Alabama Music Hall of Fame
THE SHOALS – It’s bee a rough couple of years, to say the least for The Alabama Music Hall of Fame. The building is closed. It is in need of repairs. There’s no money for any of this because the State of Alabama cut off funding several years ago.
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Wiley Barnard – Resigns AMHOF
And now, Wiley Bernard, brought in as David Johnson’s replacement, has handed in his resignation. This has been coming for a while, an inside source told The Quad-Cities Daily. Bernard was to have had contacts who would help with monetary support. He was to expected to create a viable plan for the resurrection of the attraction. But that did not happen.
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Sources who know say the odds are almost insurmountable. In addition to the poor physical condition of the building there are political forces at work. Our source says that at least two other locations, Huntsville and Baldwin County are lobbying to have the Hall of Fame relocated to their locations. The Board of Directors is evaluating the proposals.
Board of Directors member, Norbert Putnam, tendered his resignation 2 weeks ago, the same time that they were made aware of Bernard’s desire to leave his post.
5 comments
Great job guys.We lost something that was iconic in our area due to mismanagement of funds and a lack of seeking out MAINSTREAM talent to come and put on great shows. I have no respect for anyone that was involved in the management of the Hall of Fame, nor do many of the musicians and people i talk with. I bet you guys really feel like idiots, especially since the successful release of The Shoals documentary. You should do us all a favor and dont participate in ANYTHING that has ANYTHING to do with something of importance, i.e. any political offices, community serving, OR anything that has to do with the heritage of our area. I personally think your a bunch of crooks and old timers who are stuck in the 70’s…:). Say what you will also, i could care less about ANY comments directed to me from anyone and ESPECIALLY any of the involved….after all, your the idiots who cant add and subtract. Peace.- JSmoke
No one fought for the Hall of Fame…you all gave up.
The Politics in Alabama are trying to send a message that Alabama is closed to growth. If it does not put money in their personal coffers it is DOA. They did however find in their goodness to pass a bill that allows cooperations to give unlimited contributions to them. Meanwhile public services and State Treasures lay in ruin. Ask them why and challenge their greed
Nonprofits of all kinds are struggling. The economic crash hit them very hard. There are too many of them in this area to have strong enough boards to get the job done. The only one that seems to be doing well is Safeplace and that’s because (1) certain people have worked their butts off for over 30 years now; (2) they started getting federal grants early on which were supported by the local governments. Anyone out there who knows how to do this could step up and apply to be executive director or volunteer on the board of directors for the Music Hall of Fame. It’s thankless work. And you have to do it because you believe in it and you love it, or you will never get there. It isn’t Wiley Barnard’s fault. It’s never one person’s faults. It’s a lot of things that come down to persistence and patience that can result in MONEY.
Move it where you want to..it should always be located here in the Shoals. JSmoke nailed it. . I dont know the whole story and none of us ever will. This area has been left in the cold for some reason. The HOF was a shining star for the Shoals and Alabama. I personally cant think of a better location. Hwy 72 with thousands of out of town travelers everyday …I mean its a no brainier. I’ve said this a thousand times. The people who booked the shows seemed to try and cater to the taste of music for the Shoals area instead of bringing in some big names ,current popular music that draws no matter where they are .It would have been a money maker if the right shows were put on. No one in the Shoals seems to want to progress they talk about doing things but always fall short because they are afraid to let people enjoy life. I grew up in Colbert County ,I played in the fields where the HOF stands I delivered news papers in the area across the highway from it I was in a band who played a fundraiser to help with the start of the HOF….we raised a couple grand . I am a local musician and it hurts me to think that Muscle Shoals and Alabama music wont be represented in the part of the state where it all started. .