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Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Tabernacle To Reopen May 28
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Promoter Live Nation confirmed this afternoon that the Tabernacle will reopen May 28 with the Dream Theater (above) show. The 98-year-old Baptist church-turned-concert venue took a major hit during the March 14 tornado, including roof damage and a broken water pipe. Several shows booked at the Tabernacle were moved, rescheduled or canceled. Have you missed the Tabernacle the past couple of months? Any concerns about returning? Attend one of the relocated shows, and discover a new favorite local venue?
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Second Chastain Series Announced
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Series and mini-series tickets for the Live Nation Concert Series B go on sale this Sunday, and we have the line-up:
Lyle Lovett (above)
July 6
Tony Bennett
July 24
B.B. King & Willie Nelson
July 27
Journey
August 3
with special guests Heart & Cheap Trick
(Non Table Set-Up)
Collective Soul/Live/Blues Traveler
August 17
(Non Table Set-Up)
Backstreet Boys
August 20
Dave Stewart & His 30-Piece Rock Fabulous Orchestra
August 31
David Byrne - The Songs of Byrne & Eno
September 20
The Allman Brothers Band
October 10 & 11
(Non Table Set-Up)
Tickets for the entire series or any combination of three or more shows will be available at www.chastainseries.com or by phone, by calling Chastain Tickets at 404-233-2227.
Interesting line-up to you? Plan to attend?
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Eagles, Encore, 12,000 fans: The scene
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Eagles have been around since 1971.
Encore Park has been up and running since Saturday.
But the spankin’ new Alpharetta amphitheater turned to the well-aged rock vets Wednesday night to kick off its first rock concert of the season. The night was a dual opening: for Encore’s summer rock show season, and for the Eagles’ summer tour. Folks seemed impressed with Encore (the full name of which is Verizon Wireless Amphitheater at Encore Park), which feels like Chastain on steroids. It’s twice the size (it holds 12,000-plus to Chastain’s 6,500), and it still has that new arena smell.
The new facility got high marks from the crowd. “It’s awesome; it’s one of the best looking venues I’ve seen,” said Snellville’s Brian Warner, a student at Georgia Perimeter College. He and girlfriend Lindsey Newman sat on a plastic tarp on the large sloping rear lawn, where even the cheap seats go for $80 on this particular high-priced show.
Some folks started traditions right out of the gate. Randy and Linda Pulliam of Dacula and friends tailgated in the A parking lot, complete with covered table, lemon drop martinis, wine and a feast. Eagles songs blared from an iPod plugged into speakers in the back of their SUV.
The tailgaters caught the eye of Paul and Bowe Land of Roswell. “We saw the tailgaters and said damn, that looks like fun,” said Paul, while eating concession stand pizza from a cardboard box. “Next time we’ll get here early to try that.”
Unlike Chastain, there’s no picnicing inside. Also unlike Chastain, people seemed to be there more for the music than to chat. At Eagles prices - $190 for regular seats, $1,000 for front row through a “broker” - it pays to pay attention.
The Eagles gave value for those prices, however, playing 30 songs in a set that lasted way past three hours. About 10 of the songs were new ones from “Long Road Out of Eden,” the double CD they released last year, and the audience was respectful and sometimes even enthusiastic toward the new material.
But it was the oldies that made the venue go nuts, in a middle-aged way, from the chiming guitar intro to “Hotel California” to the old Joe Walsh material like “Life’s Been Good.” Walsh stole the show, and the others seemed happy to indulge him, from goofing with a “Helmet-Cam” pointed into the audience to tearing off amazing guitar licks. I saw Walsh and the Eagles almost 30 years ago, and while the band plays with an admirably consistent professionalism through the years, Walsh is the rock ‘n’ roll equivalent of single-malt Scotch.
The Eagles have three more shows scheduled at Encore on Friday, Saturday and next Tuesday. All are sold out, but there are tickets being offered on ebay. If your timing and luck are good you might score some without paying too much of a markup.
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A Ludacris Schedule This Week
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Some people power their way through the work week with caffeine in the morning and energy drinks midday.
For Ludacris, however, his fuel is chicken lollipops.
That’s what Atlanta’s multimedia star jokingly told us during the grand opening of his Straits restaurant in Midtown Tuesday.
One hectic day — of many — for Ludacris this week.
Monday he was welcomed back to his old high school, Banneker, where the gymnasium was renamed after him. Tonight his Ludacris Foundation is honoring NBA legend-turned-entrepreneur Earvin “Magic” Johnson, V-103’s Frank Ski and his Frank Ski Foundation as well Anheuser-Busch. And Thursday he launches wemix.com, “an online record label for the people”, as he calls it, where unsigned artists can produce and share their music, and get critiques from the three-time Grammy winner himself.
“I’m taking it all one hour at a time,” Ludacris said on the crowded red carpet alongside Straits. “I’m eating chicken lollipops baby — every five hours. So I can make sure I can get through this.”
Oh - and did we mention that all week long a trail of cameras and crew people have been following him and legendary rocker Tommy Lee as they tape “Battleground Earth”, for the Discovery Channel?
“It’s been so much fun, so good,” Ludacris said. “We’ve gone to the 9th Ward [in New Orleans] - right where the levees broke — and we built solar panels for a church. Ironically, the name of the church we gave something back to is called Battleground Church. It was crazy.
“We went to Oakland, Cal.,” he continued. “And the whole show was about recycling. So basically we went to an Oakland A’s game. And you know how people throw trash out after the baseball game? Well we got some kids and we recycled all of this trash. You know you can exchange trash for cash, right? Well we got so much cash - like thousands of dollars -that we bought all of this alternative grass for a park that was really run down. Totally redid it. We were playing football on it, and welcomed a bunch of Oakland’s inner city youth to come play. I’m loving the show ‘Battleground Earth’; and it comes on in August.”
His “Battleground” companion Lee — or as he occasionally calls him, “Toxic Tommy”— was at Straits Tuesday (both pictured above), and was surprised by the fare (which includes chicken lollipops, and Ludacris’s other personal favorites: sea bass, salmon and the roti bread).
“When [Ludacris] said it was Thai, I was like, ‘What?!’,” Lee said. “It just completely took me by surprise. I figured it would be soul food or barbecue.
“But I should have known with him, to expect the unexpected,” he added about his buddy “Luda the Polluta” (Lee’s nickname for him). “In all of hip-hop, his style and the things he says are actually like, legitimate. Because there’s a lot of like stupid [expletive] out there where it’s all about the club, and the this and the that. He’s actually saying things. Different things. I think he’s just extremely clever and I’ve been a fan of his for a long time. So to get a chance to do anything together -whether its make music or make a fun TV show —whatever, we’re having a great time.”
Joining Lee in that great time at Straits was actress Vivica A. Fox; NBA great Alonzo Mourning; former mayor Andrew Young; radio personalities Ski - with wife Tanya —and Q-100’s Bert Weiss; Sister 2 Sister magazine’s Jamie Foster Brown; 100 Black Men of Atlanta’s Thomas Dortch; Bronner Bros. executive Bernard Bronner as well as Ludacris’s mom, Roberta Shields.
Have you made it to Straits yet? (It’s actually been open to the public a couple of weeks). Interested in “Battleground Earth”? Spotted Ludacris and Lee around the city this week?
