ATLRetro

by Melanie Crew
Managing Editor/Contributing Writer

Hey all you Retro Atlanta kiddies! Start some new holiday traditions this year and let Retro Atlanta guide the way! Whether you’re lookin’ to escape or just needing to get out and breathe, we’ve got a cornucopia of holiday rockin’ fun lined up that will fill you to the brim with giddy! So, come on out and get Retro rockin’ holiday-style!

Monday, November 24

Don’t let the Monday blues keep you down! 529 gets rockin’ with The Gotobeds, Onchi and The Marrows! Rock out with Freddy Mercury at Regal Hollywood Stadium 24 as they deliver QUEEN ROCK MONTREAL 1981 CONCERT (1981) at 7pm! Or spend the day with John Wayne and Kirk Douglas at the Charles D. Switzer Library in Marietta at their screening of Burt Kennedy’s THE WAR WAGON (1967)! Get funky and groove on down to Café 290 every second and fourth Monday of the month for a taste of Bumpin the Mango, ‘The groove that makes you want to move!’ Blues it up at Blind Willie’s with Barrelhouse Bob Page! Boogie on down to the Northside Tavern and spend an evening with Lola at her famous Monday Night Northside Jam! And blues on down to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for a taste of the Pork Belly’s and a plate full ‘o finger lickin’ BBQ!

Tuesday, November 25

Spend an evening with Eric Johnson (rockin’ since ’69) and Mike Stern during their Eclectic Guitar show, bringing together rock and jazz guitar at the Variety Playhouse! The Alliance Theatre gets retro Dickens-style while celebrating 25 years of their “A Christmas Carol” performances, Scrooge-ing through Dec. 24! Or swing those hips on down to the Fox Theatre for “Dirty Dancing”, cha-cha’ing through Nov. 30! Rock out at Eddie’s Attic with Ed Roland & the Sweet Tea Project! The Hollidays deliver some rhythm and soul at Blind Willie’s! Get adventurous with Harrison Ford at CineBistro at Town Brookhaven during their “Cineclassics 2014” screening of Steven Spielberg’s, INDIANA JONES AND THE RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK(1981) at 6:30pm! Sweet Georgia’s Juke Joint gets rockin’ with a little Chicago/Delta blues of The Breeze Kings! The Star Bar delivers a night of retro shenanigans with Kool Kat Jeff Clark and Stomp & Stammer’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Trivia at 8pm, followed by ‘80s Dance Night! Jam it up with Joe Gransden and his jazz jam session at Twain’s in Decatur every Tuesday at 9 pm! Or boogie on down to Darwin’s Burgers & Blues in Marietta for a taste of Bill Sheffield’s acoustic roots and blues! And The Entertainment Crackers get bluesy with their folksy Americana at the Northside Tavern!

Wednesday, November 26

It’s a night of Turkey-Eve ‘70s soft rock shenanigans with Yacht Rock Revue at the Fox Theatre! The Family Dog delivers a night of groovy psychedelic rock with Gimme Hendrix! Get jazzy with Frank Barham at the Elliott Street Pub! Get funky with Zack Deputy at Eddie’s Attic! It’s a hootenanny and a half at The Star Bar as they get smokin’ during their Slim Chicken Honky-tonk Extravaganza, featuring live-band old-time country and western tunes! Slip on into some ‘90s rockin’ blues at Atlanta Symphony Hall with Melissa Etheridge! The Electromatics deliver a night of Chicago and West Coast blues at Blind Willie’s! Fat Matt’s Rib Shack gets the blues with Frankie’s Blues Mission! Or make your way to the Northside Tavern as Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck fires it up with his rockin’ blues! And as always, it’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd.

Thursday, November 27

If the family’s too much, rock out retro Turkey-Day style! Bring your appetite and make your way to The Earl for BoogadaBoogadaBoogada’s rockin’ Screeching Weasel tribute and Salts! And get a second helping of turkey with our pals at Pallookaville during their 2nd Annual Orphan’s Feast at 6pm! Hula on down to Trader Vic’s for a night of cool island tunes and a couple Mai Tais! Stagger on over to Noni’s Bar & Deli for their Bitter Heroes event featuring DJ Brian Parris as he gets charmingly morose with a little New-Wave, The Smiths and The Cure! The Northside Tavern gets rockin’ with a little Chicago/Delta blues of The Breeze Kings! Get your boogie on at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack, as Chickenshack featuring Eddie Tigner, delivers some honky-tonk blues! Darwin’s Burgers & Blues gets down and dirty at their Blues Jam hosted by The Cazanovas! And as always, boogie down at Mary’s, as the East Atlanta venue gets funky with their weekly Disco in the Village.

Friday, November 28

Escape Black Friday at The Star Bar as they rock out ‘70s and ‘80s style with Rumours (Fleetwood Mac tribute), Departure (Journey tribute) and Ziggy Stardust (Bowie tribute)! Get Sci-Fi retro with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and their POPS: Sci-Fi Spectacular, featuring their renditions of scores from STAR WARS, E.T. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS and more, led by Conductor Jack Everly and narrated by the one and only, George Takei, running through Nov. 29! Have a haughty laugh at the Alliance Theatre during the world premiere of Dad’s Garage Theatre Company’s “It’s a Wonderful Laugh”, parodying the classic with a little raunchy humor and adult shenanigans, through Dec. 20! Denim Arcade with Kool Kat Becky Cormier Finch and Rock Vault deliver a night of rockin’ covers from the ‘70s through the ‘90s at Craze Tavern in Duluth! Punk down to 529 for a night with GHB, NOTS and Zoners! Swing on by Rays on the River for an evening with Joe Gransden! It’s a hard rock life at The Plaza Theater as they screen Bob Nalbandian’s INSIDE METAL: THE PIONEERS OF LOS ANGELES HARD ROCK & METAL (2014), a documentary about the founding fathers of the genre! It’s a night of retro rock at the Red Light Café with their annual Glenn Phillips Day-After Thanksgiving Show, joined by Cindy Wilson of the B-52s! Folk it up at Eddie’s Attic with Ellis Paul’s CD release show, with special guest Chris Trapper! Stomp on down to Smith’s Olde Bar for a rowdy night with the Darnell Boys, Caitlin Andrews and Lily Rose Williamson! The Crimson Moon Café delivers a cello/guitar eclectic orchestra with Montana Skies! Boogie on down into Disco Hell at The Family Dog as DJ Quasi Mandisco delivers a night of classic funk, soul and disco the last Friday of every month! Get ready for the holidays at the Gwinnett Center during the Northeast Atlanta Ballet’s presentation of “The Nutcracker” through Nov. 30! Get folksy with Family & Friends and Faye Webster at Vinyl! Get funky with Biscuit Miller & the Mix at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! Fat Matt’s Rib Shack delivers a night of rockin’ soul and blues with Rumblefish! Make your way to the Toco Hill-Avis G. Williams Library and catch Carroll Ballard’s classic, THE BLACK STALLION(1979) at 1:30pm! Blues it up at Northside Tavern with Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck and the Atlanta Horns! Blind Willie’s gets bluesy with House Rocker Johnson & the Shadows! And as always, Time-Warp it up and get naughty with some uber musically-inclined transsexual aliens at The Plaza Theater as they continue their tradition of screening THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW(1975) every Friday night, featuring the live cast of Lips Down on Dixie at midnight!

Saturday, November 29

The Earl delivers a night of ‘90s alt rock and ‘70s power pop infused rock with Cracker and The Head! Get your garage rock fix at the Masquerade with Rad-isaurus Rex, The Mumzees and Femignome! It’s a hard-knock life at the Charles D. Switzer Library in Marietta, so come on by for their screening of John Huston’s classic, ANNIE(1982) at 3pm! Or make your way to the Powder Springs Public Library in Powder Springs for their screening of Vincente Minnelli’s MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944) at 3pm! Get funky with Count M’Butu and The Mar-Tans at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! Rock out at the Tabernacle with The 1975, CRUISR and Young Rising Sons! Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs pays tribute to Fleetwood Mac with White Winged Dove! Folk it up at the Variety Playhouse with Shawn Mullins! Get your second helping of Ellis Paul and Chris Trapper at Eddie’s Attic! Honky-tonk on down to Smith’s Olde Bar for a night with Convoy, Owner of the Sun and WWAYLON& the Real Americans! Get folksy at the Crimson Moon Café with Emerald Rose! Coverboy delivers a night of rockin’ covers at Front Page News in Midtown! Get the blues at Blind Willie’s with Big Bill Morganfield! Swagger on over to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for a night of Kansas City and West Coast blues with Atlanta Boogie! Blues it up at Northside Tavern with Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck and the Atlanta Horns! And as always, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Sunday, November 30

Get your hellish holiday shopping done early while supporting neighborhood artists at the Euclid Avenue Yacht Club (EAYC) during their “Lovecrafts: Treasures from the Deep” event from 2 to 7pm! The hills are alive with Robert Wise’s THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965) at Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta/Duluth) during their matinee screening at 2pm! Get your second helping of Cracker at The Earl! The Kris Youmans Band bluegrasses it up at Smith’s Olde Bar during their Bluegrass Brunch! Eliot Bronson delivers a little garage, polka and folk at the Crimson Moon Café! And blues it up at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack with Tony Bryant!

Ongoing

The Strand Theatre’s Lumiere Piano Bar & Lounge, featuring classic silent films quietly flickering in the background, accompanied by a live pianist and tasty cocktails, runs through Dec. 20!

TheAlliance Theatre gets retro Dickens-style with their “A Christmas Carol”, getting Scrooge-y through Dec. 24!

Center for Puppetry Arts adapts Larry Roemer’s classic, RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER (1964) through Dec. 28!

Museum of Design Atlanta(MODA) exhibits 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair through Jan. 4!

The Marietta Museum of History gets Victorian as they present their “Peeling Back the Layers: Victorian Wedding Ensembles” exhibit through May 2, 2015!

William Bremen Jewish Heritage Museum’s, “Where the Wild Things Are: Maurice Sendek in His Own Words and Pictures” getting wild through July 5!

HepCat’s Hopgets swingin’ every first Wednesday of the month at the 57th Fighter Group Restaurant!

Nerd Film Mafiascreenings at theDiesel Fueling Station following NerdCore Trivia, every last Tuesday of the month!

ICON 80s: Music Video Dance Night rocks out at the Famous Pub every Friday night with a different 80’s theme!

The Star Bar delivers Stomp & Stammer’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Trivia at 8pm, followed by ‘80s Dance Nightat 10pm, every Tuesday!

Steve’s Live Music’s Gypsy Jazz Brunch offers up a plate of Hot Club jamming and Parisian Swing with Kool Kat Amy Pike and the Bonaventure Quartet from 12:30 to 3:30 pm every 2^nd & 4^th Sunday!

Boogie on down into Disco Hell at The Family Dog as DJ Quasi Mandisco delivers a night of classic funk, soul and disco the last Friday of every month.

The Plaza Theater Time-Warps it up as they screen, THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW(1975) every Friday night, featuring the live cast ofLips Down on Dixie at midnight!

Every first and third Mondays are Big Band Nights at Café 290, featuring Joe Gransden and his amazing 16-piece orchestra playing jazz and swing standards in the tradition of The Glen Miller Orchestra and other legendary groups.  Second and fourth Mondays are Bumpin the Mango, ‘The groove that makes you want to move!’

Every first Wednesday is the Graveyard Tavern’s Graveyard Swing Night, featuring the swingin’ jazz and boogie-woogie sounds of the Savoy Kings!

If you have a suggestion for a future event that should be included in This Week in Retro Atlanta or see something we missed, please email us at atlretro@gmail.com.