“Hatch is a survivor. We keep ink on the blocks and dust off their backs,” said Jim Sherraden, the exhibition’s curator and chief designer at Hatch Show Print. “We’re in constant production, and we’ve survived all the changes in printing technology to become the antithesis of contemporary digital design. I’m thrilled that we can share our story and our art through this exhibition.”

For much of the 20th century, Hatch’s vibrant posters served as a leading advertising medium for southern entertainment—from vaudeville and minstrel shows, to magicians and opera singers, to Negro League baseball games and B-movies. Many of Hatch’s most loyal clients were Grand Ole Opry stars. Each Hatch Show Print poster is a unique creation, individually handcrafted and inked onto paper in a painstaking process that dates back to the 15th century. This process, known as letterpress, involves inking hand-carved wood blocks and metal photo plates and type that are then pressed onto paper to form an image.

Hatch is truly a Nashville original that adds a uniquely Nashville feel with a musical flair to its designs.

Country legend Eddy Arnold was remembered Wednesday by fans and friends as a man who brought sophistication and wider popular appeal to his genre by performing tunes like his biggest hit, “Make the World Go Away.”

Arnold died May 8 at a care facility near Nashville. He was 89.

“Eddie Arnold loved to laugh. He loved a joke, and when he laughed, it was loud,” his biographer, Don Cusic, said in a eulogy. “But he didn’t laugh at himself. He took himself seriously and he took his music career seriously.”

The Ryman Auditorium’s simple wood stage was adorned with flower arrangements as a medley of Arnold’s hits including “Cattle Call,”"Tennessee Stud” and “Bouquet of Roses” played. His casket was covered with a gray pall bearing a black-and-gold cross designed by his late wife, Sally, and was used at her funeral only a couple of months ago.

The service was marked with music: Vince Gill sang “Go Rest High on That Mountain” and Arnold’s “You Don’t Know Me,” the Jordanaires performed “Peace in the Valley” and Jeanine Walker sang “How Great Thou Art.” Sony/BMG chairman Joe Galante and Curb Records founder and chairman Mike Curb were among the pallbearers.

Gill recalled spending time with Arnold early in his career.

“Here’s the most successful artist in our history, and he taught you how to be kind and he taught you to be a gentleman. It was a great gift,” Gill said.

Its clear that Eddy was deeply loved and respected by those in country music.

(image credit: wikipedia)

Chet Flippo of the Nashville Skyline aptly points out:

As remarkable as the late Eddy Arnold’s country music career was, his lasting legacy will be that he made the world safe for country pop music. His enormous success with a smooth brand of mellow songs won over pop and country audiences alike and took the rough edges off country’s rowdier side. Remember, when he began recording in the 1940s, it was still called “hillbilly” music. Arnold’s triumphant reordering of what could legitimately be considered country made it possible for such country crooners as Jim Reeves, Ray Price (in his second country career), Patsy Cline and later performers all the way up to and including Rascal Flatts.

Chet Flippo continues:

In one of his last interviews, Arnold told CMT that he never abandoned his emphasis on the kind of songs that worked best. “Love songs,” he said. “Love songs. I’m crazy about love songs. And, you know, when you really stop and think about it, if you don’t have love, you don’t have anything.”

Eddy Arnold is without a doubt a light that will not fade and will not flicker out. Arnolds impact on country music and the world will endure.

For more info about Eddy Arnold’s legacy check out videos and other media at CMT Online.

~ Rich Kienzle in May the Cicle Be Unbroken

Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys play Southern Flavor

If you’re a bluegrass fan, you might want to check out these bluegrass YouTube videos here or the Bluegrass video library channel.