ATLRetro

by Melanie Crew
Managing Editor/Contributing Writer

Retro Atlanta is rockin’ this summer with all the vintage shenanigans you could ever want! So, come on out and see what we’ve found for you on the Retro Menu! Atlanta gets groovy, revved up, doused in golden era film and so much more! So, get off that couch and live la vida Retro!

Monday, July 21

Start the week off right with a couple silver screen oldies but goodies at The Plaza Theater as they continue their 75th Anniversary celebration with presentations of John Ford’s STAGECOACH (1939) starring John Wayne and Ernst Lubitsch’s Greta Garbo flick, NINOTCHKA (1939)! Get retro, kiddie-style at Pallookaville’s vintage cinema extravaganza with The Polka Dotted Elephant Summer Cinema Club at 10 am, with their screenings of a DOGVILLE SHORT episode (1930), LANCELOT LINK episode (1970) and featuring Henry Selick’s adaptation of Raold Dahl’s classic, JAMES ANDTHE GIANT PEACH (1996)! Punk on down to 529 for a night of psych punk and noise pop with Zoners, Mexican Slang, Landline and Thunders! Blind Willie’s delivers a night of the blues with the Marshall Ruffin Band! Swing on by Big Band Night featuring Joe Gransden and his amazing 17-member orchestra at Café 290 every first and third Monday of the month. Boogie on down to the Northside Tavern and spend an evening with Lola at her famous Monday Night Northside Jam!  Blues on down to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for a bluesy helping of The Pork Bellies and some finger lickin’ BBQ!
 
Tuesday, July 22

It’s a night of film classics with Zoltan Korda’s tale of adventure, FOUR FEATHERS (1939) at The Plaza Theater; the Midtown Art Cinema’s screening of George Roy Hill’s outlaws with style flick, BUTCHCASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969) and the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern’s screening of Jim Abrams, Jerry Zucker and David Zucker’s ‘80s satire, AIRPLANE! (1980) during their Summer of Adventure series at 7:30 pm! Get your ‘90s alt-rock, anti-folk fix at the Fox Theater with a night of Beck! Or stomp on down to Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs for Cedar Hill! King Buzzo (The Melvins) delivers his “This Machine Kills Artists” tour at The Basement! Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck fires it up with his rockin’ blues at Blind Willie’s! Get the rockin’ blues with Lola at Sweet Georgia’ Juke Joint! Make your way to Big Tex for a night with Moira Nelligan & The Dixie Jigs and their old-fashioned Americana! 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! Or boogie on down to Darwin’s Burgers & Blues in Marietta for a taste of Bill Sheffield’s acoustic roots and blues! TheEntertainment Crackers get bluesy with their folksy Americana at the Northside Tavern. And rock on down to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack for a night with JT Speed!

Wednesday, July 23

Take a trip back in time to 1939 to The Plaza Theater as they celebrate their 75th Anniversary with screenings of ’39 classics, Jean Renoir’s, THE RULES OF THE GAME (1939) and Michael Powell’s, SPY IN BLACK (1939)! The Breeze Kings deliver a night of Chicago/Delta blues at Sweet Georgia’s Juke Joint! Kool Kat Scott Glazer’s Mojo Dojo rocks out with some blues, jazz and southern soul at Blind Willie’s! The Hollidays deliver a night of soul and rock and roll at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! 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.  Or skip school and spend the day with Leslie Nielsen at the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern for their screening of Jim Abrams, Jerry Zucker and David Zucker’s ‘80s satire, AIRPLANE! (1980) during their Summer of Adventure series’ matinee screening at 11:30 am!

Thursday, July 24

Get nuclear and hitch a ride over to the Fox Theater as the Coca Cola Summer Film Festival presents Stanley Kubrick’s DR. STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB (1964)! Put on the Ritz and make your way to The Plaza Theater for their 75thAnniversary Gala, featuring a screening of the star-studded, THAT’SENTERTAINMENT (1974), directed by Jack Haley and starring Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Judy Garland, Mickey Rooney and more!  The Gala also includes a gourmet chocolate buffet after the show, so come on out and celebrate The Plaza Theater’s first 75 years! Rock on over to The Variety Playhouse for a night with The Musical Box, delivering a performance celebrating 40 years of Genesis’ “Selling England by the Pound”! Hula on down to Trader Vic’s for a night with Kool Kat “Big Mike” Geier and his Polynesian pop lounge band, Tonga Hiti and a couple Mai Tais! Get funky in the Music Room at Smith’s Olde Bar with Pigeons Playing Ping Pong! Celebrate the Man in Black, Johnny Cash, at the Red Clay Theatre as JohnCarter Cash presents his “House of Cash” tour with special guests, Tim andMyles Thompson! It’s Bluegrass Thursday at the Red Light Café, so stomp on down for a night with 16 Coaches and The Mars Hill Porch Pickers! Rock on down to the Clermont Lounge for a night with Gunpowder Gray, Six Shot Revival and the Pelvis Breastlies! Sweet Betty & the Shadows get down and dirty at Blind Willie’s! Get the blues with the Randy Chapman Trio at Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs! 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! 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! Get your boogie on at Mary’s, as the East Atlanta venue gets funky with their weekly Disco in the Village.  And it’s your last chance to catch Jim Abrams, Jerry Zucker and David Zucker’s ‘80s satire, AIRPLANE! (1980) at the Northlake Festival Movie Tavern during their Summer of Adventure series at 7:30 pm!

Friday, July 25

The Plaza Theater rocks into the space-age as screen Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi classic, 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968) during their 75th Anniversary celebration! It’s a night of jangle garage rock at The Earl with ReigningSound, Anna Kramer & the Lost Cause and Douglas’ Street Team! Get some Memphis soul at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack with the Swamp FunkQuartet! Rock out with the ‘blues woman power’ of Beverly ‘Guitar’ Watkins at Blind Willie’s! Darwin’s Burgers & Blues rocks out with The Georgia Flood! Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck gets down and dirty as his Big Dang Band with the Atlanta Horns takes over the Northside Tavern! It’s a ‘60s Brit invasion at Big Tex with The Backyard Birds! Kool Kat Jeffrey Butzer & the Bicycle Eaters deliver their “Cinematic, French chamber-pop” at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX event while mingling under the dinosaurs! 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! Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ deliver their rock-folk, jam punk at Smith’s Olde Bar! Get a taste of some Kentucky bluegrass at the Crimson Moon Café with The Kevin Prater Band! Men of Motown boogie down during their song and dance revival at The Strand Theater! Go underground and get sinister with Kool Kat VJ Anthony at his BLACK OUT: Goth & Industrial Dance Night invading Famous Pub and delivering a night of rare Goth, dark ‘80s and post punk music videos! 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, July 26

Get gory and undead at the Diesel Filling Station as they play host to Markster Con and Gorehound Production’s 5th Annual Atlanta Zombie Pub Crawl, featuring the bloodiest good time with professional zombie make-up artists [Jason Hodges], costume contests, grotesque libations and more! Or get intergalactic at The Plaza Theater for your second helping of Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi classic, 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968) during their 75th Anniversary celebration along with John Hughes’ ‘80s classic teen comedy, FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF (1986)! Or get epically historic at the Fox Theater for the Coca Cola Summer Film Festival’s screening of Victor Fleming, George Cukor and Sam Wood’s epic classic, GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)! And get funky at the Tabernacle at the FunkJazz Kafe Arts & Music Festival, featuring vendors, art, live music, food and more!

It’s a night of raucous retro rock at The Earl with the Supersuckers, Big Foot and the Night Terrors! Or stomp on down to The Star Bar for a night of old-time bluegrass punk and sassy boot-stompin’ shenanigans with I Want Whisky, City Hotel and the HotHouse Peaches! It’s a night of ‘70s-era pop and disco at Eddie’s Attic with the Susi French Connection! Get rocked, psychobilly style at the Masquerade with OpossumHoller! Groove on down to Vinyl for a night with Voodoo Visionary, The Groove Orient and Story of A Life! Or get avant-garde Zappa and Mr. Bungle funky at Elliott Street Pub with Opposite Box! Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs delivers a night of CSNY, a classic Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young cover band! Danny ‘Mudcat’ Dudeck delivers a second helping of his Big Dang Band with the Atlanta Horns at the Northside Tavern! The Johnny Scales Trio gets down and dirty at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! The Terry Flynn Band delivers a night of stompin’ Americana at Big Tex! Punk on down to WonderRoot for a night with Ganges Phalanges and Wicked Pretty! The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra presents an “Intimate Evening with Art Garfunkel” at Symphony Hall! For a night of psych-rock, make your way to the Red Light Café for Pettingzoo! House Rocker Johnson & the Shadows get the blues at Blind Willie’s! Blues on down to Darwin’s Burgers & Blues for a night with The KatieMartin Band! Escape Vehicle rocks out at The Family Dog! Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ deliver a second night of their rock-folk, jam punk at Smith’s Olde Bar in the Music Room! Or stomp on over to the Atlanta Room for a night with Buck‘O Five! Spend an evening with the greatest women in music at The Strand Theater during their song and dance revue, Diva! 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, July 27

Steve’s Live Music in Sandy Springs delivers their Gypsy Jazz Brunch offering up a plate of Hot Club jamming and Parisian Swing with Kool Kat Amy Pike and the Bonaventure Quartet from 12:30 to 3:30 pm! The Plaza Theater continues their 75th Anniversary celebration with their screenings of John Hughes’, FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF (1986) and Nicholas Ray’s, REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE (1955)! Get funky at Pallookaville during their free Sunday Night Summer Concert Series with the 4th WardAfro Klezner Orchestra! Or stomp on down to Big Tex for their Bluegrass Brunch with the Georgia Mountain String Band! Fat Back Deluxe gets the blues at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack! The Low Volts and The Western Sizzlers deliver some old-time rock at The Earl!  Get jazzy and blues it up with the Electromatics, Jon Liebman and Nick Johnson at Eddie’s Attic! The Family Dog delivers a night of Jez Graham and 3 Out of 4!  It’s a Jukebox Giants song and dance musical revue at The Strand Theater, featuring pop music through the ages, ‘50s to ‘80s! And groove on down to Terminal West for their 7th Annual Jerry Day, celebrating the tunes of Jerry Garcia, featuring David Gans with Ted Norton (The Grateful Dead Hour), Deep Blue Sun, Escape Vehicle, Electric Codpiece, Gr8fulDude & Frenz, Swami Gone Bananas, High Mountain Ramblers, The Charlie Fog Band and so much more!

Ongoing

Pallookaville delivers old-school vintage tunes during their free Sunday Night Summer Concert Series running through August 24 from 7-10pm!

The High Museum gets revved during their ‘Dream Cars; Innovative Design, Visionary Dreams’ exhibit, featuring forward-thinking auto designs from 1932 to the present, running through September 7!

Nerd Film Mafia screenings at the Diesel Fueling Station following NerdCore Trivia, every last Tuesday of the month!

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.