking Temp - 325°F

IMPORTANT: The oil needs to maintain an optimal temperature of 325° while the chicken is frying. However, the oil temp will drop at least 25° when you add the chicken, so initially you need to heat the oil up to 340° – 350°.

Maintain a consistent temperature for frying chicken of 325° F.

  • If the temperature of oil in the pan drops down below 300°, the chicken will begin to absorb the cooking oil, resulting in greasy, soggy chicken.
  • If the temperature rises above about 340°, the chicken will cook too quickly on the outside, and not get done in the middle. When fried at the correct temperature, the chicken will come out golden brown, having absorbed very little oil.

Hot oil bubbling in skillet

  • Heat vegetable oil in a deep skillet or deep fryer until it is between 340°F – 350°F. The oil needs to be deep enough for the chicken to fully submerge. [If you don’t have a deep enough skillet for deep frying, see HELP below.]
  • Drop the coated chicken into the hot oil.
  • Turn the pieces as they brown and do not let them touch each other while frying. 
  • The temperature will drop when you add the chicken. Keep the oil at 325°F while the chicken fries.
  • Working in batches, use tongs to carefully add the chicken to the hot oil and fry until crispy.

↓↓ This is what your chicken should sound like when it is frying. ↓↓

https://thegoodheartedwoman.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/20191107_151535.mp4

Estimated cooking times: 15-17 minutes for breast quarters; 18-20 minutes for leg quarters.

Meat thermometer showing temp of 165°F

 

 

 

  • Chicken is done when it registers an internal temperature of 165°F. (Yes, I use a candy thermometer. It goes up to 400 degrees, and it works just fine.)
  • When done, remove chicken from oil and allow to drain on wire rack.

Basting fried chicken with Nashville Hot sauce

How to test for doneness without a meat thermometer: Cut into the thickest part of a drumstick. The juices should run clear and the meat should be opaque throughout. If necessary, you can pop slightly underdone fried chicken into a preheated 325°F oven until it is fully cooked.

TIP: I aim to take the chicken off the heat when it registers a temperature of 160°, and allow carryover cooking to bring it up to temperature as it sits on the wire rack. 

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HELP! What if my chicken isn’t completely submerged in the oil when I fry it?!

This is, technically, deep-fried chicken, so ideally the oil for The Fry needs to be deep enough for the chicken to fully submerge. However, sometimes it just doesn’t work out that way.

Chicken frying in electric skillet.

You may have noticed that my chicken is sticking out at the top in some of the process images. That’s because I don’t own a deep fryer (I only deep fry about twice a year), and prefer to make hot chicken in my electric skillet because I can control the temperature of the fry oil more accurately than in a stovetop skillet.

Unfortunately, my electric skillet isn’t quite deep enough to allow most chicken pieces to completely submerge, so I end up turning the chicken pieces a few times in the process, and it takes a few extra minutes to cook.

If this is you, don’t worry – just use your meat thermometer to keep an eye on the internal temp, and you be fine. 

Step 4: The Spicy Coating (Wet Application)

  • Ladle about a cup of hot frying oil into a heatproof bowl or pan. Whisk in cayenne, brown sugar, and spices. The hot oil will activate the spices. (I use a small saucepan for this in case I need to heat the oil up again before basting a second batch.)

Hot oil sauce for Hot Chicken

  • Baste the hot spice mixture over the hot fried chicken. You want the hot oil mixture hot enough that when you baste it over the fried chicken, the skin stays nice and crispy.

Basting Chicken with 2" pastry brush

Just how Hot is this Nashville Hot Chicken recipe anyway?

According to the recipe from which this one is adapted, the spice level for this recipe is gauged as MEDIUM HOT; however, in my experience, it is slightly hotter than medium. (I’d rate it about a 6 or 6.5 on a 1-10 heat scale.) 

Basted Hot Chicken cooling on wire rack

For one test batch, I used two tablespoons of cayenne instead of three, and the results were (for my tastes) perfect – not painfully spicy, but with solid heat and a decided kick. (About a 4.5.)

Basted Hot Chicken cooling on wire rack

Step 5: The Serve

  • If you want to go traditional, serve your Hot Chicken up over a slice of white bread. Garnish with dill pickle slices.


Nashville Hot Chicken with White bread & pickle

How to Make Nashville Hot Chicken Recipe {Step-by-Step Tutorial} | The Good Hearted Woman
5 from 5 votes

Nashville Hot Chicken

This amazing Nashville Hot Chicken recipe results in a crispy, tender, fiery fried chicken with a spicy kick that is positively addictive. 
Adapted from Hattie B's recipe in FRIED & TRUE.
Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time40 mins
Dry-Brine Prep1 d
Total Time1 d 1 hr
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Course: Main
Cuisine: Southern
Keyword: chicken, spicy
Servings: 4 large servings
Calories: 372kcal
Author: Renée | The Good Hearted Woman

Equipment

  • Deep fryer OR Large Deep Skillet OR Electric Skillet
  • Meat Thermometer
  • 2 - 8x8 or 9x9 baking pans or dishes
  • Tongs
  • Sheet pan (for draining chicken)
  • Cooling rack
  • Whisk

Ingredients

For the Dry Brine

  • 1 whole chicken 3 pounds, washed, patted dry, and cut into quarters
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

For the Dip

  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon Louisiana-style hot sauce

For the Dredge

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons sea salt
  • Vegetable oil for frying

For the Spicy Coating

  • 1 cup hot frying oil or hot lard
  • 3 tablespoons cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Garnish

  • Dill pickle slices
  • White bread optional
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Step 1: The Dry-Brine

  • In a medium bowl, toss together the chicken pieces, salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate overnight. (Up to 24 hours)

Step 2: The Dredge-Dip-Dredge

  • In a 9×9 pan or baking dish, whisk together the milk, eggs, and hot sauce. In a separate 9×9 baking dish, combine the four and salt. 
  • Drag the chicken through the flour mixture, coating evenly.
  • Dip the floured chicken in the milk mixture.
  • Drag once again in the flour mixture.
  • Shake off excess between each step. Allow chicken to rest on drying rack while you prepare the rest of the chicken pieces for frying. 

Step 3: The Fry

  • PLEASE READ NOTES IN POST for additional notes and tips about this step.
    WARNING: 
    Deep frying can be dangerous! Carefully prepare the area before you begin deep frying.
    Always make sure that whatever you are deep frying in is stable so that it won’t tip.
    Always use a tongs, a skimmer, or a deep-fry basket to add and remove chicken pieces from the hot oil. Chicken pieces can slip from forks or spoons and splash hot oil. 
  • Heat vegetable oil in a deep skillet or deep fryer until it is between 340°F – 350°F. The oil needs to be deep enough for the chicken to fully submerge.
    [If you don’t have a deep enough skillet for deep frying, see HELP in post.]
    The temperature will drop when you add the chicken. Keep the oil at 325°F while the chicken fries. 
  • Working in batches, use tongs to carefully add the chicken to the hot oil and fry until crispy. 
    If using a skillet, you will need to turn the pieces as they brown. Do not let them touch each other while frying. 
  • Estimated cooking times [fully submerged in frying oil]: 15-17 minutes for breast quarters; 18-20 minutes for leg quarters.
  • Chicken is done when it registers an internal temperature of 165°F. (Yes, I use a candy thermometer, and it works just fine.)
  • When done, remove chicken from oil and allow to drain on wire rack.

Step 4: The Spicy Coating (Wet Application)

  • Ladle about a cup of hot frying oil into a heatproof bowl or pan. Whisk in cayenne, brown sugar, and spices. The hot oil will activate the spices.
    I use a small saucepan for this in case I need to heat the oil up again before basting a second batch.
  • Baste the hot spice mixture over the hot fried chicken.
    You want the hot oil mixture hot enough that when you baste it over the fried chicken, the skin stays nice and crispy.

Step 5: The Serve

  • Serve hot or cold. If you want to go traditional, serve your Hot Chicken up over a slice of white bread.
    Garnish with dill pickle slices.

Notes

The spice level in this recipe is gauged as MEDIUM HOT. Adjust spices according to your own tastes. 
IMPORTANT: The oil needs to maintain an optimal temperature of 325° while the chicken is frying. However, the oil temp will drop at least 25° when you add the chicken, so initially you need to heat the oil up to about 350°.
It’s important to maintain the correct temperature for frying chicken of 325° F. If the temperature of oil in the pan drops down below 300°, the chicken will begin to absorb the cooking oil, resulting in greasy, soggy chicken. If it rises above about 340°, the chicken will cook too quickly on the outside, and not get done in the middle. When fried at the correct temperature, the chicken will come out golden brown, having absorbed very little oil.

Nutrition

Serving: 1quarter | Calories: 372kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 88mg | Sodium: 1310mg | Potassium: 263mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1901IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 99mg | Iron: 4mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @TheGoodHeartedWoman or tag #thegoodheartedwoman!

Can I make this Nashville Hot Chicken recipe in an Air Fryer?

Yes, you can make Nashville Hot Chicken in your Air Fryer. It is a slow process, because you can’t fit very many chicken pieces in the basket at one time, but it does work.

In order for the coating to brown, you need to spray the dipped and dredged chicken with cooking spray before placing it in the air fryer. 

Frying chicken in air-fryer

Air Fried Hot Chicken comes out of the air fryer with a decidedly different, less appetizing texture (imo) and color than that of oil-fried Hot Chicken; however, once you baste it with the basting spices, it is difficult to tell the difference. 

If you choose to air fry your hot chicken, you will need to heat up some oil in a small cooking pot to mix with the basting spices. 

Our current favorite air-fryer recipe: Crispy Sauerkraut Fritters! Check it out! 

Air Fried vs skillet fried Nashville Hot Chicken
We love fried chicken! Be sure to check out our Naked Colonel’s Original Recipe Fried Chicken! Buttermilk soaked, cast-iron fried, and oven-finished; this skinless KFC copycat is moist, tender, and Amazing.

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of The Good Hearted Woman. • Be sure to PIN this Nashville Hot Chicken recipe!

How to Make Nashville Hot Chicken Recipe {Step-by-Step Tutorial} | The Good Hearted Woman    How to Make Nashville Hot Chicken Recipe {Step-by-Step Tutorial} | The Good Hearted Woman    Nashville Hot Chicken    Hattie B's Nashville Hot Chicken {Recipe} | The Good Hearted Woman #friedchicken #southernfood #chickenrecipesWavy Line

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!


Filed Under: Food & Dining, Main Dishes, Tennessee Tagged With: chicken, Comfort Food, Nashville, Tennessee

The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum: Why You Need to Visit

July 19 By Renée 20 Comments

A visit to The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum may change how you think about American music – in all its forms – forever. 

Entrance - Country Music Hall of Fame | The Good Hearted Woman

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.

I’ll be honest: initially, Mr B was way more excited about visiting The Country Music Hall of Fame Museum in Nashville than I was. It makes sense; his country musical roots run deep, even back to the old-timey music of a bygone era; while mine lean more toward folk, rock, and blues.

What I didn’t understand before our Tennessee trip was how profoundly his music has influenced my music (and vice versa) over time.

The Country Music Museum

Chartered in 1964, the museum portion of The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum has compiled one of the world’s most extensive musical collections, including images and photographs, oral histories, digital archives, and a priceless collection of musical instruments.

Porter - Country Music Hall of Fame | The Good Hearted Woman

I was just a little kid when Porter Wagoner was big on television, but I still remember that jacket. (Seriously. How could anyone forget it?)

The heart of the museum is Sing Me Back Home: A Journey Through Country Music, a permanent exhibition that immerses visitors in the story of country music, as revealed through artifacts, photographs, vintage video and recordings, and interactive touchscreens.

Old Times CMHof

The first thing that hit me as we wandered through the Sing Me Back Home exhibit was how closely our music history is tied to our cultural history in this country. Mr B and I were both particularly moved by some of the instruments on display from the early pioneers of country music. It is awe-inspiring to consider the hands that played these instruments, and their contributions to music, and how those contributions continue to influence the music we listen to today.

Autoharp - Country Music Hall of Fame | The Good Hearted Woman

Sara Carter’s autoharp, Minnie Pearl’s hat, and Bill Monroe’s mandolin.

All those iconic instruments got me thinking… Over the years, how many people listened to Sara Carter play her autoharp as part of America’s first commercial rural country music group? How many skirts swirled across a wooden floor to the sound of Bill Monroe’s mandolin?

Maybelle - Country Music Hall of Fame | The Good Hearted Woman

Maybelle Carter, known as “mother Maybelle,” bought this Gibson L-5 in 1928 for $275. Today it is priceless.

Dylan, Cash, and the Nashville Cats

Musically, I’ve always been intrigued by unlikely collaborations. (Led Zepplin’s Robert Plant and bluegrass queen Allison Krauss’ amazing collab on Raising Sand immediately comes to mind.) 

Take, for example, the collaboration of Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. (Surprised? I was!) As you may know, Dylan is a musician associated far more closely with 60’s counter-culture, flower children, folk music, and the singer-songwriter enclave than traditional Country Music. 

And yet, there he was on the second floor of the The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum, standing right next to one of Johnny’s black suits.

CMHoF Johnny Cash

Bob Dylan is unquestionably a profoundly talented, poetic songwriter, writer, and Nobel prize laureate {yep!}, but singer? Well anyway, I love the sentiment of Johnny’s quote.

In addition to Sing Me Back Home and its other permanent exhibits, the museum hosts a number of temporary featured exhibits. The principle featured exhibit during our visit was “Dylan, Cash, and the Nashville Cats: A New Music City,” which highlighted this iconic, albeit unlikely, musical pairing.

Recalling the Nashville music scene in the late ’60s and early ’70s, this exhibit illustrated clearly how this unlikely association continues to influence the music, and energize fans and musicians alike. 

It turns out that, in 1966, against the advice and wishes of his record label executives, Bob Dylan came to Nashville to record his classic album Blonde on Blonde. In doing so, he inspired a string of folk and rock musicians to follow his lead, and this following became known as the Nashville Cats.

The Nashville Cats weren’t a band, but rather a loose association of talented studio musicians in the 1960’s and 70’s, when the best of the best made their home in the Nashville area. You may not recognize the names, but you’ve almost certainly heard their work – on records by artists as diverse as Joan Baez, Steve Miller, the Byrds, and three of the four solo Beatles, to name just a few.

Dylan Quote - Country Music Hall of Fame | The Good Hearted Woman

Other exhibits in The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum showcase contemporary artists, including those who have made a significant impact on country music in recent years. At the time of our visit, these included Jason Aldean, Shania Twain, Taylor Swift, and many others.

The Country Music Hall of Fame

In addition to providing a home for its amazing musical museum, this building is also home to The Country Music Hall of Fame. Membership in the Hall of Fame is the highest honor a country music professional can receive.  Performers, songwriters, broadcasters, musicians, and executives in the industry are inducted in recognition of their contributions to the development of country music.

CMHoF Spiral

Wall of gold records at The Country Music Hall of Fame.

The building itself is filled with musical images and symbolism. For example, from the air, the building forms a massive bass clef, and the building’s front windows are built to resemble piano keys.

CMHoF

Stone bars on the Rotunda’s outside wall symbolize the notes of the Carter Family’s classic song “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.”

If you are visiting Nashville, be sure to plan a visit to The Country Music Hall of Fame Museum. Whether you are a lifelong country music fan or simply curious, it may very well change how you think about country music forever.

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THANK YOU so much for being a faithful reader and supporter
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Country Music Hall of Fame   Country Music Hall of Fame

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Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!

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Filed Under: Music, Tennessee, Travel Tagged With: music, Nashville, Tennessee

Home of 1000 Hits: RCA Studio B {Nashville}

July 11 By Renée 22 Comments

RCA Studio B is the oldest surviving recording studio in Nashville. Here, 1000 hits were brought to life and American music history was made.

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.
It’s just a small blue X taped out at the intersection of four old-school linoleum tiles. All by itself, it doesn’t look like much at all. Right?

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

Sometimes, appearances are deceiving: that blue X is the Sweet Spot at the historic RCA Studio B – a distinct point in the universe where countless artists have stood to create musical history.

Here, 1000 hits were brought to life. Stand on this spot, close your eyes, and you can’t help but feel a little chill of excitement in the connection.

Built in 1957, this unassuming little building on Nashville’s famous Music Row became a cradle for what became known as the Nashville Sound. A distinct departure from the “honky-tonk” country music of the time, the Nashville Sound was characterized by smooth strings, sophisticated background vocals, and crooning lead vocals.

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

Tours of RCA Studio B are arranged through The Country Music Hall of Fame. When our tour group arrived, we were ushered into an anteroom lined on three sides with pictures of musicians past and present. The fourth wall was devoted to Elvis’ recordings. We had plenty of time to scan the walls as our guide played recordings of a wide variety of artists and told us some interesting stories about them.

Mr B should be a Nashville tour guide. (Seriously, Mr B should be a Nashville star, but that’s another story for another day.) Anyway, he grew up on the old-timey country music, and as we looked around the room, he excitedly pointed out singers to me that I’d never even heard of and told me stories about them like they were second cousins.

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

More than 35,000 songs were recorded at Studio B during the golden age of the Nashville Sound (1957 to 1977) including more than 1,000 American hits, 40 millions-selling singles, and over 200 Elvis Presley recordings. But this place is so much more than numbers, or hit records, or even Elvis. (OK, that last one is probably debatable.)

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

Elvis is, of course, a big draw for many to Studio B. He recorded over 200 songs here, including Are You Lonesome Tonight, and How Great Thou Art for which he won a Grammy. (Fun fact: All three of Elvis’ Grammys were awarded for Gospel recordings.)

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

This Steinway, the centerpiece of RCA Studio B’s instrument collection, is known as the “Elvis Steinway Piano.” It is generally considered to be Elvis’ favorite piano, and was the one he used to rehearse before recording some of his greatest hits.

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

Photo Credit: Prayltno via Flickr [CC BY 2.0]

So many famous fingers have flown across those keys, and you can hear it being played in countless songs recorded at Studio B. (This piano is so famous that it has its very own Facebook page!) It made Mr B and I both wonder at the stories behind all those scratches and dings above the black keys.

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

Photo Credit: Geoff White via Flickr [CC BY-NC-ND 2.0]

Mr B is a diehard Elvis fan, but The Everly Brothers were my personal favorite in the amazing Studio B lineup. (Those harmonies!) One of their signature recordings, All I Have to Do is Dream, is the song Mr B and I always use to warm up when we sing together, and standing in the space where they first recorded it was deeply moving to both of us.

RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

It was during our tour of Studio B that I first became fascinated with the intricate web of musical influence that reaches up from the South to weave its way into American musical history. (I’ll be sharing more about this in future posts.)

Learning about the scope and caliber of the music created in this space took my breath away. (I have to admit, that happened a lot on our Tennessee adventure.) Here’s just a sampling musicians who recorded here:

  • Roy Orbision recorded two of his biggest hits, Only the Lonely and Crying.
  • Dolly Parton wrote her mega-hits Jolene and I Will Always Love You on the same day and recorded both here, as she did Coat of Many Colors, her beautiful tribute to her life in Appalachia.
  • Waylon Jennings recorded, among others, Only Daddy That’ll Walk the Line, That’s The Chance I’ll Have To Take, and Stop The World (And Let Me Off) – years before Outlaw Country was even a flicker.
  • Charlie Pride recorded Kiss an Angel Good Morning and Is Anybody Going To San Antone here. (My Dad used to sing Charlie Pride while he mowed the lawn. Mr B sings his songs to me now.

Studio B is still a working recording studio, and modern-day artists like Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, Wynonna, and many others have followed their legendary predecessors into this amazing space. In terms of the evolution of American music, the impact of RCA Studio B and the artists who recorded there cannot be overemphasized; moreover, regardless of your musical tastes, they have unquestionably influenced the music you listen to today.

Chairs - RCA Studio B: Home of 1000 Hits | The Good Hearted Woman

If those walls could talk.

Take the RCA Studio B Tour!

If you are planning to visit Nashville, RCA Studio B needs to be on your itinerary. Tours are available for a relatively small additional fee (currently about $11) to anyone who purchases admission to The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum. Start to finish, the tour lasts about one hour, and transportation is included.

Wavy Line

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RCA Studio B

Wavy Line

Disclosure: Many thanks to the Country Music Hall of Fame for providing us with complementary tour tickets. This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!

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Home of 1000 Hits: RCA Studio B {Nashville}

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Nashville & Memphis for Music Lovers {Tips & Itinerary}

Filed Under: Music, Tennessee, Travel Tagged With: music, Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville & Memphis for Music Lovers {Tips & Itinerary}

June 16 By Renée 22 Comments

This is our real-life trip itinerary. Follow along as we recap our adventures in Memphis & Nashville over the next few months, or use it to plan your own musical Tennessee vacation. Either way, we’ve got you covered.

Music Lovers Guide to Nashville & Memphis | The Good Hearted Woman

Bucket List 😉

One of the biggest challenges of taking a “whirlwind” trip is designing an itinerary that allows you to experience everything you want while still leaving room for some relaxation and a little serendipity. Mr B and I have no interest in relentless nightmare itineraries that keep us running every single moment of the day: we always like to keep a little wiggle room in our plans, because you just never know.

What follows is our real-life trip itinerary. This vacation plan – with all the scheduling details already mapped out for you – is designed to take four complete days: a total of two days each in Nashville and Memphis. (Obviously, if you need to travel very far to get to Tennessee, as we did, it will take six days including travel.) If you think you want to plug more action into your days and nights, go for it. As it was, we stayed pretty darn busy!

Throughout the next few months, we’ll be posting detailed recaps about most of our Tennessee adventures, so stay tuned. (I’ll insert related links into this itinerary as they post, too.)

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry. They don’t bite.


Day 1 – NASHVILLE

[Note: “Day 1” is the most tightly scheduled day on this four-day itinerary.]

Book in advance: 

Nashville hotel (2 nights)
The Sound Nashville Music (11 am tour)
Studio B (1:30 pm Tour)
Hatch Print Museum (3:30 pm tour)

  • Enjoy a delicious breakfast (and maybe a pitcher of mimosas!) at Another Broken Egg Café. (It’s half a block from where The Sound tour begins.)
  • Get an introduction to Music City on The Sound Nashville Music Tour. [Guided Tour Bus]
  • Grab a quick lunch at Bajo Sexto Taco at the Country Music Hall of Fame. (We ate here mostly because it is located right in the Hall of Fame and the timing between our bus tour and our Studio B Tour was a bit tight.)
  • Start your self-guided walking tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame. [1:00 pm]
  • Take the Studio B Tour. [Bus leaves/returns directly from the Country Music Hall of Fame.]
  • Continue touring the Hall of Fame.
  • Take the Hatch Show Print Tour. [Located at the Hall of Fame]
  • Continue touring the Hall of Fame until closing time. [5:00pm]
  • Walk on down the Honky Tonk Highway on Lower Broadway. Be sure to swing by Legend’s Corner, Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, and the Ernest Tubb Record Shop.
  • Have a late-night, lip-smacking, finger-licking Nashville Hot Chicken for dinner at Hattie B’s. (The lines will be significantly shorter after 8pm.)
  • Wrap up the evening listening to some talented up-and-coming singer-songwriters at The Listening Room Café.

Day 2 – NASHVILLE to MEMPHIS

Book in advance: 

The Guest House at Graceland (2 nights. Inquire about available packages)
Ryman Auditorium Tour (11 am or earlier)

  • Check out of your Nashville hotel. Enjoy a relaxing breakfast at one of many delicious Nashville breakfast spots.
  • Take the Ryman Auditorium Backstage Tour 
  • Eat a fast lunch at White Castle (Oh, yes we did.)
  • Drive to Memphis (3 hours)
  • Take the Sun Studio Tour (Tours start on the half-hour. You should easily get into Memphis in time to catch the 4:30 tour. Last tour is at 5:30.)
  • Check into The Guest House at Graceland.
  • Drive on out to Beale Street and take a walk to enjoy the sights, sounds, and all the feels.
  • Stop in for dinner & blues at BB King’s Blues Club on the corner of Beale & 2nd Avenue.
  • Return to The Guest House and get a good night’s sleep!

Music Lovers Guide to Nashville & Memphis | The Good Hearted Woman

Day 3 – MEMPHIS

Book in advance: 

Elvis Presley’s Memphis VIP passes
Gibson Guitar Factory Tour (4 pm or 5 pm tour)

  • Eat breakfast at Delta’s Kitchen at the The Guest House at Graceland.
  • Ride the hotel shuttle to Elvis Presley’s Memphis.
  • Take the early tour of Graceland Mansion.
  • Return to Elvis Presley’s Memphis, and grab some lunch at Gladys’ Diner.
  • Explore Elvis Presley’s Memphis until mid-afternoon. Be sure to stop at the VIP room to relax and get some great pictures.
  • About Drive back down to Beale Street.
  • Tour the Gibson Memphis Guitar Factory.
  • Tour the Rock & Soul Museum. (Literally right across the street from Gibson. Open until 7 pm most days.)
  • Enjoy an amazing dinner at Marlowe’s BBQ, just a mile down the road from The Guest House. (Try the BBQ Spaghetti!)
  • Stop by and sign the Graceland Wall on your way back to The Guest House.

Day 4 – MEMPHIS to NASHVILLE

Book in advance: 

Elvis Presley’s Memphis passes
Nashville hotel (1 night)
Grand Ole Opry Concert

  • Eat an early breakfast at Delta’s Kitchen at the The Guest House.
  • Check out of The Guest House. (Be sure to get a pass for the parking lot so that you can pick up your car later. You can take your car with you, but it will cost you an extra $10 to park at Graceland.)
  • Ride The Guest House shuttle to Elvis Presley’s Memphis. Revisit your favorite exhibits from the previous day, check any you might have missed, and be sure to pick up a little something in one of the many gift shops for the folks back home.
  • Ride The Guest House shuttle back to The Guest House parking lot and pick up your car.
  • Grab a quick lunch at Krystal. (We did this so that we could compare the two sliders and report back to you. See how we are? 😉 )
  • Drive back to Nashville. (3 hours)
  • Visit Carter Vintage Guitar Shop. (Do not skip this. It’s a quick stop, but totally worth it.)
  • Check into your Nashville hotel.
  • Ice your vacation cake by attending an iconic Grand Ole Opry Concert.
  • Catch some late-night live music on the Honky Tonk Highway.

Hey, Renée! Why didn’t you just fly into Nashville, stay two days, and then drive over to Memphis for two days and fly out?

Sigh. Sadly, Mr B and I don’t have a trust fund or unlimited disposable income. We are what is known as “budget travelers,” and one of the ways we keep costs down is by flying in and out of the same airport. (Car rental fees skyrocket when you drop off at a different location from your pick-up.) Moreover, this itinerary is offered simply as a guide: if you are planning a trip to Tennessee, you can do anything you want – it’s your trip!

Legends Corner Mural, Nashville TN | The Good Hearted Woman

Disclosure: As always, all opinions are our own. This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they will help us keep this site up and running – and (relatively) ad-free!! Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. 


Nashville & Memphis for Music Lovers {Tips & Itinerary}

Filed Under: Music, Tennessee, Travel Tagged With: Memphis, music, Nashville, Tennessee

Love Music? Then Add Tennessee to Your Bucket List!

June 13 By Renée 30 Comments

If music is the pulse of America, its heartbeat is in Tennessee. 

If you love music, you need to add Memphis and Nashville to your Bucket List! Before Mr B and I went on our musical adventure to Tennessee, I thought I knew a lot about the history and evolution of music in America. Not even. We both learned so much on this trip, and I can’t wait to share it all with you!

Music Lovers Guide to Nashville & Memphis | The Good Hearted Woman

Back when Mr B and I were in high school together, he was mildly obsessed with Elvis. In a healthy way, but still.  He used to listen to Elvis All. The. Time. I, on the other hand, was more of a Boston/Journey/Billy Joel/Fogelberg kinda girl. (Still am.)  For me, Elvis was “Dad” music at best, and a little went a long way.

Now as I may have mentioned, Mr B is an extremely talented vocalist. Back in school, he’d often try to emulate Elvis’ tone and style; and vocally, he was as good as any Elvis impersonator as I’ve ever heard. (I still tease him even today that if we ever find ourselves in dire straits, I’m going to make him a bedazzled white jumpsuit and set him out on the curb to sing for our supper.) But my point is, visiting Graceland has been on Mr B’s bucket list almost forever, and this year, I decided that for our anniversary, I was going to fill that bucket up. In other words, this trip was conceived solely for him: I was just going along for the ride.

Music Lovers Guide to Nashville & Memphis | The Good Hearted Woman

Then something strange happened along the way: by the time I had our trip all planned out, I was just as excited to go as I knew he would be! As a music maker and songwriter myself, I was completely enthralled with the whole amazing musical journey we were about to embark upon – from the Mother Church of Country Music to Graceland to the Birthplace of the Blues. Needless to say, it took all of the self-control I had to keep my secret until our anniversary in early April.

To present Mr B with his gift: a Tennessee Bucket List. I made a little silver “bucket” and filled it with six laminated cards – one for each day of our trip (including two travel days). When I gave his bucket to him, he spent a few minutes reading through each of the cards, and then… I saw the light go on. The moment he figured it all out is one I will never forget. (Suffice it to say, it may have involved Kleenex.) Priceless doesn’t even begin to paint the picture.

Music Lovers Guide to Nashville & Memphis | The Good Hearted Woman

I hope that you will join us as we recap our musical journey over the next few months here on the blog: even if you never plan to set foot in Tennessee, you will definitely appreciate what it has to offer. And for those who are even thinking about visiting Tennessee – especially if you love music like we do – I’m telling you now: you gotta go!!!

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!
If you love music, you need to add Memphis and Nashville to your Bucket List! Before Mr B and I went on our musical adventure to Tennessee, I thought I knew a lot about the history and evolution of music in America. Not even. We both learned so much on this trip, and I can’t wait to share it all with you!

Tennessee & Music Travel from GHW

blank

Love Music? Then Add Tennessee to Your Bucket List!

blank

Home of 1000 Hits: RCA Studio B {Nashville}

blank

What We Learned from Bob & Johnny at The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum

blank

Top 7 Things to Do in Memphis {Music Lovers Edition}

blank

Why You Will Love "The Guest House at Graceland"

blank

How to Make Nashville Hot Chicken {Step-by-Step}

blank

Tupelo, Mississippi {Day Trip from Memphis: Part 1}

blank

50 Miles Along the Natchez Trace Parkway {Day Trip From Memphis}

blank

A New Era at Graceland: Elvis Presley's Memphis

blank

Nashville & Memphis for Music Lovers {Tips & Itinerary}

Filed Under: Music, Tennessee, Travel Tagged With: Memphis, music, Nashville, Tennessee

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