They made music that inspired legions of fans. Rock 'n' roll founding fathers Chuck Berry and Fats Domino, rockers Tom Petty and Gregg Allman, grunge icon Chris Cornell, country superstar Glen Campbell and jazz great Al Jarreau were among the notable figures who died in 2017, leaving a void in virtually every genre of music.

2. The Rest of the August Ballot - Saturday, July 9, 2016

If all goes according to plan on the Aug. 4 election day, Linda Phillips hopes the result is that you don’t see her in any of the reporting on election night.

3. Back to Work - Friday, January 11, 2013

The Shelby County legislative delegation to Nashville returned to the capital Tuesday, Jan. 8, with three fewer members – one state senator and two state representatives – all Democrats – but with no new faces.

4. County Sees 21.6 Pct. Voter Turnout - Monday, August 6, 2012

Slightly less than 127,000 Shelby County residents – or 21.6 percent of 584,443 registered voters – cast ballots in the Aug. 2 elections.

The turnout in early voting and election day combined was a higher percentage than the 15 percent turnout four years ago in the same election cycle, but it was well below the 44-year high of 39.4 percent set in the August 1992 elections.

5. Muni Schools Questions Pass, Cohen Wins Big - Friday, August 3, 2012

Voters in each of the six suburban towns and cities in Shelby County approved establishing municipal school districts in the unofficial results of the Thursday, Aug. 2, county general and state and federal primary elections.

6. Muni Schools, Cohen, Weirich, Johnson, Stanton, Kyle Take Early Vote - Friday, August 3, 2012

Voters in each of the six suburban towns and cities in Shelby County were overwhelmingly approving the establishment of municipal school districts and a half cent sales tax hike to fund them in the first vote totals released Thursday, Aug. 2 by the Shelby County Election Commission.

7. Democrats Hoping to Win Some Seats in Primary - Tuesday, July 31, 2012

NASHVILLE (AP) – Tennessee Democrats are looking at Thursday's primary as a critical step in the rebuilding urged by an internal analysis last year.

Since 2006, Democrats have lost 19 seats in the House and three seats in the Senate, placing them firmly in the minority of the two chambers. Another nine Democratic incumbents announced earlier this year they weren't running again.

8. Numerous Issues Drive Early Voting - Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Republicans have the suburban ballot questions on municipal school districts. Democrats have outrage over the voter photo ID state law.

Together the two factors could have more to do with voter turnout in the Aug. 2 elections than any of the candidates on the ballot.

9. New District Lines Lead to New Races - Monday, April 9, 2012

“This time I waited to be sure,” Ian Randolph said just before the Thursday, April 5, deadline for candidates to file in the Aug. 2 elections.

10. Cohen-Hart in Congressional Race at Filing Deadline - Friday, April 6, 2012

The chairman of the countywide school board, Billy Orgel, was effectively elected to his District 7 school board seat without opposition at the Thursday, April 5, filing deadline for candidates on the Aug. 2 primary and general election ballot in Shelby County.

11. House OKs New Restrictions on Abortion Doctors - Friday, March 30, 2012

NASHVILLE (AP) – A bill that puts new restrictions on doctors who perform abortions is intended to make it more difficult for women to get the procedure in Tennessee, opponents of the legislation said Thursday.

12. Deadline Looms for Complex Aug. Elections - Thursday, March 29, 2012

The August elections were already going to be more complex than usual. There are the changes from this year’s drawing of new district lines for the Tennessee Legislature and the U.S. House of Representatives.

13. Medical Marijuana Bill Advances in Tenn. House - Wednesday, March 28, 2012

NASHVILLE (AP) – A proposal to legalize medical marijuana is advancing in the state House.

The House Health Subcommittee approved the measure on a voice vote on Tuesday after similar measures had quickly failed in previous years.

14. Following Primary, Races Point to August - Monday, March 12, 2012

Two days after all the votes were counted in the Tennessee presidential primary, state Republican Party leaders had already worked out how many of the state’s at-large delegates would go to their top three candidates.

15. Memphis Democrats Squeezed in State Redistricting Plan - Thursday, January 5, 2012

Tennessee Senate Democratic leader Jim Kyle of Memphis and Republican state Sen. Brian Kelsey of Germantown are in the same Senate district under a redistricting proposal unveiled by Republican legislative leaders Wednesday, Jan. 4, in Nashville.

16. Memphis Democrats Squeezed in State Redistricting Plan - Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Tennessee Senate Democratic leader Jim Kyle of Memphis and Republican state Sen. Brian Kelsey of Germantown are in the same Senate district under a redistricting proposal unveiled by Republican legislative leaders Wednesday, Jan. 4, in Nashville.

17. Old Forest Goes New - Tuesday, June 28, 2011

A group of 15 citizens forming an Overton Park conservancy hopes to take a plan to the Memphis City Council by Labor Day.

The group holds the second of two public comment sessions Tuesday, June 28, at 5 p.m. at the Memphis College of Art, in Overton Park.

18. Words Chosen Carefully in Schools Standoff - Thursday, February 3, 2011

The best indication of just how carefully Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam chose his words this week in the schools standoff is in the very different interpretations of the comments in the Memphis and Shelby County political community.

19. Shelby Democratic Legislators Without Details on Schools Legislation - Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Republican state legislators from Shelby County didn’t show Tuesday for a meeting of the legislative delegation at City Hall with local elected leaders on the schools standoff.

And they wouldn’t divulge any details about changes they plan to make to fast tracked legislation that would lengthen the process for a consolidation of the county’s two public school systems and require the participation of county voters outside Memphis in any schools consolidation referendum.

20. Bredesen Bill on Restaurant Calorie Counts Fails - Thursday, May 7, 2009

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Gov. Phil Bredesen's proposal to require calorie counts on menus at chain restaurants in Tennessee has failed for the year.

The proposal carried by House Democratic Caucus Chairman Mike Turner of Old Hickory was sent to a summer study committee by the Public Health and Family Assistance Subcommittee on Tuesday.

21. Legislature Wades Into Lending Regulation Waters - Monday, April 20, 2009

Several bills are pending in both houses of the Tennessee General Assembly with support from Memphis-area lawmakers that propose new or updated rules for a specific corner of the financial services industry.

22. Events - Friday, February 6, 2009

The Alliance for Nonprofit Excellence will hold a workshop titled “Making the Message Work: Strategic Communications 101” today from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Alliance office, 5100 Poplar Ave., Suite 502. The facilitator will be Jennifer Leigh, who will discuss how to communicate effectively with members, donors and other constituents with a small marketing and communication budget. For more information or reservations, call 684-6605 or visit www.npexcellence.org.

23. Tenn. Birth Certificate Bill Taken Off Notice - Wednesday, April 16, 2008

NASHVILLE (AP) - A proposal that would require individuals to amend their birth certificates following a sex change likely has failed this session.

The measure sponsored by Rep. Jeanne Richardson, a Memphis Democrat, was taken off notice in the House Health and Human Resources Committee on Tuesday.

24. Few Surprises At Filing Deadline - Monday, April 7, 2008

About half of Shelby County's delegation to the Tennessee Legislature won re-election at Thursday's filing deadline for candidates on the Aug. 7 ballot.

Eight of the 16 state House seats had only one candidate - the incumbent. And all three of the state Senate seats on the ballot were incumbent-only affairs.

25. Primaries Heat Up as Filing Deadline Passes - Friday, April 4, 2008
The race for the Memphis 9th Congressional District seat will have no Republican contenders.

At Thursday’s deadline for candidates to file in the Aug. 7 state and Congressional primaries, no Republicans had filed for the GOP primary.

26. Primaries Heat Up as Filing Deadline Passes - Thursday, April 3, 2008
The race for the Memphis 9th Congressional District seat will have no Republican contenders.

At today’s deadline for candidates to file in the Aug. 7 state and Congressional primaries, no Republicans had filed for the GOP primary.

27. Richardson Becomes MemberOf State House - Monday, July 30, 2007
     Jeanne Richardson of Memphis joined the Tennessee House of Representatives Thursday.
     Richardson, who headed a mental health center in Memphis for 10 years before becoming a consultant fo

28. Jeanne Richardson Becomes Member of State House - Friday, July 27, 2007

NASHVILLE (AP) - Jeanne Richardson of Memphis joined the Tennessee House of Representatives on Thursday.

Richardson, who headed a mental health center in Memphis for 10 years before becoming a consultant for nonprofit agencies, was sworn in by Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Janice Holder in the House chamber.

29. City Council Races Overflow With 83 Candidates Filing - Monday, July 23, 2007

It's the year of the open seat on the Memphis City Council.

With seven incumbents not running for re-election and the resignation last month of an eighth, it is already the biggest turnover of council seats in the 40-year history of the mayor-council form of government.

30. Morris Field Director Seizes Opportunity With Clinton Camp - Friday, June 29, 2007

For years, she'd courted local votes for candidates running for everything from the Shelby County Commission to Memphis mayor to the U.S. House of Representatives. Then, opportunity knocked - loudly.

31. Richardson, Wicker Advance in District 89 Primaries - Monday, June 4, 2007

Jeanne Richardson and Dave Wicker Jr. advanced Thursday to a July 17 general election showdown for the State House District 89 seat.

Richardson won the Democratic primary and Wicker captured the Republican primary in the low turnout special elections. Only 1,178 of the district's 33,000 registered voters cast ballots either on election day or during early voting.

32. District 89 Looks Toward Election Day - Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Fewer than 500 citizens have cast early ballots in the special primary elections for State House District 89.

The vast majority of those 443 votes were cast in the Democratic primary, according to Shelby County Election Commission statistics available Tuesday. Saturday was the final day of early voting.