$8000 Tax Credits for House Buying - MUST ACT NOW!
By now you've probably heard that the government is offering up to $8,000 in tax credit to First-Time Homebuyers. You may not have heard that there is also a $6,500 tax credit available to folks who have owned a home for at least 5 years and are buying another one! There are some great opportunities out there if you are thinking of buying your first home, or are ready to move up to your next one!
Interest rates are still at RECORD LOWS, which means that you can now buy more house with your money! Did you know that lately most interest rates have been less than 5%? Many companies have been hovering around 4.75% lately. So, let's look at our scenario:
What does all this mean?
With a deadline on the tax credit for April 30, 2010, it means that you NEED to act now if you're thinking about buying. Who knows when interest rates will go back up? Take the opportunity to call me today and I'll explain how to get started. Call me at 256.541.0491 today!
Here is a chart addressing all of the rules and stipulations of the home buyer credits put together by the National Association of Realtors:
Want to start your search today?
http://www.homegrownrealestate.net/listings/listings.htm
$8000 Tax Credits for House Buying - MUST ACT NOW!
Joshua B. Pettus
President/Broker
Home Grown Real Estate
256.541.0491
The Sound of the Shoals - Part 3 - The Birth of Rock and Roll and Rhythm and Blues
Part Three of our series that explains why Muscle Shoals, Alabama is considered the "Hit Recording Capital of the World."
The next generation of Shoals area music began when the legendary Sam Phillips began working as a broadcast engineer at WLAY radio in Muscle Shoals. He eventually relocated to Memphis, and on July 5, 1954, Phillips discovered a talent that could only be explained as "a white man who could sing with a black man's soul." Elvis Presley auditioned for Sam Phillips one day while working in his Sun Records studio in Memphis. He quickly signed Presley with his record label, and introduced the world to the man who would one day be known as the "King of Rock and Roll." With Elvis Presley's new found fame at Sun Records, Phillips was able to bring in more talented musicians. Sam Phillips went on to discover other legendary artists, such as Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Charlie Rich. Sam's keen eye for potential and raw talent allowed him to forever shape the history of music as we now it today.
Rick Hall was listening when the song "A Fallen Star" became a regional hit in 1957. The song, written by James Joiner and sung by Bobby Denton (who is currently the Alabama State Senate's longest serving member), helped Hall to decide to make the short move from Hamilton, Alabama, in search of a job with Joiner. Rick Hall later formed the group the Fairlanes with his friend, Billy Sherrill and performed at many venues throughout the Shoals. In 1958, the two partnered with Tom Stafford who owned SPAR recording to form a recording team with which they could now work freely. This studio, known as Florence Alabama Music Enterprises, or Fame, seemed to be doomed to destruction from the beginning. They set up shop in a small room above a drugstore. They stapled egg cartons to the walls of their studio for sound proofing, found old carpet for the floors, and used drapes for decoration. Hall said:
"I moved in, I slept there, ate in restaurants, I began to write songs, bring in
the troops, would be songwriters... anybody that thought about music. I
brought them in and signed them up playing the guitar, sat up all night with
them to write songs and try to put them together."
It seemed that everywhere they turned there were conflicts in personality. The men at Fame recorded demos for bands looking to get into the music scene of Nashville or Memphis. Hall's obsession to succeed many times collided with Stafford's visionary ideas. The recording alliance crumbled at their feet and Hall was left as the sole proprietor of Fame. Linda Hall, Rick's wife recalled:
"Sherrill went to Nashville to work for Sam Phillips. He sold Rick the
name of Fame and the publishing company for a dollar."
Left alone to pick up the pieces of his broken friendship and his shattered publishing company, Rick was still determined to succeed in the music industry. "I couldn't get anything going in Nashville. It left me no alternative but to try to get something going in Muscle Shoals." He was determined to prove that Muscle Shoals could have a thriving recording industry.
Hall rented a small tobacco barn on Wilson Dam Highway and in 1961 he made his first hit on his own, "You Better Move On," sung by Arthur Alexander, a local bellhop. This was the very first rhythm and blues song recorded in the Shoals area. It was also the first hit recorded by Hall's newly formed rhythm section comprising of David Briggs, Terry Thompson, Jerry Carrigan, and Norbert Putnam. The future of the Muscle Shoals music scene seemed very promising. After seeing the future that was waiting for them in the music industry, Hall's house band eventually left Muscle Shoals to pursue new opportunities for them in Nashville. They were replaced by Jimmy Johnson, Spooner Oldham, Albert Lowe, and Roger Hawkins as resident musicians at Fame. 
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Tune in to our next entry to find out how a hospital orderly records one of the most beloved songs of all time in Muscle Shoals, and how a session band who forms their own studio could help solidify what exactly is the sound of Muscle Shoals.
The Sound of the Shoals - Part 3 - The Birth of Rock and Roll and Rhythm and Blues
Joshua B. Pettus
President/Broker
Home Grown Real Estate
http://www.homegrownrealestate.net/
http://homegrownrealestate.blogspot.com/
- and the new -
The Sound of the Shoals - Part 2 - Beginnings
On the banks of the Tennessee River in the northwest corner of Alabama, four small, thriving cities are joined together by a history that many of its own citizens have never explored. Many of the people in the area are completely unaware of the internation significance that this area, known as the Shoals Area, has had in the music industry throughout the world. Muscle Shoals, Alabama, the second largest of the four, has a unique place in music history that earned this nearly forgotten part of the country the title of "Hit Recording Capital of the World."
Traces of the Past
The former Muscle Shoals Sound studio sits peering across the Tennessee River beside a small, forgotten park in Sheffield, Alabama. This massive studio, its legacy, and its music are all that is left of the Muscle Shoals Sound. This once famous studio was sold a few years ago to a local movie and video production company, but its days as a recording studio have made their mark on the history of music forever.
On the other side of town, located at 3614 Jackson Highway, the original Muscle Shoals Sound studio building still buzzes with music. Several years ago, this historic building was faithfully restored to look, feel, and sound exactly as it did back in the 60's and 70's. Even though it is no longer owned by the original owners, the current owners still use the name Muscle Shoals Sound and allow the public to tour the studio. Many famous songs were recorded here by many of the world's most beloved musicians. This building is currently listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
In the neighboring city of Muscle Shoals, Fame Recording Studios sits in the corner of the busiest intersection of town on Avalon Avenue. Fame and its owner Rick Hall still stay busy in the recording business, but the fame of Fame Studios has since diminished from its glory days filled with the company of famous celebrities and musicians. The recording industry of the Shoals area has diminished and has been left with what many may think is a bleak future. However, a small number of musicians, singers, and songwriters occasionally come out of the area and achieve national renown. While this new generation appears promising, there still has not been the same level of success that once created a booming recording industry that rivaled regional recording centers like Nashville and Memphis.
Earliest History
Years before this rural area of North Alabama was known for its chart-topping hits, it was settled by the Cherokee, Shawnee, and Chickasaw tribes of the Native Americans. These early settlers found rich soil and a large supply of mussels hidden in what is now known as the Tennessee River. White settlers eventually moved into the area and found hidden beneath the shoals of the river the same mussels that the Native Americans had encountered years before them. Because of this distinguishing quality of the region, they eventually named the city Mussel Shoals. Later, a careless mapmaker misspelled the city's name, and it has been known as Muscle Shoals ever since.
The Native Americans who first lived in the Shoals Area knew the Tennessee River as the Singing River. "It started with water rushing over rocky shoals, stated Terry Pace and Robert Palmer, music historians for the Times Daily. It was a "sound the American Indians living along the banks of the Tennessee River said 'sang' to them in the beautiful voice of a woman." The Singing River was an appropriate name for a place that would one day become a dominating force in the music industry.
W.C. Handy - The Father of the Blues
The music and recording history of the Shoals Area dates back much farther than the two nearly forgotten music studios. William Christopher "W.C." Handy, known by many as the Father of the Blues," grew up in Florence and was attracted to the local music scene. He studied music in Florence for eleven years in the public school for black students, and, at age eighteen, Handy left home to pursue a career in music. In 1909, W.C Handy moved to Memphis, where he immediately won renown. His famous song, "Memphis Blues," was the first popular song written to include a jazz break, the basis for Handy's later claim that he invented jazz. He later moved to St. Louis, Missouri where he recorded another hit song, "St. Louis Blues." Handy died March 28, 1958, but his influence is still seen and heard in contemporary jazz and blues music. In the Shoals Area, we still celebrate his life with the week-long W.C. Handy Festival that takes place every year in July.
The Sound of the Shoals - Part 2 - Beginnings
Stay tuned for my next post that discusses the history behind the Fame and Muscle Shoals Sound studios!
Please feel free to discuss below!!!
Joshua B. Pettus
President/Broker
Home Grown Real Estate
256.541.0491
http://www.homegrownrealestate.net/
http://homegrownrealestate.blogspot.com/
and introducing the all-new
http://www.northalabamahomeblog.com/
The Sound of the Shoals - Part 1 - Intro
A few days ago I received an interesting tip. I was encouraged to begin using my Home Grown Real Estate blog to post about our local area. At first I thought it was a little silly to do so, but then I realized that I absolutely love our local history. I enjoy studying about the things that happened here, and I love telling people about it. I know my wife probably gets tired of hearing all the same stories over and over, but I just love telling them! I decided that the most interesting thing that I could write about would be the history of the recording industry of the Shoals Area.
The Sound of the Shoals
Why? Well, its interesting! So many people here have very little knowledge of the huge influence our little corner of the world had (and still has) on music. Sure, people here tend to have a general knowledge that some music was recorded here, but what exactly happened here that was so significant? Was it really as important as they claim it was?
Simply put, YES!
While at UNA, I had the assignment of writing a research paper on "something important that has happened in the history of our area." I love music, so naturally I wanted to choose something that I could take interest in, and could enjoy learning and writing about. So, I chose to write about the history of our recording industry.
What you'll be reading for the next few posts will be modified excerpts from that research paper. I've lost the Works Cited page, so even though I have notes of my sources within the paper, I no longer know exactly where they all came from. Sorry about that! It was never my intention to plagiarize or to not give credit where credit was due.
One source I did use just happens to be on Google Books is Music Fell on Alabama by C. S. Fuqua. This may be found HERE. It was an excellent read, and a major source for this paper. Another great source that got the whole process started was a story that aired on NPR back in September 2003. It discussed how the Muscle Shoals Sound studio was up for sale at the time, and had some great interviews that talked about the history of the recording industry here. That story can be heard HERE.
I hope you enjoy this series, and I hope it opens your eyes to the fact that there was more that happened here than what you've been told your entire life growing up.
And so now I present to you
-The Sound of the Shoals-
Please feel free to discuss any interesting stories you know below in the comments.
Thanks!
Joshua B. Pettus
President/Broker
Home Grown Real Estate
jbpettus@gmail.com
256.541.0491
http://www.homegrownrealestate.net/
http://homegrownrealestate.blogspot.com/
and introducing the all-new http://www.northalabamahomeblog.com/
Want (or need) to sell your house, but are scared it won't sell in today's market? Our latest video will teach you a few things that you, the seller, NEED to know before sticking a sign in the yard.
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