THE DRIVE FOR THE SOUTHERN ROCK HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM
by Angel0 Saska The initial idea for The Southern Rock
Hall of Fame & Museum can be traced back to 1982, when Michael Buffalo Smith first began taking notes and making plans to see his dream come to life. Beginning in the late ‘80s, Smith set about interviewing and recording conversations with hundreds of stars of the genre, and in 1998, he started Gritz Maga- zine, featuring many of these interviews, be- fore changing over to the e-magazine, KUDZOO in 2011. Smith has since published seven books on the subject of Southern Rock, with his three latest books landing on the prestigious Mercer University Press imprint of Macon, Georgia. After over 25 years of cov- ering the music of the south,Buffalo has come to be known as “The Ambassador of Southern Rock.” “I’ve always felt that the South has
given the world some of the greatest music ever,” says Smith. “From Elvis Presley and Little Richard to Hank Williams, as well as all of the Southern blues legends, all the way up through the Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Drivin’ ‘n Cryin’, R.E.M., Hootie and the Blowfish, Blackberry Smoke. . . All of these artists and so many others deserve a Southern Rock Hall of Fame.” Smith’s dream includes a permanent,
world-class home for the Southern Rock Hall of Fame. There has been interest expressed by City Leaders, musicians and others in sev- eral cities throughout the south. “The main thing we want is a city that
will get behind the project completely. We are a 501 (c) (3) non profit, tax exempt organiza-
tion, and we are looking for someone to step up and donate an old building that we can renovate into a great museum, with historic character,” says Smith. “It needs to be easily accesible via the interstate. I truly feel the Hall of Fame will be a major asset to the city it is located in, bringing in commerce through vistors and shows staged by the HOF.” The SRHOF will serve as a great desti-
nation for music lovers and those interested in Southern music history. Easily accessible and all inclusive, while also warm and invit- ing, the design will center on numerous gallery spaces of interactive exhibitions that will cover all aspects of Southern Rock’s mu- sical history, from Capricorn Records to The Allman Brothers Band, The Marshall Tucker Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Charlie Daniels Band and more, including later bands such as REM, Drivin’ n’ Cryin’, Hootie and the Blow-
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