House O’ Pain

This is the Lucy’s origin story. Host and shop owner Mary Mancini sits down with Don & April Kendall of House O’ Pain, also known as the other two “tolerant, accessible adult role model[s]” who ran the place, to talk about how, with a whole lot of love, luck, and perseverance, they turned a small, independent record shop into a safe harbor and an essential destination for local and touring punk and indie bands.

In the summer of 1992 Donnie and April had already been booking all-ages punk shows for a couple of years and had built a loyal following of teenagers hungry for live music and a place to just “be.” Mary had just opened Lucy’s Record Shop to sell 12” dance vinyl and LPs from independent bands to customers hungry for music you couldn’t find anywhere else in town.

A few months later the two worlds would collide when Donnie and April accidentally stumbled onto Lucy’s. Call it fate, call it destiny, call it whatever you want, when the Kendalls walked into that small shop on Church Street, something in the universe clicked into place and forever changed the trajectory of Nashville’s underground music scene – and many, many lives.

Don & April Kendall booked shows, published a ‘zine, and ran a record label all under the umbrella of House O’ Pain. Don played guitar in legendary Nashville punk bands Rednecks In Pain, Fun Girls from Mt. Pilot, and Booby Hatch. Together they own a small business in Nashville and are the proud parents of Samantha, a certified athletic trainer, and Griffin, a member of The United States Marine Corps.

Music
“So I Hear You’re Moving” – Lambchop
“Hold A Grudge” – Fun Girls From Mt. Pilot
“Jenny’s Little Crisis” – Rednecks In Pain
“Tour Song” – Jawbreaker
“Link” – Boobyhatch

Additional Links
Brad Talbott
Jim Ridley
“A Dog’s Life: The Times of Lucy’s Record Shop,” by Jim Ridley, Nashville Scene, January 29, 1998

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