Crib Notes

Thanks to everyone who played our Summer Guide Contest this year. We had 180 submissions, which if memory serves was double the total of last year’s contest. Last Friday was the deadline, and we had a flurry of last-minute entries for the drawing that was held under a pounding June sun on Monday afternoon. As you can see, it was quite a challenge for Marketing Director Shana Langfur (pictured above right and below), who had her hands full in keeping track not only of all the submissions, but also of the prize package. Before we announce the winner, let’s tell her what she won:* Two passes to see the IMAX film Ends of the Earth: From Polar Bears to Penguins, which opens Saturday, June 7, at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. (We also threw in two general-admission Fernbank passes.)
* Two tickets to the opening-night performance of Broadway Across America’s touring production of Mamma Mia!, which opens Tuesday., June 10, at the Fox Theatre.
* Two tickets good for any performance of Georgia Shakespeare’s season: As You Like It (June 11-Aug. 1), The Merchant of Venice (June 26-Aug. 2) and All’s Well That Ends Well (July 10-Aug. 3). Performances are held at the Conant Performing Arts Center. Two tickets (good for any performance).
* Two tickets to Creative Loafing’s BeerFest: Beer’lympics, on Saturday, June 14, at Woodruff Park.
* Two tickets to any remaining screening of the Coca-Cola Film Festival: Shine a Light (June 5), Horton Hears a Who! or Atonement (June 8), Casablanca (June 17), No Country for Old Men (June 18), Enchanted or Ben-Hur (July 13). Screenings at the Fox Theatre.
* Four tickets and two parking passes to the series-opening game between the Atlanta Braves and the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday, June 23, at Turner Field.
* Admission for two on the guest list for Corndogorama on June 26-29 at Lenny’s Bar.
* Two tickets to see the Dave Matthews Band on Monday, July 7, at Lakewood Amphitheatre.
* Two tickets for Cocktails in the Garden, which runs from July 10-Sept. 1 at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Also, two general-admission passes for Atlanta Botanical Garden.
* Two tickets to attend the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, which runs from June 12-15 in Manchester, Tenn.
* Two tickets to see Mark Knopfler on Tuesday, July 29, at the Delta Classic Chastain Park Amphitheater.

Shana did plenty of rummaging through the lottery bin before finally pulling out the name … BARBARA PAYNE! She found all 11 of the (oh so hard to find) clues to the best of the 111 things to do this summer. Thanks for playing, Barbara.

(Photo by Ed Adams)

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Monster Bash is like Drive-Invasion without the humidity and with more makeup. OK, it was already pretty warm on Sunday when hot-rodders, devil dolls, rock ’n’ rollers and ghouls of all ages got all tatted up at the Starlight Drive-In. The event sold out, with barely a parking spot available by mid-afternoon in which rockers and sci-fi/horror-movie fans could camp out, cook out and rock out. (”It’s like an inner-city version of a hippie fest,” said one Basher during the post-sundown viewing of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (which was followed by The Werewolf vs. Vampire Woman).

To read more and view the image gallery visit PopSmart.

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We’d like to thank the record number of readers who have entered into our Summer Guide Contest for tickets/passes to 11 of the 111 best things to do this summer. (I say record number in that, it seems like a ton more than last year, which was my first year doing this, which will then count as the entire history of CL Summer Guide contests. So there.) So consider this a final reminder of the deadline for the contest, which is today (Friday), 5 p.m. We’ll then gather up all the applicants and place them in a lottery system so complicated I probably couldn’t even explain it to people. (Although it might involve printing out the answers, wadding them up into balls of paper, and drawing from a garbage bag. We’ll see.) We’ll announce the winner on Monday, June 2, in this here PopSmart blog. Until then, if you haven’t played the game, you have about two hours left. It’s really easy: Simply visit the Summer Guide online (either by clicking here or on the Summer Guide tile on our homepage), and scan through the 111 options, looking for hyperlinks on 11 of those coolest of cool events, and then filling out the form as described. We’ll take it from there. Get crackin’.

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Georgia’s own Mighty Hannibal previewed his new song in support of Barack Obama’s presidential nomination at the Ponderosa Stomp in New Orleans earlier this month. He borrows the hook from the Winans’ song “It’s Time” (produced by Teddy Riley) and throws in his own ad-libs.

Favorite line: “I ain’t gonna study war no mo’, so John McCain got to go.”

Best known for his classic anti-Vietman song “Hymn No. 5,” Hannibal wrote it in 1966, long before anti-war sentiment had reached its peak:

And here’s footage from his performance at The Earl last year, backed by the Black Lips, who actually cleaned up for the show:

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Mainstream media’s reaction to Gnarls Barkley’s second CD, The Odd Couple, has been rather, well, odd — in a way that’s so typical of the times. Without a first single to match the hysteria of the iPod smash “Crazy” from the duo’s debut St. Elsewhere, the follow-up hasn’t garnered half as much attention — or album sales.

But Sunday’s New York Times ran a good story on the Georgia boys and their stunning sophomore release, featuring Danger Mouse’s dark, hypnotic palette of ’60s rock references and Cee-lo’s surreal songwriting.

Generation iPod might not get it yet, but history will prove that this album is actually an improvement upon the first.

Hopefully Gnarls Barkley won’t wait for the world to catch up.

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By Curt Holman

With Shine a Light opening today, I thought about doing one of those articles that listed the top five or 10 concert films ever made. Then I realized, however, that there aren’t that many examples of the genre that deserve inclusion. The best concert films ever made comprise a “Top Two” list, which seems to barely meet the definition of the word “list.” I’m open to suggestions, but as far as I’m concerned, the only great concert films are:

Find out on PopSmart.

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Creative Loafing Atlanta is looking for a visual arts writer with the knowledge, wit and point-of-view to become Atlanta’s next great arts critic.

Check out PopSmart for more info.

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Once the word gets out, T.I.’s fans will surely flock to Easter service as if it’s the Second Coming.

A federal magistrate judge ruled today that multi-platinum rapper Clifford “T.I.” Harris will be allowed to attend New Birth Missionary Baptist Church’s Easter service this Sunday, despite his ongoing house arrest status.

Harris, who still faces weapons charges after being arrested on the day of the BET Awards in Atlanta last October, will be allowed to leave his residence from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. to attend the service presided over by New Birth Bishop Eddie Long.

He will be accompanied at all times by a court-appointed monitor and one of his attorneys.

Today’s ruling proves that prosecutors may be softening their stance on the rapper. Back in November, T.I.’s lawyers rescinded their request to allow their client to host a Thanksgiving dinner at home with 95 potential guests after prosecutors accused the defendant of seeking special treatment.

New Birth, a south Dekalb County megachurch, typically holds its huge Easter service at the Georgia Dome, but it’s not clear whether or not the recent damage caused by last weekend’s tornado will prevent the congregation from doing so this year.

Wherever the service is held, it could be the first to attract ticket scalpers.

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The tornado that struck downtown Atlanta Friday night left the Tabernacle with significant roof damage and water damage inside.

The venerable concert facility owned by Live Nation has no shows scheduled until March 29. The company expects to learn the full extent of the damage on Friday.

“Structural engineers are looking at the building,” Molly Sandman, a spokeswoman for Live Nation, says. “There is damage to the roof, but we don’t know the extent of it. There’s also water damage. But we’ll get it all fixed up.”

A press release issued today by Live Nation described the damage as “significant.”

Finish reading about the Tabernacle’s damage control in the Fresh Loaf post.

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Twenty-nine years ago, Ray Charles performed “Georgia On My Mind” at the Georgia General Assembly after Georgia declared it the official state song.

Random fact: The songwriter, Stuart Gorell, wrote it to musician Hoagy Carmichael’s sister, who coincidentally happened to be named Georgia.

Years later, Atlanta rapper Ludacris used a sample of Ray Charles’ version of the song in the hook for his own song, “Georgia.”

Since you can trace both anthems back to Carmichael’s sister, does that mean she was the ultimate Georgia peach?

Thank Secretary of State Karen C. Handel for the historical tidbit.

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Illustrator Richard Krolewicz, aka boyshapedbox, has started a Flickr group devoted to famous songs rendered as charts or graphs. It’s open to the public.

The contributions are hit-and-miss, but when they hit, they’re hilarious.

For example (click to enlarge):

and

The Evita one is my new desktop.

I had some free time yesterday, so I made my own, too:

If you contribute any, let me know.

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Urban Living, CL’s monthly “Shelter from bland living” section, is back, and looking for a few cool homes. Apartments, lofts and condos are also eligible. If you live in a neighborhood where CL is available and your place is unique somehow — interesting-looking, history-filled or funky fun — leave a comment below with a description, or e-mail chante.lagon@creativeloafing.com.

Maybe your love of film noir has turned your pad into a virtual movie set. Or maybe you’ve painstakingly renovated the original 19th-century wood design. Commercial kitchen in the basement? Secret hallways? Panic rooms? That’s all cool stuff.

Once you leave a comment, we’ll follow up and ask for a photo or two. Just keep in mind that if we feature your home in Urban Living this spring, you’ll be opening up your home to CL readers … so tidy up already.

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(Photo taken from IGN.com)

Next month, Andre 3000 will issue … a new OutKast album? No, it’s another Hollywood confection. If you thought Four Brothers was frothy, check out Semi-Pro, a Will Farrell movie that parodies the American Basketball Association league of the ’70s. Andre Benjamin plays Clarence Coffee Black, a baller of Julius Erving proportions. The screenplay comes from Scot Armstrong, who wrote the popcorn classic Old School. Semi-Pro hits theaters on Feb. 29. Check out the trailer below.

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(Photo courtesy http://duetonline.net)

We’re pleased to announce more reasons for folks to come check out our annual Fiction Contest party at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 10, at Eyedrum. Not only were we blessed with a record number of submissions this year, but we’ve also got some cool sponsors (Café Intermezzo, Chattahoochee Review) and cool judges (David Fulmer, Joshilyn Jackson, Fiona Zedde).

Now we’re a bit geeked to have confirmed one of the more mood-enhancing musical acts in town in the form of Duet for Theremin and Lap Steel. Featuring Scott Burland (pictured, at right) on theremin and Frank Schultz on lap steel, this duet is often described as experimental, ambient and minimalist — their music seems to come more in surges and streaks, strains and swoops, with stops and starts thrown in for good measure. You might call it sonic! It’s intoxicating stuff that stands on its own or as a heady soundtrack behind the winning entries, which will be read by the winners at the end of the evening.

Check out this U.K. appearance …

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If you’re out and about this season and spot someone who looks like Francine Reed singing a Christmas carol by a Salvation Army bucket, it probably is Francine Reed singing a Christmas carol by a Salvation Army bucket.

“At Christmas, when I go by a Salvation Army bucket, I’ll stop and sing a few minutes,” Reed said when we checked in with the beloved jazz/blues singer the other day. “You know how everybody just walks past them, and I want to give them some attention. I was on the other side of that many years ago.”

Reed’s Christmas CD — Here Comes Frani Claus — is unfortunately out of print. But she says it’s her favorite time of year. “I love the holidays,” she says. “Smiles are what people need right now.”

Discovering Francine Reed singing a Christmas carol outside a grocery store? Yes, that’s a guaranteed smile.

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(photo © Jonathan Wenk/TWC 2007)

In this week’s issue I took a rather broad-sided look at the slew of rock-related movies that have been released in 2007, “Rocking in a hard place” — particularly the rock biopic, which seems to have been practically reinvented whether as a documentary or as a feature film.

I’d dashed off the piece for a Wednesday deadline but failed to check to see if all the movies mentioned were still in local theaters. Fortunately, all but one of the films, Kurt Cobain: About a Son, are still around, most notably the recently released Todd Haynes film I’m Not There — about Bob Dylan.

Also fortunate is the fact that our film critics have reviewed each of the movies, so I’d definitely recommend checking out Felicia Feaster’s reviews of I’m Not There and Control, as well as Curt Holman’s reviews of Across the Universe and Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten. One caveat: A quick glance at our Movie Times reveals that Across the Universe, Control and Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten are all hanging by a thread. (Both Control and Strummer have moved over to the Plaza Theatre, which for some reason does have its own kind of rock ’n’roll vibe.)

Finally, a question: What’s your favorite rock ’n’ roll movie, or rock biopic, for that matter?

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You know that saying: Have your people call my people.

Well, Regina Spektor’s people weren’t returning phone calls when our people called to set up an interview. So to make up for it, they’ve given us a couple of free passes to her Atlanta show at the Tabernacle on Thursday, Nov. 15.

The first person who hits me up at music@creativeloafing.com wins a pair of tickets to the show.

Our people will call your people. I promise.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The party’s over. We got a winner. Yay, Christa!

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Guess what’s on sale at eBay.com:

Thanks to Maurice Garland for the tip.

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Tomorrow — Saturday, Oct. 13 — the Coathangers are filming a music video at the infamous Rob’s House, and the band is inviting its fans to participate. Here’s the bulletin sent ’round on MySpace:

on Saturday October 13, we’re shooting a video for The Coathangers at Rob’s House (1318 Ormewood Avenue). we would like to invite all who would like to see a free show and be in a music video. we need folks as extras at the show so if you’re interested in acting, please contact me (www.myspace.com/robshouserecords). time for the show is 4 – 7.

this is not a real real show – its a music video shoot but its supposed to be like a house show. the director has asked for people to dress like you’re going to a show; the more over the top, the better. anyway, we’ll have a keg too so it’ll be fun – we’d love if a few folks could stick around past the 7pm time to be featured extras.

love,
Rob’s House Records

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As the music editor at Creative Loafing, I get some pretty crazy things on a regular basis. But a link to the Cover Browser: worst album covers takes the cake. Some of my favorite artists are well-represented: Millie Jackson, Black Sabbath, Roger, even Menudo!

I would indulge you with cutlines, but I think these speak volumes without my wit. Shout out to CL Senior Art Director Jason Hatcher for the link. This wouldn’t by chance be your secret source of inspiration, now would it?… I’m just sayin’.

(more…)

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