Issue 22 - August 6, 2015 by Knoxville Mercury

COMING AUG. 13 TH :

Top Knox Readers’ Poll of Local Favorites

AUG. 6, 2015 KNOXMERCURY.COM

DAMN THE GLUTEN, FULL STEAM AHEAD

1 / N. 22

A GOOD LOAF OF It’s a whole lot easier to find these days as Knoxville’s artisan bakery scene heats up

BY DENNIS PERKINS

NEWS

The Beck Center Brings Back Emancipation Day

JACK NEELY

A Memory of Our Most Famous Neighborhood

MUSIC

The Black Lillies Introduce Their Upcoming Album

JOE SULLIVAN

A New Farragut Hotel Is in the Works

www.TennesseeTheatre.com 2

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

Tickets available at the Tennessee Theatre box office, Ticketmaster.com and by phone at 800-745-3000.

Aug. 6, 2015 Volume 01 / Issue 22 knoxmercury.com

CONTENTS

“Acorns were good until bread was found.” –Francis Bacon

14 A Good COVER STORY

Loaf of Bread Used to be, a real loaf of locally baked bread was difficult to find. Knoxville might’ve had Kerns and Merita decades ago, but those factories produced loaves of white sandwich bread that were not exactly toothsome. And after they closed, there were the years of nothingness. But all of that has changed now as a burgeoning scene of Knoxville artisan bakers has risen to make some truly great bread available at local markets and groceries. Dennis Perkins visits some of Knoxville’s master bread makers.

12 Freedom Celebration NEWS

Join Our League of Supporters!

It’s been nearly 70 years since an Emancipation Day celebration of this scope has kicked off in Knoxville, but organizers at the Beck Cultural Exchange Center are hoping this Saturday, Aug. 8 will mark a renewed tradition of fun and festivities, as well as serving a reminder of freedom won.

DEPARTMENTS

OPINION

A&E

Ed. Note: Announcing the Top Knox awards

Howdy Start Here: Photo by Bart Ross, Believe It or Knox!, Public Affairs, Quote Factory. PLUS: Words With … Eddie Young ’Bye Finish There: Restless Native by Chris Wohlwend, Crooked Street Crossword by Ian Blackburn and Jack Neely, Spirit of the Staircase by Matthew Foltz-Gray

10 11

The Scruffy Citizen Jack Neely remembers the Fort Sanders neighborhood he knew as a young man. Perspectives Joe Sullivan hails potentially good news for the refurbishment of the Farragut Hotel. Small Planet Patrice Cole reminds us we can commute without actually driving, right now.

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Publishing a weekly paper turns out to be really expensive and difficult to do. Won’t you help us get the job done? Find out how at knoxmercury.com/join.

CALENDAR Program Notes: The Black Lillies tell us how their new album came about, and some former Guv’nahs regroup.

Spotlights: The SteelDrivers, Garrison Keillor

Inside the Vault: Eric Dawson scores some finds at Archie Campbell’s estate sale. Music: Singer/songwriter Haley Fohr gives Matthew Everett some straight talk. Movies: April Snellings finds a new action hero to be excited by in Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation. August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 3

EDITOR’S NOTE Delivering Fine Journalism Since 2015

Announcing the Top Knox Readers’ Poll The ultimate survey of everything that Knoxvillians love most about Knoxville

o what’s the point of declaring what’s best about Knoxville? Ever since Metro Pulse launched its annual readers’ poll in 1994, there has been no shortage of “best of” surveys conducted in Knoxville. It’s become a crowded field of awesomeness as TV stations, radio stations, magazines, and newspapers have all jumped in with their own declarations of the very bestest our city has to offer. But how can there be so many different winners? How were they actually selected? What does it mean when Papa John’s is reported to be the best pizza in Knoxville? Really? The original concept for such polls became increasingly diluted over the years as it was adapted to suit the needs of different organizations. But the most trusted, go-to survey always remained the original Metro Pulse guide and its coveted awards, which were truly selected by thousands of discriminating readers. And that’s why it was so valuable: The people who voted in it really knew

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

and appreciated Knoxville. What they—you—thought mattered. While there may have been recurring winners in some categories, every year also yielded surprises. We always learned something new about Knoxville. That mission to determine what savvy Knoxvillians really love about Knoxville’s businesses, institutions, and people returns with the Top Knox awards, the Knoxville Mercury’s new annual readers’ poll that we’re launching on Thursday, Aug. 13. Sponsored by Visit Knoxville, the Top Knox poll will cover all the facets of Knoxville life that both residents and visitors want to fully explore: food & drink, arts & entertainment, shopping, health & beauty, home & garden, and more. It will once again become the ultimate guide to living well in the Knoxville area. We’ve chosen categories that we think will be genuinely helpful or insightful about Knoxville—it won’t be just another endless, boring list intended primarily to sell ads. No doubt,

we hope to make this a successful issue for the Mercury, but our first goal is to celebrate the places and people that truly make the Knoxville area unique. That’s why we’re instituting Rule #1 for Top Knox voters: Votes for national chains will not be counted. That’s right: no Walmart, no Olive Garden, no Starbucks. Top Knox will focus purely on institutions with local or regional roots—the places and things that you won’t find in every other city in the country. We aim to make this an indispensable user’s guide to Knoxville, and we’ll need your expert help to do it. And the hard-working entrepreneurs, craftspeople, and brilliant minds that make Knoxville unique deserve your support. The first Top Knox ballot will be published in the Aug. 13 edition of the Knoxville Mercury, with online voting commencing that same day. Voting will run through Thursday, Sept. 10. Results will be published in the Thursday, Oct. 15, issue. Please join us! —Coury Turczyn, ed.

CORRECTION

In last week’s news feature about Old South High School’s redevelopment plans, we identified the owner of Dover Development Corporation as Roger Dover; his correct name is Rick.

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

EDITORIAL 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

In The Garden Olmsted (1822-1903), who designed Central

Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum will be opening its new Visitors Center on Aug.

Park in New York and the grounds at Biltmore

14. Located oﬀ the beaten path, at 2743 Wimpole

near Asheville. In 1893, he was in Knoxville

Avenue in East Knoxville, the 47-acre refuge is the largest publicly accessible garden in the city’s

working on a project about which little is known to this day. He may have planned a

history. Founded in 2001, when the Aslan Foundation made the original purchase of the

clifftop park that was never completed, but there’s evidence he had some influence on

property, it looks much older. That’s because it’s actually the old campus of Howell Nurseries, the

Circle Park.

sprawling plant store which traced its origins to the 1700s. (The mysterious round stone buildings aren’t as old as they look, though; mainly

Savage Garden, on Garden Drive near Fountain City, was the dream of English-born industrialist Arthur Savage (1872-1946). Built in

ornamental, they were built in the 1940s.)

1917, it reflects the Asian motifs and art-nouveau stylings of its era. Since 1986, it has been subject

Public gardens have been growing in popularity recently, but gardens have deep roots here. At the time of the Civil War, Knox-

of an ongoing restoration eﬀort. It’s private property, but sometimes used by the next-door Montessori School.

ville used Old Gray Cemetery as a public garden. Founded in 1850 and planted with flowers and

The Knoxville Botanical Garden & Arboretum PHOTO BY CHARLIE FINCH

shrubbery, it was part of an international garden-cemetery movement, and a site for

In the 1920s, newspaper publisher Alfred Sanford (1875-1946) hired Olmsted’s sons, the Olmsted Brothers, to design an ambitious

afternoon strolls and even Sunday afternoon picnics. The novel The Secret Garden is set in England, but its author,

arboretum stretching from Kingston Pike to the river, just east of Cherokee Boulevard. Sanford’s goal was to have one example of every tree indigenous to Tennessee. It thrived for only 20 years. After San-

Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924) lived in and near Knoxville for several years in her youth. Her memoir about a secluded place she

ford’s death, the land was subdivided into lots, but a few original trees remain.

called the Bower, in the vicinity of what became Knoxville College, suggests it may have been an inspiration for the secluded formal garden imagined in the book.

In the late 1920s, idealists with the City Planning Commission proposed terraced gardens downtown from Main Street down to the

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, several of Knoxville’s wealthiest established elaborate formal gardens that were used for parties and weddings. Several of them, built on the city’s steep hills, were terraced. Little remains of most of them. The building at the corner of White Avenue and 16th Street is believed to have been the 1870s home of English gardener Michael Hoey, who tended the gardens of the huge Cowan mansion on Cumberland Avenue. Nothing remains of the mansion or its gardens, just the gardener’s cottage. Danish-born landscape architect Jens Jensen (1860-1951) came to Knoxville in the 1920s to design gardens here. Baltimore-born Garafilia Van Deventer, who was married to cement tycoon Hugh Van Deventer, hired Jensen to make a garden of distinctive design oﬀ Lyons Bend. Few old gardens are maintained as originally planned. America’s most famous landscape designer was Frederick Law

river. The Depression, combined with a revolt against city taxes, scuttled the idea. Bulgarian-born industrialist Ivan Racheﬀ believed industrial sites, even steel mills, should be beautiful. He became president of the Knoxville Iron Works, and in 1947 established Racheﬀ Gardens, a walled garden that is still well-kept in Lonsdale and often open to the public. Beginning in 1983, UT transformed its Agriculture Experiment Station, which had been of interest mostly to agriculture students, into UT Trial Gardens, now known simply as UT Gardens, which has developed into an eye-catching and well-used public attraction. Meanwhile, the Knoxville Botanical Garden and Aboretum has bloomed, soon with a new visitors center. It frequently hosts receptions, outdoor musical performances, and afternoon strolls.

Source: Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection

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 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 5

Illustration by Ben Adams

HOWDY

Believe It or Knox! BY Z. HERACLITUS KNOX The Custom House at the corner of Market and Clinch was one of the early works of well-known Washington, D.C., architect Alfred Mullett. Greystone, the Broadway headquarters of WATE-TV, IS HIS LAST KNOWN WORK! The troubled architect committed suicide in Washington in 1890.

“Listen To Your Mother Or Regal Riviera Stadium 8 Knoxville TN” by Bart Ross (bartross.com)

QUOTE FACTORY “ Blue Bell ice cream killed three people, and it’s made with pasteurized milk. Why aren’t they up in arms warning about that?” —Sen. Frank Niceley (R-Strawberry Plains) defending the honor of raw milk after state Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner declared drinking it instead of pasteurized milk to be “a perilous risk.” (Some Blue Bell ice cream was recalled in April for listeria bacteria.) “A (restaurant) salad bar is a lot more likely to have something that will make you sick than raw milk,” he also told Tom Humphrey at his Humphrey on the Hill blog.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS

8/6 RED, WHITE, & BLUE BLOCK PARTY THURSDAY

5-9 p.m., Corner of East Depot Avenue and Randolph Street. Free. Wear your red, white, and blue in support of the families affected by the recent shootings in Chattanooga. Presented by Marc Nelson Denim, the night will include food trucks and guest speaker Derrick Furlow Jr. A portion of all food sales and “Chattanooga Strong” shirt sales will be given to the National Compassion Fund, which is directly distributing donations to the victims’ families.

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

According to a census in 1820, KNOX COUNTY WAS HOME TO 61 DISTILLERIES! The county had a total population of about 13,000, and hosted lots of other small industries, including saddleries, furniture makers, wagon makers, flour mills, and paper mills, but liquor was Knox County’s biggest industry. There was one distillery for every 213 residents. Cuban singer/actor/bandleader Desi Arnaz came to the Tennessee Theatre in October, 1940, to perform three shows about a new college-football comedy called Too Many Girls. In the movie, he plays football for a team that beats the Tennessee Vols! The Vols played in the Rose Bowl that year, and were considered contenders for the national championship. While in Knoxville, Arnaz met with the Vols, and had a family-style lunch with them, including hero Bob Suffridge. While he was here, he was secretly dating an older co-star in the movie, Lucille Ball.

8/7 DEDICATION OF EVERLY BROTHERS PARK 8/9 COMMUNITY FORUM ON INCARCERA8/11 GAY STREET UPGRADE MEETING TION ISSUES FRIDAY

5:30 p.m., Corner of Kingston Pike and Forest Park Boulevard. Free. We’ve got ourselves a new theme park—and while it may lack a barf-inducing roller coaster, it does honor a pair of musicians who got their start in Knoxville: rock ‘n’ roll pioneers Phil and Don Everly. While money still needs to be raised to complete the park plan by the East Tennessee Community Design Center, this dedication ceremony will get the ball rolling. Parking available at Earth Fare. Info: everlypark.org.

SUNDAY

4-6 p.m., Martin Chapel United Methodist Church (1746 Ohio Ave.) The East Tennessee Peace and Justice Center, which publishes The Amplifier street newspaper, is presenting this forum to discuss prison and jail issues faced by under-represented individuals, including race, drug laws, and privatization. The group will be recruiting members for its Knox County Incarceration Collective. Info: etnpeaceandjustice.org.

TUESDAY

5-7 p.m., East Tennessee History Center (601 S. Gay St.). Hey, guess what: More construction is on the way for Gay Street! This time it’s the 700 block, between Church and Cumberland avenues, starting in the fall. And it’s going to be a complete rebuild, including utility upgrades, new pervious paver sidewalks, streetscape additions, and new intersection medallions. The city aims to have it done before April’s Rossini Festival. Have your questions answered at this meeting.

HOWDY WORDS WITH ...

Eddie Young ®

BY ROSE KENNEDY Eddie Young, executive director for the East Tennessee Peace and Justice Center and moderator for its Sunday, Aug. 9 Community Forum on Incarceration Issues (4 p.m., Martin Chapel United Methodist Church, 1746 Ohio Ave.). The event aims to recruit potential members for the ETP&JC’s launch of the Knox County Incarceration Collective and raise awareness of prison and jail issues in our region.

What will the forum cover?

We will have a couple of people tell of their personal stories and experiences of being incarcerated, the burden it places on their families, and the void it leaves in their community. Just a few of the other trends and issues we’ll talk about include cell size and crowding, prison privatization, and incarceration among people of color. We’ll also discuss what happens to people’s personal property upon release—how is it someone could lose the belongings they had when they arrived?

Will the issues raised focus mainly on local or regional cases, or national grievances?

The purpose of the meeting is to raise awareness and to stir people’s indignation over national, regional, and local issues. But we also hope to recruit members for the Knox County Incarceration Collective that will primarily focus on local issues. Just like the Knoxville Homeless Collective, the collective’s work will be organic and although they will be working with a facilitator, they will have the autonomy to determine how their work evolves after they form.

What do you consider the biggest challenge facing individuals incarcerated in Knoxville and East Tennessee?

Here or anywhere in the nation, the biggest challenge they face is the targeting of people of color for caging, and, once they are incarcerated, people’s thirst to make a profit off of caging people. This raises issues such as whether adequate clothing has to be purchased, or how commissaries operate, or who profits from video calls in lieu of personal visits.

Do you have opposition for your views in our community? There will be fierce opposition—we just haven’t

yet engaged to the extent that they’ve presented themselves.

Is there any entity you will have to “go after” to do some good?

This is where the work of the collective we’re forming will come in. Our approach is to organize, train and mobilize grassroots groups to take on the social injustices that they themselves are oppressed by. It will be the collective’s views that face the fiercest opposition, though ETP&JC will certainly be in their corner the whole way. Obviously if we’re taking a local-first approach, we’ll want to begin solution-based dialogue with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office—they run the detention center.

Who would you like to see joining KCIC? Does race matter?

We will look for people who have experienced incarceration and those who have experienced the stress and anxiety of having a family member or loved one incarcerated. We will look for diversity of race and gender—and for diversity of experience, including jails and prisons and the uniqueness of the incarceration experience for the homeless. We will also want to recruit for KCIC from the LGBT community.

Do you ever lose hope that you can do any good fighting such a broad, established system?

I don’t believe in hope anymore. I believe in fighting and seeing results. And if you don’t see results, you keep fighting. I set a trajectory for what I envision and I work towards it. If it doesn’t come about in my time, I will pass the baton to the next one. For more information about the forum, the Knox county Incarceration Collective, or ETP&JC: etnpeaceandjustice.org August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 7

SCRUFFY CITIZEN

Knoxville: Summer 1979 An indulgent memory of our most famous neighborhood BY JACK NEELY

his centennial of the Summer of 1915, celebrated by different audiences around the world through the works of James Agee and Samuel Barber, has been stirring some memories of the same neighborhood in another summer, 36 years ago, when I moved into Fort Sanders, so successfully disguised to myself as a student. I was halfway through college, and aimless, not altogether sure I’d ever finish college, or in what. For the time being, summer was what mattered. I was working for Manpower, doing the region’s random grunt work. Every morning before breakfast, I’d call in to let them know I was available for work that day. If there were a worker shortage in a factory or a farm, or a wrecked truck that needed to be unloaded, I was their man. Some of the work was fun, some of it pretty awful. The worst job I ever had was working in a giant pipe factory, shoveling sand into buckets and hoisting them up a scaffold. It was 112 degrees in there, but OSHA regulations demanded that I wear a hardhat and safety glasses, neither of which fit. My glasses kept sliding off my sweaty nose and getting caked with sand. And then the man would yell at me again. It paid the rent. But if I were told I could suddenly be 21 again, I’d appreciate the improvements to my

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6 2015

digestion, but part of me would cringe. Many days there was no such work. I would spend those days walking around Fort Sanders. Nobody I knew had air conditioning. It had been invented, but I don’t remember anyone wishing for it. Air conditioning was like television, something that parents and other old people needed. We felt no urgency to hurry the amenities of the retirement home. We were young, therefore we had open windows, and electric fans. The fact the neighborhood didn’t have air conditioning, and that windows were always open, meant a walk around Fort Sanders was a musical experience. You’d hear folk music and punk

rock and bebop jazz and belle canto opera, maybe all in the same block or two. If you didn’t like any of it, you’d walk a few more steps down the sidewalk, tune in something else. You’d also smell things, garbage and flowers and musty Victorian dust and sawn wood and marijuana and the barbecue of every culture in the world. Mr. Kagley was the old deaf man who ran a beer store on Forest Avenue, where you hand-gestured for a six-pack of Schmidt’s or Blatz, and he’d pull it out of the ice chest. In a vacant lot off 13th Street was an appealing young hippie Buddhist woman who ran the first food truck I’ve ever seen. It was a vegetarian establishment in an old Airstream trailer. It was called Sproutin’ Wings. In the ’70s, everything you ordered at any liberal restaurant had a tangle of bean sprouts on it. I don’t miss sprouts, but they were refreshing in hot weather, and I went there often. There were the little Arab-run groceries on 13th and 18th, where I learned that a nutritious if not delicious meal could be assembled for less than a quarter. (It was the summer of potted tripe and celery soup.) For a splurge there was Ramsey’s Cafeteria, “named for a pharaoh in Egypt,” or so explained an intuitive artist friend, one of the people you’d encounter if you were walking around Fort Sanders at 3 in the morning. Fort Sanders was full of eccentrics. Is it still? Some of the people I knew there were students. Many of the others were former students, people who’d dropped out of college, perhaps years ago, but never found a more agreeable place to live. Friends sold blood regularly at the blood bank

The fact the neighborhood didn’t have air conditioning, and that windows were always open, meant a walk around Fort Sanders was a musical experience.

on 17th. I did that once, to see what it was like. Others were more ambitious, interested in making a career of selling their bodily fluids for profit. They made me feel like a slacker. And there were older people who remained in Fort Sanders. Evelyn Miller, the elegant pianist, lived on Clinch near 16th, but that was an accident of geography. When you entered her living room with the grand piano, you walked into a parlor in Vienna. She spoke about Sergei Rachmaninoff’s final performance, just down the hill at Alumni Hall, in 1943, as if it were last Thursday. I didn’t know until later that Ms. Miller was locally famous in her own right, the first piano soloist to play with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, back in the 1930s. She’s remembered even today for the Evelyn Miller Young Pianist Series. There was more crime there, sure. There was more everything. There was more beer, more cats, more music, more cockroaches, more joie de vivre. It always bothered me that the only time the newspaper ever reported on life in Fort Sanders, it was about muggings. Never about not being mugged, which was the much more common pedestrian experience. My girlfriend was mugged on a summer night, but it says something about Fort Sanders that it was broken up by other strangers walking by. A high-density neighborhood where people walk at night is an extraordinarily dumb place to commit a crime. Do strangers still walk abroad at night? When I lived there, they did. Most of us didn’t have operable cars, and our apartments, lacking TV and air conditioning, encouraged latenight walking. I still walk in Fort Sanders during the summer. It’s much quieter now, because all the windows are closed. It’s still worth the trouble. Last week I watched a giant house moving slowly down Clinch Avenue. It was Professor Cooper Schmitt’s house, the one he built, where he lived and died. It had spent the previous 120 years on White Avenue. On wheels, it seemed much larger, like a riverboat. Its front-porch ceiling fan, part of what always made the place seem so appealing, was turning slowly, either from the vibration of the machinery or from long habit, the memory of other summers. ◆

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CALL 865-215-5170.

You are invited... FRIDAY MORNING AUGUST 14, 10AM WELCOME CENTER DEDICATION AND RIBBON CUTTING GOVERNOR AND MRS. BILL HASLAM • MAYOR TIM BURCHETT • MAYOR MADELINE ROGERO 2743 WIMPOLE AVE, KNOXVILLE, TN 37914 (PLEASE ENTER FROM OUR NEW ENTRANCE ON BOYD’S RIDGE PIKE)

GROWING GARDENS • HONORING HISTORY • CULTIVATING COMMUNITY

Light refreshments will be served.

August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 9

be suites, will be dictated by the as yet unnamed “top of the line” brand selected for the hotel, which will serve as a prefi x to the Farragut name. Brands, or flags as they are also known, are essential for a hotel, according to Dover, not just for identity’s sake but also for the “reservations pipeline” they provide. A separate company, known as a third-party manager, will actually operate the hotel as is increasingly common in the industry. Beyond arranging the fi nancing and doing most of the work on the building with his own construction company, Dover allows that, “Hopefully there will be enough left for us after paying for the branding and third-party management.” Other elements of the fi nancing include some $3 million in historic tax credits, which Dover is well versed in obtaining, and a conventional bank loan that he is determined to hold to less than $10 million. City support for the project may draw criticism in some quarters as favoring a new entrant into a competitive line of business. But the proposed backing doesn’t amount to nearly as much as the city recently

PERSPECTIVES

New Occupancy Bravo for a Farragut Hotel redux

ith a lot of encouragement from the city’s business and tourism leaders, not to mention Mayor Madeline Rogero, the Farragut Hotel on Gay Street’s prime corner may be on the verge of springing back to life. When developer Rick Dover bought the dormant nine-story building last September, its restoration as a hotel wasn’t in the forefront of his thinking. After all, his acquisition for $3.7 million came on the heels of a failed effort by a California-based development team to get fi nancing for a revival of the historic hotel that was Knoxville’s fi nest when it was built in 1917. The Knoxville hotel market was anything but robust, and Dover’s development experience was primarily residential, especially assisted-living facilities and other senior housing. But the more soundings Dover made, the more feedback he got that what downtown most needed was a distinctively Knoxville signature hotel that would make the city more appealing to both business and leisure visitors. Leading hotel brands and a consultant sustained this supposition. And further analysis of downtown’s improving hotel occupancy and room rates led to the conclusion that with some help from the city, the market could sustain a 160-room, $20 million property—half the cost of what the Californians had proposed. When the unassuming Dover met with Rogero, he got encouragement from her as well. And that has led to several months of intensive discussion with city officials over how to make the project work. The “three-legged stool” of city supports that Dover cites as needed are: 1. Dedicated parking in the nearby State Street Garage—one space per

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

hotel room, for which Dover insists he’s prepared to pay a going rate. 2. A payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) that would freeze property taxes on the building at their pre-development level for a still to be determined number of years. 3. A federally guaranteed loan that would hold down interest expense on some $2 million of the financing. City officials are said to be optimistic about obtaining such a guarantee from the Department of Housing and Urban Development based on the 80 jobs the hotel would create. These three components are being packaged for presentation to City Council, perhaps on Aug. 18, and the hotel’s fate will turn on their approval at an early date. If it’s not forthcoming, Dover remains philosophically optimistic. “If it’s going to be apartments, that’s fi ne,” he says. “I can go that route today if I can’t get the hotel done. But I don’t want to spend another six months wrestling with this because the $3.7 million I’ve got sunk in the building is nothing but a drag as matters stand.” With early approvals, he foresees work starting by year end toward a hotel opening in mid 2017—a year that would mark the 100th anniversary of the Farragut’s original opening. The restoration, he proclaims, will be an ”upscale and eclectic mix of old and new and distinctively Knoxville.” The 6,000-square-foot expanse up a few marble steps from the lobby that was the Farragut’s fabled ballroom will be a “fabulous event space for business meetings and social gatherings.” A new elevator bank may well include an express elevator to a festive rooftop with a panoramic view. The design of the guest rooms, of which one-third will

Photo courtesy of the Calvin M. McClung Digital Collection, cmdc.knoxlib.org

BY JOE SULLIVAN

put into the mall-like University Commons. Moreover, facade grants to small businesses have become a hallmark of the Rogero administration, along with tax increment fi nancing (TIFs) or PILOTs for nearly every downtown redevelopment that’s come along. Dover also points out that in addition to creating 80 jobs, the hotel will be shelling out 8 percent of its revenues in hotel occupancy taxes (5 percent to Knox County and 3 percent to the city). Then there’s the matter of filling what’s just about the only decayed tooth remaining in Gay Street’s otherwise pervasive, renascent smile. Come what may, Dover says, “The city has been wonderful to work with.” In no small part that’s a tribute to his own quantitative and qualitative success with other projects, such as the recently completed renovation of what had been a dilapidated former Oakwood Elementary School and the one that’s now underway to make Old Knoxville High School into a convivial residence for seniors. Dover is to be commended for taking on the yet more difficult challenge of bringing the Farragut back to life as a hotel. ◆

SMALL PLANET

Catching the KAT How to save yourself some time, money, and natural resources BY PATRICE COLE

echnology forecasters tell us we will eventually be driving cars that steer themselves, freeing the driver to engage in more relaxing pursuits or use that time to work on something else. Actually, this very day in the city of Knoxville many of us are already enjoying the luxury of letting someone else do the driving for the price of a vending-machine soda. In the past 12 months or so, Knoxville Area Transit has provided more than 3 million such rides on their fleet of state-of-the-art buses. If your only experience with KAT was when the transfer station was on Walnut Street, you might be surprised by that statistic. Before 2010 there was no actual building that served as a transfer station, just buses lined up on the street at random, three small shelters to avoid the rain while waiting, and a rack with route and schedule pamphlets. Then a KATamorphosis occurred with the opening of the John J. Duncan, Jr. Knoxville Station Transit Center in 2010. More people began riding the bus almost immediately, and there has been a steady increase ever since. The station, cater-cornered to the Civic Coliseum, earned the Shining Star Award from the Federal Transit Administration this past May for its innovative design. It is Silver LEED certified, meaning it meets certain standards for sustainable development, including a green roof with plants that absorb rainwater and provide insulation, geothermal heating and cooling, solar panels, and lots of glass to provide natural lighting. User safety,

convenience, and comfort are vastly improved compared to the days when riders had to walk across traffic searching for their bus, with no way of knowing if it had already left or was delayed. Now each route has a designated point of departure and arrival at the transfer station, with arrival and departure times displayed and updated in case of delays. What’s most important to riders, though, is having routes and departure times that meet their needs. The system currently has 25 routes extending north to Fountain City, east to Chilhowee, west to Cedar Bluff, and south almost to Governor John Sevier Highway. New routes have recently been added in Burlington and Vestal. KAT is working to shorten wait times between buses, especially on major routes during peak hours. Buses run every 15 minutes or less on Magnolia Avenue, Kingston Pike, and Broadway, 6-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m. on weekdays. Other than walking or bicycling, KAT is the cheapest way to get around town. Fares range from $1.50 per ride to free, and seniors, disabled passengers, and students up to 12th grade ride for half price. Passes for a full day or up to 30 days can cost much less per ride. You can get free trolley rides around downtown and as far north as Fifth Avenue at Gay Street every 10 minutes from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays. The Vol Line is another free ride every 10 minutes on weekdays and every 15 minutes on Saturdays from the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture campus almost as far east as Morningside Park.

So we have a convenient, state-ofthe-art transit system in Knoxville that covers a lot of territory and costs riders next to nothing, but most of us have never caught the KAT. Belinda Woodiel-Brill, KAT’s director of communications, notes that getting a person on the bus one time goes a long way toward changing perception of the bus-riding experience. Toward that end, KAT has started partnering with local businesses such as Three Rivers Market, where spending $10 or more will get you a free bus pass home. Getting to and through the Cumberland Avenue construction zone is now easier thanks to the Free Fare Zone that KAT has established along the entire length of that busy street. For those who might simply be unsure of how to navigate the transit system, KAT provides a how-to video on their website and will even give one-on-one personal instruction. Taking the bus instead of driving can save big money. A 12-mile one-way car commute five times per week can cost about $4,000 per year, especially if you pay to park. Could you save enough riding the bus to pay for a really special vacation each year? That same car commute consumes hundreds of gallons of fuel, emits over 1,000 pounds of greenhouse gases, adds to traffic congestion and the risk of wrecks, and increases the cost of highway construction and maintenance. Thus, every bus rider is making an incremental contribution toward reducing climate change and resource consumption, improving public safety and convenience, and relieving pressure on public infrastructure. Imagine the cumulative effect of putting a lot of car drivers on a bus. Bus riders who walk or bike to the bus stop get the added benefit of free exercise. All KAT buses are equipped with bike racks, and bikes ride free. Bus riders use their extra free time to read, work, interact with their mobile devices, socialize, or simply watch the world go by and arrive at their destination relaxed instead of stressed. Those who’ve experienced the bus culture tend to appreciate it as a microcosm of diversity, a community of people who might look and sound very different from each other, but who are neighbors and may become friends as they share time and space on the bus. Maybe this is the most important reason to Ride for Change. ◆

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August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 11

At left, the Beck Cultural Exchange Center has undergone two major renovations within the past decade adding about 5,000 square feet of event and gallery space to the historic 1912 home of James and Ethel Beck in East Knoxville. Top right, Rev. Reneé Kesler was appointed CEO and President of the Beck Center last year. She hopes to attract a new generation to the museum by digitizing its robust archives to make them more user-friendly and easier to search. Below, a photograph of Austin High School, the first African-American school built in Knoxville, hangs on a wall at the Beck Center library.

Freedom Celebration The Beck Cultural Exchange Center aims to bring back the unifying tradition of Emancipation Day BY CLAY DUDA

t’s been nearly 70 years since an Emancipation Day celebration of this scope has kicked off in Knoxville, but organizers are hoping this Saturday, Aug. 8 will mark a renewed tradition of fun and festivities, as well as serving a reminder of freedom won. “There’s a whole generation that doesn’t have a clue what the eighth of August is all about, and that’s why it’s so important for us to do this, so people can remember,” says Rev. Reneé Kesler, President and CEO of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center in East Knoxville. “I didn’t even know much about it myself until a few years ago.” According to legend, then-Gov. Andrew Johnson freed his own slaves in Greenville on that date in 1863. Even though it took another two years for the state to fully abolish slavery, the governor’s actions would mark local celebrations for years to come. Gatherings have carried on in some Tennessee towns, as well as pockets in Kentucky and Arkansas as freed slaves migrated elsewhere, but there are few folks still around Knoxville that

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

remember the last major Emancipation Day celebration at Chilhowee Park back in the mid-1940s. Decades before that—dating back to 1899—African-Americans in Knoxville gathered the same day each year to celebrate freedom. During the Jim Crow era of legal segregation, it was the one day a year blacks were allowed in the East Knoxville park, according to research by local amateur historian Bill Murrah. “(People that remember it) talk about all the rides and cotton candy at the park, and while I can’t recreate all of that, our intention is to recreate the spirit of that day,” says Kesler, who has headed the Beck Center for about a year. She spearheaded efforts to bring Emancipation Day celebrations back to Knoxville after learning of the now-defunct gatherings from Murrah, who has advocated their revival for years. The Beck Center hopes renewing the historic revelries will bring the city together and raise the profile of a rich African-American heritage in a city where some say it is often undervalued and glossed over in the pages of

history. Since 1975, the nonprofit has been dedicated to recording and preserving African-American history in Knox County. The event also marks the Beck Center’s 40th birthday. “Before the Beck was established I think very little attention was paid to black achievements or accomplishments in Knoxville or Knox County,” says Robert Booker, a longtime Knoxville resident who served as Beck director for three separate terms totaling 17 years. “If you read any of the history books you’ll see there was passing reference to some of the most famous ones, or maybe a few paragraphs, but I set out as director of the Beck to be more inclusive.” One accomplishment Booker points to is rekindling class reunions for alumni of Austin High School, Knoxville’s first blacks-only school that opened in 1879. He helped organize the first meetup on the schools centennial in 1979, he says, and since then the reunions have taken place about every five years. About 1,400 people attended the most recent gathering in 2014, according to Booker’s estimates. The Beck Center holds graduation records dating back to Austin High’s first class of 1888. Knoxvillian Nkechi Ajanaku, director of the nonprofit African-American Appalachian Arts, Inc., an arts organization focused on community development through creative programming, says the Beck Center has an important role so people can better

understand black culture, “and maybe even find some commonality with African-Americans.” “It’s not like Knoxville has a lot of institutions or facilities that represent the diversities of Knox County, and that’s something that’s sorely needed,” Ajanaku says. “The strong and positive presence of ethnic groups, such as African-Americans, is something you don’t immediately grasp (in Knoxville). I don’t see any African-American businesses in downtown or Old City that are there and functioning … It’s like the elephant in the room at City Council meetings, that everything is okay with human relationships here in Knox County.” But Kesler says she hopes the restored Emancipation Day celebrations will take a step toward changing that by bringing together the community as a whole and not just one race or neighborhood. She’s also betting that a move to digitize the museum’s treasure trove of documents, from photographs of long-gone landmarks to college dissertations written by African-Americans going for an advanced degree, will help attract a younger generation more centered on technology. The museum also houses a number of recorded oral histories from aging or deceased Knoxville residents, and the group hopes to add at least a few accounts by conducting more interviews at the event this Saturday. The center’s library books have already been cataloged in the computer,

which makes searching out a title or topic a much less laborious process, but any large-scale digitizing of the collection is dependent on future funding. She hopes eventually to bring on a full-time archivist to help manage the collection and lead those efforts. If all pans out, the Beck Center may be poised to capture a larger audience and reinvent itself for the 21st century. Two major renovations in 2005 and 2010 added about 5,000 square feet to the old James and Ethel Beck home, a 1912 house at 1927 Dandridge Ave. in East Knoxville where the nonprofit operates a museum and gallery space. Yet just a few years ago, the organization’s own future was in question. Between 2004 and 2010 the nonprofit operated under a memorandum of understanding with Knox County that blurred some financial lines—was it an independent not-for-profit or a county operation?—that led to questions and eventually an audit of tax filings. In 2011, Knox County Commission looked to cut funding to the organization by as much as 92 percent, but scaled back those reductions after an independent audit cleared the center of wrongdoing. In fiscal year 2014-15, Knox County passed along $25,000 generated from the hotel-motel tax, a 5 percent tax charged to hotel guests, with the fiscal year 2015-16 adopted budget allocating $50,000 to the center. That’s down from $225,000 in fiscal year 2009-10 and $150,000 in funding during fiscal year 2010-11, county records show. The nonprofit has been operating at a loss of more than $100,000 annually since getting out from under the county’s umbrella in 2011, although Kesler says recent figures not yet available through tax fi les show it back on budget. The center’s expenses outpaced revenues by $119,000 in 2013, down from a loss of $180,000 in 2012, tax filings show. Its annual operating budget was about $267,000 in 2013, with most of the money going toward funding an interim director, salaries for a small, mostly part-time staff, and general operating and administrative costs. The organization’s assets and fund balances decreased from $3.4 million in 2010 to $2.4 million by the end of 2013. Funding comes from a mix of mostly county and state dollars, private contributions, grants, and a small amount in membership dues and investment incomes, records show.

Kesler’s appointment in 2014 to head the organization drew some skepticism from Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett, according to media reports at the time. She has worked as an independent consultant focused on small-business development since 2006, when she resigned from her post as Knoxville’s Community Development director under allegations that she paid black employees higher starting salaries and favored black-run programs when awarding some federal grants. The city closed its inquiry after she resigned. The Beck Center’s board of directors voted 9-2 to confi rm her appointment in July 2014. Kesler is also an associate minister at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Knoxville. The inaugural Eighth of August Jubilee starts with a Libation Ceremony at 9 a.m. Saturday in the Historic Cemetery of First United Presbyterian Church in Mechanicsville, where some of Johnson’s former slaves are buried. Murrah will recount a history of Aug. 8 celebrations and Ned Arter, a descendant of former slave Samuel Johnson, will lay a wreath on his family’s plot. From there, a motorcade will head to Chilhowee Park at 10 a.m. Live music acts will perform on two stages, one in the Jacob Building and another in the theater. The outdoor stage will feature a DJ and numerous hip-hop acts, including Loc Barz, 5ive FT Giant, Greg Glasgow, Don Gedo, King Prince, NonStop, Louie Casino, and DueX Dream Team and Da Union. Indoors a “gospel explosion” will reverb most of the day with performances by Word of Faith, Eternal Life Harvest Center, Anointed Praise, Mrs. Caroline Wilkerson and Julia Ball, and Jackie Jackson. Soft jazz tunes will round things off with a performance by songstress Evelyn Jack backed by Brandon Whitacker, Frankie Sheadrick, Jared Whyte, and Pee Jay Alexander. There will be a fashion show presented by Yvette Rice covering historic periods of African dress through the Victorian Era and into modern times. Pavilions around the park will host events for all ages, with kids activities such as water balloons and bounce houses, board and card games for teens, and senior activities. There’s also a giant Soul Train Line and a host of food and other vendors expected. More information is available at beckcenter.net. ◆ August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 13

A GOOD LOAF OF It’s a whole lot easier to find these days as Knoxville’s artisan bakery scene heats up

BY DENNIS PERKINS

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

any given Saturday between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m., a stroll through the Market Square Farmers’ Market will provide you with a

surprising range of that most magnificent and maligned sustainer of life: bread. On one end of the market you’ll notice soft

white loaves with the texture of English muffins that simply ache for sweet butter and honey, while at the other end, densely crusted and dark lengths of Swedish rye cry out for thick slabs

of ripe cheese and smoked protein. In between, there are

enough piles of ciabatta, rounds of sourdough, and bread snacks—from pepperoni rolls to pretzels—to fill bellies and

baskets for days. But it hasn’t always been this way. While it’s true that Knoxville has a history of locally made bread, the bulk of those offerings were mass-produced commodities of industrial strength. In the 1970s, school children were most likely to learn about local bread by way of a factory tour of Kern’s Bakery on Chapman Highway where they witnessed the fabrication of long, tan loaves of fluffy white stuff that, once ingested, quickly turned into a pasty mouthful. These and other factories baked breads by the truckload and equipped them with healthy sounding slogans and wholesome logos, as well as long shelf lives and strange ingredients with curious scientific names. While the visibility of freshly made, good bread at markets and groceries seems new in Knoxville, many of the people behind this apparent resurgence have been baking and selling loaves, rolls, and boules for a long time. And they’ve lived through a variety of assaults on this enduring foodstuff in the form of the Atkins Diet and a general contempt of carbohydrates, as well as more recent concerns about gluten. They’ve continued to get up early in the morning and keep their hands in the flour—either as a livelihood or as a passionate but avocational supplement to other careers. They’re a fervent lot, and, despite the commercial challenges they still face, each has a particular zeal for making and sharing this ancient staple.

TELLICO GRAINS BAKERY

On a sunny day when you don’t have anywhere special to be, a relaxing drive down the Cherohala Skyway can seem as endlessly wonderful as creation itself. The sky is big, the views are sweeping, and the majesty of the mountains is displayed in rich and varied shades of green. There are no amber waves of grain to be seen in this part of the world, but as you descend from the Skyway into the open flatlands of Tellico Plains, you’ll be in a place where wheat becomes bread. Located in the town square of Tellico Plains, Tellico Grains Bakery sits in a historic brick building restored by owners Alyssa and Stuart Shull. In the past, the building was a divided space: One side was built as a bank, and the other side has been a movie theater and a school, among other things—including a pawn shop where, Stuart says, Eric Rudolph (aka, the Olympic Park Bomber) sold guns. Now the space features a peaceful, warm interior of gleaming, polished wood as well as excellent bread, sweet baked goods, and a smoky, crispy pizza. It’s not just a second home for the Shulls— it’s home. They not only knead the bread, fire the pizza, and rub butter

Tellico Grains Alyssa and Stuart Shull

1 2 3 4

| Italian | Mulitgrain | Herb Flatbread | Sourdough

into pastry dough in the bakery, they also live above it. It was over 12 years ago when the Shulls brought their idea for the bakery from where they met in Colorado, through New York and North Carolina, and all the way to Tellico Plains. “Originally we looked at Ashville; their baking scene was booming at the time, and we thought that’s the ideal we’re looking for, people are really interested in this good, crusty bread,” Alyssa says. “When we realized that that market was saturated, we started calling around about Knoxville and people said, ‘No, they’re just bunny bread, soft bread [eaters]— they’re not gonna want that stuff.’” Once they got the bakery up and August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 15

1 2

5 running (after some arduous remodeling detailed on their website), Alyssa recalls that “the places that we sought out in the beginning would say ‘We like your bread,’ but asked if we could make it a little less crusty. But that was our deal, we wanted to have crusty bread.” While the bakery still produces lots of Old World-style bread, the range and texture of their output has evolved over time, and now softer breads help pay the bills. They regularly produce sourdough, pumpernickel rye, and herb flatbread (their most popular loaf). You can always find a honey wheat and multi-grain, and a fruit nut bread. And that doesn’t include a legion of remarkable pastries, scones, tea breads, and biscuits that fill the glass counters in their store. But for this couple, whether the actual output matches their original dream is less important than continuing to make a product that conforms to 16

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

Bread Shed Kymberele Kaser

1 2 3 4

| Rosemary | MultiGrain with Toasted Walnut | Mediterranean Olive Bread | Southwestern Cheddar and Jalapeño Bread

5 | Challah their ideals. Alyssa stresses that “our bread is wholesome—we don’t add anything to it.” That’s also her answer to the many questions surrounding the virtues of bread consumption. “Bread is a punching bag,” she says. “When it comes right down to it, the problem with bread that is giving people issues is all that stuff that’s added to make it last for so long. It

just sits in your stomach. Our bread is highly digestible because of the sourdough and other enzymes that help you digest it.” Another thing that makes a trip to Tellico Grains worthwhile: The aroma of the bakery is heady and appetizing, and contributes an extra level of flavor. Not that there’s a shortage of flavor in the bread—even the pizza crust is tempting to eat alone. The bestselling herb flatbread is essentially a focaccia, so it’s soft and redolent of fresh herbs and hints of olive oil and garlic. But if garlic is your passion, then the garlic herb loaf may be the stuff of your dreams; the crust is chewy but soft, and the crumb is studded with cloves of sweet, roasted garlic. Of course, you don’t have to take the hour or so to drive there from Knoxville if you don’t want to—several local eateries including the Public House and Fieldhouse Social serve Tellico Grains products, and you can fi nd the bakery’s bread and some of their sweet things at Three Rivers Market. Other, larger stores have expressed interest in the Shulls’ bread, but that side of the business presents another set of challenges. “We’re not producing a product that can just sit on the shelves for months to come. It’s preservative-free,” Stuart says. “One of the biggest problems of owning a bakery is trying to control that [freshness in stores]. That’s the beauty of it, too—it only lasts for a couple days and that’s it.” In the course of a long conversation with the Shulls, one word you’re likely to hear more than any other— aside from bread, of course—is contentment. That comes from being where you want to be, doing what you want to do with the people you love. “I can’t wait to get down here every day. Every day is a new day in baking,” Alyssa says. “You get to try again and hopefully make it better than the day before. When you keep that philosophy, it keeps you going.”

BREADSHED MARKET

It’s hard to tell if Kymberele Kaser is a wild-eyed fanatic or merely sleep deprived. The owner of BreadShed Market on Broadway near Old North Knoxville works close to 100 hours a week, regularly rising at 3 a.m.—a very common hour for a baker who wants to have product ready for a 7 a.m. opening. But Kaser doesn’t seem to

stop. When you visit the bakery, whether at open or close, you’re almost always likely to find her with her hands busy mixing flour and water, kneading dough, or shaping loaves. The same intensity that defi nes her work also marks her conversation and her conviction about what she’s doing. The only pause she takes is when she reflects on how her father helped start her career in the bakery: “My father loved my banana nut muffi ns,” and he pushed her into the business by, literally, building a bakery, she says. “I’m pretty sure when he built it, it wasn’t because I was this passion-driven baker, it was for the selfish purpose that he wanted to be able to get my banana nut muffi ns whenever he wanted them.” In many ways the need to share wholesome food is what gets Kaser up in the morning. Kaser laughs and smiles a lot, but when she talks about the world of bread, she gets a little fierce. “Food was always really important for me; quality food meant everything, we want to be healthy. But everything that’s mass produced, it’s crap,” Kaser says. “And it’s marketed under something healthy, [and they say] this is a natural bread, or some of those natural and non-natural grocery stores sell ‘artisan bread’—and it’s not, it’s full of chemicals and preservatives, and it makes me really mad because people are trusting these companies. I’m not mass producing. I can’t lose the quality.” Kaser’s bread selection is wide and includes a number of European loaves like Swedish limpa rye, brioche, challah, garlic herb, and many more. The breads aren’t as crusty as you might imagine; in fact, many of these breads feature a soft crust and a dense, closed crumb. That makes them particularly good for home sandwich making, and if there’s a cheese or herb element, Kaser incorporates those ingredients into the bread itself for a more integrated flavor instead of leaving them on top. Kaser opened BreadShed’s doors in May, and the business has had an interesting, but successful, fi rst few months. Still, she observes, business isn’t quite what she expected. “I started at [Market Square] so for the last two years I’ve been selling my breads and pastries there. And although everyone loved my pastries, it was my bread that would always sell

out within a couple of hours,” she says. “So when I opened this place, having that same mindset, I thought, ‘Oh, I need to have a lot of bread.’” And yet, she says that so far nearly 80 percent of her business in the store has been sweets and sandwiches. Kaser is unperturbed: “I’m just doing what the community is wanting, and right now [in the new shop] they’re wanting a lot of my pastries and desserts and sandwiches.” Any conversation about baking with Kaser will, at some point, turn to the community. She says that being able to open a brick and mortar presence owes a lot to the community that she found while selling her wares downtown. She says that when she started thinking about opening a store near downtown, her customers united to help her fi nd a place. “You have people at the market who talk to you, and they’re happy about the product, and you [think] they’re just a customer. But everyone was looking for a place for me, and it was touching and very humbling. It makes you feel more connected.”

CHEESECAKES AND BREADS BY RICK

As you explore the Saturday farmers’ market downtown and travel away from Market Square toward Market Street, look to the park side of the lane and you’ll see a busy set of booths stacked with a wide variety of baked goods: perfectly browned and salted lengths of pretzel, brioche donuts, rustic loaves of chewy ciabatta, and hand-sized bread rolls stuffed with pepperoni, garlic butter, and cheese. The booth is manned by Rick Rickerman, the baker behind Cheesecakes and Breads by Rick. Rickerman is nodding, smiling at customers, many of whom he seems

Cheesecakes and Breads by Rick Rick Rickerman

1 2 3 4

THE ORIGINAL:

Old Mill Bread Company

| Ciabatta | Pretzels | Pumpernickel | English Muffin Loaf

2 4

Despite its scenic name, the Old Mill Bread Company is actually located in a little West Knoxville strip mall called North Cedar Bluff Plaza. It looks any other storefront on the outside, but as soon as you cross its threshold, you’ll experience a paradigm shift as the wares and accoutrement signal that you’ve actually entered a little country store and café. There’s a tall hutch filled with jars of local honey and jelly, an old-fashioned wood and glass display case that shows off some of the bakery’s sweets, and dark wood tables for the folks who want to sit down to enjoy the Old Mill’s offerings. Yet in the midst of this country charm there’s a very contemporary set of chrome metro shelving units that holds the many rows of the day’s bread selections. In fact, as you look past the display case into the rear of the

space, there’s a modern bakery operation. But make no mistake, despite the fact that you’ll find the Old Mill’s bread on the shelves of nine area Kroger stores, it isn’t run-of-the-mill, processed, grocery store bread. Old Mill bread is hand-made from a handful of ingredients, and it also finds its way onto tables at the Orangery and on either side of the distinctive sandwich fillings at Holly Hambright’s eponymous restaurants. The bread is particularly well suited for sandwiches. Old Mill produces Pullman loaves—so named because the rectangular loaf’s shape bears a similarity to a passenger rail car. The best seller is the honey whole wheat, a toothsome and filling loaf; it features a soft but firm crust and a tight, fairly dense crumb that’s pliable enough for easy sandwich eating. Old Mill’s bread is remarkably consistent—rows of honey oat, hearty white, whole-wheat sourdough, and more are uniformly shaped and all have a beautifully brown crust. That’s the result of years of experience; the owners—who prefer to be identified only by their first names, Jim and Janet—opened the place on Aug. 16, 1995, which makes it one of the oldest local retail bread producers in operation. And during that time, they’ve kept ingredient lists short and natural: They use no processed sugar and no preservatives. The wheat, stone-ground on the premises, is certified chemical-free. You can buy whole loaves on site, of course, but you can also enjoy some of the bread in slices via the Old Mill’s lunch menu. They also offer a popular selection of soups, some cookies, and a really terrific cinnamon roll. —D.P. August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 17

to know well. The happy atmosphere comes, in part, from the excitement of a busy Saturday downtown that’s full of people who still relish the success of the open-air market. But at this booth the buzz is amended by Rick’s genial personality and the fact that the bread is beautiful, tasty, and popular. It’s also seasonal. Rickerman doesn’t distribute his bread after the close of the farmers’ market season, nor does he own a retail presence. Rick’s bakery sits alongside his house in the rolling hills of Powell, a picturesque cottage at the end of a country lane. Despite the quaint imagery, this CPA by day isn’t tempted to become a full-time country baker. “I didn’t want this to be a sevenday-a-week job, which it could be,” he says. “I’m just happy doing what

I do. Every single week someone asks where my store is. I’ve been there, done that. I moved down here 30 years ago to open my pizza store out in Halls; but it ties you down, it really, really, really ties you down. That’s fine if that’s what you want, but after a while it gets to be old hat.”

Flour Head Mahasti Vafaie

1 2 3 4

| Everyday Wheat | Cuban Buns | Rosemary Rolls | Palmer House Rolls

5 | Hot Dog Buns

1 2 3 4 5

Baking is something that’s he’s done, he says, “since I was knee-high to a grasshopper. As my wife says it’s my passion. It’s still work, but I like it.” Rickerman, however, is no mere amateur—he’s taught baking at the University of Tennessee’s Culinary Institute, and he’s also a certified baker. But he’s not a romantic gourmand; when pressed a second time about what compels him to bake, he repeats, “I just like doing it, I like the outcome and people’s reactions.” Rickerman’s casual and relaxed demeanor belies a serious perspective on the quality of his work. “Before [my wife and I] were even engaged, I happened to be in her kitchen and I noticed she had some box cakes. I said if we ever get together you’re never gonna have another box cake,” he says. “I haven’t had a box cake in 41 years. I use the best flours I can get—which I think is King Arthur. I try to use good quality products, I have no artificial anything in my breads and no preservatives or anything like that.” Still, he mixes a lot of dough and brings 15 to 17 different products to market every week—he has a repertoire of nearly 35 breads, the most popular of which is ciabatta, a rustic and very chewy loaf that he also makes with rosemary. The crust is a toothsome and pliable chew, and the crumb is open and soft, even a little spongy. That’s a great combination for sopping up sauces. You may even notice a faint taste of olive oil and, of course, the telltale flavor of yeast. Almost all of Rickerman’s products are yeast risen, though you may occasionally find a few loaves of sourdough in his booth. Rickerman doesn’t speak of his passion in broad strokes or elevated language. He shies away from any commentary about commercial bakers, or the issues surrounding gluten sensitivity—perhaps it’s his accounting background that keeps his perspective straightforward. Yet there’s no complacency or apathy about bread and its place on the table. “I used to tell my students this all the time: You can have the best fi let mignon, the best whatever you’re cooking, but if you don’t have a really good piece of bread, as far as I’m concerned, it ruins your meal.”

FLOUR HEAD BAKERY

As you drive along Middlebrook Pike, you may miss Flour Head Bakery 18

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

unless you know where to look. There’s a sign on the side of a building that depicts a pile of golden baked goods, but no written identifi cation of the actual business. Once inside, however, you’ll fi nd immediate confi rmation that you’re in the right place: a mélange of aromas, from baking bread and the sweet smell of cupcakes just out of the oven to lots of fresh flour, which sometimes wafts through the air like a mist. The place is busy in the morning—a small and concentrated group of people clad in white aprons with hairnets or colorful kerchiefs atop their heads, kneading dough or portioning it into rectangular loaf pans or round proofi ng bowls, and moving it all into large ovens. There’s a whole lot of activity here, and there’s a whole lot of bread. Of all the small, independently owned bakeries in and around Knoxville, Flour Head may be among the most widely known. That’s partly because of its catchy logo featuring a happy young lady clad in a pink dress under a flour apron, sporting a cheerful flower in her hair, and also because you can buy Flour Head bread on local Kroger shelves. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that this bakery is the brainchild of Mahasti Vafaie and Scott Partin, owners of the iconic Tomato Head restaurants. Nowadays, Flour Head’s reach has extended beyond Knoxville and crossed state lines through a partnership with Sysco Knoxville, a major food service and supply distributor. While that’s mostly resulted in sales to restaurants and other service outlets, the expansion has put Flour Head bread on a lot of tables. The bakery’s beginnings, however, were very small, says Vafaie. “Initially we opened the bakery because we needed to get out of the kitchen [at the downtown Tomato Head], we were baking all the bread here,” she says. “Primarily, we wanted to serve the Tomato Head restaurants, and I wanted to make only artisan bread, just the crusty stuff, no loaves. And I wanted to make bagels.” Her motivation to bake her own bread is painted in bold letters on a wall at the downtown Tomato Head: “Food gotta cook, don’t come out of a can!”—or an assembly line, untouched by human hands, for that matter. “It’s the base of so much of what we do here, so I guess I want

[the bread] to be as good as everything else. We wouldn’t serve hummus that we didn’t make.” Once the new facility was open and running with all the new production bakery equipment, expansion to farmers’ markets and grocery stores made sense—but then Flour Head started getting calls from other restaurants, so they decided to bake for them as well. The partnership with Sysco started after Gatlinburg’s Alamo Steakhouse expressed interest in serving Flour Head’s small Parker House rolls as their table bread. “We were delivering to them twice a week, driving to Gatlinburg,” Vafaie recalls. “Then Sysco said, ‘We’ll take them for you.’” Later, Sysco asked for more products. As the original plans for production expanded, Vafaie notes that her ideas for the product lines evolved pretty quickly from just sourdough and crusty breads to the softer rolls and sandwich breads. But despite the expansion, the bakery hasn’t abandoned its idea of artisan quality. That’s part of the reason that Vafaie says she is still surprised by Sysco’s interest. “It’s pretty amazing the partnership with Sysco—they’re giant and we’re pretty small,” she says. “I just didn’t think they would able or willing to work with us. We’re a challenge because we don’t have any preservatives in our bread—it either has to be fresh with a three-day shelf life or frozen.” Flour Head now produces a wide variety of bread including chewy, rustic rounds as well as soft, white bread for sandwiches; it also offers bagels, granola, and pastries. Vafaie’s vision for Flour Head is undimmed and her faith in the growth of the local market is optimistic, even if there’s a hint of sadness in her voice as she discusses the difficulty of selling the crusty bread she most loves to bake. “But we’ll get there,” she says, eyes brightening, “And it’s exciting for us to bake bread for other restaurants. It’s turned out to be one of the things I really enjoy about the bakery—the ability to help provide better bread to our community.”

HILLSIDE BAKERY

Hillside Bakery is a small, elusive bakery that sits alongside owner Patra Rule’s house, nestled, as you might

expect, on a hillside in the lush area between Northshore Drive and the water. It’s a peaceful, secluded spot that’s as perfect a setting as you can imagine for turning organic wheat into bread and other good things. You’re not likely to fi nd Hillside Bakery’s facility unless you’re invited, which is just as well since the bakery itself doesn’t have its own retail operation. It’s a compact, commercial kitchen, efficiently arranged for work—and it’s full of the pleasant aromas of flour and browning loaves. The space, fi lled with cooling racks and proofi ng baskets, is dominated by a large deck oven, and there’s a door in the corner that leads to a little closet-like room where containers of whole, organic grain rest alongside a blond wood grain mill until they become flour. Although Hillside produces a number of goods from vegan muffi ns to granola, its naturally leavened, sourdough bread is the mainstay that, literally and figuratively, puts bread on Rule’s table. It’s the bread that she seems most passionate about. “Most of what I make is natural, whole-grain bread. I don’t use baker’s yeast in 90-95 percent of my bread—it’s all sourdough,” she says. Sourdough, of course, is bread that gets its rise from a fermentation starter instead of yeast. “My starter is about 13 years old, but you can make a starter in one week. It does get stronger over time, but some of the mystique [of the really old starter] is exaggerated,” she says. Rule works with an occasional assistant to produce a variety of naturally leavened bread that’s made from organic flour. Her main offerings includes miche, a richly crusted multi-purpose whole-wheat bread with a pillowy soft and satisfying crumb that, combined with a swath of butter, almost makes a meal. Rule’s use of multiple grains gives her bread a complex flavor that seems especially fresh, partly because the little bit of rye that sometimes shows up both complements and tames the slight tang of sourdough. In addition to miche, Rule makes a lot of multi-grain, pain au levain (her own version of a white French bread with a little bit of stone-ground whole wheat and whole rye), and sunny flax (whole-wheat bread with flax seeds and sunflower seeds). She also sells a lot of specialty breads like raisin or

Kalamata olive and herb. Finding the bread can take a little doing these days as Rule has taken some time off in the last several months, but she expects to be back in full production this fall. You can often fi nd her loaves at the Laurel Church of Christ on Fridays. “I’m like a cottage industry. What I really have is my own little private farmers’ market,” she says. “Laurel used to be the location of a farmers’ market. When that group decided to leave, I wanted to stay, and I made an arrangement with the church. I’m there as their guest.” On occasion, you’ll find Hillside breads at Three Rivers Market, and Rule can accommodate special orders. In fact, much of what she sells—either at the church or at the market—is already spoken for, though she always makes enough to have extra. For Rule, baking is both passion and profession. She’s one of only a few local bakers certified by the Retail Bakers of America, and she is a constant student. Talking with her about bread is an educational experience. But Rule’s passion for baking isn’t just academic; she’s passionate about eating bread, too, not only as a pleasure but also as part of a healthy

Hillside Patra Rule

1 | Pain au Levain 2 | Miche 3 | Rasin

and nutritious diet. So it’s not surprising that she takes exception to the vilification of bread, or the defamation of gluten. “ There’s no denying that people are having a lot of immunity and sensitivity issues,” Rule says. “But the question is why we’re all having issues with things that people have eaten for hundreds, even thousands of years? “People around the world survive on bread, especially this kind of bread—it’s very nutritious. It’s frustrating to hear some people talk about it—they want to talk about bread and gluten like it’s all equal. Bread is not all equal—this has no dairy, no sweetener, no oil. It’s flour, water, the starter, which is flour and water, all organic, a small amount of salt. It’s highly nourishing. Bread has a lot of what people need.” ◆ August 6, 2015

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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

n u c o i n n g n A

T g n Kn he ult i h t le y imate s oxv l r i e v e v urvey of x illia o n K ns love most about

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August 6 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 21

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P rogram Notes

Critics’ Darling Ex-Guv’nahs make a fresh start with Electric Darling

A Long Way to Go The Black Lillies introduce their upcoming album

“W

e got a long way to go/and a short time to get there,” Cruz Contreras sings on the Black Lillies’ funky new single, “Hard to Please,” released last week through an exclusive Rolling Stone stream. The lyric—a reference to Jerry Reed’s “East Bound and Down,” from the Smokey and the Bandit soundtrack— hits close to home for the Americana veterans, whose fourth studio album, Hard to Please, coming out on Oct. 2, was written under a nerve-racking time crunch. “We had to come up with the majority of the material in less than a two-week time frame back in February,” Contreras says. “We’d been on tour for such a long time. When we got home, I thought, ‘I’m gonna go to West Virginia and go to some retreat and write.’ But I got home and thought, ‘Shit, I’m home.’ We got a pretty good snowstorm back in February, and I kind of got on lockdown for a week or two.” Newly recruited multi-instrumentalist Sam Quinn, formerly of the everybodyfields, helped the frontman flesh out his arrangements, and drummer Bowman Townsend even

23 22

Inside the Vault: Archie Campbell’s Estate

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

cooked up the title track’s grinding guitar riff after Contreras faced some vague criticism from his son, Cash. “It started out as a country-folk Bob Dylan sort of thing,” Contreras says. “I remember playing the music for Cash, and I was like, ‘What do you think of this?’ He said, ‘You know how anybody can make a record and it ends up in a thrift store? It kind of sounds like that.’” The Black Lillies recorded Hard to Please in Nashville with producer Ryan Hewitt (Avett Brothers, Johnny Cash). Hewitt’s mantra was “tougher and tighter,” and the results exemplify that hard work, from the sizzling chamber-folk of “Broken Shore” (a song Contreras wrote about his grandfather, a World War II veteran at Iwo Jima) to the soaring hard-rock guitar-solo coda of “That’s the Way It Goes Down.” The band will celebrate the release date with a free show at Market Square on Friday, Oct. 2—the perfect low-key end to a turbulent half-year for the band. “We’ve been doing theater shows almost exclusively in Knoxville for years now,” Contreras says. “We just wanted to vary it up.” (Ryan Reed)

Music: Circuit des Yeux

he dissolution of long-running local blues-rock outfit the Dirty Guv’nahs boded that a handful of very talented free agents would soon be set loose on the local music scene. And now two of the band’s standout sidemen—guitarist Cozmo Holloway and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Hyfantis—have already debuted a new project, in the form of female-fronted outfit Electric Darling. Electric Darling played its first show, on July 25, at Scruffy City Hall, to a full house and rave reviews, opening for classic Americana cover outfit Big Pink. What is arguably most impressive about the Saturday night performance is that neither Holloway nor Hyfantis—both of whom rank among the city’s best-traveled and most accomplished players—was the talk of the show. That honor belonged to 25-yearold newbie frontwoman Yasameen Hoffman-Shahin. With her powerful vocals and an insouciant charisma that belied her youth, Hoffman-Shahin led the band through an hour-long set of groovy neo-soul punctuated by a handful of showcase six-string moments from Holloway, the prodigal—and prodigiously talented—son of University of Tennessee faculty jazz bass virtuoso Rusty Holloway. “She really has a flavor, a real Lauryn Hill vibe—she has something going on,” a very enthusiastic Holloway says of his new bandmate. “And she murdered it. I’m telling you, this girl can sing.” Holloway explained that Electric Darling grew from efforts he and Hyfantis—both of whom joined the Guv’nahs around the midpoint of the band’s history—had been making to participate more actively in the Guv’nahs songwriting. “The Guvs

were shifting their sound a little bit, and we were just trying to contribute to that,” Holloway says. A few months later, though, the band made the decision that 2015 would be its swan song, as members moved on to other personal commitments. “We let the dust settle a little,” Holloway says. “Then Kevin and I talked on the phone: ‘What do you want to do?’” The duo decided to prepare some songwriting demos, aided by Guvs drummer Aaron Hoskins. Their plan called for Hyfantis, an experienced and talented singer in his own right, to handle vocal chores. That changed when they met Hoffman-Shahin, who sat in with a pickup reggae band that Hyfantis and Holloway were doing with friends, playing for kicks on Sunday nights. “Sometime after that the light bulb went off,” Holloway says. “Kevin and I were writing songs, and we were thinking about what would give us an edge. So we bought Yas over, and it was amazing. That’s when this thing really changed, from a songwriting project to a full-on live act.” Holloway describes the new outfit as “soulful, but with a rock ’n’ roll edge. And with a couple of dancier numbers, too. “But we’re in the early stages, so we’re more interested in putting together a nice collection of songs that resonate with people than hyper-focusing on a particular sound.” (Mike Gibson)

Movie: Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation

Inside the Vault

Archie’s Estate More unexpected finds from Archie Campbell’s collection BY ERIC DAWSON

n the previous column, I wrote about how much Archie Campbell material has entered the Tennessee Archive of Moving Image and Sound. By coincidence, Archie’s estate sale was held just a few days after the article went to print, so we drove up to his old homestead in Powell to see what we could find. We combed through what must have been 1,000 photos and selected about 200 and found some interesting ephemera and, of course, records. A 78 collector beat us to a few discs by “The Blind Minstrel of the Smoky Mountains,” George Reneau, who played on the streets of downtown Knoxville back in the 1920s. (The collector is a friend of TAMIS and loves the music, so they’re in good hands.) We did manage to find some pretty interesting obscure small-label 45s and acetates. Naturally there was a copy of Archie’s Hee Haw favorite “Pfft! You Were Gone,” b/w his classic double-entendre spoonerism routine “Rindercella.” He even put out a Christmas record on Knoxville’s Big Mama label. “Christmas Eve in

Heaven” is a sentimental religious-themed tale, while “The Chris Before Nightmas” is a “Rindercella”-like take on the beloved Clement Clarke Moore poem. On the more serious side, a 1960 Cowboy Jack Clement-produced single has Archie’s takes on Roger Miller’s “Don’t Jump From the Bridge” and Louis Armstrong’s “Ol’ Man Mose.” A curious pairing, but it gives you an idea of the kind of diverse material country stars were recording at the time. Perhaps not surprising for a comic performer, Archie had a lot of comedy records, though you have to use that term loosely with some of them. A good example is Teddy Bart’s 1965 release, “Sharpen My Feet (and Drive Me in the Ground),” on Nashville’s Sincere Records. Bart overhears a beatnik explaining to his old lady, who insists he has to get a job, that the only thing he has to do is pay taxes and die. Since he doesn’t have a job, he doesn’t have to pay taxes, and rather than pay for an expensive funeral, they can sharpen his feet and drive him in the ground. Somehow, songwriter Bill Brock managed to

write an entire song around this concept. (Bart went on to become a respected Nashville broadcaster, and a career overview tribute to him on YouTube has as its thumbnail Bart reporting on Jake Butcher for a Nashville news station.) Billed as the Mayor of Booger Town on his Booger Town Records single, John Henry III kicks off his version of “Bony Moronie” with a mention that he’s Dolly Parton’s uncle. Robert Owens used the Henry moniker when he performed at Pigeon Forge locales like Silver Dollar City and, later, Dollywood. The flip side is “Kaliga No. 2,” a Homer and Jethro reworking of Hank Williams’ classic. Recorded live at the Smoky Mountain Music Barn, the songs begin with a few risqué jokes that were too much (or maybe not enough) for the audience of tourists. For Wig Records, Scott Sams does a limp Jimmy Carter impression over the country-disco of “Jimmy Can’t Dance (Peanut Shuffle Part I).” The song is not overtly political in the least, instead trying to mine humor from Carter’s Southerness and accent. It’s a great example of the late ’70s Carter fascination and Southernmania that Roy Blount Jr. describes in his book Crackers. Thunderhead Records turn up frequently in local collections, and we came across Bruce Hannan’s “A Gatlinburg Summer” 45. It sounds like a tourist bureau-commissioned song, advertising “An artist painting pictures in the alley/A machine is pulling taffy in the window of a great big candy store,” and “Handcraft goods for souvenirs of a memory

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worth keeping/This town’s a summer giant in the storybook of a Smoky Mountain greeting!” The true excitement, though, was over a collection of acetate discs. Some were reference copies of singles Archie and others released, but a few seemed to be unreleased demos, probably sent to Campbell as potential album cuts. You could imagine him recording Jerry Reed’s “Ole Sam”— from the opening bars, you know it’s Reed playing guitar, and then he launches into a humorous tale of a sorry hunting dog, delivered in his talk-sing fashion. Jimmy Dean released it on an album, but it doesn’t appear as if Reed ever released a version. Even more obscure are two Carl Perkins acetates, probably from the late 1960s or early 1970s. “30 Year Pin” is a doleful tune describing disappointment over a miner’s paltry reward for 30 years on the job. “The Next Thing I’ll See” recounts a blind man’s lack of sorrow over his lack of sight, because God in Heaven will be the next thing he sees. Despite the ostensibly spiritually uplifting message and a nice segue into a refrain of “Precious Memories” at the end, the song is incredibly downbeat. Both songs are such downers that it’s not entirely surprising they don’t appear to have been released. There were many more records we had to leave behind, but there always are. ◆ Inside the Vault features discoveries from the Knox County Public Library’s Tennessee Archive of Moving Image and Sound, a collection of film, video, music, and other media from around East Tennessee.

Perhaps not surprising for a comic performer, Archie had a lot of comedy records, though you have to use that term loosely with some of them.

August 6 2015

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Music

Plainspoken Singer/songwriter Haley Fohr explores an expansive new sound as Circuit des Yeux BY MATTHEW EVERETT

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

join her in the studio and on her current tour. The result is a startling step forward in content and tone—In Plain Speech feels fully realized and complete, an ambitious conglomeration of experimental guitar rock, folk music, and art pop that connects the influence of Yo La Tengo, the Geraldine Fibbers, the Velvet Underground, Kate Bush, PJ Harvey, Will Oldham, and Steeleye Span. (Fohr’s distinctive baritone singing voice makes comparisons to Nico and early PJ Harvey almost impossible to resist.)

also part of the current live lineup.) After the difficulty of her fall tour, Fohr sounds relieved to have company on the road and on stage. “Touring with others is a very different experience than touring alone. It’s great!” she writes. “I’ve always considered my live and recorded performances as separate entities. I feel no allegiance to the recorded sound when I perform. However, the set does reflect the album with the full band. I try to keep it open and loose, so that everyone is able to find their own improvisational space within the structure of the song.” But don’t expect this new version of Circuit des Yeux to be the one that’s around for the next album, Fohr says. The creative transformation behind In Plain Speech likely won’t be her last. “I’m not sure that I will always feel so open to others,” she writes. “I’ve learned that people change so much throughout their lives. I can’t say how I’ll feel tomorrow, a year from now, or even an hour from now. But I’ve learned so much from working with others and pushing myself into uncomfortable territory. I hope the process will lead me further into transition.” ◆

WHO

Circuit des Yeux with Give Thanks

WHERE

Pilot Light (106 E. Jackson Ave.)

WHEN

Thursday, Aug. 6, at 9 p.m.

HOW MUCH $8

INFO

Photo by Julia Dratel

n September, a series of emotionally fraught performances for Chicago singer/songwriter Haley Fohr culminated in one particularly harrowing set at the Hopscotch Festival, in North Carolina. Fohr was on the road by herself for weeks, playing bars, nightclubs, and theaters with just an acoustic guitar, often as an opening act. The combination of indifference and outright hostility that she faced from some audiences drove her, she says, to an unfamiliar and uncomfortable psychological state. “There was a very dangerous evolution in my performance as an artist,” she wrote in a blog post after her Hopscotch set. “I was competing for attention, trying to scream a message over a sea of conversation, and it’s made me think quite a bit about my place. … I feel that I must arm myself with sound, with musicians, and take back what I feel has been stolen from me with an army of friends and supporters. I must leave behind trying to dominate a room with just my voice and guitar, because a sea of people will always overpower 1 woman, and I can’t afford to be slaughtered night after night. I no longer want my guitar to be used as a weapon.” It turned out to be a pivotal moment in Fohr’s young career. Not long after she wrote that blog post, Fohr began recording her fourth album under the name Circuit des Yeux. The previous ones had been almost entirely solo efforts; for In Plain Speech, released in May by Thrill Jockey, she recruited a band to

“As an artist, I feel a great responsibility to remain sensitive and open to the world around me,” Fohr writes in an email interview. “I’ve recently had my 26th birthday and it feels like a coming of age. Suddenly, I know myself. It’s hard to explain. But I feel like the next step of artistry is at hand. … This is the first step in that path, in which I’ve recorded a record with a message for people to hear. It is intentionally for the listener, in hopes of opening up a conversation about the present and future.” Much of the response to In Plain Speech has focused on Circuit des Yeux’s expansive new sound, which is built around an appealing combination of electric and acoustic instruments— flute, thumb piano, organ, strings, and piano. The musicians Fohr collaborated with on the album—Kathleen Baird (Spires That in the Sunset Rise), Cooper Crain (Cave, Bitchin Bajas), Rob Frye (Bitchin Bajas), Whitney Johnson, and Adam Luksetich—are some of the highest-profile musicians from Chicago’s experimental rock scene. Frye, Johnson, and Luksetich are part of the band for the current tour. (Bassist and synthesizer player Matt Jencik isn’t on the record but is

thepilotlight.com

Movie

Cruise Control Tom Cruise risks his neck (and shares the spotlight) to keep the M:I franchise humming BY APRIL SNELLINGS

ay what you will about Tom Cruise. He might be crackers— though, I suspect, not quite as crackers as YouTube and gossip rags would have us believe—but his commitment to the craft of cinematic entertainment is unwavering. Maybe I should qualify that statement a little, because it’s a very specific brand of moviemaking at which Cruise, an A-list star and grade-A producer, excels. As an emoter, he doesn’t always seem comfortable in his own skin. Get him moving, though, and there are few who are better. Whether it’s his Herculean free climb in Mission: Impossible 2 or his many onscreen deaths in the woefully underseen and criminally mismarketed Edge of Tomorrow, there’s just something uniquely satisfying about watching

Cruise cozy up to the Grim Reaper. There’s an easy, cynical explanation for that, but me? I just like the guy. I respect that he routinely risks his neck to show us a good time. Never is that willingness to croak on camera more apparent than in the opening scene of Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation. Cruise, famous for his DIY stunt work, dangles from a plane as it hurtles down a runway and lifts into the sky. Cruise actually did the stunt, held in place by a single, well-concealed harness and sheer willpower, I guess. And then he did it seven more times for coverage. It’s that commitment to pure, old-fashioned big-screen spectacle that has helped make the Mission: Impossible franchise the most predictably solid of its kind over the past 19 years. Cruise might be

showing a little wear around the edges, but those occasional hints of weariness vanish when he’s in action, scraping his knees on the pavement during a gravity-defying motorcycle chase or using his awesome abs to do a weird, insect-like shimmy up a pole to which he’s been chained. He’s also pretty funny; an unexpected pratfall is one of Rogue Nation’s best moments. The franchise’s rotating roster of auteur directors, from Brian De Palma to Brad Bird, is also a big part of its appeal. This time it’s Christopher McQuarrie, who also directed Cruise in Jack Reacher, at the helm. He’s less of an overt stylist than the franchise’s previous directors, but that’s not to say he’s any less competent. Case in point: a fabulous Hitchcockian set piece that puts Cruise’s super-agent, Ethan Hunt, at the center of an elaborate plot to

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assassinate the chancellor of Austria at Vienna’s State Opera House during a performance of Turandot. It’s a breathtakingly suspenseful sequence that ranks as one of the franchise’s highlights so far. Rogue Nation’s plot, as is often the case in these movies, has so many wrinkles that it’s occasionally mystifying. Hunt has once again gone rogue, this time to shut down a ring of presumed-dead spies known as the Syndicate. These guys are so shadowy that even other shadowy organizations think they’re way too shadowy to exist, so the onus is on Hunt to A) prove they’re real, and B) catch or kill their leader, Solomon Lane (Sean Harris). His teammates, played by the always fun Simon Pegg, a frequently exasperated Ving Rhames, and a sadly underused Jeremy Renner, run interference when the Impossible Mission Force is shut down by a bombastic bureaucrat (Alec Baldwin, whose casting is a punch line that never gets old). But a funny thing happens on the way to the requisite unmaskings and third-act gunfight: Hunt meets up with Ilsa Faust, a British agent who proves to be his equal in every way. In fact, she spends most of her time rescuing Hunt. Played by relative newcomer Rebecca Ferguson, Faust might be the best M:I character so far. She’s also arguably the most important character in the latest installment, even overshadowing Hunt. Rogue Nation’s gender politics are more closely aligned with Mad Max: Fury Road than, say, the stunningly regressive Jurassic World, and the movie is all the better for it. (Of course, a guy like Hunt can’t go around wantonly not rescuing people, so Pegg steps in as the imperiled sidekick. It’s a blast.) Ferguson doesn’t really steal the fi lm, though—Cruise offers it up to her, and the chemistry between them is terrific. They don’t share so much as a kiss; if Ilsa climbs on top of a guy, it’s to choke the life out of him with her signature Mortal Kombat-esque guy-choking move. Character and actress are both so good that I’m up for a spin-off : Mission: Impossible – The Ilsa Files. Someone please get on that. ◆ August 6 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 25

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

Thursday, August 6 - Sunday, August 16

MUSIC

Thursday, Aug. 6 PAIGE ALLBRITTON WITH CHOCTAW WILDFIRE • 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. CIRCUIT DES YEUX WITH GIVE THANKS • Pilot Light • 9PM • Haley Fohr’s music strikes a unique balance between the personal and universal. As Circuit des Yeux she creates music that embodies the complexity of human emotions, juxtaposing tenderness and grief, ecstasy and horror, using sounds as representations of the emotional spectrum that we all experience. 18 and up. • $8 • See Music Story on page 22. J. HART • Longbranch Saloon • 8PM 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. TRACY LAWRENCE • Cotton Eyed Joe • 10PM • Tracy Lawrence is one of the most recognizable voices in Country music with songs such as “Paint Me a Birmingham,” “Time Marches On,” “Alibis” and “Find Out Who Your Friends Are.” The entertainer has enjoyed twenty-two songs on the Billboard top ten charts with eighteen number one singles, selling over thirteen million albums.The Multi-platinum CMA and ACM award winning recording artist has help shaped the sound of Country music for two decades, recently celebrating twenty years in music. His music has inspired a whole new generation of entertainers and fans. Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan frequently pay tribute to the singer live in concert by playing his double-platinum hits like “Time Marches On” and “Alibis.” Songs that help make Lawrence among one of the most played artists on radio. • $10 PHOSPHENE WITH INWARD OF EDEN • The Bowery • 7PM • $8-$10 REVEREND RED WITH DUANE MARK • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM THE THIRST QUENCHERS • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM UNDER THE WILOW • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM Friday, Aug. 7 10 YEARS WITH NONPOINT, THE FAMILY RUIN, AND AWAKEN THE EMPIRE • The International • 7PM • 10 Years’ When the Sky Cracks Open Tour lands them back in their hometown. All ages. • $20-$50 CHOCTAW WILDFIRE • Preservation Pub • 8PM FREEQUENCY • Mulligan’s • 7PM FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • Crown and Goose • 8PM THE DARYL HANCE POWER TRIO WITH BANJO MOUTH • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • On his second album Land Of Trembling Earth, Jacksonville, Florida singer/ guitarist Daryl Hance has upgraded his delivery to new and improved stout and shout, let it all hang out sing-alongs laid out to a backdrop of his ever hard-hitting funky bluesy rock and roll music.All ages. • $8 THE JAYSTORM PROJECT • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM KUKULY AND THE GYPSY FUEGO • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM LETTERS TO ABIGAIL • Clancy’s Tavern and Whiskey House • 6PM

MARGO AND THE PRICE TAGS • 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. MARGO AND THE PRICE TAGS WITH JENNIFER NICELEY • The Bowery • 8PM • When you meet someone for the first time, they either seem familiar or alien to you. When you hear a song for the first time, it’s the same way, it’s like meeting someone. The kind of songs that Margo Price sings are both. Familiar and alien. Sure it’s country, but it also has shades of all her many other influences. Her sound is as much Karen Dalton as it is Loretta Lynn, as much Neil Young as Waylon Jennings.For a few years Margo has been the leader of the psych rock/ soul band Buffalo Clover, but this is an animal all it’s own. This solo project has an earthier, down home, shit-kickin feel. • $10-$12 MARINA ORCHESTRA WITH THE CRUMBSNATCHERS • Pilot Light • 9PM • $6 MCGILL AND THE REFILLS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM MIDNIGHT VOYAGE LIVE: KEATON AND KERNS BIRTHDAY FREESTYLE • The Concourse • 9PM • With Fast Nasty, Spooky Jones, Swim Wear, Psychonaut, J Mo, Mark B, and Alex Falk. 18 and up. Presented by Midnight Voyage and WUTK. NAP TIME WITH P DODDY AND DJ CARL SAGAN • Longbranch Saloon • 10PM NUTHIN’ FANCY • Two Doors Down (Maryville) • 10PM ON BROADWAY AT ST. JAMES • St. James Episcopal Church • 7PM • A musical performance directed by Ashley Burell, St. James Choirmaster. Selections from a variety of musicals will be featured, including “The Music Man” and “Phantom of the Opera.” Performances by the On Broadway Choir, the Broadway Bronze. DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Instrumental and vocal jazz standards. SOUL CONNECTION • Knoxville Museum of Art • 6PM • Originally formed in 1966 under the name Soul Sanction, this fabulous 9-member band became one of the legendary bands of East Tennessee, and they are one of the all-time favorites at AA5. With their combination of keyboards, horns, and guitar, blended with a variety of male and female vocals, Soul Connection covers a wide musical spectrum of Rhythm & Blues and Soul, all done with infectious energy and unmistakable style. Part of KMA’s Alive After Five series. • $15 THE STEELDRIVERS • Bijou Theatre • 8PM • Only Nashville could give birth to a band like the SteelDrivers: a group of seasoned veterans –each distinguished in his or her own right, each valued in the town’s commercial community – who are seizing an opportunity to follow their hearts to their souls’ reward. In doing so, they are braiding their bluegrass roots with new threads of their own design, bringing together country, soul, and other contemporary influences to create an unapologetic hybrid that is old as the hills but fresh as the morning dew. • $25 • See Spotlight on page 29. THE STREAMLINERS • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM GREG TARDY • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Greg Tardy is one of the most accomplished musicians in Knoxville. He’s workmanlike onstage, like a mechanic who knows what he’s doing, connecting directly with the notes, but what he produces are long, transcendent runs, cascades of fluid sound. He blows his horn with his eyes closed tight, as if right now, sight might be a distraction. He’s appeared on several dozen records, several of them his own but also some by major stars like Dave Douglas. A while back, The New York Times called him “one of the bright hopes” of jazz, as All About Jazz claimed he was “on track to help write the next chapter in jazz history.”

CALENDAR

GARRISON KEILLOR’S A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION Tennessee Theatre (604 S. Gay St.) • Thursday, Aug. 13 • 8 p.m. • $64.50-$86.50 • tennesseetheatre.com

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. Yes, old people like the show, especially smart, restless, open-minded old people, but in fact the Keillor cult is trans-demographic. Among the show’s most frequent musical guests lately have been Wilco, Iris DeMent, Nellie McKay, and, with and without the Punch Brothers, Chris Thile, who’s expected to replace Keillor on the show next year. There’s nostalgia, but within the familiar faux-advertising framework Keillor set up in 1974—based roughly on the Grand Ole Opry—there’s also a fresh perspective and a sharp edge. And any regular listener knows Keillor’s sonorous voice is sheep’s clothing for irreverent political commentary, poetic description (his vivid impressions of American cities would make a genre-challenging travel guide), and sometimes unsettling insights into the human condition that just aren’t available elsewhere in mainstream culture. He’s had imitators, but Keillor is still the only person in the world who is doing what he’s doing. 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. (Jack Neely)

Spotlight: The Steel Drivers August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 27

CALENDAR “WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC • Tennessee Theatre • 8PM • Few would have guessed that “Weird Al” Yankovic, who as a shy, accordion-playing teenager got his start sending in homemade tapes to the Dr. Demento Radio Show, would go on to become the biggest-selling comedy recording artist in history with over 12 million album sales. Now in his fourth career decade, he has won 3 Grammys (with 14 nominations) and countless awards and accolades for Weird Al classics like “Eat It,” “Like a Surgeon,” “Fat,” “Smells Like Nirvana,” “Amish Paradise” and “The Saga Begins.” His 2011 album Alpocalypse (featuring the Lady Gaga parody “Perform This Way”) debuted in the Billboard Top 10, and was nominated for two Grammy Awards (Best Comedy Album and Best Short Form Video). • $39.50-$59.50 Saturday, Aug. 8 1964: THE TRIBUTE • Tennessee Theatre • 8PM • Twenty years of research and performing have made “1964” masters of their craft. They have been featured on Entertainment Tonight, PM Magazine, CNN, the USA Network, and the Nashville Network. On January 10th, 2003, “1964” performed to a sold out crowd at Carnegie Hall.... a dream come true for both themselves and their fans who came to New York from all over the country for the show. They have since performed at Carnegie Hall every year since then. 1964 has performed at many other such illustrious places such as the famous Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver where they outdrew The Beatles by 2000 fans 40 years later. • $27 HANNAH ALDRIDGE WITH CRAB APPLE LANE • The Square

Thursday, August 6 - Sunday, August 16

Room • 8PM • Hannah Aldridge is the daughter of Alabama Music Hall of Famer Walt Aldridge, who is one of the most prolific songwriters of the modern musical era. Twice named by Billboard magazine as one of the Top Country Songwriters of the year, ASCAP Songwriter of the Year, and countless Number One and Top Ten hits recorded by the likes of Lou Reed, Reba McEntire, Travis Tritt, Earl Thomas Conley, Ricky Van Shelton, Ronnie Milsap, and Conway Twitty.With sounds ranging from blues in the Mississippi Delta to the dusty, dixieland jazz sounds from New Orleans, the musical stylings of Muscle Shoals on up to the primitive roots of American Country music, Hannah Aldridge leaves no inspiration or influence untapped. CHUCK BURNS AND TY RONE • 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. FAREWELL TO KINGS WITH OMEGA DOWN, BENT TO BREAK, AND SEVERANCE • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 7PM • Presented by Night Owl Music. All ages. • $8 FOUR LEAF PEAT • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM KITTY WAMPUS • Spicy’s • 9PM MARBLE CITY SHOOTERS • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM DAVIS MITCHELL AND DM3 • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM HAROLD NAGGE AND ALAN WYATT • Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM THE RERUNS • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Knoxville’s premier TV band plays your favorite television themes. SHANE • Concord Park • 6PM • Knox County’s summer concert series, Second Saturday Concerts at The Cove, continues this year with live entertainment for the whole

family. The free concerts, held June through September on the second Saturday of each month, take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at The Cove at Concord Park, 11808 S. Northshore Drive. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own blankets or lawn chairs. TIME SAWYER • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM THE JASON STINNETT BAND • Two Doors Down (Maryville) • 10PM WHISKEY MYERS WITH STOLEN RHODES • The Shed at Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson (Maryville) • 6PM • Whiskey Myers makes honest music. Loud and proud, they sing about what they know with a refreshing directness and clarity. Some call it rebel music, but it’s more like everyday soul. Their songs are stories, with relatable characters and situations. Stories of celebration, of mourning, of trials and triumph. Through the quality of these songs, and the band’s undeniable power in concert and on record, Whiskey Myers has attracted a devoted army of outspoken fans who pack venues, sing the band’s praises online, and continue to make them a growing word-of-mouth sensation. • $20 Sunday, Aug. 9 APPLEBUTTER EXPRESS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 8PM LAUGHING GAS WITH BURNING ITCH AND NERVOUS REX • Pilot Light • 9:30PM • $5 SPONGECAKE AND THE FLUFF RAMBLERS • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 and up. SHIFFLETT AND HANNAH • Bistro at the Bijou • 12PM • FREE THE DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 1PM • Live jazz. Monday, Aug. 10

MATT A. FOSTER • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM SHAWN JAMES AND THE SHAPESHIFTERS • Preservation Pub • 10PM THE LOST FIDDLE STRING BAND WITH HIROYA TSUKAMOTO • 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. NOTHING MORE WITH PORTRAIT OF • The Concourse • 6PM • All ages. • $13-$15 Tuesday, Aug. 11 BARK WITH GREG HORNE • 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. JAZZ ON THE SQUARE • Market Square • 8PM • Featuring the Marble City 5. Every Tuesday from May 12-Aug. 25. • Free PALE ROOT • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM Wednesday, Aug. 12 KYLE ADEM • 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. FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • Crown and Goose • 6:30PM • Live jazz featuring a mix of original music, early jazz and more. CHUCK JOHNSON WITH JOSEPH ALLRED • Pilot Light • 9PM • $5 SARAH GAYLE MEECH WITH JACK RENTFRO • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7PM • Nashville-based country artist Sarah Gayle

Knoxville

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

CALENDAR Meech is blazing a trail of her own, one to make the founding fathers of country music proud. On her latest album, Tennessee Love Song, she explores themes of love, heartache, loss and loneliness, achieving a perfect balance that truly exemplifies her character. Meech says she drew inspiration from personal experiences, Southern Gothic literature, and “…all the crazy weather and beautiful landscapes in Tennessee.” Meech recently won the 2015 Best Outlaw Female Ameripolitan Award, and will play alongside Merle Haggard at the first annual Ink n Iron convention in Nashville this summer. • $10 SCARS AND STRIPES WITH THE HARAKIRIS • Longbranch Saloon • 6:30PM HUNTER SMITH • The Bistro at the Bijou • 7PM • Live jazz. • FREE 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 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. In its short existence, the band has grown its fan base by getting out in front of folks. Whether it’s the great variety of local shows or their regional touring, they always bring high energy onto every stage on which they perform. All ages. DANK WITH DOWNRIGHT • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM

THE STEELDRIVERS Bijou Theatre (803 S. Gay St.) • Friday, Aug. 7 • 8 p.m. • $25 • knoxbijou.com

The SteelDrivers have apparently started to take seriously the “soulgrass” tag that fans and reviewers have applied to them. The Nashville bluegrass band headed south for its new album, The Muscle Shoals Recordings, recorded in the small Alabama town that was once home to one of the most famous soul-music factories in the world. The Muscle Shoals Recordings is yet another solid entry in the SteelDrivers’ expanding catalog, full of first-class picking, high harmonies, and Gary Nichols’ emotional, worn-in lead vocals. You won’t find much direct reference to classic soul music beyond the title, but you will find some of the best contemporary bluegrass, with a few traces of folk, pop, and country thrown in. The SteelDrivers’ former lead singer, Chris Stapleton, is earning rave reviews for his new debut solo album, Traveller. But the band’s doing just fine without him. With Taylor Brashears. (Matthew Everett)

THE DELARCOS WITH QUARTJAR • Pilot Light • 10PM • $5 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. 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 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. 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. The event will be held in front of Saw Works on 708 E. Depot Avenue on August 15th from 2:00pm – 10:00pm. 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 August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 29

CALENDAR 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 JAMAICAN QUEENS WITH CROWD • Pilot Light • 10PM • $6 MARBLE CITY SHOOTERS • WDVX • 12PM • Free 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 • 6:30PM • Featuring music by Joey and Kelly from Glossary, R.B. Morris, Tim Lee 3, Jennifer Niceley, and Amigo. • Free 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 FAILLOR AND ACCIDENTAL SEABIRDS • Longbranch Saloon • 9:30PM Sunday, Aug. 16

Thursday, August 6 - Sunday, August 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. ZACH AND KOTA’S SWEET LIFE WITH DADDY ISSUES • Pilot Light • 10PM • $5

OPEN MIC AND SONGWRITER NIGHTS Thursday, Aug. 6 IRISH MUSIC SESSION • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7:15 p.m. BREWHOUSE BLUES JAM • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM

Saturday, Aug. 8 MUMBILLY OLD TIME SESSION • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 4PM • Bring an instrument, but definitely watch out in case there’s some Mumbillies there. • Free Sunday, Aug. 9 EPWORTH OLD HARP SINGING • Laurel Theater • 6:30PM • A

monthly gathering for shape-note singing. Visit oldharp.org. Tuesday, Aug. 11 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. • FREE Wednesday, Aug. 12 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. BRACKINS BLUES JAM • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM • A weekly open session hosted by Tommie John. • Free OPEN CHORD OPEN MIC • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM 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

DJ AND DANCE NIGHTS Thursday, Aug. 6 BRING YOUR OWN VINYL NIGHT • Flow: A Brew Parlor • 6PM

Saturday, Aug. 8 CARNIVALESQUE III SIDESHOW SPECTACULAR • The Concourse • 9PM • Presented by Temple Dance Night and Vali Moon. 18 and up. • $10 Sunday, Aug. 9 LAYOVER SUNDAY BRUNCH • The Concourse • 12PM • Brunch with a side of chill ambient music. Thursday, Aug. 13 BRING YOUR OWN VINYL NIGHT • Flow: A Brew Parlor • 6PM Saturday, Aug. 15 TEMPLE: AURELIO VOLTAIRE • The Concourse • 8PM • Knoxville’s longest running, and only, gothic/alternative dance night. • Voltaire (Aurelio Voltaire Hernandez) is often described as a modern day renaissance man. He is a singer/ performer, creator of comic books, animation and toys. • $5-$15 Sunday, Aug. 16 LAYOVER SUNDAY BRUNCH • The Concourse • 12PM • Brunch with a side of chill ambient music.

COMEDY AND ADVERTISING WORKS! MERCURY

AND GOURMET STREET FOOD

Tacos, Quesadillas, Empanadas Bring Us To Your Special Event hootowlblue@gmail.com Dave Thomasson (Chef/ Owner)

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

TESTIMONIAL “We advertised our summer sale in the Bearden issue of the Mercury and got significant response. It was the perfect time and place for us to advertise, and we’re glad we did!” —SCOTT BISHOP, OWNER, Westwood Antique & Design Market

CALENDAR SPOKEN WORD

Friday, Aug. 7 SAW WORKS FIRST FRIDAY COMEDY SHOW • Saw Works Brewing Company • 7PM • Jasper Redd, a Knoxville native with appearances on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Def Comedy Jam, and Comedy Central, is this month’s headliner at First Friday Comedy at Saw Works Brewing. His first comedy special Jazz Talk debuted last year on Netflix. Additional performers will include a pair of touring Ohio comedians, Dustin Meadows and Keith Bergman, along with Knoxville’s own Victor Agreda, Jr. This month’s host is Sean Simoneau.

Sunday, Aug. 16 UPSTAIRS UNDERGROUND COMEDY • Preservation Pub • 8PM • A weekly comedy open mic.

THEATER AND DANCE

Sunday, Aug. 9 UPSTAIRS UNDERGROUND COMEDY • Preservation Pub • 8PM • A weekly comedy open mic.

Thursday, Aug. 6 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 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

Monday, Aug. 10 QED COMEDY LAB • Pilot Light • 8PM • 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.

Friday, Aug. 7 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

Tuesday, Aug. 11 KNOXVILLE POETRY SLAM • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • Knoxville Poetry Slam is back again. This time, you get to hear an hour of poetry from your favorite tag team duo-I.N.K. Plus an open mic. • $5 OPEN MIC STANDUP 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. EINSTEIN SIMPLIFIED • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM • Knoxville’s long-running improv comedy troupe. • Free

Saturday, Aug. 8 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. 8 IMPROV COMEDY CLASS • The Birdhouse • 10AM • A weekly improv comedy class. • FREE

Thursday, Aug. 13 GARRISON KEILLOR’S A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION • Tennessee Theatre • 8PM • If you showed up on July 6, 1974, at the Janet Wallace Auditorium at Macalester College in Saint Paul and plunked down your $1 admission (50 cents for kids) to attend the very first broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion, you were in select company. There were about 12 people in the audience. But those in attendance thought there were worse ways to spend a Saturday afternoon, so Garrison Keillor and the APHC team went on to produce close to 500 live shows in the first 10 years alone. There has been plenty of adventure in the past 30-plus years — broadcasts from Canada, Ireland, Scotland, England, Germany, Iceland and almost every one of the 50 states. Today, A Prairie Home Companion is heard by 4 million listeners each week on more than 600 public radio stations, and abroad on America One and the American Forces Networks in Europe and the Far East. • See Spotlight on page 27. Saturday, Aug. 15 IMPROV COMEDY CLASS • The Birdhouse • 10AM • A weekly improv comedy class. • Free

Sunday, Aug. 9 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 Friday, Aug. 14 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE WIND IN THE 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

FESTIVALS

Thursday, Aug. 6 RED, WHITE, AND BLUE BLOCK PARTY • Marc Nelson Denim • 5PM • Throw on your red, white, and blue and join us on

Thursday, August 6th, from 5-9pm to help support our neighboring city, Chattanooga and the families affected by the recent tragedy. The night will take place on the corner of East Depot Avenue and Randolph Street and will include food trucks and guest speaker, Derrick Furlow Jr. A portion of all food sales and “Chattanooga Strong” shirt sales will be givento the National Compassion Fund, which is directly distributed to the victims’ families. Saturday, Aug. 8 BECK CULTURAL EXCHANGE CENTER 40TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION • Chilhowee Park • 12AM • The Beck Cultural Exchange Center will celebrate its 40-Year Anniversary with its inaugural “Eighth of August Jubilee” celebration at Chilhowee Park.The day will kick off with a Libation Ceremony at the First United Presbyterian Church Historic Cemetery at Knoxville College, the burial site of former slaves owned by Tennessee Military Governor, Andrew Johnson, freed on August 8, 1863, the date that became known as Emancipation Day throughout the region. The celebration will then continue at Chilhowee Park with family-friendly activities throughout the day. In Knoxville, oral accounts from local area residents note the Eighth of August as “The one day of the year when black people could go to Chilhowee Park and enjoy a great day of celebration.” Until the late 1940s, it was the only day of the year that the park was open to African-Americans. NO TO THE UPF BOMB PLANT: A RALLY FOR PEACE AND DISARMAMENT • Alvin K. Bissell Park • 11AM • Music, a skit, updates, speakers and songs will be part of a rally at Bissell Park in Oak Ridge at 11:00 am on August 8, 2015. Starting at 1:00 there will be a march from Bissell Park to the Y12 Nuclear Weapons Complex to say no to the $6.5 billion Uranium Processing Facility proposed for Y12. • Free Sunday, Aug. 9 TENNESSEE EQUALITY PROJECT SUMMER OF LOVE TOUR • Maryville College • 5PM • The Summer of Love Tour stops in Maryville. Join us for fellowship and learn about what’s next in the struggle for equality in Tennessee. Tennessee Equality Project’s Executive Director, Chris Sanders will be here to answer your questions. We will gather at the McArthur Pavilion at Maryville College. There will be food and drinks provided! Feel free to bring a friend. This is a FREE event. Even if you’ve never been an activist, you are welcome. • Free REMEMBERING NAGASAKI PEACE LANTERN CEREMONY • Sequoyah Park • 8:15PM • We will remember the bombing of Nagasaki with music, litanies, Buddhist drumming, Japanese dancing and peace lanterns. Children can decorate their own peace lantern and everyone will have an opportunity to launch a lantern into the Tennessee River in keeping with the Japanese tradition of honoring the dead and setting our dreams and hopes for a peaceful future afloat. At the west end parking lot of Sequoyah Hills Park. • Free Tuesday, Aug. 11 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 (see video below). 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

UP NEXT!

THE STEELDRIVERS friday, august 7 • 8pm

FAIRVIEW UNION CD RELEASE SHOW

saturday, august 15 • 7:30pm

BLUES TRAVELER sunday, august 23 • 8pm

STEVE EARLE & THE DUKES WITH SPECIAL GUEST THE MASTERSONS

thursday, september 10 • 8pm

THE LONE BELLOW WITH JOE PUG

friday, september 18 • 8pm ON SALE FRIDAY, 8/07 AT 10AM!

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS friday, october 2 • 8pm ALSO UPCOMING!

The Milk Carton Kids • 9/15 The Black Jacket Symphony • 10/9

KNOXBIJOU.COM TICKETS AVAILABLE AT THE TENNESSEE

THEATRE BOX OFFICE, TICKETMASTER.COM, AND BY PHONE AT 800-745-3000

August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 31

CALENDAR Barn will be rescuing more animals in Tennessee, so who knows who else you will get to meet? 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 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.

SPORTS AND RECREATION

Thursday, August 6 - Sunday, August 16

Saturday, Aug. 8 SOUTHERN ROCK RACING SERIES • Windrock Park • 12AM • The southern rock racing series is an off-road hill climb and rock crawling event. This will be round #3 in the racing series. This event is open to everyone. Spectators can watch the competitions and enjoy the fun. The event takes place at Windrock Park which consists of over 72,000 acres of off-road adventure for the entire family with many picturesque views of East Tennessee’s mountains and valleys. Explore over 300 miles of trails for riding ATV’s, Motorcycles, Mountain Bikes, in addition to four wheeling in Jeeps and Rail buggies and Hiking. Camping facilities are available at Windrock Park and campground. For more information about the event or the area, call 865-435-3492 or visit www.windrockpark.com. HARD KNOX ROLLER GIRLS VS. GREENSBORO ROLLER DERBY • Knoxville Civic Coliseum • 5PM Tuesday, Aug. 11 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 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

Enjoy Happy Hour

Food Specials! bistro M-F 4 -7 PM ALL FOR ONLY

■ BAKED ARTICHOKE DIP

Margherita Pizza

■ ROASTED RED PEPPER HUMMUS ■ GRILLED BUTTERMILK CORN

BREAD WITH PIMENTO CHEESE ■ FRIED CHICKEN & WAFFLE ■ MARGHERITA PIZZA

Fried Chicken & Waffle

TURKEY CREEK 11383 Parkside Dr. ■ 865-671-6612 DOWNTOWN 141 S. Gay St. ■ 865-544-1491 www.crubistroandwinebar.com 32

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

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.

FILM SCREENINGS

Monday, Aug. 10 THE BIRDHOUSE WALK-IN THEATER • The Birdhouse • 8PM • A weekly free movie screening. Wednesday, Aug. 12 THE PUBLIC CINEMA: ‘JUDY JUDY JUDY’ AND ‘I BELIEVE IN UNICORNS’ • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM • Shot entirely in Super 8, Judy Judy Judy captures a tense vacation and the fallout of an irreversible decision with the intimacy of a home movie. Directed by C. Mason Wells.Davina is an imaginative and strong-willed teenage girl who often escapes into a beautifully twisted fantasy life. Having grown up quickly as the sole caretaker of her disabled mother, she looks for salvation in a new relationship with an older boy. Davina is swept into a whirlwind of romance and adventure, but the enchantment of her new relationship quickly fades when Sterling’s volatile side begins to emerge. I Believe in Unicorns takes us on a road trip through the stunning and complex landscape of troubled young love. Directed by Leah Meyerhoff. • Free 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 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. Part of Southern Exposure: The

CALENDAR Great Smoky Mountain Film Festival is a 7 p.m. screening of the 1927 Paramount feature Stark Love, which was filmed in the Smoky Mountains and features a cast of local and regional actors. In 2009, it was named to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York is lending TAMIS its newly preserved copy of the film for this special screening. (Preserved by The Museum of Modern Art with support from the Celeste Bartos Fund for Film Preservation).Rex Ward, house organist for Bristol’s Paramount Theatre, will improvise a score live at the Tennessee’s Mighty Wurlitzer to accompany the film. Lost Masterpiece, a short documentary about the making of Stark Love, will precede the feature. • Free Sunday, Aug. 16 SUMMER MOVIE MAGIC SERIES: ‘ROMAN HOLIDAY’ • Tennessee Theatre • 2PM • 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 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

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 The Birdhouse 800 N. Fourth Ave. AUG. 7: Star and Galaxy Art Show by Subagh, with music by Academentia Ensemble. 7PM. Bliss Home 29 Market Square AUG. 7-31: The Lake House, paintings by Kate Moore. (An opening reception will be held on Friday, Aug. 7, from 6-9 p.m.) Broadway Studios and Gallery 1127 N. Broadway AUG. 7: Photography by Mark Large plus artwork by seven resident artists. 5PM. 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. (An opening reception will be held on Friday, Aug. 7, from 5-9 p.m.) 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. (An opening reception will be held on Friday, Aug. 7, from 5-9 p.m.) Envision Art Gallery 4050 Sutherland Ave. THROUGH AUG. 15: Envision Art Gallery Grand Opening Exhibition, featuring artwork by gallery owner Kay List and Larry S. Cole. Flow: A Brew Parlor 603 W. Main St. AUG. 7: Artwork by Ben Seamons. (6PM)

experience as a survivor of stage-3b rectal cancer and as a thriver in the life after his illness. The event is free and open to the public. Food and refreshments will be served. Copies of “It’s Not Harder Than Cancer” will be available to purchase for $15. A percentage of all sales will support community outreach programs at Thompson Cancer Survival Center, where Holtz was treated. CELEBRATING THE POWER OF NONVIOLENCE : AN EVENING WITH TRANSFORM NOW PLOWSHARES • Church of the Savior United Church of Christ • 7PM • Join Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice and Michael Walli for an evening of celebration and conversation. For follow-up or additional information, please contact Ralph Hutchison at 865-776-5050. • Free

Knoxville Museum of Art 1050 World’s Fair Park Drive 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.

Wednesday, Aug. 12 GEORGE K. SCHWEITZER: “WHO GAVE YOU YOUR DNA?” • East Tennessee History Center • 12PM • Noted genealogist Dr. George K. Schweitzer will explain how DNA testing works and how you can use it in family research. The author of 22 books on genealogy and a frequent lecturer, Dr. George K. Schweitzer is a professor of chemistry at the University of Tennessee and member of the ETHS Board of Directors. For more information on the lecture, exhibitions, or museum hours, call 865-215-8824 or visit the website at www.EastTNHistory.org. • Free

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.

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.

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.

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.

Knox Heritage Salvage Shop 619 N. Broadway AUG. 7: Artwork by Ashley Addair (5-8 p.m.)

Zach Searcy Projects 317 N. Gay St. AUG. 7: Wade Jenkins: The Percussion Robot Prototype (7 p.m.) 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 Thursday, Aug. 6 PECHAKUCHA KNOXVILLE VOL. 16 • The Square Room • 6:30PM • Featuring short presentations by Whitney Manahan, Jonathan Young, Lucia Cuato, Darren Hughes, Michelle Bakewell, Ryann Aoukar, Jennifer Akerman, Ginger McKay, and Jeremy Wann. Friday, Aug. 7 MICHAEL HOLTZ: IT’S NOT HARDER THAN CANCER • St. John’s Lutheran Church • 5:30PM • Michael Holtz will discuss, read from and sign copies of “It’s Not Harder Than Cancer,” his raw and practical book about his

FAMILY AND KIDS’ EVENTS

Thursday, Aug. 6 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. 7 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. 8 CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 10AM SATURDAY STORIES AND SONGS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • A weekly music and storytelling session for kids. Monday, Aug. 10 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. 11 CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY KID-TO-KID: FUN WITH A PURPOSE • Cancer Support Community • 3:30PM •

August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 33

CALENDAR Kathleen Williams, LCSW. Your children will gain coping skills and have opportunities to talk about a loved oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cancer diagnosis while also having fun. Please call before your first visit and RSVP. 865-546-4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. PRE-K READ AND PLAY â&#x20AC;˘ Lawson McGee Public Library â&#x20AC;˘ 11AM â&#x20AC;˘ Pre-K Read and Play is a pilot program specifically designed to prepare children to enter kindergarten. 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. EVENING STORYTIME â&#x20AC;˘ Lawson McGee Public Library â&#x20AC;˘ 6:30PM â&#x20AC;˘ An evening storytime at Lawson McGhee Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Room to include stories, music, and crafts. For toddlers and up. Wednesday, Aug. 12 BABY BOOKWORMS â&#x20AC;˘ Lawson McGee Public Library â&#x20AC;˘ 10:20AM â&#x20AC;˘ For infants to age 2, must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. PRESCHOOL STORYTIME â&#x20AC;˘ Lawson McGee Public Library â&#x20AC;˘ 11AM â&#x20AC;˘ For ages 3 to 5, must be accompanied by an adult.

CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS

Thursday, August 6 - Sunday, August 16

Thursday, Aug. 6 BUSINESS PROCESSES WORKSHOP â&#x20AC;˘ Blount County Public Library â&#x20AC;˘ 11:30AM â&#x20AC;˘ Presented by Tennessee Small Business Development Center. This session is part of a GrowthWheel series of workshops offered through a 3-way partnership with the Small Business Development Center, the Blount County Chamber and the Blount County Public Library hosted at the library. Registration required at www.tsbdc.org/training/ Bring your own laptop. BELLY DANCE LEVELS 1 AND 2 â&#x20AC;˘ Knox Dance Worx â&#x20AC;˘ 8PM â&#x20AC;˘ Call (865) 898-2126 or email alexia@alexia-dance.com. â&#x20AC;˘ $12 GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION â&#x20AC;˘ Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church â&#x20AC;˘ 12PM â&#x20AC;˘ Call 865-577-2021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. AARP DRIVER SAFETY CLASS â&#x20AC;˘ Oak Ridge Senior Center â&#x20AC;˘ 9:30AM-1PM CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY: KNIT YOUR WAY TO WELLNESS â&#x20AC;˘ Cancer Support Community â&#x20AC;˘ 1PM â&#x20AC;˘ Whether you are a novice knitter or an old pro, you are invited to bring your own project or join others in learning a new one. Supplies provided. 865-546-4661. 2230 Sutherland Avenue. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. Saturday, Aug. 8 YOGA AT NARROW RIDGE â&#x20AC;˘ Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center â&#x20AC;˘ 9AM â&#x20AC;˘ For more information contact Mitzi Wood-Von Mizener at 865-497-3603 or community@ narrowridge.org. KNOX HERITAGE PRESERVATION NETWORK â&#x20AC;˘ Knox Heritage â&#x20AC;˘ 10AM â&#x20AC;˘ Preservation Network is a series of free

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KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

workshops held once every month on the second Saturday. In a relaxed round-table setting, the workshops presents guest speakers who are specialists in windows, flooring, roofing, stained glass, tile, plumbing, electrical, and more. For more information, visit www.knoxheritage.org. MARBLE SPRINGS WHEAT WEAVING WORKSHOP â&#x20AC;˘ Marble Springs State Historic Site â&#x20AC;˘ 10AM â&#x20AC;˘ This workshop will teach the history of wheat weaving, how to clean the wheat, basic weaving (plaiting) principles, and instructions for completing a simple design. The cost is $20 per person, with proceeds going toward educational programming at Marble Springs. Participation will be limited to 10 individuals. Participants should bring a pair of scissors and a brown bag lunch. To register, call 865-573-5508 or email info@marblesprings.net. The cut-off for registration will be Wednesday, August 5, 2015. â&#x20AC;˘ $20 KWG SCI-FI/FANTASY WRITING WORKSHOP â&#x20AC;˘ Central United Methodist Church â&#x20AC;˘ 1PM â&#x20AC;˘ Jason Sizemore, three-time Hugo Award nominee and editor-in-chief of Apex Publications, will lead a workshop on writing sci-fi and fantasy fiction. The workshop, titled â&#x20AC;&#x153;Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy: Liftoff!,â&#x20AC;? will include writing exercises, discussions and examples of popular short fiction to help attendees craft a memorable and entertaining story. Additional information about KWG can be found at www.KnoxvilleWritersGuild.org. â&#x20AC;˘ $35-$40 Monday, Aug. 10 GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION â&#x20AC;˘ Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church â&#x20AC;˘ 5:30PM â&#x20AC;˘ Call 865-577-2021

or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. Tuesday, Aug. 11 NUTRITION AMMUNITION: WHATâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S THE HYPE ABOUT HYDRATION? â&#x20AC;˘ Cancer Support Community â&#x20AC;˘ 12PM â&#x20AC;˘ Beth Booker, MS, MPH, RD. Are you drinking enough water? How do you stay hydrated during chemo if water tastes bad? What are the signs of dehydration? Join Beth as she provides us with the latest science on keeping hydrated during treatments and beyond. A light lunch will be provided. RSVP. Call 865-546-4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION â&#x20AC;˘ Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church â&#x20AC;˘ 12PM â&#x20AC;˘ Call 865-577-2021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. YOGA WITH SUBAGHJI â&#x20AC;˘ The Birdhouse â&#x20AC;˘ 5:15PM Wednesday, Aug. 12 CANCER: IS IT IN YOUR GENES? â&#x20AC;˘ Cancer Support Community â&#x20AC;˘ 6PM â&#x20AC;˘ Anice Freeman, MS Genetic Counselor. This program will educate you and your family about hereditary cancers including breast, ovarian and colon cancers. Hereditary cancers are caused by a genetic change that has been passed through the family and places individuals at an increased risk to develop certain types of cancers. Anice will discuss what features in a personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s personal family history alert health care providers to a potential risk. A light dinner will be provided. RSVP. Call 865-546- 4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer.

CALENDAR

Saturday, Aug. 8 CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY PROSTATE CANCER NETWORKER • Cancer Support Community • 10AM • This drop-in group is an opportunity for men to network with other men about their experiences with prostate cancer. Please call 865-546-4661 before your first visit. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. AL-ANON • Faith Lutheran Church • 11AM • Visit our local website at farragutalanon.org or email us at FindHope@ Farragutalanon.org. • FREE Sunday, Aug. 9 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. 10 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. 11 SCIENCE CAFE • Ijams Nature Center • 5:30PM • We are going to be having an exciting discussion about Emergent Intelligence and Machine Consciousness with Dr. Bruce MacLennan, an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the University of Tennessee. This meeting is FREE to attend, and everyone is invited! If you have children age 5-12, please bring them for the Kid’s Cafe in the room next door. They will enjoy a science lesson and fun activities while the adults are having their discussion. Please RSVP by calling Ijams Nature Center at (865)577-4717 extension 110, or you can send an e-mail message to rsvp@knoxsciencecafe.org.

ETC.

Thursday, Aug. 6 NEW HARVEST PARK FARMERS MARKET • New Harvest Park • 3PM WUOT OPEN HOUSE • WUOT • 4PM • WUOT radio would like to invite listeners and members of the community to attend the station’s open house Thursday August 6, from 4-7pm. Visitors can meet staff and on-air personalities, explore the station, enjoy delicious treats from area restaurants, share what keeps them up at night at the Tenn Words booth, record their own keepsake radio announcement, enjoy the face painting talents of Faces Gone Wild, relax with a short chair massage by masseuse Aaron Searcy, enter to win prizes and more. So gather all your friends and make plans to join us for this popular annual celebration! “LET US MARCH ON BALLOT BOXES” • Beck Cultural Exchange Center • 6PM • “Let Us March on Ballot Boxes,” an event at the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, 1927 Dandridge Ave., to mark the 50th anniversary of the day President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act. Refreshments will be served from 5:30 p.m., and the program will begin at 6 p.m. The keynote speaker will be Joanne Bland, a lifelong civil rights activist who was just 11 years old when she joined the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., on the day that became known as “Bloody Sunday.”

August 15th at Saw Works Brewing Company From

2pm - 10pm

Friday, Aug. 7 LAKESHORE PARK FARMERS’ MARKET • Lakeshore Park • 3PM Saturday, Aug. 8 SEYMOUR FARMERS MARKET • Seymour First Baptist Church • 8AM OAK RIDGE FARMERS’ MARKET • Historic Jackson Square • 8AM. MARKET SQUARE FARMERS’ MARKET • Market Square • 9AM Tuesday, Aug. 11 EBENEZER ROAD FARMERS’ MARKET • Ebenezer United Methodist Church • 3PM Wednesday, Aug. 12 MARKET SQUARE FARMERS’ MARKET • Market Square • 11AM • Free

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Thursday, Aug. 6 OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS • Recovery at Cokesbury • 5:30PM • FREE KNOXVILLE WRITERS GUILD • Laurel Theater • 7PM • Hugo and Stoker Award-nominated editor and publisher Jason Sizemore will speak at the Thursday, Aug. 6 program of the Knoxville Writers’ Guild. A $2 donation is requested at the door. Sizemore is the owner/operator of Apex Publications, a small press that focuses on science fiction, fantasy and horror. Its “Apex Magazine” has been nominated for the Hugo Award three times. At the monthly program, he will discuss “the genre short fiction renaissance, digital publishing, and where I see it heading.” Sizemore also is slated to lead a workshop Saturday, Aug. 8 titled, “Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy: Liftoff!” More details will be released soon. For more information about KWG and its events, visit www. KnoxvilleWritersGuild.org. CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY BREAST CANCER NETWORKER • Cancer Support Community • 6PM • This drop-in group is an opportunity for women who have or have had breast cancer to come together to exchange information, offer support, education and encouragement. Call 865-546-4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer.

Wednesday, Aug. 12 COMITE POPULAR DE KNOXVILLE • The Birdhouse • 7PM • A weekly meeting of the local immigrant advocacy organization.

MEETINGS

Saw Works Brewing Company 5 Year Anniversary Celebration

Presented by

Food Trucks

Music Line Up Jay Clark Kelsey’s Woods Sunshine Station Hudson K The Lower Caves *Music begins at 2pm and ends around 9pm

Beer Brown Ale | Rocky Hop IPA® | Pale Ale | Buzz Saw

All proceeds from this event will be donated to Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc. Special Release Beer in honor of Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing 708 East Depot Avenue Knoxville, TN 37917

865-247-5952 sawworksbrewing.com

August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 35

A vibrant district along Central Street and Broadway.

Visit Downtown North

LETTERPRESS PRINTING

WE MAKE EXCITING LIMITED EDITION PRINTS

WEEKLY WORKSHOPS

LEARN HOW TO MAKE THINGS YOURSELF

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GALLERY

MONTHLY EXHIBITIONS and UNIQUE ACTIVITIES

STOREFRONT

ART, DECOR, AND EPHEMERA

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WE ARE CURATING AND RECORDING ALBUMS BY OUR FAVORITE LOCAL MUSICIANS

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

107 BEARDEN PLACE (AKA) 900 N. CENTRAL

1020 N. Broadway 865-971-3983 www.sainttattoo.com

KNOXVILLE

Architectural Antics Architecturals

Art & Antiques NEW ITEMS SALVAGED FROM A WHITE AVE. HOUSE!

B E N E F I T $1 from each item sold

will go directly to the foundation

FLATBREAD PIZZA

URBAN wilderness flat broccoli, brussel sprouts, green cabbage, kale,

chicory and garlic sauteed in balsamic vinegar on a hand tossed flat, topped with olive oil & feta cheese *Additional $2 for choice of meat

PANINI 12pm-6pm Wed-Fri 10am-5pm Sat

CAPRESE PANINI Prosciutto, fresh mozzarella and roma tomatoes with a homemade italian dressing

12pm-5pm Sun 865.414.4838 or 865.696.7777 820 N. Broadway • Knoxville TN www.architecturalantics.com

STRIPEDLIGHT.COM

Artist: Tommy Davis

1204 N Central St.

Knoxville, TN

37917

865.247.0392

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!

And, while you're at it, join our Knoxville Mercury League of Supporters—it's integral to bringing in-depth reporting to Knoxville. This paper may be free, but it costs money to produce. Please help us get the job done!

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August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 37

’BYE

R estless Nat ive

Sweet William Makes the Rounds When the Stereos ruled rock ’n’ roll in Knoxville BY CHRIS WOHLWEND

hen Sweet William joined the East Knoxville cruising scene on Sunday nights, he would be, befitting a rock ‘n’ roll star, the center of attention. It was on one such foray that I first became aware of him. It was a summer night and a couple of friends and I had copped a prize back-row spot at the Pizza Palace, the still-standing drive-in on Magnolia Avenue. We were enjoying a Super Deluxe (minus the anchovies) as we scoped out the action. The year was 1966 or so. A white Cadillac convertible, top down, pulled off Magnolia. In the middle of the back seat sat Sweet William with a glitzy blonde female under each arm. Sweet William, real name Bill Sauls, fronted the Stereos, one of Knoxville’s best-known bands at the time. He stood about 6 foot 4, weighed about 260 pounds, and

sported shoulder-length red hair and a matching beard. When he wasn’t on stage and the weather allowed, he accessorized with a leather vest, which allowed glimpses of the chest rug that matched his beard. Possessed of a raspy, furnace-fire voice, Sauls at full tilt was a perfect barroom rock ‘n’ roll singer. For several years, until his fame led him and the Stereos to the road as an opening act for more established groups, Sweet William and the Stereos were rock ’n’ roll in Knoxville. His regular driver was Sticks, the band’s drummer, and, at about 130 pounds, the physical opposite of Sweet William. Excellent at pacing his frontman, Sticks knew to keep the Caddy at a stately parade speed as they made the Magnolia rounds. The ritual was a tour of the Palace, then down the alley to the back entrance of

BY MATTHEW FOLTZ-GRAY

KNOXVILLE MERCURY August 6, 2015

the Tic Toc, then west on Magnolia toward downtown to the Blue Circle at Central, and return, with one more stop. Sweet William’s trips always included visits to the Krystal—Sauls had a penchant for sniffing glue, and he claimed that glue sniffed from a Krystal bag worked best. They were quite the spectacle. Later, when I was working at The Knoxville Journal, I met Sweet William. He was an acquaintance of one of my cohorts, Grady Amann. Both hailed from North Knoxville and had been schoolmates at Fulton High. Sauls would sometimes show up at the Journal seeking publicity, to see if Grady could help. Eventually, after the managing editor banned him from the office as a noisy nuisance, his visits were late at night after the brass had gone home. Sauls made his business contacts with up-and-coming acts playing the Martinique, a notorious club in Daytona Beach, Fla., famous at college campuses throughout the East because of Daytona’s popularity at spring-break time. Another group with a large following at the time also played the Martinique. The Allman Joys would later break nationally as the Allman Brothers Band. Once, after the brothers had become rock stars, Gregg Allman nearly caused a riot at Central Avenue’s Casual Lounge, sitting in with the Stereos. Another of Sauls’ friends who sometimes visited Knoxville was Texan Domingo

Samudio, better known as Sam the Sham, of Pharaohs fame. By the time I met him, Sweet William and the Stereos had a well-established and well-earned reputation for on-stage antics, the kind that draws the college-age crowd while driving club-owners crazy. Once, at Bradley’s Barn near the University of Tennessee campus, a couple of friends and I were seated at a table near the stage as Sauls was working on one of their more popular tunes, the blues standard “C.C. Rider.” Hulking over his electric keyboard in full attack mode, he miscalculated on a run of the keys and toppled off the stage, scattering beer bottles and revelers in all directions. He was helped back onstage, the keyboard was set back up, and the show went on, bar management nervously making sure the star and his instrument were well back from the edge of the stage. “I’m okay,” he told the audience as he sat down. “And, if I need any help, I’ve got a big jar of uppers, downers, leapers, creepers, and crawlers.” The last time I saw him was late one night when he showed up at the Journal. He had, he told us, been hassled by the police as he left the Krystal on Gay Street. “What for?” we wanted to know. “They wanted to get me on a weirdo charge,” he said. “But I told them that at this time of night I fit right in with the rest of downtown’s weirdos, and they had to let me go.” ◆

’BYE

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MISCELLANEOUS

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APPAREL WOMEN’S CLOTHING. 15% off 1 item with ad, new management, new merchandise, Fox Trott Fashions at 4560 Chapman Hwy, 865-806-3352 APPLIANCES

KNOXVILLE’S LARGEST USED APPLIANCE DEALER! We have Washers, Dryers, Refrigerators, Stoves, Dishwashers +More! Top Quality, Name Brands! HUNLEY TURNER 865-689-6508 www. HunleyTurner.com EMPLOYMENT NOW HIRING experienced line cooks, competitive pay and advancement opportunities, Apply in person Mon-Fri 2-4, Sullivan’s Downtown Maryville, 121 W Broadway, Maryville TN, 37804 MISCELLANEOUS HEALTH INSURANCE Short-Term, 1 month to 12 months, Missed Open Enrollment? Newly Hired? Retired from Military? Next Day Coverage! Network Discounts! Dr. Co-Pays. 865-394-0916, CMD1939@gmail. com PETS RARE AND Unique Curly SELKIRK REX, Grand champion sired kittens and some retired show adults, neutered/spayed. $200-$600, 865-556-2904 www.highlandkatz.biz

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CONSTRUCTION AFFORDABLE DEMOLITION & CONSTRUCTION. *Bobcat Work *Hardwood Flooring *Tile *Laminate *Carpet *Decks *Siding *Windows *Doors *Drywall *Painting *Remodeling *Roofing *Demolition *Concrete Removal *ALL TYPES REPAIRS!! Over 40 Years Experience!! Free Estimates, Licensed/Insured, Commercial/Residential, 865-973-6757 FENCING BROWN’S CUSTOM Fencing & Construction. All Types fencing, wood, vinyl, wire, Licensed & Insured, 800-249-6274

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2003 FORD Mustang GT, V8 5spd, all pwr, CD, cold AC, well maintained, $5,000. 865-776-0925

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE 2015 SUBARU OUTBACK 2.5I, Lease for $259 per month. for more details call 888-627-3441.W.A.C.*

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1999 OLDS Cutlass, power windows, sunroof, new tires, good condition, call for additional details, $3,500. 865-640-4996

2015 SUBARU LEGACY 2.5I, Lease for $209 per month. call 888-627-3441. W.A.C.* SUVS GREAT WEST LOCATION, 6506 Westminster Road, $749,000. Private 1.17 acre lot, 4BR, bonus/ rec room, 4.5BA, MASTER MAIN LEVEL, 865-694-8100. www. leanna farrington.com /916423

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VACATION RENTAL

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COUNTRY GETAWAY, Privately Owned 70 acres, NE Tennessee Mountains, Great Weekend/ Week-long stay, $200/week, Weekends(Fri-Sun) $80! Call for reservations, 423-733-9252

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2015 SUBARU XV CROSSTREK 2.0I, Lease for $239 per month. Offer expires August 3rd 2015. for more details call 888-627-3441 W.A.C.* RVS 1996 PACE Arrow Vision Motorhome. 35ft Class A, 42,000 miles, $15,000. 423-346-5230

TO PLACE AN AD CALL 865-249-7061 OR EMAIL AMCLASSIFIEDSKNOXVILLE@YAHOO.COM VIEW OUR ADS ONLINE AT WWW.KNOXVILLEAMERICANCLASSIFIEDS.COM 1

KNOXVILLE MERCURY March 19, 2015

August 6, 2015

KNOXVILLE MERCURY 39

Lincoln Memorial University HARROGATE, TENNESSEE

â&#x20AC;&#x153;They are loyal, there, General, they are loyal.â&#x20AC;? - President Lincoln to Gen. O. O. Howard on September 27, 1863 Following the Civil War, General Oliver Otis Howard assisted in the foundation of two educational institutions aimed at providing opportunities for underserved populations. First he helped secure land and financial resources in Washington, D.C., for a University to train African-American ministers and the institution was named in his honor. Later, recalling his last meeting with President Abraham Lincoln, when the Commander in Chief gave him a survey map of the area he was heading and remarked on the need to do something after the war for the loyal people of the region, he joined a group of educators building schools for underprivileged mountain families. Founding the institution as a living memorial to the fallen President, Lincoln Memorial University was chartered on February 12, 1897.