Lou Pickney's Online Commentary
Goodbye Starwood
Wednesday
February 14, 2007
It's the end of an era in Nashville, as the owners of the Starwood Amphitheatre have decided to sell the facility, and more importantly the land that it's on, to real estate developers. The move means the likely demolition of the facility, and the loss of a great place to see a concert.
The first concert I attended was there in June 1993, with the Screaming Trees, the Spin Doctors, and Soul Asylum. I saw Van Halen in concert there twice. In 1996 I went backstage there (with my brother Matt) to meet Hootie and the Blowfish, who were at the apex of their fame at that time. I saw No Doubt, Green Day, 311, Cracker, and several other bands perform there. But, now, the facility is closing, a victim of Nashville's success.
Much like what happened to Opryland in the mid-late 90s, the land that Starwood is on became too valuable to keep as a concert venue. Even though Antioch (the suburb of Nashville where it is located) has a reputation as being less than upscale (it's no Brentwood), growth to the east in Smyrna and La Vergne has brought a change to the population base... and the demand for housing in the area.
|  | Thanks for the mid 1990s memories, Starwood.
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This isn't the end of options for live music in Nashville. The Gaylord Entertainment Center downtown is a first-rate facility that is designed for music. For outdoor events, the forthcoming new Nashville Sounds downtown baseball stadium will be able to double as the host of live music. And, who knows, LP Field could end up hosting a stadium-sized festival show. And then there's Vanderbilt Stadium... well, forget that; after Pink Floyd and the Rolling Stones came through in 1994, neighbors complained about the noise. Can't win 'em all.
It won't be the same without Starwood. Even when the facility was given corporate branding as the First American Music Center, and then as the AmSouth Amphitheatre, I still had fond memories from summers gone by.
Now memories are all that will be left of Starwood, concerts and girlfriends and adventures of years past. But, as always, life moves on, and there will be other live music venues to rise to take its place in the Music City.
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