Bugs Bunny's Rabbit Hole

 Category: News/Obituary

Less than six months after he was inducted into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame, Station Inn owner and bluegrass promoter J.T. Gray has passed away.

Gray died Sunday (3/21) after battling pre-existing health conditions for a number of years.

Born Earl Gray in Corinth, Mississippi, Gray moved to Nashville in 1971 and found work as a musician in they Nashville-based band the Misty Mountain Boys.  Later in the 70s he formed his own band, J.T. Gray and the Nashville Skyline, and had a stint playing in Jimmy Martin's band.

But in 1981 he began what would be his most enduring mark on bluegrass music: he bought the Station Inn.  He moved it to the Gulch region of Nashville, which was mostly empty at the time.  (I remember seeing a show there during the Americana Conference in 2007, and it was more empty space than not).  Now, the little 150-seat venue, surrounded by the high-rise condos, looks like Bugs Bunny's rabbit hole surrounded by highways in the classic cartoon No Parking Hare. 

The little venue that could, DID. From Sunday night jam sessions, where the famous and the person off the street could sit side by side and play, to the long-running country comedy spoof The Doyle & Debbie Show, the Station Inn has been the go-to spot for live music on a most intimate basis.  Inexpensive food, drinks, and no reservations (which caused long lines outside the door when a big-name act was playing) were hallmarks of the Station Inn, along with a great sound system and the ability to sit in front of (and sometimes next to, in the audience) some of the best of the best.

Gray was on the Grammy Awards show just last week, in a segment paying tribute to small venues (which have been terribly devastated by the COVID-19 lockdowns).  He also presented the Best Country Album Grammy award.

I heard that Gray was offered over $4 million to sell the Station Inn because of its proximity to the "trendy" area of town, but he always refused.  What will happen now?  The Station Inn was closed on Monday (3/22) in honor of its owner of 40 years, but its website says it will reopen on Tuesday.  The music will keep going.

J.T. Gray was 75.

Dale Watson mugging with a Lone Star at the Station
Inn during a 2018 show.  c. 2021 K.F. Raizor