The City of Macon is known for its long music history. Let’s take a closer look at some of the city’s big names that played such important roles not only in the development of music in Macon, Georgia, or America but for the entire world.
It’s all about that specific Macon soul… and if you want to discover that, it’s only good to know more about the great artists that helped shape the city’s soul.
Macon is the city where James Brown was recording “Please, Please, Please” which lead to his first recording contract, and where world-famous bands such as The Allman Brothers Band originated.
When visiting Macon, located in the heart of Georgia, you should definitely check out The Allman Brothers Band Big House Museum where you can find lots of memorabilia in this former home of the world-famous band. Check out also this video about the Museum:
There’s no city in America with a music heritage that compares to that of Macon. This is the city where the “Architect of Rock ‘n’ Roll”, Macon native Little Richard perfected his world-famous “wop-bop-a-loo-bop.”
This is the city of the Douglas Theatre where Otis Redding, for the first time, uttered his impassioned “Got-ta, Got-ta” on stage.
But there are so many more world-renown top acts that originated here or recorded their music here… Check out this website’s other posts to learn, for example, which artists were inducted into Macon’s Georgia Music Hall of Fame.
This is the city where, in the 60s of the former century, Phil Walden as a young man, started out with his R&B talent and booking and talent agency, and Macon was also home to Capricorn Records, the groundbreaking Southern Rock recording label, and the importance of the Macon Recording Connection Campus cannot be overstated as well.
Macon Guided Music Tours
Rock Candy Tours provides guided tours that allow you to get a more in-depth knowledge of this city’s remarkable history and discover Macon’s landmark historic music sites. Rock Candy Tours is located at 540 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Suite 208, Macon, GA 31201, Phone: 478-955-5997.
The rich music history of the city is alive in just about every corner of Macon. If you take the Rock Candy Tour, you will learn all about the city’s notorious and legendary music history.
This tour takes you along the offices and homes of some of the most famous artists Southern Music had known such as Grant’s Lounge, also called the “Original Home of Southern Rock.” This is where folks like The Allman Brothers Band (ABB), Marshall Tucker Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Tom Petty played.
Downtown Macon is very pedestrian- and bike-friendly, so if you feel like renting a bike, check out the Washington Memorial Library or the Tubman Museum. That’s where rental bikes are available.
The Washington Library is located at 1180 Washington Ave, Macon, GA 31201, Phone: 478-300-6744, and The Tubman Museum is found at 310 Cherry St, Macon, GA 31201, Phone: 478-743-8544.
The City of Macon
The City of Macon was founded in 1823. It is strategically located on the banks of the Ocmulgee River where it had grown out of the frontier Fort Hawkins (1806).
Fort Hawkins was set up as a U.S. Army Fort and included also the Indian Factory where, under Indian Agent Col, meetings and trading with Native Americans took place.
Fort Hawkins was named after Benjamin Hawkins, U.S. Southeast Territory Superintendent of Indian Affairs for over two decades. Before the fort was established, Native Americans had already inhabited the region for more than 10,000 years.
In 1832, Macon was chartered as the seat of Bibb County and named after Nathaniel Macon, the North Carolina statesman, and city planners and developers aimed at creating “a great city within a beautiful park” so they designed a town full of spacious streets and interesting parks.
Thanks to its strategic location on the Ocmulgee River, the City of Macon thrived and when the railroad was established in 1843, economic prosperity was all around.
1836 is also a historically important year since it marks the establishment of Wesleyan College, the first college in the U.S. to grant academic degrees to women. To enroll in Wesleyan College, students need to have a high school or equivalent diploma. Students that don’t, should check out this post about the accredited Onsego GED prep course to learn how to get a GED fast!
During the Civil War, before Macon surrendered, it was defended several times before surrendering at the close of the war, and this left the city’s historic districts mainly intact preserving many of its neighborhoods of Victorian-style homes and classic Greek revival.
After the Civil War, Macon’s economy was predominantly fueled by the region’s textile industry, and today, Macon is a thriving city of diverse cultures, beautiful architecture, a thriving arts scene, lots of educational opportunities, and, of course, a very rich and exciting music heritage.
Today, tourism, manufacturing, medical, and aeronautics are key players in Macon’s economy while surrounding areas are thriving on agriculture. In fact, the State Farmers Market in Macon offers the best pecans, peanuts, peaches, and vegetables in the country.