RHINO BOOKS NASHVILLE TN

RHINO BOOKS

NASHVILLE, TN

"Much More Than A Book Store"

4918 Charlotte Avenue Location In Sylvan Park Across From The Library

4006 Granny White Pike Location

Across From David Lipscomb University

As a songwriter, I have known of Fred Koller, ever since I moved to Nashville almost a quarter century ago. I bought his book on songwriting How To Pitch & Promote Your Songs, that is full of sage advice, not long after I moved here. But as friend and now a co writer too, it has only been over the course of the last year I have really got to know him. For many years, mutual friend John Baeder, the reknowned Nashville artist, made many efforts to get us together, and I for one could not be more grateful to John for his persistence. As a co writer. I have not had this kind of relationship, since my days of writing with the late Walter Hyatt back in the '80s & early '90s.

Our diverse musical backgrounds and experiences, that have shaped our tastes and ideas, are perhaps most closely tethered by our past associations with two music legends and longtime co writers & pals Shel Silverstein & Bob Gibson. Fred enjoyed a very fruitful one with Shel (over a hundred songs) and I had a more modest one with Bob, who I knew of since the earliest days of the folk revival in the '60s and personally since the late '70s. Bob who always spoke to me of the lyrical genius of Shel, was arranging to bring him in on a song we were kind of stuck in a corner with, when Bob took very ill and lived out one of his last collaborations with Shel, appropriately titled "Your Still Gonna Die"

Bob passed away on the west coast from the exotic sounding, progressive supranuclear palsy in September of 1996 and Shel caught up with Bob via an common heart attack down in Key West, Fla in May of 99. Fred and I were both at Shel's memorial service hosted at John Hartford's home, ( John too is long gone now geez old folkies are dropping like flies here) so were a hundred or so other folks and regretably. I left without talking to Fred or perhaps we would now have a a song catalog that might be challenging Fred & Shel's.

Last winter I sat in with Fred at a gig here at Douglas Corner. It was much fun and I suggested the next day we ought to start a little duo or even a band and call it "The SOBS ... Sons Of Bob & Shel " An idea that I still am jazzed about and hopefully will get to experience with him before we both go traipsing off to join our mentors.

In the meantime I am really enjoying making up for lost time and hanging out with Fred, mainly at his book store on Charlotte Pike, that was only less than two miles away from my former home in Sylvan Park and remains an almost equal distance from my new home in Charlotte Park that Fred helped me to find.

HOUSED IN A FORMER 19th CENTURY BANK BUILDING,THE BOOKS GO FLOOR TO CEILING

AND THERE ARE RAMBLING ROOMS THAT ADD TO THE VIBE

"GREAT HATSBY"

Fred's Chapeaus Are Rivaled Only By His Snazzy Shirts. One Of Which Is Still Concealed By His Jacket That He Has Not Yet Had Time To Hang Up, As He Helps An Early Bird Customer With Their Book Inquiry