SongBird Tours Offers In-The-Round Songwriter Experience On Wheels

Nashville tourists can pedal and drink their way down the streets of Music City, laugh their way down on hilarious comedic tours, see it from the bed of a flatbed hay wagon, and now thanks to SongBird Tours, be serenaded at an in-the-round as they travel the roundabout and other city streets.

The new service, run by Patsy Bruce and Trey Bruce, will offer visitors a ride on one of the only state-of-the-art live music venues-on-wheels anywhere. Thirty passengers will enjoy an intimate, in-the-round songwriter performance indigenous to Nashville, hearing stories behind the songs from some of Music City’s most prolific songwriters and rising newcomers while getting a peek into the life of a working songwriter. They will also get a special guided tour of the city curated by longtime music industry insiders.

“It’s great to get the chance to show folks what songwriters do and how they do it,” Trey said. “The story of a songwriter’s life in Nashville is so unique and special.”

The bus is specially outfitted to provide a maximum sound experience for guests, with lighting designer Chris Lisle providing the lights, and sound design being handled by JSS Audio and Richard Battaglia. Daily tours are set to begin the first week of June in time for CMA Music Fest, and begin and end at Hayes Street (between 15^th and 16^th Avenues) near downtown Nashville. Tickets for the two-hour tour are $40 and will soon be available by logging onto songbirdtours.com. A portion of the proceeds from each ticket sold will go to the Music Health Alliance, a top resource for healthcare solutions and access for music industry members.

Longtime industry member Patsy Bruce co-wrote the Waylon Jennings/Willie Nelson classic “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys,” Tanya Tucker’s “Texas When I Die,” and more. She was also president of the Nashville Songwriters Association (NSAI) in the late ’70s. Songwriter/producer Trey Bruce co-wrote Randy Travis’ “Look Heart, No Hands,” “Whisper My Name,” and “Spirit Of A Boy, Wisdom Of A Man,” and Diamond Rio’s “How Your Love Makes Me Feel,” among others. As a publishing executive, Bruce helped sign Chris Janson, Brothers Osborne, and Charlie Worsham. He helped establish the Music Industry Coalition, which advocates for Music Row’s heritage.