By Scott Coner
Nashville Recording Artist, Songwriter, Performer, and Author
Moe is one of those really cool people that you never anticipate meeting. He has a 60’s “hippy” vibe to him. I met him accidentally. I needed a place to practice with a few guys I have been working with in Nashville, but I wanted a place that had a bit of character. I find that when I work on music, my surroundings matters. I don’t like to be in a sterile environment for music or anything else for that matter. I spoke to a bass player in the studio one day, and he turned me on to “The Musician’s Co-Op” in the 5 points area of Nashville. As soon as I saw the place, I knew it would be a nice experience.
Moe is one of those really cool people that you never anticipate meeting. He has a 60’s “hippy” vibe to him. I met him accidentally. I needed a place to practice with a few guys I have been working with in Nashville, but I wanted a place that had a bit of character. I find that when I work on music, my surroundings matters. I don’t like to be in a sterile environment for music or anything else for that matter. I spoke to a bass player in the studio one day, and he turned me on to “The Musician’s Co-Op” in the 5 points area of Nashville. As soon as I saw the place, I knew it would be a nice experience.
I think maybe Moe and I spoke on the phone before my first practice, but I honestly don’t remember. But, as I pulled into the lot outside the building, there he sat. He had longer wavy white hair and a beard. He was wearing an old army coat and blue jeans, and I half expected him to give me the peace sign. He just had the type of personality that makes you feel like you just met somebody pretty special. After our hello’s, he opened the door into the practice room. I smelled incense as I walked into room that offered all kinds of old art, music posters, and even Dr. Suess books. The PA was set up on an empty stage, and the sound of the room was as warm as a blanket. I liked it there, and we hadn’t played a note yet.
Moe told me that in the mid 70’s he had spent time traveling the country as an actor. His one-man show was called, “I Believe In Music” and he mostly played in schools. He eventually ended up in LA with a little girl and took a self-imposed thirty- year break from the business. These days, his now adult daughter is living in LA working as a CPA, and Moe has been a “Nashvillian” since 1986. He has been one of those guys that stands just outside of the flame and has seen some pretty historic moments that most of us never get a chance to see.
“When I put this place together, I was working with and around a guy they called, 'Cowboy Jack'," Moe told me that Cowboy Jack had worked for Sam Phillips at Sun Records when Elvis, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee were beginning to emerge. He later worked with Waylon Jennings during the “Outlaw” movement in the mid-70’s. "Jack helped me put this place together. Since I have been open, I’ve seen all kinds of artists pass through. Everybody from Todd Schneider, Wynonna, Trick Pony, Wanda Jackson and Kacey Musgraves just to name a few." Moe told me that he hopes to develop a live streaming concept from the place soon. "This will allow the artist to be relaxed and keep things personal,” he told me. He went on to say, “You have to find the pulse of the song. The pulse is different than the beat.”
People like Moe are the souls that offer a different perspective. They are very different than the mannequins you endure near music row. He doesn’t have a hidden agenda he is into art and he loves people. He understands music and the need to allow it to breath. What I love most about Moe is the fact that he and I are from completely different worlds, yet we share the same perspective about the industry. He doesn’t put sound in a box. He understands that we all have something a bit different to offer musically and there is plenty of room to do that.
So, we have worked in his facility three times now. Every time I pull away in my truck, the last thing I see is Moe’s big hippy smile. He makes me want to see the world from his perspective. He represents everything we should have tried to hold on to from the 60’s. That and maybe bell bottoms...
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Scott Coner is a country singer-songwriter who has worked in the studio with legendary artists such as Tanya Tucker, T. Graham Brown and Charlie Daniels. You can learn more about him and hear his music at his music page.
