ALWAYS LOOKING FOR A NEW ANGLE ON KNOXVILLE
SEPT. 17, 2015 KNOXMERCURY.COM
1 / N. 28
V.
Bruce McCamish’s Faceb k-famous photos ve a surprising new perspective on Knoxvie
NEWS
Grandma Sues Gov. Haslam Over Changes to Right to Farm Act
JACK NEELY
Searching for Nina Simone’s Mysterious Knoxville Show
THEATER
Clarence Brown Theatre’s Stylish Hitchcock Parody The 39 Steps
THE VAULT
Tracing the Legend of Singing Preacher Pappy “Gube” Beaver
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
Your career path is here.
Sept. 17, 2015 Volume 01 / Issue 28 knoxmercury.com
CONTENTS
“The most fatal illusion is the settled point of view.” —Brooks Atkinson
NEWS
14 Legal Maze
An 86-year-old grandmother in Blount County is suing Gov. Bill Haslam over updates to a state law she says were passed to slight her and benefit her neighbor, a farmer who likes to throw concerts and other events on his 225-acre plot next to her home. The complicated legal battle raises a number of property rights issues, as Clay Duda reports.
16 A Fresh Angle
COVER STORY
Bruce McCamish has been taking pictures as a hobby for more than 40 years, and professionally for more than a decade, but only recently have his arresting images drawn fans, as evidenced by vigorous sharing on social media, use of his work by some prominent institutions, as well as a recent public show of his work as art, with more to come in the near future. Some viewers are convinced his images of familiar places are manipulated through some computer wizardry. But he’s just showing us our familiar world from an unexpected angle, a point of view we’ve never experienced before. Jack Neely takes a look.
Join Our League of Supporters! Let me tell you, this ain’t easy. Find out how you can help at knoxmercury.com/join.
DEPARTMENTS
OPINION
A&E
4 Letters 6 Howdy
8 The Scruffy Citizen
22 Program Notes: The Dirty
30 Spotlights: Packway Handle Band,
23 Inside the Vault: Eric Dawson
FOOD & DRINK
Start Here: Photo by Bart Ross, Believe It or Knox!, Public Affairs, Quote Factory. PLUS: Words With … Natalie Kurylo
46 ’Bye
Finish There: At This Point by Stephanie Piper, Crooked Street Crossword by Ian Blackburn and Jack Neely, Spirit of the Staircase by Matthew Foltz-Gray
Jack Neely asks for your help in tracking down Nina Simone’s Knoxville performance, and digitizing the News Sentinel.
10 Possum City
Eleanor Scott catches up with the Sunflower Project’s post-Labor Day plans.
12 Perspectives
Joe Sullivan reports on China’s growing economic and cultural presence in Knoxville.
CALENDAR Guv’nahs’ last dance.
examines a revised documentary on Pappy “Gube” Beaver.
24 Music: Mike Gibson chats with the fun-loving Gamenight.
26 Theater: Alan Sherrod ascends
Pagan Pride 2015
44 From Dirt to Fork
Rose Kennedy reports on her fierce competitiveness at the Tennessee Valley Fair.
The 39 Steps.
27 Video: Lee Gardner 28 Movies: April Snellings takes The Visit.
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 3
LETTERS Delivering Fine Journalism Since 2015
THE POTENTIAL TO MOTIVATE
I think that having a Black Lives Matter group in Knoxville can be a motivational and inspirational movement. [“First Black Lives Matter Knoxville Meeting Draws Crowd,” news feature by Clay Duda, Aug. 13, 2015 at knoxmercury.com, Aug. 20 in print] I do, however, disagree with the Black Lives Matter group as far as mailing lists are concerned. I personally believe that due to the recently publicized police brutality in America that many other races besides black people are starting to understand the struggles that black people face and they want to help. I’m concerned that the message behind the group, which is to preserve black lives just as other lives are, will get distorted. I am also concerned that all the attention that comes with the group will cause outside issues for black people that aren’t associated with Black Lives Matter, from those who might have some prejudices such as corrupt police officers and KKK members. I have never had a racist run-in with the authorities; however, I think that it’s never too early to be prepared. My hopes for BLM Knoxville is for them to reach the hearts of corrupt officers and Klan members so that they can see that black people are humans and deserve the same rights as every other race in America. I think BLM Knoxville will bring urban communities together. I would love to see the BLM movement stop other races from hating and harming black people as well as to stop black people from harming and hating each other as well. De’Ja’K Brisby Knoxville
I was amused by the quotes in the Mountain Press by “Hoss” Seals. [Quote Factory, Sept. 3, 2015] It’s really hard for me to believe he is in such a position of power. Sevier County is politically a very backward county, and I have the pleasure of living in Seymour so I live with it every day. There are more “F Obama” stickers on pick-ups in this area than there are legal license plates. When it’s normal for people to pack pistols in church, you know something is not quite right. And there are more rebel flags than U.S. flags. One would think the Civil War is still raging here. Jeff Foxworthy might say: If you live in a county where the sheriff’s name is Hoss, you might be a redneck. William Wright Seymour
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
2015
TOP KNOX RESULTS COMING RIGHT UP!
Voting in our inaugural readers’ survey is now complete! We are commencing to assemble the ultimate guide to Knoxville’s most cherished places, people, and institutions. Look for our Top Knox 2015 issue on Thursday, Oct. 15.
HOT NEW TALENT
Here’s my favorite busker on Market Square. Makinnon Layne is 12 years old and everybody loves him and his music. Managers of restaurants ask him to play in front of their businesses, and he has played to diners at Icon at the Sunsphere. He is also an actor and he costars in Bandit and the Saints of Dogwood, just released on DVD on Sept. 1. He can also be seen in the upcoming 2015 Knoxville Film Festival, starring in director Tom Rowland’s short film “The Little Dreamer.”
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 Ian Blackburn Bryan Charles Patrice Cole Eric Dawson George Dodds Lee Gardner Mike Gibson Carey Hodges Nick Huinker Donna Johnson
Rose Kennedy Dennis Perkins Stephanie Piper Ryan Reed Eleanor Scott Alan Sherrod April Snellings Joe Sullivan Kim Trevathan William Warren Chris Wohlwend
DESIGN
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 Send an email to: editor@knoxmercury.com Or message us at: facebook.com/knoxmercury
Marianne Scates Oliveira Knoxville 4
EDITORIAL
LIVING BACKWARD
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
Knox Heritage Without this preservationist organization, the city of Knoxville would lack many of its now-familiar landmarks. Knox Heritage began in 1974 as a group of volunteers gathered to save the Bijou Theatre, at a time when it appeared the 1909 landmark was going to be demolished. Soon afterward, KH took on an even more ambitious goal, that of saving the crumbling Victorian architecture of the Old City, the almost-forgotten warehouse district.
3425 Kingston Pike, is hosting a free Lunch & Learn event featuring author and professional tour guide Laura Still, on her recent book, A Haunted History of Knoxville. That evening, the Scruffy City Soirée is one of Knoxville’s most fun fundraisers. The venue is the Standard, the West Jackson event space, formerly a half-ruined industrial building that had been approved for demolition before Knox Heritage intervened, and connected its owner with a preservationist developer. This year’s includes a buffet dinner, wine and beer, and clever skits and songs in a one-of-a-kind floor show that’s often talked about for months afterward. Check knoxheritage.org for reservations.
In recent years, Knox Heritage has played a critical role in saving and restoring several of the now-popular historic buildings that make up downtown Knoxville, including the S&W, the Daylight, and the Standard.
Also active in preserving residential neighborhoods, Knox Heritage is well known for its work with Fourth & Gill, Bijou Theatre, ca. 1931 Old North, Mechanicsville, Parkridge, PHOTO COURTESY OF KNOX HERITAGE Victorian neighborhoods that have On Sept. 19, beginning at 10 AM, the Knox dramatically improved during Knox Heritage Salvage Shop will host a donation Heritage’s tenure. Lately KH has been exploring the best of the area’s drive with a 10-25 percent off sale (more for donors) on vintage and “mid-century modern” architecture from the 1950s and even early ’60s. hard-to-find architectural salvage and antiques, including fresh donations from Modern Supply, useful both for historic remodeling and for art projects. Much of the press Knox Heritage gets concerns controversies involving an owner neglecting or attempting to demolish a building deemed to have On September 24, at 5 PM, is an extraordinarily rare opportunity for the historical or architectural value. However, most of Knox Heritage’s work is curious. For most of its 75-year history, the Eugenia Williams house, set back quiet and cooperative. Its staff of six works daily to help property owners from Lyons View and located behind a high brick wall, was the home of a make the most of their historic properties. single property owner who did not welcome visitors. It was the work of one of Knoxville’s best-known architects, John Fanz Staub (1892-1981), who was KH helps property owners understand tax credits and other legal born and raised in Knoxville but did most of his work in the Houston area. advantages of preservation. Many of these advantages come by way of a The interior of the house was a mystery even to its neighbors. It has been listing in the National Register of Historic Places. To qualify, a house or owned by the university for several years, but its future is uncertain. Knox building needs to be at least 50 years old, to be in a form not much Heritage is hosting an exceedingly rare members’ tour of the mansion. changed since its construction, and to be of some historical or architecNon-members still have a chance to join. (Memberships start at $25.) tural significance. Knox Heritage helps property owners explore that possibility.
Knox Heritage also helps with strictly practical sides of preservation, connecting property owners with salvage materials and with professional advice on preservation projects and dilemmas. KH also helps prospective sellers find prospective buyers. Now made up of about 1,400 dues-paying members, Knox Heritage is one of the city’s most vigorous nonprofit organizations, especially in terms of hosting public events--as a partial calendar over the next five weeks suggests:
At 11:30 this Friday, Sept. 18, Knox Heritage’s headquarters at Westwood,
For those who might prefer a lower-key fundraiser than the Soiree, on Sept. 26 comes Bierfest 2015: Pints for Preservation, in the parking lot of Flats & Taps, located in a block of renovated prewar commercial buildings central to Happy Holler. And next month, on Oct. 22-24, Knox Heritage hosts the 2015 East Tennessee Preservation Conference. Described as a dynamic event for learning and networking, it draws preservationists, architects, planners, tourism professionals, government and community leaders, economic developers, real estate dealers and others who know that historic preservation principles and practices are valuable. The keynote speaker will be Donovan Rypkema, of Washington, DC, a nationally know expert on the economics of preservation.
For more information see knoxheritage.org
The Knoxville History Project, a new nonprofit organization devoted to the promotion of and education about the history of Knoxville, presents this page each week to raise awareness of the themes, personalities, and stories of our unique city. Learn more on www.facebook.com/knoxvillehistoryproject • email jack@knoxhistoryproject.org September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 5
Illustration by Ben Adams
HOWDY
Believe It or Knox! BY Z. HERACLITUS KNOX
“Don The Helmet Of Mambrino Or Bank Of America Knoxville TN I” by Bart Ross (bartross.com)
“ Charging taxpayers for exercising their right to merely inspect the very documents their taxes pay to produce is a ridiculous step backward.” —Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett, in an Associated Press story about the state’s examination of proposed changes to charge a fee to citizens who want to simply view public records. Currently, state offices only charge for making copies of records.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS
9/17 31ST ANNUAL TRIBUTE TO WOMEN 9/19 10TH ANNUAL MECHANICSVILLE HOMECOMING THURSDAY
7 p.m., Bijou Theatre. $85. The YWCA’s big fundraiser salutes local women who are role models in their fields, both professionally and in a volunteer capacity. Out of 20 finalists, five are selected by out-of-state judges to be honored at the ceremony. A reception will be held beforehand at First Tennessee Plaza, starting at 5:30 p.m. Info: ywcaknox.com.
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
SATURDAY
10 a.m., Danny Mayfield Park (227-256 Gross Dr.). Free. The Mechanicsville Community Association hosts this celebration of the neighborhood and reunion of current or past residents, with a parade from Fifth Avenue and University Avenue starting at 10 a.m., and a party at Danny Mayfield Park starting at 11 a.m.
9/21 MEETING: EAST TOWNE AREA MONDAY
7 p.m., Alice Bell Baptist Church (3305 Alice Bell Rd.). Free This meeting of the Alice Bell Spring Hill Neighborhood Association is devoted to the future of the East Towne area. Officials from TDOT will be on hand to present plans for safety corridor improvements; also in attendance will be officials from the city of Knoxville and Knox County. What will it take to revitalize things here?
Knoxville is associated with two of the English-speaking world’s most recognizable animal experts! “Jungle Jack” Hanna grew up in Knoxville, and worked for the Knoxville Zoo in his youth. English-born Stan Brock first became famous as an intrepid animal expert on the popular show Wild Kingdom, but is now based in the Knoxville area as a philanthropist in charge of the nonprofit Remote Area Medical. Sequoyah Hills was almost the site of a steel mill! Knoxville already had iron foundries in the early 1890s when a New Jersey firm bought up the river peninsula for a giant factory. A short depression called the Panic of 1893 ended that and several other local projects. University of Tennessee founder Samuel Carrick, who also founded Knoxville’s first church, First Presbyterian, died in 1809 and is buried in that church’s downtown cemetery. Between his first names are the letters “CZR.” To this day, no one knows what that means!
9/24 WORKSHOP: SAVINGS IN THE HOUSE THURSDAY
6:30-7:30 p.m., Morningside Community Center (1617 Dandridge Ave.). Free. Socially Equal Energy Efficient Development (SEEED) will be leading this workshop on how to stop wasting energy and take control of your utility bills. Info: Stan Johnson, SEEED’s executive director, at 865-766-5185.
HOWDY WORDS WITH ...
Natalie Kurylo BY ROSE KENNEDY Natalie Kurylo is hosting a Big Fluffy Hair 4 Big Fluffy Dogs event Friday, Sept. 18 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at 2931 Kingston Pike. The event, with light refreshments, a silent auction, and music by the Lonetones, will raise funds for the Nashville-based Big Fluffy Dog Rescue, which includes numerous Knoxville fosters. Kurylo will also live-auction her hair—high bidders will get to cut off sections for donation to Pantene’s Beautiful Lengths, and then her hairstylist, Carla Mobley, will shave her bald.
Did the idea for a charity to benefit come first, or the event?
The first thing was, I thought, “I’m going to grow my hair out.” I’d always had short hair. Then, I grew it and thought, “I’m going to shave my head.” Next, “I’m going to grow it out long enough to donate.” Then, “I could turn this into some sort of spectacle and raise funds.” And about a month ago, I decided to do it for Big Fluffy Dog Rescue, just because I’m a big fan and hope to foster for them in the future.
Will you have big fluffy hair for the event?
I can make it big and fluffy because it has a lot of curl. But at the event, it won’t be, because it needs to be as manageable as possible to be cut. But there will be other fluffy things. I’m wearing a big fluffy tutu, for example.
Why do you have a fluffy tutu?
It was handmade for me by a local woman. I think it was done for Halloween. Or a costume wedding? One of those.
Why’d you select Pantene Beautiful Lengths for the hair donation?
I think they do good work, and they donate wigs for women with cancer. Also, they only require your hair donated to be 8 inches, which is good in case the ends of my hair are a little damaged or in case one of the high bidders makes a really bad cut.
How long is your hair?
My hair stylist thought about 13 inches, measuring from my scalp.
How fast will it grow back?
I’ve been growing it for this since the beginning of 2012—just some trimming, no major cuts.
Do you have some interesting auction items?
Oh, so many, just a few are original art, a massive quartz crystal, essential oils, beard-care products, lots of gift certificates, including one for a local bed-and-breakfast. And we’ll have a selection of baskets with stuff for dogs, donated by local stores. One basket is all products for dog hair, which my hairdresser brought. Did you know Paul Mitchell has dog-hair products?
Who is your favorite big, fluffy dog?
My dog Ryder, who is 14 1/2—a chow lab collie I rescued while I was living in South Carolina, when he was just 3 months old. He has a really sweet smile because he has a big spotted tongue.
How long have you been a fan of BFDR?
I started following them on Facebook a few years back because some of my heliotropic healing clients foster some of their dogs locally. Also, the woman who started the group 10 years ago writes these really hilarious late-night updates about the dogs who are available for foster and adoption. This past summer she posted that for the first time they were having to turn away some dogs due to funding. And it got me upset, because they are one of the rescues that take sick or injured animals, so I want to help. For more information, see the event Facebook page or BigFluffyDogs.com. Donors to Big Fluffy Dog Rescue can also drop off checks at Kurylo’s 428 E. Scott Ave. office, Heliotropic Healing. September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 7
SCRUFFY CITIZEN
Documentation Nina Simone, and From Paper to Pixels BY JACK NEELY
T
he new documentary about Nina Simone is making the rounds. It may not ever reach local theaters (it’s a Netflix production, available for streaming), but several weeks ago the Pilot Light, the Old City nightclub that usually hosts interesting live music, showed it to a crowd. There is no one much like Simone (1933-2003), who forged her own way among jazz vocalists, both creatively and tragically on her own. The documentary’s title, What Happened, Miss Simone?, refers to her psychological disintegration, at the height of her influence. According to her family, she suffered extremes of bipolar disorder. She was a sophisticated, insightful, and talented woman, but she was unpredictable, depressive, and at times severe, even when she was onstage. In a section about her punishing schedule, several viewers notice a surprise. A typewritten schedule sheet, shown for a few seconds, notes a show at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, on Nov. 14. The year isn’t noted. Simone spent much of her adulthood in Africa and Europe, and cultivated a worldly, exotic persona. But she was born and raised just about 150 miles southeast of here, in Tryon, N.C. They knew her, in the ’30s and ’40s, as Eunice Waymon, the talented young pianist with big dreams. Tryon is hillier than Knoxville. If we don’t think of Nina Simone as a Southern Appalachian, we just need
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
to broaden our expectations of what Southern Appalachians look like. The documentary points out that she grew up in a segregated, discriminatory, but supportive community that raised money to send her to study classical piano at Juilliard. She aspired to be the world’s first black classical concert pianist. When that didn’t work out as planned, she settled for becoming a legendary jazz vocalist. I knew something of her legend, but was unaware she ever performed here. She influenced young poet Nikki Giovanni, who wrote that she first encountered Simone’s music here in her hometown, but only via the nickel jukebox at the Carter-Roberts Drugstore on old Vine Avenue, around 1958, when her rendition of “I Loves You Porgy” was a hit. A few years later, Giovanni and Simone would occupy comparable places in the Black Power movement.
Eric Dawson, Mercury columnist and staffer at the Tennessee Archive of Moving Image and Sound, noticed the mention of Simone’s Knoxville show and tried to look it up. Because he found a brief mention of it in a 1965 UT yearbook, he thinks her appearance at UT was on Nov. 14, 1964. But it’s not mentioned in either daily paper. Popular music was often ignored by journalists in those days. That date would put it at the height of her influence on the political fringe; her controversial song “Mississippi Goddam,” which condemns the white reaction to civil-rights advances, singling out Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee (“caused me to lose my rest,” she sang), caused a stir earlier that year. It reminded me of a question about another jazz legend of an earlier generation, Chick Webb. He rarely toured, and the New Yorker rarely toured the South, but according to the 2012 documentary, The Savoy King, he did once play Knoxville, in the mid-1930s. Where? When, exactly? We don’t know, yet. If you witnessed either of those shows, please drop me a line. Webb is a long shot, but I bet there’s someone out there who remembers Simone.
I thought I’d add a related personal note to the Knox County Public Library’s ambitious digitization project, From Paper to Pixels. A year or two ago, I experienced a particularly dramatic demonstration of the value of that service, in its absence. I was working on a big book about the Tennessee Theatre. Everybody grew up hearing about the Tennessee’s first golden era, about 1928 to 1940, mainly by
If we don’t think of Nina Simone as a Southern Appalachian, we just need to broaden our expectations of what Southern Appalachians look like.
way of a dutifully enumerated list of performers: Glenn Miller, Fannie Bryce, Tom Mix, Helen Hayes, Desi Arnaz. Sometimes, but not always, the exotic singer and dancer Fifi D’Orsay was included. But what did they do at the Tennessee? How were they received? When were they there? Just a date would answer most of our questions. But we didn’t even have that, except in the case of Glenn Miller and his orchestra. His national live broadcast at the Tennessee in 1940 was documented. To tell the story, we needed more than that. I never doubted that Fannie Bryce, Tom Mix, Helen Hayes, and Desi Arnaz performed on the Tennessee’s stage. Though mainly a movie theater, the Tennessee had live performers every night, and Knoxville was about as good as any mid-sized market for touring shows and promotions, for traveling vaudeville troupes, and later, in the mid-’30s—surprisingly, considering it was the depths of the Depression—a few really big shows, including some of those that offered dozens of dancing girls. It was an elusive quest. We didn’t have dates for most of these seemingly memorable events, and newspapers from that era aren’t indexed. With some help of a couple of others, I had to crank through miles of newspaper microfilm. Hundreds of man-hours went into finding all that, and other stuff unknown, like the fact that the Grand Old Opry once did a 1935 road show there, when Uncle Dave Macon was the star. Some had begun to lose faith in the sketchiest of all the legends: that Fifi D’Orsay was there once. She was kind of racy for Knoxville’s biggest theater. Finding her local show on microfilm was a memorable afternoon. I’m proud of all the work we did on that, the perspiration and the inspiration, the trudging and the triangulating. I figured I’d spend the rest of my life answering the question, “How the hell did you find all that?” With From Paper to Pixels, what took me hundreds of hours will soon take just a few minutes. And you’ll be able to do it at home, with a cold beer. It will be routine. I’m strangely okay with that. Though like any crusty old adventurer, I’ll still enjoy telling the stories of how difficult, and fun, it was. ◆
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A celebration of the life of Howard Armstrong
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Steve Gulley & New Pinnacle
Alvin “Youngblood” Hart’s Muscle Theory Armstrong Legacy Trio
(featuring Ralphe Armstrong, Ray Kamalay and John Reynolds)
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Knoxville’s legal eagle, John Neal. Call now for personal attention to your insurance claim dispute case. 1-844-BE-WISE2 • 865-312-9135 • NealLawFirmKnoxville.com
Emi Sunshine Pinnacle Mountain Boys Reunion Sparky and Rhoda Rucker Tennessee Schmaltz / Maggie Longmire Kelle Jolly and the Will Boyd Project Dixieghost / Y’uns Jugband New River Boys Keith Brown and The Blue Print
COVE LAKE STATE PARK
CARYVILLE, TN Interstate 75 EXIT 134
louiebluie.org saturday
sept. 26 10am-7pm free admission
2015
Craft Village, Kids' Zone, Art and Quilt Show, Food Vendors
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 9
POSSUM CITY
Heritage Harvest The continuing activities of the post-Labor Day Sunflower Project BY ELEANOR SCOTT
A
t the west end of the grassy rectangle of the Krutch Park extension, a 15-foot-tall circle of sunflowers woven onto chain-link substrate looms like an enormous organic parade float. Within the yellow ring, a shape outlined in darker flower heads could be a boot. The back of the piece is just as interesting, the thick interlacing stems holding fast without string or wire. Two businesswomen take photos in front of the piece, fussing about the mud on their high heels. Their friend walks over. “Did you find out what that is?” he asks. “That” is the completed sculpture installed during the Labor Day Sunflower Project community ceremony in which people brought their own sunflowers from home to weave onto the fence. All morning, participants (100-150 in all, project organizer Gerry Moll estimates) trickled by with sunflowers to add to the art project. The weaving process was accompanied by a sunflower-themed performance by Cattywampus Puppet Council, as well as music by Kelle Jolly and the percussion group Bateria Appalachia. A potluck and speeches by Jobs With Justice labor activists concluded the 8th annual LDSP event. The highly visible—and audible—ceremony is a celebration of work and the defining event of the Labor Day Sunflower Project. After the ceremony, the cycle of work begins again. Now the LDSP folks are busy with other, lower-profile sunflower
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
endeavors. Moll and a crew of volunteers dismantled the art piece after a few days, piling the sunflower heads on blankets. On Nov. 6, 7-10 p.m., the Birdhouse 4th and Gill Community Center will host a winnowing party with a potluck, bonfire, keg, and live music. The traditional winnowing process has a cinematic visual poetry. If the day is warm and windy, members of the winnowing party will gather
around a blanket spread on the grass. The heads of the laboring party cluster around the pile of dry sunflower heads mimicking the structure of the inflorescence—the single head of the sunflower composed of a cluster of tiny flowers. The best way to remove the seeds, Moll says, is to rub two flower heads together and let the seeds drop onto the blanket. When enough seeds are collected, each person grasps an edge of the blanket, throwing the seeds into the air like children tossing a toy parachute. The wind blows away the dried petals and debris, while the heavier seeds fall back safely into the sheet. Or, if there is no wind, several electric fans should do the job. The clean seeds are packaged in paper envelopes and given away as party favors, or saved to be sold to fund next year’s project. These seeds are a mixture—a grab bag of sunflower varieties from individual home gardens. Off a curvy country road in East Knox County lies the LDSP Landrace Heritage Sunflower Patch. This 9-foot by 20-foot fenced garden plot bursts with yellow Seneca sunflowers. “Landrace” refers to any ancient crop native to a particular area and domesticated by the inhabitants. Branching wild sunflowers with many relatively small heads are native to North America, while the domestic
sunflower is a single flower head atop a tall thick stem. Four years ago, Josh Bremseth, an early LDSP operative, wrote the National Center for Germplasm Preservation asking for heritage sunflower seeds. The center gave him 47. The Seneca patch is now in its fourth year of growing out, and the number of seeds has grown exponentially. The patch is isolated from contemporary cultivars to prevent cross pollination, and Moll says these seeds will be winnowed separately. In the 1990s, paleoenthnobotanist Gary Crites found the earliest evidence of domesticated sunflowers at the Hayes archaeological site in Middle Tennessee. Radiocarbon dating suggests prehistoric North Americans domesticated the sunflower as a food crop over 4,000 years ago. Crites, who happens to be director of paleoethnobotany at the University of Tennessee’s McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, was lurking in the audience during a recent event in which Moll spoke about the Labor Day Sunflower Project. Crites approached Moll afterward, with valuable pointers and information on prehistoric sunflowers. At the heritage patch, heavy heads and fading petals say it is time to harvest soon. In reality, these Seneca sunflowers are no longer a food crop. With all today’s available alternatives, it is too much trouble to harvest, winnow, and shell for a tiny nugget of sunflower meat. Why do heritage crops matter? A paleoethnobotanist might say they matter now because they mattered then, to ancient people who shaped the environment slowly. “From a scientific standpoint, these crops are perfectly suited to being here, so its strengthens the ecosystem. Insects co-evolved with heritage plants, and on up [the food chain]. It takes the base out of the ecosystem when you don’t have these native or heritage plants,” Moll says. Moll is also a member of the Plant Rescue Squad—a team that digs up and transplants special native plants threatened by development. “For me, [preserving] heritage plants is about building identity and creating a sense of place, a connection. Being tuned in and having a special relationship with plants in this area leads to being good caretakers of the land,” Moll says. “The more diverse an ecosystem, the stronger it is.” ◆
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THINK YOUR APARTMENT IS SMOKE FREE? THINK AGAIN.
If you live in an apartment building, secondhand smoke can get into your home from other apartments, common areas, doorways, cracks in the walls, electrical lines, plumbing, and ventilation systems.
There’s NO SUCH THING as a “safe” level of exposure. For information on how to go smoke-free where you live, call Knox County Health Department at 865-215-5170.
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 11
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China’s economic and cultural presence in Knoxville grows BY JOE SULLIVAN
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
E
conomically, educationally, and culturally, the Chinese presence in the Knoxville area is on the rise. Consider: • At least five China-based or owned companies now have operations here with employment totaling about 400 at plants that make auto parts, footwear, plastic goods, and tire-making equipment. • The number of students from China enrolled at the University of Tennessee has grown from 401 to 599 over the past five years and now represents 43 percent of the university’s international students. • The mission of a Confucius Institute sponsored by an affiliate of the Chinese Ministry of Education is to “enhance the learning of the Chinese language and culture in our region.” A Moon Festival celebration hosted by the institute on Friday evening, Sept, 18 at Pellissippi State Community College will feature Chinese traditional music, singing, and dancing. (For more information go to confucius.utk.edu.) All this at a time when relations between the U.S. and China are strained, to say the least. Cyberattacks and reciprocal charges of unfair trade practices are getting headlines, as are the recent Chinese economic slowdown and currency devaluation that have been widely blamed for a big dip in the U.S. stock market. Yet this very impact suggests that the old saying about the rest of the
world catching a cold when the U.S. sneezes may have been stood upon its head. And the assistant commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, Clint Brewer, asserts that, “despite the recent slowdown, China is looking like the Japan of 30 years ago. We will very likely see more and more investment from China flowing into the U.S. in the coming years.” Based in Knoxville, the founder and executive director of the TN-China Network, Elizabeth Rowland, points out that “several positive developments in the past year have a dramatic impact on outbound Chinese investment.” These mostly involve “a loosening of regulations on the part of Chinese government departments, including the elimination of an approval requirement for investment in non-sensitive industries.” The very existence of a TN-China Network here fostered by Rowland’s expertise in this field is perhaps the single strongest testament to Knoxville’s emergence as a center of China-related activity. Rowland is the 36-year-old daughter of Mike (now deceased) and Ann Rowland, who were partners in the Rowland & Rowland law fi rm that was also a pioneer in downtown restoration with its distinctive offices in Gay Street’s Century Building, which they owned. After working for former Congressman Harold Ford Jr. both before
and during his unsuccessful 2006 Senate campaign against Bob Corker, Elizabeth Rowland opted to get a master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Relations. She then set out for China and went to work for the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai where she edited a publication aimed at U.S. companies doing business there. A move to Beijing followed to join the prestigious Washington-based law fi rm Covington and Burling, working on China projects for its clients. Rowland might well still be in China except for the fact that in 2013 her mother developed a health problem that brought her back to Knoxville, and that’s when her vision for a TN-China Network germinated. Its mission is to: serve as a fi rst-stop information resource for Tennessee-China business; foster state-wide networking for Tennessee and Chinese businesses; help Tennessee become a place that ”gets” China through informative events and publications; build Tennessee’s brand in China as an investment destination and source of innovative exports. Rowland believes that the state department of ECD’s Chinese representatives have been much more focused on exports than investment, and that needs to change. “Chinese investment in this country is growing astronomically,” she says. “This year we’ve gotten three Chinese companies without even focusing on it. Just imagine what we could be doing if we really focused on it.” ECD’s Brewer claims that, “During the Haslam administration, TNECD has recruited 10 projects that have committed to create more than 1,300 jobs in the state.” But there would seem to be at least an implicit acknowledgment that it is less than satisfied with these results. To wit, the state has recently terminated its contracts with the two fi rms that have represented Tennessee in China over the past several years. And Brewer reports that, “Currently, we are in an RFI {Request for Information} process for all our foreign offices.” The RFI seems mainly aimed at eliciting responses from entities that already have a China presence. But it strikes me that Rowland and her network (tnchinanetwork.org) could have a role to play. ◆
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 13
Legal Maze An ongoing property rights battle in Blount County pits an 86-year-old grandma vs. Gov. Haslam BY CLAY DUDA
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n 86-year-old grandmother in Blount County is suing Gov. Bill Haslam over updates to a state law she says were passed to slight her and benefit her neighbor, a farmer who likes to throw concerts and other events on his 225-acre plot next to her home. Velda J. Shore, of Greenback, filed a federal lawsuit earlier this year against the governor and Blount County Mayor Ed Mitchell challenging the constitutionality of updates made last year to Tennessee’s Right to Farm Act. Tweaks to the decades-old bill— which, in part, shields farmers and farm lands from local zoning and land use regulations—essentially redefined the state’s definition of agriculture to more broadly include entertainment such as concerts, festivals, and pretty much anything else fun that could earn a farmer an extra buck or two. “Renaming ‘entertainment’ as ‘farming’ is patently absurd,” the lawsuit reads, comparing it to
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
redefining cows as four wheelers. “The irrationality simply shifts land formerly used by cows to land used by four wheelers or land used for agricultural purposes to land used for entertainment purposes.” Essentially, the new wording makes it nearly impossible to challenge a farmer’s decision to throw down on his or her land since entertainment activities, by legal definition, could not be considered a nuisance under Tennessee law—provided, of course, the property was primarily used for farming. But Shore contends the law is far too broad, opening the door for everything from rock concerts to motorcycle races on lands meant for corn stalks and cow pastures, while taking away ordinary folks’ rights to property and due process. “I just want the rights of the people given back to us, where we have the right to seek justice,” Shore says. “At this point, we have none. You can’t go to a (zoning) board for a hearing, or
go to the courts and file a lawsuit (over these types of things)—the new law doesn’t allow nuisance lawsuits.” The state is challenging those assertions and petitioning the federal court in the East District of Tennessee to toss out the suit, saying the governor himself shouldn’t be named in a lawsuit challenging state legislation even if he was the one who signed it into law. It could be several more months before a judge makes a decision to either hear or dismiss the case. A spokesperson for the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, Harlow Sumerford, declined to discuss specifics about the case, but said he believed the law was constitutional and the governor shouldn’t be facing a lawsuit over it. Attorney Craig Garrett, representing Blount County, did not return calls. Maple Lane Farms owner Bob Schmidt is already counting the updates to Tennessee’s Right to Farm Act as a victory, and one he hopes holds out. For more than seven years now he has been embroiled in an ongoing lawsuit with Shore, fighting for a right to host concerts and festivals that he says help make ends meet on his family’s farm next to her home. “The face of agriculture has been changing constantly. It’s changed more the past five years than it has in the past 20, and in the past 20 it’s changed more than it has in the last 100,” says Schmidt, who purchased the farm back in 1985, years before Shore moved in next door. “We’re constantly having to reach out and embrace new ideas to help pay the mortgage. This agritourism thing was
a natural fit.” Schmidt isn’t named in the federal lawsuit, but the twists and turns of his storied court battle with Shore laid the groundwork for its filing. After the Tennessee Supreme Court sided with Shore last year, overturning two lower courts’ rulings, Schmidt and lobbyists petitioned state legislators to change state law to specifically include entertainment under protections for farmers. “The Legislature at the urging of the Farm Bureau and the [sic] Mr. Schmidt made this change to the definition of agriculture to try to help farmers such as Mr. Schmidt be able to make a living in today’s environment through farming,” an April 2014 letter from Schmidt’s attorney, Melanie Davis, reads. “This action was done in response to the Supreme Court ruling…” Sen. Mark Norris, R-Collierville, even referenced the case when introducing his bill, 2014’s SB 1614, to a subcommittee last year. But Schmidt credits the Farm Bureau lobby for pushing for the changes, saying he doesn’t have much, if any, pull at the capitol. He says he’s just trying to make ends meet in a tough economy, while Shore argues she fought hard for this legal victory just to have politicians step in and snatch it away. The entire dispute started in 2007 when Shore filed a complaint with the Blount County Commission over the increasing number of concerts and other events, including festivals and helicopter rides, being held at Maple Lane Farms. The farm had become well known for its annual fall festival, which features a hayride
THE TOP KNOX VOTES ARE IN!
Country music star Luke Bryan, seen here at a 2014 show at Maple Lane Farms, will return to the Blount County farm Oct. 2. Concerts held on the rural property since 2006 have spurred two lawsuits filed by owner Bob Schmidt's neighbor, Velda J. Shore, centering on noise and property rights issues. Photo courtesy Joy Kimbrough, The Daily Times
and corn maze of different design each year, and expanded with other shows and events from 2006 to 2008, according to records. Shore equated it to “living close to another ‘Dollywood,’” and several other neighbors would later testify to noise issues. Building Commissioner Roger Fields told Schmidt in a letter that the corn maze was a-okay with the county, but the music shows and helicopter rides would have to stop. Schmidt appealed, and in Jan. 2008 the local Board of Zoning Appeals voted 3-2 against him, ruling concerts were “not being supportive of agricultural use” and limiting Maple Lane Farms to just one music performance annually. But, according to Schmidt’s lawyer, that ruling didn’t apply since farms were exempt from county zoning and nuisance rules under the state’s Right to Farm Act, a 1982 bill designed to protect the interests of farmers as many urban areas around the state continued to expand and threaten traditionally rural environs with development. Shore filed a lawsuit in Blount County Chancery Court shortly after, in early 2008. That legal battle stretched out for years until a judge dismissed it in 2011 over a technicality: Schmidt’s mother, part owner of the farm, had not been named in the
lawsuit, thus it couldn’t proceed to trial. Shore protested, taking the case to the Blount County Court of Appeals, then on to the state Supreme Court after losing that appeal. In Aug. 2013, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that concerts weren’t farming, thus festivals and other non-farming events happening on farms were, in fact, subject to local zoning ordinances and the rule of law. The case was sent back down to Blount County court for further proceedings, where it’s still ongoing, though it may be doomed if the federal case fails and the state’s new definition of farming holds. Shore remains suspicious that she won’t get a fair shake in Blount County. She has alleged intimidation and cronyism, filing an ethics complaint against the judge that, until recently, had been overseeing her civil case. Judge Telford Forgerty Jr. recused himself earlier this month. Turns out his brother, Rep. John Forgerty, served on Tennessee committees for agriculture from 2011 through 2014. Meanwhile, Maple Lane Farms is gearing up for another fall of events. Its 10-acre corn maze opens this weekend, and country star Luke Bryan is scheduled to return for a show on Oct. 2. ◆
WINNE RS
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OCTOBER 15!
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September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 15
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
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ruce McCamish draws second glances when he’s raising an expensive camera several fathoms above his head on a busy downtown street corner. The slender telescoping pole he uses was actually designed for house painters, not photographers—and when it’s fully extended, with that big camera swaying on top, it looks like a fantasy contraption in a Dr. Seuss story. He can control some things from the ground, like when to snap the picture, by a remote-control device. But he can’t get a good look at the exposure he just snapped until it’s back down. “Every time I send the camera up, it’s Christmas,” he says. He never knows what he’s going to get. Often it’s as surprising as any Christmas gift. “My goal is to shoot something, every day, from an angle you’ve never seen before.” This is how the photographer gets our attention: not from this bit of
performance art on the sidewalk, but from what results in that little black box up there. McCamish has been taking pictures as a hobby for more than 40 years, and professionally for more than a decade, but only recently have his arresting images drawn fans, as evidenced by vigorous sharing on social media, use of his work by some prominent institutions, and a recent public show of his work as art, with more to come in the near future. Some viewers are convinced his images of familiar places are manipulated through some computer wizardry. But he’s just showing us our familiar world from an unexpected angle, a point of view we’ve never experienced before. He makes it work with some imagination, some big lenses, a good camera— and this long fiberglass pole. There’s some hazard in his technique. McCamish admits he smashes a couple of lenses a year. To
Previous page: Photographer Bruce McCamish takes an unorthodox selfie with the Volunteer statue. Above, the Old City, from up high, with a dramatic sky and a wide angle—and UT’s relatively new Haslam College of Business. September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 17
On the final Boomsday, McCamish got permission to shoot from atop Thompson Boling Arena.
him, it’s part of the thrill. And he never questions whether it’s worth the extra trouble and expense. It’s all to get the point of view you’ve never seen. You might guess he’s a good deal younger than 51. That’s true for a lot of people who make a living doing what they love. McCamish seems just now to be settling into his life’s work. Raised in the Holston Hills area, he was always interested in photography, but mainly just as a hobby, from when he was 7 and had his first Kodak Instamatic. His father worked for Panorama, a picture-heavy local magazine, and he thinks that helped convince him that some people make a living in photography. But he was a forestry major at the University of Tennessee, and after graduation, tried to avoid anything that seemed like work. For seven years he worked as a golf pro at River Islands Golf Club at Kodak. 18
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
A mind-bending Cubist view of downtown Knoxville from the bluffs across the river. This is one photo, not a collage, showing Gay Street towers, Church Street Methodist, Maplehurst apartment buildings, and the UT boathouse, several blocks apart.
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 19
He later began helping his brother, Joe McCamish, with real-estate promotions, and unexpectedly, in middle age, he found his true calling. He started experimenting with perspective, to get a better angle on a house. For a while, he’d found a useful technique: a homemade 14-foot blimp. On a tether, it could go as high as 400 feet, and he got some great shots from it. But the 2011 hailstorm ruined it. He could have rebuilt it, but he sounds happy to be past his personal blimp era. “It was a glorified beach ball,” he says, that was always leaking helium, even when it wasn’t hailing. “And since then, the price of helium has skyrocketed.” He also tried the latest craze, the personal drone. But the Federal Aviation Administration’s regulations have all but banned them for commercial use. “FAA regulations are so squirrelly, I don’t even touch them,” he says. So, he’s got the 30-foot fiberglass 20
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
painter’s pole. And using that pole has gotten him a lot of public attention as an unconventional photographer. He’s been exhibiting only recently. He got a First Friday show at the Arcade Building on Gay Street in August. There will be another in October. His work has been used by Visit Knoxville and Knox Heritage. McCamish’s work has been much-shared on social media—one shot of Knoxville, from a pole held on the bluffs across the river, with an 800-milimeter lens, astonishes almost everyone who sees it, convincing some it must be a collage of some sort. But it was one shot. That lens, he says, compresses everything into one place. “I’m a real-estate photographer to pay the bills,” he says. “I do this other stuff for fun.” He uses his pole technique to take real-estate shots, and admits he’s gotten some complaints that a suburban house
Away from the Crowds: Festival on the Fourth at World’s Fair Park, above, and the Rossini Festival on Gay Street.
The Mount Cammerer Lookout, in the Smokies, above; below, a rare encompassing perspective on South Knoxville’s Fort Dickerson.
doesn’t look as good from the ground as it does in his photographs. McCamish also travels around the country taking pictures, and loves Alaska and Montana, but two of his favorite subjects are closer at hand. The Smoky Mountains is one, and his extraordinary shots suggest he has solved the problem Ansel Adams had when he tried to shoot the Smokies in the ’30s—partly because they’re so densely wooded, Adams couldn’t find a good way to get perspective on them. He didn’t try a 30-foot painter’s pole. McCamish is an admirer of Jim Thompson, the Smokies park pioneer remembered as the father of modern photography in Knoxville. One of McCamish’s own favorite shots is of Mount LeConte, taken unintentionally from a nearly identical perspective to a famous one taken in the ’30s by Thompson. McCamish’s other favorite subject
is downtown Knoxville, with its own interesting topography in glass, steel, concrete, and brick. Last weekend, he was on top of UT’s Thompson Boling Arena shooting the final Boomsday. “We take it for granted, but I just love Knoxville,” he says. “I’ve lived here my entire life, and this is the best it’s ever been.” Today, he’s on the corner of Gay and Clinch, standing beneath his swaying painter’s pole with an expensive Canon 7D way up there at the top, holding a remote-control clicker, shooting the Burwell Building. He’s not sure what it will look like, but if it’s like most of McCamish’s work, it will look different from any picture you’ve ever seen. “If we were 20 feet tall, the world would be much more magnificent than we can imagine,” he says. So much is just a matter of how you look at it. ◆ September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 21
A&E
P rogram Notes
The List A GUIDE TO THE BEST LOCAL PERFORMANCES THIS WEEK.
THURSDAY, SEPT. 17 Texas Tony and the Tornado Ramblers with Pale Root, Joey English, and Emily Wyrick and Friends • The tall tale-tellin’ honky-tonk heroes Texas Tony and the Tornado Ramblers close out the 2015 Lawn Chair Concert Series in Farragut with an evening of bawdy, tongue-in-cheek country tunes. • Campbell Station Park (Farragut) • 5:30 p.m. • Free
The Last, Last Waltz K
noxville’s Dirty Guv’nahs will take the stage one last time on Sept. 25 at the Tennessee Theatre, but don’t come to the show expecting a wake. “It’s a celebration,” says Guv’nahs frontman James Trimble of the performance, dubbed An Evening With the Dirty Guv’nahs. “It’s the end of an era.” It’s already been well reported that the long-running local blues-rock outfit has decided that 2015 will be its swan song, after nine years, four fi ne albums, and one sizzling live EP. Tremble says their parting was prompted not by creative or personal differences, but rather by the exhausting toll of life in a touring rock band. “Five of six guys are married, there are four children now—it was just real life happening,” Trimble says. “We were at the point where some guys were ready to be at home, and we didn’t have the creative energy to jump back into another album-andtour cycle.” It was a long run, and a good one for the band that began as a just-forfun throw-together in one of the members’ basement, rose to local prominence through a series of kinetic live shows, then went on to
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Inside the Vault: Pappy “Gube” Beaver
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
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record its second album in Levon Helm’s studio in Woodstock. Two more records, some Triple-A airplay, and lots of touring followed. Until this year. “As a band, we’ve always checked in with each other every six months,” Trimble says. “This year was the first time we said, ‘Maybe it’s time not to do this anymore.’” The band is currently fi nishing its nine-date farewell tour. All of the shows have been sold out, including the last two shows in Knoxville, at the Tennessee Theatre on Sept. 25 and at the Bijou on Sept. 19. Trimble says only two of the Guvs have musical aspirations beyond the dissolution of the band—guitarist Cozmo Holloway and keyboardist Kevin Hyfantis have already started the neo-soul outfit Electric Darling, which will open the Dirty Guv’nahs’ Bijou performance. Is this really the last time we’ll see the Guv’nahs on a stage? “I don’t know,” Trimble says with a weary chuckle. “I guess that depends on where we all are in a few years. But the shows we’re doing now, we mean this as a true farewell. There is no backdoor plan.” —Mike Gibson
Music: Gamenight
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SUNDAY, SEPT. 20 Cindi Alpert and the Corduroy Jazz Trio • Beautiful jazz in a beautiful setting, part of this summer’s enticing series of afternoon concerts at Ijams Nature Center. • Ijams Nature Center • 5 p.m. • $5
Shimmy and the Burns • Down-home country-rock combo Shimmy and the Burns celebrate the release of the band’s Kickstarter-funded debut album. • Barley’s Taproom • 10 p.m.
TUESDAY, SEPT. 22 Francisco Caban and Kevin Class: From the Mountains of Zakopane to El Yunque • University of Tennessee piano professor and Knoxville Symphony Orchestra pianist Kevin Class joins visiting violinist Francisco Caban for an evening of music from Poland and Puerto Rico. • UT Haslam Music Center • 8 p.m. • Free
FRIDAY, SEPT. 18 The Helgramites • Old-fashioned old-timey string music—fiddle tunes, hillbilly music, mountain music, and other assorted styles suitable for kicking up your feet. • Big Fatty’s Catering Kitchen • 5 p.m. • Free
Josiah with the Royal Buzz • Morristown native and former American Idol contestant Josiah Leming returns to East Tennessee from his new home in Los Angeles, where he settled after getting kicked off the Fox talent show. • Preservation Pub • 10 p.m. • $3 • 21 and up
Jenna and Her Cool Friends • Extra-classic blues and R&B to celebrate 22 years of the Alive After Five series of Friday night concerts. • Alive After Five at Knoxville Museum of Art • 6 p.m. • $10
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 23 KSO Q Series • Knoxville Symphony Orchestra’s small ensemble offers a series of lunchtime performances for the curious and the committed. • The Square Room • Noon • $15/$20 at the door
The Wild Things • Some of Knoxville’s most experienced rock experts come together for covers of the British Invasion and other ’60s raucousness. • Preservation Pub • 10 p.m. • $3 • 21 and up
Theater: The 39 Steps
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Video: White God
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Movies: The Visit
Inside the Vault
The Singing Preacher The Knoxville Film Festival premieres a new documentary about Pappy “Gube” Beaver BY ERIC DAWSON
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he last few years have seen a revival of interest in Pappy “Gube” Beaver. He’d been written about plenty before, featured in several Bert Vincent News Sentinel columns in the 1950s and mentions in Billboard magazine in the 1940s. Bluegrass Unlimited profiled him in the 1980s, and every so often local newspapers would catch up with the country-music recording artist turned singing preacher. A recent documentary has stirred a new interest in Beaver, and a new edit of the film makes its debut this Friday at the Knoxville Film Festival. Parlin Kenneth Beaver was born in Cocke County in 1919. The nickname “Gube” was derived from an uncle who called him Peanut because he was such a small child. Beaver moved to Knoxville in 1940. Hailing from a musical family, the guitarist and singer appeared on Cas Walker’s Farm and Home Hour radio show with his brother in the 1940s, and later with his wife and children when the program transitioned to television. It was Walker who started calling him “Pappy,” following the birth of his first child. In 1945, Lee Gillette, a talent scout/producer from Capitol Records, saw Pappy and His Gang perform on WROL radio and invited Beaver to cut some records for the label. Traveling to Atlanta, he recorded four sides for Capitol, including “You Can Be a
Millionaire With Me” b/w “Automobile of Life,” featuring a young Chet Atkins on fiddle. It was the first commercial record on which Atkins appeared. Six months after this session, a trip to Chicago yielded four more sides. Beaver was open about the struggle with alcohol he had as a younger man. A taxi driver by profession, he was arrested for driving drunk outside of Greenville, S.C. There he underwent a jailhouse conversion and soon started hosting a family radio show on gospel station WKXV in the early 1950s, something he would keep up for more than 60 years. Leading tent meetings and revivals soon followed, and eventually he opened the Bible Church of God on Western Avenue. Two hours of video documenting a 1976 meeting in the church are in the Eleanor Creekmore Dickinson Collection at the Library of Congress’s American Folklife Center. Dickinson was born and raised in Knoxville, earning an art degree from the University of Tennessee before heading out to San Francisco to study painting and filmmaking. She was fascinated with the variety of Protestant worship services and revivals in Appalachia, devoting much of her art to the subject, including extensive audio and video field recordings. The Beaver videos have just about everything you could ask of a nondenominational church service of the time:
A&E
testifying, speaking in tongues, laying on of hands and, of course, singing. In 2012, an hour-long documentary on Beaver was produced. The filmmaker, Dwight Swanson, actually set out to make a film about Cas Walker (his production company is named Thumpin’ Good, after the grocer’s watermelon ad campaign), and became sidetracked when he encountered Beaver. “I was in the reading room of the Library of Congress, reading old issues of the News Sentinel on microfilm,” Swanson says. “In the article on Cas’ funeral, the reporter interviewed Pappy, who was at the cemetery. It was really his name that jumped out at me at first. I just knew that anyone named Pappy “Gube” Beaver had to have had a good story of his own.” I Open My Mouth and Let ’Er Fly premiered at the East Tennessee History Center in April 2012, with Beaver appearing in person to perform. Three years later, Swanson has made “Rev. Pappy,” a short fi lm incorporating unused footage from the original production as well as archival fi lm and photographs from the Tennessee Archive of Moving Image and Sound. “The first film really was aimed at people from Knoxville who knew Pappy and his story,” Swanson explains. “After showing it to a few people, I didn’t get the feeling that a long biography of Pappy would have much of an audience outside of Knoxville, so even before that History Center screening I had planned to work on a shorter version that could resonate with wider audiences.” Beaver continued to hold services for as long as he was able, and died on Sept. 21, 2014, at the age of 97. “Rev. Pappy” premieres at the Knoxville Film Festival at Regal Downtown West Cinema 8 on Friday, Sept. 18, during a block of films running from 1:45-3:45 p.m. Tickets are $10-$75. Visit knoxvillefilmfestival. com for more information. ◆ 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. September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 23
A&E
Music
Pet Sounds After a decade together, Knoxville’s Gamenight is still chasing rock ’n’ roll dreams BY MIKE GIBSON
T
he members of Knoxville’s Gamenight have never taken themselves too seriously, but that doesn’t mean they don’t make serious music. Their 2013 full-length release, Pets Pets, is as smartly crafted and well-recorded an album as you’re liable to find from a group of post-collegiate indie-rock millennials, working unsupervised without the tether of even a small record deal. According to singer-guitarist Joshua Manis, he and his bandmates harbored the same biggish dreams as most other fledgling rock outfits of like description and demographics. But they had equal measures of perspective to balance the loftier aspirations. “The end goal was to ‘get noticed,’” says Manis, seated in Remedy Coffee in the Old City. “But at the same time, we just wanted to make music we liked and we enjoyed hanging out and playing.” Gamenight was founded in 2005 by Manis and his brother, Brandon,
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from the ashes of another outfit they’d played in circa their late teens. Their earliest visions were of the road and living the life of rock ’n’ roll road warriors. “Our first goal was just to get something out we could take on tour,” Manis says. “We just wanted to tour as much as we could while we were young.” It worked out, at times, in the form of frequent weekend trips, and a few longer jaunts here and there. The highlight was a six-week cross-country trek in 2007, out to California, then to New York and back. “That was a blast,” Manis says. Recording has been sparser. Gamenight issued their first platter, 2006’s Simple Starts in the Mind, within a few months of their founding. Record number two—the aforementioned Pets—took considerably longer. To be sure, there have been other, shorter releases—some singles, a split EP, and a couple of toss-off holiday
releases titled Gamenight Ruins Christmas. But until the band puts out another proper album—and Manis says a third full-length is on the way—Pets is their magnum opus. And that’s not a bad thing. Pets Pets is a fine record, better than a scruffy former Fort Sanders fourpiece band with only one full album behind them had any right to make. Full of chiming, cleverly orchestrated guitars, elaborate song structures, and warm, open-hearted vocals that somehow never sound treacly, Pets is redolent of ’90s indie-rock influences. One of those is another scruffy former four-piece Fort Sanders band, Superdrag, who were similarly fond of punchy six-strings and emotive vocals, and who were likewise better than they had any right to be. “Yeah, I loved me some Superdrag,” Manis admits with a slightly sheepish chuckle. “They were a big influence early on. My goal then was to craft songs as well as John Davis.” If he’s not there yet, he’s certainly getting closer. Gamenight manage to balance strong pop instincts with a penchant for the occasional musical curveball—loopy riffs, tempo and time signature changes. If the change-ups came in a little faster, a little more often, Gamenight’s music might almost qualify as prog pop. But Manis says the band has learned to rein in their more experimental instincts without losing the added spice.
“We’ve always enjoyed mixing it up. We’ve never been a straight verse-chorus-verse type of band,” he says. “But I think on our earlier songs, we were sometimes trying to be too ‘showy.’ With Pets Pets, we started to craft more complete songs.” That continues with the newest songs in the Gamenight till; Manis hopes the band will be ready to record a third record in early spring. He says of the new material, “It’s not soul, but a lot of it is more soulful. There are a couple of songs that sound almost Motown-ish. Of course, when we play it, we don’t sound anything like a soul band, but you can hear those rhythms in there.” Manis cedes that Gamenight doesn’t hit the road much anymore, opting for mostly local shows, and only the occasional out-of-town trip. “We’re older now,” says Manis, who recently turned 30. “We have more responsibilities. “We’d still like something bigger, but sometimes life gets in the way. We’re all pretty content just writing and putting out albums when we can, doing it as it comes. As long as we make enough to do the next one, we’re happy.” ◆
WHO:
Gamenight with Fire at the Marquee and Wolves
WHERE:
Pilot Light (106 E. Jackson Ave.)
WHEN:
Friday, Sept. 18, at 10 p.m.
HOW MUCH: $5
INFO:
thepilotlight.com
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 25
A&E
Theater
Stepping Up Clarence Brown Theatre kicks off its new season with the smart, stylish Hitchock parody The 39 Steps BY ALAN SHERROD
T
he late Ralph Allen, chairman of the theater department at the University of Tennessee from 1972 to 1978 and a founder of the Clarence Brown Theatre Company, was known to claim, quite professorially, that all great drama reveals universal truths. Somewhat ironically, though, Allen was also a specialist in the less esoteric theatrical field of American burlesque comedy routines. Allen went on to mold his collection—certainly sans universal truths—into the Broadway musical revue Sugar Babies, which starred Mickey Rooney and tap dancer Ann Miller. Similarly, one would probably be hard pressed to find universal truths lurking in the latest Clarence Brown Theatre production, The 39 Steps— but that is its unabashed beauty. This production, which opened last week and runs through Sept. 27, is pure entertainment gold, simultaneously smart, intricate, and satisfying.
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
Bestowed with clever stylishness and a breathless energy by director Kate Buckley of the UT theater faculty, CBT’s The 39 Steps is the take-off adaptation by Patrick Barlow (from an idea by Nobby Dimon and Simon Corble) of John Buchan’s novel and Alfred Hitchcock’s notable 1935 espionage thriller. The fun in Barlow’s adaptation is that the intricacy of the spy story becomes a comic parody, done mostly for outright laughs in faux seriousness, in which one actor plays the falsely accused, on-the-lam protagonist Richard Hannay, while three other actors portray everyone else—the three leading women plus the dizzying and uncountable collection of spies, double agents, newsboys, milkmen, Scotsmen, innkeepers, wives of innkeepers, policemen, and railway passengers, not to mention the sadly burdened Mr. Memory. Dizzying, too—and comical in their absurdity—are the rapid-fire
costume changes, along with the sound effects, vaudeville-esque props, and minimally suggestive set pieces required to pull off the concept. Such a concept, though, requires actors who can master the special blend of acrobatic comedy and parodied demeanor. Brian Gligor was excellent as the handsome and stylish but hapless Hannay, who goes to the theater and finds a mystery that takes him from London to Scotland and back. Hannay crosses paths with a collection of romantically inclined women: a mysterious foreign agent, Annabella Schmidt; Pamela, a Hitchcockian railway passenger; and Margaret, a lookingfor-love farmer’s wife. All are played with appropriate poise, delivery, and dexterity by Katie Cunningham. Playing literally every other character on stage are CBT regulars David Brian Alley and David Kortemeier. The two possess the brilliant comic timing and inventiveness necessary to weave theatrical magic from the continuous character and scene shifts. One amazing scene in particular involves a split-second hat-changing sequence of character differentiation by the pair that simply defies description. Comic references to Hitchcock films also find their way into the play, mostly by way of projections or set pieces—the crop-dusting scene from
North by Northwest, a knifing music effect from Psycho, an escape out of Rear Window, and a girder-dangling reference to Vertigo. In fact, the production’s entire scenic enclosure, designed by Nevena Prodanovic, is a Hitchcock reference: an attractive brick-wall British movie soundstage, complete with heavy roll-away doors that act as a show curtain. Substantial contributions to the show’s rhythm, energy, and quasi-film noir style—not to mention an impressive chase scene—came from a crisply evocative lighting design by Jaymi Lee Smith. Bill Black’s costume design also had to support a 1930s British look, but carried the additional requirement of facilitating the many fast changes for Alley and Kortemeier. The absolutely essential music and sound effects came from CBT’s Joe Payne. The fun of CBT’s The 39 Steps lies in accepting the theatrically stylized illusions that carry the story along. One simply must laugh at the absurdity of an impossibly oversized sandwich, believe that a few boxes are a railway compartment, and buy that four actors can turn into a hundred before your eyes. Theater, after all, is illusion. And that’s a universal truth. ◆
WHAT:
The 39 Steps
WHERE:
Clarence Brown Theatre (1714 Andy Holt Ave.)
WHEN:
Through Sept. 27
HOW MUCH: $26-$32
INFO:
clarencebrowntheatre.com
Video
A&E Knoxville
A Dog’s Life White God hits with startling power—from a dog’s POV BY LEE GARDNER
Y
ou can do almost anything to a human being onscreen and we’ll sit still for it, but don’t mess with the dog. When young Lili’s father angrily throws her faithful pet mutt out of his SUV and speeds away just minutes into White God, getting to watch out the back window as he races up the highway, trying in vain to catch up, is likely the fi rst gut check for any dog lover. Stick with Hungarian director Kornél Mundruczó’s new fi lm, though, and it’ll get better, though not for its four-legged lead. Lili (Zsófia Psotta) is staying with her father, a scholar reduced to working in a slaughterhouse and still broken by his breakup with Lili’s mom. In Hungary, mixed-breed dogs must be registered, and he can’t afford the fee. Lili’s incipient teenage rebelliousness isn’t helping his disposition, either. And so Hagen, a sturdy shepherd/hound-ish mix, fi nds himself on the side of the highway, starring in a splice of Au hasard Balthazar and Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. He is pursued by animal control and inducted into the dog-fi ghting underground. He battles for his life in the pit, in the streets, and later in a cage, as animal control fi nally catches up. And then he leads hundreds of his fellow mutts in a bloody citywide revolt. You read that right, and it’s just one of the perplexing but hittable
curveballs Mundruczó’s fi lm throws. The intercut plot lines of Lili’s troubled coming of age and Hagen’s struggle to survive are handled with skill and naturalistic aplomb, thrown off only by the occasional burst of melodramatic score. And the cruelties life heaps on Hagen read as entirely plausible, though the dogs bark hello to each other like people instead of nuzzling butts like canines everywhere. The fi nal riot in the streets surprises with a dip into horror gore, but even the metaphor about society’s treatment of its underclass that Mundruczó has been polishing the whole time can’t quite prepare you for a fi nal scene of startling power. Odd, but worth watching. Speaking of odd, Lisandro Alonso’s Jauja sends Viggo Mortensen out wandering the scrubby deserts of Argentina on a quasi-mystical quest. Sometime in the late 19th century, Mortensen’s Danish émigré is part of a military party bound for a remote fort when his teenage daughter (Viilbjørk Malling Agger) steals off with a young soldier. He spends the rest of the film wandering, meandering toward his doom and sinking into hallucinations. Or is it all a dream? Seriously, it might all be a dream. Alonso’s thoughtful realism and Mortensen’s heroic physical performance transfi x even when the film itself serves up eyebrow-raising puzzlement. ◆
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY 27 9/15/15 12:39 PM
A&E
Movie
Creep Factor M. Night Shyamalan regains his footing with the effective horror excursion The Visit BY APRIL SNELLINGS
T
here’s an unspoken rule in multiplex horror fare of the last few decades: Don’t kill children. Filmmakers can terrorize and even rough up their young characters all they want, but it’s generally a safe bet that, as long as they’re not of partying age, a mainstream horror flick’s kiddies will live to enjoy their trauma for many years after the credits roll. Slap a PG-13 rating on it, and those whippersnappers are practically dipped in Kevlar. It’s also implicitly understood that whoever’s holding the camera in a found-footage horror movie is documenting their own demise. So The Visit, the latest effort from beleaguered auteur M. Night Shyamalan, immediately establishes itself as a clever little film by putting two children in the role of would-be documentarians. It’s a subtle but effective way to fiddle with audience expectations long before things start
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
going bump in the night. The bumpees are Becca (Olivia DeJonge) and Tyler (Ed Oxenbould), a pair of precocious siblings who travel to the Pennsylvania countryside for a weeklong stay with their maternal grandparents, whom they’ve never met. Ostensibly, their journey is a way to give their single mom (Kathryn Hahn) a chance for a romantic getaway with her new boyfriend. Really, though, Becca hopes to engineer a reconciliation; their mom has been estranged from her parents since she eloped at 19, and Becca thinks she can somehow help heal old wounds. She’s also a budding filmmaker, so she decides to make a documentary about the experience. Yes, that means lots of shaky, handheld camera work. The kids are greeted at the train station by sweet but batty Nana (Deanna Dunagan) and Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie), who usher them off to their
remote farmhouse. By day, the older couple’s behavior is odd but benign. They vacillate between clarity and confusion and are, to say the least, unpredictable. But, hey, they’re old. Once the sun goes down, though, the pleasant farmhouse takes on a sinister vibe. Nana has a habit of crawling around on all fours and scratching furiously at the walls, while Pop Pop seems to have an odd relationship with his shotgun. It quickly becomes apparent that The Visit takes as many cues from “Hansel and Gretel” as Paranormal Activity. Like countless fairy tale protagonists, Becca and Tyler are plied with sweets, confined to a rural location, and given some very specific rules to observe. (Don’t go in the basement; don’t wander around the house after dark.) It’s the kind of thing that could have been a disaster in Shyamalan’s self-serious hands—his last foray into the realm of fairy tale, Lady in the Water, was, to put it kindly, not well-received. But the writer-director found a smart workaround: The Visit is funny on purpose. The laughs occasionally defuse the scares, but they also give the film a fun, Goosebumps-ish charm, right up until its surprisingly brutal final act. Oxenbould, with his improv rapping and habit of substituting the names of female pop stars for obscenities, is the
obvious onscreen clown, but it’s Dunagan, a Tony-winning stage actress, who really steals the show as the alternately daffy and deranged Nana. So that’s one hurdle cleared. But what about the found-footage thing? I’m as tired of it as anyone, but Shyamalan makes it work. He never really relinquishes control of the film’s visuals to its DIY conceit; what looks like amateurish framing, for instance, often turns out to be shrewd misdirection. He finds inventive ways to get beyond some of the sub-genre’s limitations without violating the logic of the story; Becca actually has a good reason for going into that dark basement alone, and for taking her camera with her. The less said about all that the better, though. You’ll probably guess the big twist very early, but it’s no less effective if you do—it’s a wonderfully old-fashioned reveal, reminiscent of the dark-and-stormy-night school of urban legends and campfire freakouts, and it works even if you see it coming. But The Visit derives its suspense and its considerable creep factor from its smaller mysteries rather than its big one. It’s all about what’s around the corner, or lurking in the shadows, or waiting on the other side of a closed door. The movie tends to drag a bit when the sun is out, but once darkness falls and the weird noises start, it’s a fun, effective spookshow. ◆
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 29
CALENDAR MUSIC
Thursday, Sept. 17 THE CHRISTIAN LOPEZ BAND • WDVX • 12PM • FREE VINCE HARRIS DUO • Clancy’s Tavern and Whiskey House • 6PM TRACE ADKINS W/ MAE BETH HARRIS • Chilhowee Park • 7PM • The Grammy nominated and multi-platinum country artist performs at the Tennessee Valley Fair. NOTE: You must have a fair admission ticket to attend the concert. Reserved seating tickets are $25. General seating is first come, first served. THE THIRST QUENCHERS • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM • The Ps and Qs house band. CATS AWAY • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria (Maryville) • 8PM TATSUYA NAKATANI • Pilot Light • 9PM • Tatsuya Nakatani is a creative artist / percussionist originally from Osaka, Japan who has released over 60 recordings in North America and Europe. His latest project is the Nakatani Gong Orchestra, which builds community ensembles performing on multiple bowed gongs under his direction, as recently presented at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. 18 and up. • $5 SHIMMY AND THE BURNS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM • Local Americana band Shimmy and the Burns celebrates the release of its new CD. TEXAS TONY AND THE TORNADO RAMBLERS, PALE ROOT, JOEY ENGLISH, AND EMILY WYRICK AND FRIENDS • Campbell Station Park • 5:30PM • The Lawnchair Concert Series in Farragut wraps up its season with the ever-entertaining Texas Tony, plus Pale Root, Joey English, and Emily Wyrick and Friends. And food trucks! • FREE BREATHING THEORY WITH BREAKING THROUGH, AUTUMN REFLECTION, AND SMALL TOWN TITANS • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • $5 PEOPLE’S BLUES OF RICHMOND • The Concourse • 9PM • 18 and up. • $5 FUTURE PREZIDENTS • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 & up. • THE LONDON SOULS • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM Friday, Sept. 18 T SISTERS WITH JERRY SALLEY • 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. • FREE WAYNE “THE TRAIN” HANCOCK • The Bowery • 7PM • Wayne “The Train” Hancock has been the undisputed king of Juke Joint Swing - that alchemist’s dream of honky-tonk, western swing, blues, Texas rockabilly and big band. This show is 18 and up. • $12 DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Instrumental and vocal jazz standards. JAY ERIC • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM THE LONE BELLOW • Bijou Theatre • 8PM • Working with producer Aaron Dessner of the National, the Lone Bellow has created a sound that mixes folk sincerity, gospel fervor, even heavy metal thunder, but the heart of the band is harmony: three voices united in a lone bellow. • $18-$20 THE CALEB KLAUDER COUNTRY BAND • Laurel Theater • 8PM • Caleb has been touring nationally and internationally for over 15 years, first with acclaimed folk-rock band Calobo, a luminary in the Northwest’s burgeoning music scene, and then with the widely celebrated Foghorn Stringband. FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • The Crown and Goose • 8PM • Live jazz featuring a mix of original music, early jazz and more. • FREE WARRANT • Chilhowee Park • 8PM • Hair-metal survivors Warrant perform at the Tennessee Valley Fair. NOTE: You 30
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
Thursday, Sept. 17 - Sunday, Sept. 27
must have a fair admission ticket to attend the concert. Reserved seating tickets are $10. General seating is first come, first served. KATY FREE • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Live jazz. • FREE SHORT TERM MEMORY • Brackins Blues Club • 9PM • FREE THE PACKWAY HANDLE BAND • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM • Packway’s sound is steeped in old-fashioned bluegrass, but they hold a niche in the American music realm that’s all their own. Clever songwriting, an eccentric mixture of modern folk music, dark themes, old-time religion, affectionate satire of Bluegrass, and devotion to apocalyptic infotainment leave the listener to decide what exactly a Packway Handle is. AVENUE C • Two Doors Down • 10PM CALEB WARREN AND THE PERFECT GENTLEMEN • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM • FREE ANDY DOZIER AND HEAVY SOUL • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria (Maryville) • 10PM GAMENIGHT WITH FIRE AT THE MARQUEE AND WOLVES • Pilot Light • 10PM • $5 THE HELGRAMITES • Big Fatty’s Catering Kitchen • 5PM • Old time string band music on Thunder Road. • FREE JENNA AND HER COOL FRIENDS • Knoxville Museum of Art • 6PM • Knoxville’s favorite blues ‘n’ boogie band rocks the house at KMA’s Alive After Five, celebrating its 22nd anniversary. • $10 FINAL DRIVE WITH IKILLYA, WARCLOWN, AND ABSENT FROM THE BODY • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 7PM • All ages. • $8 THE HIP ABDUCTION WITH TREE TOPS, CHALAXY, AND SECONDARY MODERN • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM • MINDELIXIR, PAERBAER, MR. ATOMIC • The Concourse • 9PM • Presented By Midnight Voyage Productions & WUTK 90.3 The Rock. 18+ • 15-20 THE WILD THINGS • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 and up. • Saturday, Sept. 19 THE CALEB KLAUDER COUNTRY BAND WITH VALERIE SMITH AND LIBERTY PIKE • 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. • FREE THE RERUNS • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Knoxville’s premier TV band plays your favorite television themes. JT HODGES W/ MORGAN WALLEN • Chilhowee Park • 7PM • ACM-nominated artist JT Hodges performs at the Tennessee Valley Fair, with Morgan Wallen. NOTE: You must have a fair admission ticket to attend the concert. Reserved seating tickets are $5. General seating is first come, first served. HAYLEY REARDON WITH BRISTON MARONEY • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • Noted for her thoughtful, vivid songwriting and engaging stage performance, Hayley has spent the past five years sharing the stage with acts like Tom Rush, Peter Yarrow, Buskin & Batteau, Christine Lavin, and opening for the likes of Lori McKenna, Mark Erelli, and Catie Curtis. • $10 CODY CANADA AND THE DEPARTED WITH J.C. AND THE DIRTY SMOKERS • The Shed at Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson • 8PM • $20 FREEQUENCY • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM • Acoustic Americana trio. THE DIRTY GUV’NAHS • Bijou Theatre • 8PM • The Dirty Guv’nahs add a second Knoxville date to their Farewell Tour. • $27 THE WILL YAGER TRIO • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Live jazz. • FREE BLACK STALLYONZ • Brackins Blues Club • 9PM • FREE BEN SHUSTER • Bearden Field House • 9PM • FREE THE BURNIN’ HERMANS • Two Doors Down • 10PM THE KENNY GEORGE BAND • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM • FREE
STATE STREET RHYTHM SECTION • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM • Knoxville funk and soul. STEAKS • Pilot Light • 10PM • $5 KANSAS • Niswonger Performing Arts Center (Greenville) • 7:30PM • The legendary American rock band, Kansas, has produced eight gold albums, three sextuple-platinum albums, one platinum live album and a million-selling gold single. YEAR OF OCTOBER • Preservation Pub • 8PM • 21 and up. • BAZOOKA JOE, RAY GUN • The International • 9PM • Plus ‘Mantastic’ presented By Salome Cabaret. 18+. • 10/25/2015 THE PAT BEASLEY BAND • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria (Maryville) • 10PM • SPACETRAIN • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 and up. • THE WHAM BAM BOWIE BAND WITH NICK LUTSKO • Scruffy City Hall • 10PM Sunday, Sept. 20 SHIFFLETT AND HANNAH • The Bistro at the Bijou • 12PM • Live jazz. • FREE
DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 1PM • Live jazz. JENNA AND HER COOL FRIENDS • Star of Knoxville Riverboat • 3PM • Part of the Smoky Mountain Blues Society’s annual season of summer blues cruises. • $16-$19 FREEQUENCY • Spicy’s • 5PM • Acoustic Americana trio. LONESTAR W/ HOMER HART • Chilhowee Park • 7PM • Multi-platinum country artist Lonestar plays the Tennessee Valley Fair, with Homer Hart. NOTE: You must have a fair admission ticket to attend the concert. Reserved seating tickets are $15. General seating is first come, first served. SOMO WITH JORDAN BRATTON • Tennessee Theatre • 7:45PM • In February of 2014, SoMo released his self-titled debut album, which entered at #6 on the Billboard charts and #1 on the iTunes Album Chart. His breakout single “Ride” was certified Gold and remained in the Top 10 of the iTunes R&B chart for 25 consecutive weeks. • $27.50-$30
PACKWAY HANDLE BAND Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria (200 E. Jackson Ave.) • Friday, Sept. 18 • 10 p.m. • barleysknoxville.com
Fresh off a summer tour with legacy headliners Kid Rock and Foreigner, the Packway Handle Band rambles its way through Knoxville this Friday as the five-piece bluegrass outfit picks and plucks a few stand-alone shows on the road back home to Athens, Ga. Over its roughly 15-year career, the band has earned a national following with a particular brand of Appalachian Americana, playing a mix of traditional fiddle tunes and original songs on topics ranging from the deep and contemplative to fun and wacky. The Packway Handle Band’s latest offering, Take It Like a Man, a collaboration with Southern songwriter and producer Jim White that was credited to “Jim White Vs. the Packway Handle Band,” takes a dueling approach, alternating compositions penned by the band with those authored by White. The result is a fresh ping-pong of mostly traditional sounds that helps break up the band’s well-practiced routine while keeping true to the fundamental core that has propelled its ascent. (Clay Duda)
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Spotlight: Packway Handle Band
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Spotlight: Pagan Pride 2015
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 31
CALENDAR THE PAPER CROWNS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 8PM • The Paper Crowns are a husband and wife duo who improvise heavily on acoustic and electric guitar, banjo, and drums…often while singing harmonies. SUNDAY JAZZ BRUNCH • Downtown Grill and Brewery • 12:45PM • Knoxville’s coolest jazz artists perform every Sunday. • FREE KAMBER WITH MY ONLY SAFE HAVEN • Scruffy City Hall • 9PM • THE EMPTY POCKETS • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 & up. Monday, Sept. 21 JOHN ELLIOTT AND KELLY MCFARLING • 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. • FREE THE HELLO STRANGERS • Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria • 10PM TODD WAITES PIGPEN • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 & up. Tuesday, Sept. 22 THE NIGHTOWLS • 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. • FREE JOSIAH WITH THE ROYAL BUZZ • Preservation Pub • 10PM • You may be familiar with Josiah, as he had a brief stint on American Idol in 2008. Shortly after he released three albums on Warner Brothers under Josiah Leming, including his Angels Undercover EP which peaked at #26 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart. His latest album, On
Trial, is expected to release this fall and it showcases a dusty troubadour with a beat poet-like vibe. The album includes song “Tennessee,” an ode to his home state (Josiah is from Morristown). • $5 THE LOST FIDDLE STRING BAND • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM Wednesday, Sept. 23 DALLAS MOORE • 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. • FREE SAM LEWIS AND MARTIN HARLEY • Sweet P’s Barbecue and Soul House • 6:30PM • FREE FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • The Crown and Goose • 6:30PM • Live jazz featuring a mix of original music, early jazz and more. • FREE TENNESSEE SHINES: LOVES IT • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7PM • Loves It is a four-piece harmony driven folk rock band from Austin Texas. Guitarists Vaughn Walters and Jenny Parrott are the band’s singer songwriters, and their inventive and exciting vocals are the sonic foundation of the band. Their music ranges from Bjork-esq quiet experimental compositions (“Peace” from album “All We Are”) to Springsteen inspired rockers (“Wild” featured on Rollingstone.com). They thrilled us at last year’s Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion, and we’re excited to have them back in East Tennessee. • $10 HUNTER SMITH TRIO • The Bistro at the Bijou • 7PM • Live jazz. • FREE
SECRET CITY CYPHERS • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • All ages. • $3-$5 THE HERMALEIGHS WITH JENNIFER HALL • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 and up. Thursday, Sept. 24 CHERUB • The International • 8PM • Cherub is a sexy electro-pop duo that is the dance love-child of 80’s funk, and pop-music from the future. The members of Cherub, Jordan Kelley and Jason Huber, share a love for honest original music and vibrant live performance, with a common goal to share a little bit of sex, a little bit of drugs, and a whole lot of love with people across the globe. Presented by Midnight Voyage Productions and WUTK. 18 and up. • $17-$35 GLOOM WITH ILLUSTRIOUS AND I, DIVINE • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 8PM • All ages. • $8 DAVE KENNEDY • Clancy’s Tavern & Whiskey House • 6PM MAGGIE LONGMIRE WITH JEREMIAH AND THE RED EYES • 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. • FREE SCOTT MCMAHAN • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria (Maryville) • 8PM THE THIRST QUENCHERS • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM • The Ps and Qs house band. • Friday, Sept. 25 CINDI ALPERT AND THE CORDUROY JAZZ TRIO • Mind Yer Ps
and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 8PM THE BEARDED • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM • FREE THE BIG PINK • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM • A 7 piece band that plays the music of The Band, Bob Dylan, Joe Cocker and several other Americana/Rock and Roll groups from the 1960’s to present day. LUCY DACUS WITH HEADFACE AND THE CONGENITALS AND MANATREE • Pilot Light • 10PM • 18 and up. • $5 THE DAWN DRAPES • Preservation Pub • 8PM • Soulful psychedelic rock. 21 and up. THE DIRTY GUV’NAHS: THE FAREWELL TOUR • Tennessee Theatre • 8PM • Local roots-rock heroes the Dirty Guv’nahs announce their final hometown show, part of a series of summer and fall dates that constitute a farewell tour for the band, which announced its breakup in May. • $27 FROG AND TOAD’S DIXIE QUARTET • The Crown and Goose • 8PM • Live jazz featuring a mix of original music, early jazz and more. • FREE DOUG GIBSON • Clancy’s Tavern and Whiskey House • 6PM MARTIN HARLEY WITH MINTON SPARKS • 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. • FREE BUDDY HONEYCUTT TRIO • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Live jazz. • FREE MODOC WITH BIG COUNTRY’S EMPTY BOTTLE • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 and up. THE MONDAY MOVEMENT • The Square Room • 8PM • After releasing their debut EP and selling out The Square Room
Recognizing the unique and valuable contributions of Southern Appalachian culture
the 2015
Appalachian Lecture Series AT MARYVILLE COLLEGEI
Sept. 29 7 p.m. Lambert Recital Hall Clayton Center for the Arts
FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
“No Man’s Land: The Civil War Along Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau” Based on the recently published book, “The Civil War Along Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau,” by Dr. Aaron Astor, Maryville College Associate Professor of History. For more information, call 865.981.8241. Dr. Astor will sell and sign copies of his book ($20) following the lecture.
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
CALENDAR in spring 2015, The Monday Movement is back with new songs, new friends and an ever-growing sound they are excited to share with you. • $10-$12 OTT., PLANTRAE, ALIGNING MINDS • The Concourse • 9PM • Presented by Midnight Voyage Productions and WUTK 90.3. 18+ DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Instrumental and vocal jazz standards. SLIPPERY WHEN WET: THE ULTIMATE BON JOVI TRIBUTE • The International • 8PM • 18+ MIKE SNODGRASS • Bearden Field House • 9PM • FREE SOULFINGER • Brackins Blues Club • 9PM • Funk, soul, and R&B. • FREE THREE STAR REVIVAL • Scruffy City Hall • 9PM VANKALE WITH KILLING GRACE, BELFAST 6 PACK, AND TRANSPARENT SOUL • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 7PM • All ages. • $8 Saturday, Sept. 26 THE AFRO-DISIACS • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10PM • A 10 piece Disco/Funk band playing music by James Brown, Earth Wind and Fire, Michael Jackson and many more classic artists. Featuring members of the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra, Shifty and the Headmasters, Baseball (The Band) and Big Pink. JESSE BLACK WITH LA ORQUESTA D’JAIME BONILLA • 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. • FREE MARK BOLING • The Bistro at the Bijou • 9PM • Live jazz. • FREE THE BURNIN’ HERMANS • Preservation Pub • 10PM • 21 & up. CLOCKWORK ANGELS • Open Chord Brewhouse and Stage • 9PM • A local tribute to Rush. MATT FOSTER • Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria (Maryville) • 10PM GROOVE JUNCTION • Brackins Blues Club (Maryville) • 9PM • FREE JELLY ROLL: HANGOVERS AND HOT CHICKEN TOUR • The Concourse • 9PM • With Alex King. 18+. • $10 DALE JETT AND HELLO STRANGER • Laurel Theater • 8PM • Hello Stranger includes Dale, his wife Teresa, and long time friend Oscar Harris. Singer and musician Dale Jett is a native of Southwest Virginia. The son of Janette Carter and the grandson of A.P. and Sara Carter. Dale and Oscar have been musical partners and friends for over twenty years. Teresa joined them a few years back and the three have been playing and recording together ever since. The Carter Family influence is evident as they continue the unbroken circle of music that Dale grew up with. • $13-$14 MARBLE CITY SHOOTERS • Mind Yer Ps and Qs Craft Beer and Wine Lounge • 7PM
PAGAN PRIDE 2015: TOOLS OF THE CRAFT Sevierville Civic Center (200 Gary Wade Blvd., Sevierville) • Saturday, Sept. 19 • 11 a.m.-7 p.m. • paganprideofeasttn.org
The pagans are coming out to play—and educate, and show solidarity—and the curious are welcome to join in. (Note: Paganism is not devil-worshiping, but rather an interest in pre-Christian, classical, aboriginal, or tribal mythology, according to Talbin MacGillivray, president of Pagan Pride of East Tennessee.) Lots of others make the claim, but this is a truly unique event, with workshops like “Making Offertory Incense” and a variety of free sessions with readers and spiritual advisors. Just a few of the latter include tarot, “past-life influences,” and “shamanic oracle.” Another point of pride: The sponsoring group, Pagan Pride of East Tennessee, is featuring special guest Gypsey Elaine Teague, an elder, high priestess, academician, and originator of steampunk magic (and a book on the same). She’ll present some sessions on wands and sign copies of her latest book, The Witch’s Guide to Wands: A Complete Botanical, Magical, and Elemental Guide to Making, Choosing, and Using the Right Wand. Admission: donation of a non-perishable food item for Second Harvest of East Tennessee. (Rose Kennedy)
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 33
CALENDAR PLANKEYE PEGGY • Preservation Pub • 8PM • 21 and up. THE RERUNS • Pero’s on the Hill • 7PM • Knoxville’s premier TV band plays your favorite television themes. • BEN SHUSTER • Bearden Field House • 9PM • FREE TANNAHILL WEAVERS • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 10PM • FREE Sunday, Sept. 27 THE BROCKEFELLERS • Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria • 8PM ALBERT CASTIGLIA • Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria (Maryville) • 6PM • Guitarist, singer and songwriter Albert Castiglia was born in New York, the son of a Cuban mother and an Italian father. Castiglia’s parents moved to Miami when he was five, and began taking guitar lessons as a 12-year-old. As a teenager, he realized the passions in his heart and thoughts in his mind were best expressed through his own music. He made his professional debut in 1990 when he joined the Miami Blues Authority. He was named ‘Best Blues Guitarist’ in Miami in 1997 by New Times magazine, a local alternative paper. • $6-$20 SHIFFLETT AND HANNAH • The Bistro at the Bijou • 12PM • Live jazz. • FREE DAVE SLACK TRIO • Pero’s on the Hill • 1PM • Live jazz. SUNDAY JAZZ BRUNCH • Downtown Grill and Brewery • 12:45PM • Knoxville’s coolest jazz artists perform every Sunday. • FREE SOFIA TALVIK • Preservation Pub • 10PM • Swedish Folk/ Americana artist Sofia Talvik is on a 20 state tour supporting her new album ‘Big Sky Country.’
34
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
OPEN MIC AND SONGWRITER NIGHTS
Thursday, Sept. 17 IRISH MUSIC SESSION • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7:15PM • Held on the first and third Thursdays of each month. • FREE Saturday, Sept. 19 OLD-TIME SLOW JAM • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 4PM • A monthly old-time music session, held on the third Saturday of each month. • FREE Sunday, Sept. 20 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 Tuesday, Sept. 22 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, Sept. 23 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 • 9PM • A
weekly open session hosted by Tommie John. • FREE Thursday, Sept. 24 SCOTTISH MUSIC SESSION • Boyd’s Jig and Reel • 7:15PM • Held on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month. • FREE Friday, Sept. 25 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. Show up around 7 p.m. with your instrument in tow and sign up to share a couple of original songs with a community of friends down in Happy Holler. • FREE Sunday, Sept. 27 IRISH MUSIC SESSION • Clancy’s Tavern and Whiskey House • 2PM
Sunday, Sept. 20 LAYOVER BRUNCH • The Concourse • 12PM • Brunch food by Localmotive. Music on the patio. Presented by Midnight Voyage Productions. All ages. • FREE Friday, Sept. 25 RETRO DANCE NIGHT • Hanna’s Old City • 9PM • 80s and Top 40 hits with DJ Ray Funk. Saturday, Sept. 26 RETRO DANCE NIGHT • Hanna’s Old City • 9PM • 80s and Top 40 hits with DJ Ray Funk. Sunday, Sept. 27 LAYOVER BRUNCH • The Concourse • 12PM • Brunch food by Localmotive. Music on the patio. Presented by Midnight Voyage Productions. All ages. • FREE
DJ AND DANCE NIGHTS CLASSICAL MUSIC Friday, Sept. 18 RETRO DANCE NIGHT • Hanna’s Old City • 9PM • 80s and Top 40 hits with DJ Ray Funk.
Saturday, Sept. 19 RETRO DANCE NIGHT • Hanna’s Old City • 9PM • 80s and Top 40 hits with DJ Ray Funk. TEMPLE DANCE NIGHT • The Concourse • 9PM • Knoxville’s longest running, and only, gothic/alternative dance night. Visit templeknox.com. 18 and up. • $5
Thursday, Sept. 17 KSO MASTERWORKS SERIES: AMERICAN MASTERS • Tennessee Theatre • 7:30PM • The KSO will open its 80th season with music by American Masters George Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein. KSO Resident Conductor James Fellenbaum conducts the KSO in Chadwick’s Jubilee from Symphonic Sketches, Barber’s Adagio for Strings and Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story. Van Cliburn Competition Crystal Medalist Sean Chen joins the Orchestra for Gershwin’s Concerto in F.
CALENDAR Friday, Sept. 18 KSO MASTERWORKS SERIES: AMERICAN MASTERS • Tennessee Theatre • 7:30PM • The KSO will open its 80th season with music by American Masters George Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein. Sunday, Sept. 20 UT SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA • University of Tennessee Alumni Memorial Building • 4PM • An ensemble recital of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, “Eroica.” • FREE Monday, Sept. 21 GUSTAVO ROMERO: SCHUBERT PROGRAM ONE • University of Tennessee Natalie L. Haslam Music Center • 8PM • Gustavo Romero, internationally renowned pianist and recording artist, presents the first of three piano recitals dedicated to the works of Franz Schubert. • FREE Tuesday, Sept. 22 FRANCISCO CABAN AND KEVIN CLASS: FROM THE MOUNTAINS OF ZAKOPANE TO EL YUNQUE • University of Tennessee Natalie L. Haslam Music Center • 8PM • An evening of music from Poland and Puerto Rico. • FREE Wednesday, Sept. 23 KSO Q SERIES • The Square Room • 12PM • The Knoxville Symphony launched the recital series in its 2013-14 season featuring performances from both ensembles. Principal Quartet members are: Gordon Tsai, violin; Edward Pulgar, violin, Kathryn Gawne, viola and Andy Bryenton, cello. The Woodwind Quintet members are: Nicholas Johnson, flute; Claire Chenette, oboe; Gary Sperl, clarinet; Aaron Apaza, bassoon and Jeffery Whaley, French horn. • $15-$20 GUSTAVO ROMERO: SCHUBERT PROGRAM TWO • University of Tennessee Natalie L. Haslam Music Center • 8PM • Gustavo Romero, internationally renowned pianist and recording artist,presents the second of three piano recitals dedicated to the works of Franz Schubert. • FREE Friday, Sept. 25 GUSTAVO ROMERO: SCHUBERT PROGRAM THREE • University of Tennessee Natalie L. Haslam Music Center • 8PM • Gustavo Romero, internationally renowned pianist and recording artist, presents the third of three piano recitals dedicated to the works of Franz Schubert. • FREE Saturday, Sept. 26 KNOXVILLE OPERA GOES TO CHURCH … A CELEBRATION OF TALENT • Fifth Avenue Baptist Church • 3:30PM • A mix of gospel and opera performed by local and guest artists, selections include: “We Fill the Sanctuary,” “In Bright Mansions Above,” “In His Care-O,” “God’s on Your Side,” “Give Me Jesus” and “Nothing is Impossible.” Also on the program are arias and duets from “Show Boat,” “Porgy and Bess,” “Tosca,” “Faust” and the opera “Mefistofele.” • FREE OAK RIDGE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA • Oak Ridge High School • 7:30PM • If variety really is the spice of life, music lovers will especially enjoy the 71st season of the Oak Ridge Civic Music Association for 2015-2016 because music director Dan Allcott has planned a season of Baroque to Modern, American Salute to English Invasion and more. The season opener will include Haydn’s Symphony no. 104 “London” performed by the Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra. Then Oak Ridge Chorus will join the symphony in singing Handel’s Coronation Anthem “Zadok the Priest” which will be directed by Seth Maples, the chorus conductor. Also, Wesley Baldwin will perform Elgar’s Cello concerto. Sunday, Sept. 27 KSO CHAMBER CLASSICS: CHAVEZ AND SCHUBERT • Bijou
Theatre • 2:30PM • Led by Resident Conductor James Fellenbaum, the Chamber Orchestra will perform Mendelssohn’s Overture to the Hebrides and Weber’s Concerto No. 2 in E-flat Major, featuring Victor Chavez, who is an Assistant Professor of Clarinet at the University of Tennessee. The program will conclude with Schubert’s Symphony No. 2.
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THEATER AND DANCE
Thursday, Sept. 17 CLARENCE BROWN THEATRE: ‘THE 39 STEPS’ • Clarence Brown Theatre • 7:30PM • A hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock’s silver-screen classic. Follow handsome hero Richard Hannay from London to the Scottish Highlands and back as he encounters dastardly murders, double-crossing secret agents, and, of course, devastatingly beautiful women. Sept. 9-27. Visit clarencebrowntheatre.com. THE WORDPLAYERS: WALKING ACROSS EGYPT • Erin Presbyterian Church • 7:30PM • A comedy adapted by Catherine Bush from the novel by Clyde Edgerton. When Mattie Rigsbee discovers a stray dog on her porch, she decides she’s too old to keep it and calls the dogcatcher. Little does she know that the dogcatcher will open her eyes to a world she never knew existed; a world that includes car theft, prison breaks and a delinquent named Wesley who is as desperate for family as she is. Sept. 17-27. Visit wordplayers.org. • $10-$15 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries set in Bynewood Cottage, on a small estate just a few kilometers from Harrogate, a medium-sized town in West Riding, Yorkshire, in the north part of England. Sept. 11-27. Visit http://www. theatreknoxville.com. • $15 Friday, Sept. 18 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE LITTLE MERMAID • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 7PM • In a magical underwater kingdom, the beautiful young mermaid Ariel longs to leave her ocean home - and her fins - behind and live in the world above. But first she’ll have to defy her father King Triton, make a deal with the evil sea witch Ursula, and convince the handsome Prince Eric that she’s the girl whose enchanting voice he’s been seeking. Sept. 18-Oct. 4. Visit www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. • $12 CLARENCE BROWN THEATRE: THE 39 STEPS • Clarence Brown Theatre • 7:30PM • A hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock’s silver-screen classic. THE WORDPLAYERS: WALKING ACROSS EGYPT • Erin Presbyterian Church • 7:30PM • A comedy adapted by Catherine Bush from the novel by Clyde Edgerton. • $10-$15 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries. • $15 Saturday, Sept. 19 CLARENCE BROWN THEATRE: THE 39 STEPS • Clarence Brown Theatre • 2PM and 7:30PM • A hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock’s silver-screen classic. THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries. • $15 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE LITTLE MERMAID • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 1PM and 5PM • Sept. 18-Oct. 4. Visit www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. • $12
Adapted by PATRICK BARLOW Directed by Kate Buckley
865.974.5161
clarencebrowntheatre.com #CBT39Steps
* The actors appear through the courtesy of Actor’s Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 35
CALENDAR Sunday, Sept. 20 THE WORDPLAYERS: WALKING ACROSS EGYPT • Erin Presbyterian Church • 2:30PM • A comedy adapted by Catherine Bush from the novel by Clyde Edgerton. • $10-$15 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 3PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries. • $13 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE LITTLE MERMAID • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 3PM • Sept. 18-Oct. 4. Visit www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. • $12 Wednesday, Sept. 23 CLARENCE BROWN THEATRE: THE 39 STEPS • Clarence Brown Theatre • 2PM and 7:30PM • A hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock’s silver-screen classic. Thursday, Sept. 24 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE LITTLE MERMAID • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 7PM • Sept. 18-Oct. 4. Visit www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. • $12 CLARENCE BROWN THEATRE: THE 39 STEPS • Clarence Brown Theatre • 2PM and 7:30PM • A hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock’s silver-screen classic. THE WORDPLAYERS: WALKING ACROSS EGYPT • Erin Presbyterian Church • 7:30PM • A comedy adapted by Catherine Bush from the novel by Clyde Edgerton. • $10-$15 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries. • $15 Friday, Sept. 25 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE LITTLE MERMAID •
Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 7PM • Sept. 18-Oct. 4. Visit www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. • $12 CLARENCE BROWN THEATRE: THE 39 STEPS • Clarence Brown Theatre • 2PM and 7:30PM • A hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock’s silver-screen classic. THE WORDPLAYERS: WALKING ACROSS EGYPT • Erin Presbyterian Church • 7:30PM • A comedy adapted by Catherine Bush from the novel by Clyde Edgerton. • $10-$15 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries. • $15 Saturday, Sept. 26 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE LITTLE MERMAID • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 1PM and 5PM • Sept. 18-Oct. 4. Visit www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. • $12 CLARENCE BROWN THEATRE: THE 39 STEPS • Clarence Brown Theatre • 2PM and 7:30PM • A hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock’s silver-screen classic. THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 8PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries. • $15 Sunday, Sept. 27 SQUAWK THE SHOW • The Grove Theater (Oak Ridge) • 3PM and 6PM • These feathered professionals have more going for them than just their good looks. No boring lectures here, these birds will amaze you with their unusual talents such as painting, mind reading, performing card tricks, solving math problems and so much more. The show is quick-paced, written for adults and loved by all ages. Visit knoxvilletickets.com.
KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE: THE LITTLE MERMAID • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 3PM • Sept. 18-Oct. 4. Visit www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. • $12 THE WORDPLAYERS: WALKING ACROSS EGYPT • Erin Presbyterian Church • 2:30PM • A comedy adapted by Catherine Bush from the novel by Clyde Edgerton. • $10-$15 THEATRE KNOXVILLE DOWNTOWN: THE MURDER ROOM • Theatre Knoxville Downtown • 3PM • A zany spoof of British mysteries. • $13
COMEDY AND SPOKEN WORD
Friday, Sept. 18 THE FIFTH WOMAN POETRY SLAM • The Birdhouse • 6:30PM • The 5th Woman Poetry slam is place where all poets can come and share their words of love, respect, passion, and expression. It is not dedicated solely women but is a place where women poets are celebrated and honored. Check out our facebook pages for the challenge of the month and focus for our poetry every month. Sunday, Sept. 20 UPSTAIRS UNDERGROUND COMEDY • Preservation Pub • 8PM • A weekly comedy open mic. Monday, Sept. 21 QED COMEDY LABORATORY • Pilot Light • 7:30PM • QED ComedyLaboratory is a weekly show with different theme every week that combines stand-up, improv, sketch,
music and other types of performance and features some of the funniest people in Knoxville and parts unknown. It’s weird and experimental. There is no comedy experience in town that is anything like this and it’s also a ton of fun. Pay what you want. Free, but donations are gladly accepted. • FREE Tuesday, Sept. 22 OPEN MIC STAND-UP COMEDY • Longbranch Saloon • 8PM • Come laugh until you cry at the Longbranch every Tuesday night. Doors open at 8, first comic at 8:30. No cover charge, all are welcome. Aspiring or experienced comics interested in joining in the fun email us at longbranch.info@gmail.com to learn more, or simply come to the show a few minutes early. • FREE EINSTEIN SIMPLIFIED • Scruffy City Hall • 8PM • Live comedy improv. • FREE Friday, Sept. 25 RODNEY CARRINGTON • Knoxville Civic Coliseum • 7PM • Rodney Carrington is a multi-talented comedian, actor, singer and writer who recorded eight major record label comedy albums, which have sold millions of copies. Rodney recently released two new albums on his brand new record label called Laughter’s Good Records. • $27-$188 Saturday, Sept. 26 MIKE SUPER • Niswonger Performing Arts Center (Greenville) • 7:30PM • Through spectacular illusions and his own inimitable down-to-earth style and personality, Mike Super has pioneered a new form of magic that DISCOVER DISCOVER
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36
Charlie Chan and Yellowface
2015-16 SEASON FIND FIND US • FOLLOW US • LIKE US • FOLLOW US • US LIKE US
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FIND US • LIKE US ClaytonArtsCenter.com ClaytonArtsCenter.com FOLLOW US
DISCOVER T H E 7:30
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Friday, october 2
THE UT HUMANITIES CENTER PRESENTS
ARTS
NOVEMBER / 13 / 2015
CLAIRE LYNCH BAND WITH SPECIAL GUESTS THE RAILSPLITTERS ON SALE 9/21
PROFESSOR YUNTE HUANG MONDAY
SEPT. 21, 2015 3:30 p.m. LINDSAY YOUNG AUDITORIUM HODGES LIBRARY, UT CAMPUS Free and open to the public. uthumanitiesctr.utk.edu
“...precious bluegrass jewel...Lynch sings like a hillbilly angel.” Robert K. Oermann, MUSIC ROW MAGAZINE Claire Lynch Band: Winner of the 2014 IBMA Awards, “Song of the Year” for Dear Sister. The Railsplitters are making music totally unlimited by tradition. 2015-16 SPONSORS
CLAYTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS on the campus of Maryville College
Streaming 24.7.365 at WUTKRADIO.COM or listen on your
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
smart phone and iPad app.
502 E. Lamar Alexander Pkwy. Maryville, TN 37804
BOX OFFICE: 865-981-8590 ClaytonArtsCenter.com
CALENDAR transcends the “trick”.As the winner of NBC’s hit TV show ‘Phenomenon’, Mike is the only magician in history to win a LIVE magic competition on primetime US network television and voted America’s Favorite Mystifier! He creates a totally interactive magic experience where you won’t just watch the magic; you’ll become part of it! His appeal to both young and old has made him one of the most sought after mystifiers in the world! Each individual enjoys the show in completely different ways, and the result is a personal, yet shared, magical experience your whole family becomes immersed in!Join the journey of emotions from laughter, intrigue, danger, fear, wonder, anticipation, tears and sentimentality that only Mike Super delivers. Sunday, Sept. 27 UPSTAIRS UNDERGROUND COMEDY • Preservation Pub • 8PM • A weekly comedy open mic.
FESTIVALS
Thursday, Sept. 17 DUMPLIN VALLEY BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL • Dumpling Valley Farm • Three days of outstanding bluegrass bands performing onstage in an old converted dairy barn. Camping, vendors, and restrooms available on site; festival seating (bring your own chair) and free parking. Featuring the Lonesome River Band, Balsam Range, Rhonda Vincent and the Rage, and more. • $25-$75 TENNESSEE VALLEY FAIR • Chilhowee Park • 3PM • Our annual celebration of Americana is back—with live concerts, scary rides, arts & crafts competitions, fair food, and tractor pulls. Friday, Sept. 18 DUMPLIN VALLEY BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL • Dumpling Valley Farm • Featuring the Lonesome River Band, Balsam Range, Rhonda Vincent and the Rage, and more. • $25-$75 TENNESSEE VALLEY FAIR • Chilhowee Park • 3PM • Our annual celebration of Americana is back—with live concerts, scary rides, arts & crafts competitions, fair food, and tractor pulls. BIG FLUFFY HAIR 4 BIG FLUFFY DOGS • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 7PM • A night of entertainment to raise funds for big, fluffy dogs! Come enjoy the music of The Lonetones and bid on a fabulous selection of items in the silent auction. All the financial proceeds will be donated to the Big Fluffy Dog Rescue (www.BigFluffyDogs.com). • $10 Saturday, Sept. 19 DUMPLIN VALLEY BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL • Dumpling Valley Farm • Featuring the Lonesome River Band, Balsam Range, Rhonda Vincent and the Rage, and more. • $25-$75 TENNESSEE VALLEY FAIR • Chilhowee Park • 10AM • Our annual celebration of Americana is back—with live concerts, scary rides, arts & crafts competitions, fair food, and tractor pulls. EAST TENNESSEE PAGAN PRIDE DAY • Sevierville Civic Center • 11AM • The day’s events will feature a variety of workshops and discussions on religious and cultural aspects from the various traditions. Regardless of religious affiliation, this event will offer fun activities for the entire family. Please visit www.paganprideofeasttn.org or Facebook at www. facebook.com/PaganPrideOfEastTn. • FREE JOHN SEVIER DAYS LIVING HISTORY WEEKEND • Marble Springs State Historic Site • 10AM • Marble Springs State Historic Site is pleased to host a weekend of Living History in celebration of the life and times of the first governor of Tennessee, John Sevier, in commemoration of his 270th birthday and 200th anniversary of his death. You can expect to enjoy 18th century demonstrations
such as open-hearth cooking; spinning and weaving; blacksmithing; weapons demonstrations, which will showcase period-appropriate firearms; 18th century style militia drills; regional craft demonstrations; historic lectures and more! • $5 per adult (16+); $3 per child (7-15); 6 and under FREE; Parking is free. Sunday, Sept. 20 JOHN SEVIER DAYS LIVING HISTORY WEEKEND • Marble Springs State Historic Site • 12PM • A celebration of the life and times of the first governor of Tennessee, John Sevier, in commemoration of his 270th birthday and 200th anniversary of his death. $5 per adult (16+); $3 per child (7-15); 6 and under FREE. Parking is free. TENNESSEE VALLEY FAIR • Chilhowee Park • 12PM • Our annual celebration of Americana is back—with live concerts, scary rides, arts & crafts competitions, fair food, and tractor pulls. Tuesday, Sept. 22 MYSTICAL ARTS OF TIBET: SAND MANDALA • McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture • 9AM • Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery will conduct a mandala sand painting in the museum’s Native Peoples of Tennessee gallery beginning Tuesday, September 22, 2015 and concluding on Friday, September 25, 2015. Specific times for the opening and closing ceremonies will be announced at a later date. Though this event is free and open to the public, groups must make reservations by calling (865)974-2144. • FREE Wednesday, Sept. 23 MYSTICAL ARTS OF TIBET: SAND MANDALA • McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture • 9AM • Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery will conduct a mandala sand painting in the museum’s Native Peoples of Tennessee gallery beginning Tuesday, September 22, 2015 and concluding on Friday, September 25, 2015. • FREE Thursday, Sept. 24 MYSTICAL ARTS OF TIBET: SAND MANDALA • McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture • 9AM • Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery will conduct a mandala sand painting in the museum’s Native Peoples of Tennessee gallery beginning Tuesday, September 22, 2015 and concluding on Friday, September 25, 2015. • FREE Friday, Sept. 25 ART FAIR KMA 2015 • Knoxville Museum of Art • 6PM • The Guild of the Knoxville Museum of Art presents Art Fair KMA 2015 September 25-27. This second annual event raises funds to support the museum and presents art for sale by artists from the region and across the United States. Friday, September 25: A Vernissage/ Opening Preview and Sale takes place from 6 to 9pm. This gala event includes a cocktail party, silent auction, and VIP access to art for sale. Tickets are $95 per person and may be purchased online at knoxart.org/events/ art-fair-kma.html. Saturday, September 26 & Sunday, September 27: The Art Fair takes place the following Saturday (10am-6pm) and Sunday (12noon-4pm) and is free and open to the public. For more information, visit www.knoxart.org or email artfairkma@gmail.com. • $95 MYSTICAL ARTS OF TIBET: SAND MANDALA • McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture • 9AM • Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Drepung Loseling Monastery will conduct a mandala sand painting in the museum’s Native Peoples of Tennessee gallery beginning Tuesday, September 22, 2015 and concluding on Friday, September
25, 2015. • FREE 36TH ANNUAL GREEKFEST • St. George Greek Orthodox Church • 11AM • Despite a fire in April that destroyed the interior of the church, the festival celebrating Greek culture returns! Features include authentic Greek food and pastries, live music, traditional Greek dancing and costumes, and shopping. The popular a la carte menu includes traditional favorites such as roast lamb, gyro, souvlaki, pastichio, spanakopita, Greek salad, Greek pizza and saganaki. Inside you will find delicious, homemade Greek pastries. Children 12-under are free. • $2 Saturday, Sept. 26 ART FAIR KMA 2015 • Knoxville Museum of Art • 10AM • This second annual event raises funds to support the museum and presents art for sale by artists from the region and across the United States. Visitors can enjoy individual artist booths featuring original art, free art and craft activities for children, and free photo booth. For more information, visit www.knoxart.org or email artfairkma@gmail.com. • FREE THE SALAMANDER BALL • Knoxville Zoo • 6:30PM • If you’ve ever marveled at the depth, breadth, or beauty of wildlife in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, you are invited to one of the region’s premiere fundraising events that directly supports conservation and science. This family friendly evening encourages you to dress as your favorite Smokies critter and join the staff and board of Discover Life in America (and a few surprise guests!) to celebrate the wondrous biodiversity in GSMNP. This event is for adults and children of all ages! • $75 BIERFEST 2015: PINTS FOR PRESERVATION • Central Flats and Taps • 5PM • Bierfest is an outdoor beer festival featuring 14 local and regional breweries; each brewery offering a variety of specialty beers. 100% of net proceeds will be donated to Knox Heritage. Please purchase tickets online at www.knoxheritage.org or in person at Central Flats & Taps. For more information, visit www. knoxheritage.org. • $25-$50 36TH ANNUAL GREEKFEST • St. George Greek Orthodox Church • 11AM • The festival celebrating Greek culture returns! • $2 FALL FESTIVAL AND OLD TIMERS DAY • Townsend Visitor’s Center • The Fall Festival and Old Timers day at the Townsend Visitors Center celebrates the traditional music, crafts, Appalachian skills, and heritage of Townsend, East Tennessee, and the Great Smoky Mountains. HOLA FESTIVAL • Market Square • The HoLa Festival is a celebration of Hispanic culture and features Hispanic music, dance, food, and other cultural entertainment. The event, that will take place at Market Square in downtown Knoxville, is open to the public without charge and parking in the adjacent city parking lots will be free. • FREE HAPPY HOLLERPALOOZA STREET FAIR • Happy Holler • 12PM • North Central Street will be blocked off from Baxter Avenue to Scott Street to provide the people of Knoxville a chance to party in Happy Holler and see all that the area has to offer. This is a family friendly event offering free music, free parking and free admission. Bring everyone you know to enjoy food, handmade crafts, wares, artwork, jewelry and simply wonderful stuff from local vendors. Come dance in the streets and while you’re in the area check out the stores of Happy Holler, because there is certainly something for everyone. • FREE LOUIE BLUIE MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVAL • Cove Lake State Park • 10AM • Bluegrass and blues come together at the ninth annual Louie Bluie Music & Arts Festival. The festival’s variety of musical styles convey East Tennessee’s rich musical tradition and honor the adventurous, pioneering spirit of festival namesake
WIMZ PRESENTS:
THE BLACK JACKET SYMPHONY
PERFORMS AC/DC’S BACK IN BLACK
friday, october 9 • 8pm
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 37
CALENDAR Howard “Louie Bluie” Armstrong (1909-2003), who spent his early youth in LaFollette and became a world-renowned musician and artist. For more information, visit LouieBluie.org. • FREE Sunday, Sept. 27 ART FAIR KMA 2015 • Knoxville Museum of Art • 12PM • This second annual event raises funds to support the museum and presents art for sale by artists from the region and across the United States. Visitors can enjoy individual artist booths featuring original art, free art and craft activities for children, and free photo booth. For more information, visit www.knoxart.org or email artfairkma@gmail.com. • FREE OLD GRAY LANTERN AND CARRIAGE TOUR • Old Gray Cemetery • 4PM • Carriage rides and family fun as reenactors tell the story of Landmarks at Old Gray Cemetery. • $10 36TH ANNUAL GREEKFEST • St. George Greek Orthodox Church • 11AM • The festival celebrating Greek culture returns! • $2 FALL FESTIVAL AND OLD TIMERS DAY • Townsend Visitor’s Center • The Fall Festival and Old Timers day at the Townsend Visitors Center celebrates the traditional music, crafts, Appalachian skills, and heritage of Townsend, East Tennessee, and the Great Smoky Mountains. HOLA FESTIVAL • Market Square • The HoLa Festival is a celebration of Hispanic culture and features Hispanic music, dance, food, and other cultural entertainment. The event, that will take place at Market Square in downtown Knoxville, is open to the public without charge and parking in the adjacent city parking lots will be free. • FREE
FILM SCREENINGS
Thursday, Sept. 17 KNOXVILLE FILM FESTIVAL • Regal Downtown West Cinema 8 • The Knoxville Film Festival has become the region’s destination for independent cinema, with a variety of local, national, and international films—features, shorts, and documentaries. Info: knoxvillefilmfestival.com Friday, Sept. 18 KNOXVILLE FILM FESTIVAL • Regal Downtown West Cinema 8 • The Knoxville Film Festival has become the region’s destination for independent cinema, with a variety of local, national, and international films—features, shorts, and documentaries. Info: knoxvillefilmfestival.com MOVIES ON MARKET SQUARE • Market Square • 7PM • Bring a blanket or a lawn chair and join hundreds of others under the stars for a night of family fun in front of the silver screen. • FREE Saturday, Sept. 19 KNOXVILLE FILM FESTIVAL • Regal Downtown West Cinema 8 • The Knoxville Film Festival has become the region’s destination for independent cinema, with a variety of local, national, and international films—features, shorts, and documentaries. Info: knoxvillefilmfestival.com Sunday, Sept. 20 KNOXVILLE FILM FESTIVAL • Regal Downtown West Cinema 8 • The Knoxville Film Festival has become the region’s destination for independent cinema, with a variety of local, national, and international films—features, shorts, and documentaries. Info: knoxvillefilmfestival.com Monday, Sept. 21 THE BIRDHOUSE WALK-IN THEATER • The Birdhouse • 38
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
8:15PM • A weekly free movie screening. • FREE Wednesday, Sept. 23 SCRUFFY CITY CINE-PUB • Scruffy City Hall • 7PM • Free Wednesday movie screenings. • FREE Thursday, Sept. 24 EAST TENNESSEE PBS OPEN STUDIOS • East Tennessee PBS • 6:30PM • Join us for this year’s East Tennessee PBS Studios Open House. Public television members, supporters and the general public are invited to tour our station, meet their favorite local show hosts and learn about the exciting and successful educational initiatives occurring across the state as we recognize the hard work of our American Graduate Champions. • FREE Friday, Sept. 25 MOVIES ON MARKET SQUARE • Market Square • 7PM • Bring a blanket or a lawn chair and join hundreds of others under the stars for a night of family fun in front of the silver screen. • FREE TERRARIUM’ • Striped Light • 8PM • A skateboard film by Cal Travis Oaks, with records being spun by Nathan Moses from Lost and Found Records. Food available from Good Golly Tamale.
SPORTS AND RECREATION
Thursday, Sept. 17 WHOLE FOODS GAME NIGHT • Whole Foods • 6PM • Join us for everything from Candy Land to chess, and feel free to add a pint and a pizza. • FREE DON’T BLINK: A DOCTOR WHO QUIZ! • Preservation Pub • 8PM • This nationwide trivia quiz extravaganza by Geeks Who Drink promises “crazy costumes, huge prizes and lots of geekery” and focuses on everyone’s favorite time lord. Saturday, Sept. 19 SMOKY MOUNTAIN HIKING CLUB: LITTLE RIVER TRAIL • Smoky Mountain Hiking Club • 10:30AM • This easy, short, family-friendly hike will take us up the Little River Trail to Cucumber Gap Trail intersection, 4.8 miles round trip. Meet at the Little River trailhead in Elkmont at 10:30. Leader: Charles Hurst, charlesbh@charter.net. • FREE Tuesday, Sept. 22 WHOLE FOODS GAME NIGHT • Whole Foods • 6PM • Join us for everything from Candy Land to chess, and feel free to add a pint and a pizza. • FREE
local support groups, 24/7 Helpline (800-272-3900), and educational programs. POKER RIDE FOR WHISKERS AND PAWS • Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson • 11AM • A benefit motorcycle ride for AnimalWorks. • $25 MOONLIGHT HIKE • University of Tennessee Arboretum • 7:30PM • The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society presents a “Moonlight Hike.” The 1.5-mile hike will begin at the Visitors Center near the parking lot. Participants can listen for owls and other night creatures as they journey through the woods. A telescope will be available for anyone who wants a closer look at the night sky. Note: This event is limited to participants age 10 and older. • $5 SMOKY MOUNTAIN HIKING CLUB FAMILY HIKE: DOUBLE SPRINGS GAP • Smoky Mountain Hiking Club • 8AM • Held trail-wide on National Public Lands Day, Family Hiking Day is an opportunity to introduce children to America’s premier footpath and all of the benefits that come from being active and spending time outdoors. We’ll begin our hike by first climbing the Clingman’s Dome lookout tower--the highest point on the 2189-mile Appalachian Trail. We’ll then proceed west on the AT along a rocky ridge. Much of this portion of the Appalachian Trail passes through an old-growth spruce-fir forest. At 3.2 miles we’ll reach the Double Spring Gap Shelter where we’ll eat our lunch. We will return to Clingman’s Dome via the same route. Hike: 6.4 miles, rated moderate due to climb over Mt. Buckley on the return. Meet at Comcast on Asheville Highway ready to depart at 8 AM or at the Sugarlands Visitors Center--near restrooms--at 9 AM. Leader: Cindy Spangler, spangler@utk.edu. • FREE KTC BIG SOUTH FORK TRAIL RACE • Big South Fork • 8:30AM • One of the most well-respected trail races in the east, the Big South Fork Trail Race has attracted avid trail runners from throughout the region. Since its inception in the mid-1990’s, Race Director Bobby Glenn has presented a trail racing classic suitable for hardcore ultra enthusiasts as well as road runners looking for a challenging introduction to off road running. Sunday, Sept. 27 SMOKY MOUNTAIN HIKING CLUB: STONE HOUSE • Smoky Mountain Hiking Club • 8:30AM • This hike follows the Old Sugarlands Trail from the Visitor Center for about 2 miles, and then 1.3 miles off-trail via traces of old roads to the “recently rediscovered” Stone House on Big Branch in the upper Sugarlands Valley. Meet at Comcast on Asheville Highway at 8:30 or the Old Sugarlands Trailhead at 9:30. Hike 6.6 miles, elevation gain 700FT. Rated easy although a rock-hop across Big Branch is necessary to visit the house. Leader: Bob Hawthorne, rehawthorne@comcast.net. • FREE
Broadway Studios and Gallery 1127 Broadway Sept. 4-30: Gaudy Gold Frame Show. By appointment. Clayton Center for the Arts 502 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway (Maryville) AUG. 26-SEPT. 25: Seeing in Black and White, photographs by Paula Campbell. Downtown Gallery 106 S. Gay St. SEPT. 4-26: Non-Exempt: A UT Staff Exhibition. 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. SEPT. 4-26: Artists of Fine Arts Blount; Terra Madre: Women in Clay; Drawn In, curated by Amy Hand; Conversations: Portraits and Other Work by Emily Taylor; and artwork by Jake Livesay. Envision Art Gallery 4050 Sutherland Ave. SEPT. 5-30: The Love of Art, featuring work by members of the Tennessee Artist Association. Ewing Gallery 1715 Volunteer Blvd. AUG. 24-SEPT. 25: Selections from the Ewing Gallery Permanent Collection. Knoxville Museum of Art 1050 World’s Fair Park Drive AUG. 21-NOV. 8: The Paternal Suit, paintings, prints, and objects by conceptual artist F. Scott Hess. ONGOING: Higher Ground: A Century of the Visual Arts in Tennessee; Currents: Recent Art From East Tennessee and Beyond; and Facets of Modern and Contemporary Glass. Liz-Beth and Co. 7240 Kingston Pike SEPT. 1-26: Country Roads Take Me Home, featuring art by Jim Gray, Theresa Shelton, Eileen McConkey, Sandy Brown, and Ober Rae Starr Livingstone. McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture 1327 Circle Park Drive SEPT. 11-JAN. 3: E mbodying Enlightenment: Buddhist Art of the Himalayas. Ongoing: The Flora and Fauna of Catesby, Mason, and Audubon and Life on the Roman Frontier.
Wednesday, Sept. 23 SMOKY MOUNTAIN HIKING CLUB: NEWFOUND GAP TO MOUNT LECONTE • Smoky Mountain Hiking Club • 8AM • We’ll hike from Newfound Gap to the Boulevard Trail and on to Mt LeConte, returning the same way. A 16.2 mile, strenuous hike. Meet at Alcoa Food City at 8:00. Leader Micheal Zielinski, f4yws@comcast.net. • FREE
ART
Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts 556 Parkway (Gatlinburg) AUG. 29-OCT. 31: Materialities: Contemporary Textile Art
Zach Searcy Projects 317 N. Gay St. SEPT. 4-30: Country Club, new paintings by Eric Cagley. By appointment
Thursday, Sept. 24 WHOLE FOODS GAME NIGHT • Whole Foods • 6PM • Join us for everything from Candy Land to chess, and feel free to add a pint and a pizza. • FREE
The Birdhouse 800 N. Fourth Ave. SEPT. 1-30: Extraordinary Women, paintings by Asa McEwan. An opening reception will be held on Friday, Sept. 4, from 7-10 p.m.
Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church 2931 Kingston Pike SEPT. 11-DEC. 3: An exhibit of artwork by TVUUC members.
Saturday, Sept. 26 WALK TO END ALZHEIMER’S • University of Tennessee • 8AM • The Annual Walk to End Alzheimer’s will take place at the University of Tennessee campus on Sept. 26 at 8 a.m. Participants will enjoy walk activities and have a fun morning. Proceeds from this event go toward research,
Bliss Home 29 Market Square AUG. 7-SEPT. 30: The Lake House, paintings by Kate Moore. A First Friday reception will be held on Friday, Sept. 4, from 6-9 p.m.
CALENDAR LECTURES, READINGS, AND BOOK SIGNINGS
Thursday, Sept. 17 COLLEEN JONSSON: ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL FORUM • Howard H. Baker Center for Public Policy • 1PM • Johnson is the director of the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis and a microbiology professor at UT. • FREE CELEBRATE CONSTITUTION DAY AND CITIZENSHIP DAY • Howard H. Baker Center for Public Policy • 5:30PM • Participants can sign the Constitution, and register to vote on the Johnson-Ward Pedestrian Walkway, learn about the death penalty in Tennessee (9:40 a.m.) and join an interactive lecture and discussion at 5:30 p.m. in the Toyota Auditorium. • YUJI HIRATSUKA • University of Tennessee Art and Architecture Building • 7:30PM • Yuji Hiratsuka, a printmaker from Corvallis, Oregon as a visiting artist at the University ofTennessee, will present a public lecture on his work in Art-Architecture room 109. • FREE Friday, Sept. 18 INTERFAITH CLERGY PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE • Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd • 7AM • Tennessee Interfaith Power and Light welcomes the community to hear how different faith traditions understand the recent climate change encyclical of Pope Francis. Three Greater Knoxville clergy will discuss the recent encyclical on climate change of Pope Francis from the perspectives of their faith traditions. • FREE KRISTA BILLINGSLEY: “STRUCTURAL VIOLENCE AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT IN NEPAL” • McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture • 5PM • Krista Billingsley is a PhD candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Tennessee. Her research examines transitional justice in Nepal and focuses on structural violence and the perceptions of Nepalis affected by conflict as children. • FREE Saturday, Sept. 19 UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE PREGAME SHOWCASE LECTURE SERIES • ”Leaving Orbit: Notes from the Last Days of American Spaceflight.” Margaret Lazarus Dean, associate professor of English, will explore what space flight has meant to ordinary Americans in terms of past history and potential future directions. • FREE Monday, Sept. 21 UT HUMANITIES CENTER DISTINGUISHED LECTURE SERIES • University of Tennessee • 3:30PM • Prominent English scholar Yunte Huang will kick off the University of Tennessee Humanities Center’s fourth annual distinguished lecture series on Sept. 21 with a look at the legacy of racial imagination as it relates to the American cultural experience. For more information, visit uthumanitiesctr.utk.edu. • FREE TINA SANTI FLAHERTY: “THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT JACQUELINE KENNEDY ONASSIS” • Bijou Theatre • 6:30PM • The public is invited to join the East Tennessee Historical Society and the Bijou Theatre as we commemorate the 55th anniversary of the John and Jackie Kennedy’s 1960 presidential campaign visit to Knoxville. Tina Santi Flaherty, author of What Jackie Taught Us: Lessons From the Remarkable Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, will discuss the public and private life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis--her glamour and style, men and marriages, motherhood, vision, and courage. • FREE
WRITERS IN THE LIBRARY: M.O. WALSH • University of Tennessee John C. Hodges Library • 7PM • M.O. Walsh is the author of the short story collection The Prospect of Magic, which won the Tartt’s Fiction Prize, and the novel My Sunshine Away, which was a New York Times Bestseller, an Indie Next Pick, an Amazon Featured Debut and an Entertainment Weekly “Must” Pick for 2015. His stories and essays have appeared in The Guardian, The New York Times, The Southern Review, Oxford American and Best New American Voices, among other publications. • FREE Tuesday, Sept. 22 GLOBAL SECURITY LECTURE: ‘ARABS AND MUSLIMS IN AMERICAN POPULAR CULTURE’ • Howard H. Baker Center for Public Policy • 6PM • Jack Shaheen is an author, lecturer, and film consultant specializing in addressing stereotypes of Middle Easterners. • FREE Wednesday, Sept. 23 ESTATE PLANNING AND LEGAL ISSUES FOR SENIORS • Blount County Public Library • 11AM • Matthew (Matt) Haralson, elder law attorney with Kizer & Black, Attorneys, PLLC, will give a presentation as part of the Focus on Seniors series, co-sponsored by the Blount County Public Library and the Office on Aging. • FREE LOSS OF THE STEAMER SULTANA: AMERICA’S WORST MARITIME DISASTER’ • East Tennessee History Center • 12PM • April, 27, 1865, on the Mississippi River near Memphis, the boilers of the steamer Sultana exploded. The result was the most deadly maritime disaster in American history, with 1,800 souls lost by fire and drowning. Retired Knoxville attorney Norman Shaw founded the Knoxville Civil War Roundtable in 1983, where he has since served three terms as president and remains active today. • FREE JACK NEELY • Roane State Community College (Oak Ridge) • 2:30PM • Jack Neely, well-known author, Knoxville Mercury columnist and Contributing Editor, and historian will present a talk on the history of downtown Knoxville to the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning (ORICL). • FREE
FAMILY AND KIDS’ EVENTS
Thursday, Sept. 17 BABY BOOKWORMS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • For infants to age 2, must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. • FREE CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 1PM • Middle and high school students (or any age) are invited to play chess. Tom Jobe coaches most Saturdays in the Teen Central area of the library. On one Saturday of every month, there will be a rated tournament at the Blount County Public Library. • FREE KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 4:30PM • For more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $180 TODDLER’S YOGI YOGA • Shanti Yoga Haven • 9AM • An energized and calming follow-the-leader Yoga movement and music meditation class, guided by “Hi, funny teacher!” Ms. Donna-Lisa. Ages 2 to 5 yrs old. Mondays & Thursdays 9-10am Friday, Sept. 18 SMART TOYS AND BOOKS ART CLASS • Smart Toys and Books
• 10AM • Mommy, Daddy & Me Art Classes are every Friday at 10am & 11am. Reservations and payment are required in advance. Class fees are non-refundable. Ages 2+. • $10 Saturday, Sept. 19 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 10AM • For more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $180 CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 10AM • Middle and high school students (or any age) are invited to play chess. Tom Jobe coaches most Saturdays in the Teen Central area of the library. On one Saturday of every month, there will be a rated tournament at the Blount County Public Library. • FREE SATURDAY STORIES AND SONGS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • A weekly music and storytelling session for kids. • FREE GENTLE BARN TOUR • The Gentle Barn • 11AM • Come visit the second Gentle Barn, home to Dudley, Worthy, Indie and Chris. You will get to watch Gentle Barn rescue videos and shop at our gift store. Sunday, Sept. 20 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 Thursday, Sept. 21 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, Sept. 22 PRE-K READ AND PLAY • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • Pre-K Read and Play is a pilot program specifically designed to prepare children to enter kindergarten. • FREE EVENING STORYTIME • Lawson McGee Public Library • 6:30PM • An evening storytime at Lawson McGhee Children’s Room to include stories, music, and crafts. For toddlers and up. • FREE Wednesday, Sept. 23 BABY BOOKWORMS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 10:20AM • For infants to age 2, must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. • FREE PRESCHOOL STORYTIME • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • For ages 3 to 5, must be accompanied by an adult. • FREE Thursday, Sept. 24 BABY BOOKWORMS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • For infants to age 2, must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. • FREE CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 1PM • Middle and high school students (or any age) are invited to play chess. Tom Jobe coaches most Saturdays in the Teen Central area of the library. On one Saturday of every month, there will be a rated tournament at the Blount County Public Library. • FREE TODDLER’S YOGI YOGA • Shanti Yoga Haven • 9AM • An energized and calming follow-the-leader Yoga movement and music meditation class, guided by “Hi, funny teacher!” Ms. Donna-Lisa. Ages 2 to 5 yrs old. Mondays & Thursdays 9-10am Friday, Sept. 25 SMART TOYS AND BOOKS ART CLASS • Smart Toys and Books • 10AM • Mommy, Daddy & Me Art Classes are every Friday at 10am & 11am. Reservations and payment are required in advance. Class fees are non-refundable. Ages 2+. • $10 September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 39
CALENDAR Saturday, Sept. 26 KNOXVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE SUMMER ACTING CLASSES • Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 10AM • For more information: e-mail Academy Director Dennis Perkins at dennis@childrenstheatreknoxville.com, or call (865) 208-3677. • $180 CHESS AT THE LIBRARY • Blount County Public Library • 10AM • Middle and high school students (or any age) are invited to play chess. Tom Jobe coaches most Saturdays in the Teen Central area of the library. On one Saturday of every month, there will be a rated tournament at the Blount County Public Library. • FREE SATURDAY STORIES AND SONGS • Lawson McGee Public Library • 11AM • A weekly music and storytelling session for kids. • FREE GENTLE BARN TOUR • The Gentle Barn • 11AM • Come visit the second Gentle Barn, home to Dudley, Worthy, Indie and Chris. You will get to watch Gentle Barn rescue videos and shop at our gift store. FAMILY FUN DAY: CELEBRATING TIBET • McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture • 1PM • Join us for free a free Family Fun Day featuring activities, crafts, tours, and more. We’ll explore our special exhibit, Embodying Enlightenment: Buddhist Art of the Himalayas. All materials will be provided. The program is free and open to the public. Reservations are not necessary. • FREE
CHARITY AND FUNDRAISING
Thursday, Sept. 17 POWER OF THE PURSE MOBILE MEALS FUNDRAISER • Rothchild Conference and Catering Center • 11AM • Buy a purse. Feed seniors. Power of the Purse is a Mobile Meals fundraiser to feed seniors in the greater Knoxville area! Many of these seniors are home bound and depend on the services of Mobile Meals for hot meals.
CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS
Thursday, Sept. 17 AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Seymour First Baptist Church • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Everett Senior Center (Oak Ridge) • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 12PM • Call 865-577-2021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY: KNIT YOUR WAY TO WELLNESS • Cancer Support Community • 1PM • 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. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. PORTRAIT AND LIFE DRAWING CLASSES • Historic Candoro Marble Company • 2PM • Life drawing practice session. Call Brad Selph for more information 865-573-0709. • $10 BELLY DANCE LEVELS 1 AND 2 • Knox Dance Worx • 8PM • Call (865) 898-2126 or email alexia@alexia-dance.com. • $12 KNOX COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS: COVER CROPS • Concord United Methodist Church • 6PM • Join Knox County Extension Master Gardener Marsha Lehman to learn what cover crops are and why to use them. Learn which combination of seeds to plant to give your garden a great winter blanket as well as a kick-start to next spring’s gardening season. Call 865-966-6728. • FREE Friday, Sept. 18 AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Seymour First Baptist Church • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Everett Senior Center (Maryville) • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. YOGA AND QI-GONG BASICS • Shanti Yoga Haven • 6PM • New to Yoga and Qi-gong? Welcome! This beginner’s course will gently guide you every step of the way. Receive $10 Off your first class when you mention Mercury! Work-study scholarships available. You may walk-in at any point in the course. Each class will be unique, slow paced and gentle for those who may be dealing with arthritis, stiffness, stress, anxiety or other.
Monday, Sept. 21 CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY QUICK AND TASTY COOKING • Cancer Support Community • 12PM • Looking for some new dinner recipes? Tired of cooking the same thing? Call 865- 546-4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer.
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Sunday, September 27 3 p.m. in the Courtyard
And tell them you saw their ad here in
900 Henley at Main Across from the Convention Center www.churchstreetumc.org KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
Saturday, Sept. 19 YOGA AT NARROW RIDGE • Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center • 9AM • For more information contact Mitzi Wood-Von Mizener at 865-497-3603 or community@ narrowridge.org. RAIN GARDENS...CONSERVE WATER, SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT • Cedar Bluff Branch Library • 1PM • Install a beautiful rain garden while doing your part to keep our waters clean. Learn the basics with Knox County Extension Master Gardener Joyce Montgomery. IMPROV COMEDY CLASS • The Birdhouse • 10AM • A weekly improv comedy class. • FREE
Blessing of the Animals Join us as we celebrate our faithful companions in the tradition of St. Francis of Assisi and his great love for all God’s creatures.
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SNAPSHOT OR PHOTOGRAPH?: A PHOTO WORKSHOP • Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church • 7PM • How to improve your photographs by just making a few very basic adjustments. Beginners, intermediate or advanced photographers will all learn helpful hints. Please bring a finger food snack to share. Lemonade will be provided. Program contact: Chuck Janack, cwjanack1@gmail.com • FREE
CALENDAR AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Cheyenne Ambulatory Center (Oak Ridge) • 1PM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. KNOX COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS: COMPOSTING • Davis Family YMCA • 1PM • Join Knox County Extension Master Gardener Andy Mehringer to learn the basics of making compost that’s good for your garden and spares you the expense of buying soil amendments. 865-777-9622. • FREE GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 5:30PM • Call 865-577-2021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. Tuesday, Sept. 22 GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 12PM • Call 865-577-2021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. YOGA WITH SUBAGHJI • The Birdhouse • 5:15PM COMMUNITY SCHOOL • Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church • 6:30PM • Community School is a free three-evening seminar series to learn about the toxic and radioactive waste from Oak Ridge. Historian Ray Smith begins the series with a presentation, “Stories from the Secret City” on September 15th. The second evening, September 22nd, will feature three speakers including Susan Cange, Manager of the DOE Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management; Ellen Smith, Environmental Scientist and Oak Ridge City Council Member; and Chris Thompson, Deputy Director at the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Division of Remediation/DOE Oversight Office. • FREE AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Alcoa First United Methodist Church • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Cheyenne Ambulatory Center • 1PM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. Wednesday, Sept. 23 AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Alcoa First United Methodist Church • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. • AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • John T. O’Conner Senior Center • 12PM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. Thursday, Sept. 24 GENTLE YOGA AND MEDITATION • Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church • 12PM • Call 865-577-2021 or email yogaway249@gmail.com. Donations accepted. BELLY DANCE LEVELS 1 AND 2 • Knox Dance Worx • 8PM • Call (865) 898-2126 or email alexia@alexia-dance.com. • $12 AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Asbury Place • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • John T. O’Conner Senior Center • 12PM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822.• USING NATIVE PERENNIALS AND SHRUBS IN YOUR NEW PERENNIAL BORDER • Humana Guidance Center • 3:15PM • Extension Master Gardeners Carolyn Kiser and Janie Bitner are advocates for using native plants in your gardens. With them, you will learn the many advantages of using native plants. They will also help you identify some of the beautiful native plants that will not only help showcase your garden but will thrive in our area. Friday, Sept. 25 AARP DRIVER SAFETY COURSE • Asbury Place • 9AM • For more information, call (865) 382-5822. Saturday, Sept. 26 YOGA AT NARROW RIDGE • Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center • 9AM • For more information contact Mitzi Wood-Von Mizener at 865-497-3603 or community@ narrowridge.org. MINDFULNESS IN EVERYDAY LIFE • Cancer Support Community • 10AM • We often place unrealistic
expectations on ourselves, on others and on what the future may bring which can lead to disappointment. Mindfulness practice can help us let go of expectations and connect us to the present moment. Call 865-546-4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. COVER CROPS: GREAT WINTER BLANKETS FOR YOUR GARDEN • All Saints Catholic Church • 10:30AM • Join Knox County Extension Master Gardener Marsha Lehman to learn what cover crops are and why to use them. Learn which combination of seeds to plant to give your garden a great winter blanket as well as a kick-start to next spring’s gardening season. • FREE IMPROV COMEDY CLASS • The Birdhouse • 10AM • A weekly improv comedy class. • FREE
MEETINGS
Thursday, Sept. 17 OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS • Recovery at Cokesbury • 5:30PM • This is an OA Literature Meeting. After a short reading from a book, members may share their experience, strength and hope. • FREE CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT GROUP • Cancer Support Community • 4:30PM • CSC is committed to providing bereavement services to those who have lost a loved one to cancer. Please contact our clinical staff before attending. Call 865-546-4661 for more info. All Cancer Support Community programs are offered at no cost to individuals affected by cancer. Friday, Sept. 18 INTERFAITH CLERGY PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE • Church of the Good Shepherd • 7PM • Tennessee Interfaith Power and Light welcomes the community to hear how different faith traditions understand the recent climate change encyclical of Pope Francis. Three Greater Knoxville clergy will discuss the recent encyclical on climate change of Pope Francis from the perspectives of their faith traditions. • FREE Saturday, Sept. 19 AL-ANON • Faith Lutheran Church • 11AM • Visit our local website at farragutalanon.org or email us at FindHope@ Farragutalanon.org. • FREE Sunday, Sept. 20 SILENT MEDITATION SUNDAYS • Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center • 11AM • For more information contact Mitzi Wood-Von Mizener at 865-497-3603 or community@narrowridge.org. • FREE Monday, Sept. 21 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, Sept. 22 COUNTING THE COSTS FOR TENNESSEE COMMUNITIES • Mount Olive Baptist Church • 6PM • The Tennessee Justice Center and the Tennessee Health Care Campaign are presenting this discussion of Gov. Haslam’s Insure Tennessee plan and its potential economic impact. • FREE Wednesday, Sept. 23 COMITE POPULAR DE KNOXVILLE • The Birdhouse • 7PM • A weekly meeting of the local immigrant advocacy organization. Thursday, Sept. 24 OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS • Recovery at Cokesbury •
5:30PM • This is an OA Literature Meeting. After a short reading from a book, members may share their experience, strength and hope. • FREE Saturday, Sept. 26 AL-ANON • Faith Lutheran Church • 11AM • Visit our local website at farragutalanon.org or email us at FindHope@ Farragutalanon.org. • FREE Sunday, Sept. 27 SILENT MEDITATION SUNDAYS • Narrow Ridge Earth Literacy Center • 11AM • For more information contact Mitzi Wood-Von Mizener at 865-497-3603 or community@narrowridge.org. • FREE
ETC.
Thursday, Sept. 17 NEW HARVEST PARK FARMERS MARKET • New Harvest Park • 3PM • The New Harvest Park Farmers Market will be open every Thursday through November from 3 to 6 p.m. The market features locally-grown produce, meats, artisan food products, plants, herbs, flowers, crafts and much more. • FREE Friday, Sept. 18 LAKESHORE PARK FARMERS’ MARKET • Lakeshore Park • 3PM • FARM vendors will offer a wide variety of spring bedding plants, fresh produce, grass-fed and pasture-raised meats, artisan bread and cheese, local honey and fresh eggs. As the season goes on, they offer the freshest produce possible, including just-picked strawberries, peaches, sweet corn and heirloom tomatoes. • FREE UNION COUNTY FARMERS MARKET • Maynardville • 4PM • Fridays through October at 1009 Main St. Downtown Maynardville 4 to 7 pm. More info call Union Co. Extension Office at 865-992-8038. • FREE NATIONAL DRIVE ELECTRIC SHOWCASE • Turkey Creek • 4PM • This event will be located just behind the O’Charley’s in Turkey Creek in West Knoxville, and will be near but NOT in or obstructing the Tesla Superchargers located there. If you have an electric vehicle, please join! For those that would like, stay and go to a group dinner afterwards. • FREE Saturday, Sept. 19 OAK RIDGE FARMERS’ MARKET • Historic Jackson Square • 8AM • FARM vendors will offer a wide variety of spring bedding plants, fresh produce, grass-fed and pasture-raised meats, artisan bread and cheese, local honey and fresh eggs. SEYMOUR FARMERS MARKET • Seymour First Baptist Church • 8AM • Home grown and home made produce, honey, baked goods, crafts and more. MARKET SQUARE FARMERS’ MARKET • Market Square • 9AM • The Market Square Farmers’ Market is an open-air farmers’ market located on Market Square in the heart of downtown Knoxville and is celebrating its 12th season this year. Hours are: Wednesday from 11a.m. to 2p.m. & Saturday from 9a.m. to 2p.m. • FREE NATIONAL DRIVE ELECTRIC WEEK SHOWCASE • University of Tennessee • 5PM • East Tennessee Clan Fuels Coalition will be hosting a National Drive Electric Week event at the UT vs. the Western Carolina Catamounts game. Join us at Gate 21 at Neyland Stadium for hands-on access to electric vehicles and educational information! Please note that we encourage you to come to learn, visit, and kick the wheels, but we will NOT have space for you to bring your electric vehicle. This is a closed space accessible by pedestrians only. • FREE
Open Chord®
Live
Knoxville’s BEST live music venue 6 nights a week! THURSDAY Sept. 17 7pm / $5
Breathing Theory, Small Town Titans, Breaking Through & Autumn Reflection ( HARD ROCK )
FRIDAY Sept. 18 7pm / $8
Final Drive, IKILLYA, WarClown & Absent From The Body ( METAL )
SATURDAY Sept. 19 • 8pm / $10
Hayley Reardon with Briston Maroney ( FOLK / POP )
8502 KINGSTON PIKE (865) 281-5874 openchordmusic.com
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 41
A vibrant district along Central Street and Broadway.
Visit Downtown North
Bierfest2015 Donation Drive & Salvage Sale Sat Sept 19 • 10am - 3pm Featuring items from Modern Supply. Bring in donations of salvage, antiques, & vintage furniture for even more discounts!
The Salvage Show First Friday, Oct 2 • 5pm-9pm Silent auction of art & home decor made using architectural salvage by local artists.
619 Broadway • 865-313-2111 knoxheritage.org/salvage
KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
BENEFITING
KNOX HERITAGE
PRESERVE. RESTORE. TRANSFORM.
SEPTEMBER 26, 2015
Saving architectural salvage from the landfill to benefit the work of Knox Heritage.
consistently voted
Time: 5 p.m. - 9 p.m. Price: $25 • VIP Price: $40 Location: Central Flats 1204 N. Central Ave. Knoxville, TN 37902 Tickets at: www.knoxheritage.org
Artist: Tommy Davis
1020 N. Broadway 865-971-3983 www.sainttattoo.com 42
PINTS FOR PRESERVATION
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HOLLY DAY! 12pm-6pm Wed-Fri 10am-5pm Sat
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PRESENTED BY HAPPY HOLLER NEIGHBORHOOD BUSINESSES Central Flats & Taps • The Chop Shop • Fleet Tire • Foam Rubber & Fabric Outlet • Fred’s Alignment • Friends Antiques • Magpies • Mid Mod Collective • Raven Records • Relix • Retrospect • Three Rivers Market • Time Warp Tea Room
820 N. Broadway • Knoxville TN www.architecturalantics.com September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 43
FOOD
D ir t to Fork
Fair Follow-up Here’s how the secret-formula corn muffins placed at the Tennessee Valley Fair BY ROSE KENNEDY
W
e were traipsing around the first floor of the barn-like Jacobs Building at the Tennessee Valley Fair, taking in an impressive and almost dizzying array of canned goods next to All-American-theme photographs beside display cases of fondant-, candy-, and cutout-decorated cakes. All were festooned with ribbons, some modest slips of nylon in blue or maybe pink, some big old ruffled medallions trailed by waves of gingham or purple. I was halted in my tracks beside a layer cake topped with a scene of barnyard animals that could have graced a book or stop-action cartoon, wondering if it was truly all cake or if there was a supportive sponge beneath the tableau. (The rules say either is cool.)
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
A voice behind me spoke, turned out to be a twentysomething college-student type: “Are these really real people?” They are, I thought to myself, and now I am one of them. Okay, I’m still a rookie, or maybe a waterboy for the high school team while “they” are NFL quarterbacks, but… I won! A second-place ribbon, a red one! And five bucks! In the Class 16 gig, aka Yeast Breads and Quick Breads, Lot 6, corn muffins. Now, I didn’t manage to enter but the one category; life events, low rainfall, and a tad bit of laziness scrapped my plans to make pickles or form produce arrangements for other events. I confess, I was a little unnerved
when we first pulled in to drop off my muffins for the judging. The vendors downstairs included a Right to Life group with plastic fetus models and more than one evangelical religious group—just not my thing at all. Sure, my buddies from Knox Feed and Seed were also displaying, and some prevent-forest-fire educators, and an insurance sales guy I know from a friend of a friend, but I wasn’t sure this was my place. But here’s the thing: I could have left then and “donated” my extras if I didn’t win, and looked up the results on the website later. But I just didn’t want to leave my non-winning muffins behind. We would eat every one if the judges scoffed at them! So I tarried for a few hours, waiting for the judges to do their thing, and I am glad I did. This allowed me to get a great feel for the place and the people, and what boils down to sharing. Sure, some were sharing their views of the afterlife or why you need gutter work, but most of what I saw shared was the grunt work, like the ladies who stood for hours hustling banana bread and white cake samples back and forth to the judges, or the parking volunteers who had to politely explain for the
umpteenth time, “no exit.” The building was riddled with knowledge, imparted by everyone, to anyone, from the beekeepers with their glassed-in hives to David Cantrell, who won biggest pumpkin (557.5 pounds) and biggest watermelon, and was hanging out selling “big” seeds, from cantaloupe to sunflowers, to fund next year’s prizes. He’ll be there all week, folks. I still don’t quite understand how my fellow winners (and even many who didn’t win) make such uniform chops on their onion-gold tomato salsa; or grow lush, spring-green Boston ferns in their Future Farmers of America class; or whip 2-inch meringues for luscious lemon pies that will feature in my mid-evening food dreams for months to come. I will probably never use a pressure cooker, even if I could make canned green beans, and I would dearly love to. Cake decorating, ah, no. But I’m still in, with my skill at corn muffins, and maybe next year with pickles and jellies or 10 okra pods. I like winning, but mostly I like being part of the tradition. Being one of “us.” For real. ◆
Keep Independent Journalism Alive in Knoxville! By making a donation to the Knoxville Mercury, you'll help us fulfill our mission to report stories that otherwise wouldn't be told. You'll be teaming up with an entire community of engaged citizens who want more from their local media. And you can earn some cool perks: Get the MERCURY MESSENGER E-NEWSLETTER and see the paper $35 SUPPORTER LEVEL a day early with info on restaurants, shows, and events. All of the above, plus exclusive KNOXVILLE MERCURY LEVEL TRAVEL MUG only available to supporters. $75 PARTNER All of the above, plus four tickets to our ANNUAL FUNDRAISING $200 PATRON LEVEL CONCERT at the Bijou Theatre and pre-show party. All of the above, plus a KNOXVILLE MERCURY $500 INVESTOR LEVEL ART BOOK featuring a year’s worth of covers. All of the above, plus invitations to our ANNUAL FOUNDERS’ PARTY LEVEL where you can meet Knoxville’s movers and shakers. $1000 FOUNDER
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September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 45
’BYE
At This Point
The Plane Truth Up and away BY STEPHANIE PIPER
I
t was six planes in three days, a business trip that took me north and east and through miles of security lines and moving sidewalks and baggage-claim areas. I returned a lot of seat backs and tray tables to their upright and locked positions. I opened a lot of overhead bins with caution, as items tend to shift during flight. I memorized several airline magazines. I chewed a lot of gum. I am old enough to remember when air travel was still an adventure. People dressed up for a plane trip as though it was a special occasion, men in suits, women in hats and gloves, children in their Sunday best. Maybe it was the church clothes that made everyone seem quiet and considerate. Nowadays, not so much. Any sense of occasion vanished years ago, along with those little ashtrays in the armrests and the chicken Kiev served on partitioned plates. It’s not that people are rude, exactly. It’s just a general air of indifference, a sort of who-cares nonchalance reflected in travel wardrobes that feature pajama bottoms and flip-flops and the BYO
snacks of takeout pepperoni pizza. In the chilly corridors of terminals, passengers hurtle along as though pursued. To pass the time on my recent journey, I began to count the number of smiling faces. My three-day total was five, and four of those were toddlers. I was reminded of the playwright Sarah Ruhl’s observation about people in airports:
BY MATTHEW FOLTZ-GRAY
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KNOXVILLE MERCURY September 17, 2015
that they look as though they have left their souls behind, and are waiting for them to catch up. Even the folksy addition of rocking chairs doesn’t do much to soften the fluorescent glare. Hemmed in on all sides by overpriced gewgaws and a dizzying array of junk food, it’s hard to feel anything but transient, rattled, and displaced. I was 17 when I boarded my first plane, a small regional jet from Virginia to New York. My mother had fallen ill during our college visiting tour, and we had to return home quickly. Despite the worrying circumstances, I remember the thrill of settling in the plush seat, peering out the window at the Blue Ridge Mountains rising before us. The
In the chilly corridors of terminals, passengers hurtle along as though pursued. To pass the time on my recent journey, I began to count the number of smiling faces. My three-day total was five.
stewardess looked like a Piedmont Airlines poster girl, perfectly coiffed and dressed in a navy suit with brass buttons and a smart little pillbox hat. She brought my mother a martini and a Coke for me and chatted to us in a soft Southern accent. Then the engines revved up and we soared. The Earth fell away. It felt like magic, or a miracle. I’ve flown hundreds of times since then, logged my share of frequent-flier miles in big planes and small. Each time, I wish for the excitement of that maiden flight, the rushing liftoff, the other-worldly vistas of clouds. The closest I have come was on this last trip. One leg was on a tiny Cessna nine-seater, bound for the very tip of Cape Cod. Gliding over the water in a blue haze that felt like an approach to heaven, I saw the white plumes of whales spouting below. My seat was right behind the pilot, a serene man who introduced himself as Captain Mario. He makes this 28-minute flight several times a day, ferrying passengers from Boston to an airport the size of a beach cottage. I wanted to ask him if it ever grows old, the sweep of ocean, the sense of something holy in the surrounding sky. Captain Mario touched down gently on the runway between the sand dunes. A man in the seat beside me made the sign of the cross. Maybe he was just another nervous flier. Or maybe it was his soul, catching up at last. ◆
CLASSIFIEDS
’BYE BY IAN BLACKBURN AND JACK NEELY
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WANT TO FIND A COPY OF THE KNOXVILLE MERCURY?
We’ve got a map for that! It’ll be updated as we add more locations. If you’ve got suggestions, let us know. knoxmercury.com/find-us
Sunday September 20, 2015
Tommy Schumpert Park 6400 Fountain City Rd. 2-5:00pm
Presented By:
Sponsored By:
$25 pre-registration fee online ~ www.humanesocietytennessee.com ~ $30 Race Day Fee. ~ NEW $10 Youth Fee!
September 17, 2015
KNOXVILLE MERCURY 47