ATLRetro

Monday August 15

Swing to favorite tunes by Sinatra, Basie, Ray Charles and more as Joe Gransden‘s 16-piece orchestra presents Big Band Night on first and third Mondays at Cafe 290. Rock a little ’70s-style with Stevie Nicks tonight at Chastain Park Amphitheatre. From 3 PM on, savor tropical sounds and libations, as well as a Polynesian dinner during Mai Tai Monday at Smith’s Olde Bar. Northside Tavern hosts its weekly Blues Jam.

Tuesday August 16

Classic Broadway musical GUYS AND DOLLS starts a weeklong run at The Fabulous Fox Theatre. Grab your horn and head to Twain’s in Decatur for a Joe Gransden jazz jam session starting at 9 PM. Crosstown All Stars play Southern rock and blues at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. Notorious DJ Romeo Cologne spins ‘70s funk and disco at 10 High in Virginia-Highland. Catch Tues. Retro in the Metro nights at Midtown’s Deadwood Saloon, featuring video mixes of ’80s, ’90s and 2Ks hits.

Wednesday  August 17

Catch 71-years-young country music living legend Billy Joe Shaver, who’s written songs for the likes of Elvis Presley, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson and collaborated with Johnny Cash, first at a 6 p.m. free show at Decatur CD and later at Smith’s Olde Bar. Or be in the crowd for a live video shoot by local garage rockers The Bums at Star Bar, where Tuscaloosa farfisa-drenched surf soul rockers Piss Shivers and Ghost Bikini also take the stage. Get ready to rumba, cha-cha and jitterbug at the weekly Swing Night at Graveyard Tavern. Frankie’s Blues Mission bring the blues to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack and Danny “Mudcat” Dudeck blues it down at Northside Tavern respectively. Dance to ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s hits during Retro in the MetroWednesdays presented by Godiva Vodka, at Pub 71 in Brookhaven. 

Thursday  August 18

Ghost Riders Car Club return to Kathmandu in Clarkston tonight for a free show of spirited honky tonk/rockbilly tunes. Read our Kool Kat interview with Spike Fullerton about their fun all-February run here. Legendary rock guitarist and “Texas Tone Ranger” Eric Johnson plays Variety Playhouse. Go Retro-Polynesian to Tongo Hiti’s luxurious live lounge sounds, as well as some trippy takes on iconic pop songs, just about every Thursday night at Trader Vic’s. Party ‘70s style with DJ Romeo Cologne at Aurum Lounge. Breeze Kings and Chickenshack bring on the blues respectively at Northside Tavern and Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.Sing a honky tonk ditty yourself whenBluegrass Thursday at Red Light Cafe features a “Country Fried Bluegrass Karaoke Night” with the Red Light All Stars Band starting at 7 p.m.

Friday, August 19

The F'n Heartbreaks. L-R: Brook Bolen, Stephanie Hudson, Carrie Manuel. Photo courtesy of the F'n Heartbreaks.

All-female Elvis tribute band The Pelvis Breastlies, our favorite Atlanta garage-gal-trio The F’n Heartbreaks, and surf band extraordinaire The Mystery Man? rock the Highland Inn Ballroom tonight with a special El Dia De Elvis tribute gig. It’s also billed as a Day of the Dead Costume party, so let your creativity flow into your clothes. If you missed last week’s Kool Kitten interview with Brook Bolen of The F’n Heartbreaks, read it here.

Last Waltz Ensemble, a Dylan and The Band tribute band,  Moontower, and a host of Atlanta’s finest local musicians honor one of Atlanta’s finest blues musicians in a two-day tribute Blue Waltz: A Benefit for the Sean Costello Memorial Fund for Bipolar Disorder starting tonight at Smith’s Olde Bar. Tonight’s guests include Jon Liebman, Ike Stubblefield, Rev. Jeff Mosier, David Blackmon, Mudcat, Joe McGuinness, Rod Hamdallah, Nelson Nolen, Aaron Trubic, Greg Baba and Greg Hester.

We’re not sure if it’s really Retro but the age-18+-only Mon Cherie‘s School Daze: Naughty Girls & Nuns with Bad Habits at Masquerade definitely pays homage to a tried and true tradition of mixing Catholic school days with naughty fantasy. Soundtrack is alt-dance with go-go dancers and other treats including cupcakes by the scrumptious Sugar Dolls.

Soulphonics & Ruby Velle make for a soulful R&B night at Vinyl. Catch an IMAX movie and try out your salsa moves with Salsambo Dance Studio at Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX. J.T. Speed brings the rockin’ blues to Fat Matt’s.

Saturday August 20

Catch up with your psychobilly and honky tonk kinfolk, listen to great bands, dine on fine Southern BBQ and drink ice-cold beer at the Hellbilly Family Reunion end of summer super shindig at Elliott Street Deli & Pub. OOh-la-la, the Righteous Rev. Andy of Garage 71 (hot-rod-inspired Internet radio) will be hosting the 1st annual Miss Hellbilly swimsuit contest, and performers include Uncle Daddy and the Kissin’ Cousins, BareKnuckle Betties (read our Kool Kat interview with lead vocalist Julea Thomerson here), Hoop Essence, Sinder and Incendia fire entertainment and burlesque troupe Minette Magnifique (whose Baroness VonSchmalhausen and Kellyn Willey are Kool Kats). There’ll also be fun opportunities to support charities such as pink strawberry lemonade and sweet tea for Cathy’s Help (breast cancer), homemade mini-pies and cobblers served by the sexy Pinups for Soldiers, and shooting and kissin’ cousin booths for Madison Arf (animal rescue).

Two-day tribute Blue Waltz: A Benefit for the Sean Costello Memorial Fund for Bipolar Disorder continues at Smith’s Olde Bar with Last Waltz Ensemble headlining, opening set by Turtle Folk, and a host of guest musicians including Jon Liebman, Ike Stubblefield, Richie Jones (Donna Hopkins Band), Preston Holcomb (The Grapes), Daniel Hutchens (Bloodkin), Charlie Wooten (Zydefunk), Will & Lee Haraway (The Sundogs), Lee Schwartz (Outformation), Justin Brogden, Randy Chapman, Skye Paige, Jessica Sheridan and more.

Gareth Asher plays two soulful Birthday bash shows at Eddie’s Attic at 7 and 1o p.m. His influences range from Otis Redding to Jackson Browne, Don Henley and The Eagles. Blues/rock/and all their own The Booze plays 529 Club with The Accidents and Ignitor. Rocakbilly/honky tonk/garage Sonoramic Commando plays Highland Inn Ballroom with garage-rock Superpill and country/classic rock Cute Boots. Mudcat plays Northside Tavern.  And of course, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours.

Sunday August 21

Today is your last chance to catch MODERN BY DESIGN at the High, which celebrates three key moments in modern design and also the Museum of Modern Art, New York‘s (MOMA) collection history. The works on loan from MOMA cover “Machine Art” (1934), “Good Design” (1950-55) and “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” (1972), with the latter addressing modernism in the context of 1960s and ’70s counterculture.

Os Ossos plays blues “dunch” between 1 and 4 PM at The Earl. Tony Bryant reps four generations of Georgia blues at Fat Matt’s. All right, ramblers, The Masquerade is resurrecting its former incarnation as Excelsior Theatre with a one-time screening of RESERVOIR DOGS. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., cover is a bargain $3, and arrive before 7PM to receive FREE BEER & A BAG OF POPCORN!!!! Tableside theatre seating, Full bar, and popcorn!

Ongoing

RADCLIFFE BAILEY: MEMORY AS MEDICINE, the most comprehensive exhibition of the Atlanta artist’s works to date, runs through Sept. 11 at the High Museum of Art. Read more about the artist and this powerful exhibition in this Kool Kat.

JOHN MARIN’S WATERCOLORS: A MEDIUM FOR MODERNISM, a companion exhibit also at the High this summer through Sept. 11, surveys the work of the man named America’s number one artist in a 1948 LOOK magazine survey. While his name is not a household one today, this exhibition reminds us of his important place in the modernist movement and why watercolors became such a powerful instrument for avante-garde art in the hands of him and other artists in the Stieglitz Circle,including Georgia O’Keefe.

The Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA)‘s current exhibit WaterDream: The Evolution of Bathroom Design, runs through Sept. 24 in the dynamic new Midtown space. Displays take visitors through a four-part journey into the bathroom from the birth of minimalist aesthetics in 20th century design to current concepts.

Get a rare chance to view original manuscript pages from the  last four chapters of ATLANTA’S BOOK: THE LOST GONE WITH THE WIND MANUSCRIPT at the Atlanta History Center. The exhibit runs through Sept. 5 and is part of a series of activities celebrating the 75th anniversary of the publication of the international bestseller and also includes foreign and first edition copies, the desk Margaret Mitchell used while writing it and select images.

Tune back in on Friday for Weekend Update. If you know of a cool happening that we’ve missed, send suggestions to ATLRetro@gmail.com.