TO P KN OX 201 5 : Th e O f f i cial Ballot (page 23)
AUG. 13, 2015 KNOXMERCURY.COM
HELLO, KNOXVILLE!
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At Girls Rock Camp, the lessons are long, the feelings intense, and the music absolutely vital BY S. HEATHER DUNCAN
NEWS
Street Artists Duel Graffiti Taggers in Strong Alley
JACK NEELY
This Holiday Inn Wasn’t Just Another Holiday Inn
MUSIC
Falloir Puts the Progress in Local Progressive Rock
OUTDOORS
How to Lose Your Bearings on the Little River
Your career path is here.
Lincoln Memorial University HARROGATE, TENNESSEE
You can go anywhere. You can be anything.
Where will you go?
You can say anything.
Who will you be?
What will you say? See more of our campus. Scan this to take a virtual tour.
www.LMUnet.edu 2
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
Aug. 13, 2015 Volume 01 / Issue 23 knoxmercury.com
CONTENTS
“Rock and roll is just rock and roll.” –AC/DC
NEWS
14 Artful Antagonists
16 Girls Rock! (and Roll) COVER STORY
For five days in late July, several female veterans of Knoxville’s rock scene guided a class of young girls into the ways of rock ’n’ roll. But Girls Rock Camp is about more than just music lessons—it’s a place for youthful self-discovery in a way that isn’t usually available to girls. Can rocking out build their confidence and sense of community? That’s the goal of Knowhow, a local nonprofit formed to teach social justice through art and music. S. Heather Duncan follows the girl group from start to finish.
Top Knox 2015 Ballot!
While the murals in Strong Alley testify to Knoxville’s creative pulse, they also show evidence of a clash between conflicting cultures. Street and graffiti artists often vie for the same turf, and in a public space like Strong Alley, that conflict is being graphically expressed for everyone to see. Liv McConnell reports.
Turn to page 23 to see all the categories in our new readers’ survey. Then vote at knoxmercury.com.
DEPARTMENTS
OPINION
A&E
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Letters Howdy Start Here: Photo by Bart Ross, Believe It or Knox!, Public Affairs, Quote Factory. PLUS: Words With … Mary Beth Roberts ’Bye Finish There: At This Point by Stephanie Piper, Crooked Street Crossword by Ian Blackburn and Jack Neely, Spirit of the Staircase by Matthew Foltz-Gray
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The Scruffy Citizen Jack Neely looks for the remains of Knoxville’s most historic Holiday Inn. Guest Ed. Brooks Clark recalls his attempts to get the truth out of Donald Trump. Architecture Matters George Dodds presents part two of his look at Modern architecture’s bad rap.
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CALENDAR Program Notes: Hot Horse gets a new owner, and the Parlor moves back north. Shelf Life: Chris Barrett reviews the works of Ry Cooder. Music: Falloir contributes to Knoxville’s sudden prog-rock scene.
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Spotlights: Stark Love, House Mountain Hoedown
OUTDOORS
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Voice in the Wilderness Kim Trevathan, mapper of the Little River, gets lost on the Little River.
Movies: April Snellings admires the quieter kids entertainment offered in Shaun the Sheep Movie.
August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 3
LETTERS Delivering Fine Journalism Since 2015
EDITORIAL
ED. NOTE: TOP KNOX IS HERE!
A HUMBLE PLEA
More Matthew Foltz-Gray. David Piper Knoxville
VERBAL OBFUSCATION IS OUR SPECIALTY!
I thoroughly enjoyed the first of three articles bashing modern architecture. [“Hating Modern Architecture, and Loving It (Part 1),” Architecture Matters by George Dodds, July 30, 2015] There is a simple reason it’s hated so much. It’s ugly. That said, I would like to compliment the writer on his use of challenging callisthenitical verbiage to engage the reader: • “Modern architecture…established a hegemonic position” • “American corporations successfully used its powerful ahistorical iconography…” He also uses cultural references that will make things clear to most readers: • “Turner worked in a pre-Renaissance method and the effect was that of a Titian or Tintoretto.” I look forward to the next installment of semi-dysfunctional verbal obfuscation. Larry Dearing Knoxville 4
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
A FAN FROM AFAR
Hello from New York City! I lived in Knoxville for more years than I’d like to admit. Your predecessor was always a pleasure to read. My son—the best thing to happen to me in Knoxville—is visiting his old haunts (he grows nostalgic over McKay’s) and just texted me about the Mercury. Allow me to say “Welcome back,” especially to Stephanie Piper who writes eloquently and with great insight. Dan New York
BRICK BY DISMANTLED BRICK
I am from the deep South where communities save a brick if it has historical and cultural significance. It has been surprising, not to mention disappointing, to watch the UT administrators at work over the past 10 years. Thank you, Jack Neely, for writing the eulogies of these homes. [“Three Houses,” the Scruffy Citizen by Jack Neely, July 16, 2015] Deedee Wilder via Facebook
Yep, you knew it was coming—our new annual readers’ poll is being unleashed right now, in this very issue. We aim to make Top Knox an indispensable user’s guide to the Knoxville area, and we need your expert help to do it. You know this place inside and out—and you’ve got great taste. So let’s make Top Knox the one “best of” list in town that truly matters. Turn to page 23 to see all the categories— but keep in mind that voting will be conducted online only. Go to knoxmercury.com starting Thursday, Aug. 13 to register your ballot. Voting ends Thursday, Sept. 10 at midnight. The results will be printed in our Oct. 15 issue. And don’t forget Rule #1: You can’t vote for national chains. Top Knox is all about the things that make our area unique—so vote for local and regionally owned businesses only! —Coury Turczyn, ed.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR GUIDELINES
• Letter submissions should include a verifiable name, address, and phone number. We do not print anonymous letters. • We much prefer letters that address issues that pertain specifically to Knoxville or to stories we’ve published. • We don’t publish letters about personal disputes or how you didn’t like your waiter at that restaurant. • Letters are usually published in the order that we receive them. Send your letters to: Our Dear Editor Knoxville Mercury 706 Walnut St., Suite 404 Knoxville, TN 37920 editor@knoxmercury.com Or message us at: facebook.com/knoxmercury
EDITOR Coury Turczyn coury@knoxmercury.com SENIOR EDITOR Matthew Everett matthew@knoxmercury.com CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Jack Neely jack@knoxhistoryproject.org STAFF WRITERS S. Heather Duncan heather@knoxmercury.com Clay Duda clay@knoxmercury.com CONTRIBUTORS Chris Barrett Rose Kennedy Ian Blackburn Dennis Perkins Bryan Charles Stephanie Piper Patrice Cole Ryan Reed Eric Dawson Eleanor Scott George Dodds Alan Sherrod Lee Gardner April Snellings Mike Gibson Joe Sullivan Carey Hodges Kim Trevathan Nick Huinker William Warren Donna Johnson Chris Wohlwend EDITORIAL INTERNS Liv McConnell McCord Pagan Jack Evans
DESIGN ART DIRECTOR Tricia Bateman tricia@knoxmercury.com GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Charlie Finch Corey McPherson CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS David Luttrell Shawn Poynter Justin Fee Tyler Oxendine CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATORS Ben Adams Matthew Foltz-Gray
ADVERTISING PUBLISHER & DIRECTOR OF SALES Charlie Vogel charlie@knoxmercury.com SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Scott Hamstead scott@knoxmercury.com Stacey Pastor stacey@knoxmercury.com SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE–DIGITAL CONTENT David Smith david.smith@knoxmercury.com
BUSINESS BUSINESS MANAGER Scott Dickey scott.dickey@knoxmercury.com
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 706 Walnut St., Suite 404, Knoxville, Tenn. 37902 knoxmercury.com • 865-313-2059 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR & PRESS RELEASES editor@knoxmercury.com CALENDAR SUBMISSIONS calendar@knoxmercury.com SALES QUERIES sales@knoxmercury.com DISTRIBUTION distribution@knoxmercury.com
BOARD OF DIRECTORS Terry Hummel Joe Sullivan Jack Neely Coury Turczyn Charlie Vogel The Knoxville Mercury is an independent weekly news magazine devoted to informing and connecting Knoxville’s many different communities. It is a taxable, not-for-profit company governed by the Knoxville History Project, a non-profit organization devoted to exploring, disseminating, and celebrating Knoxville’s unique cultural heritage. It publishes 25,000 copies per week, available free of charge, limited to one copy per reader. © 2015 The Knoxville Mercury
East Tennessee Historical Society The sponsor of this weekend’s History Fair has a deep history of its own. It dates back to the presidency of Andrew Jackson. In 1834, physician J.G.M. Ramsey (17971884), journalist and cleric Thomas Humes, sometime Congressman John Crozier, Judge William Reese, future president of East Tennessee University (later UT), and others founded what was originally known as the East Tennessee Historical and Antiquarian Society, to find and preserve documents of the original settlers, who were dying off. “The task of rescuing from oblivion the early history of Tennessee” was, they declared, an “emergency.”
others, in association with the then-new Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection, part of the Knoxville Public Library. This time it lasted. In 1928, the ETHS began publishing a historical journal, now known as the Journal of East Tennessee History. Over the years, the organization has published several books. The French Broad-Holston Country, edited by Rothrock in 1946, is still the most complete history of Knox County. Heart of the Valley, published in 1976, by editor Lucile Deaderick, is an invaluable resource about Knoxville proper. After some years of focus on the Knoxville area, the ETHS deliberately expanded its focus to more evenly cover its 35-county region.
As the ETHS’s “recording secretary,” East Tennessee History Center Ramsey kept the collection at his own home just The ETHS acquired use of the old post office, PHOTO CORTESY OF EASTTNHISTORY.ORG east of Knoxville, at Forks of the River. Thanks or “Custom House.” Built in 1874, it was a to what he’d found, Dr. Ramsey became one of building well known to Ramsey, Humes, Crozier, Tennessee’s leading historians, author of Ramsey’s Annals of the founders of the original organization. The McClung Collection and Tennessee, first published in 1853. Knox County Archived were moved in by 1982. The Civil War split the ETHS. Humes was one of Knoxville’s strongest Unionists, while Ramsey, an outspoken Confederate, left town during the Union occupation. During his absence, his house burned down, allegedly the victim of rogue Union troops. Most of the society’s collections disappeared with it. For years after the war, the society languished. Just after Ramsey’s death, the ETHS stirred again. Led by former District Attorney General and UT history professor William Gibbs McAdoo (father of the future U.S. senator and secretary of treasury of the same name) the society reorganized in 1885. Among the first members were Union veteran and newspaper editor William Rule, Confederate veteran and art collector Hunter Nicholson, classics professor and future ambassador Ebenezer Alexander, future mayor Sam Heiskell, and businessman-historian Calvin McClung (1855-1919), whose impressive historical collection would form the basis of the region’s primary historical and genealogical research center. That second ETHS organization apparently didn’t survive into the 20th century. But a few of its members were still alive in 1925, when the ETHS was re-founded by librarian-editor Mary Utopia Rothrock (1890-1976), writer Laura Luttrell, UT President James Hoskins, and
Plans to start a museum there, first announced in 1986, took flight in 1990, with authors Wilma Dykeman and Alex Haley helping to promote it. A small museum first opened in the Custom House in 1993. A major architectural addition in 2004, designed by Knoxville architecture firm Barber McMurry, almost doubled the size of the Custom House and allowed a major expansion of the History Center, reorienting the entrance to Gay Street. The ETHS’s permanent “Voices of the Land” exhibit, larger than the previous museum, opened almost exactly seven years ago, and has been seen by thousands. Last month, the ETHS museum earned a positive recommendation in the New York Times, from travel writer Seth Kugel. The annual History Fair begins this Saturday the 15th at 10 AM. It’s ETHS’s biggest annual event, and includes vintage 1860s “base ball” games, tours, the History Hound Dog Costume Contest, and the Great Smoky Mountains Film Festival at the Tennessee Theatre, highligted by a rare showing of the 1927 silent, Stark Love, an unusual “naturalistic” film about mountain , starring Knoxvillian Helen Mundy.
For more, see easttnhistory.org.
The Knoxville History Project, a new nonprofit organization devoted to the promotion of and education about the history of Knoxville, presents this page each week to raise awareness of the themes, personalities, and stories of our unique city. Learn more on www.facebook.com/knoxvillehistoryproject • email jack@knoxhistoryproject.org August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 5
Illustration by Ben Adams
HOWDY
Believe It or Knox! BY Z. HERACLITUS KNOX The Sunsphere has been claimed to be THE MOST SPHERICAL BUILDING IN THE WORLD! The Bayterek, a tower built in the mid-1980s in Astana, Kazakhstan, BEARS AN ASTONISHING RESEMBLANCE TO THE SUNSPHERE! On the Bayterek, though, the giant golden globe is intended re-represent a mythical giant bird’s egg. Completed in 1997, 15 years after the Sunsphere, it’s a more complicated structure than ours, with projecting metal work meant to represent a nest. “The Dancing Sisters Or Tennessee Amphitheater Knoxville TN III” by Bart Ross (bartross.com)
QUOTE FACTORY
The 1982 World’s Fair represented mainland China’s first participation in a world’s fair since 1904. It was one of two Communist countries represented in Knoxville; the other was Hungary, which is now democratic.
“ I do think people being allowed to defend themselves without restrictive gun legislation does help keep the body count down in some situations.” —Rep. Tilman Goins, R-Morristown, in a Tennessean story about state legislators’ reactions to the latest public shooting in Tennessee, at an Antioch movie theater last week. Republican lawmakers quickly vowed to further relax gun laws to hopefully get more guns into the public, including Rep. Micah Van Huss, R-Jonesborough, who wants to remove gun permits and training requirements. (The Tennessean helpfully noted that Van Huss “acknowledged it might lead to more innocent bystanders being shot.”)
PUBLIC AFFAIRS
8/13 GARRISON KEILLOR’S ‘A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION’ THURSDAY
8 p.m., Tennessee Theatre. $64.50. One more plug for Mr. Keillor’s last roundup, probably his final live show in Knoxville. While his somnolent approach to humor may be most appealing to those of an older generation, his voice remains the most incisive observer of American society today. Hear it while you still can.
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
8/14 RIBBON-CUTTING AT ARBORTOREUM 8/15 BAND SAW 2015 FRIDAY
10 a.m., Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum (2743 Wimpole Ave.). Free. The Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum is unveiling its new welcome center, and it’s a humdinger: very mod, lots of glass, a great example of reuse. Plus, you might meet Gov. Haslam and the Two Mayors, Burchett and Rogero. Note: Use the new entrance on Boyds Bridge Pike. RSVP: knoxgarden.org
SATURDAY
2-10 p.m., Saw Works Brewing Company (708 E. Depot Ave.). $10. Saw Works is celebrating its fifth anniversary with this fundraising block party for Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, which is dedicated to rehabilitating veterans (physically and emotionally) through fly fishing. Performers include Jay Clark, Kelsey’s Woods, Sunshine Station, and Hudson K. Food trucks will be on-site, as well as—yes!—a lot of beer.
8/16 SUMMER MOVIE MAGIC: ‘ROMAN HOLIDAY’ SUNDAY
2 p.m., Tennessee Theatre. $7-9. If you own a scooter—especially a Vespa—this is your ultimate excuse to pull up in Italianate style. A newsman played by Gregory Peck attempts to exploit a lost European princess (Audrey Hepburn) for an exclusive story sure to boost his career. But this being the ‘50s, he falls in love with her instead. (Probably wouldn’t happen that way today if he worked at Gawker.)
HOWDY WORDS WITH ...
Mary Beth Roberts BY ROSE KENNEDY Mary Beth Roberts is the development director of the non-profit Knoxville-based Horse Haven of Tennessee. The group is holding a new fundraiser Saturday, Aug. 29 at Knoxville Center Mall—a trailer rodeo where drivers test their skills on a timed obstacle course for trucks pulling horse trailers. Prizes go to the top three in the gooseneck competition, which starts at 10 a.m., and pull-behind, which starts at 1 p.m. Registration closes Aug. 21. Horse Haven advocates for, shelters, and rehabilitates neglected and abused equines in Tennessee.
Is the rodeo safe for amateur drivers?
Of course! We were careful in choosing a venue that would be big enough and safe enough for any level of driver.
Is there such a thing as a pro trailer-rodeo competitor?
As far as I know there are no pros. I know other parts of the country hold trailer rodeos and they are a blast! Most folks who tow think they are good at it, even better than their neighbors and friends. This event gives those folks the opportunity to put their money where their mouth is.
What in the heck is this gooseneck competition you’re advertising?
What? You thought we were pulling trailers with geese? A gooseneck is a trailer with a front section curved like a goose’s neck. It attaches in the bed of the truck and swivels. Towing a gooseneck is very different from towing a trailer from a ball on a hitch. That’s why we have both categories of competition.
Do you ride horses?
Not as often as I like, but yes! I love to trail ride, especially at Big South Fork.
What is a common misconception about Horse Haven?
That we take owners’ horses to sell them for profit! It’s amazing how many people think that. Law enforcement trained in animal cruelty investigates any call about abused equines. They determine whether the horses are in fact abused or neglected, and offer the owner advice on how to bring the equine back to thriving. If, after the designated time period the owner does not or can not bring the horse to standard, law enforcement calls us to pick
up the animals. We hold the horses, giving them the care they need to thrive, while the courts prosecute. If the court releases the animals from their owners, we find them a new, loving home. We do ask for adoption fees, which are between $50 and $200 to help offset the cost of caring for these horses—that cost ranges from hundreds of dollars to thousands. We never recoup the cost of caring for these horses with adoption fees.
How will you use the money raised at the rodeo? To provide hay, feed, vet care, and farrier care for the equines in our care. We currently have 67 horses and more coming every week.
What are some of your goals as development director? Since Horse Haven of Tennessee provides our services to every county in the state at no cost, I want to see us start to get more donations from other parts of the state. My goal is to hold a major fundraiser in Middle Tennessee in 2016 and one in West Tennessee by 2018.
Abused horses are a pretty sad cause— will that carry over into the event?
It is sad. It gets to us every time we take in another horse. But it’s rewarding when we see them healthy and going home to a family that wants them and knows how to care for them. At the trailer rodeo, I think the passion for seeing abused and neglected equine thriving and going to a good family will be the prevailing emotion. That and the friendly competition of who tows like a pro! To register for the trailer rodeo before Aug. 21: horsehaventn.org/trailerrodeo/ August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 7
SCRUFFY CITIZEN
An Unmourned Demolition This Holiday Inn wasn’t just another Holiday Inn BY JACK NEELY
I
didn’t realize the Baptist Hospital demolition would take out the old Chapman Highway motel that was once a Holiday Inn. Ordinarily the loss of a TV-era motel wouldn’t be a subject for comment, much less tears. It was hardly a building likely to catch your eye as you drove across the Henley Street Bridge. But a couple of readers noted the sudden absence of it, and reminded me of an old story. That particular motel had some dramatic history, and one peculiar distinction. Its building was born of another demolition, in fact one of the most controversial demolitions in East Tennessee history. Planned toward the end of the period when Knoxville was still credibly the Gateway to the Smokies, and Chapman Highway was the Driveway to the Smokies, this new Holiday Inn would compete with the big downtown hotels like the Andrew Johnson and the Farragut. They were posher, but this motel had the advantage of being right on the route, and on the Smokies side of the river. Its construction, in 1960, happened to coincide with the demolition of the extravagant old 1897 Market House. Architects liked to make fun of the ungainly old centerpiece of Market Square, especially during the modernist era, as a great incoherent brick
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monstrosity. But the Market House was a landmark, and everybody had a story about it. There was a good deal of regret about the loss of that extraordinary building, even among farmers and other folks who weren’t used to thinking of themselves as preservationists. Poet Carl Sandburg, who’d known it since the ’40s, publicly regretted its loss. I gather it was partly sentimentality that convinced people of influence that if the Market House wasn’t immortal, maybe its bricks were. So, thanks to the initiative of colorful businessman Herman “Breezy” Wynn, the Vol football star turned athletic-apparel tycoon who was building this new Chapman Highway hostelry, the bricks of the Market
House were salvaged. They were to be reused in the construction of his new motel. A small consolation, perhaps, but saving the bricks would be saving a bit of the Market House, in a way. It seemed a symbolic changing of the guard, one of Knoxville’s most unusual crypto-Victorian buildings, famous for its chaos of noise and stench and crowds of old farmers and immigrant merchants, reborn in the walls of a standard, modern, air-conditioned Holiday Inn. I first heard the story as a kid, and was skeptical of it. The bricks in the Holiday Inn didn’t look more venerable than other bricks. Then again, red bricks from 1897 weren’t that different from red bricks from 1960. I found an article confirming it, a Knoxville Journal story from April, 1960, that opens, “The Market House will soon be gone, but the bricks will be around for years to come.” That building may have had just a little more history than your typical Holiday Inn. In 1961, singer Mahalia Jackson, at the height of her global fame and influence as a soulful singer of gospel music, stayed at that Holiday Inn while in Knoxville for a show at the brand-new Civic Coliseum. That fact alone would be interesting and worth remembering in the history of any hotel. But in 1961, Knoxville was just partly desegregated, and the idea of Jackson staying in a hotel where white people stayed, too, didn’t sit well with the Ku Klux Klan. In a regional KKK publication, they denounced the “integrationist” motel in Knoxville that made a bed for Mahalia Jackson. Jackson was not famous as a civil-rights activist in 1961. She was a successful gospel singer from New Orleans. She’d sung on live national radio, at Carnegie Hall, at a presidential inauguration. She didn’t often make political statements.
“The Market House will soon be gone, but the bricks will be around for years to come.” —KNOXVILLE JOURNAL, 1960
But two years after she stayed in the Chapman Highway Holiday Inn, in August 1963, she sang at the March on Washington. She picked a couple of songs, including “I’ve Been ‘Buked and I’ve Been Scorned.” She didn’t mention by whom, specifically. Shortly after she sang, Rev. Martin Luther King was introduced. He spoke for a while, and Jackson shouted, “Tell them about the dream, Martin!” He complied to his elder’s suggestion, with what became one of the most famous speeches of the century. It’s probably too much to assume that her new fervor started when she heard some white people were troubled that she was sleeping at the Holiday Inn on Chapman Highway. It was a Holiday Inn for just about 20 years. After an interim as a Vols Inn, it was acquired by Baptist Hospital in the 1990s and more or less became part of the plant. I hadn’t paid close enough attention to realize it was part of the demolition project. I do wonder what became of the bricks that had previously been part of that other building. In a previous era, the Market House was unusual in the degree in which it accommodated both blacks and whites. There the two races “jostled each other in perfect equality,” as a 1900 reporter remarked. Early in his career, Duke Ellington performed in the Market House. When I first noticed the site had been cleared, I called JW Demolition in Charlotte, and they said they got no orders to salvage the bricks. The fellow I spoke to wasn’t sure what became of them. I walked over there one afternoon last week. It’s a good walk, across the Henley Street Bridge, if kind of a noisy one. Sure enough, the Holiday Inn was clean gone. There was a big steam shovel there, but the debris had mostly been carted away. A few brick fragments were still lying around. One half of a brick didn’t have anybody’s name on it, and I picked it up and carried it back to my office. It’s on my window sill. It has something adhered to it, some molded concrete or stucco that I guess was once part of the exterior. I can’t tell for sure that it’s 120 years old, but I can’t tell that it’s not. I’ll probably find it in 15 years or so, and wonder why I kept it. Everybody forgets after a while. ◆
o G t e a v ' F e u l W l , Time Re por t er ! y e H
Thanks to our League of Supporters, our new staff writer Clay Duda is officially on the job. Clay joins us from The Record Searchlight in Redding, Calif.; before that, he was with Creative Loafing in Atlanta, as well as the Center for Sustainable Journalism. At the Knoxville Mercury, he will focus on hard news and social issues. Join us in welcoming him to Knoxville!
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August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 9
MERCURY
ADVERTISING WORKS!
GUEST ED.
TESTIMONIAL
The Lies Donald Told Me
“We advertised our summer sale in the Bearden issue of the Mercury and got significant response. It
What it’s like to personally fact-check Donald Trump
was the perfect time
BY BROOKS CLARK
and place for us to advertise, and we’re glad we did!” —SCOTT BISHOP, OWNER, Westwood Antique & Design Market
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
M
y first job out of college was as a fact-checker at Sports Illustrated. This is a great job for an aspiring journalist because you get a firsthand view of how many inaccuracies can be found in almost any story, and how true details of anecdotes can often turn out to be more interesting and revealing than the twice-told versions we often read and re-read in daily papers. At a large magazine, you often have more time and resources to get the facts straight. This starts, of course, with people’s names. The great writer Frank Deford once wrote Tony La Russa’s name as you see it, with a space between the La and the Russa. The White Sox press guide had it as LaRussa, so I was about to change it in the copy, when Deford, one of the most accurate writers I ever factchecked, said, “No, I asked him. He said it’s wrong in the press guide.” The next year and thereafter the press guide had it right. In checking facts, you quickly learn that people’s memories of events are remarkably unreliable. Cognitive neuroscientists tell us that we reshape events in our minds every time we revisit them. You always want to go back to the original record, if there is one. As a fact-checker, you often find yourself asking a famous person or family member to verify all kinds of biographical details. One of the first stories I ever checked was “The Meanest Man in the NFL,” about a Broncos defensive tackle named Conrad Dobler. A line in the story
read, “He was mean as a child and once played Joan of Arc with his sister.” I got his mother back in Wyoming on the phone and asked, “Was Conrad mean as a child?” Pause. “Well, he was kind of ornery.” “Did he play Joan of Arc with his sister?” I asked, not really grasping the meaning of the sentence on the page. Another pause. “Well, he set her on fire, if that’s what you mean.” Allrighty, then! That’s what we called a red, or hard, check. Sometimes a source gets impatient with the process, saying “I already told all of this to that writer who was here.” But once you explain that an august publication like Sports Illustrated is committed to making sure that everything in it is correct, folks tend to like the idea. The rarest situation, though, is a person who flat-out told lies to the writer and defends them in the fact-checking process. In fact, I can think of only one person who ever did this to me. In 1983, Donald Trump was the owner of the USFL New Jersey Generals, in addition to being a real estate tycoon. By nature, real estate developers make their fortunes by imagining the impossible (“I will build the most luxurious apartment building in the world.”) and exaggerating the product when it’s done: “The apartments in this building are worth $20 million. Queen Elizabeth and Sylvester Stallone have already bought here, just as investments.”) That is what Donald Trump has done
many times over. His father once saw a garbage landfill in Brooklyn, figured out a way to secure foundations in the decaying matter, and built a housing development on top of it. I checked all that, and I checked that the floor of the Trump Tower lobby is actually Breccia Perniche marble from Italy, and that somehow the floors are numbered to seem higher than they actually are. I had him on the phone. So Ivana was an Olympic skier? Yes, for her native Czechoslovakia. The Time Inc. worldwide correspondents went to work. No Ivana on the rosters. “Ah,” he said, “It might have been Austria. She had dual citizenship.” Again the correspondents found nothing. “Well maybe she was an alternate.” The discussion went on and on, back and forth. It finally ran in SI that she was a competitive skier. The worst fact was that he was first in his class at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. He said he was—he swore up and down that it was true. But he wasn’t. On the bio notes that flashed up during the debate the other evening, one line read, “Attended the Wharton School of Business.” I should note that, during the entire process, I had complete phone access, much as political reporters have noted that, even in the busiest moments of this proto-campaign, Trump happily gives eight or nine interviews a day. I should also note that he was courteous at all times, even when I had to call back again and again to report the Olympic teams Ivana had not skied for. You learn rather quickly that facts, debates, and zingers are dandy sport for this Brooklyn-born bull in a china shop. Herschel Walker got a great pro start with the New Jersey Generals, leaving Georgia a year early for the big bucks in a way that hadn’t been done since the Galloping Ghost Red Grange left Illinois in 1925 to barnstorm with a promoter named C.C. “Cash and Carry” Pyle. “He gave me everything he promised and more,” said Grange. I think it’s fair to say that today Trump is giving us everything he promised and more. ◆ Do you have a knowledgeable opinion on a local issue that must be shared with our readers? Or perhaps a pithy observation well told? Send it in for consideration of our Guest Ed. column: editor@knoxmercury.com.
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August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 11
ARCHITECTURE MATTERS
Hating Modern Architecture, and Loving It (Part 2) This thing called Modern BY GEORGE DODDS
W
hen Louis VII of France entered for the first time Abbot Suger’s newly completed church of Saint-Denis—arguably the earliest thoroughly executed work of Gothic architecture on the planet—he reportedly exclaimed with joy: “How modern!” And while it’s true we don’t know precisely what the king meant by “modern,” the key issue is that that conversation happened sometime around 1140 CE. Almost a millennium after Louis and Suger promenaded through Saint-Denis, their eyes looking skyward to the pointed vaults above, an unquiet search for what is new in art and architecture continues unabated. One can see the remains of this anxious pursuit in the fabric and structure of Knoxville—its buildings and roadways. From banks and municipal buildings to former iced confectioneries and other commercial structures, the last half of the last century has left its detritus of Modern successes and failures across the face of the expanding city much like a glacier leaves behind stony outcroppings in the landscape. Disputes about Modern architecture’s successes and failures for the last century tend to parallel (or more precisely follow) those in the art world, including what the term “modern” means, when the period begins, if and when it ends, how it differs from “contemporary,” right down to whether or not the term
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
ought to be capitalized. Of course, a sheet of stretched canvas is a much more accommodating surface upon which to rapidly rethink one’s beliefs than is a set of construction documents or a building site.
MODERN, CONTEMPORARY, AND NOW
Architecture has always been the most cumbersome of the arts with its challenging clients, tight budgets, difficult sites, weighty materials, capricious contractors, and inscrutable human beings as occupants. Moreover, because of the muddle between Contemporary and Modern, it’s easy for one to unintentionally conflate the two, or to simply give up altogether and see what’s on HBO. To keep some distance from this lexical knot, in what follows, Modern will be used somewhat broadly. That said, it’s important not to confuse “modern” and “contemporary.” After all, Louis
did not call out to the abbot, “How contemporary,” as that would have been the opposite of his meaning, and the term Gothic would not exist for another 500 years. Recently, museums have hired curators for “art of the now,” as opposed to either “modern” or “contemporary,” as they try to assemble the now-est of the new. On its website, the Museum of Modern Art highlights the modern/contemporary dichotomy: “With extraordinary exhibitions and the world’s finest collection of modern and contemporary art, MoMA is dedicated to the conversation between the past and the present, the established and the experimental.” In an article on the new Whitney Museum, New York Magazine art critic Jerry Saltz put it this way: “Each of these museums [The Tate Modern, MoMA, the Guggenheim, etc.] still preserves, collects, and exhibits the art of the past. But with the action and big money centered on contemporary art … each is more committed than ever before to the art of the now and the cult of the new. …But that cult, and the ascendance of spectacle, may be the end of museums as we know them…. [A] major shift [is] underway.”
THINGS FALL APART
After the holocausts of Pearl Harbor, Auschwitz, Hiroshima, and countless acts too difficult to speak of, too awful to represent, artistic experimentation that began before the First World War and continued throughout the interwar years, moved even further away from representation and narrative. It was about this time that an influential art critic claimed the world did not need any more art objects: It was time for art to find another preoccupation, and it did. In the late 1940s and 1950s, there was a renewed sense of a tabula rasa, one that for many was at the core
Because of the muddle between Contemporary and Modern, it’s easy to unintentionally conflate the two, or to simply give up altogether and see what’s on HBO.
of a modern experience, which situated conventional aesthetics at its extreme periphery. For the generation emerging from schools of architecture in the late 1950s and early ’60s who would lead the academy and practice for the remainder of the century, there were no answers for the problems of their day, and yesterday’s revolutionaries were viewed as today’s establishment. These no-longer-forward-looking leaders chose doubt in the avant-garde over faith, favoring recuperation of what the fathers had worked so hard to expunge: memory. William Butler Yeats wrote at the close of the World War I: “The center cannot hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” But this was anarchy of another sort. The implications of this collective circumstance, which may seem remote not just temporally, but culturally, are anything but. They resonate daily in the constructed world of East Tennessee. They help explain why certain buildings realized during the past few years on the University of Tennessee’s Knoxville campus have the curious character they do, and why they are fundamentally different from what the university built two generations ago. They explain why new buildings on Market Square are built to look older than the 40-year-old TVA towers at the square’s North end. They help us understand why, at the crossing of Market Street and Cumberland Avenue, the stately brick building that originally housed the Whittle Corporation, now home to the U.S. District Court, looks as if the Second Continental Congress met there.
AFTER THE FALL
In post-war United States, absent wartime destruction, the damage to cities was self-inflicted through well-intended urban renewal programs. The mass demolition of entire neighborhoods to clear the way for modern housing towers and limited-access roadways such as the Cross Bronx Expressway (1948), the first expressway constructed through a high-density urban setting, did more to engender enmity for modern planning and architecture among the general public than could any deliberate plot. Similarly, the Tennessee Department of Transportation was doing its best to slice and dice some of Knoxville’s oldest neighborhoods with
While much has been written about the loss of the University Center, architecturally, its garage was far superior.
interstate roadways, while the GI Bill created a similar environment on university campuses. As was the case at virtually all land-grant universities, UT underwent a vast building program during the postwar years, largely funded by federal dollars. By the 1980s, UT had created a markedly lousy campus—“The Hill,” notwithstanding—with some pretty forgetful buildings, albeit several excellent ones. So there is good reason for a general lack of confidence in what Modern architecture can contribute to solving the university’s current dilemma of a campus largely without character. One of the buildings the university demolished first (considered part of the problem) for the new student union (considered part of the solution), one of the excellent ones built during the post-war boom, was the Carolyn Brown University Center’s parking garage. While much has been written about the loss of the University Center, as odd as it may sound, architecturally, its garage was far superior. Designed by Robert B. Church III, the founding leader of the university’s School of Architecture, and to date the largest single benefactor to the school, Church was a student of Louis Kahn at the University of Pennsylvania and one of the finest Modern architects to practice in the region during the last century. The garage only incidentally stored cars. Its structure was a three-dimensional marvel with extraordinary and capricious volumes of vertical space. More sacred than secular, the vertical shafts illuminated the dark horizontal swaths of parking. Clearly showing the influence of his mentor, Kahn (and Paul Rudolph’s Boston Government Service Center), the garage was a quiet yet heroic work, but with many humanist touches, most of which were so subtle they went unappreciated to the parking public, or they were never
completed (such as the rooftop plaza) so they never could be properly apprehended. The building successfully connected several levels of university terrain at a complicated campus nexus—much of which was destroyed by the expansion of the business school building. At the south end of the garage, a seemingly gratuitous curvaceous gathering space occupied a triangular bit of ground, further demonstrating how the garage created, on several of its surfaces and edges, active settings to promote the kind of impromptu gatherings that one thinks of when one imagines a vital college campus. And, of course, there was the famous “Money Wall,” sadly the loss of which was the only thing the News Sentinel wrote of as demolition loomed. Never properly completed nor maintained, abutted with building accretions rendering its usefulness to the larger campus moot, and warehousing fewer than 300 automobiles, the garage was doomed. The administration chose demolition, claiming the programmatic requirements of the new building—50 percent larger than the old center—needed the space. Listening to university administrators (and those hired to speak for them) about their decision-making process, one would think UT’s current billion-dollar building campaign was in tightly-packed midtown Manhattan rather than a relatively open office park. One can only hope the new center offers half as much delight as did the parking garage it displaced, and that the university soon realizes building density is the path to a quality campus, one that students will want to inhabit sans buses. This can be done without eschewing the achievements of the past 100 years in lieu of an architectural character that is neither historical nor Modern. ◆ Part 3: An Unquiet Search August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 13
Artful Antagonists Strong Alley’s street artists find themselves dueling with graffiti taggers in a battle of philosophies BY LIV MCCONNELL
I
t’s a Tuesday afternoon much like any other downtown—slow, sparse, with most people driven indoors by the summer heat or their office jobs. There are no farmers’ market stands to beckon passersby, no food trucks, no bands assembled on the stage. Yet even at this languid hour, strolling couples and vacationers intermingle to admire Strong Alley’s brightly painted murals, mostly the work of local artists. The brainchild of Jayne McGowan, the alley became a mecca for street art after the birth of the Artist Alley Revamp Project in 2012, with a similar alley since sprouting up in the Old City. “I never thought that with my degree in fine arts that I would be curating an alleyway—I always wanted to be over at the museum,” McGowan says. “But this is so much fun because it expresses so much of our community, and it shows people visiting here that, hey, we’re kind of groovy.” But while the murals testify to Knoxville’s creative pulse, they also show evidence of a clash between conflicting cultures. Street and graffiti
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
artists often vie for the same turf, and in a public space like Strong Alley, that conflict is being graphically expressed for everyone to see. “Give them time, and people always come and ruin your work,” says Cynthia Markert, the Knoxville-based artist well known for her portraits of flapper-esque femmes. “There was this one guy who was a cartoonist who would screw with my eyeballs and put mustaches (on the women),” she says. “So I wrote, ‘Please don’t mess with mine, I won’t mess with yours.’ I came back and he’d taken a Magic Marker and written ‘slut’ and ugly words all across their faces, and ‘Weep Cynthia.’ It was just hateful.” Markert’s alley doorway, featuring her signature bobbed women, has acquired several new additions since completion. Graffiti tags cover the surface, and “Creativity Sucker! Jenn Barnes, Art hates you” is scrawled in one corner. “It gets to be a free for all, which is the case with street art,” Markert says. “People just come and start
doing stuff.” Muralist Cody Swaggerty says that peoples’ attitudes toward his Strong Alley work, which includes a vibrant goldfish and mammoth jar of Popcorn Sutton Moonshine, have been basically appreciative and respectful. He still, however, dreads finding one of his pieces marred. “Every time I go (to Market Square), I have to go to the alley and check it out because I’m always wondering if something is going to happen to them,” he says. “I’ve had a few things get messed up and I’ll go back and fix it or do something totally different, because I put my name on that stuff.” Swaggerty, who has picked up several jobs through people seeing his work in the alley, fears others’ defacements could reflect poorly on him. “You’ve got to spend money to go down there to do it, but for me it’s worth it getting feedback from people and exposure and practice,” he says. One mural, featuring a cosmic sky and upturned face, has become a very public forum for debate concerning a street artist’s right for their work to remain unsullied, much to the chagrin of its artist. “To those of you that were enough of an asshole to deface this… fuck you. I worked hard to give this to everyone (200 hours). If this is how you treat my gift… I’m not finishing it,” reads a message from the unidentified artist. Several Sharpie-armed passersby
have weighed in on this stance. “If you wish to make public art, accept that it will be public property,” wrote one dissenting commenter, while another scribbled “Stop bitching, make more art.” “Such a shame people have no respect for such magnificent art,” contended another. A portrait of the late musician Phil Pollard—widely hailed as a local hero in the music scene—now includes a mustache and the word “bitch” scribbled over his left cheek. McGowan has grown more accustomed to these unsolicited adornments since seeking the city of Knoxville’s permission to begin the project. “The first year or two it would upset me. I’d cry,” she says. “But it’s naturally organic in that sense because it’s an outdoor venue, so there’s going to be a tendency for people to do these things.” Still, McGowan emphasizes it “doesn’t take much” to ask her permission before painting in the alley. “Some people just want to be seen but not seen, this is what the tagging game is all about,” she says. “Graffiti is a game they play where they come up with their signature and see how many places they can hit and beat out their buddies. A lot of it is destructive, which is really sad.” But for graffiti artists themselves, this commonly held view feels intolerant and even hypocritical. Some, like
local tagger Mark (who would not reveal his real name for attribution), argue that graffiti is no less of an art form than the murals themselves, albeit one that fewer people have the tendency to appreciate. “It’s very elaborate. If you’re in tune with the art itself, then you can appreciate the hand style as an art (similar to) calligraphy,” he says. “But most people who are business people just see scrawling on the wall, and it’s seen as vandalism. So they don’t necessarily understand the artistic part behind it.” Subjectivity aside, unwelcome paint, spray or otherwise, is ultimately illegal. “The city doesn’t make aesthetic judgments on what’s public art and what’s not when buildings are painted with murals or tagged with graffiti,” Communications Manager Eric Vreeland says. “If someone tags private property and didn’t have permission to do so, it would be an illegal act and the artwork would be subject to being removed.” But the illegality of graffiti doesn’t deter taggers—on the contrary, the inherent risk involved is perceived as proof of a graffiti artist’s dedication to their craft and passion. Those are traits that some taggers, like Paul (who also would not share his real name), believe street artists lack. “To the people I hang with, street art is more or less a joke,” says Paul, a member of local tagging crew CDK. “They try to do graffiti, but we call them ‘toys,’ which is somebody who doesn’t really know or understand the culture or history. They just kind of jumped into it.” For those like Paul, a history of vandalism and run-ins with the law are part of a tagger’s street cred, considered to be a vital component of the culture. “There are a lot of people in the alleyways around here who’ve never been in the street at all—they just do it
for the fun of it,” he says. “Whereas me and a lot of people I hang with are addicted. It really is an addiction. Risking life, limb, and jail time, just to put up a name.” A “man versus machine” mentality is a driving force for taggers, confi rms Mark, who once manifested this analogy quite literally by tagging the City County Building. “It’s a cat-and-mouse game. That’s half the fun of graffiti, that it’s illegal,” he says. “It’s almost like art and sport put together.” Another key component of graffiti culture is an understanding of the art’s ephemeral nature. A street artist’s expectation for permanency, Paul says, is a sign of privilege. “It’s like high school. You had your friend that had to work their way through it and buy their own car, then you have your friend that was handed a car by their mom and dad,” he says. “You’re not really jealous, but you don’t respect them at all. There’s no respect for them having their medium in a controlled environment whereas we had to everything the hard way.” But to assume all artists’ whose work resides in the alleys are established and privileged is inaccurate. McGowan has collected donated paint so the homeless, including a Vietnam veteran, can participate. “This is what I wanted—for everyone to have fun back here,” McGowan says. “I don’t care who you are. I just make sure inappropriate content isn’t going on, because we might have kids who want to come through here, too.” Still, those like Paul believe no one, including other taggers, has the right to censor public art, or to complain when other members of the public add to it. “Every time I do a piece, I take a picture. You have to document it and just be happy you’ve seen it,” he says. “If they’re in the game, graffiti is graffi ti. Nothing lasts forever.” ◆
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㈀ 倀䄀䤀刀 伀䘀 圀䔀䔀䬀䔀一䐀 倀䄀匀匀䔀匀 䄀嘀䄀䤀䰀䄀䈀䰀䔀℀
吀伀 䔀一吀䔀刀 䄀一匀圀䔀刀 吀䠀䤀匀 儀唀䔀匀吀䤀伀一㨀 ᰠ䠀伀圀 䴀䄀一夀 䌀䄀吀䔀䜀伀刀䤀䔀匀 䄀刀䔀 刀䔀儀唀䤀刀䔀䐀 吀伀 䴀䄀䬀䔀 夀伀唀刀 嘀伀吀䔀 䌀伀唀一吀 䤀一 吀䠀䔀 吀伀倀 䬀一伀堀 刀䔀䄀䐀䔀刀匀 倀伀䰀䰀㼀ᴠ 匀䔀一䐀 䄀一匀圀䔀刀 圀䤀吀䠀 一䄀䴀䔀 䄀一䐀 倀䠀伀一䔀 一唀䴀䈀䔀刀 吀伀 䌀伀一吀䔀匀吀匀䀀䬀一伀堀䴀䔀刀䌀唀刀夀⸀䌀伀䴀
“Give them time, and people always come and ruin your work.”
圀䤀一一䔀刀匀 圀䤀䰀䰀 䈀䔀 一伀吀䤀䘀䤀䔀䐀 吀䠀䔀 圀䔀䔀䬀 伀䘀 䄀唀䜀唀匀吀 ㈀㠀吀䠀⸀ 吀䠀䔀
—CYNTHIA MARKERT
August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 15
At Girls Rock Camp, the lessons are long, the feelings intense, and the music absolutely vital BY S. HEATHER DUNCAN PHOTOS BY ERIC GEBHART
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
t’s the first day of Girls Rock Camp, and the amps are ready. At least one looks old enough to have been used by Janis Joplin. Some of the equipment is donated, some on loan—amps, keyboards, flaming electric guitars. But they feel new. Brand new, to the young fingers about to stroke them, beat them, mash the music out of them. They are the real thing: electric emotion, plugged up and plugged in. A direct line to the girl power. But when the girls in question arrive at Vine Middle School, they don’t exactly look rocked out. Fifteen of them, aged 9 to 15, sit on a classroom floor. Many hug their knees and pick at their clothes: Old Navy striped T-shirts, electric blue webbed tights. Johnica, a 9-year-old in a reasonably conservative navy polka-dot dress who wears her sleek, straight hair adorned with a big purple fabric flower, sways back and forth a little with nerves. But she smiles eagerly when asked to get to know her neighbor. She knows how to play the ukulele. It’s not usually a rock instrument. The girls compare notes about their favorite Converse sneakers and Netflix binges, waiting for five more potential friends to arrive. Arianna, a returning camper, learned to play bass last year in a camp band called the Bias Breakers. Speaking barely above a whisper, Arianna says it built her confidence. “It really helped me find my inner girl power—different ways to express myself and be stronger,” she says. Unlike Arianna, at least half of these tweens have never played an instrument. Even fewer have picked up the one they’ll play this week: electric guitar, bass, keyboard, or drums. A handful will be vocalists. Most know only one or two other girls. But by the end of the week, they will be playing a rock club in a band with some combination of these strangers. Along the way, they’ll write a song, design a logo, screen-print band T-shirts, deconstruct their clothes with scissors, draw cartoons of female rockers for a coloring book, make a zine, dance or sing along with at least five professional bands, and learn to use their stage platform to fight injustice. In a week. Even attempting such a thing seems rebellious. Some arrive late and can’t even bring themselves to say their names. Perhaps surprisingly, the camp has not attracted lots of big personalities
ready to dominate the stage. About half are very shy. Those brave enough are asked to explain why they came. Reagan: “Me and my friends love music, and we were singing on the bus, and some friends paid us. And we were like, hey, let’s play in a band! And I have a guitar, but I can’t really play it.” Roma: “I want to be more confident.” Rory: “My dad has been in a bunch of rock bands since I was born, and it really inspired me.” Many girls have dads who play an instrument. No one mentions a mother who does. The camp is filling in that role-model gap. The coaches are women who almost all play in bands, skewing punk. These black-clad ladies with tattoos and nose rings, who wail on guitars and scream at the mic, will speak gently and with infinite patience to the stragglers. To the few so shy or resistant that they rebel against even rock ‘n’ roll. “Having the courage to put yourself out there is the important thing,” says camp director Elizabeth Wright, who plays drums in a garage psych band called Psychic Baos. The camp exists largely because of Wright’s dedication to social activism, although she’s just one of about 20 mostly-female volunteers. Camp is a project of Knowhow, a nonprofit Wright developed to teach students about social justice in their communities and to reflect on it through art and music. ”I thought Knox would be a great place for young people to work with artists and musicians and social activists to learn how to respond to social issues with art and music,” she says. “I think Knoxville is unique in its support of music and women being involved in the scene.” Other cities, including Nashville and Asheville, have their own Girls Rock camps, many belonging to the international Girls Rock Camp Alliance. Although she and female rockers had led occasional Saturday girls-rock workshops since about 2007, last year marked the first full week of camp. Wright explains to the girls, “As much as it is about music, it’s about forming a community and being there for each other. We’re going to learn how to talk for ourselves and express what we need, and respect what other people need.” Because this is a camp for girls by women, the methodology doesn’t
Posters, zines inted and screen-pr t merch: DIY ar f is a big part o n band promotio
August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 17
really have much of a punk, in-yourface ethos. The camp maintains a “shout-out wall” for praising each other and a “chill-out tent” for time alone. The girls decorate “affirmation envelopes” to hold positive reminders of what builds their pride. (“I am awesome!”) Almost the first order of business is learning how to insert your provided ear plugs (because hearing loss = not awesome). Instead of rules, campers and staff vote on “group agreements”: “Perfection is the enemy of greatness.” “Move up: If you talk a lot, move into listening. If you don’t talk much, move into talking.”
klets, hudson K, At lunch, bands such as the pin itals played and headface and the Congen their dance moves. for the campers, who demo’d
But there’s not much talking anyway when the moment of truth comes halfway through the first morning. The girls are about to find out which instrument they’ll learn. On their applications, they could make a specific request. But if too many people want the same thing (read: vocals), they might get something else. And some, like Johnica, weren’t sure. The girls are all practically vibrating as they are handed envelopes. All rip in at once. Inside are plastic bracelets, color-coded to instruments. Johnica, who hoped for vocals or guitar, pumps her fist as she glimpses her yellow bracelets. Turns out, she was confused. She didn’t get vocals. She got drums. Johnica puts her earplugs in.
BACKBEAT
First drumming practice: No snares. No cymbals. Not even sticks. The girls rub their bellies while patting their heads. Two hands, different jobs. Same time. Change it up, slap the beat, thighs as drums. Add stomps, sing pop-TART, pop-TART. Johnica marches, nods head side to side, a loose dance. The rhythm of a girl’s speech (and her life) is not regular like this. It’s a burst here, a long pause, an unpredictable clatter quickandanother. Surprise is fun in a song, but only to an extent. There has to be a structure to tear apart, rhythm to break out of. When they first sit behind the drum kits, Johnica and Lisbeth are hesitant. “Just hit things,” says drum instructor Jess Pittman. “You just want to make noise. Don’t be timid. 18
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
Make it loud.” Johnica later demonstrates a wide-eyed, freaked-out stare to sum up her feelings about this. “When I started I was thinking, ‘Everybody’s looking at me.’ Then I thought, ‘This is fun, and if everyone is looking at me and judging me, then I don’t care.’ I’m pretty excited now that I’m getting the hang of it.” Everyone has challenges today. In the guitar and bass rooms, it’s nothing but tuning. Tiny Fiona’s guitar bangs against her knees. Just holding it up is wearing her out. Two of the vocalists spend most of the day trying to avoid singing. And bass player Ashlyn is already worried that she’ll only have her instrument for a week. That’s a big concern for camp leaders, too. Tuition is set on a sliding scale based on household income. About a fifth of the girls were on a full scholarship this year, made possible with a grant from Peyton Manning’s Peyback Foundation, says coordinator Carley Dorsey. She knows many of these families have higher priorities for their money than an electric guitar. So the big goal for this second year of the camp is to find a practice space for the bands. That way, a full set of donated instruments could be available for band practices year-round. Camp coordinator Emily Robinson knows that barrier. She was around 16 when she played in her first punk band. “A friend gave me a bass and a ride—otherwise there’s no way I would’ve played music,” she says. Robinson now tours in black-metal band Argentinum Astrum with her husband Andy Kohler, whom she met in the band. Previously she spent six years with the popular country rock band the Tenderhooks. She lives at The Poison Lawn, an underground venue for metal and punk music (Facebook self-description: “WHAT WE DO IS SECRET.”) Robinson is teaching camp technology workshops on booking and promoting concerts and making your own merchandise. “Recording and understanding your gear is very gendered, and I really hope to demystify a lot of that,” she says. Gear is the only realm where Robinson has encountered sexism in the music business. “Sound guys treat me differently, like I’ve never seen a guitar before,” she says. On a recent tour stop in Chicago, the venue staff wouldn’t let her near the equipment because they didn’t believe she was part of the band.
Wright says she has had similar experiences. But generally, Wright has found Knoxville’s music scene unusually open to women. She says the Pilot Light has been especially supportive. Compared with other cities, Wright says, “I see a lot more women on stage and bonding together here.” However, she acknowledges that girls in rock face difficulties, especially being sexualized. “And being tokenized is a huge challenge, like being asked to be in a band just because you’re a girl, or people acting like you’re amazing just because you’re playing music,” she says. Robinson is struck by something. “I’ve never played in a band with another woman,” she says.
Ashlyn likes Mexican pop, Willow goes for Zeppelin. Reagan, the guitarist, asks, “Have you heard of, like, the Rolling Stones? They’re rock but not heavy metal. It’s hard to describe.” They can’t agree on a favorite color or animal, so they write down adjectives that describe them. Most like the word “daring.” Ashlyn isn’t sure what it means. Ashlyn says she also isn’t sure she wants to be in a band when she grows up. She wants to be a doctor, too, and doesn’t want to become a bad person by betraying this band. The coaches insist she can do it all without being a bad person. Back to names.
BANDING TOGETHER
Reagan: The Artsy Owls. “We’re girls, so that’s like the majestic part of the owls, but we’re also nice and sweet.” Johnica: The Mysterious Four. Willow: Daring to Be Colorfully Deep in Sneakers. She attempts to explain, “If we all like daring and we all enjoy the comfort of Converse—” before her voice is drowned in groans.
It’s time for the second big reveal of the day: Who is in my band? The girls are herded into five groups, roughly by age. Johnica, Reagan, Willow and Ashlyn (ages 9-11) sit on the floor with their first assignment: Pick a name. Immediately Ashlyn, who has very long, black curly hair and a toothy smile that is slow to emerge, says she has chosen one. Band coach Susan Bauer Lee explains it has to be a democratic process. Heather Robinson, the other band coach (and Emily Robinson’s sister), asks them to think about what they all have in common. Willow, the long-haired, confident singer who flashes her braces with her smile, declares: “We hate spiders!” Somehow that doesn’t seem enough. So they share their musical tastes, which are wildly different.
Finally, through the chaos, the name the Daring Blue emerges, then morphs into the Daring Hues. Meanwhile, some of the older girls have dubbed themselves the Pizza Slayers and are halfway through writing a song called “Welcome to the Dork Side.” This group is a true democracy, voting on each line. “Okay, so our main thing is being dorks?” asks singer Sofia. Evelin, the drummer, is a good
Chill TV
rhymer. She throws out the line “Walking around the mall pretending to be cool.” Sofia shouts, “I do that!” Rory, the guitarist, who sings her thoughts all week like she’s in a rock opera, belts, “We are socially awkward!”
They try to talk it out. Vocal coach Crystal Braeuner points out that bands often play each others’ songs together at festivals, and Heather Robinson says the women running the camp all know each other through collaboration.
HALFWAY THROUGH When you wake up You see things differently Other people are sleeping And you are thinking Why does it have to be me —“Out of the Box,” Chill Teen Vibes (Chill TV)
Johnica: “I think the reason for Girls Rock Camp is to build people’s confidence, and if it was a competition it would make you feel bad and maybe you’d quit.” Fiona: “Competition spreads people apart, and then you lose friends. And I don’t like losing friends.”
By Wednesday morning the girls are starting to feel more confident. They are also realizing they need to focus. When asked to reflect on her progress, Johnica writes in giant letters, “PREPARED AND WORRIED!” An interesting counter-rhythm emerges in the communal vibe. Ashlyn wants to add a new group agreement: “No talking to the competish.” A first-time bassist, Ashlyn surprised everyone Tuesday by composing a bass line so catchy that the older bass players learned it from her. She and her bandmates think they’ve heard it slip into other bands’ songs, and they want it to be theirs. But the camp leaders want the showcase on Saturday to be supportive, not competitive. That’s when the flaw in the “group agreement” system emerges: When the girls vote on whether “it’s not a competition,” Ashlyn won’t agree.
Finally, they move on—without another vote. No one wants to compromise on this. Some might argue that being a woman is all about compromise: compromising your dreams in a bad way, or compromising among your desires (job, family, artistic calling) in a creative way. Being in a band requires compromise. But it’s tougher to teach a girl to recognize the things she can’t, or shouldn’t, compromise. Maybe that’s where the rock comes in. The Chill TV band is forced to compromise something important when they realize that Roma, the guitarist, won’t be in town for the Saturday showcase. No one else will do. But they don’t want to give up guitar. So they laboriously count out how many beats are in every section of their song, and Roma records the guitar part to a click track like a
golden fires
Daring Hues August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 19
t: Look at me Rockin’ ou (left to right) Johnica, Ashlyn, i Roma, Fiona, Stephan
metronome. They will play with Recorded Roma. This would be challenging even for experienced musicians. Recorded Roma can’t speed up, slow down, or respond to any glitches in the performance. Live Roma, a black girl with hair pulled tightly back who amounts to a camp elder, is proud when she completes the recording with all the timing correct. This is a new skill, although she has been playing guitar for close to a decade. Roma wants to be a professional singer/songwriter. She has made money busking and recently played First Friday at the Basement Community Art Studio. Even girls with less experience are getting the bang of it. “We’re really loud,” Johnica warns before drumming instruction. “You’ll need your earplugs.” Hers are already in. Sometimes when Johnica misses the beat, she has to stop and restart, and it makes her want to hide in the chill-out tent—only that would be too embarrassing. But today Johnica learns how to play double time, hitting different beats with each stick, crossing her arms. She looks up, and it’s like the sun rising. She’s had a revelation. She’s loud. No, she’s loud. Her sticks are a foot above her head. She’s highandlowandhighandlowand slambamcrossover cymbalshshshY20
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
esss. She is stomping the bass drum pedal so hard that her knee pumps above her waist with every beat. Now Johnica’s ready to match Ashlyn’s killer bass hook for the Daring Hues song. The lyrics, entirely written by Willow, are a rejection of the messages in Disney princess movies that probably enthralled the same girls five years ago. (Read: Half their lives ago.) “You shouldn’t need a shoe to love me,” Willow sings, hopping on every bass-drum beat.
I’m not a beauty-obsessed sleeper Apple skin gets stuck in my braces But hey, this isn’t a fairy tale But that’s just me!
FINAL DAY
By Friday morning, the shout-out wall proclaims “The Daring Hues are working together like they’ve done this for years!” Johnica is so frenetic on the drums that she gives herself a splinter. “You have rock ’n’ roll hands now,” band coach Heather Robinson tells her. Today the band photos will be taken, and Johnica has dressed in rainbow leg warmers, a rainbow tutu with rainbow suspenders—and a for-real-tough black leather jacket. The Daring Hues try to look uncharacteristically mean for their picture. They cross their arms and frown or, in Ashlyn’s
case, throw punches that block the view of her bandmates. Although Ashlyn still goes her own way, she has gelled musically with her band. And Johnica loans her a spare tutu. The Pizza Slayers, whose lead singer, Sofia, was at first unwilling to sing even in front of her band coaches, has now performed for the other campers. The band completely scrapped “Welcome to the Dork Side.” “It haunted me in my dreams,” Sofia says. “I wanted something meaningful, because I didn’t think being lazy and a dork was important enough.” The new song is called “Just Join Together.”
You’ve gotta be you Cause that’s all cool—yeah Don’t ever let anyone tell you who you are You are your own star Being yourself seems to be the common thread in all the songs. The Treble$ are the only band to write a relationship song, which has a melodic verse broken by the screamed punk chorus “I’m done with you!” As the day unfolds, that anthem starts to ring too true. It’s an emotional roller coaster. Johnica is one of many to take a trip to the chill-out tent. Friends start arguing. After living in each other’s pockets all week, everyone is tired and freaked out about not seeing
these new soulmates any more. The Treble$ are demanding a lot of themselves and each other, perhaps forgetting the group agreement about perfection. You could cut the tension in their practice room with a knife. Lead singer Ani stalks out red-eyed. But the band asks for time to work it out, emerging arm in arm. “Not many adults are able to do that,” observes Dorsey, one of their band coaches. Camp throws no punches. You will leave with a gut understanding that communication is as important to a band as the music.
MUSIC IS THE MESSAGE
Camp also pushed the girls to think hard about the message they want to communicate to their audience. “Just getting up on stage is political as a woman,” camp leader Kaitlin Malick reminds the girls. The social activism track is new this year. Girls who chose it found themselves playing a skewed game of soccer: One team had more players and made up all the rules. The other had to attempt to win anyway. Right off, one girl wanted to quit. Even the winners didn’t enjoy it, Wright says. “The girls decided it didn’t feel good to be mean to other people, so it hurts everyone in some way,” she says. Does it remind them of sexism? Interestingly, no. It ignites their
! y a d e s a c w o h s
Bands take the stage a t the Open CH (from left) ord. Ava, Sri and Sofia, Iman i
indignation about how it feels to be young, with adults making all the rules. Roma brings up Black Lives Matter. Another day, the girls dress up as women from history who used music as a platform for reform. After watching a video clip of Billie Holiday singing her classic song about lynching, “Strange Fruit,” Roma says, “Why can’t we make songs like that now? It’s not a thing.” She pauses, then adds, “I’m gonna do it.”
SHOWCASE
The girls have already been at Open Chord Music in West Knoxville for three hours, doing sound checks and extra rehearsals, when the audience starts to arrive. But the campers aren’t waiting backstage. They are galloping through the club squealing. Heightening the effect is the sugar rush from the “Girls Rock” cake they ate in the green room, sitting in each other’s laps. They’ve scrawled their signatures in giant letters on the pristine white walls. No one seems to know or care if that was allowed. Many of the girls wear shirts they screen-printed with their bands’ names. Others amped up their stage look. Rory has a retro-1940s roll in her hair, which is dyed the same aqua as her electric guitar (possible coincidence). Sofia is wearing makeup for the first time this week, her cherry lips visible to the back of the club. Johnica is wearing her earplugs. She bounces up and down and fiddles
with her drumsticks, which are now scrawled with eight signatures (half friends, half musicians who performed at camp). When Johnica’s parents, Ben and Lorena Hubbard, arrive, she swoops in. Her dad says she’s already asking for a drum set for Christmas. Her family learned about the camp from Another Roadside Attraction, a Roanoke, Va., band that plays funky Appalachian cabaret music. Johnica encountered the duo at a WDVX performance during a time when she was being bullied at school. Afterward she wrote the band a letter, beginning a correspondence. As luck would have it, the band played the Blue Plate Special earlier on Saturday, so they were able to come full circle by joining Johnica’s audience. Some parents say the week has already triggered changes in their girls. “I feel like she had the opportunity not only to be led but to lead, and that’s new for her,” says Zaviera’s mom, Patricia Presley, who is herself a burlesque performer (stage name: Catalina Mystique). At least one of the bands was already booked to play at halftime during the Hard Knox Rollergirls derby the following weekend. Zaviera, the drummer for the Treble$, wasn’t interested at first. But her mom says, “She just came and told me she’s going to do it.” Some camp leaders say they are changed as much as the campers. Wright had played bass and guitar in punk bands for years, but last year
she picked up drums. “I think the camp experience kind of empowered me to feel capable of doing that,” she says. “You see young girls who’ve never picked up an instrument before and within one week they’ve written a song, played in a band and performed in front of a lot of people. So you feel like, ‘I can do anything.’” It’s 4 p.m. Open Chord has big windows that let in the sun. But the atmosphere is still all Nightclub, not Cute Little School Concert, as the crowd slowly swells to 50 or 60. The bands will perform in order of age, youngest to oldest. Johnica and Fiona emerge from beneath a plastic tablecloth where they were hiding to cool their nerves. Most girls admit to little or no stage fright—with one big exception. The tiniest drummer has shut herself in the green room alone. Four adults are trying to talk her out. The camp’s usual approach is to make sure everyone is comfortable, allowed to do things in their own time. But now it’s time for her band, the Golden Fires, to light up the stage. Finally, the drummer agrees to come out, but not to play. Band coach Pittman fills in on the drums, wearing the kind of fixed smile that you hang over your face when you are miserable. This is the first time a girl has been too nervous to perform at the showcase. The Daring Hues are up next, and Willow begins with a joke: “What is a skeleton’s favorite instrument? A trom-BONE!” It’s a quick reminder:
These are (roughly) 9-year-olds. But then they launch into the drum and bass intro with the gusto of youngadult angst. When the instruments drop out at the end of the chorus, all the campers sing along with Willow like fans at a big rock concert: “But that’s just me!” The members of Chill TV dedicate their song to the absent Roma. Recorded Roma sounds deceptively Live, and the band keeps time. Kay, once disappointed to be playing keyboard, tears it up on the ivories. Then she raps her way through the bridge. Ani’s voice is lush when The Trebel$ take the stage. But like many of the older girls, she looks skeptical when told she sounded great. (Her face twists: “It was okay.”) Some know they did better in rehearsals. But they are getting their last chance of the week to remember that group agreement about perfection. In a way, the short five days of camp echo the arc of being a teenager: Starting nervous. Posing. Scared but excited to try new things. Over time, growing self-assurance and friendships. Eventually, putting yourself out there in the spotlight. Showing off what you can do, understanding that there may be rotten tomatoes—but confident that there will be more applause. Johnica, not quite a teen yet, sums it up more simply. “It felt great!” she says, already running after her friends. “I wanna do it again!” ◆ August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 21
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We aim to makeTOP Top Knox indispensable user’s guide to the VOTING IS ONLINE ONLY P ATTRACTION TOP LGBT CLUB to TOP JEWELRY STORE GIFT an SHOP TOP COSMETOLOGY SCHOOL TOP BBQ TOP WOMEN'S HEALTH CENTER TOP MARTIAL ARTS G TOP MOONSHINE TOP COCKTAILS TOPand LANDSCAPING/TREE HIP-HOP/R&B GROUP SERVICE TOP ELECTRICIAN TOP FREE STUFF TO DO Knoxville area, we need your expert SERVICE help to doTOP it. You know this place insideTOP CATERING www.topknox.knoxmercury.com P OUTDOOR DINING TOP DANCE SCHOOL TOP HAMBURGER TOP SALADS TOP SEAFOOD TOP EYEWEAR SHOP TOP PIZZA TOP AUTO SERVICE TOP HANDYMAN SERV and out—and you’ve got great taste. So let’s make Top Knox the one “best of” list VOTING BEGINS: MUSIC SCHOOL TOP REALTOR TOP THRIFT/CONSIGNMENT STORE TOP ROCK BAND TOP SECRET ABOUT KNOXVILLE TOP FLORIST TOP TECHNICAL/BUSINESS SCH in town that truly matters. Here are this year’s categories—to vote, go to our website. TOP FURNITURE STORE TOP BREAKFAST TOP BOOKSTORE TOP WOMEN'S CLOTHING TOP ROCK CLUB TOP HAIR SALON Thursday, Aug.TOP 13 atASIAN 12:01TOP a.m.WINGS TOP KARAOKE OP TRADITIONAL BARBER SHOP TOP WATERWAY TO PADDLE TOP COFFEEHOUSE TOP RENOVATIONS/REMODELING COMPANY TOP NEW RETAIL BUSINESS TOP BAR And remember: no national chains allowed! VOTING ENDS:TRAIL TOP DELI/SANDWICH/SUB SHOP TOP EYE CARE TOP ICE CREAM/FROZEN TREATS TOP DENTAL CARE TOP LOCAL-FOODS GROCERY TOP BIKE OR WALKING NPROFIT COMMUNITY GROUP TOP BRUNCH TOP AGENT TOP INSTAGRAM FEED TOP 10 SUSHI TOP SPORTS BAR TOP TV PERSO ResultsTOP willBANK/CREDIT be published UNION in the Oct. 15 edition of INSURANCE the Knoxville Mercury. Thursday, Sept. at Midnight TTER FEED TOP DRY CLEANER TOP INDIAN TOP BAKERY TOP CLUB DJ TOP LIVE COMEDY VENUE TOP WALK-IN/URGENT CARE CLINIC TOP CHEF TOP PERFORMANC TOP MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS STORE TOP FRENCH TOP HOT DOG TOP JAZZ BAND TOP CHEAP MEAL TOP THEATER GROUP TOP LICENSED MASSAGE THERAPY TOP RESTORATION PROJECT TOP TV STATION TOP NEW RESTAURANT TOP LIQUOR STORE TOP DIVE BAR TOP BLUES BAND TOP VINE FEED TOP MEDI SPA TOP CRAFT BREWER TOP PLACE TO TAKE THE KIDS TOP STEAKS TOP WATERFRONT RESTAURANT TOP HOLISTIC HEALTH CENTER TOP MUSIC FESTIVAL TOP CLOTHING ALTERATIONS TOP PERSONAL TRAINER TOP MUSEUM TOP ARTISTS WORKSHOP/STUDIO TOP AUTO DEALER TOP FESTIVAL TOP RECORD STORE TOP FOREIGN FOODS GROCERY TOP TV PERSONALITY TOP GARDEN STORE/NURSERY TOP MIDDLE-EASTERN TOP WINE LIST (RESTAURANT) TOP COCKTAILS OP RADIO PERSONALITY TOP LAWYER TOP AMERICANA BANDTOP VEGETARIAN/VEGAN MENU TOP RIBS TOP ART GALLERY TOP ANTIQUES STORE TOP WINE STOR TOP UNDERRATED NEIGHBORHOOD TOP WINE BAR TOP DANCE COMPANY TOP BRIDAL SHOP TOP ITALIAN TOP SHOPPING DISTRICT TOP PET SUPPLY STORE P HOME IMPROVEMENT STORE TOP BLOG TOP BIKE SHOP TOP DOG PARK TOP COMEDIAN TOP NAIL SALON TOP PLUMBER TOP YOGA STUDIO TOP INTERIOR DESIG TOP SKIN CARE TOP OUTDOOR SPORTS STORE TOP SMALL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY TOP FACEBOOK PAGE/GROUP TOP HAPPY HOUR TOP TATTOO STUDIO TOP APPETIZERS TOP FOOD TRUCK TOP FRAMERY TOP COVER BAND TOP BEER SELECTION (RESTAURANT) TOP HISTORIC LANDMARK TOP PRIVATE SCHOOL www.topknox.knoxmercury.com TOP DESSERTS TOP COMFORT FOOD TOP NEW THING IN KNOXVILLE TOP MEN'S CLOTHING TOP PODCAST TOP RADIO STATION TOP BEER MARKET/TAPROOM TOP DANCE CLUB TOP MEXICAN/SOUTH AMERICAN TOP FITNESS CENTER TOP PARK FOR A PICNIC TOP TACO TOP PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER TOP MUSEUM P ATTRACTION TOP LGBT CLUB TOP JEWELRY STORE TOP GIFT SHOP TOP COSMETOLOGY SCHOOL TOP BBQ TOP WOMEN'S HEALTH CENTER TOP MARTIAL ARTS G TOP MOONSHINE TOP COCKTAILS TOP LANDSCAPING/TREE SERVICE TOP HIP-HOP/R&B GROUP TOP CATERING SERVICE TOP ELECTRICIAN TOP FREE STUFF TO DO P OUTDOOR DINING TOP DANCE SCHOOL TOP HAMBURGER TOP SALADS TOP SEAFOOD TOP EYEWEAR SHOP TOP PIZZA TOP AUTO SERVICE TOP HANDYMAN SERV MUSIC SCHOOL TOP REALTOR TOP THRIFT/CONSIGNMENT STORE TOP ROCK BAND TOP SECRET ABOUT KNOXVILLE TOP FLORIST TOP TECHNICAL/BUSINESS SCH TOP FURNITURE STORE TOP BREAKFAST TOP BOOKSTORE TOP WOMEN'S CLOTHING TOP ROCK CLUB TOP HAIR SALON TOP ASIAN WINGS TOP KARAOKE AugustTOP 13, 2015 KNOXVILLE MERCURY 23 OP TRADITIONAL BARBER SHOP TOP WATERWAY TO PADDLE TOP COFFEEHOUSE TOP RENOVATIONS/REMODELING COMPANY TOP NEW RETAIL BUSINESS TOP BAR TOP EYE CARE TOP ICE CREAM/FROZEN TREATS TOP DENTAL CARE TOP LOCAL-FOODS GROCERY TOP BIKE OR WALKING TRAIL TOP DELI/SANDWICH/SUB SHOP NPROFIT COMMUNITY GROUP TOP BANK/CREDIT UNION TOP BRUNCH TOP INSURANCE AGENT TOP INSTAGRAM FEED TOP SUSHI TOP SPORTS BAR TOP TV PERSO
2015 BALLOT
WELCOME TO THE KNOXVILLE MERCURY’S READERS’ POLL!
shop local.
vote local.
top knox 2015 ballot
the rules
FOOD
DRINK
Top Appetizers
Top Bar
Top Asian
Top Beer Market/Taproom
Top Bakery
Top Beer Selection (Restaurant)
Top BBQ
Top Cocktails
Top Breakfast
Top Craft Brewer
Top Brunch
Top Dive Bar
Top Cheap Meal
Top Happy Hour
YOU MUST FILL OUT AT LEAST 20 OF THE CATEGORIES.
Top Chef
Top Liquor Store
Top Coffeehouse
Top Moonshine
You can manage that, right? Otherwise, your ballot won’t be counted. Show us you’re serious about this!
Top Comfort Food
Top Sports Bar
Top Deli/Sandwich/Sub Shop
Top Wine Bar
Top Desserts
Top Wine List (Restaurant)
Top Hamburger
Top Wine Store
YOU CAN’T VOTE FOR NATIONAL CHAINS. Sorry. Top Knox is all about the things that make our area unique—so vote for local and regionally owned businesses only.
YOU CAN ONLY FILL OUT ONE BALLOT. Voting is online only. (The print ballot is just for your information.) You will need to create a login for the ballot with your email address. You are only allowed to send in one electronic ballot for tabulation. Which brings us to…
Top Hot Dog Top Ice Cream/Frozen Treats Top Italian
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Top Food Truck
Top Americana Band
Top French
Top Art Gallery
Top Indian
Top Artists Workshop/Studio
Top Mexican/South American
Top Blues Band
Top Middle-Eastern
Top Club DJ
YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO STUFF THE BALLOT BOX.
Top New Restaurant
Top Comedian
Top Outdoor Dining
Top Cover Band
No! Don’t bother even trying to game the system—we’ll figure it out. We reserve the right to make final judgments in any categories where there appear to be voting irregularities. Any businesses involved in ballot stuffing risk being disqualified.
Top Pizza
Top Dance Club
Top Ribs
Top Dance Company
Top Salads
Top LGBT Club
Top Seafood
Top Hip-Hop/R&B Group
Top Steaks
Top Jazz Band
Top Sushi
Top Karaoke
Top Taco
Top Live Comedy Venue
ALSO: VOTE FOR BUSINESSES THAT ARE STILL IN BUSINESS.
Top Vegetarian/Vegan Menu
Top Music Festival
Top Waterfront Restaurant
Top Museum
Top Wings
Top Performance Venue
We may hold departed businesses dear in our hearts, but Top Knox is a celebration of the places we can enjoy now.
Top Rock Band Top Rock Club Top Theater Group
24
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
top knox 2015 ballot SHOPPING
HEALTH & BEAUTY
KNOX ONLINE
Top Antiques Store
Top Dental Care
Top Blog
Top Auto Dealer
Top Eye Care
Top Facebook Page/Group
Top Bike Shop
Top Hair Salon
Top Instagram Feed
Top Bookstore
Top Holistic Health Center
Top Podcast
Top Bridal Shop
Top Fitness Center
Top Twitter Feed
Top Dry Cleaner
Top Licensed Massage Therapy
Top Vine Feed
Top Eyewear Shop
Top Martial Arts Gym
Top Foreign Foods Grocery
Top Medi Spa
Top Furniture Store
Top Nail Salon
Top Gift Shop
Top Personal Trainer
Top Attraction
Top In-Store Pet
Top Skin Care
Top Bike or Walking Trail
Top Jewelry Store
Top Traditional Barber Shop
Top Dog Park
Top Local-Foods Grocery
Top Walk-In/Urgent Care Clinic
Top Festival
Top Men’s Clothing
Top Women’s Health Center
Top Free Stuff To Do
Top Musical Instruments Store
Top Yoga Studio
Top Historic Landmark Top New Thing In Knoxville
Top New Retail Business Top Outdoor Sports Store Top Pet Supply Store
KNOXVILLE LIFE
HOME & GARDEN
Top Nonprofit Community Group Top Park For a Picnic
Top Record Store
Top Electrician
Top Place To Take the Kids
Top Shopping District
Top Garden Store/Nursery
Top Restoration Project
Top Tattoo Studio
Top Handyman Service
Top Secret About Knoxville
Top Thrift/Consignment Store
Top Home Improvement Store
Top Underrated Neighborhood
Top Women’s Clothing
Top Interior Design
Top Waterway To Paddle
Top Landscaping/Tree Service SERVICES
Top Plumber Top Renovations/Remodeling Company
Top Auto Service Top Bank/Credit Union Top Catering Service
EDUCATION & MEDIA
Top Clothing Alterations
Top Cosmetology School
Top Florist
Top Dance School
Top Framery
Top Music School
Top Insurance Agent
Top Private School
Top Lawyer
Top Radio Personality
Top Pet Service
Top Radio Station
Top Professional Photographer
Top Small College or University
Top Realtor
Top Technical/Business School
SHOP LOCAL. VOTE LOCAL.
www.topknox.knoxmercury.com
Top TV Personality Top TV Station
August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 25
26
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
2015
BEST ICE CREAM / FROZEN TREAT
MONDAY - SATURDAY 9:30 AM - 11:00 PM SUNDAY 9:30 AM - 10:00 PM 524 S Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902 | 865.971.5449
Ye Olde Steak House Since 1968
RESERVATIONS:
865-577-9328 •
CARRY OUT:
865-250-3724
HOURS: Sun-Thurs 4-9, Fri-Sat 4-9:30
Please call for special hours for UT home games 6838 CHAPMAN HIGHWAY 5 miles south of the Henley Street bridge August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 27
A&E
P rogram Notes
Different Directions Big changes at downtown’s main music retail outlets
H
alf an hour after Ian Lawrence opens the doors of the Old City’s Hot Horse Records on a hot Saturday afternoon, he gets his first potential customer of the day. It’s an older guy—he looks to be nearing the tail-end of middle age—and he’s looking for something hard to find, a seven-inch cut by the mid ’60s by a Dayton, Ohio, rock band called Vicki and the Rest. Hot Horse doesn’t have the record. “Stuff like that is really random, how it comes in,” Lawrence tells him. “For the most part, you have to wait for someone to come in and sell it.” Lawrence, 34, says more and more people are coming into the store to sell the kinds of collections that might yield rare finds—Lawrence started buying records off the counter when he bought the store in March from Jason Boardman, who owns the Old City music venue Pilot Light and recently co-founded the Striped Light letterpress. It’s one of a handful of changes—less focus on consignment, new partnerships in the store’s vintage clothing section—that Lawrence has made in the months since taking over the shop. But while Lawrence is on his way in, Josh Sidman—downtown Knoxville’s
29 28
Shelf Life: Ry Cooder
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
other purveyor of musical instruments, classic apparel, and other collectibles—is on his way out. Two and a half years ago, Sidman, 44, moved his music shop, the Parlor, into a storefront on the 400 block of Gay Street; the space had previously been occupied by Matt Morelock’s defunct Morelock Music. Now Sidman is preparing to move the store back to the former neighborhood grocery on Chickamauga Avenue in North Knoxville that originally housed the Parlor when he founded it six years ago. “I’m excited about having everything under one roof and owning the building,” he says. Since moving the Parlor downtown, he had been renting the Chickamauga space out to friends at a reduced rate to keep it occupied. Now he’s eager to reclaim its convenient parking and garden space. Sidman attributes the move partly to his own temperament. He’s naturally introverted, he says, and sensitive to crowds—especially when those crowds might include adults who have been drinking as well as small children, two groups that pose threats to the expensive instruments lining the store’s walls. But he acknowledges that the downtown location hasn’t panned out like he expected when Morelock moved to Hawaii. “He offered to sell me the shop, and it seemed like a great opportunity to me to walk right into an existing turnkey operation on Gay Street,” Sidman says. “Unfortunately, the walk-in business has never really amounted to more than a small percentage of our overall sales.” Lawrence came to own Hot Horse in a similar way. After nearly a decade as a sushi chef at Nama, he was looking to strike out on his own, maybe with a food truck. When he heard that Boardman was selling the shop, he
30
Music: Falloir
decided buying it would be cheaper than opening a food operation. Lawrence is pleased with the amount of foot traffic the store offers—in that regard, he says, Hot Horse has the best location among Knoxville record stores. He’s focusing on shifting the store’s music inventory from a consignment-heavy model— stocking albums from other local stores like Raven Records and Rarities—to a system that also offers his own curation. “I still go through the thing where I’m juggling the shop to make all the vendors money and not myself anything, and you can’t really do that and sustain yourself,” he says. “Jason had that luxury for whatever reason. I don’t.” He’s also come to some realizations about what sells best at Hot Horse and who it sells to. While Lawrence says Hot Horse’s customers range from middle-aged men to teenage patrons of the adjacent Knoxville Pearl cereal bar, he only has a core of 15 or 20 regular customers, and many of his sales don’t even go to locals. “The people that buy the most records are out-of-town bands,” he says. Lawrence says he didn’t get into the business to sell clothes—he knows a lot more about garage-rock records and guitar equipment than he does about apparel brands—but he’s working to rebuild that portion of the store’s inventory after the change in ownership left it depleted. He recently partnered with local vintage retailer Wax and Threads, which now curates the store’s entire clothing-dedicated back room. Sidman, too, found that walk-in customers tend to lean toward clothing rather than musical artifacts. When Morelock owned the space, he partnered with WDVX DJs Red Hickey and Nita Dunn, who curated a vintage-clothing selection for the store. As Sidman took over, he noticed the few remaining items—hats, jackets, overalls—sold quickly, so he started buying random vintage clothing and collectibles. Through trial and error, he says, he discovered some items sold
31
particularly well—notably, belt buckles—and he’ll continue to sell them at the Chickamauga location while also trying to pursue some other interests, including building instruments or amplifiers in-house. The shopping climate of 2015 presents something of a paradox for these store owners: A consumer interest in the goods they traffic in— decades-old apparel, vinyl records, musical instruments—predicates their existences, but it also means more competition as websites and chainstores jump in. Lawrence, who’s in the process of putting his inventory into an online store, thinks a business like Hot Horse would have thrived a decade ago because it would have been the only store of its kind in Knoxville, but he doesn’t see much threat in retail giants that have latched onto the vinyl boom, such as Barnes and Noble and Urban Outfitters. “The funny thing is, they’ll have a reissue for $25 that we’ll have the original of for $5—and [ours] sounds better,” he says. “It’s usually better pressed.” Sidman has a different outlook. Ten years ago, a store like his would have brought in even fewer customers off the street, at least in Knoxville. The Parlor’s overall business hasn’t necessarily tanked at the Gay Street location—online sales have always made up the bulk of their business, Sidman says, and he’s kept his employees busy lately by having them photograph items for their eBay store and fulfilling orders. He says he thinks there’s a place in the downtown area for a similar business—his store just didn’t quite fit in. “Probably the reason for taking as long a time as I did to make that decision was that I felt badly for being the person who is taking this away from downtown,” he says. “I feel like this is a cool thing to have downtown. I feel like the community likes the fact that it’s here, even if they don’t spend a lot of money here, and I think people will be sad to see it go.” ◆ —Jack Evans
Movies: Shaun the Sheep Movie
Shelf Life
A&E
The Slide Area Highlights of the ever-surprising Ry Cooder catalog from the Knox County Public Library BY CHRIS BARRETT PARIS, TEXAS
The truth of musical lore is almost always more compelling than myth. As a guitar slide, early 20th-century bluesman Blind Willie Johnson preferred the side of a knife blade to the traditional bottleneck. It was with a (presumably different) knife blade that 4-year-old Ry Cooder accidentally and permanently ruined his left eye. And it has been the haunting, knife-wielding Blind Willie Johnson fundament “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground” that has possibly most influenced and characterized Cooder’s prolific and uncommonly diverse musical career. Cooder explicated Johnson’s three-minuteplus-change signature moan to album length in the early 1980s, when he composed the score to the Wim Wenders fi lm Paris, Texas. Cooder’s layered, lonely guitar evokes the overexposed, arid landscape of the namesake setting, along with the human tumbleweeds who collide upon it for the camera.
BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB
Cooder traveled circuitously to Cuba during the mid-1990s to record a duo of Malian musicians who failed to show due to visa complications. To avoid wasting the trip, Cooder and producer Nick Gold drafted an ensemble of Havana musicians out of retirement. Inspired by Cooder’s attention, Compay Segundo, Ibrahim Ferrer, Ruben Gonzalez, and others rose to the occasion and recorded a series of albums that you have either heard or need to. Working again with Wenders, Cooder returned to Cuba to participate in a fi lm documenting the project. Segundo, Ferrer, and Gonzalez have all since died. The music they
made with and for Cooder during their last years is terrifically rich, and almost certainly would have been lost otherwise. And it is not unrealistic to imagine that Cooder’s attention to Cuba and Cuban music accelerated the process by which diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Cuba have been normalized.
by John Steinbeck
by PATRICK BARLOW
September 9-27
September 30 - October 18
October 28 - November 15
TTHHE
IES DIAR
1970–1987
The wildly varied music on Cooder’s fi rst 11 solo recordings could never be described by something so limiting as a genre. But a new and flexible category might suffice—perhaps “great American music with no apparent chart aspirations.” Combined in one package like this, Cooder’s early solo work is impressively powerful and expansive. It’s what the Anthology of American Folk Music might have sounded like had Harry Smith been a musician instead of a pack rat.
TALKING TIMBUKTU
Cooder’s 1994 collaboration with the late Malian guitarist Ali Farka Touré helped spark the lasting world-music movement that took off during that decade. It was the fi rst taste of success for Gold’s World Circuit label, which helped to make international music at least seem economically viable. Touré spent his life making music related to and resembling American blues, which he had never heard until relatively late in his life. Cooder, on the other hand, had been playing American blues—often alongside the masters of the form— since he was 3 years old. Touré and Cooder demonstrate that, as an instrument of human expression, the guitar is limited only by the player. ◆
November 25 - December 20
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BEFORE DYING by Earnest J. Gaines Adapted by Romulus Linney
February 24 - March 13
SOUTH PACIFIC
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ROB CAISLEY March 30 - April 17
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August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 29
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Music
Romantic Notions Falloir puts the progress in the local progressive-rock scene BY RYAN REED
A
s a high-school senior, life can often feel limitless and impossibly restrictive at the same time. And like many sensitive 18-year-olds before him, Garrett Lemons dealt with that tension by funneling it into restless lyric-writing sessions. Inspired by a British-literature class lecture on Romanticism, he compiled a series of meditative poems—about school, his parents, romantic feelings for “some dumb girl”—that became the foundation for Wordsworth, his expansive debut EP with post-rock/ prog band Falloir. “I was starting college, and I still don’t really know where I’m going with it,” says Lemons, now 20. “I started studying existentialism, just trying to figure out what that was. I was a little unclear but still fascinated by the idea of life being perceived by the person living it. Each person is living life through their own eyes. I drew on this idea of our perceptions of who we are and how our experiences change the way we think and create.” Lemons fleshed out three tracks
30
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
with his brother, drummer Breck, who steered the material toward proggier waters with tricky time signatures and dynamic shifts. Joined by a temporary bassist and lead guitarist Joe Dockery (the latter recruited through a message board), Falloir grouped at a Maryville studio with producer Pat Kicklighter, who guided the disparate elements— the knotty, cascading dual-guitar riffs, Breck’s dense, pummeling percussion, and Garrett’s emo yelp—into a cohe-
sive, 19-minute journey. Falloir posted Wordsworth on their Bandcamp back in March, and their timing couldn’t have been better: Knoxville is exploding with young, progtinged bands from across the spectrum (the space-jazz-punk sprawl of Maps Need Reading, the pastoral metal assault of White Stag). But just as the band members are trying to make sense of their personal lives, they’re also evolving musically. Their newest material, bits of which they’ve already debuted live, hints at a more linear, less self-consciously intricate style. “I definitely never envisioned the sound that we came up with, and I don’t think we could recreate that,” Garrett says. “Definitely not. What we do next is not going to sound similar to what we did prior. I think it’ll still sound like us, but it won’t be the big post-rock/progressive rock record that Wordsworth was, just because that’s not where we’re at right now.” Since releasing Wordsworth, Falloir have expanded to a quintet with new bassist Connor Marine and keyboardist Sarah Juhlin. With their live sound filled out, Garrett is focusing more on vocals, leaving the heavy guitar lifting to Dockery. It’s a transitional period, but that hasn’t slowed their local progress; they’ve become a staple at local venues like the Longbranch Saloon and Pilot Light, opening shows for bands like Eternal Summers and Jamaican Queens. Meanwhile, the band is working on their first album, which is shaping up to be a departure. “One thing people have complimented us on is our progressiveness,” Dockery says.
“We’re chipping away at what we thought was our sound, narrowing it down to something unique to the band. I think each record we put out, from Wordsworth to the end of the band, will be different, but still us.” —JOE DOCKERY, Falloir guitarist
“I’m hoping we can still offer a little touch of that.” Falloir have been testing out new songs onstage to gauge crowd reaction, booking out-of-town shows in Georgia and possibly Myrtle Beach, and aiming to finish up their college programs within the next year. They plan to record a new single, then hunker down on the album, with Dockery asserting himself more in the writing process. “We’re digging for our sound as a collective,” the guitarist says. “We’re chipping away at what we thought was our sound, narrowing it down to something unique to the band. I think each record we put out, from Wordsworth to the end of the band, will be different, but still us. I think we could put out a country album, and you’d still know it’s Falloir.” Even if Falloir hasn’t chiseled its style into something definitive, they’re content to let their music evolve, contributing to what Dockery views as a wide-scale advance in the local scene. “I think Knoxville has always set a set scene—metal or pop-punk,” he says. “Jointly, a lot of people are hearing things that they like, and Knoxville is trying to find its collective sound again. The biggest thing right now is math rock, and I think people are going folk with things. I think the prog scene is something that’s happened by accident, really. Times are changing.” ◆
WHO
Tre’ with Thelo-Que, Common Thief, Falloir, and Accidental Seabirds
WHERE
Longbranch Saloon (1848 Cumberland Ave.)
WHEN
Saturday, Aug. 15, at 9:30 p.m.
INFO
facebook.com/ knoxlongbranch
Movies
Bleating Heart Shaun the Sheep Movie gives animation fans a quieter but still satisfying summer alternative BY APRIL SNELLINGS
E
ven after 100 short adventures that made him a flock star (sorry) around the world, it seems Shaun the Sheep just isn’t destined to catch on in America. That’s a shame, because Shaun the Sheep Movie, the character’s fi rst feature-length adventure, is pretty wonderful. For the uninitiated, Shaun (voice of Justin Fletcher) is a preternaturally clever sheep who lives with his flock on the idyllic but dull Mossy Bottom Farm. Basically happy but forever bored with their bucolic life, Shaun and his pals often set out to shake things up a bit, usually to the chagrin of the Farmer and his sheepdog Bitzer (both voiced by John Sparkes). Their adventures are generally of the minor sort that can be resolved in seven minutes—retrieving a baby sheep’s pilfered teddy bear, for instance, or mistaking a set of bagpipes for an ailing emu and trying to nurse it back to health. To fi ll up 85 minutes, though, Shaun’s shepherds at Aardman Animations—the studio behind Wallace and Gromit, of which Shaun is a spin-off—must get him off the farm. All Shaun really wants is a day off from his farm routine, but his plan to lock the sleeping Farmer in a trailer
for a day goes awry when the trailer hops its wheel chocks and rolls into the nearby Big City. Farmer takes a bump on the head and ends up in the hospital with amnesia, leaving Shaun and his compatriots to fend for themselves on the farm. They’re not quite up to the task, so Shaun and his fellow sheep must trek into the city to retrieve their human, who has valuable managerial skills and, most importantly, can reach their feed. Like the long-running British TV series that laid the groundwork for it, Shaun the Sheep Movie completely eschews intelligible dialogue; the characters communicate in grunts, growls, and verbal hiccups, but never is so much as a sentence spoken. The task of telling the story and getting the laughs often falls squarely on the shoulders of the animators, who render Shaun’s characters and surroundings in Aardman’s signature, chunky stop-motion style. They create an incredibly textured, tactile world. I usually forget I’m watching a movie in 3D by somewhere around the 10-minute mark; with Shaun, it took me about that long to forget that the movie isn’t in 3D. But it’s not just the technical and artistic prowess on display that makes
A&E
Shaun such an entertaining watch. There’s no clever wordplay to fall back on when the story drags—which it does, briefly, on a couple of occasions—so directors Mark Burton and Richard Starzak pull out all the stops in the movie’s impeccably staged slapstick comedy sequences. There are literally thousands of moving parts, and the sight gags are rapid-fi re. A few are lobbed squarely at the tyke crowd—look, butts!—but most of the fi lm’s laughs are products of the Jacques Tati school of flawless timing and choreography. Even the pop-culture references, including a brilliant riff on The Silence of the Lambs and nods to The Night of the Hunter and Taxi Driver, are clever and funny. Like its title character, Shaun the Sheep Movie has a heart that’s as finely tuned as its funny bone. The story’s antagonist is a dogcatcher (sheepcatcher?) named Trumper (voice of Omid Djalili), so steel yourself for a subplot involving a crowded animal shelter and a mangy, snaggletoothed stray mutt who longs for a family. Even the opening sequence, which sees a baby Shaun frolicking with a young Farmer in a home movie that freezes into an old, forgotten photograph, is kind of a heart-tugger. Everything works out fine, though. Compared to other animated fi lms of the summer, Shaun the Sheep Movie will inevitably feel like a quieter, smaller affair, and it is—but that’s a big part of its appeal. Even when the story stalls, there’s always something nice to look at, and there’s humor and warmth to spare. ◆ August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 31
CALENDAR MUSIC
Thursday, Aug. 13 THE BEARDED • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM BIG SHOALS WITH KERCHIEF AND TOMAS GORRIO • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM HEADFACE AND THE CONGENITALS WITH EARLY DISCLAIMERS AND A CERTAIN ZONE • Pilot Light • 10PM • $5 HOT SUMMER NIGHTS CONCERT SERIES • Blount County Public Library • 7PM • A weekly series of summer concerts, featuring gospel and popular songs by Ebony and Ivory (Aug. 13); high-energy Americana by Pistol Creek Catch of the Day (Aug. 20); a program of Native American music (Aug. 27); and a preview of Knoxville Opera’s 2015-16 season (Sept. 3). The Aug. 6 performer is TBD. • Free ONE UP TWO DOWN WITH BRANDY ZDAN • WDVX • Noon • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. THE THIRST QUENCHERS • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM Friday, Aug. 14 THE BLAIR XPERIENCE • Mulligan’s Restaurant • 7:30PM BUFFALO WABS AND THE PRINCE HILL HUSTLE • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • Buffalo Wabs & The Price Hill Hustle is a Cincinnati based, 4 piece Americana/Folk band that blends the tradition of heroes like Woody Guthrie and Mississippi John Hurt w/ contemporary flavor. All ages. DANK WITH DOWNRIGHT • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • Crown and Goose • 8PM • Live jazz featuring a mix of original music, early jazz and more. MICHAEL RENO HARRELL WITH SONGS OF THE FALL • WDVX • NOON • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. THE HELGRAMITES • Big Fatty’s Catering Kitchen • 5PM • Old Time String Band on Thunder Road. JACK’D UP • Two Doors Down (Maryville) • 10PM THE JONNY MONSTER BAND • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM STEVE KAUFMAN • Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center (Townsend) • 7PM • $5 PAMELA KLICKA • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Live jazz. • FREE RED AS BLOOD WITH DELARCOS AND QUARTJAR • Pilot Light • 9:30PM • 18 and up. • $5 DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Instrumental and vocal jazz standards. SONGS OF THE FALL • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM • Free TALL PAUL • Bearden Field House • 9PM • FREE TENTH POWER MUSIC HIP-HOP SHOWCASE • Longbranch Saloon • 9PM TERRAVITA WITH EDE GEE, FISHERMEN, AND ILLUSIVE ALCHEMIST • The Concourse • 9PM • Presented by Midnight Voyage and WUTK. 18 and up. THE VIBRASLAPS • Preservation Pub • 10PM WOODY PINES • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM TEE DEE YOUNG • Knoxville Museum of Art • 6PM • A native of Lexington, Kentucky, Tee Dee Young is an internationally touring Blues artist with a dynamic stage presence and unique guitar style. His playing and singing are authentic to the Blues genre and oblivious to current industry trends. His tight 5-piece band (with keyboards, saxophone, bass, drums, and guitar) puts on a stunning, high energy show guaranteed to stir up the dance floor. 32
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
Thursday, Aug. 13 - Sunday, Aug. 23
Part of KMA’s Alive After Five series. • $15 ZIGADOO MONEYCLIPS • Preservation Pub • 8PM • They describe themselves as “SexMoneyAntipop.” Saturday, Aug. 15 BAND SAW 2015 • Saw Works Brewing Company • 2PM • Visit Knoxville is proud to announce that local brewery Saw Works Brewing Company with be holding Band Saw 2015, a music and beer festival. They will be celebrating the brewery’s 5th anniversary while simultaneously raising money for Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing. Various bands will be playing throughout the evening, and food trucks will be catering. Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing is an organization dedicated to physically and emotionally rehabilitating veterans through fly fishing. It has grown to include 178 chapters in all 50 states since 2005 and has allowed over 6,300 disabled active military members and veterans to receive therapy through fishing. Various tickets for Band Saw 2015 are offered for those 21 and up, including a VIP option and a discount for designated drivers. Plenty of food and beer, including a drink brewed specially for the occasion, will be available during the event. http://www. brownpapertickets.com/event/1587078. • $10 THE BROCKEFELLERS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM CUMBERLAND STATION WITH AMBER’S DRIVE • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM FAIRVIEW UNION • Bijou Theatre • 7:30PM • Local Southern rock/country band Fairview Union celebrates the release of its new CD. FRAZIER BAND • Preservation Pub • 10PM GREEN RIVER: THE ULTIMATE CCR TRIBUTE SHOW WITH THE JASON STINNETT BAND • The Shed at Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson (Maryville) • 6PM HORROR ROCK SHOWCASE • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • Featuring Silent Horror, La Basura del Diablo, and By the Graveyard Tree. HOUSE MOUNTAIN HOEDOWN • Washington Presbyterian Church (Corryton) • 1PM • Featuring music by Jubal, Kukuly and the Gypsy Fuego, Slow Blind Hill Jr., Sarah Morgan, Kelle Jolley, and Y’uns Jug Band. • $15 • See Spotlight. JAMAICAN QUEENS WITH CROWD • Pilot Light • 10PM • $6 MARBLE CITY SHOOTERS WITH CAITLIN MARONEY • WDVX • 12PM • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. MARBLE CITY SHOOTERS • Calhoun’s (Volunteer Landing) • 9PM THE CHUCK MULLICAN JAZZ BONANZA • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Live jazz. • FREE PISTOL CREEK CATCH OF THE DAY • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM THE RERUNS • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Knoxville’s premier TV band plays your favorite television themes. SHAMROCK ROAD • Clancy’s Tavern and Whiskey House • 8PM BEN SHUSTER • Bearden Field House • 9PM • FREE SMOKING DAY FEST • Sweet P’s Barbecue and Soul House • 2PM • Featuring music by Joey and Kelly from Glossary, R.B. Morris, Tim Lee 3, Jennifer Niceley, and Amigo. SOUTHBOUND • Two Doors Down (Maryville) • 10PM 2015 SUMMER SLAUGHTER TOUR • The International • 2PM • Featuring Arch Enemy, Born of Osiris, Veil of Maya, The Acacia Strain, Obscura, After the Burial, Cattle Decapitation, and Beyond Creation. All ages. • $25-$60 TRE’ WITH FALLOIR AND ACCIDENTAL SEABIRDS • Longbranch Saloon • 9:30PM • See Music Story on page 30. VINYL TAP • Mulligan’s Restaurant • 7:30PM VOLTAIRE • The Concourse • 9PM • Voltaire’s music can best be described as a collection of murder ballads,
STARK LOVE Tennessee Theatre (604 S. Gay St.) • Saturday, Aug. 15 • 7 p.m. • $9 • tennesseetheatre.com
The Great Smoky Mountains Film Festival, held in conjunction with this weekend’s East Tennessee History Fair, promises a lot of fascinating films, shown at our region’s best place to see fascinating historic films. The Tennessee Theatre was actually under construction when D.W. Griffith cinematographer Karl Brown came to town to shoot the 1927 silent Stark Love. This weekend offers a rare opportunity to see it. Brown’s first and most critically acclaimed movie, Stark Love is different from other silent movies, part of a brief vogue of naturalistic cinema much at odds with most of Hollywood’s output in those days, filming elemental stories featuring non-actors without makeup. The technique was most associated with exotic, primitive settings, but Brown, who was from the hilly part of Pennsylvania, applied the approach to the Southern Appalachians. He wrote a Third-World sort of story involving a forced marriage, and, in a development perhaps too weird for the 21st century, a sort of love triangle involving both a father and a son. The movie was a six-week wonder, hailed as one of the year’s best films and a herald of a new form of cinema. But crowds didn’t go for it, and it was forgotten. But this film leaves us with some scenes more astonishingly vivid and, in their own way, “modern,” than most films of its era. Helen Mundy, a Knoxville High student, was the star of the show. “Discovered” in a downtown soda fountain at age 16, she was also the movie’s only actor with any show-biz experience, having danced in some vaudeville shows. Briefly a sensation in Hollywood and New York, the vivacious, unpredictable Mundy enjoyed a moment of national fame, then thumbed her nose at Hollywood and New York and married an obscure bandleader and dropped out of sight. So did her only movie, which for almost half a century was believed to be lost. Critics who remembered it, including Knoxville native James Agee—who, evidence suggests, knew Mundy at Knoxville High—hailed it in absentia. Then one copy surfaced in Czechoslovakia. Since then, Stark Love has been deemed significant enough to earn a place in the National Film Registry, and the Museum of Modern Art has prioritized restoring it. Saturday night, TAMIS will show MOMA’s newly refurbished copy. Stark Love had its regional premiere at the Riviera in 1927. It has only rarely been shown since its rediscovery. This showing at the Tennessee is probably the biggest-screen, biggest auditorium treatment the film has ever gotten in Knoxville. And this is probably the best copy that’s been shown here in almost 90 years. Stark Love follows Southern Exposure: The Great Smoky Mountain Film Festival, an afternoon of rare films and home movies about the Smoky Mountains, and is part of the East Tennessee History Fair. It will be accompanied by a screening of the short documentary Lost Masterpiece, about the making of Stark Love. (Jack Neely)
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Spotlight: House Mountain Hoedown
CALENDAR tongue-in-cheek exercises in the macabre, with just enough bawdy songs about Star Trek and Star Wars to keep a convention audience rolling in the aisles. All ages. • $10 Sunday, Aug. 16 AL COFFEE AND DA GRIND • Star of Knoxville Riverboat • 5PM • Part of the Smoky Mountain Blues Society’s annual season of summer blues cruises. • $16-$19 THE GREG HORNE BAND • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 8PM JONNY MONSTER • Scruffy City Hall • 7PM ZACK JOSEPH AND THE SOCIETY • Preservation Pub • 10PM • Indie throwback folk/rock ‘n’ roll from Nashville. 21 and up. • $3 MARBLE CITY SHOOTERS • Ijams Nature Center • 6PM • Hot swing and jazz at Ijams. SHIFFLETT AND HANNAH • Bistro at the Bijou • 12PM • FREE THE DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 1PM • Live jazz. TALL PAUL • Mulligan’s Restaurant • 4PM ZACH AND KOTA’S SWEET LIFE WITH DADDY ISSUES • Pilot Light • 10PM • $5 Monday, Aug. 17 ANGELA EASTERLING • WDVX • 12PM • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. THE PAPER CROWNS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM THEM TRAVELLIN’ BIRDS • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 and up. Tuesday, Aug. 18 JAZZ ON THE SQUARE • Market Square • 8PM • Featuring the Marble City 5. Every Tuesday from May 12-Aug. 25. WES LUNSFORD AND LAUREL WRIGHT • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM PLEASES WITH OFFING • Pilot Light • 9PM • 18 and up. • $5 ANDREW TUFANO WITH LAURA JANE VINCENT • WDVX • 12PM • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. THE ANDREW TUFANO BAND • Preservation Pub • 10PM Wednesday, Aug. 19 CARINA POINT WITH DARA SISTERHEN • WDVX • 12PM • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. CRANFORD HOLLOW • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 and up. FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • The Crown and Goose • 6:30PM • Live jazz featuring a mix of original music, early jazz and more. • Free THE CASEY GREEN TRIO • The Bistro at the Bijou • 7PM • Live jazz. STEVE GULLEY AND NEW PINNACLE • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7PM • East Tennessee native Steve Gulley (Mountain Heart, Grasstowne, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver) returns to our show with his new bluegrass band, New Pinnacle, which includes members Bryan Turner, Gary Robinson Jr, and Matthew Cruby. • $10 FREDDA VALENTINE TEMPLES • Mulligan’s Restaurant • 7PM Thursday, Aug. 20 EARTH QUAKER WITH TRACTORHEAD • Preservation Pub • 10PM HANDSOME AND THE HUMBLES • Historic Southern Railway Station • 8PM • Part of the Southern Station Live concert series. THE HENHOUSE PROWLERS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM
HOT SUMMER NIGHTS CONCERT SERIES • Blount County Public Library • 7PM • A weekly series of summer concerts, featuring gospel and popular songs by Ebony and Ivory (Aug. 13); high-energy Americana by Pistol Creek Catch of the Day (Aug. 20); a program of Native American music (Aug. 27); and a preview of Knoxville Opera’s 2015-16 season (Sept. 3). The Aug. 6 performer is TBD. JANUARY MAY • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM • Recently uprooted pop trio January May of Union, MO have found themselves in Austin, TX getting ready to set out for a tour in support of their debut album, Troublemade. The once duo that had their start playing for audiences of one at local bars have grown into a full band with their new album. They’re ready to positively represent their hometown by spreading their music across the nation. FRETZ LANE WITH CATHOUSE, SIENNA, AND COLT • Longbranch Saloon • 8PM NATIVE CONSTRUCT WITH WINGS DENIED, OUTRUN THE SUNLIGHT, AND WHITE STAG • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 7PM • Native Construct is the product of collaboration between several students that began in 2011 at the storied Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Fueled by a desire to breathe new life into the modern metal genre, Native Construct artfully blends a wide spectrum of compositional influences, ranging from classical all the way to prog metal and musical theatre. The result is a wonderfully unique sonic texture, made up of extended-range guitars, theatrical vocals, and a full complement of symphonic instrumentation. Guitarist and composer Myles Yang’s passion for innovation, coupled with his extensive academic study of arranging and compositional techniques, makes Native Construct a truly distinctive up-and-coming metal act. All ages. • $7-$10 SCOTT SOUTHWORTH WITH JANUARY MAY • WDVX • 12PM • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. THE THIRST QUENCHERS • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM • The Ps and Qs house band. Friday, Aug. 21 KEITH ANDERSON • The Bowery • 7PM • Every song Keith sings sounds like a hit, and that includes “Pickin’ Wildflowers,” his romping debut single for Arista Nashville. He’s already proven himself as an ace songwriter with the Grammy-nominated “Beer Run (B Double E Double Are You In?),” recorded as a duet by Garth Brooks and George Jones, and “The Bed,” recorded by the multi-Platinum Gretchen Wilson as a vocal event with Big & Rich. • $10-$30 BASEBALL THE BAND WITH YARN AND BRAVE BABY • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM THE DARNELL BOYS • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM THE DEAD RINGERS • Preservation Pub • 10PM DREAMLIKE WITH SHALLOWPOINT • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • All ages. FREEQUENCY • Cru Bistro and Wine Bar • 8PM • Acoustic Americana trio. FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • The Crown and Goose • 8PM • Live jazz featuring a mix of original music, early jazz and more. THE JEFF JOPLIN BAND • Two Doors Down (Maryville) • 10PM THE KINCAID BAND • Mulligan’s Restaurant • 7:30PM KITTY WAMPUS • Calhoun’s (Volunteer Landing) • 7:30PM • Classic rock and R&B. KUKULY AND THE GYPSY FUEGO • Casual Pint (Fountain City) • 7PM MAPS NEED READING WITH MESMER TEA AND FALLOIR • Pilot Light • 10PM • The original version of Maps Need
NOV. 10
KNOXVILLE CIVIC COLISEUM ON SALE FRIDAY, AUG. 14 AT NOON Tickets available at the Knoxville Coliseum box office, knoxvilletickets.com or by phone at 877-995-9961.
August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 33
CALENDAR Reading was one of Knoxville’s most promising young bands, but some of the early material felt one-dimensional and overly scrappy, as if the members’ chops hadn’t caught up with their creativity. Now the band’s operating on a different plane. Compare their rough early demo with the maturity of their recent Bandcamp rehearsal set; new tracks like “Lightning Horse” and “Out of the Sea, Into Circuitry” stretch out to eight or 10 minutes, weaving psychedelic guitar harmonies over jazzy rhythm sections. 18 and up. • $5 NICK MOSS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM NORWEGIAN WOOD • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM PANDEMONIUM FEATURING LOUDPVCK, WICK-IT, AND MANIC FOCUS • The International • 9PM • Presented by Midnight Voyage and WUTK. 18 and up. • $15 ANNIE PIPER • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM DUSTIN SELLERS WITH THE AL HOLBROOK BAND • WDVX • 12PM • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-aweek lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Instrumental and vocal jazz standards. MIKE SNODGRASS • Bearden Field House • 9PM CHELSEA STEPP WITH THE BAND CONCORD • Longbranch Saloon • 9PM CLAY WALKER • Cotton Eyed Joe • 10PM • Whether on stage or in the recording studio, Walker never gives less than a hundred percent, and it’s that kind of dedicated work ethic combined with God-given talent that have made him one of the most successful country acts of the
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
Thursday, Aug. 13 - Sunday, Aug. 23
past decade. He first topped the Billboard country singles chart in 1993 with “What’s It to You” and followed with his second consecutive No. 1 hit, “Live Until I Die.” Since then he’s placed 31 titles on Billboard’s singles chart including such additional chart toppers as “Dreaming with my Eyes Open,” “If I Could Make Living,” “This Woman and This Man,” and “Rumor Has It.” (The latter two songs each spent two weeks at the summit.) He’s enjoyed his share of success at the cash registers and has consistently been one of the busiest artists on the road. He’s scored four platinum-selling albums, signifying sales of a million units, and two gold albums. • $10-$15 Saturday, Aug. 22 THE BLAIR XPERIENCE • Mulligan’s Restaurant • 7:30PM BLANKFEST • Market Square • 5PM • Presented by BLANK Newspaper and scruffycity.com, this year’s iteration will benefit Knoxville-based nonprofit agency Positively Living. In addition to the outdoor stage in the square, participating venues will include Scruffy City Hall, Preservation Pub and Cocoa Moon. Beginning at 5:00 P.M., a musical roster comprising nearly 20 acts will perform across three stages, with noted poet/emcee/Knoxville ambassador Zachary Fallon hosting a self-curated cavalcade of local comedians, improv artists and burlesque presenters at Cocoa Moon. The Black Cadillacs, David Mayfield Parade and Lilly Hiatt will serve as music headliners and will apply their craft to the outdoor main stage. A who’s who of local talent rounding out the bill will take to the stages at Scruffy City Hall and Preservation Pub: Barstool Romeos, Black Cadillacs, Brent
Thompson & the Wandering, David Mayfield Parade, Gamenight, Guy Marshall, J.C. and the Dirty Smokers, Johnny Astro and the Big Bang, Justin Kaulk Orchestra, LiL iFFy, Lilly Hiatt, Madre, Mic Harrison and the High Score, Mr. ILL & the Medicine, Three Star Revival, Tim Lee 3, William Wild and the BLANKfest King Super Jam. MARK BOLING • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Live jazz. CLYDE’S ON FIRE • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM COODER • WHITE • SKAGGS • Tennessee Theatre • 8PM • The legendary Grammy-winning trio made up of Ry Cooder, Sharon White and Ricky Skaggs will be hitting the second leg of their ‘Songs For The Good People’ tour starting on July 16. On the ‘CWS’ tour, songs to be played include country standards, gospel, and bluegrass running the gamut from Hank Williams and Flatt and Scruggs to Buck Owens and Hank Snow.“ • $44.50-$84.50 FREEQUENCY • Willy’s Bar and Grill • 7PM • Acoustic Americana trio. LARRY GATLIN AND THE GATLIN BROTHERS • Niswonger Performing Arts Center (Greeneville) • 7:30PM • Over the course of a four-decade career that has taken the Gatlin Brothers from dusty Texas stages to White House performances, from Broadway to Grammy Awards, to the top of the country charts, there has been one unifying element ... music. HEARTSICK • Longbranch Saloon • 8PM J.B.’S BOOGIE ON BROADWAY • Two Doors Down • 4PM • Featuring Smooth Groove, the Dixie Highway Band, the Burnin’ Hermans, Jailhouse Review, the Fallbacks, and the Big Boogie, all in tribute to Jeff Breazeale. THE TOMMIE JOHN BAND • Brackins Blues Club
(Maryville) • 9PM KISS ARMY WITH J.D. CABLE AND THE EMPTY BOTTLE BAND • The Shed at Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson (Maryville) • 6PM • $15 NERVOUS TICKS WITH BIG BAD OVEN, THE SNIFF, AND BURNING ITCH • Pilot Light • 10PM • 18 and up. • $5 LUCY RAY AND RANDAL GARY WITH THREE STAR REVIVAL • WDVX • 12PM • Part of WDVX’s Blue Plate Special, a six-days-a-week lunchtime concert series featuring local, regional, and national Americana, folk, pop, rock, and everything else. THE REGISTRATION WITH DJ MIKE NASTY • The Concourse • 9:30PM • $10 THE RERUNS • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Knoxville’s premier TV band plays your favorite television themes. BEN SHUSTER • Bearden Field House • 9PM STANLEY YATES • Episcopal Church of the Good Samaritan • 7PM • British-born guitarist Stanley Yates enjoys an international career as concert performer and recording artist, teacher, arranger, and scholar. He has been described as “one of an elite breed of guitarists” (Classical Guitar Magazine), praised for the “transcendent quality of his interpretations”(Fort Worth Star Telegram), recognized for his “musical instinct and brilliant technique” (Suonare, Italy). A resident of the United States, he is Professor of Music and director of guitar studies at Austin Peay State University, home of Tennessee’s Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts. Visit www. knoxvilleguitar.org. • $20 Sunday, Aug. 23
CALENDAR BLUES TRAVELER • Bijou Theatre • 8PM • After selling millions of records and logging thousands of miles on the road, Blues Traveler continue to chart new musical directions evident on their upcoming record Blow Up The Moon. A clever collaboration between various artists, Blow Up The Moon sees Blues Traveler keep an open-minded perspective on making music and enlists an eclectic mix of songwriters influenced by the bands remarkable 25+ year career. • $27 THE NICK MOSS BAND • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria (Maryville) • 6PM • Nick Moss and his band have been featured performers at blues festivals across the globe but it’s at home in Chicago – the capital city of the blues – where he and his band get the ultimate stamp of approval from one Hall of Famer and blues icon Buddy Guy. Music fans the world over come to his famous club where they’ll often find Moss playing that prestigious stage, booked by the icon himself. • $6-$20 THE RANSOM NOTES • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 8PM JACK RENTFRO AND THE APOCALYPSO QUARTET • Pilot Light • 8PM • The Apocalypso Quartet is a rotating cast of some of Knoxville’s best musicians. Each permutation of the band provides a strong foundation of rock, world music, gospel, and even hip-hop for Rentfro’s dense wordplay, a rambling and sometimes startling combination of biblical references and literary allusions, political rants, observational humor, puns, and philosophical rumination—like a letter to the editor co-written by Woody Allen, James Joyce, and Andy Kaufman. • $5 SHIFFLETT AND HANNAH • The Bistro at the Bijou • 12PM • Live jazz. DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 1PM • Live jazz.
OPEN CHORD OPEN MIC • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM LONGBRANCH ACOUSTIC OPEN MIC NIGHT • Longbranch Saloon • 9PM BRACKINS BLUES JAM • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM • A weekly open session hosted by Tommie John.
OPEN MIC AND SONGWRITER NIGHTS
Sunday, Aug. 16 TENNESSEE WIND SYMPHONY • Knoxville Museum of Art • 3PM • Join the Tennessee Wind Symphony at the Knoxville Museum of Art for an afternoon with the arts on Aug. 16. The museum will be open from 1-5 p.m. and the symphony will play a free community concert at 3 p.m., with music ranging from marches to Westerns. • Free
Thursday, Aug. 13 BREWHOUSE BLUES JAM • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM
Friday, Aug. 14 TIME WARP TEA ROOM OPEN SONGWRITER NIGHT • Time Warp Tea Room • 7PM • Songwriter Night at Time Warp Tea Room runs on the second and fourth Friday of every month. Sunday, Aug. 16 FAMILY FRIENDLY DRUM CIRCLE • Ijams Nature Center • 4PM • Bring a drum or share one of ours. All ages from toddlers to grandparents welcome. Free. Call Ijams at 865-577-4717 ex 110 to register. • Free Monday, Aug. 17 JOHN CONDRONE SONGWRITER NIGHT • Mulligan’s Restaurant • 7PM Tuesday, Aug. 18 PRESERVATION PUB SINGER/SONGWRITER NIGHT • Preservation Pub • 7PM • A weekly open mic. OLD-TIME JAM SESSION • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7:15PM • Hosted by Sarah Pickle. OPEN CHORD SINGER/SONGWRITER NIGHT • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • Hosted by Karen E. Reynolds. Wednesday, Aug. 19 TIME WARP TEA ROOM OLD-TIME JAM • Time Warp Tea Room • 7PM • Regular speed old-time/fiddle jam every Wednesday from 7-9 p.m. at the Time Warp Tea Room. All instruments and skill levels welcome.
Thursday, Aug. 20 IRISH MUSIC SESSION • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7:15PM • Held on the first and third Thursdays of each month.
DJ AND DANCE NIGHTS Thursday, Aug. 13 BRING YOUR OWN VINYL NIGHT • Flow: A Brew Parlor • 6PM Saturday, Aug. 15 TEMPLE DANCE NIGHT: VOLTAIRE AFTER PARTY • The Concourse • 11PM • 18 and up. • $5 Sunday, Aug. 16 LAYOVER SUNDAY BRUNCH • The Concourse • 12PM • Brunch with a side of chill ambient music. Thursday, Aug. 20 BRING YOUR OWN VINYL NIGHT • Flow: A Brew Parlor • 6PM Sunday, Aug. 23 LAYOVER SUNDAY BRUNCH • The Concourse • 12PM • Brunch with a side of chill ambient music.
CLASSICAL MUSIC
COMEDY AND SPOKEN WORD
Thursday, Aug. 13 GARRISON KEILLOR’S A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION • Tennessee Theatre • 8PM • People joke about Garrison Keillor. A Portlandia sketch makes his following seem cultish, and a running gag on The Simpsons implies he’s codger bait. They may not acknowledge what an extraordinary cultural phenomenon his show, A Prairie Home Companion, has been on public-radio stations every Saturday night for over 40 years. Keillor did the full Prairie Home show at the Civic Auditorium in June 1999, during which he ditched the prepared script, perplexing the backstage staff, to read James Agee’s “Knoxville: Summer 1915” for a radio audience in the millions. Now a stroke survivor of 73 (his birthday is Friday), he has recently announced that he’ll retire next summer. This is the third time (we think) he has been to Knoxville since then with a stripped-down non-broadcast appearance, which includes several favorite performers from the show, including pianist-composer Richard Dworsky, sound-effects wizard Fred Newman, and singer/songwriter Sara Jarosz. We don’t want to call it his last, but you have to wonder. • $64.50-$86.50 Saturday, Aug. 15 August 13, 2015
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CALENDAR IMPROV COMEDY CLASS • The Birdhouse • 10AM • A weekly improv comedy class. • Free Sunday, Aug. 16 UPSTAIRS UNDERGROUND COMEDY • Preservation Pub • 8PM • A weekly comedy open mic. Monday, Aug. 17 QED COMEDY LABORATORY • Pilot Light • 7:30PM • QED ComedyLaboratory is a weekly show with different theme every week that combines stand-up, improv, sketch, music and other types of performance and features some of the funniest people in Knoxville and parts unknown. It’s weird and experimental. There is no comedy experience in town that is anything like this and it’s also a ton of fun. Pay what you want. Cost: Free - But Donations Gladly Accepted. Tuesday, Aug. 18 EINSTEIN SIMPLIFIED • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM • Live comedy improv. • OPEN MIC STAND-UP COMEDY • Longbranch Saloon • 8PM • Come laugh until you cry at the Longbranch every Tuesday night. Doors open at 8, first comic at 8:30. No cover charge, all are welcome. Aspiring or experienced comics interested in joining in the fun email us at longbranch.info@gmail.com to learn more, or simply come to the show a few minutes early. Thursday, Aug. 20 MOSTLY TRUE STORIES VOL. II • Pilot Light • 9PM • A storytelling show. 18 and up. • $5
Thursday, Aug. 13 - Sunday, Aug. 23
Friday, Aug. 21 THE FIFTH WOMAN POETRY SLAM • The Birdhouse • 6:30PM • The 5th Woman Poetry slam is place where all poets can come and share their words of love, respect, passion, and expression. It is not dedicated solely women but is a place where women poets are celebrated and honored. Check out our facebook pages for the challenge of the month and focus for our poetry every month. Saturday, Aug. 22 IMPROV COMEDY CLASS • The Birdhouse • 10AM • A weekly improv comedy class. Sunday, Aug. 23 UPSTAIRS UNDERGROUND COMEDY • Preservation Pub • 8PM • A weekly comedy open mic.
THEATER AND DANCE
Thursday, Aug. 13 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: SEALED FOR FRESHNESS • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • Sealed for Freshness is set in 1968 during the heyday of Tupperware parties. Hostess Bonnie invites a group of neighbors over for a party. The mix of personalities and the number of martinis consumed lead to a great deal of absurd high jinks plus revelations of an equal number of secrets and insecurities. July 31-Aug. 16. Visit theatreknoxville.com. • $15 Friday, Aug. 14 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE
WEEKLY SPECIALS! MANGIA MONDAY - HARDY Italian Specials TRIPLE T TUESDAY - GOOD GOLLY Tamales, Killer tacos $2 off Premium Tequila, $6 Margarets $6 SAMMITCH WEDNESDAY THIRSTY THURSDAY – $4 pints until 4. $2 Pints after 4 (except High Gravity). $4 House Wines and $3 Well Drinks All Day! FORCHETTA FRIDAY & SICILIAN SATURDAY - more Italian deliciousity all weekend! SUNDAY BRUNCH - 10-7 includes regular Brunch items plus the Weekend’s Italian Specials. $3 Mimosas
HOLLY’S 135
135 S. Gay St. • 865.329.0000 hollyseventfuldining.com 36
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
WILLOWS • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 7PM • Aug. 14-30. Visit knoxvillechildrenstheatre.com. • $12 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: SEALED FOR FRESHNESS • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • July 31-Aug. 16. Visit theatreknoxville.com. • $15 TENNESSEE STAGE COMPANY: SHAKESPEARE ON THE SQUARE • Market Square • 7PM • TSC’s annual downtown outdoor showcase of Shakespearean drama features rotating productions of The Taming of the Shrew and Macbeth. July 16-Aug. 16. Visit tennesseestage.com. • FREE Saturday, Aug. 15 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: SEALED FOR FRESHNESS • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • July 31-Aug. 16. Visit theatreknoxville.com. • $15 TENNESSEE STAGE COMPANY: SHAKESPEARE ON THE SQUARE • Market Square • 7PM • TSC’s annual downtown outdoor showcase of Shakespearean drama features rotating productions of The Taming of the Shrew and Macbeth. July 16-Aug. 16. Visit tennesseestage.com. • FREE KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 1PM and 5PM • Aug. 14-30. Visit knoxvillechildrenstheatre.com. • $12 Sunday, Aug. 16 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: SEALED FOR FRESHNESS • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 3PM • July 31-Aug. 16. Visit theatreknoxville.com. • $15 TENNESSEE STAGE COMPANY: SHAKESPEARE ON THE SQUARE • Market Square • 7PM • TSC’s annual downtown outdoor showcase of Shakespearean drama features rotating productions of The Taming of the Shrew and
Macbeth. July 16-Aug. 16. Visit tennesseestage.com. • FREE KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 3PM • Aug. 14-30. Visit knoxvillechildrenstheatre.com. • $12 Thursday, Aug. 20 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 7PM • Aug. 14-30. Visit knoxvillechildrenstheatre.com. • $12 Friday, Aug. 21 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 7PM • Aug. 14-30. Visit knoxvillechildrenstheatre.com. • $12 Saturday, Aug. 22 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 1PM and 5PM • Aug. 14-30. Visit knoxvillechildrenstheatre.com. • $12 Sunday, Aug. 23 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 3PM • Aug. 14-30. Visit knoxvillechildrenstheatre.com. • $12
FESTIVALS
Saturday, Aug. 15 CADES COVE HOMECOMING • Cades Cove • 10AM • Music, food, crafts, demonstrations, vendors. EAST TENNESSEE HISTORY FAIR • Downtown • 10AM • Have a blast with the past at the 8th Annual East Tennessee History
Thursday, Aug. 13 - Sunday, Aug. 23
CALENDAR
HOUSE MOUNTAIN HOEDOWN Washington Presbyterian Church Pavilion and Park (7405 Washington Pike) • Saturday, Aug. 15 • 1-9 p.m. • $12/$15 at the gate
Ladies and gentleman, set the farm implements down. It’s time for homespun fun for a heartfelt cause at the House Mountain Hoedown, an Americana music festival at the base of Corryton’s House Mountain. This is the second year an all-volunteer crew is throwing a benefit for the Washington Presbyterian Church Pavilion and Park grounds on the corner of Shipe Road and Washington Pike, and it has the air of a reunion, church social, and millennial barn dance all wrapped up in one. East Tennessee-acana will grace the mainstage, with Jubal, Kukuly and the Gypsy Fuego, Slow Blind Hill Jr., Sarah Morgan, Kelle Jolly aka “that Ukelele lady,” and Y’uns Jug Band. The square dancing commences about 8 p.m. and throughout the day is a back-in-the-woods, all-instruments-welcome, pickin’-and-playin’-and-singin’ Jam Circle. Most of the main-stage participants ended up in the circle at some point last year, and the tradition is expected to continue. Also notable are the victuals for sale. They include the ubiquitous ice cream, snow cones, popcorn, and hot dogs but also pork-flavored and veggie beans from Corryton’s Bishop of Beans, Doug Parker; corn bread and cobbler from East Knox personality Johnny Bush; and Kenzo’s Korn, from Kenzo Bronson, who is the force behind the old-time band the Helgrammites when he’s not grilling buttery goodness. The whole event is a Corryton masterpiece, and it’s no accident that the road it’s on shares a name with two of the event’s three co-organizers: Kelly Shipe, a local actor and director, and her dad, Jerry Shipe. (Darrell Acuff is the other organizer.) The Shipes can trace their family to Peter Shipe, George Washington’s baggage master, with this land granted after the Revolutionary War. The church was established in 1802, and its still-small congregation maintains a 14-acre park for community use free of charge. Proceeds from the hoedown go to maintaining the park, which will host a fall apple festival in October, just as it has for 38 years. Every penny from that goes to those in need: a circle of love in the shadow of House Mountain. (Rose Kennedy)
Fair! Activities include a living history timeline, live music, historic crafts demonstrations, historical and genealogical groups from across the region, children’s crafts and activities, Davy Crockett’s birthday party, walking tours of downtown, Civil War bus tours and tours of Knoxville’s historic homes, tours of underground Gay Street, “History Hound” dog costume contest, free museum admission, Smoky Mountain film festival at the Tennessee Theatre, vintage baseball games at World’s Fair Park, art exhibits, miniature battles, traditional foods, book sales, farmers market, and much more! Free to the public! Sponsored by the Seven Islands Foundation, Knoxville CBID, Arts & Heritage Fund, Clayton Bank & Trust, City of Knoxville, WUOT, WDVX, WBIR, Tomato Head, Food City, PetSafe, Comcast, Boyd’s Jig and Reel, Friends of the Knox County Public Library, and Knox County Public Library. East Tennessee History Center, 601 S. Gay Street. For a detailed listing of events and times visit www.easttnhistory. org/eastTNhistoryfair or call 865-215-8824. SPIRIT OF ‘45 CELEBRATION • World’s Fair Park • 3PM • The Dignity Memorial network of service providers in Knoxville invites the public to a special event that will honor the men and women who lost their lives during WWII as well as the entire generation whose efforts strengthened our country in time of war. The community Spirit of ’45 celebration will include the following: Swing dance demonstration by Lets Dance Academy; Military vehicles and World War II reenactors; Wreath-laying ceremony by the Volunteer Chapter of American Gold Star Mothers; Live music and Taps by Bugles Across America; Presentation of colors by South Doyle Jr. ROTC; Guest speaker Charlie Brakebill, World War II veteran and former University of Tennessee Director of Gifts and Grants. • Free
SPORTS AND RECREATION
Thursday, Aug. 13 WHOLE FOODS GAME NIGHT • Whole Foods • 6PM • Grab you peeps and join us for Game Night in The Rocky! We have everything from Candy Land to Chess! A pint, a pizza, and a board: who could ask for more? • Free Saturday, Aug. 15 SMOKY MOUNTAIN HIKING CLUB: RAINBOW FALLS/TRILLIUM GAP LOOP • 7AM • elevation gain & some rocky trail. Distance is 15.6 miles plus overlooks. Meet David at Alcoa Food City ready to leave at 7:00 AM or JD at Comcast at 6:50 AM. Leaders: David Smith, dcshiker@bellsouth.net and JD Schlandt, trailhard@gmail.com. KTC HAW RIDGE TRAIL RACE • Haw Ridge Park • 5:30PM • The main race will be contested along the eastern portion of the park, and although some hills present themselves, the lakeside sections of trail are not prohibitively challenging. Covering varied terrain and offering beautiful scenery, the race will be approximately seven miles in length. Postrace festivities typically last till dusk, with plentiful food and drink available. • $5 Monday, Aug. 17 BEARDEN BEER MARKET FUN RUN • Bearden Beer Market • 6:30PM • A weekly sponsored 5K fun run with giveaways, a grand prize, and $1 off pints for all runners. • FREE Tuesday, Aug. 18 WHOLE FOODS GAME NIGHT • Whole Foods • 6PM • Grab you peeps and join us for Game Night in The Rocky! We have everything from Candy Land to Chess! A pint, a pizza, and a board: who could ask for more? • Free August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 37
CALENDAR Wednesday, Aug. 19 SMOKY MOUNTAIN HIKING CLUB: ROUNDTOP TRAIL TO THE WYE • 8AM • Roundtop Trail to the Wye if the water is low. 7.5 miles, 8.5 if we start from Metcalf Bottoms. Car Shuttle. Meet at Alcoa Food City at 8:00 or Metcalf Bottoms Picnic area at 8:30. Let the leader know if you will meet at Metcalf Bottoms. Leader: Ron Brandenburg, ronb86@comcast.net. Thursday, Aug. 20 WHOLE FOODS GAME NIGHT • Whole Foods • 6PM • Grab you peeps and join us for Game Night in The Rocky! We have everything from Candy Land to Chess! A pint, a pizza, and a board: who could ask for more? • Free Saturday, Aug. 22 THE MAN RUN 5K AND 10K • University of Tennessee Medical Center • 8AM • 100% of the proceeds will benefit prostate cancer research and outreach and educational programs in East Tennessee. The Man Run includes a 10K run, 5K run, and 1/2 mile fun run/walk at The University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville.
FILM SCREENINGS
Friday, Aug. 14 SUMMER MOVIE MAGIC SERIES: ‘ROMAN HOLIDAY’ • Tennessee Theatre • 8PM • Overwhelmed by her suffocating schedule, touring European princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn) takes off for a night while in Rome. When a sedative she took from her doctor kicks in, she
Thursday, Aug. 13 - Sunday, Aug. 23
falls asleep on a park bench and is found by an American reporter, Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck), who takes her back to his apartment for safety. At work the next morning, Joe finds out Ann’s regal identity and bets his editor he can get exclusive interview with her, but romance soon gets in the way. • $9 Saturday, Aug. 15 SOUTHERN EXPOSURE: THE GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAIN FILM FESTIVAL • Tennessee Theatre • 12PM • Knox County Public Library’s Tennessee Archive of Moving Image and Sound (TAMIS) and its partners, the East Tennessee Historical Society, Friends of the Library, and the Historic Tennessee Theatre, will host a day of film screenings featuring rare home movies and films focusing on the Smoky Mountains. TAMIS holds the largest and most diverse collection of Smoky Mountain home movie footage in the state of Tennessee, including the collections of Jim Thompson, Jack Huff, the Smoky Mountain Hiking Club, Arrowmont School and others. Part of the East Tennessee History Fair, this event will be unique and exciting for East Tennesseans, as many of these films have never been shown publicly. Highlights include the earliest recorded footage of the Smoky Mountains, home movies of Cades Cove, and clips of Knoxville and the Smokies from the Jim Thompson Collection. Local musicians will provide live music to accompany the silent films. • Free STARK LOVE • Tennessee Theatre • 7PM • A screening of the 1927 Paramount feature Stark Love, which was filmed in the Smoky Mountains and features a cast of local and regional actors. Lost Masterpiece, a short documentary
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about the making of Stark Love, will precede the feature. • $9 • See Spotlight on page 32. Sunday, Aug. 16 SUMMER MOVIE MAGIC SERIES: ‘ROMAN HOLIDAY’ • Tennessee Theatre • 2PM • $9 Monday, Aug. 17 THE BIRDHOUSE WALK-IN THEATER • The Birdhouse • 8PM • A weekly free movie screening. Tuesday, Aug. 18 TWIN PEAKS VIEWING PARTY • The Birdhouse • 7PM • Bi-weekly viewing parties for every single episode of the cult TV series. Attendees encouraged to dress as their favorite characters. Trivia, Twin Peaks-themed giveaways, donuts and coffee, plus some surprises. Trivia begins at 7:00pm with viewing to follow at 8:00pm. Wednesday, Aug. 20 SCRUFFY CITY CINE-PUB • Scruffy City Hall • 7PM • Free Wednesday movie screenings.
ART
American Museum of Science and Energy 300 S. Tulane Ave. (Oak Ridge) JUNE 12-SEPT. 13: Nikon Small World Photomicrography Exhibit. Arrowmont School of Arts
and Crafts 556 Parkway (Gatlinburg) MAY 18-AUG. 22 Arrowmont 2015 Instructor Exhibition Bliss Home 29 Market Square AUG. 7-31: The Lake House, paintings by Kate Moore. Downtown Gallery 106 S. Gay St. AUG. 6-15: Life in Light, an exhibition of paintings by Mostafiz Karigar inspired by Knoxville doctor Humayun Kabir. East Tennessee History Center 601 S. Gay St. APRIL 27-OCT. 18: Memories of the Blue and Gray: The Civil War in East Tennessee at 150 Emporium Center for Arts and Culture 100 S. Gay St. AUG. 7-28: ETSU Department of Art and Design: Further East; Melanie Fetterolf: Fire, Rain, and Nature Images; artwork by Sharon Gillenwater and Michael McKee; MAP!: Artwork by Jennifer brickey, Nick DeFord, Marcia Goldenstein, and Tony Sobota; Knox Heritage Art and Architecture Tour photographs; and artwork by Rosalina Tipton and Michael Giles. Envision Art Gallery 4050 Sutherland Ave. THROUGH AUG. 15: E nvision Art Gallery Grand Opening Exhibition, featuring artwork by gallery owner Kay List
Thursday, Aug. 13 - Sunday, Aug. 23
and Larry S. Cole. Knoxville Museum of Art 1050 World’s Fair Park Drive AUG. 21-NOV. 8: The Paternal Suit, paintings, prints, and objects by conceptual artist F. Scott Hess. ONGOING: Higher Ground: A Century of the Visual Arts in Tennessee; Currents: Recent Art From East Tennessee and Beyond; and Facets of Modern and Contemporary Glass. Liz-Beth and Co. 7240 Kingston Pike AUG. 3-29: Contemporary Art on Canvas, featuring work by Ursula Brenner, Mike Ham, Mildred Jarrett, Nelle Farrara, and Bonita Goldberg. McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture 1327 Circle Park Drive JUNE 5-AUG. 30: Through the Lens: The Botanical Photography of Alan S. Heilman. Ongoing: The Flora and Fauna of Catesby, Mason, and Audubon and Life on the Roman Frontier. Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church 2931 Kingston Pike JULY 17-AUG. 30: Exhibits by Lisa Kurtz and Art Group 21. Westminster Presbyterian Church 6500 Northshore Drive JULY 5-AUG. 30: Work by the Tennessee Artists Association.
LECTURES, READINGS, AND BOOK SIGNINGS
CALENDAR
AARON ASTOR: “THE CIVIL WAR ALONG TENNESSEE’S CUMBERLAND PLATEAU” • East Tennessee History Center • 12PM • In a Brown Bag Lecture on August 20, Dr. Aaron Astor will discuss his new book, The Civil War Along Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau. The Cumberland Plateau played host to some of the most dramatic military maneuvering of the Civil War. Straddling the entire state of Tennessee, the formidable tableland proved to be a maze of topographical pitfalls and a morass of divided loyalties. As Federal forces sought to capitalize on the early capture of Nashville, they moved into a region split by the most vicious guerrilla warfare outside Missouri, including the colorful and intensely violent rivalry between Confederate Champ Ferguson and Unionist Tinker Dave Beaty. The bitter conflict affected thousands of ordinary men and women struggling to survive in the face of a remorseless war of attrition, and its legacy continues to be felt today. Aaron Astor is an associate professor of history at Maryville College and has written numerous articles, conference papers, and books on the Civil War era, focusing especially on the Upper and Border South. Books will be available for Dr. Astor to sign following the lecture. The program is sponsored by 21st Mortgage and is free and open to the public. The lecture will begin at noon at the East Tennessee History Center, 601 S. Gay Street, Knoxville. Guests are invited to bring a “Brown Bag” lunch and enjoy the lecture. Soft drinks will be available. For more information on the lecture, exhibitions, or museum hours, call 865-215-8824 or visit the website at www. EastTNHistory.org. • Free
Thursday, Aug. 13 MIRANDA RICHMOND MOUILLOT: A FIFTY YEAR SILENCE • Union Ave Books • 6PM • Book signing with Miranda Richmond Mouillot author of A Fifty Year Silence: Love, War, and a Ruined House in France.
Saturday, Aug. 22 RON LEADBETTER: BIG ORANGE, BLACK STORM CLOUDS, AND MORE • Union Ave Books • 2PM • Book signing with Ron Leadbetter author of Big Orange, Black Storm Clouds, and More. HOLY TEMPLE OF KNOWLEDGE FINDING YOUR WAY BACK HOME LECTURE SERIES • Lawson McGee Public Library • 3PM • The Holy Temple of Knowledge of RA presents Finding your way back home lecture series at Lawson McGhee library in East Knoxville Tennessee.
Sunday, Aug. 16 JUDY LOCKHART DIGREGORIO: TIDBITS • Union Ave Books • 2PM • Book signing with Judy Lockhart DiGregorio reading from her new collection of essays, Tidbits: light verse & observations.
FAMILY AND KIDS’ EVENTS
Wednesday, Aug. 19 BOOKS SANDWICHED IN • East Tennessee History Center • 12PM • Knox County Public Library’s monthly book program features KAT director Dawn Distler discussing Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design by Charles Montgomery (March 18); Knoxville attorney Wanda Sobieski discussing A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence and Power by Jimmy Carter (April 15); Jean Ash on Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth and Faith in the New China by Evan Osnos (May 20); Knoxville City Council member Mark Campen on Gaining Ground: A Story of Farmers’ Markets, Local Food, and Saving the Family Farm by Forrest Pritchard (June 17); University of Tennessee professor Michelle Commander on Lose Your Mother: A Journey Along the Atlantic Slave Trade by Saidiya Hartman (July 15); and Knoxville Police Department deputy chief Nate Allen on 400 Things Cops Know: Street-Smart Lessons from a Veteran Patrolman by Adam Plantinga (Aug. 19). For more information, contact Emily Ellis at (865) 215-8767 or eellis@knoxlib.org. Thursday, Aug. 20
Thursday, Aug. 13 BABY BOOKWORMS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • For infants to age 2, must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 1PM Friday, Aug. 14 SMART TOYS AND BOOKS ART CLASS • Smart Toys and Books • 10AM • Mommy, Daddy &; Me Art Classes are every Friday at 10:00am &; 11:00am. Reservations and payment are required in advance. Class fees are non-refundable. Ages 2+. • $10 Saturday, Aug. 15 CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 10AM. • Free SATURDAY STORIES AND SONGS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • A weekly music and storytelling session for kids. • Free Monday, Aug. 17 SMART TOYS AND BOOKS STORYTIME • Smart Toys and
Books • 11AM • Storytime with Miss Helen is every Monday at 11:00am. No charge. No reservations required. • Free Tuesday, Aug. 18 PRE-K READ AND PLAY • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • Pre-K Read and Play is a pilot program specifically designed to prepare children to enter kindergarten. While the format of the program will still feel like a traditional storytime with books, music, and other educational activities, each weekly session will focus on a different standard from the Tennessee Department of Education’s Early Childhood/Early Learning Developmental Standards. Library programs for preschoolers are typically designed to develop early literacy, or pre-reading, skills, and Pre-K Read and Play will still focus heavily on these skills, but will also feature other topics in the wide range of skills that children need to be developing before they enter school, including math, science, and motor development. KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 4:30PM • To reserve a seat in any class, or for more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $180 EVENING STORYTIME • Lawson McGee Public Library • 6:30PM • An evening storytime at Lawson McGhee Children’s Room to include stories, music, and crafts. For toddlers and up. Wednesday, Aug. 19 PRESCHOOL STORYTIME • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • For ages 3 to 5, must be accompanied by an adult. KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 4:30PM • To reserve a seat in any class, or for more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@ childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $180 Thursday, Aug. 20 BABY BOOKWORMS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • For infants to age 2, must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 1PM KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 4:30PM • To reserve a seat in any class, or for more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@ childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $180 Friday, Aug. 21 SMART TOYS AND BOOKS ART CLASS • Smart Toys and Books • 10AM • Mommy, Daddy & Me Art Classes are every Friday at 10:00am & 11:00am. Reservations and payment are required in advance. Class fees are non-refundable. Ages 2+. • $10 Saturday, Aug. 22 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 9:30AM • To reserve a seat in any class, or for more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@ childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $150 CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 10AM KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 10AM • To reserve a seat in any class, or for more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@ August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 39
CALENDAR childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $180 CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY FAMILY FUN AND DE-STRESSING ACTIVITIES • Cancer Support Community • 10:30AM • This program is for families with school-age children when a parent or loved one in the family has cancer. Call 865-546-4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. SATURDAY STORIES AND SONGS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • A weekly music and storytelling session for kids. KMA FAMILY FUN DAY • Knoxville Museum of Art • 11AM • Celebrate “Back to Schoolâ€? with the Knoxville Museum of Art Family Fun Day Saturday, August 22 from 11am to 3pm. This FREE family event will focus on school-related activities and projects. The day is packed with art-making stations, artist demonstrations, face painting, continuous entertainment on stage, magic shows, gallery tours, and live music. Snacks will be available for purchase from Dave’s Dogs. “David and the Dinosaursâ€? will be performing family favorites throughout the day. This event is free and open to the public. • Free
CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS
Thursday, Aug. 13 KNOX COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS: CREATING A RAIN
Thursday, Aug. 13 - Sunday, Aug. 23
GARDEN • Humana Guidance Center • 3:15PM • Many local communities are passing ordinances to limit the amount of water running into the storm drain system. Join Extension Master Gardener Joyce Montgomery to learn why this is a good idea and how you can improve your property to support a healthy environment. 865-329-8892. • Free BELLY DANCE LEVELS 1 AND 2 • Knox Dance Worx • 8PM • Call (865) 898-2126 or email alexia@alexia-dance.com. • $12 GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 12PM • Call 865-577-2021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. AARP DRIVER SAFETY CLASS • East Tennessee Medical Group (Alcoa) • 8AM-5PM • Call Carolyn Rambo at 382-5822. Saturday, Aug. 15 YOGA AT NARROW RIDGE • Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center • 9AM • For more information contact Mitzi Wood-Von Mizener at 865-497-3603 or community@ narrowridge.org. KNOX COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS: WATER! YOUR PLANTS ARE PROBABLY THIRSTY! • All Saints Catholic Church • 10:30AM • Extension Master Gardener Janice Gangwer will review just how much water plants need throughout the year, compared with actual rainfall. Various options for making up the difference will be presented, including: avoiding overhead sprinklers, proper hand-watering, using water spikes/cones, watering cans and drip irrigation. For more information call the UT Extension office at 865-215-2340. • Free
EAST TENNESSEE CREATIVE WRITERS ALLIANCE • Powell Branch Library • 10AM • East Tennessee Creative Writers Alliance presents the workshop Book Reviews: How to Get Them & What to Do With Them. $5 Materials fee, seating is limited to 50 attendees due to room size. Register at: http://www.lilacreviews.com/workshops/. • $5 Monday, Aug. 17 CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY QUICK AND TASTY COOKING • Cancer Support Community • 12PM • Call 865-546-4661 for more info. 2230 Sutherland Avenue. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. KNOX COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS: WATER! YOUR PLANTS ARE PROBABLY THIRSTY! • Davis Family YMCA • 1PM • Extension Master Gardener Janice Gangwer will review just how much water plants need throughout the year, compared with actual rainfall. Various options for making up the difference will be presented, including: avoiding overhead sprinklers, proper hand-watering, using water spikes/cones, watering cans and drip irrigation. This free public event is scheduled on Monday, August 17, from 1-2pm at Davis Family YMCA, 12133 S Northshore Dr, Knoxville TN, phone 865-777-9622. • Free GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 5:30PM • Call 865-5772021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. Tuesday, Aug. 18 GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 12PM • Call 865-577-2021
or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. “FRANKLY SPEAKING ABOUT CANCER: TAKE CONTROL OF SIDE EFFECTS WITH MEDICINE, MIND, AND BODYâ€? • Tenor North Knoxville Medical Center • 12PM • Tiffany Jones Sipe, FNP-BC, MSN, BSN. Cancer is challenging for those diagnosed and their loved ones. Unwanted side effects from cancer treatments can be uncomfortable and intensify life disruptions. Join oncology nurse practitioner Tiffany Jones Sipe as she discusses some of the most common and troublesome treatment side effects such as fatigue, infection, pain and emotional distress and ways to ease their effects on your life. Maximize your quality of life so that you are able to be as active as possible during and after treatment. Lunch will be provided. RSVP. This is an offsite program located at Tennova North Knoxville Medical Center, 7551 Dannaher Drive, in Sister Elizabeth Room B. Call 865-546- 4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. YOGA WITH SUBAGHJI • The Birdhouse • 5:15PM
MEETINGS
Thursday, Aug. 13 OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS • Recovery at Cokesbury • 5:30PM CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY LEUKEMIA, LYMPHOMA, AND MYELOMA NETWORKER • Cancer Support Community • 6PM • This drop- in group is open for those with leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and myeloproliferative disorders and their support persons. Participants will be
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
CALENDAR able to exchange information, discuss concerns and experiences. Please call 865-546-4661 before your first visit. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. WILD UTAH: AMERICA’S REDROCK WILDERNESS • REI • 7PM • Check out the multi-media slideshow documenting citizen efforts to designate public lands in southern Utah’s spectacular canyon country as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Friday, Aug. 14 PUBTALKS • Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church • 7PM • The young adults ministry team at Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church invites all 20 and 30-somethings to PubTalks on Friday, August 14, from 7-9 p.m. A team of experts will unpack human trafficking from global, national, and local perspectives. Childcare for birth through 5th grade is available by reservation via wendyrast@cspc.net or 865-693-9331. Saturday, Aug. 15 AL-ANON • Faith Lutheran Church • 11AM • Visit our local website at farragutalanon.org or email us at FindHope@ Farragutalanon.org. • FREE Sunday, Aug. 16 K-TOWN VEGANS MEETUP GROUP POTLUCK • Concord Yacht Club • 5PM • K-Town Vegans Meetup Group invites you to a summertime vegan potluck picnic. Please bring a vegan dish of eight or more servings and your own place settings. Non-alcoholic drinks will be provided. There is a small beach for swimming, and this is also a great location for canoeing, kayaking, or paddleboard. SILENT MEDITATION SUNDAYS • Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center • 11AM • The gatherings are intended to be inclusive of people of all faiths as well as those who do not align themselves with a particular religious denomination. For more information contact Mitzi Wood-Von Mizener at 865-497-3603 or community@ narrowridge.org. • FREE Monday, Aug. 17 GAY MEN’S DISCUSSION GROUP • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 7:30PM • We hold facilitated discussions on topics and issues relevant to local gay men in a safe and open environment. Visit gaygroupknoxville.org. Tuesday, Aug. 18 KNOXVILLE COCOAHEADS • Knoxville Entrepreneur Center • 7PM • CocoaHeads is a group devoted to discussion of Apple’s Cocoa and Cocoa Touch Frameworks for programming on OS X (Mac) and iOS (iPhone, iPad). During monthly meetings, members offer tutorials, present their projects, share app ideas, and provide advice to other programmers. Whether you are an experienced developer or just getting started, Knoxville CocoaHeads is a great way to stay current with the latest technologies and improve your programming skills. Wednesday, Aug. 19 CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY WOMEN WITH ADVANCED CANCER NETWORKER • Cancer Support Community • 1:30PM • Join other women who are living with cancer as a chronic illness to discuss feelings and experiences that are unique to women with advanced cancer. Please call before your first visit. Call 865-546- 4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. ORION ASTRONOMY CLUB • The Grove Theater • 7PM • ORION is an amateur science and astronomy club
centered in Oak Ridge, TN that was founded in April 1974 by a group of scientists at the United States Department of Energy facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. We serve Oak Ridge, Knoxville, and the counties of Anderson, Knox, and Roane. We meet on the third Wednesday of each month for coffee and conversation, and our program begins 15 minutes thereafter. COMITE POPULAR DE KNOXVILLE • The Birdhouse • 7PM • A weekly meeting of the local immigrant advocacy organization.
ETC.
Thursday, Aug. 13 NEW HARVEST PARK FARMERS MARKET • New Harvest Park • 3PM Friday, Aug. 14 LAKESHORE PARK FARMERS’ MARKET • Lakeshore Park • 3PM Saturday, Aug. 15 OAK RIDGE FARMERS’ MARKET • Historic Jackson Square • 8AM SEYMOUR FARMERS MARKET • Seymour First Baptist Church • 8AM MARKET SQUARE FARMERS’ MARKET • Market Square • 9AM GENTLE BARN TOUR • The Gentle Barn • 11AM • Come visit the second Gentle Barn, located in Knoxville, Tennessee, home to Dudley, Worthy, Indie and Chris. You will get to meet Dudley, saved from slaughter with a missing foot. He is now happy and healthy and has a brand new prosthetic foot. He loves treats and scratches on his back. You will get to meet Worthy, who was born with a deformed leg. After months in the hospital she is now happy and healthy with a straight leg. You will also get to meet Worthy’s mom, Indie and brother, Chris who will stay together at The Gentle Barn for the rest of their lives. You will get to watch Gentle Barn rescue videos and shop at our gift store. The Gentle Barn will be rescuing more animals in Tennessee, so who knows who else you will get to meet? Tuesday, Aug. 18 EBENEZER ROAD FARMERS’ MARKET • Ebenezer United Methodist Church • 3PM Wednesday, Aug. 19 MARKET SQUARE FARMERS’ MARKET • Market Square • 11AM
Send your events to calendar@knoxmercury.com
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY 41
OUTDOORS
Voice in the Wilder ness
Mapless and Meandering Or, how to lose your bearings on the Little River BY KIM TREVATHAN
F
ew would be surprised to learn of my occasional discombobulation while traversing wild places in boats and on foot. Many of you may be acquainted with this affliction. It is nothing to be ashamed of; in fact, extreme discombobulation, which occurred to me on the Little River recently, can produce a peek into an upside-down, inside-out perspective of visionary proportions. I helped map the Little River for the Little River Watershed Association’s blueway map. I’ve paddled it dozens of times in the last 20 years, and I’ve floated it all downstream of the national park. This qualifies me for absolutely nothing, and what’s more it means even less when a discombobulation occurs. Drew Crain, a biologist at Maryville College, agreed to accompany me on a rainy day paddle from River
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John’s Outfitters to the water treatment plant in Alcoa, where we left his truck. I was thinking that a biologist might help to provide some measure of corrective to the abstract tendencies of an English major like me, but Drew, also an LRWA member, said more than once that he’d never been to River John’s in his life and had never paddled the four miles to the water plant. Unspoken translation: He was depending on me to navigate so he could focus on pulling smallmouth bass from the muddy water. River John, on his porch, said for us to be sure and take the left side of Brakebill Island. On the right, a fallen tree blocked passage. “I know, I know,” I said. “I put that on the blueway map!” Did I have the map in my possession? Negative.
For some reason, in my caffeine-jittery brain, I thought we needed to pass under the Wildwood Road Bridge and the Highway 411 Bridge, so after Wildwood, I kept looking for the landmarks that came before 411, which was upstream of River John’s. Drew would comment on a cool cabin on the shore, and it would look vaguely familiar but oddly out of place. “I’ve never noticed that,” I would say over and over. At the point of an island where the passages to the right and left seemed equally broad, the current equally strong, Drew said he thought he’d take the right. I did not protest, but I took the left. I would almost always take the left on the Little River. “Do you have your phone on?” I asked as he disappeared on the other side of the island. I waited for him in a stand of alligator grass at the tip of the quartermile-long island. Thirty minutes passed before he texted: “Tree down. Turning around.” Then I waited another 30 minutes and started to get worried. If he was in trouble, there was no way I could make it upstream against this current to help. Rain fell steadily at this point. About the time I texted him again, he appeared.
This incident produced no enlightenment. Onward I went, looking for a bridge that was now maybe five miles behind me, a couple of miles upstream of where we had put in. Drew, unfazed, kept fishing. The next landmark was a pretty strong clue that elicited this remark from me: “I’ve never noticed that water intake here. And look, there’s a new boat ramp!” Drew couldn’t hear me because he had again taken the right passage around an unnamed island, while I was on the left. Only when I saw the guard rail of Martin Mill Pike, a road I used to live on, did I realize that we’d gone past our takeout, the boat ramp I’d just commented on. That’s when the wobbling axis of my worldview got reset into a steady logical groove. Our next problem in the steady downpour of rain: how to get back to the ramp, a quarter mile away (versus floating on down to Rockford and walking five miles to the truck). We paddled hard against deep water current. We waded the shoals and dragged our boats. I waded ahead at one point, thinking that I could get to the bank to re-embark. Soon I was swimming alongside my boat. At the point of the island, only 30 yards downstream from our takeout
OUTDOORS and Drew’s truck, we assessed the situation. The water rushed deep through a chute only a few yards wide, impossible to wade or to paddle against. We had to bushwack across the island, fi rst on a scouting trip, and then with the kayaks, across logs and piles of flotsam and weeds and briars and stagnant pools, to a point upstream of the ramp where we could get into the kayaks and paddle across the narrow chute to the ramp. “Any snakes in here?” I asked. “Nah,” he said. “I seriously doubt it.” I thought I detected a sarcastic tone but didn’t bother to clarify. This was the only way out, snakes or not. Instead of being angry with me, Drew seemed to fi nd the whole thing amusing, a good adventure (and workout), and he agreed to paddle the same stretch of river at the earliest possible convenience, for better fishing (we hadn’t had a nibble) and for my peace of mind. “This is a good illustration of why we needed to do that blueway map,” he said. “And to actually carry it along,” I added. Our mission on the next try, a few days later: catch fish in the clarified water and become combobulated. A mallard greeted us at the put-in at River John’s and began to follow us. We were friendly at fi rst, but we did not welcome his attentions after what seemed an abnormal shadowing of our activities. I tossed him a couple of unsalted sunflower seed kernels in an effort to get rid of him, but what I would have considered an insulting handout only encouraged him. He went back and forth from my boat to Drew’s but mostly focused his surveillance on the scientist. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Drew repeatedly. He had eaten an entire sandwich in front of the duck and given him nothing, so there was no obvious reason for his devotion. Drew caught a smallmouth and two sunfish in the fi rst half hour with a Panther Martin spinner, and I caught a red-eye bass and a pumpkinseed sunfish with my fly rod and a bumblebee popper. The duck refused Drew’s offer of a
We had to bushwack across the island, first on a scouting trip, and then with the kayaks, across logs and piles of flotsam and weeds and briars and stagnant pools.
sunfish, but he persisted on pecking the decks of our kayaks for whatever processed food we might have. Unrewarded, he would quack in a sort of muttering undertone, as if to himself. This went on for about three miles, through several rapids and narrow chutes. He seemed convinced we had potato chips or cookies or some delicacy he couldn’t find in the wild. Landmarks, like the small cabin near the right bank, began to make sense. I remembered this structure appearing before the approach of Brakebill Island, and I celebrated our successful left-side passage of the big island with a peanut butter-smeared tortilla. The duck—Albert was his name—motored alongside me so close that I had to constrict my paddle strokes. I tossed a bite of the tortilla toward the bank and he paddled over and gobbled it up. “Doesn’t he have a family?” I asked Drew. “Apparently not.” Drew speculated that he might be an elderly duck. Perhaps Albert, the abnormally friendly duck, was a good omen. Perhaps, as Drew speculated, the duck was a reincarnated fisherman whose job it was to escort mapless, discombobulated paddlers to their takeout. Perhaps we were all brothers in our oddities and in our love of navigating moving water. ◆
®
August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 43
’BYE
At This Point
Year One Measuring up BY STEPHANIE PIPER
S
he’s taking her first, shaky steps, weaving toward the outstretched hands of her cheering family. To hear the racket, you’d think she was the only baby in the world who ever walked. A year ago, we huddled around her in the neonatal intensive care unit, staring at digital monitors and willing her to breathe. Now she’s the birthday girl, wreathed in smiles and chocolate frosting from a celebratory cupcake. The day winds down, and she sleeps. Her big sister drifts off in a nearby bed. The grown-ups settle in the next room, and the story begins. Her parents need to tell it again tonight, how the worst week of their lives led to this: a summer evening in a house sweet with the breath of sleeping children. How dark it was then. How bright it is now. They talk about the lessons learned in the darkness, the unfathomable kindness of strangers, the solid rock of kin. He talks about her courage. She remembers his strength and calm. They
praise each other for holding fast, coming through. We listen and nod, the grandparents who are reputedly wise. I reach for the words to put it all in context, the frame that will keep the story intact for generations to come. I’ve been at this for a decade, which should be time enough to acquire a certain level of expertise. The boy who made me a grandmother 10 years ago is about to top me on the height chart. The girls aren’t far behind. They’re all leaping forward, mastering baseball and acting and writing and gymnastics and computer apps I couldn’t figure out if my very life depended on it. They’re growing into themselves, sometimes at warp speed. Me, I’m in the slow lane. I should be word perfect in my grandmother role by now, never stumbling over a thorny situation, never at a loss for the solution, the tried and true advice. Growing up, I had two grandmothers. One was already ancient when I was born, and hard of hearing.
The grown-ups settle in the next room, and the story begins. How dark it was then. How bright it is now.
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
During her infrequent visits, conversations consisted mostly of shouted pleasantries. Though I never doubted her kindness, I was not quite sure that she remembered my name. My other grandmother was lively and deeply devout and wickedly funny. In addition to the gifts she always brought in her small leather suitcase, she carried with her a store of peace. Rooms changed when she entered them. People put on their best selves, smiled at the sight of her. The house felt safer when she was there. She made a special breakfast each morning she was with us, lavishly buttered toast cut into thin strips called “dippies” and café au lait. I make it now for my grandchildren, although it will never measure up to the original version. I tell them about her, how we loved to see her come and hated to see her go. The 5-year-old
BY IAN BLACKBURN AND JACK NEELY
studies me across the table. So you make this for us because you want to be just like her, she observes. It’s true. But the bar is high, and after a decade, I’m still a rank beginner. When we rushed to the NICU a year ago to see our newest grandchild, I fumbled for the words to comfort her frightened parents. I tried to channel my grandmother, the quiet voice, the abiding serenity. In the end, I said very little. In those tiled rooms full of beeping equipment, it came to me that perhaps there were other gifts I could offer: listening, affirming. Showing up. It’s late now, and we sit in silence, turning the story over in our minds. I get up to check on the children, placing my hand on each small chest, feeling the rise and fall. There are no words, only from somewhere nearby, the stirring of a familiar peace. ◆
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August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 45
’BYE
Spir it of the Staircase
BY MATTHEW FOLTZ-GRAY
46
KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 13, 2015
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MEETUPS
Join us at our Monthly Mercury Meetup.
Wed., August 20, 5 p.m. - 8 p.m. at
Little River Trading Company 2408 E. Lamar Alexander Pkwy Maryville, TN 37804
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HISTORIC PARK Place Condo, 1 BR/1BA, open plan, light, fireplace, built-ins, appliances including W/D, pool/ tennis/ basketball, 1.5mi to Downtown, $86,900. 865-806-0007, Jean Campbell
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY March 19, 2015
August 13, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 47