The Kadillacs: Who knew?

City's favorite Fourth band shares all

The Kadillacs, led by Brentwood’s own Paul Ross, has headlined the city’s Fourth of July celebration for more than 20 years. And over the years, thousands of residents have enjoyed the show.

But do you really know the band? That’s what BrentWord thought. So here’s everything you’ve always wanted to know … and more … about The Kadillacs. And remember: If you want to hear them Saturday, make your way to the park early to reserve your spot in the natural grass bowl that is the Eddy Arnold Amphitheater. “Seats” are always at a premium.

So, how did the band get its name, and where did it almost meet its demise? Read on…

A little history: The band formed in January 1984 as the house band on Music City Live, a live TV show on WKRN, Channel 2. “When the show went off the air, folks loved the band and kept calling to book us,” Paul says. “We’ve never looked back since then.”

Coolest venue every played: The “Yellowstone Club” in Big Sky, Mont. Ross says it’s one of the country’s most “exclusive” club with member such as: Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Warren Miller (US Olympic star), Greg Lamond (bicycling star), and several other anonymous billionaires. “Our ‘emcee’ for the evening decked out in jeans and Eddie Bauer attire, was ‘nearly a billionaire.’”

Farthest venue played: San Diego, Calif. (on several occasions)

Most fun gig: A Derby party with Dan Akroyd (who performed his show with the band).

Longest-lasting gig (besides Brentwood, of course): Cherokee Town & Country Club’s Wassail Ball, 15 consecutive years. The club is in Atlanta.

And here at home: The Kadillacs first played the City of Brentwood’s Fireworks Celebration in 1988. “In the early days, pre-1995, we used to do Brentwood pre-fireworks, then jump into a limo and rush to play Metro’s ‘after party’ after their fireworks. We had to stop when Brentwood moved out to Crockett Park,” Paul said. “It was too far away.”

Most interesting gig: New Year’s Eve in Savannah, Ga. As part of the show, the “Flying Wallendas” did a tightrope act in the hotel atrium, 10 floors up at midnight, Paul shared.

Most scary experience: This one’s a tie. Once the band nearly froze to death (“literally,” Paul says) on a broken down bus on top of Black Mountain in N.C., in February. Another time, the band’s bus rear ended a stopped tractor trailer on I-71 on the way to a job in Cincinnati.

Longest-tenured member: Phil Rugh is the longest tenured player in the band, "but more importantly the OLDEST member of the band. That's why I keep him in the band,” Ross said, winking. Hmmm. That must make Paul the second oldest member ...

Newest member: Eric Stephens (bass player), at 2 years, 8 months

Average tenure of today’s Kadillacs: 12 years

About the name: The band had a few different names before settling on “Kadillacs” in 1987. “We once had to change our name (for one day) to the Continentals, because we played a Ford motor convention; they couldn’t bear to book the “Kadillacs!’” Paul said.

Loving those classics: The band only plays “classics.” Of course, that now includes music through the ’90s.

There she is, Miss …: One of the original “Kadillac Girls,” was Nan Kelly, former Miss Mississippi and current on-air personality on CMT.

One impressive bunch: Today band members include a nurse on the Cardiac Bypass operating team at St. Thomas Hospital; president of the Nashville Toastmasters Club; head of the Jazz Department at Tennessee Tech University; a certified adolescent drug abuse counselor; the on-air promotions manager at Fox News and, of course, the former Brentwood Chamber of Commerce board chairman.

Broadway bound? The Kadillacs’ horn section has performed for over 75 touring Broadway Show productions at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center.
Well-traveled: Today the band travels around 16,000 miles on the road, per year in addition to several trips by airplane.

For all the scoop on the city’s Fourth of July festivities, read the previous post, or just click here: www.tinyurl.com/BWFourth

Jesse Lee needs us on Tuesday

A while back, I wrote about Jesse Lee, Brentwood's next big country music star. Her first video, "It's a Girl Thing" (www.myspace.com/jesselee) has already gotten great reviews and her first album comes out later this year.

When I first saw the video, I remember thinking how much she reminded me of a young Sara Evans. And wouldn't you know it, tomorrow her video faces off with one of Evans' during CMT's Power Picks show at 10 a.m. Central time.

Let's help put her on the charts. All you have to do is vote. Here's how, according to the CMT website (http://www.cmt.com/shows/dyn/cmt_power_picks/series.jhtml):

"...tune into CMT, and log on to CMT.com to vote in several rounds of video matchups to decide what will play next during the show. Get a sneak peek at the matchups by visiting the upcoming episode pages. Videos are paired in several rounds, and only the winners will air during the show.
"As you watch the show live on CMT (10 a.m. central time), vote for which video you want to see next. You'll see the percentage of votes each video receives LIVE and in real time. Vote as many times as you'd like before time runs out. The video with the most votes wins and is then played on CMT. As the winner plays, voting for the next round begins.
"Once the show has concluded, voting for the first video to play on the next episode will open. Fans have until the beginning of the next episode to decide which video will kick off the show. Tune in to see if your favorite video made the cut."

If you missed the original post, with links to Jesse's video and more, click here: http://brentword.blogspot.com/2009/04/lets-vote-for-jesse-lee.html

Let's vote ... for Jesse Lee

Gotcha on the headline I hope. You thought I was writing ... again ... on the Brentwood City Commission race. Well, have you voted? Thursday's the last day to vote early. The Big Day is next Tuesday, with 10 polling spots open from 7-7 so you have no excuses.
But forget politics for a while. Let's talk country music. Specifically Jesse Lee.
Brentwood has its share of country music divas that call it home, think Dolly and Carrie. Hopefully it's about to have a new one.
Jesse Lee is the first country artist Atlantic Records signed in over a decade. Her first single, "It's A Girl Thing" is out and her first album is due in the fall.
How did I learn about her? At the last California Girls gathering way too long ago. (The California Girls is the disparate group of mostly Brentwood women who have all lived in California at one time or other and gather occasionally for fun times.) Jesse's mom Pegi Levin brought her along and once we heard Jesse's story, we talked her into singing for us. A fan club was instantly formed.
Want to join the club too? It's easy. Check out her video at CMT.com or www.myspace/jesselee. Read her bio at www.gactv.com, on the Artists page. And while you're there, be sure to vote for her video to return to GAC's Top 20. Just scroll down until you see Fan Zone and hit 'Vote for Videos.' You can vote once a day.
Why do I like her so much? Guess "It's a Girl Thing"

"We love romance, and candlelight/ You like a cold beer, we like a fine wine/ You hardly talk, we can talk all night/ You wanna fix it, we just wanna cry/ It's a girl thing."

-- Jesse Lee

Coming up: Plans for the new children's library, a visit to The Perch and more.