If You Talk Like That, People Will Call You Crazy: A Sneak Peek at This Week’s Silver Scream Spookshow & the Wacky Wonderful World of Being Jon Waterhouse

Posted on: Jan 27th, 2011 By:

Silver Scream Spookshow Presents FRANKENSTEIN (Universal, 1931); Dir. James Whale; Starring Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Mae Clarke; Plaza Theatre, Jan. 29., 2010, 1 p.m. kids matinee & 10 p.m. adult show

You know him as the “Retch,” lovable, laughable sidekick to Professor Morte at the Silver Scream Spookshow. Or if you don’t, you’ve missed out on one of the most creative collaborations in Atlanta—an ATLRetro five-star must-see.

Like the Frankenstein monster who will haunt the Plaza’s big screen this week, Shane Morton raised the old-time live and TV spookshow from the dead, putting Atlanta on the map as having one of the nation’s most active classic horror scenes (watch for a feature on Plaza twisted sister Splatter Cinema in the next few weeks). Before the movie, audiences are tricked and treated to a manic one-of-a-kind variety show featuring magic tricks, fun-filled frights and song & dance inspired also by the zany spirit of the PEE-WEE HERMAN SHOW. But Shane couldn’t have done it without unearthing a terrifying, titillating and talented team of cast-members such as Nick Morgan (Mumbobo the witch doctor, the conspiring Dr. Wertham), Amy Dumas (Pandora the spooksmodel), Gayle Thrower Rej (Persephone, spooksmodel in training), Nick Hood (rock ‘n’ rollin’ Frankenstein “all the way from Horrorwood, Karloffornia!”), the gorgeous guys and ghouls of Blast-Off Burlesque, and Waterhouse.

ATLRetro caught up with Jon recently and asked him what it’s like to costar in one of the city’s coolest creations, as well as what the multi-talented, self-described “ADD personified” writer/actor/musician/DJ/rasslin’ manager is up to with regard to his numerous other projects.

Read the rest of this entry »

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Kool Kat of the Week: Jonathan Williams Wrestles with Pop Culture at One Rowdy, Rockin’ First Anniversary Party Wed. March 28

Posted on: Mar 21st, 2012 By:

Professor Morte puts a choke hold on Jonathan Williams. Photo courtesy of Wrestling with Pop Culture.

When our BFF blog Wrestling with Pop Culture (WPC) decided to throw a one-year anniversary party on Wed. March 28 at The Masquerade, ATLRetro couldn’t help but get excited because Jonathan Williams, the mad mastermind behind our second favorite Atlanta-based pop culture blog, is the absolute personifcation of one Kool Kat. Long before either of us took that leap of faith to pull the trigger on our own projects, we found ourselves hanging together at those media receptions, dinners and openings that us freelance writers call breakfast, lunch, dinner and happy hour – that fine line that   keeps us from being “starving” artists more often than we’d like to admit.

Now we’d support anything Jonathan & WPC did, but we’ve got to admit that he’s put together one helluva birthday party. One of the sweetest, glammest Kool Kats ever, Amber Taylor, is hosting! Death is a Dialogue and Needeep are rocking! Monstrosity Championship Wrestling hosted by our favorite Ghost Host with the Most, Professor Morte of the Silver Scream Spookshow! And it’s the official after-party of the Atlanta Film Festival‘s screening of Platinum Championship Wrestling documentary THE BOOKER! Luchador face and body-painting! Raffle! Chambers of Horror photo booth! Wrestling photographer Jay Taylor!

OK, we’d better shut up now and let Jonathan fill you in about WPC’s secret origins, more about the crazy party action and how it all came together, and what else he’s up to. All of which makes us think we need to get busy planning our own ATLRetro first birthday shindig – now that the bar has been set, stay tuned, kids…

Why did you decide to pull the trigger on Wrestling with Pop Culture?

I’ve been a freelance entertainment journalist for several years and have written for local publications like The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Creative Loafing, as well as national publications such as Gothic Beauty and Pro Wrestling Illustrated. But the most fun I ever has as a writer was when I was interning as a college student for Sideshow magazine. That was a free monthly that Jon Waterhouse did, and it covered all aspects of pop culture, from music and movies to pro wrestling and comic books. While I have had the opportunity to write about some cool stuff since Sideshow folded up its tent, I’ve never found another publication that covers the kookier side of pop culture the way that magazine did.

A couple of years ago, when the economy started to tank and freelance work became more and more scarce, I started thinking about starting my own publication. With online media taking over much of the readership that used to rely on print publications, I thought starting a website would be the cheapest and easiest way to go. I also knew that I wanted to focus on professional wrestling in a way that I had never seen any other publication do. It seems like most mainstream publications usually poke fun at wrestling, and traditional wrestling magazines focus solely on what happens in the wrestling world without exploring wrestling’s connections to other forms of entertainment.

From its earliest days as a carnival sideshow attraction through its territorial days, when wrestling made a name for itself across the country with regional TV shows, to the current WWE-dominated scene that allows wrestlers to cross over into the mainstream as action heroes, musicians and other forms of entertainment, pro wrestling has been embedded in Americana and pop culture for decades. Wrestling with Pop Culture covers all these aspects of wrestling, as well as other forms of entertainment that appeal to people who are as fascinated with luchadores and the pageantry of this form of performance art as they are with B horror movies, rock ‘n’ roll, comic books and other like-minded aspects of pop culture.

Jonathan Williams with Stephanie Anderson from Neon Armour Body Painting. Photo courtesy of Wrestling with Pop Culture.

Who else is involved with Wrestling with Pop Culture?

I’ve had a lot of help getting WPC off the ground. Tessa Horehled from DriveaFasterCar.com really helped me with all the technical aspects of getting a website running. KRK Ryden, the artist best known for his work with Devo, designed the black-and-white version of the logo, which I think illustrates the wacky world I envisioned perfectly. Amber Taylor, who will be the host of my show, has provided continued technical support. And I have a few guest writers, including “The Human Hand Grenade” dany only, who also co-hosts Georgia Wrestling Now, to do movie reviews and things like that. Other than that, a large majority of the interviews and reviews you see on WPC are done by me. I’m also working on a comic strip, which will hopefully debut in the next few months, that will further explore the world Ryden helped create with his image.

It sounds like this party is going to be pretty awesome. How did everything fall into place?

I initially wanted to do something last August that incorporated live wrestling and a few rock bands, and concluded with a viewing of a WWE pay-per-view. That never materialized for various reasons, but as the first anniversary of WPC approached I thought about how I could try to pull off something like that again. I first contacted some potential sponsors and, thankfully, found some good ones early on. Pabst Blue Ribbon has been very supportive; then media outlets Creative Loafing and Scoutmob got involved. Things really started falling into place just a few weeks ago as the Atlanta Film Festival announced its screening of the Platinum Championship Wrestling documentary THE BOOKER on March 28. Since the Masquerade is right down the street from the Midtown Art Cinema, and since PCW runs shows there every month or so, I thought it would be a great venue for an event with wrestling and bands.

Can you tell us more about the bands and wrestling activities?

Death is a Dialogue and Needeep, [two] great bands who are also great at getting their names out there, both agreed to do the show. Although I wanted to take advantage of PCW’s fans being in the area that night, I actually wanted to do something a little different with the wrestling portion of the show. Last October, the Atlanta Zombie Apocalypse set up a wrestling ring in its parking lot to provide entertainment for the people waiting in the long lines to get in. I didn’t get to see either of those shows, but I heard from some of the PCW wrestlers that were involved that the promotion was Monstrosity Championship Wrestling and there were matches that included actual monsters, as well as a match that pitted a Bible-thumping Jesus freak against Satan himself. It turns out Prof. Morte from the Silver Scream SpookShow is somehow involved in this promotion, so I contacted him, and he agreed to do some monster wrestling matches at my event.

Also, Amber Taylor, whose band the Sexual Side Effects is playing another Atlanta Film Festival event at the Goat Farm the following night, where their new video will be premiering, also wanted to be part of the action. So since she’s sort of walking freak show unto herself, I decided to let her be the host of the whole thing. With additional sponsors like Criminal Records, Adrenaline Fitness and Ox’s Wrestling Ring Rentals, I feel like the event covers Atlanta’s pop culture scene in much the same way the website covers various aspects of pop culture. The Atlanta Film Festival has also made this event one of its official after-parties and PCW recently put out a challenge to MCW, so things just get more and more interesting by the day. And the Academy Theatre, where PCW has its matches every Friday night, is selling tickets for only $5 through this Friday. Otherwise, tickets are $8 in advance, $10 at the door or free for AFF pass holders.

And did we hear right that there’s face and body painting, artists, a raffle, something to do with those crazy maniacs from Chambers of Horror?

Other festivities include luchadore-inspired face and body painting from Neon Armour, raffle prizes from Adrenaline Fitness; Chocolate F/X; monster artist Dave Cook; Monster Joe Coffee, who also made the WPC T-shirts; and lots of other new stuff coming in each day. Chambers of Horror is also going to have a photo booth there, and local wrestling photographer Jay Taylor will be snapping pics.

Jonathan Williams of Wrestling with Pop Culture. Photo credit: Neda Abghari.

While Wrestling with Pop Culture is your big baby, what other writing projects are you up to right now?

In addition to keeping WPC from tapping out, I am also the Editor-in-Chief for The Creative Process, which is part of The Creatives Project. I still write a monthly art column for Stomp and Stammer called Sheer Art Attack, and I have weekly music contributions to Creative Loafing. I occasionally contribute to PWI and Drive a Faster Car, and I’m also working on some articles for the Miami New Times about all the WrestleMania festivities that will be taking place down there next week.

 

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This Week in ATLRetro, June 4-9, 2019

Posted on: Jun 3rd, 2019 By:

by Melanie Crew
Managing Editor

Come see what’s shakin’ in ATLRetro This Week!

Tuesday, June 4

Get rocked with rockabilly legend Tav Falco’s Panther Burns with Kool Kat Sen Artie Mondello and The Delusionaires at the Masquerade! The Landmark Midtown Art Cinema continues their new Classics Series with a screening of Terry Gilliam’s THE FISHER KING (1991) at 7pm! Garage rock it up with The Mystery Lights and Future Punx at 529! Prog rock it up with The Musical Box at Center Stage! The Lemonheads rock out at Terminal West with Tommy Stinson! Jam it up with Joe Gransden and his jazz jam session at Venkman’s! Get the blues with Electric Blues Express at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! The Star Bar delivers a night of retro shenanigans with DJ Quasi Mandisco’s Dance Party featuring retro-soul, funk, ‘80s, ‘90s and more! And as always, groove on down with Swami Gone Bananas at the Northside Tavern!

Wednesday, June 5

Swing noir it up with Bernadette Seacrest at Eddie’s Attic! The Highlander rocks out with Punk/Metal/New Wave Karaoke Night, every Wednesday! Celebrate 40 metalrific years of Vicious Rumors at 529 with Negative Wall and Black Candle! Get bewitched with a screening of David YatesHARRY POTTER & THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE (2009) at Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta/Duluth/Marietta) at 7:15pm! Catch a screening of Steven Spielberg’s SAVING PRIVATE RYAN (1998) at theatres across Atlanta [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Perimeter Pointe 10; Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); AMC Sugarloaf Mills 18 (Lawrenceville); Regal Mall of Georgia Stadium (Buford); AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; and Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta/Marietta)]! Skip school and catch a Flashback Cinema screening of John HughesFERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF (1986) at theatres across Atlanta [Northlake Festival Movie Tavern (Tucker); GTC Merchant’s Walk Cinemas (Marietta); Movie Tavern at Horizon Village (Suwannee); and The Springs Cinema & Taphouse (Sandy Springs)! Funk it up with the Mike Veal Band at Tin Roof Cantina! Get jazzy at the Red Light Café with The Gordon Vernick Quartet! Or make your way to the Northside Tavern for a rockin’ night of blues with the Tyler Neal Band! Fat Matt’s Rib Shack gets down with the Man in Black, Johnny Cash Now! And as always, it’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd.

Thursday, June 6

Geek it up at My Parents’ Basement at Jon Waterhouse’s “Star Wars Adventures” Comic Book Release Party at 7pm! Get adventurous and take back your town as hilarity ensues with Cineprov and their screening of John MiliusRED DAWN (1984) at The Plaza Theater at 7pm! Garage rock it up with Japan’s The Let’s Go’s and Tiger! Tiger! at The Earl! Get intergalactic as shenanigans ensue at theatres across Atlanta with RIFFTRAX LIVE taking on Mark Steve Grove’s STAR RAIDERS (1983) [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Perimeter Pointe 10; Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); AMC Sugarloaf Mills 18 (Lawrenceville); Regal Mall of Georgia Stadium (Buford); AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming); and AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow)]! The Historic Oakland Cemetery honors those who have served with their Flashlight Tours: Veterans of Oakland! The Star Bar kicks it in the Little Vinyl Lounge with Karaoke Night, every Thursday! Darkwave it up at Noni’s during their weekly DARK ROOM event, every Thursday! It’s Mai Tai Thursday at Trader Vic’s so get down with some island tunes and have some killer cocktails! 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 delivers some honky-tonk blues! And as always, boogie down at Mary’s, as the East Atlanta venue gets funky with their weekly Disco in the Village.

Friday, June 7

Get wicked ‘n’ weird with local artist Dirk Hays during his Born Weird Art Show Opening at Diesel Filling Station at 7pm [check out our Shop Around Feature of Hays here]! The Mable House Barnes Amphitheatre kicks off their Movies, Bands and Brew event with a performance by Jerome Newton & The Band Who Fell to Earth and a screening of Jim Henson’s LABYRINTH (1986), all starting at 7pm! Rev it up at Motorheads with Kool Kat Hot Rod Walt & The Psycho DeVilles! The Grindhouse Players present their adaptation of 2003 thriller PHONE BOOTH at Pulp Atlanta, through June 22! Departure pays tribute to Journey at the Dixie Tavern! Time-Warp it up 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, June 8

Haunt on down to the Historic Oakland Cemetery for the 9th annual Tunes from the Tombs (12p – 8pm), featuring 4 retro-tastic stages of live music! The Platform Main Stage gets down with She Returns from War, The Artisanals, Kool Kat Ruby Velle & The Soulphonics, and Futurebirds! Shakin’ on the Larken Underground  Stage will be the Distilled Butter Band, Mike Killeen, Kylie Odetta and The Harraway Brothers! The New Realm Beer Garden Acoustic Stage brings you Kylie Odetta, Caryn Lee Carter, She Returns from War and Mike Killeen! And you won’t want to miss what’s happening on the Bell Tower Buskers Stage featuring Octave, The Hills and The Holler, Serson Brannen and Nate Helfrich! Or get old-school with Kool Kat Rev. Andy Hawley and Garage71 during Vintage Fest at Timms Harley-Davidson celebrating the history of Harley Davidson, featuring Pin-Ups, old-school rides, vintage venders and live tunes with Atomic Boogie and V-8 Death Car! Or boogie down ‘80s-style with Kool Kat VJ Anthony during his ‘80s New Wave Music Video Dance Party at Amsterdam Atlanta! Catch a bloody double feature at the Ivy Wall Drive-In Theatre in Dacula with Alfred Hitchcock’s PSYCHO (1960) and Mary Harron’s AMERICAN PSYCHO (2000) at 9pm! Rev it up at Falcons Fury Harley Davidson with Kool Kat Hot Rod Walt & The Psycho DeVilles! And as always, DJ Romeo Cologne and DJ Kwasi Mandisco transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Sunday, June 9

Get down with Steve Earl & the Dukes at the Buckhead Theatre! Make your way to My Parents’ Basement for the final bazaar of the season, their June Bizarre Bazaar featuring local vendors, artists and more! Hey you guys! Why not catch a Flashback Cinema screening of Richard Donner’s ‘80s classic THE GOONIES (1986) at theatres across Atlanta [Northlake Festival Movie Tavern (Tucker); GTC Merchant’s Walk Cinemas (Marietta); Movie Tavern at Horizon Village (Suwannee); and The Springs Cinema & Taphouse (Sandy Springs)! Funk it up with Risky Biscuit at Tin Roof Cantina! Get sweet and low down blues-style at the Northside Tavern with Uncle Sugar!

Ongoing

The Grindhouse Players present their adaptation of 2003 thriller PHONE BOOTH at Pulp Atlanta, through June 22!

Darkwave it up at Noni’s during their weekly DARK ROOM event, every Thursday through July 26!

Haunt on down to the Aurora Theatre for Ghost Tours through Sept. 28!

ATL CRAFT presents a magical occult Movie Night every second Friday of every month!

My Parents’ Basement goes old-school with their monthly Pinball Tournament, every first Wednesday of the month!

Geek it up and get to bowlin’ at The Comet Pub & LanesComet Cosplay, getting nerdy the first Monday of every month!

Dad’s Garage’s Big Boozy Nerdy Game Night brings out the kid in you, every first Monday of the month at 7pm! 

Union EAV rocks out with their Punk Rock Karaoke ATL, and every last Tuesday of the month!

The Highlander rocks out with their Punk/Metal/New Wave Karaoke Night, every Wednesday!

Get your vinyl fix during Little 5 Points Corner Tavern’s Records of Mass Destruction! event, every Monday!

Geek it up at My Parents’ Basement with their weekly Tuesday night Nerd Trivia at 8pm!

Nerd Film Mafia screenings at the Diesel Filling Station following NerdCore Trivia, every last Tuesday of the month!

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

Get your reggae fix with Rub-A-Dub gettin’ down at WildPitch Music Hall, every second Sunday of the month!

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.

Category: This Week in ATLRetro | TAGS: None

This Week in ATLRetro, Feb. 25-March 3, 2019

Posted on: Feb 24th, 2019 By:

by Melanie Crew
Managing Editor

Come see what’s shakin’ in ATLRetro This Week!

Monday, February 25

Geek it up with our favorite intergalactic scoundrel Hans Solo as Jon Waterhouse hosts Drink and Draw February Edition at My Parents’ Basement! 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!” Boogie on down to the Northside Tavern and spend an evening with Lola at her famous Monday Night Northside Jam!

Tuesday, February 26

The Landmark Midtown Art Cinema gets experimental and bizarre as they kick off their new Classics Series with a screening of David Lynch’s ERASERHEAD (1977) at 7pm! Jam on down to the Red Light Café for a night with John Kadlecik (Dark Star Orchestra)!  The Fifth Third Bank Broadway presents LES MISERABLES at the Fox Theatre through Mar. 3! Rock out with Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes at City Winery! Jam it up with Joe Gransden and his jazz jam session at Venkman’s! The Star Bar delivers a night of retro shenanigans with DJ Quasi Mandisco’s Little 5 Points Dance Party featuring retro-soul, funk, ‘80s, ‘90s and more! Get the blues with the Nick Johnson at Blind Willies! And as always, groove on down with Swami Gone Bananas at the Northside Tavern!

Wednesday, February 27

Emory Cinematheque continues their “History of Color Films” series with a special screening of a rare IB Technicolor print at 7:30pm! Get folksy with Lowland Hum at Eddie’s Attic! Catch a double feature of Malcolm D. Lee’s UNDERCOVER BROTHER (2002) and Jeff Pollack’s BOOTY CALL (1997) at Noni’s Bar & Deli during their Cinema Paradiso film event starting at 10pm! Catch a screening of Victor Fleming’s GONE WITH THE WIND (1939) at Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta/Duluth/Marietta) at 7:15pm! The Star Bar eighties it up during their ‘80s Dance Party with DJ Kahle! The Highlander rocks out with their Punk/Metal/New Wave Karaoke Night, every Wednesday! Catch a Flashback Cinema screening of Robert ZemeckisFORREST GUMP (1994) at theatres across Atlanta [Northlake Festival Movie Tavern (Tucker); GTC Merchant’s Walk Cinemas (Marietta); Movie Tavern at Horizon Village (Suwannee); and The Springs Cinema & Taphouse (Sandy Springs)]! Funk it up with the Mike Veal Band at Tin Roof Cantina! Get jazzy at the Red Light Café with The Gordon Vernick Quartet! Or make your way to the Northside Tavern for a rockin’ night of blues with the Tyler Neal Band! Blind Willies gets rockin’ with a little Chicago/Delta blues of The Breeze Kings! And as always, it’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd.

Thursday, February 28

Get rocked at The Earl with Anna Kramer & The Lost Cause, Bad Spell and Black Cat Rising! Or experience Tim McDonough’s presentation of A BUNCH OF WAYS I’D LIKE TO DIE at Synchronicity Theatre, running through March 3! Shimmy on down to the Red Light Café for The Candybox Revue’s Burlesque Karaoke! Celebrate the 80th Anniversary of Victor Fleming’s GONE WITH THE WIND (1939) at theatres across Atlanta at 1pm/6pm [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow); AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming); Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Perimeter Pointe 10; AMC Sugarloaf Mills 18 (Lawrenceville); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Cinemark Tinseltown 17 (Fayetteville); Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); Regal Mall of Georgia Stadium (Buford); and Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18]! Stomp on down to Eddie’s Attic for a night with Asleep at the Wheel String Band! Get rocked with The Mother Hips at Smith’s Olde Bar! Jazz it up with Marion Meadows at Suite Food Lounge! City Winery bluegrasses it up with an evening with Leftover Salmon! Rae & The Royal Peacocks get down at Blind Willies! It’s Mai Tai Thursday at Trader Vic’s so get down with The Knotty Boys and some killer island cocktails! 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! And as always, boogie down at Mary’s, as the East Atlanta venue gets funky with their weekly Disco in the Village.

Friday, March 1

Rev it up with Kool Kat Hot Rod Walt & The Psycho-Devilles at Motorheads in McDonough! Americana it up with Paul Thorn and Amy Black at the Variety Playhouse! The Center for Puppetry Arts presents ASHES, a show based on Gaute Heivoll’s Before I Burn, through March 3! The Vista Room presents El Scorcho (Weezer tribute) vs. February Stars (Foo Fighters tribute), with special guests Semi-Charmed! Get down with the Atlanta Funk Society at Venkman’s! Get jazzy with Trey Wright at the Red Light Café! Boogie down to 529 for Neon Queen – Alternative ABBA followed by an ‘80s dance party! Catch a screening of Roger Michell’s NOTTING HILL (1999) at 7pm at SCADShow! Zydefunk gets down at their King Cake Party at the Northside Tavern! Get the blues with George Hughley & The Shadows at Blind Willies! Time-Warp it up 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, March 2

Shimmy on down to the Red Light Café as Sadie Hawkins and Last Pasties Standing Goes on Spring Break! The coming of spring shows its little head at the Historic Oakland Cemetery during their Daffodil Day celebration! Or make your way downtown to the Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival! Hilarity ensues as you get down and dirty during a Roast of Disney Villains at the Highland Inn Ballroom & Lounge! Get some Bayou Soul with Marc Broussard with Jamie McLean at the Variety Playhouse! Eddie’s Attic brings you Delta Moon! Tribute relives the tunes of the Allman Brothers at City Winery! Make your way to Venkman’s for a special acoustic show with Yacht Rock Revue, followed by Rock & Roll Animals (Lou Reed tribute) with special guests Chris Edmonds & Band! Zydefunk gets down at their King Cake Party at the Northside Tavern! St. James Live! delivers their Tribute to the Legends night every Saturday night! Boogie down with Selwyn Birchwood at Blind Willies! And as always, DJ Romeo Cologne and DJ Kwasi Mandisco transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Sunday, March 3

Park Tavern delivers a hootenanny and a half with WRFG’s Americana in the Park featuring live tunes with Kool Kat Amy Pike and The Bonaventure Quartet, Kool Kat Spike Fullerton and Ghost Riders Car Club, Russ Still & The Moonshiners, The Seed & Feed Marching Abominable, Catherine Thompson, and more! Celebrate the 80th Anniversary of Victor Fleming’s GONE WITH THE WIND (1939) at theatres across Atlanta at 1pm/6pm [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow); AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming); Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Perimeter Pointe 10; AMC Sugarloaf Mills 18 (Lawrenceville); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Cinemark Tinseltown 17 (Fayetteville); Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); Regal Mall of Georgia Stadium (Buford); and Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18]! Outlaw it up with Michael Martin Murphy and The Black Lillies at Eddie’s Attic! Street Fighting Band pays tribute to The Rolling Stones at City Winery! Jam it up with Joe Gransden and his jazz jam session at Venkman’s! Catch a Flashback Cinema screening of Baz Luhrmann’s MOULIN ROUGE (2001) at theatres across Atlanta [Northlake Festival Movie Tavern (Tucker); GTC Merchant’s Walk Cinemas (Marietta); Movie Tavern at Horizon Village (Suwannee); and The Springs Cinema & Taphouse (Sandy Springs)]! Funk it up with Risky Biscuit at Tin Roof Cantina! Get sweet and low down blues-style at the Northside Tavern with Uncle Sugar with Eddie Tigner!

Ongoing

Get adventurous as Theatre du Reve presents CODE NOIR: LES AVENTURES DU PREMIER COMTE DE MONTE CRISTO in French with English supertitles, running through March 10!

Get really retro and journey back 220 million years to when massive pterosaurs ruled the skies with Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s newest Giant Screen film, FLYING MONSTERS 3D, through June 1!

ATL CRAFT presents a magical occult Movie Night every second Friday of every month!

My Parents’ Basement goes old-school with their monthly Pinball Tournament, every first Wednesday of the month!

Geek it up and get to bowlin’ at The Comet Pub & LanesComet Cosplay, getting nerdy the first Monday of every month!

Dad’s Garage’s Big Boozy Nerdy Game Night brings out the kid in you, every first Monday of the month at 7pm! 

Union EAV rocks out with their Punk Rock Karaoke ATL, and every last Tuesday of the month!

The Highlander rocks out with their Punk/Metal/New Wave Karaoke Night, every Wednesday!

Get your vinyl fix during Little 5 Points Corner Tavern’s Records of Mass Destruction! event, every Monday!

Geek it up at My Parents’ Basement with their weekly Tuesday night Nerd Trivia at 8pm!

Nerd Film Mafia screenings at the Diesel Filling Station following NerdCore Trivia, every last Tuesday of the month!

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

Get your reggae fix with Rub-A-Dub gettin’ down at WildPitch Music Hall, every second Sunday of the month!

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.

 

 

Category: This Week in ATLRetro | TAGS: None

This Week in ATLRetro, August 20-26, 2018

Posted on: Aug 19th, 2018 By:

by Melanie Crew
Managing Editor

ATLRetro goes back to school with some killer old-school shenanigans! Come shake it up and see what we’ve found for you!

Monday, August 20

Drink & Draw goes batty with Kool Kat Madeline Brumby as Batgirl, hosted by Jon Waterhouse, at My Parents’ Basement! Get your vinyl fix during Little 5 Points Corner Tavern’s Records of Mass Destruction! event, every Monday! Or get adventurous at the Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta) with a screening of Steven Spielberg’s RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981) at 7:30pm! Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the ELVIS ’68 COMEBACK SPECIAL at theatres across Atlanta at 7:30pm [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Cinemark Tinseltown 17 (Fayetteville); Perimeter Pointe 10; Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); AMC Sugarloaf Mills 18 (Lawrenceville); AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow); and AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming)]! Rock on down to Smith’s Olde Bar for a night with Black Cat Adventure Squad, Craigzlist Punks and Play Center! Make your way to The Vista Room for a night with the Emerald Empire Band! Get the blues with Bob Page at Blind Willies! Swing on by Big Band Night featuring Joe Gransden and his amazing 17-member orchestra at Café 290 every first and third Monday of the month! 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 side of Dry White Toast and a plate full ‘o finger lickin’ BBQ!

Tuesday, August 21

The Landmark Midtown Art Cinema continues their Film in Films Classics Series with a Muppet-y screening of James Frawley’s THE MUPPET MOVIE (1979) at 7pm, featuring a pre-show intro and post-show Q&A session! Get hep to the jive with Ganstagrass at City Winery! Folk it up with The Retrovales at Java Monkey! Get some soul and rock out at Smith’s Olde Bar with The Sagas, Phantom Phunk and Indigo Innuendo! Get old-timey with Ol’ GoForth at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! Get down with Ira Malkin & The Vipers at Blind Willies! Jam it up with Joe Gransden and his jazz jam session at Venkman’s every Tuesday! The Star Bar delivers a night of retro shenanigans with DJ Quasi Mandisco’s Little 5 Points Dance Party featuring retro-soul, funk, ‘80s, ‘90s and more! Blues it up with the Crosstown Allstars at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! And as always, groove on down with Swami Gone Bananas at the Northside Tavern!

Wednesday, August 22

Jeff Beck and Paul Rodgers rock out at Chastain Park! Get intergalactic at the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern’s Flashback Cinema series screening of Steven Spielberg’s CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977) at 2:30pm/7:30pm! Folk it up with The Great Peacock and Kalen Nash at The Earl! Raise a ruckus with Johnny Roquemore, Mike Aiken, Candy Fernaux and Brian Perry at the Red Clay Theatre! Funk rock it up with Cure My Enemy, The Dround Hounds and Nobody’s Darlings at The Star Bar! Rock on down to The Highlander for their Punk/Metal/New Wave Karaoke Night, every Wednesday! Geek it up at Noni’s Bar & Deli during their Dungeons & Dragons 101: Learn to Play event! Get to the root of it all with Joe McGuinness at Blind Willie’s! Funk it up with the Mike Veal Band at Tin Roof Cantina! Catch a screening of Peter Jackson’s LORD OF THE RINGS: RETURN OF THE KING (2003) at Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta/Duluth/Marietta) at 7:15pm! Get jazzy at the Red Light Café with The Gordon Vernick Quartet! Or make your way to the Northside Tavern as Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck fires up a night of acoustic blues! St. James Live! delivers their Hump Days Blues night, getting classic blues-style every Wednesday! And as always, it’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd.

Thursday, August 23

Rock out with Jesse Colin Young (The Youngbloods) at City Winery! Get to Beer & Lounging at the Clermont Lounge with the Jacks River Band, Andrea Colburn & Mud Moseley and Sasha Valley of the Outlaw Women Band! Rock out at The Highlander with DJ Howiestein and Mister Wilson’s Over the Edge Record Party! Boogie on down to the Fox Theatre’s Coca Cola Film Festival screening/sing-a-long of Randal Kleiser’s GREASE (1978) celebrating 40 years at 7:30pm! Shenanigans ensue at theatres across Atlanta as RiffTrax takes on Peter Yates’ intergalactic space tale, KRULL (1983) at 8pm [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Perimeter Pointe 10; Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); and AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow)]! Get folksy with Besides Daniel, Jonathan Peyton, The Brook & The Bluff and Michael Coast at Eddie’s Attic! Stomp on down to Smith’s Olde Bar for a night with The Early Favorites, Brewery Road and Peter Searcy & the Goodnight Noises! Get rocked with The Sleepers, Small Reactions and Twin Studies at The Star Bar! Adron dishes out a night of ‘60s neotropical soul with Pip the Pansy at Terminal West! Spend the night with Questionable at Best at Venkman’s! Funk it up with The Dip at Vinyl! Cody Matlock & the Mothership get down at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! It’s Mai Tai Thursday at Trader Vic’s so hula on down for a night of rockin’ tunes with The Knotty Boys and killer island cocktails! The Juke Joint Dukes get old-school at Blind Willie’s! 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! And as always, boogie down at Mary’s, as the East Atlanta venue gets funky with their weekly Disco in the Village.

Friday, August 24

The Highlander gets hell-bent with ELZIG, Kool Kats The Casket Creatures and Rotten Stitches during the Road to Marred Up Fest! Get heavy Swedish-style with Yngwie Malmsteen in Heaven, or rock out in Hellwith Black Stone Cherry at the Masquerade! It’s a night of rockin’ tributes at The Star Bar with The Cherry Bomb (Joan Jett & The Runaways) and Evil Women Rock (all female tribute to Black Sabbath)! As if! Amy Heckerling’s ‘90s classic, CLUELESS (1995) screens at The Earl Smith Strand Theatre at 8pm! Get the hill country blues with Cedric Burnside and Ben Nichols at City Winery! Or Americana it up with Sarah Peacock at the Crimson Moon Café! Get down with Kool Keith at the Drunken Unicorn! Bluegrass it up with The Travelin’ McCourys at Eddie’s Attic! Get the rockin’ blues with The Groove Rockets at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! ATL Collective relives Alanis Morrisette’s JAGGED LITTLE PILL at Terminal West! Honky tonk it up with Whitey Morgan at the Variety Playhouse! Get rocked with Marty Manous at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! The Plaza Theater screens Lee Aronsohn’s 40 YEARS IN THE MAKING: THE MAGIC MUSIC MOVIE (2017), documenting the ‘70s Colorado jam band, Magic Music, through Aug. 30! It’s a blues showdown at the Northside Tavern with Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck and Beverly “Guitar” Watkins! Get the blues with Sandra Hall & The Shadows at Blind Willie’s! Time-Warp it up 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, August 25

Get retro rocked at The Star Bar as Little Steven’s Underground Garage presents a night with The Woggles, Barrence Whitfield & the Savages and Bad Spell! The Landmark Midtown Art Cinema delivers a special matinee screening of James Frawley’s THE MUPPET MOVIE (1979) for the kiddies at 10:30am! Get retro rocked at Chastain Park with Denny Laine (The Moody Blues), Jeff Carlisi, Peter Beckett, Elliott Lurie, Albert Bouchard and Yacht Rock Revue! The Aviation Wing of Marietta present their Wings and Whitewalls day event featuring a retro car show, food trucks, a pin-up contest and live tunes by Kitty Rose & The Rattlers, Atomic Boogie and The Sideburners! The Highlander rocks out with the Marred Up Fest featuring Buck Swifty, Die 985, DDC, The Sideburners (Twice in one day!), Degradation and Dale Jepsen and the Nighthawks! Permanent Waves pays tribute to Rush at Avondale Towne Cinema! Kool Kat Jeffrey Butzer and more dish out their PJ in PJs: The Music of Polly Jean Harvey Pajama Party at The Earl! Haunt on down to Amsterdam Atlanta for Kool Kat VJ Anthony’s COFFIN CLASSICS: Goth Industrial Darkwave Music Video Night featuring Goth, dark 80s and more! Sax it up with Dwan Bosman and special guest Morgan Bosman at the Red Light Café!  Opera on Tap Atlanta presents Mozart & Mimosas at Noni’s Bar & Deli! Make your way to The Earl Smith Strand Theatre for the Marietta International Film Festival screening films through Aug. 26! Shenanigans ensue at theatres across Atlanta as RiffTrax takes on Peter Yates’ intergalactic space tale, KRULL (1983) at 12:55pm [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Perimeter Pointe 10; Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); and AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow)]! Haunt it up with your heart at the Historic Oakland Cemetery’s Love Stories: Summer Date Night event! Stomp on down to the Crimson Moon Café for a night with The Texas KGB! Funk it up with AJ Ghent and Delta Moon at Eddie’s Attic! Get your ‘80s MTV-era synthpop fix with Electric Avenue at MadLife Stage & Studios! Forever Abbey Road pays tribute to the Beatles at the Red Clay Theatre! Rock out at the Variety Playhouse for a night with Dead Affect and Interstellar Echoes! Get the blues with Bob Margolin at Blind Willie’s! It’s a blues showdown at the Northside Tavern with Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck and Bill Sheffield! Get down and dirty with The Wild Hares at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! St. James Live! delivers their Tribute to the Legends night every Saturday night! And as always, DJ Romeo Cologne and DJ Kwasi Mandisco transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Sunday, August 26

TCM Big Screen Classics presents a 60th Anniversary screening of Joshua Logan’s SOUTH PACIFIC (1958) at theatres across Atlanta at 2pm/7pm [AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Cinemark Tinseltown 17 (Fayetteville); Perimeter Pointe 10; Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta/Duluth/Marietta); AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow); and AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming)]! Retro it up at Chastain Park with Rick Springfield, Loverboy, Greg Kihn and Tommy Tutone! Get some soul with Candi Staton at City Winery! Make your way to the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern’s Flashback Cinema series screening of David M. EvansTHE SANDLOT (1993) at 2:30pm/7:30pm! The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival Presents Shalom Bollywood, celebrating the Jewish stars that that dominated early Indian cinema! Or get adventurous at the Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta) with a screening of Rob Reiner’s THE PRINCESS BRIDE (1987) at 12pm! Get sweet and low down blues-style at the Northside Tavern with Uncle Sugar with Eddie Tigner! And get down with Little G. Weevil at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack!

Ongoing

The Marietta Theatre Company presents NUNSENSE through Sept. 1!

The Aurora Theatre in Lawrence presents Disney’s NEWSIES, through Sept. 2!

ATL CRAFT presents a magical occult Movie Night every second Friday of every month!

My Parents’ Basement goes old-school with their monthly Pinball Tournament, every first Wednesday of the month!

Geek it up and get to bowlin’ at The Comet Pub & LanesComet Cosplay, getting nerdy the first Monday of every month!

Dad’s Garage’s Big Boozy Nerdy Game Night brings out the kid in you, every first Monday of the month at 7pm! 

Union EAV rocks out with their Punk Rock Karaoke ATL, and every last Tuesday of the month!

The Highlander rocks out with their Punk/Metal/New Wave Karaoke Night, every Wednesday!

Get your vinyl fix during Little 5 Points Corner Tavern’s Records of Mass Destruction! event, every Monday!

Geek it up at My Parents’ Basement with their weekly Tuesday night Nerd Trivia at 8pm!

Nerd Film Mafia screenings at the Diesel Filling Station following NerdCore Trivia, every last Tuesday of the month!

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

Get your reggae fix with Rub-A-Dub gettin’ down at WildPitch Music Hall, every second Sunday of the month!

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.

Category: This Week in ATLRetro | TAGS: None

This Week in ATLRetro, June 11-17, 2018

Posted on: Jun 10th, 2018 By:

by Melanie Crew
Managing Editor

Come see all the shakin’ shenanigans we’ve dug up for you in ATLRetro This Week!

Monday, June 11

A special feature-length Director’s Cut of DOCTOR WHO: GENESIS OF THE DALEKS (1975) screens at theatres across Atlanta at 7pm [Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Cinemark Tinseltown 17 (Fayetteville); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Perimeter Pointe 10; Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow); AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); AMC Sugarloaf Mills 18 (Lawrenceville); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); and AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming)]! Get down with Roy Akers and Mausiki Scales & the Common Ground Collective at City Winery! Geek it up at My Parents’ Basement as they bring back their Drink & Draw event, hosted by Jon Waterhouse ! Catch a screening of Melvin Van PeeblesSWEET SWEETBACK’S BAADASSSSS SONG (1971), through June 13 at The Plaza Theater, or catch a screening of Samuel D. Pollard’s documentary, MAYNARD (2017) about the life and times of the first black mayor of Atlanta, through June 14! Fathom Events presents a wild double feature with screenings of Joe Johnston’s JUMANJI (1995), followed by Jake Kasdan’s JUMANJI: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE (2017) at theatres across Atlanta at 6:30pm [Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Cinemark Tinseltown 17 (Fayetteville); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Perimeter Pointe 10; Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow); AMC Sugarloaf Mills 18 (Lawrenceville); and Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan)]! 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!” Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck fires it up at Blind Willies! 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 as they dish out The Pork Bellys and a plate full ‘o finger lickin’ BBQ!

Tuesday, June 12

Have a bloody fantastic time as The Atlanta Opera presents SWEENEY TODD at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center at 7:30pm! Get sizzlin’ with Kool Kat Katherine Lashe and her burly-Q gals of Syrens of the South as they spice up your evening with their Tease Tuesday Burlesque: June is Jumpin’ event, shakin’ it up at the Red Light Café! Get down with Roy Akers and Mausiki Scales & the Common Ground Collective at City Winery! Spend the night with David Ryan Harris at Eddie’s Attic! Angelo Moore (Fishbone) & The Brand New Step funk it up at the Masquerade! Gomez brings their Bring It On 20th Anniversary Tour to the Variety Playhouse! Make your way to The Bakery as they bring you a night of dark electro retrotastic goodness featuring Kool Kat Russ Marshalek and A Place Both Wonderful and Strange, Frisky Monkey and Dreaming Shadows! Embrace your childhood and make your way to the Alliance Theater for their presentation of WINNIE-THE-POOH, a musical based on the stories of A.A. Milne, running through July 8! Get old-timey with Ol’ GoForth at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! Make your way to Blind Willie’s for their Tribute to Freddie King! Jam it up with Joe Gransden and his jazz jam session at Venkman’s every Tuesday! The Star Bar delivers a night of retro shenanigans with DJ Quasi Mandisco’s Little 5 Points Dance Party featuring retro-soul, funk, ‘80s, ‘90s and more! Gray & The Bad Boys get down at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! And as always, groove on down with Swami Gone Bananas at the Northside Tavern!

Wednesday, June 13

Get your apocalyptic garbage fix and catch a screening of Rachel Talalay’s TANK GIRL (1995) presented by WUSSY MAG at The Plaza Theater at 7pm! Spend the night with Peter Mayer (Coral Reefer Band) and Brendan Mayer at City Winery! Doo-wop on down to The Earl for a night with La Luz, Timothy Eerie and Midnight Larks! Rock out with Kip Winger at Eddie’s Attic! Funk it up with the Charles Walker Band and Wasted Potential Brass Band at Smith’s Olde Bar! Catch Stephen Stills and Judy Collins at Atlanta Symphony Hall! Make your way to the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern’s Flashback Cinema series screening of Joe Pytka’s SPACE JAM (1996) at 2:30pm/7:30pm! Or follow the yellow brick road down to the Studio Movie Grill (Alpharetta/Duluth) for a screening of Victor Fleming’s THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939) at 7:15pm! Catch a double feature of Duwayne Dunham’s HOMEWARD BOUND (1993) and Mary Lambert’s PET SEMATARY (1989) at Noni’s Bar & Deli during their Cinema Paradiso film event starting at 10pm! Get rocked with The Wild Hares at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! Get the Chicago/West Coast blues with the Electromatics at Blind Willie’s! Funk it up with the Mike Veal Band at Tin Roof Cantina! Get jazzy at the Red Light Café with The Gordon Vernick Quartet! Or make your way to the Northside Tavern as Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck fires it up a night of acoustic blues! St. James Live! delivers their Hump Days Blues night, getting classic blues-style every Wednesday! And as always, it’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd.

Thursday, June 14

Kool Kat Spike Fullerton and the Ghost Riders Car Club dish out a hot night at the Clermont Lounge! A night of hilarity ensues as RIFFTRAX LIVE presents David WintersSPACE MUTINY (1988) at theatres across Atlanta at 8pm [Hollywood Stadium 24 (Chamblee); Avalon Stadium 12 (Alpharetta); Cinemark Tinseltown 17 (Fayetteville); Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 18; Perimeter Pointe 10; Regal McDonough Stadium 16 (McDonough); AMC Southlake Pavilion 24 (Morrow); AMC Barrett Commons 24 (Kennesaw); Georgian Stadium 14 (Newnan); and AMC Avenue Forsyth (Cumming)]! Scott Thompson (Kids in the Hall) brings The Buddy Cole Monologues to City Winery! Spend the night with MyFever, The Underhill Family Orchestra and Cloudland at The Earl! Get folksy with Charlie Mars at Eddie’s Attic! Rock out at The Highlander with DJ Howiestein and Mister Wilson’s Over the Edge Record Party! Folk it up with Vilai Harrington & The Hamptones, Dead King Cotton and Nathan Evans Fox at the Red Light Café! Or get folk rocked with the Michigan Rattlers and A Wild Frontier at Smith’s Olde Bar! Marty Manous rocks out at Solis Two Porsche Drive!  Boogie down to Venkman’s for a night with Atlanta Latin Jazz Orchestra! Catch The Gatherers at the Masquerade! Catch the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra free at Piedmont Park at 7:30pm! Cody Matlock & the Mothership get down at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! It’s Mai Tai Thursday at Trader Vic’s so hula on down for a night of rockin’ island tunes and killer island cocktails! Get old-school with the Juke Joint Dukes at Blind Willie’s! 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! And as always, boogie down at Mary’s, as the East Atlanta venue gets funky with their weekly Disco in the Village.

Friday, June 15

Kool Kat James Bickert exploits once again and gets torturous with his AMAZON HOT BOX’s World Premiere at The Plaza Theater at 7pm! Blues66 debuts their mix of classic British blues circa 1966 at The Star Bar! Rev it up at the Masquerade and get hellacious with The Creepshow, Kool Kat Hot Rod Walt, Kool Kats The Casket Creatures and Sugar Virus! Glam rock it up at The Earl as Jerome Newton & The Band Who Fell to Earth presents Ziggy Stardust vs. Maxwell Demon, with special guest Roxy Rex! Twang on down to Terminal West for a night with Unknown Hinson and The Josephines! Sludge rock it up at 529 with Ufomammut, White Hills, Order of the Owl and Insomniac! Get jazzy with Gwen Hughes at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center during their Jazz on the Lawn event! Or get some soul with Kindred & Family Soul at Center Stage! Stomp on down to City Winery for a night with The Wailin’ Jennys! Swing on by Eddie’s Attic for two shows featuring Joe Gransden! Spend the night with Mausiki Scales & the Common Ground Collective at the High Museum! Led Zeppelified performs LED ZEPPELIN II in its entirety at Smith’s Olde Bar with special guests Nocturnal Animals and Rare Birds! Or rock on down to Venkman’s as The Dirty Doors pay tribute to Jim Morrison and The Doors! Catch R+R=Now at the Variety Playhouse! TNT pay tribute to AC/DC at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! Get rocked blues-style with Beverly “Guitar” Watkins at Blind Willie’s! Funk it up Zydeco-style with Zydefunk at Northside Tavern! Time-Warp it up 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, June 16

Today kicks off The State of Black Science Fiction’s Blacktasticon 2018, running through June 17 at The Ferst Center promising the most comprehensive presentation of black speculative fiction, cosplay, Afrofuturism, Steamfunk and more (Keep your eyes peeled for our Kool Kat interview with writer and guest Nicole Givens Kurtz and our Top Ten Retro Reasons to attend feature)! Get old-timey and honky tonk it up at The Star Bar for their annual Hank Williams Tribute starring Cigar Store Indians, Andrea Colburn & Mud Moseley, Kool Kat Aileen Loy and Til Someone Loses and Eye, Kool Kat Spike Fullerton and the Ghost Riders Car Club, Rodeo Twister, Uncle Daddy & The Kissin’ Cousins, Cool Hand Hayes and Rye Baby! Rev it up and rock on down to the Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheatre in Peachtree City for Brian Setzer’s Rockabilly Riot! Stomp on down to City Winery for a night with The Wailin’ Jennys! Spend the night with Kevn Kinney and Takenobu at Eddie’s Attic! Rock out with Columbia’s Aterciopelados at the Masquerade! Make your way to Venkman’s for a night with Wet Jeans and ATL Collective! Get nostalgic and rock out at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre with Styx, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and Tesla! Surf on down to Kavarna for Kool Kat Chad ShiversSouthern Surf Stomp! with The Del Rios! Get some soul with The Whispers at the Mable House Barnes Amphitheatre! Reggae it up with Stephen Marley at Center Stage! Come celebrate Juneteenth at the Historic Oakland Cemetery featuring tours, storytelling and more! Race over to Solis Two Porsche Drive for their drive-in movie event as they screen Lee Katzin/John SturgesLE MANS (1971) at 7:30pm! Have a bloody fantastic time as The Atlanta Opera presents SWEENEY TODD at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center! Rev on down to Big Tex for a night with Kitty Rose & The Ramblers! Get some soul with Sal’s Soulful Sinners at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! Get down with Sweet ‘n’ Salty at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! Funk it up Zydeco-style with Zydefunk and Ross Pead at Northside Tavern! Spend the night with Sandra Hall & The Shadows at Blind Willie’s! St. James Live! delivers their Tribute to the Legends night every Saturday night! And as always, DJ Romeo Cologne and DJ Kwasi Mandisco transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Sunday, June 17

Spend the night with Indy at the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern’s Flashback Cinema series screening of Steven Spielberg’s RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981) at 2:30pm/7:30pm! Have a bloody fantastic time as The Atlanta Opera presents SWEENEY TODD at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center! Rock ‘n’ roll on down to City Winery for a night with Red Wanting Blue and Liz Brasher! Mandi Strachota gets the blues at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues! Make your way to Eddie’s Attic for a night with Michelle Malone, Adron and Eliot Bronson! Get funky with Risky Biscuit at Tin Roof Cantina! Rock out with 10,000 Pontiacs at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! Get sweet and low down blues-style at the Northside Tavern with Uncle Sugar with Eddie Tigner!

Ongoing

Emory Arts presents their exhibition The Dream Machine: The Beat Generation & the Counterculture, 1940-1975 in the Schatten Gallery, through June 17! (LAST CHANCE!)

Noni’s Bar & Deli hosts their Cinema Paradiso film event, screening two films beginning at 10pm, through June 28!

The Alliance Theater presents WINNIE-THE-POOH, a musical based on the stories of A.A. Milne, running through July 8!

My Parents’ Basement goes old-school with their monthly Pinball Tournament, every firsts Wednesday of the month!

Geek it up and get to bowlin’ at The Comet Pub & LanesComet Cosplay, getting nerdy the first Monday of every month!

Dad’s Garage’s Big Boozy Nerdy Game Night brings out the kid in you, every first Monday of the month at 7pm! 

Union EAV rocks out with their Punk Rock Karaoke ATL, and every last Tuesday of the month!

Geek it up at My Parents’ Basement with their weekly Tuesday night Nerd Trivia at 8pm!

Nerd Film Mafia screenings at the Diesel Filling Station following NerdCore Trivia, every last Tuesday of the month!

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

Get your reggae fix with Rub-A-Dub gettin’ down at WildPitch Music Hall, every second Sunday of the month!

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.

 

 

Category: This Week in ATLRetro | TAGS: None

Hey All You Monster Kids, We Accept You One of Us! Our Top Ten Reasons to Go to MONSTERAMA CONVENTION 2015

Posted on: Sep 29th, 2015 By:

by Melanie Crew
Managing Editor

What are you doing this weekend? We’re monster mashing it up at the 2nd Annual MONSTERAMA CONVENTION, creeping and crawling into town this weekend, Oct. 2-4 at the 10.3-2Atlanta Marriott Perimeter Center!

1) Christopher Lee: A Villainous Tribute! Catch a horrorific line-up of Christopher Lee films on Saturday featuring Terrence Fisher/Frank Winterstein’s SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE DEADLY NECKLACE (1962), Jess Franco’s COUNT DRACULA (1970); and Robin Hardy’s THE WICKER MAN (1973)! And you must hammer out some time to catch “In Memoriam: Christopher Lee” on Saturday at 2pm; a panel with discussions about Lee and his amazing career. Our favorite villain has a body of work that includes screen credits for over 250 films!

2) Ricou Browning! The Creatureextraordinaire and legendary underwater stuntman, director, actor and screenwriter will be lurking amongst the monsters this year (See our exclusive Kool Kat interview here)! Get aquatic with the infamousGill-Manat the Black Lagoon Tiki Luau on 18s3mkqkk4g3mjpgFriday! And you won’t want to miss out on Ricou’s panels covering his monstrous cinematic life and everything in-between with “Return to the Black Lagoon” and “Thunderball & Beyond”!

3) Black Lagoon Tiki Luau! Hula on down (If you dare!) to the hotel pool on Friday night at 7pm and luau with The Creature himself, Ricou Browning! And for an experience you’ll never forget, throw on your suit and take a daunting dip into the Black Lagoon with effects artist, Kyle Yaklin (See our Shop Around feature on Kyle here) who will transform into the Creature of the night with his very own CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON suit crafted from the original mold!

4) Silver Scream Spook Show!  Kool Kat Shane Morton, a.k.a. ghost host with the most, Professor Morte and the Silver KingkongposterScream Spook Show will be raisin’ hairs with a screening of Ernest B. Shoedsack/Merian C. Cooper’s KING KONG (1933) on Saturday at 3 pm! It’s no trick, but a special treat because Prof. Morte’s lovable sidekick Retch will be returning for a Spook Show presentation to remember. Read one of our very first Kool Kat interviews with Retch alter-ego Jon Waterhouse here.

5) FANGTASTIC FILM!  Friday’s frightening film feast includes a helluva offering of 16mm screenings including Sam Newfield’s THE MAD MONSTER (1942); Michael ReevesTHE CONQUEROR WORM (1968); and Charles Laugton’s THE ISLAND OF LOST SOULS (1932)! Saturday slaughters with horrorific classics including Nathan Juran’s JACK THE GIANT KILLER (1962); James Whale’s THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935), Mario Bava’s BLACK SUNDAY (1960) and so much more! And Sunday gets sinister with Robert Siodmak/Erle C. Kenton’s SON OF DRACULA (1942); Antonio Margheriti’s CASTLE OF BLOOD (1964); and George Romero’s THE CRAZIES (1973)!

MV5BMjA3MDc3Mzk4OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwODM0MDg5._V1_SX214_AL_6) Spooktacular Guests! Spook it up with Larry Blamire (THE LOST SKELETON OF CADAVRA); horror novelist and filmmaker John Farris (THE FURY); horror history expert and documentarian, Kool Kat Daniel Griffith of Ballyhoo Motion Pictures, Kool Kat Shane Morton, ghost host with the most, a.k.a. Professor Morte, Victoria Price (daughter of the legendary Vincent Price. Get a taste of Vincent‘s cooking at a special Brunch with Victoria on Sunday!), legendary actresses, Lynn Lowry (THE CRAZIES; SHIVERS) and Candy Clark (AMERICAN GRAFFITI; THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH); glamour ghoul Kool Kat Madeline Brumby and so much more!

7) Twisted Television. Get terrified T.V.-style throughout the weekend and catch screenings of Gene Roddenberry’s made-for-TV movie, SPECTRE (1977); Kool Kat Daniel Griffith’s documentary, AS TIMELESS AS INFINITY: THE TWILIGHT ZONE LEGACY; THE OUTER LIMITS – “The Architects of Fear”; THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E – “The Abominable Snowman Affair”; STAR TREK – “The Man Trap”; and an episode of BORIS KARLOFF’S THRILLER!

8) Monster Makeovers! Get gore-gous with monster make-up galore as part of this year’s Makers Track! Effects man Kyle Yaklin and Kool Kat Shane Morton share the secrets of the monster trade with their “Casting the Creature” event, featuring a first generation pull from Jack Kevan’s master mold of “The Creature”! And Saturday gets spooktacular with a “Gore Gore Girls – Special Effects for Kids” event featuring mom/daughter duo, filmmaker Dayna Noffke (Tiltawhirl Pictures) and ultra spooky Vivi Vivian! And don’t forget to stick around for a creeping cornucopia of frightful faces and monster masks!vincent-price-cookbook-430x700

9) Deadly Dealers! Horror cons are the perfect place to stock up on both classic horror memorabilia, cult classics on DVD and creepy clothing, costumes and accessories. Vendors this year include Kool Kat Chris Hamer of UrbnPop; Horror in Clay (See our Shop Around feature here) and all the toys, collectibles and monstrous goodies you can get your grimy little hands on!

10) Monster Prom! Hey all you guys and ghouls, get frightfully funky at this year’s Monster Prom, dedicated to our favorite monster kid of all, Mark Schemanske! Dust off the old rat-infested tux, clear out the cobwebs, shine up your shoes and get ready to do the Monster Mash, and maybe even the Time-Warp into the wee hours of the morning!

Monsterama main con hours are Fri. Oct. 2 from 4 to 12 a.m.; Sat. Oct. 3 from 9 a.m. to 12 a.m.; and Sun. Oct. 4 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more info, visit www.monsteramacon.com.

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Kool Kat of the Week: Mad, Mad Music Radio: Col. Bruce Hampton Takes His Eclectic Talents to the Airwaves with Radio Free Radio on AM 1690

Posted on: May 13th, 2013 By:

Radio Free Radio; Hosted by Col. Bruce Hampton and Michael Holbrook; 7 p.m.;  first and third Thursdays of each month

By William Ashton
Contributing Writer

For a self-proclaimed “shy accountant,” Col. Bruce Hampton has made a spectacle of himself for more than four decades. He’s acted in an Oscar-winning movie (SLING BLADE [1996]), made 15 records (or so) and helped organize the H.O.R.D.E. concert tours of the ‘90s, but he’s mostly known as a performing musician, playing thousands of shows since the late 1960s.

A big, genial man, Hampton had a heart attack a few years ago, but he still plays 150 shows a year. He says that, at age “66 and above ground,” that’s plenty. “If I could go on at 8 p.m., I’d do more, but a lot of southern clubs start at 11,” he says. “It’s a young man’s game.”

Col. Bruce Hampton’s music is an unpredictable blend of blues, jazz and psychedelic rock, with a dash of funk and what not. Before the term “jam band” was coined, Hampton was jamming; he’s played  guitar and sang with The Hampton Grease Band, Aquarium Rescue Unit and Fiji Mariners (among others). A touchstone for many musicians in the jam-band circuit, Hampton was there for all but one H.O.R.D.E. tour in the ‘90s, he recalls.

“The only time I missed [H.O.R.D.E.] was when I went out with [the late blues musician] Hubert Sumlin one year, which was fine. We were in Louisiana one night when Sumlin offered to take us to the Crossroads [the intersection along Mississippi’s Highway 61 where blues legend Robert Johnson was rumored to have sold his soul to the devil]. We declined very quickly,” Hampton says. “It was a long way away.”

Col. Bruce Hampton (his legal name, he says) has recently taken his talents to the airwaves, playing music and sharing stories on AM 1690’s “Radio Free Radio” with former Hampton Grease Band member Michael Holbrook.  The show airs at 7 pm on the first and third Thursdays of each month.

“I’ve done occasional programs on AM 1690. Jon Waterhouse (from the radio station) asked us to do it every other week,” he said. “I do whatever Jon tells me.”

Hampton and Holbrook seem to have thousands of stories about life on the road, touching on encounters with everyone from Frank Zappa and John Lennon to Muddy Waters and Chet Atkins.

Playing with G.E. Smith led to Hampton’s sitting in on-air with the SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE band one night a couple of decades ago, when Smith was “SNL’s” musical director. Longtime friend Billy Bob Thornton cast Hampton in SLING BLADE – and Hampton’s band performs in Thornton’s forthcoming movie JAYNE MANSFIELD’S CAR.

Sometime this year, Atlanta fans may see Col. Bruce playing regularly at the long-shuttered Avondale Towne Cinema. Hampton is among those meeting with Avondale city officials, with a goal of reopening the venue under new management, he says.

“A couple of lawyers from Alabama are planning to reopen the venue, and music will certainly be a part of it,” said Hampton, who saw wrestling matches at the Avondale landmark when he was growing up in the Decatur area. “I’ll try to play there twice a month and have guest artists. We had a similar (residency) at Brandywine in the ‘90s and it was a huge success.”

Another successful outlet for Hampton’s talents are the summertime Jam Cruises, which gather assorted musicians – many from New Orleans – for musical voyages through the Caribbean.

Hampton seems surprised that he likes the cruises. “I dislike Disney World. I hate just about everything with a lot of people involved, but this is the greatest thing I’ve ever done,” he said. “There’s food 24 hours a day, music 20 hours a day. The musicians are the cream of the crop. It’s fascinating and great.”

Hampton’s own fascinating story is the subject of a 2012 documentary, BASICALLY FRIGHTENED: THE MUSICAL MADNESS OF COLONEL BRUCE HAMPTON; the DVD (with new bonus live footage) has recently gained distribution through Amazon.com after a couple of years of limited availability.

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Kool Kat of the Week: Like a Jagged Stone: Keef Richards Gets What He Needs Paying Tribute to a Guitar Legend and Rocks Around the Christmas Tree Sat. Dec. 1

Posted on: Nov 28th, 2012 By:

Barry Zion, aka "Keef Richards," of The Jagged Stones.

Forget the Elvis impersonators. The Rocking Around the Christmas Tree benefit on Sat. Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. treats you to a rarer form of superstar tribute and a delightfully different holiday party courtesy of Nine Inch Neils, who channel Neil Diamond in his ‘70s heyday, and Jagged Stones, whose name should give away the act they idolize that also came of age in the late ’60s/’70s. In addition to two rockin’ fun bands, a humble suggested donation of $10 (kids free) serves up pizza from Mellow Mushroom Decatur, two glasses of beer or wine, free sodas and a dessert bar. There’s also a silent auction including some cool items like a signed movie poster from the TWILIGHT series and an original POWERPUFF GIRLS animation cell from Cartoon Network. Proceeds support the House of the Rock (also the site of the party; 731 Peachtree St., NE, corner of 4th Street) and Lutheran Community Food Ministries, which do amazing work feeding Midtown’s homeless. So if you can, also bring some cans to benefit the food ministry. And parking is free, too.

Last year ATLRetro interviewing Cage, lead singer of Nine Inch Neils, to find out what made him and the band a believer in Neil Diamond. This year, we decided we wouldn’t get no seasonal satisfaction without catching up with Barry Zion, aka Keef Richards, of The Jagged Stones.

ATLRetro: When’s the first time you heard the Rolling Stones and was it love at first listen?

Keef: When I was 13 years old, my older brother turned me onto the GET YER YA-YA’S OUT live album. I had been taking some bass lessons, and the guitar work on that album immediately grabbed me. I can remember playing the Chuck Berry cover “Carol,” about 200 times a day until I developed the strength to do that Keith Richards rhythm. It’s quite a physically challenging thing when you are first learning as it takes all of your fingers, barre technique, pinky strength and solid rhythm with the right hand, plus the added handicap of playing on a $20 acoustic guitar with string height action that was measured in feet rather than millimeters. But thanks to that, it helped me develop some very strong muscles in my left hand. After that it allowed me to focus on the other songs and I wore out that album.

It wasn’t until I was older that I mastered Keith’s tunings and techniques and got closer to his sound, and Mick Taylor‘s fluid lead playing was something that took me years to even understand and is something I am still working on today. Mick Taylor is in my opinion, the most under-rated guitarist in rock, and his time in the Stones is clearly the era that grabbed me the most and that I try to emulate in my playing.

There’s got to be a great story about how you all came together to found a Rolling Stones tribute band?

I had recently relocated to Atlanta from NY/NJ/PA, and I had been frequenting the Atlanta jam scene and been known as “that Allman Brothers guy, that did some Stones too.” Duane Allman and Dickey Betts are other influences on my playing. I was not really interested in being in a band for the usual reasons – low pay, long hours, lots of competition, playing songs you don’t like, smoky bars, etc. One of my jam friends saw on Craigslist an ad for an open audition for a Rolling Stones tribute band, and he dragged me to the tryout. Well, of course, everybody want’s to be Keith, and when I got there, the audition coordinator asked me if I wanted to take the lead guitar spot for the audition. Since I planned on trying out for Mick Taylor’s spot, I quickly set up. I think the first song we played was “Wild Horses,” and I guess I nailed it pretty good and stayed close to the album. Then while another Keith was setting up, Skip [Stephen Skipper, aka Mick Jagger in the band] and I were sitting around, and I started playing “Love In Vain.” The two of us just clicked, and from then on Skip put the pressure on me to be in the band.

Funny we clicked so well, that he asked me which of the Keiths I liked the best, and I told him, that I thought I could do a better Keith than any of the guys that had auditioned. Skip didn’t want to lose me as Mick Taylor, but I assured him that I could backfill a lead guitarist for my slot (Yeah, even back then I had Eddie Brodeur, our current guitarist in mind) and that it was more important to have a strong Keith guitarist in the band. Well, with some hesitation, Skip let me try it, and I guess I did pretty good during that audition and have been Keef ever since then.

Since then Skip and I have become “Soul Brothers,” and we share the same vision on where the band is going. All the guys in the band are the top musicians that I had met from the jam scene.  Dave Lang (keyboard/vocals/guitar/harmonica/kitchen sink) and I had met a few months before that at a Kennesaw jam. About a year before that, Eddie Brodeur (lead guitar/Ronnie Woods) and I had met  at a Southern Rock theme night jam where without a rehearsal we absolutely clicked. It’s a really rare thing to have two lead guitarists that can leave space for each other and have styles that are different enough yet similar enough for the magic to happen. Eddie is that guy for me. The bass player and drummer took a while to settle in, but Joel Edwards (bass) is one of the most sought after bass players in Atlanta, and he’s a scary good musician that can play just about any style, and also plays drums, keyboard and guitar very well. Frankly I was shocked that he wanted to play in The Jagged Stones. He has, in my opinion, solidified us and carried us over that hump of trying to establish a new band.   Martin Abbot was the drummer that same night I played with Eddie at the theme night, and I knew that day that he would be the rock steady drummer to anchor the rhythm section.

Keef Richards (Barry Zion) and Mick (Stephen Skipper) of The Jagged Stones.

How many Rolling Stones tribute bands are out there and where do The Jagged Stones fit in?

We definitely have some competition and that keeps us always trying to improve. I really love The Glimmer Twins from Philadelphia. I’ve seen them  on visits I make up north, and they are a vintage 70s Stones band. I think because we are a bit older, we are more of the recent Stones tribute, probably 90s/2000s. The GTs don’t travel much down here, and we don’t travel up there, so I like to think that we are mutually supportive of our respective bands, and territories. Their Mick (Keith Call) and Keith (Bernie Bollendorf) are masters at their craft, and they have a great supporting cast behind them and have been at it for quite some time and are successful at it.  I really respect Bernie and the attention he pays to the tunings and the version of the songs they play. I think what sets us apart from the other tributes, is that Skip nails the look and sound of Mick Jagger whereas most of the other tribute bands have a Mick Jagger lookalike, but they don’t sound much like him.

This is your second year doing the Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree show at the House of the Rock with the Nine Inch Neils, right? How did you get involved?

Cage (Neil Diamond from the Nine Inch Neils) was instrumental in getting Skip to go from a karaoke singer to a front man for The Jagged Stones. Last year’s event was really our first “real gig,” and thanks to Cage, we got that gig and met Jon Waterhouse and Pastor Matt. Jon has been a key to our success, and without his support and guidance we would probably not be together, so anything that we can do to help Jon out including playing his charity events we try to do. For me, once I saw what was going on at The HOTR last year, I was just really moved by the people that are involved with the church and the event. It was a real special event for me, and one that I will always remember. I think this year will be even better, as we are now more seasoned, and our current lineup is firing on all cylinders.  People have told me that they can see that we all have fun playing the music and that it carries over to the audience.

What can audiences expect from the Jagged Stones at Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree this Saturday? Holiday favorites? Greatest hits?

We always put a lot of thought into our setlist and tailor it to each show.  Dave Lang works hard on that and takes in all the parameters of the venue. You will definitely hear all the familiar Stones hits and a few deeper cuts for the Stones aficionado. They have such a vast catalog of hits, [so] it becomes challenging to try and cram them all into the time we have allotted.

Some people might think the event can’t be hip, because it’s at a church. But to us this just tells us the House of the Rock is mighty hip. Tell them why they’re wrong.

As I said above, the event was an incredibly moving experience for me last year. I was surprised that the Church has a state-of-the-art sound system, lighting and a nice size stage for Skip to strut his stuff on. The people who organize and staff the event are cool cats and chicks and are more of the hippie generation, and certainly not that image I had of little old church ladies pulling bingo balls. Pastor Matt is quite a musician himself and has a pretty good band that plays regularly at the HOTR. I live close by and it truly touched me how they are helping the hungry in downtown Atlanta. I have been shopping the whole week for canned food to bring with me and encouraging all our friends to go above the ‘suggested one can of food. Also it’s such a bargain at $10 for two excellent bands, let alone Mellow Mushroom Pizza and two drinks. You’d be hard pressed to find that anywhere around Atlanta.

What’s gives you the most satisfaction about being a Rolling Stone impersonator?

Well if you look up the definition of ‘Rock & Roll’ in a dictionary, there should only be a picture of Keith Richards there. He is Rock & Roll, and what better character could anybody want to portray then Keith?! Lots of people think Keith is not a very good guitar player, but he finished in the #10 spot in Rolling Stone Magazine’s Top 100 Greatest Guitarists of all time. I think it’s easy to take him for granted as he is not flashy or incredibly fast or a very innovative kead player. However he is the riff-master. There are only a handful of guitarists that you can identify by their tone, and Keith’s tone is one of those. It doesn’t take more than a few notes to identify a Rolling Stones song on the radio. I try really hard to reproduce the subtleties of his tone by using his tunings, instruments, attack and, of course, dressing up like him and moving around like him.

What’s next for you and the Jagged Stones in terms of gigs? Any recordings?

Recordings are not something I have given much thought to, but Skip has been in the studio recently recording some corporate stuff that needed some Jagger-like vocals. We love playing live and thrive at auditoriums and festivals. Skip has a knack of working a big stage and reaching a big crowd. In addition to the HOTR show, we are really looking forward to our New Years Eve show at The Strand.

What do you do when you are not a Jagged Stone?

Besides sleeping? For fun, I like to take long walks in dimly lit cemetaries. Seriously I enjoy the jam scene around Atlanta, and have a day job that keeps me pretty busy. The joke I have is that I am an “Antique Consultant,” which has its origin in women giving me the usual interrogation to assess my datability quotient:

Woman: What’s your name?
Me: Barry
Woman: What do you do?
Me (over loud music): IT Consulting,
Woman, yelling: Wow that’s so interesting. Have you ever been on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW???
Me: No, not antiques. IT like computers.
Woman:  Oh ok, cya.

So I learned to just go with the antiques and say I speacialize in Queen Anne chairs, and the interrogation proceeds a few more questions, before the woman leaves.

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This Week in Retro Atlanta, March 12-18, 2012

Posted on: Mar 13th, 2012 By:

Monday March 12

From 3 p.m. on, savor tropical sounds and libations, as well as a Polynesian dinner, during Mai Tai Monday at Smith’s Olde BarNorthside Tavern hosts its weekly Blues Jam. Head over to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for dinner and a show, with local blues/jazz band Dry White Toast performing at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, March 13

Splatter Cinema opens the door to Lucio Fulci’s THE BEYOND (1981) at the Plaza Theatre at 9:30 p.m. Read Philip Nutman’s Retro Review of this over-the-top cult classic here. Legendary Jamaican ska band Toots & the Maytals groove at The Masquerade.  Jane’s Addiction rocks The TabernacleDavina & the Vagabonds bring a fresh spin to jazz swing at Smith’s Olde Bar with Brighter Than A Thousand Suns and Dan Coyle. During Darkland County Tuesdays at Eddie’s Attic, hear artists from the Stephen King/John Mellencamp production preview its music leading up to the premiere of GHOST BROTHERS OF DARKLAND COUNTY at the Alliance Theatre on April 4. Grab your horn and head to Twain’s in Decatur for a Joe Gransden jazz jam session starting at 9 p.m. Burning Time rock the blues at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. Dance the night away at Tues. Retro in the Metro nights at Midtown’s Deadwood Saloon featuring video mixes of ’80s, ’90s and 2Ks hits.

Wednesday, March 14

“Spacey, spooky and stripped-down…their songs bring to mind the freakish contents of Victorian curiosity cabinets and would make for a great soundtrack to the most adorable little taxidermy shop you’ve ever seen,” writes Garrett Weindorf (Urban Tulsa Weekly). With a quote like that, we’re kind of intrigued by Daymoths in a Really Retro and totally now way. They’re playing Drunken Unicorn tonight with the Memes and Pink Pompeii, who are one of those bands who can rock a cello. John Hiatt and Lyle Lovett team up at Symphony Hall. Get ready to rumba, cha-cha and jitterbug at the weekly Swing Night at Graveyard TavernFrankie’s Blues Mission jazzes up Fat Matt’s Rib ShackDanny “Mudcat” Dudeck blues it down at Northside TavernLefty Williams strums at Moe’s Original Bar-B-Que. Dance to ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s hits during Retro in the Metro Wednesdays at Pub 71 in Brookhaven.

Thursday March 15

Relax with a tropical cocktail at vintage tiki bar Trader Vic’s where Tongo Hiti play Retro-Polynesian luxurious live lounge sounds, as well as trippy takes on iconic pop songs, every Thursday night. Big Mike’s off in Seattle till June performing with El Vez in Teatro ZinZanni’s CALIENTE SHOW, so Atlanta Funk Society’s Jonathan Lloyd will be filling in on vocals. Remember Lloyd’s Rockstead Review, his killer reggae collaboration with KingsizedThe Cazanovas play the blues at Darwin’s Blues and BurgersThe Breeze Kings and Chickenshack bring on the blues respectively at Northside Tavern and Fat Matt’s Rib ShackLarry Keel & Natural Bridge  jam at Red Light Café’s weekly Bluegrass Thursday.

Friday, March 16

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra performs BOND AND BEYOND— a spy-themed program featuring a variety of James Bond themes in addition to classic songs from other spy films —  tonight and Saturday night at 8 p.m., in Atlanta Symphony Hall at the Woodruff Arts Center. Debbie Gravitte provides the vocals. Watch out for our Kool Kat interview with Principal Pops Conductor Michael Krajewskisoon!

Another weekend, another con rolls into Atlanta. This time, it’s Japanese anime/comics/costume fest MomoCon at the Marriott Marquis. The Plaza Theatre kicks off a week-run of VIGILANTE VIGILANTE (2011), a documentary about  a new breed of crime-fighter – the anti-graffiti vigilante.  These dedicated blight-warriors stop at nothing to rid their neighborhoods and cities of street art,

The F'n Heartbreaks. L-R: Brook Bolen, Stephanie Hudson, Carrie Manuel. Photo courtesy of the F'n Heartbreaks..

stickers, tags, and posters. The 7:30 sceening will include a panel discussion with director Max Good, producer Nate Wollman, and Atlanta street artists Hense and Michi Meko! The After School Special edition of Contraband Cinema features 16mm films rescued from the past, as well as advice on smoking, driving, dating and proper female hygiene; a short review on the new book Learning With The Lights Off, and a brand new film by Christopher Childs and Krista Strobel on the role of film archives today.  Come to the Ponce de Leon Library branch at 7:30pm for films, pre-school snacks, pop quizzes, book discounts and prizes! It’s another rockin’ night at Star Bar with a great line-up including The El Caminos; Jade Lemons & The Crimson Lust; The F’n Heartbreaks (featuring Kool Kat Brook Bolen); and Little 5 Points Rockstar OrchestraColin Hay, the former lead singer of Australian hit ’80s band Men At Work, rocks solo at Variety Playhouse. Melding brass with banjo, guitar, bass and drums, eclectic Greensboro, N.C. quintet Holy Ghost Temple Revival is at The Earl with Abby Wren & What It Is. Fat Back Deluxe blues it down at Fat Matts Rib Shack. The Last Waltz Ensemble channel The Band at Smith’s Olde Bar. Spice things up with sassy Latin rhythms including Salsa, Merengue, Cha-Cha-Cha, and Bachata during Salsa Night with Salsambo Dance Studio at Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX. In the spirit of St. Paddy’s Day, Cineprov! makes green jest of LEPRECHAUN IN THE HOOD (2000) at Relapse Theatre. Stoney Brooks brings on the blues at Northside Tavern.

Saturday, March 17 St. Patrick’s Day

The Star Bar  throws an all-day St. Pat’s Day Party starting at 1 p.m., live music by Andrew and the Disapyramids (featuring Kool Kat Joshua Longino) and Fishhawk starts at 10 p.m. Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day Texarcana style with Burt and the Bandits, everybody’s favorite SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT tribute band featuring Kool Kats Jon Waterhouseand Barb Hays, at House of the Rock, 731 Peachtree St. Facebook event page here. Hot Rod Walt and the Psycho-Devilles rockabilly it St. Paddy’s style at Irish Bred in Douglasville. Little G. Weevil brings on the St. Paddy’s blues at Darwin’s Blues and Burgers. Spanish Harlem Orchestra jazzes up The Rialto. Soul Rebels Brass Band plays Smith’s Olde Bar.

For those more into Japanese anime than Irish green beer, MomoCon continues downtown at the Marriott Marquis. The Atlanta Rollergirls  have their second bout of the season, as always, at the Yaarab Shrine Temple. At 5 p.m., the recently-victorious Denim Demons battling the ladies in green, the Toxic Shocks. Will the luck of the Irish be with the Shocks? Or will the Demons’ winning momentum prove to be unstoppable? Then, stay put for bout two at 7:30 p.m., when the Rumble Bs take on Gainesville’s Roller Rebels. The Bs have a whole new roster and and have been practicing harder than ever. Will they send the Roller Rebels packing and win?  The High Museum of Art continues its MOMA movie series with showings of a 35 mm print of FOLLOW THE FLEET (1936), the fifth on-screen pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, collected by the New York museum at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. And as usual, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours.

Sunday, March 18

Rise and dine with Chicken & Pigs at 1 p.m. dunch at The Earl. Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band rock Philips ArenaGwen Hughes joins The Trio to jazz up The Family Dog. Tony Bryant brings on the blues at Fat Matt’s, and Uncle Sugar blues it down at Northside Tavern.

Ongoing

7 Stages presents the world premiere of THE HIDDEN MAN, based on the true story of Robert Sherer and his mentor, Rev. Howard Finster. The unexpected and controversial story chronicles a young artist who arrives in 1980s Atlanta knowing three things for certain: he’s gay, he’s an atheist and he is destined to kill himself. Howard, a religious conservative preacher, created Paradise Garden in North Georgia, a folk art garden with messages from the Lord. These two unlikely artists become unlikely friends. Hidden Man Contains adult nudity. Through March 25. Read a behind-the-stage interview with 7 Stages Artistic Director Del Hamilton here.

Broadway musical BILLY ELLIOTT, based on the movie about the motherless boy who trades boxing gloves for ballet shoes with music by Elton John,  plays the Fabulous Fox Theatre this week through Sun. March 18.

DragonCon is still months away, but get your con fix now as the giant nerds of Dad’s Garage explores the eccentric and outlandish realm of sci‐fi fandom in THE WRATH OF CON. Get ready for blaster battles, ridiculous costumes and celebrity sightings all rolled into one night of comedy! Through March 17.

MANDALA: SACRED CIRCLE IN TIBETAN BUDDHISM brings peace and harmony to the Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University. This amazing special exhibition explores Buddhism’s unique and beautiful perspective on sacred space and honor that through the tradition of mandalas. Be sure to read Lisa Stock’s Retro Review here. Through April 15

PICASSO TO WARHOL, a special art exhibition at the High Museum of Art, features over 100 works of art from 14 of the most influential artists of the 20th century. Through Apr. 29. If you know of a cool happening coming up soon, send suggestions to ATLRetro@gmail.com.

Category: This Week in ATLRetro | TAGS: None

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