The 11th Hour: March 15-28, 2019

MARCH 15-28, 2019 • VOL 18, ISSUE #407

Pg 16

Pg 27

Tour Mystic Kirk West talks ABB and rock photography with Jay Blakesberg

11 Things: From Les Pauls to Letters, Richard Brent Shares NeverBefore-Seen ABB History

More Than A Museum: Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of The Allman Brothers Band at The Big House Pg 22

Layout & Design by M&R Marketing

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SPORTS INJURIES

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RUNNING COMMENTARY I’ve heard numerous artists and musicians talk about their body of work. What they’re really concerned about is the legacy they may leave. Will the music endure? What stories will people tell-- or not tell? What lasting impression will comfort or haunt their loved ones? When it comes to the Allman Brothers Band, that legacy isn’t just about the songs and performances, it’s really all right there in the name-- brothers. For the original fans that only knew the music was special to the subsequent generations around the planet that continue to discover the ABB, the most important attribute of the band, their crew, and the admirers was that they fostered a sense of family unknown before or since in professional music. Is there another outfit that has offered a more talented or dedicated musical family tree with branches that continue to stretch towards the sun today? It’s a debate I’d gladly have.

I learned a lot in the course of putting this particular paper together. I got a private tour of the Big House and got to hold Duane Allman’s ‘57 Les Paul goldtop (I hit the first chords and rundown to “Rumble”). I got to see pieces of rock n’ roll history that few folks have, and I interviewed two world-class rock photographers. I ate pizza and listened to ABB records. I thought a lot about what it was like to travel and play music as a twenty-something-year-old kid in the 1970s. I wondered at the will those boys had to carry on after the passing of their bandmate and brother. And then how they had to do it again… But they did, and the music they took around the world kept their brothers alive. Maybe that’s why they kept going. Immortality is only a radio or record away.

Willie Perkins was tour manager, personal manager, and co-personal manager for The Allman Brothers Band, The Gregg Allman Band, The Dickey Betts Band, and Sea Level during the years 1970 to 1990. He’s written two books about his experiences with them, No Saints, No Saviors and The Allman Brothers Band Classic Memorabilia, 1969-1976 (here’s the plug-- available from Mercer University Press at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, The Big House Museum, or direct from the author), and he still lives in Macon. I’d met Mr. Perkins when he’d visited on Creekside Mornings a while back.

It was an amazing experience to hear him talk about his years on the road with the ABB. I reached out to him in the hopes that he would pen an introduction to this issue.

And so he did.

–AI aaron@thecreekfm.com

The Allman Brothers Band was formed in 1969 by Duane and Gregg Allman, along with Berry Oakley, Dickey Betts, Butch Trucks and "Jaimoe".

Their musical combination of the elements of rock, blues, jazz, and country was hugely successful and continues to stand the test of time. Tragically, both Duane Allman and Berry Oakley were killed in separate motorcycle accidents here in Macon in 1971 and 1972 respectively, but the band endured with the remaining original members and additional members for forty-five years. Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1995, The Allman Brothers Band received many Gold, Platinum and other sales awards for their recordings and toured extensively in the United States, Canada, Japan, and Europe often driving or flying hundreds or even thousands of miles between concerts.

Their reputation for musicianship, amazing concerts and back-breaking touring was equally matched by their reputation as a true brother and sisterhood. It wasn't easy to earn a place as a band, crew, family member or friend but once you were in, you were in for life-- even if you pursued other professional or family pursuits. The Allman Brothers Band legacy will endure and the road will truly go on forever.

Willie Perkins

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OUR TEAM Aaron Irons Managing Editor

Scott Mitchell Contributor

Anthony Ennis Photographer

Madelyn Rueter Contributor

Ashley Doolin Contributor

Mandy Purvis Contributor

Traci Burns Contributor

Ken Hanson Contributor

Bo Walker Contributor

Willie Perkins Contributor

Kirk West Contributor

M&R Marketing Layout & Design

CONTACT US MAILING 543 Cherry Street, Macon 31201 ADVERTISING tony@thecreekfm.com EDITORIAL aaron@thecreekfm.com Published by Creek Media LLC

Flip thru the entire issue online 11thHourOnline.com

WHAT'S INSIDE March 15-28, 2019 // Volume 18, Issue #407

09 11 Events 13 Upcoming Mayhem Games 15 Kirk West's 50,000 Shades of Gray 16 Rock & Roll Photography Past, Present & Future 21 Feels Like Local 22 More Than a Museum: The Big House Celebrates the

16 ROCK & ROLL PHOTOGRAPHY PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

50th Anniversary of the Allman Brothers Band

27 11 Things with Richard Brent 33 The Dish 35 Bo Talks 36 Your Story Here... A Minneapolis-Macon Connection 39 Do This 40 The Creek: Americana News, Notions, and Nonsense 41 The Creek’s Featured Show & Americana Singles Chart 43 Live & Local: Calendar 44 Open Jams & Karaoke 31 Eat This: Kosmic Karma &

22 MORE THAN A MUSEUM: THE BIG HOUSE CELEBRATES THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND

27 11 THINGS WITH RICHARD BRENT

Holy Shitake Pie

36 YOUR STORY HERE... A MINNEAPOLIS-MACON CONNECTION

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AT H W

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A R E

I N G O D

JASON EADY LIVE! 9:30pm Friday, March 15 The Creek Stage at The Rookery 533 Cherry Street, Macon DOWNTOWN CHALLENGE CELEBRATION 12pm-7pm Friday, March 15, 2019 340 Cherry Street, Macon

Come join Macon in celebrating the Downtown Challenge grantees. There will be fun activities, food, drinks, and music to commemorate the success of the Downtown Challenge and the Macon Action Plan! Come see examples of the projects that made such an impact on the urban core in the last three years.

BRIGHT CITY: OPENING NIGHT 7pm-10pm Friday, March 15 NewTown Macon 555 Poplar Street, Macon

Bright City features a curated group of local and national photographers who have shown that through their lens they can transform the everyday into something curious and illustrate the emotional state of Macon. Photographs will be turned into light boxes and presented along the brick path of Macon's 2nd Street Lane from March 15 through May 17. There will be a small reception at NewTown where you can grab a drink and map of the exhibition. Free and open to the public. Music by DJ B3.

On his last two albums, Jason Eady earned major acclaim for his ahead-of-the-curve take on classic country, a bold departure from his earlier excursions into blues-infused Americana. Now with his sixth album, I Travel On, the Mississippi-bred singer/guitarist merges his distinct sensibilities into a stripped-down, roots-oriented sound that starkly showcases the gritty elegance of his songwriting.

Tickets are $12 and can be purchased in person at The Rookery or online at hargraycapitoltheatre.com MOTHER’S FINEST LIVE! 8pm Saturday, March 16 The Hargray Capitol Theatre 382 2nd St, Macon Music which goes straight to the gut and into your legs, which aims for your heart and soul and always finds its target-- there

can be no question that Mother’s Finest are among the most energetic and charismatic rock groups on the planet. With virtuoso vocalist, Joyce Kennedy at the epicenter of their soundquake, a tight rhythm section which leaves nothing to be desired, and masses of spirited guitar fusillades to make listeners go weak at the knees, this band has long made a name for itself in the annals of rock history. Tickets are $22-$440 and can be purchased in person at The Rookery or online at hargraycapitoltheatre.com continued on page 10 11thHourOnline.com 9

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LUNCH Reuben, Roast Beef, Pimento Cheese

ROCK N’ ROLL PHOTOGRAPHY: PAST, PRESENT, Falafel, Mango Chutney Chicken AND FUTURE Quinoa Bowl, Vegetagle Strudel Assorated Fresh Salads 7pm Monday, March 18 Gallery West 447 3rd Street, Macon Ginger Wheat Grass, Kefir Don’t Coconut miss a Pop-Up Exhibit featuring world-renowned rock Winter Tonic, Fog Cutter, Salad in photographer Jay Blakesberg!

This Gallery West exclusive a Glass, Detox Special and more will feature 20 of Blakesberg’s most iconic images as well as an informal discussion with gallery founder, tour mystic, and fellow rock photographer Kirk West. Get back stage, on stage, in the pit, and here the stories behind photographs!

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BROADWAY: CHICAGO 7pm Thursday, March 21 The Grand Opera House 651 Mulberry Street, Macon

This sensational tale of sin, corruption and all that jazz has everything that makes Broadway great: knockout dancing, a ripped-from-the-headlines story about fame and scandal, and one show-stopping song after another. No wonder CHICAGO has been honored with six Tony Awards, two Olivier Awards, a Grammy, and thousands of standing ovations. And now, CHICAGO is the longest-running American musical in Broadway history. Tickets are $45-$65 and available at thegrandmacon.com 2019 INTERNATIONAL CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVAL Friday, March 22- Sunday, March 31

VOGUE BLOSSOM SOIRÉE 6pm Friday, March 22 Eche Salon 414 Cherry St, Macon

Kick off Cherry Blossom Festival with this extravagant event! Eche Salon will be hosting a singular night never to forget! The evening’s festivities include: premier floral paintings by Heidi Clinite, fun abstract paintings by Erika Epps, live mannequins wearing stunning designs

by Quitman Alexandar, a dance performance by Akasha Giselle Vidalle, voguing lessons with Akasha and friends, DJ B3 keeping the party fresh, a baller gift basket raffle, a pink carpet cat walk, and more!

MARTY STUART AND HIS FABULOUS SUPERLATIVES LIVE! 8pm Friday, March 22 Hargray Capitol Theatre 382 2nd St, Macon

Macon’s Cherry Blossom Festival returns! For tickets, info, and list of events and locations visit cherryblossom.com!

While he’s too gracious to admit it himself, the Grammywinning singer, songwriter, and musician is living, breathing country music history. Marty Stuart has played alongside the masters, from Lester Flatt to Johnny Cash, been a worldwide ambassador for Nashville, Bakersfield, and points in between and safeguarded country’s most valuable traditions and physical artifacts. Including its literal shoes: Stuart counts the brogan of Carter Family patriarch A.P. Carter and an assortment of Cash’s black boots among his vast collection of memorabilia. But most importantly, Stuart continues to record and release keenly relevant music, records that honor country music’s rich legacy while advancing it into the future. Tickets are $35$55 and can be purchased in person at The Rookery or online at hargraycapitoltheatre.com

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12 MARCH 15-28, 2019

CENTRAL GEORGIA FARMERS MARKETS THE MULBERRY MARKET AT TATTNALL SQUARE PARK

THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND 50TH ANNIVERSARY AT THE BIG HOUSE 11am-6pm Tuesday, March 26 2321 Vineville Ave, Macon Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Allman Brothers Band with a visit to The Big House Museum. Admission is free all day, the gift shop will be offering 10% off all merchandise-- including special anniversary items-- and there’ll be a special film screening!

Wednesdays year round 3:30–6pm 1155 College Street Macon, GA

FIRST SATURDAY VILLAGE MARKET IN MERCER VILLAGE

1st Saturdays of the month 9am–3pm 1624 Coleman Ave Macon, GA CENTERVILLE FARMERS MARKET AT CENTER PARK

1st & 3rd Saturdays of the month 8am–12pm 103 E Church Street Centerville, GA

WESLEYAN MARKET

2nd Saturday of the month 9am–1pm 4760 Forsyth Rd Macon, GA

MACON MAYHEM AT THE MACON COLISEUM MILITARY WEEKEND 7:35pm March 15 Macon Mayhem vs Huntsville Havoc Honoring the men and women who serve our country! Specialty Military Jersey up for auction!

MILITARY WEEKEND 7:35pm March 16 Macon Mayhem vs Huntsville Havoc Honoring the men and women who serve our country! Specialty Military Jersey up for auction!

FAN APPRECIATION NIGHT 7:35pm March 29 Macon Mayhem vs Knoxville Ice Bears You’ve made it a season to remember-- and now the Mayhem want to celebrate you!

MACON STATE FARMERS MARKET

Monday–Sunday 6am–10pm 2055 Eisenhower Pkwy Macon, GA PERRY FARMERS MARKET

Saturdays year round 9am–1pm 901 Carroll Street Perry, GA INTERNATIONAL CITY FARMERS MARKET

Thursdays year round 1–6pm Corner of Maple St & Watson Blvd Warner Robins, GA

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50,000 SHADES OF GRAY DICKEY BETTS & GREGG ALLMAN Madison Square Garden, 10/31/86

Bill Graham’s Crackdown Benefit to raise awareness of the crack epidemic that was overwhelming the city at the time. It was a two day event to raise money to combat the drug ravaging the country… One night was all rap acts & the next night was all classic rock acts. The Allman Brothers Band closed the show with an hour long set featuring many, many guests-- Santana, CSN, Paul Butterfield, and lots more.

The Brothers hadn’t played as a unit since the break-up in ’82 although, Dickey and Gregg had done some shows together that summer. This show opened the door to a full reunion in ’89 that continued until the final shows in 2014. But this is where the vibe returned… … And soon Dickey’s hair would return as well!

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ROCK & ROLL PHOTOGRAPHY Past, Present & Future

A Conversation With Jay Blakesberg & Kirk West

BY AARON IRONS

One came up in the gritty blues clubs of Chicago, the other found the eye in the maelstrom of early alternative rock-- but Kirk West and Jay Blakesberg took rock photography to a new level while traveling and documenting the music of their respective heroes. For West, his time with the Allman Brothers Band began in the early ‘70s as a fan before evolving into the position of tour manager when the ABB reunited in 1989. Jay Blakesberg was a teenager when he first saw the Grateful Dead. That experience would create a lifelong enthusiast, a veritable visual authority on the Dead, and one of the most sought after photographers in rock n’ roll. The motto for both men has always been “Have camera, will travel”, and their stories are as rich and detailed as the images they’ve captured. On March 18th, the two friends will treat visitors to Gallery West with a free, informal lecture that’s sure to entertain and enlighten fans and aspiring photographers. Need a preview? Yeah, I thought so...

Jay, you shot your first Grateful Dead show... What was it, 1978?

JB- Correct.

And you were there as a fan-- or were you there working?

JB- I was there as a fan. I was a 16-year-old kid. My Dad loaned me his camera... I brought my camera and got a couple of okay photographs... I remember I actually sent the film out through the local camera store to get it developed. And then I printed them in my darkroom basement that I had built. For me in the early days, I was just taking pictures for fun and to make 8x10 prints and give it to my friends and some to tack onto my bedroom wall-- and that was the extent of what I was trying to do.

Jump forward a little bit. You got out of college, you got a gig as a house photographer out in San Francisco for a bunch of different clubs. I don't even know if a lot of clubs even still do that. And how important was that to you-- I didn't mean this to be a pun-- but how important was it in your development?

JB- It's funny because nowadays every venue and every club has multiple staff photographers. The photography game has changed so much, but you know, with social media, everybody 16 MARCH 15-28, 2019

wants photos right now. "Right now!

We want to put them up right now!"

So back then it was like convincing somebody they needed a house photographer was a lot harder because there was no social media and there was no immediate use, but it was sort of like-- and nobody was paying me anything-- "I want to come there. You're going to give me access.

I'm going to get pictures. You guys can have them if you need them for something." I remember shooting a Butthole Surfers show and then they ended up using one of my photos on a poster for the next time the Butthole Surfers played. The club I was sort of the "house photographer" for was a club called the I-Beam and it was on Haight Street-- and it doesn't exist anymore, obviously. Actually, the building was knocked down many years ago. But mostly what they were doing at the I-Beam, they were doing the birth of alternative rock.

I saw Jane's Addiction there and Soundgarden and The Pixies... Just so many different bands like that. A lot of punk bands, the Meat Puppets, and Primus... So back in the late eighties, when I was trying to figure out how to become a professional photographer, nobody cared about the Grateful Dead.

If I went to a show, like a Butthole Surfers show for instance, and I tried talking to the person standing next to me about [how] I was going to go see three Grateful Dead concerts the next

week or the next month or whatever, they would look at me and like I was an alien, you know? At that point, there was a huge division in music fans. Nowadays everybody's got 'big ears', right? Everybody listens to everything. You've got people that are Deadheads into the Allman Brothers that are also listening to the Chili Peppers and hip hop and EDM and the list goes on and on. But back then, first of all, there was no other jam band except for the Grateful Dead and the Allman Brothers. The term jam band didn't exist as a genre...

Red Hot Chili Peppers by Jay Blakesberg

Were y'all using that term at that point?

JB- No, no, they weren't. I don't know the year, but the term jam band was coined by a guy named Dean Budnick who's an editor at Relix magazine. And I want to say that was somewhere in the early '90s when that all kind of happened...

KW- Yeah, that was around the Wetlands [Preserve Club] time.

JB- Yeah, exactly. Even though I was shooting the Grateful Dead, and I was a Deadhead, I knew that as a professional photographer, I couldn't rely on just shooting this one band to try and even remotely make a living. And so, you know, the birth of alternative rock was exploding--

Albert Collins

by Kirk West

Unfortunately, we live in a world where most people only are able to recognize mediocre photography. And I'll call it mediocre art. And the problem with that on the next level is that art is what inspires us to be better and to create better imagery. So if all people are looking at is bad art, bad photography, how can you be inspired to make good photography?

Gregg Allman By Kirk West

grunge and Pearl Jam and Nirvana, and the list goes on and on... And I dug that stuff. I mean, the energy in the room when those bands would play was off the charts! So to be in the front row being smashed against the stage by people that are moshing and stage diving. I have pictures of Chris Cornell and Soundgarden stage diving and crowd surfing in the tiny club, the I Beam, on Haight Street!

KW- I was doing exactly the same thing except I hated that music! (Laughs) Kirk, I was going to ask you the same thing but with a twist. During your time in Chicago working for the newspaper, how were, how important were those regular assignments and were there times when you were just like, "Oh man, I've got to go take pictures of that guy?� Did that hone your ability?

KW- Well, I was working at a little co-op of photographers and nobody was making any money. It's just like, Jay. We'd go in there and we shoot-- and you'd bring an envelope filled with 8x10s to give to the guy at the backstage door or the front of house security... And you could shoot! It was the same kind of thing. It was basically the same kind of time frame. I was just a hippie boy with a camera until I got back to Chicago in '77! I had quit doing dope, and I'd quit drinking so I could focus better-- and I had more of a drive rather than just snapshottin' my life. In Chicago, we had five or six guys that kind of threw in together, had the same phone number and worked out of the same little co-op shop. And we had some New Wave guys. We had some punk rock guys. We had a guy that liked to shoot strippers and supper club singers! I was doing blues and country and then we'd all, you know, we pulled the short straw to see who got shoot Springsteen or the Stones or whatever. The thing that got Jay off so much with that New Wave, punk stuff was exactly what sent me running. (Laughs) JB- For me, the energy in those rooms when those bands were playing was just so intense and so great-- and I dug it! But at the same time, those were the bands that the magazines that I was submitting photos to wanted to run, and those were the people that were paying me money-- even if it was $25 or $50 or $75. I lived in a house in Oakland, California. I had five or six roommates. My rent was $150 a month. So if I can make $300 a month or $400 a month taking pictures, I could pay my bills and throw in $10 a week for food so we could eat burritos. I mean, I was, the definition of a starving artist-- as probably was Kirk at the same time-- but I was 10 years later.

Carlos Santana by Jay Blakesberg

Kirk, when did you first shoot the Allman Brothers?

KW- First time I pointed a camera at 'em was in 1973 at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.

And were you a fan of them at that point?

Had you guys met yet?

KW- Oh, f--k yeah! I had seen the band play about a dozen times before Duane died in late '71. I was a huge fan. They were my favorite band. But I had just sobered up...

'73, I had just got off the dope and s--t, so I started to travel a bit, and it was just buying a ticket and going in. Back then there were very few rules for photographers. They didn't control access the way they do now or even 10 years later. It was being discreet, getting yourself in those situations... Plus, I spent lots and lots of times in Chicago shootin' blues clubs, shootin' the old honky tonks. The access was easy, as you can imagine. You end up in the basement of a blues club-- but sitting at the feet of Muddy Waters!

I was going to ask this a little bit later, but what has technology done for or against the rock photographer in the 21st Century?

JB- Well, first of all, technology, of course, is the great disruptor, right? I mean, look what it's done to the film industry, the music industry, the same with the photography industry. Realistically what technology has done to the photography industry, it has created a world of mediocrity because the bar has been lowered so far, right? You used to need to be an artist and a technician, you used to be able to actually know how to expose the film properly, right? A good eye and expose film, right? Nowadays you can take a picture with a digital camera, look at the back and say, "Too dark. Let me make it lighter. Too light. Let me make a darker." Right? The problem is the bar is so low now and there's so much mediocrity out there-- and then the cell phone thing adds to the clutter of the Internet-- that unfortunately, we live in a world where most people only are able to recognize mediocre photography. And I'll call it mediocre art.

And the problem with that on the next level is that art is what inspires us to be better and to create better imagery. So if all people are looking at is bad art, bad photography, how can you be inspired to make good photography?

Kirk, this interview will be in the issue that we're celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Allman Brothers Band. And the photo for the 50,000 Shades of Gray is the picture you took of Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts from Madison Square Garden in 1986. You say that was the moment that led to the eventual Allman Brothers Band reunion '89. You were there taking pictures. How did you get into the position of tour manager?

KW- Several things came into play. In '88, Polygram records had just put out the Eric Clapton Crossroads box set, and it was the first rock box set that I was aware of. It was a massive four-CD package that covered his whole career. Polygram had taken over the Capricorn tapes archive. They had a bankruptcy... Anyway, Polygram ended up with all the Capricorn tapes and they decided that they wanted to do an Allman Brothers box set. So I just raised my hand.

continued on page 19 11thHourOnline.com 17

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Bob Weir by Jay Blakesberg

They went around to all the brothers' managers-there was no band at that time in '87, '88. My name kept coming up. So Bill Levinson reached out to me from Polygram. He was real cautious because a lot of the Clapton nutcase fans came and offered their help when they were doing Crossroads, and he said they were more trouble than they were worth. So he was hesitant and he said, “The next time you're in New York, let's get together and talk about it." I booked the plane that next day, and I got involved! I was associate producer of that box set. It came out in the spring of '89, and during that same couple of years-- '87, '88-- Dickey and Gregg were both signed to solo deals with Epic Records. The idea was... Let 'em do a couple of solo records that won't sell-- and then we'll have 'em both under contract and put an Allman Brothers Band back together! 'Cause that's where the money was.

Well, that kind of worked out, and I was just out there to shoot, you know, still basically doing the same thing-- riding the bus, they weren't paying me, but they were covering my travel expenses and hotels and stuff. And I was free to sell my stuff to anybody, but it was primarily going to be for them. I was out there on the road just to shoot pictures for three weeks, and they'd hired a freelance tour manager who was young, worked with those bands that Jay like so much and thought if he talked loud, he could get Dickey and Gregg and Butch to move faster.

And that lasted for three days. Dickey came to me and said, "Listen, if that son of a b---h talks to me like that one more time, I'm going to cut his tongue out of his head! So we're going to hire you to be his assistant. If he wants us to do something, he'll tell you, you come tell us 'cause you know how to talk to us." I told him, "I said I don't know anything about tour managin', man. I shoot pictures!" And he said, "You'll learn." They get rid of him at the end of that three-week leg and kept me on as the assistant tour manager for a year and a half. And the guy they hired to replace him, they made him their

manager. And so they moved me up to step ladder, and I stayed in that role 'til 2010-- so a good 18, 20 years!

You were documenting and taking pictures the whole time, right?

KW- Yeah, yeah.

Let me ask you both, because you were basically tasked with documenting the lives of bands on the road. Jay, you had the Dead, Kirk you had the Allman Brothers. How do you become that ubiquitous eye that catches everything?

JB- Always have a camera with you.

KW- Yeah. And know when not to put it up to your face! Once I got autofocus on digital, I shot a lot more! I'd use a wide angle lens in the camera at my waist and just shoot around the room in those kinds of moments. But you've got to know when to shoot and when not to-- but always have it in hand, you know? Haynes said something really interesting in the forward to my Brothers' book-- and I know Jay's got the same thing. You just have an uncanny instinct when the moment's going to come-- and you know that you can't stay there. You get the moment, you get the shot and then you back away!

Join two legendary photographers as they discuss their collective work that spans genres and artists from Rock & Roll’s Past, Present & Future.

This is a FREE event-- so don’t miss A Conversation with Jay Blakesberg & Kirk West, 7pm Monday, March 18th at Gallery West, 447 3rd St, Macon.

Gov't Mule by Kirk West

11thHourOnline.com 19

TICKETS NOW ON SALE! Stop by the Macon Centreplex Box Office or go to ticketmaster.com to purchase tickets to any of our 2018–2019 home games!

Ticket Prices: Glass Seating $22 // General Admission $16

OFFICIAL MEDIA PARTNER OF THE MACON MAYHEM

Photo by Bryan Meeks 20 MARCH 15-28, 2019

FEELS LIKE LOCAL

IT’S NOT ABOUT THE BLOSSOMS

BY SCOTT MITCHELL

EVERY SPRING, THOUSANDS OF VISITORS FLOCK TO DOWNTOWN MACON IN HOPEFUL ANTICIPATION OF VIEWING OUR BELOVED CHERRY BLOSSOM TREES IN THEIR GLORIOUS FULL BLOOM. HOWEVER, I HAVE FOUND THAT THE TRUE SPIRIT OF THIS TIME OF YEAR HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BLOSSOMS AND EVERYTHING TO DO WITH BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS AND CREATING A COMMUNITY WHERE ALL ARE WELCOMED AND CELEBRATED. Buses filled with visitors peering out the windows at our beautiful architecture buzz down Cherry Street in route to our museums and attractions. Many of these visitors have the fortunate opportunity to meet and interact with our colorful cast of characters as they stroll down Cherry Street and Third Street Park. They fall in love with our beautiful downtown and come back year after year. Our restaurants and shops are filled with friends, old and new. These friendships that are cultivated each Spring tend to grow as the years go by. Visitors become regulars… Regulars become family.

Each time we get the chance to show off Downtown Macon, visitors get to see the very fabric of our being. They see that we are fortunate to live in a community that is filled with people from all walks of life that add just a little soul and spice. They get to see that we are a place that embraces young and old, natives and newcomers. Every day, I look around and realize there are people that I do not know. I recognize their faces but have never asked their name. I challenge you this Spring to join me in remembering that our yearly festival is not about blossoms. Greet a stranger in Third Street Park… Share a cup of coffee with a new friend… Eat lunch with someone dining alone… Break down those barriers and get to know the friend you haven’t met yet!

Scott Mitchell is the owner of Travis Jean Emporium and is the co-host of Deconstructing Divas on 100.9 The Creek. He enjoys spending time with his family and furbabies, volunteering, gardening, traveling, watching Broadway shows, and cheering on the Georgia Bulldogs.

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THE BIG HOUSE CELEBRATES THE

ANNIVERSARY OF THE

ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND

BY TRACI BURNS

“This is one of the greatest rock ‘n roll museums in the world,” says Richard Brent, Director of Collections at the Allman Brothers Band Museum at the Big House. “It’s mind-boggling how many people come from all over the world to see this house. It’s unique and love for the fans and for everyone involved shines through everything we do. Places like the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame or the Grammy Museum might have a ton of money, but when you walk in this place, you definitely catch a vibe. It starts for me every day when I open up the gate. When I pull in the parking lot I get a-- remember the old York Peppermint Patty commercials? I get a tingling sensation!” Brent laughs. “But I really do! I get that goosebump feeling every time I come through the gate. It’s a beautiful thing to have that experience at a job, and I know I’m lucky to do what I love. Not everybody gets to feel that.”

Fifty years ago, in 1969, the Allman Brothers Band got their start in Jacksonville, Florida after Macon’s musical mastermind Phil Walden saw something more than just a session musician in lanky guitar god Duane Allman. Walden, who once said of his upbringing

22 MARCH 15-28, 2019

in Middle Georgia “While my friends were pledging their lives to Jesus Christ, I was pledging mine to rock ‘n roll,” sensed Duane’s star power. After assembling the rest of the band-- Gregg Allman, Dickey Betts, Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks, and “Jaimoe” Jai Johanny Johanson-- the whole operation moved to Macon, where Walden’s Capricorn record label was based and started blending blues, jazz, and gospel music with long-haired countercultural rock ‘n roll rebellion to create a new genre-- Southern Rock.

In January of 1970, Berry Oakley’s wife Linda saw an ad for a house at 2321 Vineville Avenue and fell in love with the three-story Tudor beauty.

Surrounded by gardens full of blooming wisteria, the house had high ceilings, stained glass windows, beautiful views, even a fish pond in the backyard-worlds apart from the cramped apartments they’d been living in. The band was going full speed ahead at this point, playing shows around the country and spending endless hours in the studio, so they had a little money coming in and could afford the $225 a month to rent this majestic place that came to be known as the Big House.

The Big House 1974

This is what we were meant to do, this is the place you come to, the final destination for Allman Brothers fans.

Berry, Linda, and Brittany Oakley

The Big House’s first residents were Duane Allman, his “ol’ lady” Donna, and their daughter Galadrielle; Berry and Linda Oakley and their daughter Brittany; Gregg Allman and Candy Oakley, Berry’s sister, who dated Gregg at the time. But like any big old house full of young musicians, it became a crash pad and hangout for a rotating cast of characters. When the band was on the road, the vibe was more chill: hippie mamas doing their thing as the kids clomped up and down stairs, Miles Davis on the stereo, sun spilling in the windows.

But when the band returned home, it was party time-- the couples enthusiastically reunited (some of them probably while enjoying the multi-headed communal shower that you can see on a visit to the Big House museum) and the music wailed nonstop, to the chagrin of some of their more closed-minded neighbors.

Speaking of music-- in the very early 1970s, The Allman Brothers Band hadn’t yet managed to make the splash Phil Walden expected. Their first two albums had performed unimpressively-- but then came At Fillmore East. Recorded live, the double album captured the Brothers at their ferocious, blues-soaked best and gathered critical praise across the country. George Kimball, reviewing the record for Rolling Stone in August of 1971, said “Turn the volume up all the way and sit through the concert; by the time it’s over you can almost imagine the Allman Band getting high and heading back to Macon (where, characteristically, they continue to live in unparanoid bliss) on their motorcycles. (Collectively, the group owns nine of them.) They’re one of the nicest things that ever happened to any of us.”

ABB at Fillmore East by Jim Marshall

continued on page 24

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Just a few months after that review was published, in October of 1971, the band took a much-needed vacation from relentless touring; Duane, who’d broken up with Donna and wasn’t living in the Big House anymore, visited to wish Linda Oakley happy birthday. He left the house on his motorcycle, crashed while swerving to avoid a truck, sustained multiple massive injuries, and died at age 24, at the height of his talent and newfound fame.

This shook the band to their core, but they kept on playing-“We either play, or we go crazy,” said Gregg Allman. A little over a year after Duane’s death, Berry Oakley, who’d been handling the loss particularly hard, fatally crashed his motorcycle into a Macon city bus in a spot just three blocks from where Duane died. Berry, too, was only 24.

Roll B&B had started to spread, though-- they’d even been on CNN Travel-- so the Wests made it work. “We got around it,” Kirk says.

“We put up a donation box and let people stay. We had a lot of word of mouth out there in the world, and the pilgrims started coming pretty steady. If it was a Sunday, I’m in the living room watching NASCAR, I’d open the door and let ‘em poke around.”

Here’s a story from the West days of the Big House.

In 1994, a then-17-year-old Dave Weissman, whose all-time favorite guitarist was Duane Allman, grabbed a friend and traveled from Columbus, Ohio to Macon on a pilgrimage to the Big House. “After a sixteen-hour drive, [Kirsten] literally blew my mind when she said, ‘Go get your bags. We’ll set you up in This much calamity in their formative years would have Duane’s room,’” says Weissman. As if that wasn’t enough, Kirk decimated a lesser band, but the Allman and Kirsten took these sweet starry-eyed Brothers went on to have a long and kids out and gave them the full Allman storied, if a bit fragmented and hectic, Brothers tour, complete with trips to H&H career. Their direct association with the and Rose Hill Cemetery. They ended the Big House ended in January of 1973, night at a bar-- Grant’s, probably-- where though, when they returned home from they stayed sober (“No drinking,” laughs tour to find an eviction notice on the Weissman. “I was threatened with two front door. They packed up and moved broken arms if we violated the Georgia We put up a to a farm in Juliette, leaving the house chaperone law,”) but had their minds donation box and on Vineville empty, yet full of ghosts thoroughly blown in another way when let people stay. and good stories; reverb and rhythm; a 14-year-old Derek Trucks showed bone-deep tragedy and wild-hearted up onstage with his oversized guitar, We had a lot of free love. It sat mostly untended for a “strumming and carrying on the Duane word of mouth out few decades until a renewed energy Allman sound,” says Weissman. Pure came whirling through.

Macon magic right there. there in the world,

and the pilgrims

In late 1992, photographer and Allman The museum back in those days was a started coming Brothers Band tour manager Kirk West much less formal affair-- the memorabilia and his wife Kirsten were in town from wasn’t stored behind glass, so guests could pretty steady. If Chicago for the 2nd annual GABBAfest. grab an instrument and jam or stroke the it was a Sunday, Chank Middleton, Gregg Allman’s soft silk of the satin shirt Duane Allman I’m in the living longtime best friend, asked them if had gotten from Eric Clapton. “All those they’d like to take a walk through the Big years, and not one thing got stolen,” says room watching House, which was currently occupied by Kirk West. “Because this was like church NASCAR, I’d open a lawyer, his school administrator wife, for people! These are real pilgrims! And and their kids. Of course, they said yes. you don’t steal from church.” the door and let While wandering the grounds, the lady ‘em poke around. of the house “kept making references that It was a kind of church for the musicians perhaps somebody that knew the history who’d cut their teeth there, too-- in times and had the money would like to do something with the house,” of tragedy, after mourning the deaths of beloved roadies like Joe Kirk West says. “I felt like she was trying to sell me the house, and Dan Petty who died in a plane crash in 2000, everybody’d head Chank said the same thing.” over to the Big House for a family reunion. Gregg and his wife Stacey came to hang for a while, as did Jaimoe. Butch Trucks Her little nudge set a lot in motion. Kirk and Kirsten decided decided he wanted to write an autobiography, then realized he they’d buy the house and renovate it into something truly didn’t remember much of what had happened to him, so he innovative: a Rock ‘n Roll Bed and Breakfast. On one of their holed up in the archive room, piecing together his past. “Gregg trips back to meet with the current owners, they got into their sleeping in his old bedroom, Jaimoe cooking breakfast in the rental car to head to the Big House and were greeted with the kitchen-- those kinds of experiences were real and genuine.

Allman Brothers “Dreams” on the radio; when they got back That’s how I know this was the right thing to do,” says Kirk West into the car to leave, “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More” poured reverently. from the speakers. “Could there be any bigger of a sign?” says Kirsten West.

As beautiful as it was, it was also unsustainable-- Kirk was out on the road for weeks on end, leaving Kirsten to keep the museum They moved in on August 23, 1993, and promptly hit an obstacle. fires burning solo, and they estimate having had around 20,000 At that time, Macon’s building codes and city ordinances made visitors during their time in the house. In 2005, the Wests it next to impossible to operate a B&B out of a private residence. formed a nonprofit, The Big House Foundation, and started They would’ve had to install metal fire escapes, a sprinkler system, holding benefits and fundraisers with the ultimate goal that the and a fully-equipped restaurant-style kitchen. News of the Rock ‘n Foundation would buy the house from the Wests and open it as

24 MARCH 15-28, 2019

a real-deal museum. Within a few years, they did just that, and in July 2007, the Wests moved out-- leaving behind $2 million worth of memorabilia as a donation-- and massive renovations to the house began. In April of 2010, Gregg Allman, Butch Trucks, and Jaimoe were on site to cut the ribbon that symbolized the museum opening to the public.

So how did Richard Brent, a massive sweetheart of a man with a truly epic beard, end up in his current-day role as curator? “Pure luck,” he laughs. Originally from Virginia, Brent was working as a project manager with a construction company when a contract sent him to Perry, Georgia. Brent, a self-proclaimed music junkie, signed on to volunteer at The Big House and within a few months was offered a fulltime job there, which he happily accepted. “Good things come to those who wait,” says Brent. “And to those who are good at their job,” he adds with a chuckle-- but it’s true, Brent’s multifaceted talents and problem-solving abilities-like the time he brought a welding machine up to fix the hydraulic arm of the gate so it’d be lockable-- made him an indispensable part of the team.

Places like the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame or the Grammy Museum might have a ton of money, but when you walk in this place, you definitely catch a vibe.

“I never know what’s gonna happen day to day, who’ll come through the door or call,” says Brent. “There’s always something new to do, and of course old houses hold their own surprises, so you can walk in and there’s water dripping from the ceiling. It’s a maintenance job, it’s a curatorial job, it’s a little of everything.”

The museum is right now clocking in at over 10,000 visitors a year, with a noticeable increase after the rough patch in 2017 when founding members Gregg Allman and Butch Trucks both passed away. “Some people were worried that with the loss of Gregg, or when the band retired, it’d hurt this place,” says Brent, “but I felt like it was the opposite-- this is what we were meant to do, this is the place you come to, the final destination for Allman Brothers fans. You can come to pay your respects, or you can come to learn more. Everybody deals with pain and loss in their own way. Fans come to do both-- celebrate and mourn, put their souls at ease and find a little peace and comfort here.”

And the way the museum is set up helps with that, too-- it’s a little slice of life, a step back in time, with many rooms recreated to look just the way they did back in the day. Linda Oakley has been indispensable in helping with this, both via her impeccable memory and her collection of house photos from her time living there. Brent’s favorite is the Casbah room, a window-lined sunroom equipped with funky tapestries, comfy seating, even a giant hookah. “When I need a break, I come here to kick back,” says Brent. “This room’s so comforting, with all the natural light. I was born in ’74 so I didn’t have the chance to know Duane and Berry, but it’s nice to come in here and hit a button and hear ‘em being interviewed.”

There’s also memorabilia of all kinds on display throughout the house-- Duane’s 1957 Goldtop Les Paul guitar, Dickey Betts’ handwritten lyrics to “Blue Sky,” Phil Walden’s old address book, a pool table once owned by Cher and Gregg Allman that’s now used as a repository for a fascinating array of sentimental minutia, and so much more. Outdoors, the museum offers one of the most unique venues in town, a great and groovy space to sit underneath the trees (if the weather

Big House Gate

Big House Dining Room

Big House Living Room

continued on page 26 11thHourOnline.com 25

cooperates) and hear music in a whole new way. And the bands who play here are top-notch: “We were one of the first places to have Marcus King,” says Brent, “and he keeps coming around every year or so. We like to catch people before they’re so big we can’t accommodate them, and playing here is a nice thing to have on your resume. We believe music needs to be played here, so that’s what we do.” Yearly events like the Jodie Jam, held in memory of beloved Big House volunteer Jodie McNeil Gooch, pack the outdoor area with eager music fans.

A planned expansion of the venue will help tremendously with the ability to host larger crowds. The Big House Foundation has its sights on purchasing the property next door, and first on their list will be adding more room to the outdoor concert area. “People also love to get married here or rent out the yard for parties, and currently we have to turn down some of that because they want it indoors and we can’t do that in the actual museum,” says Brent. With the annexing of the house next door, there’ll be space available for those celebrations. Also, the third floor of the Big House, currently closed to the public, is slated for the museum treatment soon-- it’s where the famed roadie Red Dog slept, and where the band kept their pool table, so once that recreation is finished, the house will be top-to-bottom complete.

For now, the Big House will be celebrating the Allman Brothers Band’s 50th anniversary by offering free admission all day long on Tuesday, March 26th, so if you’ve somehow never managed to check out one of the most unique rock ‘n roll museums out there, come be a tourist in your own city! And if you have been before, might as well come again-- it’s free, it’s cool, and there’ll be special 50th anniversary merch in the gift shop you won’t want to miss.

Also, they’re gonna let you take tons of Allman Brothers memorabilia home with you! But maybe not quite in the way you’re thinking. Kirk West and Richard Brent, along with John Lynskey and Brian Shupe, are collaborating to bring fans a 200+ page, professionally produced coffee table book featuring over 500 photographs of the fascinating collection on display at the Big House, all in honor of the fifty years of rock ‘n roll history gifted to us by the Allman Brothers Band. A perfect gift for the ABB-lover who can’t make it to the museum as often as they’d like, these books will be available in December 2019, but if you check the Kickstarter (you can find a link to it on the Big House’s main page) for this project, you’ll find some amazing rewards available for fans who get in on the ground floor and order early: your own engraved brick in the Big House’s memorial walk, a special edition of the book signed by Jaimoe himself, and even the opportunity to spend a night in Duane’s bedroom.

“The road truly does go on forever, and we’re living proof of that,” says Richard Brent, referencing the “Midnight Rider” lyric that adorns the Big House’s security gate, along with that iconic mushroom. “As long as we’re here, it’ll still be going on.

Everybody stay tuned, we’ve got exciting stuff to come. That’s what our mission is– we enjoy educating the public about this style of music and its influence on the world. And what better place to feel it than here?”

26 MARCH 15-28, 2019

Duane Allman's Bedroom

The Allman Brothers Band Museum at the Big House 2321 Vineville Avenue Macon GA 31204 478-741-5551 info@bighousemuseum.com www.thebighousemuseum.com

Hours:

Thurs-Sat 11 am – 6 pm Sunday 11 am – 4 pm Adult ticket $15 Military/Student with ID $13 Senior (60+) $13 Children (10-18) $10 Children under 10- free

Celebrate the ABB 50th Anniversary Tuesday, March 26!

FREE MUSEUM ADMISSION ALL DAY!

Photos by Anthony Ennis

WITH

DIRECTOR OF THE BIG HOUSE MUSEUM

The Big House is… Too cool. Walking room to room, wooden floors echoing, it’s not hard to see phantoms in the form of Duane, Berry, Butch, and Gregg jammin’ out with Dickey and Jaimoe. Even fifty years later, the walls still reverberate with their music and brotherhood. The Allman Brothers Band made one of the most definable and indelible marks in all of music, and The Big House stands as a living, breathing monument filled with legendary instruments, iconic clothes and images, stories that never cease to amaze even the most casual visitor, and the precious odds and ends that remind us that these Southern Rock gods were all too human. Richard Brent’s love of the ABB led him first as a fan then volunteer at the museum but for the last three years, he’s been the Director of the Big House. As such, he’s the proverbial keeper of the flame and all lore sacred and profane surrounding the Allman Brothers Band. We asked Richard to select 11 things from the massive ABB collection to share with 11th Hour Readers. Some you can see on display in person, some you can only see here-- but they’re all a part of the legacy and history that is the Allman Brothers Band.

Duane Allman’s Fillmore East Amp

1 2

Currently residing at the Big House-- on loan from the one and only Derek Trucks-- is Duane Allman’s actual stage amp from his legendary ‘71 performance at the Fillmore East. The amp has a Marshall Plexi head, and a custom cabinet built by Trucks-- but it’s what’s inside that makes it sing: The original JBL 120s. Or as Richard Brent refers to them, “The greatest speakers ever made!”

3

The Layla Guitar Used on the ABB’s first two studio albums as well as on the Derek & The Dominos sessions that produced “Layla”-- hence, the nickname-- Duane Allman’s ‘57 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop is one of the most famous guitars on the planet. It’s been “borrowed” (but always under the keen watch of Richard Brent) by a who’s who of monster ABB fans over the years-- Charlie Daniels, Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Chris Stapleton, Anderson East, Charlie Starr, Marcus King, and soooo many more-- with Metallica’s James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett being the latest icons to contribute to the guitar’s pedigree.

Berry Oakley Starfire Replica This exact replica of B.O.’s Guild Starfire was a gift from Gregg Allman to his best friend Chank Middleton. Fun fact, Berry removed the Starfire’s neck pickup and installed it in his Fender Jazz Bass to create the signature rumble and thunder of his “Tractor” bass.

continued on page 28 11thHourOnline.com 27

Kathy Hurley’s Leather Fringe Jacket Photographer Kathy Hurley was on hand to shoot the Allman Brothers Band at a Skidmore College show in 1971. She was dressed in this fringed leather jacket that impressed one particular band member-- Duane Allman wanted it, so Kathy gave it to him! Duane “confiscated” the jacket for a time but eventually, it made its way back to Kathy who donated it to the Big House.

4

5 Autographed Harmony Guitar This Harmony guitar was a gift to producer Tom Dowd for his amazing work on Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs. It’s signed by Duane Allman and Eric Clapton who dedicated the guitar “To Tom”.

7 8 28 MARCH 15-28, 2019

6

A Letter from Cher In 1974, Gregg Allman brought Cher to Macon for the first time-and he decided not to leave! Cher left this note for Chank when she eventually had to depart. While we were perusing this letter in a fair amount of awe, Richard actually called Chank to confirm the year of Cher’s visit. Afterward, he suggested we check out this next item…

Gregg Allman’s Notebook Chank Middleton found this notebook in a box that was very nearly disposed of at the old Brothers Property office. Inside are handwritten classic lyrics and some that never made it into the studio. Richard Brent keeps the notebook on display downstairs at the Big House with the pages open to his favorite Allman Brothers song, “Don’t Keep Me Wondering.”

The Closing of The Fillmore East Concert Poster According to Richard Brent, this poster from the Closing of The Filmore East from 1971 once hung in a local Macon bar until a fan purchased it for a measly $15. It features the signatures of Duane Allman, Gregg Allman, Berry Oakley, Jaimoe, Dickey Betts, Butch Trucks, Red Dog, and Clarence Carter… Over the years, the autographs have faded and are in danger of disappearing altogether.

Col. Bruce Hampton’s Letter to the Love Valley Rock Festival… And They’re Response The Hampton Grease Band was scheduled to perform at the Love Valley Rock Festival in July of 1970. Much to the Colonel's dismay, security refused to let him into the event based on the fact that they didn't believe he was part of the show-- so he bought a ticket! Hoping to get his money refunded for the trouble, Col. Bruce wrote a letter to the promoter-- who responded that the ticket he'd purchased was actually counterfeit! No refund was issued.

9

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Berry Oakley’s Phone Book A true slice of one man’s personal as well as musical history, Berry Oakley’s little red book holds contact info from around the country-- all the family, folks, and friends B.O. wanted to keep in touch with-- but don’t go lookin’ for it on display at the Big House!

Vintage Concert T-Shirts

11

Willie Perkins is credited with enlisting promoters to create t-shirts for every event or concert featuring the Allman Brothers Band. The shirts in this box range from 1970 to ‘76 with vary degrees of print quality-- but some of them could’ve come off the rack yesterday. Outside of a discography, is there a better chronicle of a bands history than their shirts?

Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of The Allman Brothers Band with a visit to the Big House on Tuesday, March 26th! Admission is FREE and the gift shop will be offering 10% off all merchandise-including 50th Anniversary Big House exclusives!

30 MARCH 15-28, 2019

KOSMIC KARMA & HOLY SHIITAKE PIE MELLOW MUSHROOM 5425 BOWMAN ROAD, MACON What’s not to love about Mellow Mushroom’s Kosmic Karma pizza? Roma and sundried tomatoes, spinach, mozzarella and feta cheese... All those fresh ingredients come together with a mellow red sauce that leaves plenty of room for an easy pesto swirl to create a pizza that just makes you feel good.

Need something a little left of the dial? Try the Holy Shiitake pie. This house specialty uses an olive oil and garlic base that showcases a mushroom power trio-- shiitake, button, and portobello. Add to that a melange of flavor in the form of caramelized onions, mozzarella and MontAmore cheese then finish it off with black truffle oil and a garlic aioli swirl for a pizza that’s as unique as it is delicious.

FRIED CHICKEN

PICTURED:

KOSMIC KARMA & HOLY SHIITAKE PIE Photo by Anthony Ennis 11thHourOnline.com 31

THE Z BEANS STORY

BY SHANE BUERSTER

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER (FULL STORY) PART 1 It's 9:45 at night, Arturo (my international partner) and I are down in Pinas, Ecuador-- twenty miles away from Arturo's house in Zaruma. We had just finished up at the processing facility; we had all of the 100-pound sacs organized and ready for shipment for the following morning. Like normal, Arturo and I flag down the nearest taxi. We get in the car and begin chatting with the driver. Arturo asks me if I had a business card that a specific driver had given me two days prior. I take my wallet out of my back pocket, check for the card, and never find it. I sit my wallet on the seat to my left.

As we arrive to Zaruma thirty minutes later, there is a huge party going on in the street (Zaruma does not have an independence day--they have an independence week). Instead of dropping us off outside of all the ruckus, the taxi driver drives into the middle of the party. Arturo turns to me and says, "Do you have cash?" I immediately respond that I don't because I used it to pay for the last 100 pound bag of coffee earlier in the day. Arturo tells the driver to wait; he wants to run into the local restaurant to ask for the $7 we need. Meanwhile, cars are honking at the taxi as we are completely blocking traffic. I see Arturo in the restaurant, and he waves for me to come in. Without thinking, I run into the restaurant. Arturo hands me the money. I sprint out to the taxi and hand him the $7. He leaves.

I finally take a minute to breathe. I make the short stroll to Arturo's place to get the money to pay back the restaurant. I get to his house and walk up to my room. As I get into my room, I tap my back pocket. My wallet is gone-- along with my passport! I have my return flight at 9 o'clock the next morning!

PART 2 Panicking, I race into the kitchen where Arturo and his wife, Anita, are preparing a late-night snack. I tell them that I left my wallet and passport in the taxi. Arturo glances over his left shoulder with wide yet immensely determined eyes. He doesn't hesitate. He tells me to grab a coat.

As we scurry through the town center and down the steps that lead up to the Catholic church, Arturo calls his nephew, Gabriel, in Pinas to ask him if he would get the central taxi facility to announce the mishap over the radio. Gabriel agrees to do so. Meanwhile, we trek through the streets of Zaruma and halt at the central hub for the Zarumian taxis. We wait and wait but to no avail. Most taxis that pass us are occupied due to the festivities taking place in the park. The few vacant taxis we encounter aren't willing to take us to Pinas and justifiably so. The money is to be made in Zaruma tonight.

32 32 MARCH 15-28, 2019

Twenty-five minutes later, push has now come to shove. Arturo and I begin flagging down every vehicle we can find that is heading south. We ask ten different people if they are heading to Pinas before we finally find a small family going that way. Arturo and I get into the back of the truck and begin the thirty-minute ride. Halfway there, I ask Arturo if he could call Gabriel to find out the latest. Arturo takes out his phone, clicks the contact icon, clicks on Gabriel's number, and boom-- his phone dies! I quickly throw my hand into my right front pocket, pull out my phone, click on my home button-- but it doesn't click. My phone is dead too!

I hang my head, as negativity pervades my train of thought… What else could go wrong? Arturo senses this immediately. He tells me that we are going to find it. He tells me to button up my coat.

PART 3 "Can you tell the drivers that a passport and wallet was left in the back seat of a car?"

"The administrator already has. No one answered."

"Can you do it again? This is serious."

"Most taxis have stopped for the night."

Arturo is furious. It's as if the taxi drivers in Pinas have no interest in helping us. Arturo and I scramble up to the central park looking for someone who knows the location of the taxi center. Since it's midnight, there are only a handful of people out (Pinas is a much different city than Zaruma). Thankfully, Arturo finds one of his childhood friends sitting in a nearby vehicle. Twenty minutes later, we arrive at the taxi headquarters. All the lights are off. There isn't anyone around. We walk up to a gate that blocks a set of stairs that leads up to a two-story building.

Arturo shakes the gate. It is locked. He scurries around to the front of the building. He finds a rock and tosses it up towards a double-paned glass. He misses. He finds another rock and tosses it. It gently taps the window. A young lady appears. "How can I help you?" she asks. Arturo questions whether she is the one working the taxi control panel. She is. He explains the situation and asks her to radio the taxis. She agrees. Ten minutes later and still no response from anyone.

She pokes her head outside the window and asks us to describe the taxi driver. We give her a description and mention where he lives (Luckily, the taxi driver made a quick stop by his house before taking us to Zaruma earlier that night).

The young lady thinks about it for a moment.

She knows exactly who it is. She mentions that the driver has stopped for the night. She says that the guy driving the taxi is not the actual owner of the vehicle. The owner lives twenty miles due south. Calmly, Arturo smiles. He knows that this

is a night for the ages. He politely asks the young woman to call the driver's cell phone and to plead for his help. She agrees. A few seconds later, she sticks her head out the window and says, "He will be here in forty-five minutes!"

Forty-five minutes later, there's no taxi in sight.

Arturo can't take it any longer. He asks me to walk with him down to the local convenience store.

He needs a cigarette (We've been working on his smoking habits for the past year but to no avail).

As we walk down to the convenience store, I can't help but get anxious every time a car passes. With a cigarette fuming in his hand, Arturo signals a return to the station. On our walk we find an empty Johnnie Walker handle laying on the ground. Arturo picks it up, chuckles, and says, "This is a symbol of our night."

Over an hour and a half after the young lady told us the driver was coming, he finally arrives. I get into the back of the taxi cab and there it is, the wallet and passport. I thank the driver for returning and assure him I will adequately accommodate his honesty.

At 2 o’clock in the morning, Arturo and I arrive at his house for the second time-- this time with my wallet and passport in hand. Arturo takes the Johnnie Walker bottle and places it on the dining room mantel. He tells me, "It'll never move."

––––––––––––– For more Z Beans stories you can find us here: ZBeansCoffee.com Facebook: @ZBeansCoffee Instagram: @ZBeansCoffee Storefront: 1635 Montpelier Avenue, Macon, Georgia 31201

DINING-OUT IN CENTRAL GEORGIA A.P.’S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY 4274 Broadway Macon | 478-781-5656 Classic rock n’ roll bar with burgers, salads, sandwiches, wings and more! Homestyle Southern Cookin’ Sundays! Outdoor seating available. L/D/Bar $

BARBERITOS 4123 Forsyth Rd Suite G Macon | 478-621-4883 4921 Riverside Dr Macon | 478-254-5802 3123 Watson Blvd Suite 100 Warner Robins | 478-971-1138 barberitos.com Burritos, tacos, salads, quesadillas, nachos, and more using locally sourced, farm-fresh ingredients. L/D$–$$ BEARFOOT TAVERN 468 2nd St, Macon | 478-305-7703 bearfoottavernmacon.com Contemporary gastropub featuring a menu of New American fare & a beer garden with live music. L/D/Bar $–$$

THE BRICK 1305 Hardeman Ave #100 Macon | 478-254-3632 thebrick93.com Made-from-scratch pizza, calzones, and stuffed sticks. Fresh salads, wings, and pasta. Wide variety of draft & bottled beer! L/D/Bar $-$$ CIRCA 4420 Forsyth Rd Macon | 478-621-4140 maconcirca.com American brasserie, featuring classic and contemporary French and European cuisine, salads, seafood, steaks, sushi. Saturday Brunch starts 2/24!

Reservations encouraged. L/D/Bar $$-$$$ DOVETAIL 543 Cherry St Macon (above the Rookery) | 478-238-4693 dovetailmacon.com Farm-to-table casual fine dining. Southern crafted small plates and a cultivated bourbon selection. Reservations encouraged.

Complimentary valet located on Mulberry St Lane for dinner only. Saturday & Sunday Brunch. D/Bar $$–$$$ DOWNTOWN GRILL 562 Mulberry St. Lane Macon | 478-742-5999 macondowntowngrill.com English-style steak and chop house with nightly features, extensive wine list, and amazing bourbon and whiskey selection. Cigar bar and private humidor. Complimentary Valet.

Reservations encouraged. D/Bar $$–$$$

EDGAR’S BISTRO 5171 Eisenhower Pkwy Macon | 478-471-4250 edgarshospitality.com City Chic and a foodie’s dream! Edgar’s Bistro presents a dining experience that nourishes the body and soul. Open for lunch & dinner Monday-Friday, Edgar’s serves as a hands-on training facility for the Culinary students at Helms College’s Polly Long Denton School of Hospitality.

Reservations encouraged. L/D $$–$$$ FATTY’S PIZZA 344 2nd St Macon | 478-744-9880 fattyspizzamacon.com Pizza, calzone, wings, & salads. Gluten Free options and delivery to Downtown Macon. L/D $ FINCHER’S BAR-B-Q 3947 Houston Ave Macon | 478-787-4648 5627 Houston Rd Macon | 478-7876947 891 Gray Hwy East Macon | 478-787-4649 519 N. Davis Dr Warner Robins | 478-787-4651 finchersbbqga.net So fine, it went to the moon in ‘69! Delicious Southern barbecue at four locations in Macon and Warner Robins featuring pulled pork, chicken, ribs, burgers, and more. Family owned & operated since 1935! L/D $ H&H 807 Forsyth St Macon | 478-621-7044 handhsoulfood.com “The H” is an institution woven into the fabric of Macon’s history. Since 1959, H&H has kept Macon’s most diverse clientele well-fed with delicious, stick-to-ya-ribs soul food—and is most famous for the unique friendship between founder Mama Louise Hudson and the Allman Brothers Band. B/L $ INGLESIDE VILLAGE PIZZA 2396 Ingleside Ave Macon | 478-750-8488 inglesidevillagepizza.com It doesn’t get any better than IVP! Hand-tossed, homemade dough and fresh toppings, salads, sandwiches, and the sloppiest breadsticks! Voted the best pizza in Central Georgia by readers of the 11th Hour and the Macon Telegraph! 80+ cold, craft beers! L/D/Bar $ JUST TAP’D 488 1st St Macon | 478-599-9951 3123 Watson Blvd | 478-599-9950 justtapd.com Gastropub serving tap brews over the counter & bottles from the shelves, plus hearty bar grub.

L/D/Bar $

KUDZU SEAFOOD CO. 470 3rd St Macon | 478-292-2085 kudzuseafood.com From the Panhandle of Florida to the coast of Louisiana, the cuisine of the Gulf Coast is simple and unique. Kudzu Seafood Company brings the best of Southern coastal seafood to Downtown Macon! Offering a menu of fried and grilled seafood along with non seafood items prepared fresh to order in an open kitchen. Welcome to the Coast of Middle Georgia! L/D/Bar $ MELLOW MUSHROOM 5425 Bowman Rd, Macon | 478-254-6789 mellowmushroom.com Delicious food in a fun and creative environment!

Mellow Mushroom is the originator of hand tossed, stone-baked, classic southern pizza. All pies are made with high-quality, fresh ingredients, a spring water crust, and a philosophy to elevate the dining experience with a higher order of pizza. L/D/Bar $–$$ NU-WAY WEINERS 5572 Bloomfield Rd Macon | 478-781-1305 1602 Montpelier Ave Suite 105 Macon | 478-812-8200 921 Hillcrest Blvd Macon | 478-743-1047 148 Emery Highway Macon | 478-743-7976 3990 Northside Dr Macon | 478-477-0533 6016 Zebulon Rd Macon | 478-474-5933 1762 Watson Blvd Warner Robins | 478-929-4941 215 Russell Parkway Warner Robins | 478-923-5335 nu-wayweiners.com An iconic Macon Restaurant featuring the famous red hotdog! Established in 1916 by Greek American James Mallis, Nu-Way is one of the oldest hot dog restaurants in the United States. The New York Times declared Nu-Way the “king of the slaw dog “hill”. B/L/D $

PARISH ON CHERRY 580 Cherry St Macon | 478-257-7255 parishoncherry.com Cozy Cajun eatery in a rustic-chic setting dishing up classic Creole fare, such as ‘po boys & gumbo. Outdoor seating available. L/D/Bar $–$$ PIEDMONT BREWERY & KITCHEN 450 3rd St Macon | 478-254-2337 piedmontbrewery.com Eclectic atmosphere with a menu featuring handcrafted beer and honest food. Familyfriendly arcade and outdoor seating available.

L/D $–$$ ROLY POLY 624 New St A Macon | 478-745-7659 The Original Rolled Sandwich! Also offering specialty soups & salads. L $ SHANE’S 1592 Forest Hill Road Macon | 478-474-6481 Breakfast served daily, delicious pulled pork bbq and wings smoked on premises, fried chicken, sandwiches, salads, pizza, and more! All served to go. B/L/D $ THE ROOKERY 543 Cherry St Macon | 478-746-8658 rookerymacon.com Legendary downtown eatery offering Southern rock & soul inspired burgers, sandwiches, fresh salads, shakes, daily features, and so much more!

Soul Jazz Brunch on Saturdays! Outdoor seating available. L/D $–$$

OCMULGEE BREWPUB 484 2nd St Macon | 478-254-2848 ocmulgeebrewpub.com Ocmulgee Brewpub offers the best curated brews using the finest grains, hops, and yeast.

Delicious gourmet burgers, super food salads, and hand-cut fries. L/D/Bar $ PAPOULI’S MEDITERRANEAN CAFE & MARKET 121 Tom Hill Sr Blvd, Macon | 478-474-0204 papouliscafe.com Mediterranean restaurant with a casual atmosphere. Gyros, Pita Wraps, Greek Plates & More! Papouli’s Mediterranean Cafe & Market also offers a large selection of imported grocery & deli items. L/D $–$$

Your Favorite Classics and a host of new hits

807 Forsy th St. Macon, GA 31201 478-621-7044 • HandHSoulFood.com 11thHourOnline.com 33

34 MARCH 15-28, 2019

BO TALKS

FEAR AND LOATHING ON THE INTERNET By now I’m sure you’ve seen her disturbing visage: Bulging eyes, stringy black hair, frighteningly cartoonish smile? They call her Momo, and she is the latest in a tradition of scare tactics whipped into a frenzy by parents and adults who are more afraid of the times changing than they are of being educated on them. The assertion is that this sinister character is lying in the shadows of kid-friendly internet videos, waiting to appear suddenly and instruct the little ones to engage in some type of self-harm. A quick Google search is all it takes to reveal this outlandish hoax for what it is.

The whole thing is simply the fear of suggestion, and if your concern is that your children are way too receptive to instructions let me be the first to congratulate you! I can barely get my kids to do anything I ask on the first try-- or even the second or third try sometimes. You’ve clearly got a “firsttime-listener” on your hands and things are going to be way easier for you than for those of us with hard-headed progeny. I might suggest purchasing a Momo doll that you can move around the house like an “Elf on the Shelf.”

You can call it the “Momo on the Commode-o” or something like that.

This isn’t anything new. Like the parents of yore being afraid that their kids rock ‘n roll records contained satanic messages when played backward, the problem isn’t ever what you think it is. This isn’t The Ring, where some ghostly figure emerges from the screen to murder you after seven days. The problem is actually far more insidious than any freaky imagery or urban

legend. Just like those parents who couldn’t wrap their heads around what was so appealing about all that rock music stuff, we don’t understand why our kids want to spend hours watching videos of other people opening toys or playing video games. Instead of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll, we’re afraid of Fortnite, Kinder Surprise Eggs, and the watered-down dubstep that seems to always serve as the soundtrack to these asinine YouTube channels.

And that’s what really bugs me. Not the notion that some nefarious person is hiding nasty messages in these videos, but rather that there is an entire group of people who are making MILLIONS of dollars in advertising revenue by simply goofing off and opening toys online. I need to have some serious words with my guidance counselor because no one told me that I could be raking in that kind of cash by just doing the things I already enjoy doing and filming it for the internet! The other thing that worries me is what will happen in 20 or 30 years’ time when this generation of kids grow up and elect President n00bSl4yer69 into office. And if that seems too far-fetched, ask yourself how ridiculous our current situation might have seemed that long ago. There are far more real threats to your children than internet boogeymen.

Bo Walker is a writer and father who urges you to always monitor your children’s internet use and not just when you see something on the news that sounds like it’s from a cheesy horror movie.

11thHourOnline.com 35

A MINNEAPOLIS-MACON CONNECTION

By Ken Hanson

Photo: This picture was taken somewhere near Independence Pass, just south of Aspen, Colorado in the winter of 1972. We all have a copy of this picture and on the back is lettered, “May It Always be a Part of Us”.

Left to right- John Reed Evanson, Doug Forbes, Mick Bundel, and Ken Hanson standing.

To celebrate their 50th Anniversary, this installment of the 11th Hour’s “Your Story” series shares how the music of the Allman Brothers Band formed-- and continues to form-- enduring friendships and memories.

Macon is a long way from Minnesota. Growing up in South Minneapolis, I had barely an inkling of Georgia-- and I certainly had no idea where Macon was. This is a story about two guys growing up in Minneapolis and how the music helped to form their connection.

John Reed Evanson and I were pretty typical middleclass boys who were usually looking for excitement, adventure, and a little bit of lawlessness. We weren’t criminals by any stretch, but we weren’t much bothered by whether it was against the law or not. During our high school years, we would attend Friday night dances at a local church after consuming a few .032% beers.

Ahh, the good old days!

We made skiing trips to Colorado and Montana. We skied Aspen, Vail, Bridger Bowl outside Bozeman, Montana, and Jackson Hole. The day we skied Jackson Hole-- while eating lunch-- we realized we had about

36 MARCH 1-14, 2019

$30 a piece in our pockets, and we had an 1100 mile drive home. Remember, gas was about 35 cents a gallon back then. We drove straight through but the road got very challenging in South Dakota when we drove smack into a blizzard. And we had no heat in the car as the heater core was leaking coolant. I will never forget warming up in a Husky truck stop in Winner, South Dakota. Since the first time I heard “Turn the Page” by Bob Seger, I’ve always had a strong affinity: “Well you walk into a restaurant, strung out from the road, and you feel the eyes upon you as you’re shaking off the cold...” I think John would have loved that song too, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

It was during the trip to Bozeman in the late winter of 1973 that I found an opportunity to pursue the lofty goal of endeavoring to “find myself ”. I took a job at a guest ranch just seven miles up the canyon road from what is today Big Sky, Montana and the Karst Guest Ranch. I packed up my belongings and headed west in

a 1963 Plymouth Valiant. In July of 1973, I was still working and living in Montana, and my high school sweetie had joined me following her graduation. John had decided to marry his high school sweetheart, so my girlfriend and I drove back to Minneapolis to be maid of honor and best man for John and Patty. It was during that trip that I recall a moment on the eve of his wedding. He was sitting in the middle of a room in a south Minneapolis home playing air guitar and drums for his friends. We gathered to celebrate John’s last night as a bachelor.

The music was by a band from Macon, Georgia-- the Allman Brothers Band. He exclaimed to those of us present that if we ever heard this particular song again, we should always think of him. The song was “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed”.

John was my best friend during my teen years. He always seemed to have the inside track on cutting edge music. He introduced me to the Allman Brothers, and we attended a concert in September 1971 in St. Paul, Minnesota, the twin city to Minneapolis. Unless I’m mistaken, this was one of the last concerts Duane performed. So fast forward to 1980. I had since joined the Air Force and was now living in Okinawa, Japan. I grabbed the mail one day and was devastated to learn that John had died in a motorcycle crash. I guess he went on to enjoy the music in heaven now as he followed Duane to the big music festival in the sky.

As I mentioned before, I barely knew where Georgia was, only that it was somewhere far away from Minneapolis-- but my idea of where Macon was soon to change. In 2002, the Air Force returned me to active duty following the 9/11 tragedy, and I found myself in Central Georgia. It was the beginning of a better understanding of “Southern Rock” and the Macon music scene. I soon met Mary Etta, a woman who’d grown up in Macon. She knew the music scene and was very familiar with the Allman Brothers and the serendipity of Grant’s Lounge performances. Mary Etta took me on a tour of Macon

in 2012 because I felt I owed it to John’s memory to experience the Macon music scene’s past and present. We had lunch at the H&H, we toured the Big House, and we went to Rose Hill cemetery to find Elizabeth Reed’s marker. I read that ABB guitarist and songwriter Dicky Betts would sit on the wall overlooking the river for musical inspiration.

There, near the site of Duane and Berry’s markers, at the bottom of the hill, overlooking the river was the marker for Elizabeth Reed. In that moment, I felt as though I’d accomplished a rare objective in honoring the memory of my good friend John. I found the site and took a moment to consider seemingly unconnected moments and events in our lives that can bring us to a moment of epiphany. I may have heard John’s voice that day as I stood there next to Ms. Reed’s marker and watched the river run. I was remembering this friend from my youth interspersed with guitar riffs of that now oh-so-familiar sound that was the Allman Brothers. It truly was a profound and providential experience for me. As my thoughts of John floated in my memory that day, I felt a sense of completion in a journey I never knew life would bring my way.

On New Year’s Eve 2018, Mary Etta and I enjoyed the Devon Allman Project at the Grand Opera House. We heard Devon, Barry Oakley Jr., Duane Betts-- and for the encore, Dickey Betts joined them. What a fabulous experience! Hope you enjoyed it, John!

HAVE YOU GOT A TALE TO TELL? SEND IT TO AARON@THECREEKFM.COM AND YOUR STORY COULD BE HERE TOO!

11thHourOnline.com 37

INDOOR BUGS!

OUTDOOR PESTS!

Warmer weather brings out those mosquitoes and ticks!

TAKE BACK YOUR YARD WITH...

BACKYARD PEST CONTROL CALL 478-787-8000 MOSQUITOESGONE.COM

38 MARCH 15-28, 2019

DO THIS 1. LOCAL

3. BINGE WATCH

My trusty mountain bike is only six or seven years old, but lately, it’s been acting up like an old hound dog-- screaming at nothing and running with a mind of its own. The gears would screech with every change, the brakes were absolutely useless, and the freewheel-- the piece that propels the bike from the chain-- snapped off last year. I had a gift card to Bike Tech from Christmas, so I popped my dad’s old bike rack onto my car and headed over to the shop. After wheeling my dejected bike through the doors, I figured I had come to the right place. Like bringing the family dog into a good hometown vet, the technician gave my bike a careful and attentive check up on its vitals and diagnosed the issues I was having. To get my bike completely back in order only took two days, and they had the part I needed on hand. Bike Tech Macon offers everything a biker needs to be safe and comfortable on a ride (snacks, tires, lights, and other gear), and starting in March, they will have group cycling road rides three days a week.

SCHITT’S CREEK Picture it: You’re a $500 millionaire and the owner of a video rental chain. Your children have never had to work a day in their lives but instead enjoy the incredibly lavish lifestyle you provide. Suddenly, the Feds are at your door, seizing your home and all your property, except one thing-- a small, podunk town you bought in the 90s as a joke because of its name: Schitt’s Creek. You’re told that your family can move into two rooms at the run-down (and only) motel in Schitt’s Creek and start over, and that the town’s mayor, Roland Schitt (yes, Roland Schitt), will help you. This is the premise of the hysterical show, Schitt’s Creek, which you can stream on Hulu.

Show creators Eugene and Daniel Levy star as Johnny Rose and his son David. Catherine O’Hara is absolutely brilliant as Johnny’s soap opera star wife Moira, and Annie Murphy plays the Roses’ daughter Alexis. It’s the polar opposite of your usual rags to riches story, and I had genuine, tears-pouring-down-my-face belly laughs watching it. Y’all, this show is absolutely hilarious, and you’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t drop everything to binge it right now.

Madelyn Rueter

Mandy Purvis

2. ROCK THIS

4. RECIPE

BIKE TECH MACON

BAD REPUTATION

Back in 2004, Runaway’s bassist Vicki Blue made a documentary that took a dark look at her time in the teenage all-girl rock band.

Edgeplay was a harsh origin tale full of abuse and exploitation that not only painted the Runaways as rock n’ roll pioneers and rebels but as survivors. Interviews with Lita Ford, Sandy West, Jackie Fox, and Cherie Currie detail the draconian tutelage and behavior of Runaways manager Kim Fowley while often seeming to process their experiences on film. It was a story fans had been waiting for, but one voice was conspicuously absent-- Runaways founder Joan Jett. The 2018 film Bad Reputation adds Joan’s voice back to the narrative with the formation of the Runaways and her battle against record labels and the male-dominated realm of rock. The film shares stories and perspectives from Joan’s family, peers, and admirers. It follows her friendship with producer Kenny Laguna and the influence Joan Jett has had on generations of artists and musicians.

Currently streaming on Hulu, the film isn’t a dismissal or lighter version of the events that made up Edgeplay-- nor is it a survivor’s recollection. Bad Reputation is the story of a rock n’ roll conqueror.

Aaron Irons

PORTABELLO PIZZAS To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Allman Brothers Band, I wanted to share a mushroom recipe. Now, my recipe doesn't use the same mushrooms that the Brothers probably ate, but I'm pretty sure they're tasty enough to keep the “Come and Go Blues” away. These pizzas are crustless and fired up on a grill.

• • • • • • • • • •

1 2

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6 large portabello mushroom caps, stems removed, washed and dried 2 tbsp EVOO 2 tsp minced garlic 6 tsp Italian Seasoning 3/4 cup of your favorite pizza sauce 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella mini pepperonis cherry tomatoes, sliced thinly (and any other pizza topping you like) salt/pepper to taste

Combine oil, garlic, and 4 tsp seasoning together in a small bowl. Brush the bottoms of your mushroom caps with the garlic oil mixture and place each shroom oil side down on a lightly greased baking tray. Fill each cap with sauce and toppings. Place oil side cap down on your heated grill and grill until cheese melts and is golden brown (anywhere from 6-12 minutes) Sprinkle with remaining Italian Seasoning and enjoy!

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11thHourOnline.com 39

AMERICANA NEWS, NOTIONS, AND NONSENSE Check out Yola Carter’s Walk Through Fire. The British singersongwriter’s debut was produced by Dan Auerbach who manages a lush background of real musicians that never step on Yola’s excellent and bluesy vocals. A countrypolitan soul record, great stuff, and worth your time…

Guitarist, Foo Fighter, and podcaster Chris Shiflett channels Ol’ Waylon with his new single, “This Ol’ World”. Lots of well-produced phaser, steel, and twang...

Spaghetti western twang and reverb abound on Jason Ringenberg’s new album, Stand Tall. Written during the Scorcher’s time as an artist in residence at Sequoia National Park, the songs oscillate between folky, honky tonky, and punky…

On 4/12, pick up Lone Justice Live at The Palomino, 1983-- or try to snag a special edition vinyl on Record Store Day! Featuring the band before their ‘85 debut album, this is Americana music history…

Can’t wait for this one-- Time is Tight, the autobiography of Booker T. Jones will be out on 10/29…

“Had I known in third grade when I started playing my clarinet that one day I would be playing with the likes of B.B. King, Otis Redding, or Bob Dylan, I might have been too paralyzed to continue my journey. But in life, you do things one moment at a time. That’s what I want to share with readers-- how each step of my winding, rocky road has led me to where I am today.”- Booker T. Jones 40 MARCH 15-28, 2019

Tickets are on sale now for Will Hoge on The Creek Stage @ The Rookery in Macon on 4/18...

Durand Jones and The Indications’ new album American Love Call is available now, and you can see and hear it live at Terminal West in Atlanta on 4/29...

Up Jumped The Devil: The Real Life of Robert Johnson is due out 6/4 and is set to be the deepest, most complete dive into the mythical history of the bluesman who’s legend includes a deal with the devil...

Lukas Nelson & Promise Of The Real have been announced for the Variety Playhouse on 5/14…

Author Holly George-Warren has chronicled Gene Autry and Alex Chilton (among other subjects) and on 10/15 she’ll release Janis: Her Life and Music, a definitive biography on Janis Joplin...

The new Stray Cats album titled 40 will be out on 5/24 but there is a lead single out now-- “Cat Fight (Over a Dog Like Me)”-- which is just what it’s supposed to be…

FEATURED SHOW

THE WHIPPING POST

The Whipping Post Big House Radio Hour is home to all things Allman Brothers! Every Friday night at 7pm, Kyler Mosley of the Georgia Allman Brothers Band Association takes a trip down Highway 41 with Richard Brent from The Big House. Hear obscure live performances, deep cuts from all your favorite ABB albums, tracks from the ABB extended family-- and true tales & legends from one of the greatest rock n’ roll bands of all time! The Whipping Post is presented by Apparel Authority and Mellow Mushroom of Macon.

Playlist For The Week Of March 5, 2019

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JOSH RITTER / Old Black Magic / Pytheas Records/Thirty Tigers TEDESCHI TRUCKS BAND / Hard Case / Fantasy Records/Concord SON VOLT / Devil May Care / Transmit Sound Records / Thirty Tigers RYAN BINGHAM / Jingle And Go / Axster Bingham/Thirty Tigers SHOVELS & ROPE / The Wire / Dualtone Records HAYES CARLL / None'ya / Dualtone Records PATTY GRIFFIN / Where I Come From / PGM/Thirty Tigers THE REVIVALISTS / Change / Loma Vista Recordings/Concord Music MANDOLIN ORANGE / The Wolves / Yep Roc Records NICK WATERHOUSE / Song For Winners / Innovative Leisure KACEY MUSGRAVES / Rainbow / MCA Records (UMGN) TODD SNIDER / Like A Force Of Nature / Aimless / Thirty Tigers JADE BIRD / I Get No Joy / Glassnote Records GREENSKY BLUEGRASS / Do It Alone / Big Blue Zoo/Thirty Tigers THE STEEL WOODS / All Of These Years / Woods Music/Thirty Tigers SEAN MCCONNELL / I Could Have Been An Angel / Big Picnic Records LULA WILES / Love Gone Wrong / Smithsonian Folkways Recordings THE CACTUS BLOSSOMS / Please Don't Call Me Crazy / Walkie Talkie Records BEN DICKEY / I Think It's All Different / Dualtone Records ROBERT ELLIS / When You're Away / New West Records

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OUR NATIVE DAUGHTERS (FEATURING RHIANNON GHIDDENS, AMYTHYST KIAH, ALLISON RUSSELL & LEYLA MCCALLA) / Black Myself / Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

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RHETT MILLER / Total Disaster / ATO Records ROSANNE CASH / Not Many Miles To Go / Blue Note Records I'M WITH HER / Call My Name / Rounder Records / Concord Music NATHANIEL RATELIFF & THE NIGHT SWEATS / Hey Mama / Stax / Concord Music JOY WILLIAMS / Front Porch / Sensibility Recordings/Thirty Tigers GREGORY ALAN ISAKOV / Dark, Dark, Dark / Dualtone Records SHOOK TWINS / What Have We Done / Dutch Records SETH WALKER / All I Need To Know / Royal Potato Family GRACE POTTER / I'd Rather Go Blind / BMG AMOS LEE / Little Light / Dualtone Records 11thHourOnline.com 41 11thHourOnline.com 41 PISTOL ANNIES / Best Years Of My Life / Sony Music LULA WILES / Nashville, Man / Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

DEBUT

AS HEARD ON

Singles Chart Powered By CDX TRACTION

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Artist / Song Title / Label

42 MARCH 15-28, 2019

LIVE & LOCAL

CALENDAR

THURSDAY 3/14

REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Big Kids Brunch 1pm

REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Trivia 8pm

ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Karaoke w/ The Captain 9pm

ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Jim Jam Karaoke & Dance Party

ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Live Music Happy Hour w/ The Captain 6pm

SUNDAY 3/17

THURSDAY 3/21

FRIDAY 3/15

A.P.'S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY Big Mike (Blues) 3pm

JUST TAP'D Brain Blast Trivia 8pm

REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Sunday Fun Day 1pm

MELLOW MUSHROOM MACON Extreme Music Bingo 8pm

TRAVIS JEAN EMPORIUM David Dingess 12:30pm

REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Group Cards Against Humanity 8pm

JUST TAP'D Brain Blast Trivia 8pm REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Group Cards Against Humanity 8pm-midnight

A.P.'S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY Karaoke w/ Jesse Jane 8pm-midnight FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Beer Pong Tournament 10:30pm

ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Live Music Happy Hour w/ The Captain 6pm

THE CREEK STAGE @ THE ROOKERY Jason Eady 9:30pm $12

FRIDAY 3/22 A.P.'S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY Karaoke w/ Jesse Jane 8pm-midnight THE HARGRAY CAPITOL THEATRE Marty Stuart & his Fabulous Superlatives 8pm $35-$55

REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Luck O’ The Nerdish St. Patty’s Trivia 8pm

MONDAY 3/18 FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Dart Tournament 9pm Double Down Service Industry NIGHT ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) From Within 9pm

SATURDAY 3/16 A.P.'S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY Live Music 8pm Never A Cover FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Dart Tournament 4pm THE HARGRAY CAPITOL THEATRE Mother’s Finest 8pm $22-$440 w/ Vintage Vixens

ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Trivia 7:30pm

TUESDAY 3/19 FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Trivia 8:30pm Karaoke w/ DJ B3 10pm JUST TAP'D MACON Brain Blast Trivia 8pm MELLOW MUSHROOM MACON Holy Shiitake Karaoke 8pm ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Service Industry Night

WEDNESDAY 3/20 FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Dart League 7pm

ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) The Hargraves 9pm TRAVIS JEAN EMPORIUM Louise Warren 6pm

SATURDAY 3/23 A.P.'S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY Live Music 8pm Never A Cover FRIENDS ON THE HILL Dart Tournament 4pm REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Big Kids Brunch 1pm ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Karaoke w/ The Captain 9pm continued on page 44

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SUNDAY 3/24 A.P.'S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY Big Mike 3pm REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Sunday Fun Day 1pm TRAVIS JEAN EMPORIUM The Southern Siren 12:30pm James Worsham 6pm

Feed Your Inner Rock Star

OPEN JAMS & KARAOKE TUESDAY

GRANT’S LOUNGE Music Therapy Open Mic 9pm MELLOW MUSHROOM MACON Holy Shiitake Karaoke 8pm

MONDAY 3/25 FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Dart Tournament 9pm Double Down Service Industry Night ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Trivia 7:30pm

WEDNESDAY

GRANT'S LOUNGE Open Jam 9pm

THURSDAY THE BRICK 8pm

TUESDAY 3/26

PUB 96 Jim Jam Karaoke & Dance Party 9pm

FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Trivia 8:30pm Karaoke w/ DJ B3 10pm

FRIDAY

JUST TAP'D Brain Blast Trivia 8pm

A.P.'S HIDDEN HIDEAWAY Karaoke w/ Jessie Jane 8pm

WEDNESDAY 3/27

AMPERSAND GUILD Poetry & Spoken Word Every 2nd Friday 7pm $5 (Free for performers)

FRIENDS ON THE HILL (WARNER ROBINS) Dart League 7pm REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Trivia 8pm ROCO’S BAR (BONAIRE) Jim Jam Karaoke & Dance Party

THURSDAY 3/28 JUST TAP'D Brain Blast Trivia 8pm REBOOT RETROCADE & BAR Group Cards Against Humanity 8pmmidnight

44 MARCH 15-28, 2019

AMPERSAND GUILD Open Mic Night Every 3rd Friday 7pm $5 (Free for performers)

SATURDAY

PUB 96 Jim Jam Karaoke & Dance Party 9pm

SUNDAY

PUB 96 GRANT'S LOUNGE Open Jam 9pm

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46 MARCH 15-28, 2019

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