Skinny Dennis Nashville Plots Grand Opening

A second location of the iconic Brooklyn honky tonk “Skinny Dennis” will be celebrating its Grand Opening on March 1st in Nashville. Located at 2635 Gallatin Pike in East Nashville, it promises to be the neighborhood’s next hot spot, with a full slate of Nashville and national talent already set on the calendar.

Tony Hannah, The Cowpokes, Hannah Juanita, and Timbo are all scheduled to perform on March 1st, with FREE admission for the opening day, and a special appearance by the notorious Cornbread Cowboi. The Skinny Dennis is located less than a mile from the American Legion Post 82, and Grimeys Music for those that know the area. Folks are encouraged to take rideshares due to limited parking.

Also scheduled to perform at the Skinny Dennis in the coming weeks and months are Willi Carlisle, The Deslondes, Jesse Daniel, Vincent Neil Emerson, Emily Nenni, Kristina Murray, Lola Kirke, and many more, with Chris Scruggs and the Stone Fox Five appearing on Sundays.

The original Skinny Dennis opened in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn at 152 Metropolitan Ave. in 2013 as a Texas-inspired honky tonk, giving country fans and musicians both locally and nationally a place to feel at home. For many years traditional country artist Zephaniah OHora has been the talent booker for Skinny Dennis, and after moving to Nashville, set out to open a second location.

The Nashville Skinny Dennis is a bigger venue, with more amenities for performers as well. OHora and others designed it with artists in mind. The 5,600-sqft space includes a dance floor, game room, and backyard. It will host live music nightly.

For more information and to purchase tickets to events, visit the Skinny Dennis Nashville Instagram Page.

The Skinny Dennis is named after bass player Skinny Dennis Sanchez who plays a big role in Outlaw country lore. Standing 6’11” and weighing only 137 pounds, he was the bass player for Guy Clark out in Los Angeles, and was also friends with Townes Van Zandt, Rodney Crowell, Steve Earle, Richard Dobson, and others. He died on stage in 1975 at the age of 28 due to heart failure while playing with John Malcolm Penn.

Though the public didn’t know much about Skinny Dennis initially, he was memorialized in Guy Clark’s 1975 version of his song “L.A. Freeway” where Clark sang, “Here’s to you ol’ Skinny Dennis, the only one I think I will miss.” The iconic Outlaw country documentary Heartworn Highway was also dedicated to the bass player.