Memories Of The Old Sho~Bud Retail Store

John Coop · Post by **John Coop** » 29 Jun 2006 9:42 pm

Do you remember your first trip to the old Sho~Bud retail store on lower Broadway in Nashville? I sure do. As soon as I walked through the door I heard Lloyd Green playing Sleepwalk over the PA system. Shot standing there in one of his "old jumpsuits" with that "chaw" in his jaw! Ha! There was a red Pro III in the window. This was 1975. Jack Boles and Harry were working the counters. I sure do miss that place!!! Coop

Mickey McGee · Post by **Mickey McGee** » 29 Jun 2006 10:00 pm

I don't remember much of anything from 1975.

Billy Carr · Post by **Billy Carr** » 29 Jun 2006 11:40 pm

I never did make it to the Sho-bud store on Broadway but I do remember listening the "Sho-Bud Showcase" on Saturday nights!

clive swindell · Post by **clive swindell** » 30 Jun 2006 12:18 am

Where exactly was the store in relation to the Ryman, Legends & Tootsies?

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 30 Jun 2006 1:05 am

I too recall going to the Sho Bud store . I met David Jackson there and he took me upstairs I believe to where they were working on some Instruments. He let me sit beind a few that were in for some reason and play them for a while.

Oddly though, there were NO steels in the main showroom of the store the very few times I was there.

The store I believe was located right around the same storefront area as Tootsies,to the best of my knowledge.

Sure wish I could recall where the photo's are.

t

Jack Stoner · Post by **Jack Stoner** » 30 Jun 2006 2:42 am

My first visit was late 1969 when George Lewis was the store manager. I bought one of the original 1 volume Sho-Bud instructional manuals while I was there.

The next time I visited (about 6 months later) George and Hal Rugg were there and they showed me how to palm block.

Roger Crawford · Post by **Roger Crawford** » 30 Jun 2006 3:36 am

I can't remember the time frame, but when we went upstairs, I saw a body in the scrap pile with JET on it. At the time I was still playing drums, and didn't realize it was Julian's. Wish I had paid closer attention!

Rick Johnson · Post by **Rick Johnson** » 30 Jun 2006 3:46 am

I would love to see some old pics
of the old Sho~Bud store.
Come on guys, give em up.

Rick
www.rickjohnsoncabs.com

Jack Dougherty · Post by **Jack Dougherty** » 30 Jun 2006 3:58 am

I was there in the early seventies.Fun times back then.
You never knew who would walk in the door. Spent a lot of time in the back room where all the (refreshments) were. On a Friday or Saturday night there would be a stream of bodies coming through the back door of Shots from the Opry between acts to enjoy a cool beverage. Yup... Fun times!!! I don't remember any dull times there.
Shot was(as I recall) a great prankster. So you had to be on guard around him. To me, that was the golden age of the steel and music in Nashville. Yup guys and gals.....fun times in deed!!

J

Michael Douchette · Post by **Michael Douchette** » 30 Jun 2006 4:06 am

Man... ol' Jack on the phone, tryin' to book an act... going upstairs to let A.J. work on my guitars back then... what a great place.

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Mikey D...

Fred Justice · Post by **Fred Justice** » 30 Jun 2006 4:27 am

I sure do remember the old Sho~Bud Store.
1972 was the last time I was there, went in there looking for work and Jack got on the phone and got me a job with Loretta's brother, Jay Lee Webb, we ended up right back in the same general area where I came from, Illinois and Indiana.
I have to agree, those were some real good times back then.

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Fred Justice,
Fred's Music www.fredjusticemusic.com
Rains Steel Guitars

Jerry Van Hoose · Post by **Jerry Van Hoose** » 30 Jun 2006 4:28 am

I first visited the Sho Bud store on broadway in 1975 to have a knee lever added to my guitar. Jim Webb took me upstairs where Shot was working on a banjo which was mounted on a 4 ft. stand with pedals. Did anyone else ever see that contraption? I stayed all afternoon, alternating between Sho Bud & Tootsies until my guitar was ready.
[This message was edited by Jerry Van Hoose on 30 June 2006 at 09:40 AM.]

David Doggett · Post by **David Doggett** » 30 Jun 2006 6:00 am

Around 1974 I was living near Centennial Park a block from the original Station Inn. A steeler named Charlie Gore took me over to Bobbe Seymour's house, and I traded a metal Dobro to him for a Maverick. Then we went down to Sho-Bud to get a second knee lever put on. Sho-Bud was almost next door to Tootsie's, and across the street from Ernest Tub's. They took us upstairs to the workshop. There was a big pot of venison stew from one of Shot's hunting trips, and they offered us some while the knee lever was added (raised the Es to F); and Shot (in a jump suit) and others were in and out getting some of that stew. At some point I bought from Sho-Bud a used blackface Super Reverb that had a mismatched JBL 15" speaker in it. I bought it on lay away, so it sat there in the store for awhile. When I came to make the final payment it had a hole in the speaker cone. Jack looked at it a started cussin' about "those kids." They reconed it, but it was an 8 ohm speaker in a 2 ohm amp. So it had very little clean headroom. I sold the Maverick a couple of years ago, but I still have that speaker in a Marrs cabinet with a matching buddy. Almost every time I went in to Sho-Bud to get strings or something, there was some great steeler playing the heck out of a Sho-Bud - Jimmy Day, or some up and coming young gun (wish I remembered who they were).

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Student of the Steel: Zum uni, Fender tube amps, squareneck and roundneck resos, tenor sax, keyboards

Mike Sweeney · Post by **Mike Sweeney** » 30 Jun 2006 6:06 am

Clive,

Sho~Bud was located at the location where Robert's Western World is now. 416 Broadway.

Roger Rettig · Post by **Roger Rettig** » 30 Jun 2006 6:33 am

Mike... So where was George Gruhn's old store - can you remember? It was right around there, too.

Roger

Jack Stoner · Post by **Jack Stoner** » 30 Jun 2006 6:57 am

Gruhn's original store was just down the block from where it is onthe corner now. I haven't been in the new store but the back of the store may even be where the old original store was.

Carl, the amp and speaker reconing tech, was across the street from the original Gruhn store.

I took over the amp tech job at Little Roy Wiggin's music store (and Grammer/Emmons) when Carl opened his own shop. Bob Browning also worked at Little Roy Wiggin's store and had worked at Sho-Bud previously.

Bobby Caldwell · Post by **Bobby Caldwell** » 30 Jun 2006 6:58 am

Sho-Bud was a great store. Right across the street was Linebaugh's where you could play the pin ball machine and get a bowl of chilli. And lets not forget Demon's Den on the corner. Alot of great pickin' happened in that place. I miss the street from back in those days and the people who made it so interesting. Bobby

Leslie Elliott · Post by **Leslie Elliott** » 30 Jun 2006 7:17 am

I remember some of it!!!! (Lord, I'm sorry 'bout that).....What wonderful memories. Leslie worked for Shot 20 years,...she has stories that would curl what hair I have left. But they're good'O!!
Ron[This message was edited by Leslie Elliott on 30 June 2006 at 08:18 AM.]

Ron Elliott · Post by **Ron Elliott** » 30 Jun 2006 7:20 am

that was actually my post.....sorry Honey !
Ron

Sonny Priddy · Post by **Sonny Priddy** » 30 Jun 2006 7:23 am

From 1968 or 69 Up Untile It Closed I Was There Some Tines 2 or 3 times A Weel with Harry . Shot and a Girl Named Kathey. I Loved That Place And All Of Them That Worked There. SONNY.

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Steve Dodson · Post by **Steve Dodson** » 30 Jun 2006 7:53 am

Did anyone ever remember seeing a little Maverick sitting upstairs by Harrys work bench with all the knee levers on it. I never did stop and count them. I was just starting out playing at the time.I had a D-10 Pro II with 2 knees on it. So one day when I was in there, I asked Harry about all the knees on that little guitar. And said something to the effect of I wish mine had that many levers on it. And Harry with a big smile said No you don't.

Al Marcus · Post by **Al Marcus** » 30 Jun 2006 10:04 am

Ahhh Memories of the old Sho-Bud store.

I was there in 1967, talked to George Lewis, bought a set of strings for C6. Went next door to Tootsies, looked around.

Went to RCA and talked to Chet and Bob. They told me all the steel sessions were sewed up by a couple of you know who's. So I left Nashville but enjoyed the trip....al

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My Website..... www.cmedic.net/~almarcus/

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 30 Jun 2006 10:34 am

Oh yeah, I remember Kathy! Strikingly beautiful girl... and a trained opera singer. Jack was running the cash register in those days, occasionally Harry. This is around '72.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

Chick Donner · Post by **Chick Donner** » 30 Jun 2006 10:51 am

I first went in 69, and spent what seemed like years upstairs, mostly with Harry Jackson and Duane Marrs. . . sometimew working on or updating my ZB or helping out on oth4r brands, mostly ShoBuds. But, like BE said on the tribute to {Picken' On] Shot album, you didn't have to play a ShoBud to get help there.

I too don't remember ever seeing a steel in the downstairs display floor . . . only upstairs.

And for Jack [Stoner], wasn't Carl Hudgins shop in the building that's now the parking lot behind Gruehn's? Or just a little more "up the hill," where the Opry's new "front entrance" is? I seem to remember it was across 4th Ave. S. from the ORIGINAL Honey Club, which Lenny Miller bought and moved to the (SW) corner of 4th and BW, and renamed it the Deemen's Den.

John Coop · Post by **John Coop** » 30 Jun 2006 11:55 am

Anybody remember seeing that wood carving that hung on the wall? I have it as well as ashtrays,lighters,books of matches,ink pins, mailing labels, and a sticker that was on the front door. Coop