Ben Wynne featured speaker at Georgia Writer's Museum

Mar. 20—EATONTON — Whether you are a fan of the Allman Brothers Band, Little Richard, James Brown, Otis Redding or Jason Aldean, they all have one thing in common. They all spent time during their careers in Macon.

So did two of the members of R.E.M., saxophonist Rosa King, and poet/musician Sidney Lanier. There must be something in the water. You can now learn how Macon birthed way more than its share of world-famous musicians. And you can "dance the night away" to their music.

Ben Wynne will be the Georgia Writers Museum's "Meet the Author" presenter on his book, "Something in the Water: A History of Music in Macon, Georgia, 1823-1980." He will speak at the museum on April 4 at 7 p.m. (doors open at 6:30 p.m).

The event will feature scrumptious soul food and include a DJ who will be spinning hits by Macon musicians for your dancing and listening pleasure. The event is $45 per person ($80 per couple), or $200 for a VIP Table for six guests. Register by contacting Georgia Writers Museum or www.georgiawritersmuseum.org. Pre-order your copy at GWM of "Something in the Water." Wynne will be signing books after his presentation.

Ben Wynne is a professor of History at the University of North Georgia. He specializes in the American South, Antebellum American Studies, and the Civil War Era. He is the author of multiple books related to Southern history and culture, including: "Something in the Water: A History of Music in Macon, Georgia, 1823-1980;" "The Man Who Punched Jefferson Davis: The Political Life of Henry S. Foote, Southern Unionist;" "In Tune: Charley Patton, Jimmie Rodgers, and the Roots of American Music;" "Mississippi's Civil War: A Narrative History," and "A Hard Trip: A History of the 15th Mississippi Infantry, CSA."

Wynne also has contributed entries to more than 20 encyclopedias and the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress.

Macon's history has an exceptional soundtrack, and "Something in the Water" provides a lively narrative of the city's musical past. For generations, talented musicians have been born in or passed through Macon. From its pioneer origins to the modern era, the city has produced waves of talent with amazing consistency, representing a wide range of musical genres — country, classical, jazz, blues, big band, soul and rock.

The story of music in Macon includes a vast, eclectic cast of characters, such as the city's first music "celebrity" Sidney Lanier, entertainment entrepreneur Charles Douglass, jazz-age divas Lucille Hegamin and Lula Whidby, big band singers Betty Barclay and the Pickens Sisters, rock and roll founding father "Little Richard" Penniman, rhythm and blues icons James Brown and Otis Redding, local country star Eugene "Uncle Ned" Stripling, Capricorn Records founders Phil Walden and Frank Fenter, and the Allman Brothers Band, one of the most popular groups of the rock era.

The book also offers a treatment of Macon's leading entertainment venues, both past and present, like Ralston Hall, the Grand Opera House, and the Douglass Theatre.

Music lovers are to come and listen, eat, and dance to an evening of great music and its captivating history.