Kool Kat of the Week: Kickin’ It Out, Looking Tough with Jet Terror at the Star Bar’s NYC Punk Tribute Fri. July 27

Posted on: Jul 25th, 2012 By:

Jet Terror. Photo credit: Widdi Turner.

Think you are or ever were a punk rocker? The Star Bar is throwing a NYC Punk Tribute Night Fri. July 27 with some of Atlanta’s finest garage and punk bands headlined by none other than  Jayne County & The Electrick Queers and also including The Forty-Fives ( doingMC5 songs), The El CaminosRandy Micheal and the Sharp Dressed Lads and Ghost Bikini . They’ll be performing songs by the New York Dolls, Blondie, Ramones, MC5 and more that started a rock revolution in the early-mid 1970s before the Sex Pistols ever spiked their hair. Unfortunately too many  performers of that era have left this plane including a majority of Ramones and NY Dolls, but Atlanta is fortunate to be  home to the queen of Max’s Kansas City, Jayne County. Since we interviewed Jayne last October (catch up with that Kool Kat here), we decided to turn to Jet Terror, an Atlanta punk legend in his own right as one of the founding members of the recently resurrected and still refreshingly raunchy Dead Elvis (Ed. note: fellow band member Derek Yaniger designed the ATLRetro logo; read an interview with him and catch up some more on the history of Dead Elvis here.)

The last time I interviewed Jet was for Maximum Rock n Roll, the best newsprint hardcore punk zine ever (and still thriving on the Web here), along with the rest of Dead Elvis – Derek, Kevin Rej and Chris Mills, in Chris’s Grant Park living room. Let’s just say there was a lot of…er…colorful language. A few years later, Jet left Atlanta for San Francisco, so it’s great to see him back roughing up the Atlanta music scene. If you didn’t get to Greenwich Village in the 1970s, this Friday night is sure to be the next best thing…

Why a 1970s NYC Punk Tribute Night in 2012?

Well, we just want to celebrate the music of that era and give people a real taste of what it was like. It was really Jayne’s idea, and I put it together with the Star Bar’s help. We wanted to create an event, not just a show. It will be fuckin’ great.

Jayne County and the Electrick Queers. Photo credit: Jeff Shipman.

Is the show going to mostly be covers?

Yeah it will be a lot of covers of bands like, Ramones, Dead Boys, New York Dolls, MC5, Velvet Underground and so on. Each band may do an original or two.

Other than Jayne County, what are the three must-know performers/bands of that era in your opinion and why?

Iggy and the Stooges, Ramones, New York Dolls. If you have to ask why, go to YouTube.

How did you meet Jayne County?

I met her through my girlfriend’s business partner Tim Scott. She was wanting to play some shows and we clicked.

What’s the back story about the Electrick Queers? I understand they were first formed because Jayne needed a back-up band for a gig she had at a PAWS Atlanta fundraiser?

Basically we formed to support her on that gig, but always had planned to move forward as her current band. Here we are four years later. It’s been a blast and getting better all the time.

Any chance of a Jayne County and the Electrick Queers recording in the future?

We just recorded two brand new songs that we wrote with Jayne, and they came out very strong. She and I are always throwing around ideas and are working on more new songs currently with the band. She’s the most dynamic person I’ve ever played with.

Jet Terror. Photo credit: Jeff Shipman.

What’s up with Dead Elvis? Any more gigs planned this summer/fall?

Hey, Dead Elvis has been around for 27 years now. We never expected we would still be playing in 2012. To answer your question, I don’t know. We don’t plan it; usually some show is presented to us, and we figure we can go onstage and destroy it one more time for fun. It’s all about having fun acting like immature beer-swilling punks.

You relocated to San Francisco for a long time. What made you return to Atlanta?

Yep, I lived in San Francisco for most of the Nineties. SF is still just as much home to me as Atlanta is. I came back to Atlanta in 2000, mainly because of some family health issues, and I was also looking to form my dream band. Luckily I did meet the right guitar player (Jim Wright) and the right guys and formed The Evils.  We’re playing The Star Bar on August 24.

I hear you’re doing some work with WWE. Can you tell us about that?

I work full time for the WWE world television tour for the show’s MONDAY NIGHT RAW and SMACKDOWN. I’m the Stage Manager. I’m responsible for getting our show built, run and loaded out. I manage about 150 people a day and 14 semi trucks of gear. It’s a big crazy job. I’m on a plane twice a week to somewhere in the U.S., Canada or Mexico.

What else are you up to?

I have a wonderful girlfriend (Jen [Belgard of Libertine, and ATLRetro contributing writer]), a German shepherd, a crazy terrier and three cats. They keep me pretty busy when I’m home. Also, I’m working on buying a bar with my business partner.

Any other personal interests of note?

Yes, I love my 1947 Chevy Rat Rod truck and my Triumph Bonneville motorcycle. My favorite bands: Elvis, The Stooges, MC5, Motörhead, Eddie Cochran, Hank Williams Sr., The Kinks, etc. etc…

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Weekend Update, June 3-5, 2011

Posted on: Jun 3rd, 2011 By:

Be sure to check out this Weekend Update even if you read This Week in Retro Atlanta for even more great vintage-inspired things to do on a very busy Retro weekend.

Friday, June 3

The 4th Annual Psychobilly Freakout Revival swings into action at the Star Bar as Rev. Andy Hawley gathers up some of Atlanta’s best bands in the genre, including  Rocket 350, McPherson Struts, and Hard Luck and TroubleLoysville Atlanta will also be there selling her delightful Dia De Los Muertos-inspired wares.

Hey, hey, it’s The Monkees 45th Anniversary Tour starting up this summer’s Delta Classic Chastain Series. Reggae legends Toots and the Maytals plays Variety PlayhouseJoe Gransden and his 16-piece big band team up with blues chanteuse Francine Reed at Eddie’s AtticAtlanta Botanical Garden launches its Concerts in the Garden summer series with blues guitarist extraordinaire Jonny LangCallanwolde’s Jazz on the Lawn 2011 summer outdoor series begins with high-powered jazz by Nick Longo. Electromatics merge Chicago/West Coast Blues, Blue Eyed Soul and an essence of Standard Jazz and Sinatra at Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX.

Plus the 15th Annual Atlanta Tattoo Festival gets rolling at Crowne Plaza Hotel Atlanta-Perimeter Northeast. The three-day event presented by Sacred Heart Tattoo attracts thousands to see world-class artists, live tattooing, seminars, contest, unique vendors, and live music.

Saturday June 4

During the day, browse and buy art, eat and listen to live music at Virginia-Highland Summerfest, a street festival in one of Atlanta’s historic neighborhoods. The whole family will enjoy a vintage Locomotive Celebration at the Southeastern Railway Museum. The 15th Annual Atlanta Tattoo Festival continues with a bikini contest at 6 PM and live music by Six Shot Revival, Killer and the Savage with Cool Breeze from the Dungeon Family, and Kadense.

At night, The Official Monster Bash Pre-Party rocks the Star Bar. Get revved up for a horror-ific Sunday at the Starlight Six Drive-In with bands MC45’s (The Forty-Fives all MC5 set)BitersBoozeThe CluttersThe Brimstones from New Jersey and Dusty Booze & the Baby Haters.

Andrew & the Disapyramids, featuring recent Kool Kat Joshua Longino, will be surfing it up with Fishhawk and Modern Paranoia at the Drunken Unicorn. Bluegrass meets rockabilly with a punk attitude at Highland Inn Ballroom Lounge tonight in a triple-header show featuring Hymn for HerI Want Whisky and Barebones BettiesBareknuckle Betties playing as a duo with pal Johnny McGowan. DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno.

Andrew & the Disapyramids

Sunday June 5

Gates open at 10 am at Starlight Six Drive-In for the 2011 Rock ‘n’ Roll Monster Bash. The all-day party is a Retro horror fan’s righteous nightmare with live music, vendors and movies. Bands this year are Super X-13Brimstones, LUSTRadio Cult and Spooky Partridge. At dusk, the reels roll with GODZILLA 2000, RINGU and crazed J-horror classic HOUSE. Check out a scary sneak preview from Kool Kat of the Week and “Horror Host with the Most” Professor Morte himself Shane Morton here.

Legendary blues performers BB King and Buddy Guy begin the Georgia Natural Gas series at Chastain Park AmphitheatreNathan Nelson & His Entertainment Crackers headline blues “dunch” between 1 and 4 PM at The Earl. Also continuing today is Virginia-Highland Summerfest and the vintage Locomotive Celebration at the Southeastern Railway Museum.

Opening this weekend:

MODERN BY DESIGN, the High‘s newest special exhibition opening on Sat. June 4, celebrates three key moments in modern design and also the Museum of Modern Art, New York‘s (MOMA) collection history. The works on loan from MODA cover “Machine Art” (1934), “Good Design” (1950-55) and “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” (1972), with the latter addressing modernism in the context of 1960s and ’70s counterculture.

The ever irreverent Dad’s Garage Theatre takes a stab at the ’80s horror genre of camp slasher films in SLAUGHTER CAMP about a homicidal maniac terrorizing a theatre camp. June 2-25 on the main stage.

Get a rare chance to view original manuscript pages from the last four chapters of ATLANTA’S BOOK: THE LOST GONE WITH THE WIND MANUSCRIPT at the Atlanta History Center. The new exhibit, which opens today and runs through Sept. 5, is part of a series of activities celebrating the 75th anniversary of the publication of the international bestseller and also includes foreign and first edition copies, the desk Margaret Mitchell used while writing it and select images.

Ongoing:

See the original images which inspired Ray Harryhausen‘s amazing stop-motion cyclops, centaurs and other mythological beasts in the special exhibition, MONSTERS, DEMONS AND WINGED BEASTS: COMPOSITE CREATURES IN THE ANCIENT WORLD at the Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University. The exhibition of monstrous art, drawn from the museum’s permanent collections, shows how the ancient Greeks were inspired by other Middle Eastern cultures in developing a vast repertoire of richly imagined creatures.

Tune back in on Monday for This Week in Retro Atlanta. If you know of a cool happening next week, send suggestions to ATLRetro@gmail.com.


 

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This Week in Retro Atlanta, May 30-June 5, 2011

Posted on: May 31st, 2011 By:

Lots going on this week & still catching up after a Bubba-licious holiday weekend, so expect a few updates as the week goes along…

Monday May 30

Every Monday, find out if Kingsized and Tongo Hiti lead singer Big Mike Geier will croon a tune or two for tips during his second week as Monday night’s celebrity bartender at newly opened Sister Louisa’s Church of the Living Room and Ping Pong Parlor. Northside Tavern hosts its weekly Blues Jam.

Tuesday May 31

Grab your horn and head to Twain’s in Decatur for a Joe Gransden jazz jam session starting at 9 PM. Notorious DJ Romeo Cologne spins the best ‘70s funk and disco at 10 High in Virginia-Highland. Catch Tuesday Retro in the Metro nights at Midtown’s Deadwood Saloon, featuring live video mixes of ’80s, ’90s, and 2Ks hits.

Wednesday June 1

Get ready to rumba, cha-cha and jitterbug at the weekly Swing Night at Graveyard TavernFrankie’s Blues Mission and Danny “Mudcat” Dudeck bring on the blues at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack and Northside Tavern respectively. Dance to ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s hits during Retro in the Metro Wednesdays presented by Godiva Vodka, at Pub 71 in Brookhaven.

Thursday June 2

Spanky & The Love Handles brings the blues to Clarkston-based Kathmandu Kitchen & Grill‘s Thursday free concert series.  Listen to Tongo Hiti’s luxurious live lounge sounds, as well as some trippy takes on iconic pop songs, just about every Thursday night at Trader Vic’s. Party ‘70s style with DJ Romeo Cologneat Aurum LoungeBreeze Kings and Chickenshack bring on the blues respectively at Northside Tavern and Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.Bluegrass Thursday at Red Light Cafe presents Country Fried Karaoke Night with Red Light All Stars Band.

Read the rest of this entry »

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Raising a big PBR toast as Star Bar’s Bubbapalooza turns 20

Posted on: May 26th, 2011 By:

Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend may be a lot bigger and more famous, but down home here in Atlanta, the heartland of the Redneck Underground, we have our own mighty fine shindig called Bubbapalooza. Like all good and crazy ideas, it started with a man with a dream. Gregory Dean Smalley was a prolific guitarist and songwriter who settled in Cabbagetown and used to play in one band or another practically every night in Atlanta and Athens bars and clubs until he succumbed to AIDS in the mid-‘90s.

While Greg’s physical presence may have passed away, his no-holds-barred musical soul still burns brightly every Memorial Day weekend at the Star Bar. It’s hard to believe that Bubbapalooza is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and yet to anyone who’s been in the Atlanta scene for any amount of time, it seems impossible to imagine that there ever

Ghost Riders Car Club

was a time when it didn’t happened. On Friday May 27 (doors at 7 PM) and Saturday May 28 (doors at 3 PM), feast on BBQ, knock down a PBR, see some of the city’s most lovingly restored pre-‘70s hot-rods and rock and ramble to 20 rockabilly, Redneck Underground, cowpunk, surf and county-inspired bands, as well as have a chance to win prizes from Little 5 Points retailers in a raffle and have your 20th anniversary picture taken at the PBR Photo Booth.

ATLRetro caught up with Star Bar Booking Agent Bryan Malone (The Forty-Fives) and Ted Weldon (Truckadelic, Ghost Riders Car Club) for a sneak preview.

Bubbapalooza 20 is dedicated to Gregory Dean Smalley who founded the first Bubbapalooza and raffle proceeds go to his family. For those who haven’t been in Atlanta that long, can you briefly recap who he was and how Bubbapalooza got started and got its name?

Blacktop Rockets

Greg Smalley came down from Cedartown GA. in the ‘80s and was a founding member of The Grease Guns, The Diggers and The Bubbamatics and played with The Chant, Blacktop Rockets, Slim Chance & the Convicts & who else?

He played with Amy Pike, Kelly Hogan and several more. God, everyone from those days. But, yeah, Bubbapalooza was his bastard love child from the early days of 1991. It started as a festival to showcase the Redneck Underground which was a bunch of bands from the Atlanta/Athens area and even North Carolina. Plus it was to celebrate the early Star Bar’s trailer trash extravaganza of bad ideas & all things southern. It was a great excuse to have a show where all your friends play a bunch of rowdy songs & drink all night.

There’s more bands than we could even mention that have played Bubba, but here are a few: Southern Culture on the Skids, Deacon Lunchbox, Drive-By Truckers (they have a song about Greg Smalley called “The Living Bubba”), Kevn Kinney, Dex Romweber, BR-549, The Delta Angels, Kingsized, Truckadelic, Charlie Pickett, Redneck Greece Delux, Slim Chance & the Convicts, The Belmont Playboys, Greasepaint, Rocket 350. This list could go on and on.

Every year seems like a big family reunion for Atlanta’s rockabilly/Redneck Underground/old Star Bar scene crowd. Having hit a milestone 20th year this year, do you think it’ll be even more so?

 

A ton of the bands that are playing this year were actually onstage during the first Bubbapalooza, so yeah it is most definitely a homecoming. There will be a lot of friends and family all weekend and the kind of familiar faces that you only see at certain shows or in some cases just this one time of year. Even Mama Smalley will be here also to oversee the proceedings.

Are you doing anything special for the 20th year?

Hahahaha. The big thing is we’re still doing it 20 years later. That’s pretty crazy. It’s unbelievable having a get-together like this that’s lasted that long. It kind of says something about the crowd that was here at the very beginning, as well as all those who’ve joined in over the years. You can count on three things these days: Death, taxes & Bubbapalooza. Hahaha.

But, yeah, we have 20 bands this year, enough bands for a three-day festival. It’s gonna be a great mix of the regulars like the Blacktop Rockets, Caroline & the Ramblers, The Billygoats, plus a whole bunch of newcomers this year like Bareknuckle Betties & Uncle Daddy & the Kissin Cousins, Midway Charmers & some crazy surf from the Disasternauts, too. There’s so much music we’re even having bands downstairs in the Little Vinyl Lounge and tons of stuff on the back patio as well.

[Web-based radio station] Garage 71 is hosting a pre-1970 hot rod car show on Saturday. We’re expecting 20 or 30 entries for that. Oh, yeah, and there’ll be free Slope’s BBQ Saturday afternoon. Haha. It’s just gonna be a big old helping of Bubba hyjinks.

Can you tell us a little bit about the Redneck Cruise-In Hot Rod Show?

The car show will be hosted by Garage71. All the cars and motorcycles will be pre-1970. That will be Saturday afternoon starting at 5 PM. There’ll be some cool stuff down here for sure. There’s a trophy, too, I hear, so someone will drive out a winner of something to brag about. Not sure what the trophy looks like, but I’m sure it’ll come with something greasy like a bucket of chicken. Anything’s possible.

Uncle Daddy & the Kissin' Cousins

Expect a healthy dose of good country music, rockabilly, country-punk, southern rock, surf bands, hot rods, BBQ and a whole lot of good times and cold beer. You don’t necessarily have to drink PBR but it sure helps. Helps with most things really. Ha.

This is the kind of event that could really only happen at the Star Bar though, and it’ll be full of people who like good country and rockabilly music and are ready to let loose for Memorial Day weekend. Every year someone comes up and says “Happy Bubba” and makes a toast. It’s down-home stuff.

Sonoramic Commando

What’s the craziest, funnest thing that’s ever happened at a Bubbapalooza?

One of the funnest things that happens every year is when the stage is packed with about 40 people for a drunken rousing rendition of “She’s Breakin My Heart While I’m Drinkin’ Her Beer”—the old Diggers tune. It’s always brings down the house and is quite a moment.

What question did I not ask you that I should have and what’s the answer?

What’s a bad idea that became a tradition? Boone’s Farm Saturday.

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