ATLRetro

by Melanie Crew
Contributing Writer

‘Hey all you vintage lovers! Retro Atlanta is smokin’ this week with a whole lotta rockin’ events and shenanigans! Whether you’re lookin’ for some down and dirty blues, uptempo jazz, movies of yesteryear or a little ‘billy that’ll have you dancin’ the night away, come on down and see what we’ve found for you! Live la vida Retro!

Monday, May 12

Girls just want to have fun, so don’t miss out on a night with Cher and Cyndi Lauper at Phillips Arena tonight! Or get a taste of some ska, punk and new-wave with The Aquabats and Koo Koo Kanga Roo at The Loft! Smith’s Olde Bar spices it up with the B-Side Players, Ojo de Buey and Maya Neiada! Swing on by Hot Jam Swings! for their Hot Jam Dance Night and get your Count Bassie and Benny Goodman fix! Rev on down to Camelis Gourmet Pizza Joint for a night with Kool Kat Rev. Andy, broadcasting a little spitfire rockin’ rockabilly and psychobilly live on Garage71 Internet Radio! Get funky and groove on down to Café 290 every second and fourth Monday of the month for a taste of Bumpin the Mango, ‘The groove that makes you want to move!’ Boogie on down to the Northside Tavern and spend an evening with Lola at her famous Monday Night Northside Jam! Brandon Reeves delivers his soulful roots at Blind Willie’s! And blues on down to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for a helping of Pork Bellys and some finger lickin’ BBQ! 

Tuesday, May 13

It’s ultimate warriors vs. blood-thirsty aliens at The Plaza Theater with Splatter Cinema’s invasion of John McTiernan’s action-horror flick, PREDATOR (1987) at 9:30! And don’t forget to come early for some alien-tastic lobby shenanigans and classic horror trailers!  The ‘King of the Monsters’ invades the Midtown Art Cinema as they screen Ishiro Honda’s original GODZILLA (1954) celebrating its 60th anniversary at 7 pm, with a pre-show by our BFF ghost host with the most, Kool Kat Shane Morton, a.k.a. Prof. Morte of the Silver Scream Spook Show!  Or let Kool Kat Katherine Lashe and Syrens of the South seduce their way into your naughty little hearts at the Red Light Café at their Tease Tuesday: May Flowers Edition, with special guest Joy Va Voi and performances by Tora Torrid, our favorite Clark Gable look-alike magic man, Chad Sanborn, Victoria Rose Nedley and more!

Shawn Spencer (Seven Handle Circus) delivers a night of ‘Bad Ass Bluegrass’ at Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs! It’ll be a full-throttle rockin’ night of vintage and West Coast blues at Blind Willie’s with Atlanta Boogie! Boogie on down to The Star Bar and get groovy at The Funk Godfather, DJ Romeo Cologne’s Funk Royale featuring DJ Quasi Mandisco every Tuesday! Jam it up with Joe Gransden and his jazz jam session at Twain’s in Decatur every Tuesday at 9 pm! Stomp on down to Big Tex for a night with Moira Nelligan & The Dixie Jigs and their old-fashioned Americana! Or boogie on down to Darwin’s Burgers & Blues in Marietta for a taste of Bill Sheffield’s acoustic roots and blues! And The Entertainment Crackers gets bluesy with their folksy Americana sounds at the Northside Tavern.  Get lured into the bohemian underworld of Paris at the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern for their screening of Baz Luhrmann’s extravagant and vibrant musical, MOULIN ROUGE (2001) during their Musical May series at 7:30 pm! And take a rare peek at the glamorous historic mansion, the Palazzo Rosa, “The Pink Palace”, designed by three of Atlanta’s most notable architects during the 44th annual Atlanta Symphony Associates’ Decorators’ Show House & Gardens tours running through May 18!

Wednesday, May 14

Rock out as the Toadies bring their ‘Rubberneck’ 20th Anniversary Tour to the Masquerade with the Supersuckers and Battleme! Escape Vehicle gets to stompin’ as they deliver their bluegrass, reggae and blues tunes at Big Tex! The Breeze Kings get bluesy at Sweet Georgia’s Juke Joint! Or rendezvous at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for a night with Frankie’s Blues Mission! The Little G Weevil Band delivers a night of the blues at Blind Willie’s!  Or make your way to the Northside Tavern as Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck fires it up with his rockin’ blues! It’s Ladies Night at Johnny’s Hideaway which plays hits from Sinatra to Madonna for a generally mature crowd.  Spend the day in Paris at the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern for their screening of Baz Luhrmann’s extravagant and vibrant musical, MOULIN ROUGE (2001) during their Musical May series’ matinee screening at 11:30 am!

Thursday, May 15

AM 1690 presents their ‘One Way Out: The Allman Brothers and Atlanta’ event at Eddie’s Attic tonight!  Come on down and help celebrate the release of Alan Paul’s New York Times Bestseller, “One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band”!  The event includes a book signing and a night of rockin’ tunes delivered by members of The Hampton GreaseBand, Bill Sheffield, Barry Richman, The Swimming Pool Qs, Lamar Williams, Jr. and more!

Honkytonk down to Smith’s Olde Bar for I Want Whisky, Amigo, Sam Hadfield and Lily & the Tigers! Mike Dillon ‘punk rock provocateur’ rocks out at 529! Rock on down to The Earl for a night of rockin’ psychedelia straight out of the ‘60s with Mystic Braves, Corners and Eel Pie! The Atlanta Jazz Festival presents the Harper Family Jazz Jam at Churchill Grounds! It’s a night of rockin’ roots at Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs with DonnaHopkins! Lola delivers the blues at Sweet Georgia’s Juke Joint! Get vintage with some old-timey bluegrass at the Red Light Café with the BorderHop Five and special guests, during their Bluegrass Thursday event! Do the Charleston in the park at Emory Point at their sundown screening of Baz Luhrmann’s THE GREAT GATSBY (2013)! Stagger on over to Noni’s Bar & Deli for their Bitter Heroes event featuring DJ Brian Parris as he gets charmingly morose with a little New-Wave, The Smiths and The Cure! Make your way to the Crimson Moon Café for The Tom & Julie Show featuring tributes to tunes from the 60s to the 90s every Thursday! The Northside Tavern gets rockin’ with a little Chicago/Delta blues of The Breeze Kings! Get your boogie on at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack, as Chickenshack featuring Eddie Tigner, delivers some honky-tonk blues! Darwin’s Burgers & Blues gets down and dirty at their Blues Jam hosted by The Cazanovas! Sandra Hall & the Shadows get down at Blind Willie’s! Hula on down to Trader Vic’s for a couple Mai Tais and get toasty with the steamy island funk of The Volcanauts with Tracey Wolfe! And it’s your last chance to get Bohemian at the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern for their screening of Baz Luhrmann’s extravagant and vibrant musical, MOULIN ROUGE (2001) during their Musical May series at 7:30 pm!

Friday, May 16

Rev on down to Motorheads in McDonough and get honkytonkin’ with Kool Kat Phil Stair with Grim Rooster and Dogwood Daze! Banjo down to Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs for a night with Jeff Mosier and DonnaHopkins! The Plaza Theater has an offer you can’t refuse with their screenings of Francis Ford Coppola’s mobster classics, the GODFATHER (1972) and the GODFATHER II (1974)! Reverend Hylton & the Devil’s Hands deliver a night of outlaw Americana at the Red Light Café! The Paulines deliver a night of boot stompin’ Americana roots and blues at Big Tex! Let’s go crazy at Park Tavern with Yacht Rock Review performing Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’ in its entirety, followed by a rockin’ retro set! Stoney Brooks gets the blues at Northside Tavern! Get jazzy at the High Museum with LouisHeriveaux! House Rocker Johnson & the Shadows get down and dirty at Blind Willie’s! Get your fill of your favorite MTV videos with Kool Kat VJ Anthony at his ICON 80s: Music Video Dance Night invading Famous Pub every Friday night at 10 pm! Groove on down to Darwin’s Burgers & Blues for a funky time with Southern Fried Funk! It’s Salsa Dance Night at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX event, so come on out and cha-cha under the dinosaurs while enjoying a few cocktails with the Salsambo Dance Studio! And as always, Time-Warp it up and get naughty with some uber musically-inclined transsexual aliens at The Plaza Theater as they continue their tradition of screening THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW (1975) every Friday night, featuring the live cast of Lips Down on Dixie at midnight!

Saturday, May 17

Bessie Branham Park gets festive for the 12th Annual Kirkwood Spring Fling from 10 am to 11 pm!  Check out the artist market, tasty food, a BBQ contest, live music and a tour of homes!  The rockin’ musical line-up includes a little gonzo guitar and sleazy surf rock with Grinder Nova; a little ‘70s rock and funk infusion with The Hangarmen; Gareth Asher & the Earthlings and their southern soul; a little roots rock with The Deadfields; rockin’ blues and acoustic funk with Part-Time Weekenders and so much more! Or get jazzy and make your way to Historic Washington Park for the Neighborhood Jazz Festival at 5 pm with Grant Green, Jr and Eric Thomas!

Make your way to the Fox Theater for a live broadcast performance of ‘A Prairie Home Companion’ with Garrison Keillor at 5:45 pm! Willie Nelson and Alison Krauss will have you boogyin’ old school-style at ChastainPark! Get a taste of some gritty garage punk grass and funky blues at Eddie’s Attic with The Bitteroots and Strung Like A Horse! Punk on down to 529 for a rockin’ night with Ex-Cult, GHB, Zoners and Carmen! Or get cosmic at the Red Light Café with Interstate, The Wheel Knockers and Flap! Stomp on down to the Variety Playhouse for a night of organic moonshine roots with Valerie June and the ever-unique Kool Kat Jeffrey Butzer! Rock out with ATL Collective as they deliver a night of Nirvana at The Earl while performing ‘Nevermind’ in its entirety! Joe McGuinness delivers a night of Americana roots at the Red Clay Theater during his album release party! Debauche delivers a night of Russian gypsy jazz at Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs! It’s a night of old-school blues at the Northside Tavern with Eddie Tigner and Albert White! The Unusual Suspects get bluesy at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! Bob Margolin gets bluesy at Blind Willie’s! Get the rockin’ blues at Darwin’s Burgers & Blues with the John Michael RoseBand! The Terry Flynn Band gets stompin’ at Big Tex! And as always, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours of the night.

Sunday, May 18

Stomp on down to Park Tavern for a night with Seven Handle Circus! TheJohnson Party bluegrasses it up at The Family Dog! Stomp over to Big Tex for their Bluegrass Brunch featuring the Decatur Bluegrass Association (D.B.A.)! We Are Scientists deliver their Bowie and Velvet Underground-esque indie rock at The Earl with Paws! The Little G Weevil Band gets bluesy at the Red Light Café during the May Atlanta Blues Society Meeting and Jam! It’s a night of Americana roots and punk grass at the Red Clay Theater with Penny & Sparrow and Grace & Tony! It’s a night of comedy at The Strand Theater as they screen Peter Yates’ MOTHER, JUGS & SPEED (1976) starring Bill Cosby, Harvey Keitel and Requel Welch, with a pops pre-show! And Kool Kat Kitty Love shows you how to shimmy and shake at her Boudoir Blitz at Dungeon Studios from 3 to 6pm!

Ongoing

Palazzo Rosa, “The Pink Palace”, tours during the 44th annual Atlanta Symphony Associates’ Decorators’ Show House & Gardens tours running through May 18!

Center for Puppetry Arts spins ‘Charlotte’s Web’ through May 25^th!

Get medieval and really retro this spring in Lilburn at the 29^th Annual Georgia Renaissance Festival running through June 8^th

ICON 80s: Music Video Dance Night rocks out at the Famous Pub every Friday night with a different 80’s theme!

The Star Bar gets groovy with The Funk Godfather, DJ Romeo Cologne and DJ QuasiMandisco every Tuesday!

Steve’s Live Music’s Gypsy Jazz Brunch offers up a plate of Hot Club jamming and Parisian Swing with Kool Kool Kat Amy Pike and the Bonaventure Quartet from 12:30 to 3:30 pm every 2^nd & 4^th Sunday!

Boogie on down into Disco Hell at The Family Dog as DJ Quasi Mandisco delivers a night of classic funk, soul and disco the last Friday of every month

The Plaza Theater Time-Warps it up as they screen, THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW (1975) every Friday night, featuring the live cast of Lips Down on Dixie at midnight!

Every first and third Mondays are Big Band Nights at Café 290, featuring Joe Gransden and his amazing 16-piece orchestra playing jazz and swing standards in the tradition of The Glen Miller Orchestra and other legendary groups.  Second and fourth Mondays are Bumpin the Mango, ‘The groove that makes you want to move!’

Every first Wednesday is the Graveyard Tavern’s Graveyard Swing Night, featuring the swingin’ jazz and boogie-woogie sounds of the Savoy Kings!

If you have a suggestion for a future event that should be included in This Week in Retro Atlanta or see something we missed, please email us at atlretro@gmail.com.