LISA DENTON: You know, Barry, if I were planning a big festival in April, I might be devoting all my time to that. That’s why I’m always amazed to look at the Jazzanooga website. Even with a three-day music blowout coming up in about a month, founder Shane Morrow is filling the calendar with events.
BARRY COURTER: If you want to hear a really great belly laugh, call Shane sometime and ask him if he thought his idea would ever become anything more than a one-day celebration of jazz and the contributions that the city and Chattanoogans have made to the genre. I did the other day. He might still be laughing.
Lisa Denton and Barry Courter
LISA: There’s a lot of variation in the programs. This week, for instance, there’s Nightcap, a music series that celebrates the heyday of Ninth Street, now called M.L. King Boulevard. Charlie the Head, a local progressive jazz group, will play Wednesday night for the next Nightcap, which is named for one of the boulevard’s legendary jazz joints.
And Saturday, Jazzanooga will host the author of one of the biggest book releases this spring. Patricia Bell-Scott, a Chattanooga native and University of Georgia professor, has written “The Firebrand and the First Lady,” about Pauli Murray and Eleanor Roosevelt.
BARRY: That’s a good lineup of events. Speaking of which, Dale Watson is at Revelry Room on Thursday. Watson is the real deal. He’s come up with a new music genre he calls Ameripolitan. It’s a blend of Western swing, honky-tonk, rockabilly and outlaw country. They even have their own awards these days. It’s tear-in-your-beer music. My kind of music.
LISA: I have a few whine-in-my-wine numbers, but I don’t have a good theme song like “Tear in My Beer” from the two Hanks. That’s hard to beat.
BARRY: “Whine in My Wine” doesn’t work as a country song, does it? Just sounds so well, whiny, but highfalutin whiny. We could probably sell it if you sang “Whine in My Muscadine Wine.”
LISA: You can get more country music at Revelry Room on Friday night from Mustache the Band. You’ll hate the pun, but they say they’re “a country party band that will grow on you.”
They do country music from the 1990s. I wasn’t surprised to see Alan Jackson and Travis Tritt on the playlist, since they both sport facial hair, but they also do songs by Deana Carter. Of course, she’s known for “Did I Shave My Legs for This,” so I guess that’s the connection.
BARRY: I’m not sure if you are a Television (the rock band, not the appliance) fan or not, but there was some big news late last week regarding Road to Nightfall when the judges for the May 26 finals were announced. In addition to local folks Carla Pritchard, Richard Winham and Mike Dougher, it was announced that Chris Cobb of Marathon Records and Exit/In in Nashville fame and Television guitarist Richard Lloyd will be on the panel. Music fans will know Lloyd’s place in punk/new wave/CBGB history. This is a big deal.
LISA: And we’re coming up on Easter weekend, so this is the last week to get your picture made with the Easter Bunny at the malls. On Saturday, you can go to Hug-A-Bunny at Chattanooga Zoo. And Friday and Saturday are the last chances to ride the Bunny Train at Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum. That’s new this year. You know how these bunny events multiply.
Get event details every Thursday in ChattanoogaNow or online anytime at www.ChattanoogaNow.com.
Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6281. Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.