The history of a people is found in its songs

Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee

Visiting Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, was an almost spiritual moment for me. This tiny building nurtured some of the most famous and some of the most talented musicians in the country. Elvis Presley made his first recording here. Johnny Cash was a regular. Blues artists like Howlin' Wolf and BB King recorded here. And the studio even claims to have pressed the very first rock and roll single in 1951. Standing in the room where so much amazing music was laid down for posterity gave me chills in the best possible way.

Recording room at Sun Studio

The origins of much of the blues and rock and roll sound came from the Mississippi river and its numerous, often seedy juke joints. Only a handful of such places still survive, many of them in the tiny Mississippi town of Clarksdale, where you can stay in an old plantation then drive into town for live music and a few beers late into the night.

Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale, Missisippi

Further south still, in the Louisiana town of Lafayette, Zydeco and Cajun music abounds. My boyfriend and I stayed in the Blue Moon Saloon and Guesthouse, which has a bar and stage downstairs. Even on a Wednesday, a night open to all musicians who want to join in on the Cajun Jam, the place was packed with people dancing.

Blue Moon Saloon in Lafayette, Louisiana

One of the more unusual places I stayed was a town called Mountain View in northwest Arkansas. It bills itself as the Folk Music Capital of the World, and you are hard-pressed to find a porch or a corner of the town without someone plucking a guitar or playing a fiddle.

Jimmy Driftwood Barn in Mountain View, Arkansas

The town is totally dry - no alcohol allowed - so instead the old timers gather in places like Jimmy Driftwood Barn to listen to local musicians. It was a delightful experience, albeit a tad surreal at times, and totally free.

Sadly they did not perform "Kiss at the End of the Rainbow" from "A Mighty Wind"

As I was winding the trip down and heading back to New York, I had one more must-see musical stop to make. The Motown Historical Museum in Detroit, site of Berry Gordy's apartment and Motown's first recording studio. Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, the Supremes, the Jackson Five and many more all recorded songs here. And while the museum doesn't allow photographs inside the old studio itself, just being allowed to stand there was reward enough.

Motown Historical Museum in Detroit, Michigan