Weekend Picks: Richmond Jazz Festival, Watermelon Festival, George Clinton & P-Funk, The Whigs, Seaway, Boy George, Fool's Errand, Bush League, Tauk

If you are looking for good beer and a relatively early night to start your weekend, head over to Hardywood Park Craft Brewery. Tasting room opens at 4 PM and there will be food courtesty of the Olio food cart. Music starts at 6 PM with Matt Conner and continues at 7 PM with Fool's Errand (they describe themselves as "dark in nature, folk-esque, a touch jazzy and a kiss of world flair. Maybe a lick of bluegrass as well."). I've seen Fool's Errand a few times now and they're a fun band in the vein of Mumford & Sons or Avett Brothers. Oh, and it's all FREE to get in.

If you're more wino than beer guy or gal, get thee to James River Cellars Winery in Glen Allen on Friday night for blues with The Bush League. Things get under way at 6:30 PM on the patio. Food trucks Grapevine and Sideways Mobile will be there. It's $10 to get in and it will go until 9:30 PM. Bush League recently celebrated their 7th anniversary together.

At The Camel Friday night, indie rockers from Athens The Whigs, along with Glass Twin and Sideways Orange perform. The doors open at 8, it's $12 in advance and $14 at the door. The Whigs will be playing a bunch of shows with Social Distortion next month and the Whigs fall in that same vein of good hard rock n' roll with a touch of Americana to keep things honest. Here's The Whigs doing "Hit Me" in CA a few days ago:

Boy George of Culture Club fame will be at The Hat Factory Friday night doing a DJ set with Marc Vedo. This is only one of three stops they are doing in the US before it's back to Europe. Doors will open at 9 and it's $25 to get in. Boy George will be touring with Culture Club in December but if you want to see it and you aren't in the UK, you are out of luck. Here's a clip from their first comeback show in July:



The Richmond Jazz Festival is at Maymont Saturday and Sunday and features quite a lineup including Boz Scaggs, Cassandra Wilson, Boney James, Babyface Edmonds, Mary Mary, Plunky & Oneness, Cameo, Bill Frisell, Average White Band, Blind Boys of Alabama, Dianne Reeves, Christian McBride, Earl Klugh, Maceo Parker, and Fred Wesley & the New JBs. Single day tix are $75. Doors open at 11 AM each day. I don't know if Cameo is jazz but "Word Up" always kicks ass, especially with LeVar Burton:



If you are hanging in the house on Saturday, you can get your smooth rock party on with a David Gray webcast on Yahoo Screen. Click HERE to go that when it starts at 10 PM ET.

Sunday from 10 AM to 6 PM, it's the 31st annual Carytown Watermelon Fest. Lots of watermelon, a kids area, adult beverages available from the many bars in Carytown, and music. There will be 80 performers on the various stages throughout the day, but they provide neither a list of whose playing or at what times. So, it's hit or miss there.

On Sunday over at The Camel, pop punkers, or would that be punk poppers, Seaway will rock you until the end of the weekend with Stickup Kid, Candy Hearts (make sure you get in to see them), Driver Friendly, Centerfolds and Thanks. To fit all those bands in the doors will open at 6 and the show starts at 6:30. Seaway is out of Canada so of course they called their new album "Hoser" (those who remember the "Great White North" will know what they mean). Here's a 30 minute session Seaway did for Audiotree, eh.



Tuesday night at Broadberry, DJ Williams Projekt will do their jazz/funk thing with Tauk (who will be Lockn' Festival). Doors open at 8, tix are $8 in advance, $10 at the door. Here's Tauk at The Saint in Asbury Park earlier this month:


Finally, join Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk, Diaper Man, Dr. Funkenstein and the rest of the Grand Party of Funk on Wednesday night when George Clinton and P-Funk touch the Mothership down at Innsbrook. The Mothership, by the way, is now part of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Amerian Histoy & Culture to anchor their "Musical Crossroads: exhibition. Gates open at 5, show starts around 6 with opener TBA. Tickets are at the usual ridiculous Gold Circle crap prices at Innsbrook (please stop, Innnsbrook!) this time with a special Gold Circle Dance Floor Pit for $50 that, from the seating chart, appears to be the equivalent of 6 seats wide and 3 seats deep. Really? The rest of the Gold Circle seats run at $50, $40 and $30 levels with GA going for $16.50. Here's some prime P-Funk from 1976 and that's right, it's the whole damn show:



That'll do it have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

George Clinton & P-Funk, VA Beer Fest, Michael Buble, Nateva Fest webcast

Its July 4th weekend and what better way to start it then with that most American of Funk Masters, George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic.  "Free yo ass and your mind will follow".  They will be at Fridays at Sunset at Kanawha Plaza on Friday night. Tix are available at the gate for $25 (cash only).  Doors open at 6 PM.  Don't know if there is an opener as none is listed on the Fridays at Sunset site.  George has a new album out "George Clinton and his Gangsters of Love" featuring Santana, Sly Stone, Red Hot Chili Peppers, El DeBarge (remember him?), The RZA, Dhani Harrison (George Harrison's son), & members of the P-Funk All-Stars.  I'm not saying any of those people will show up but even they don't you will have a funky good time.  Here's the George Clinton classic, "Atomic Dog".  Bow-wow-wow-yippe-o-yippie-a-bow-woo-yippe-o-yippe-a!


If you are at home this weekend, be sure to check out the webcast of the Nateva Festival from Oxford Maine on iclips.net.  They haven't posted the schedule yet, but they'll be broadcasting Friday, Saturday & Sunday.  Bands at the festival include Umphrey's McGee, Jakob Dylan, moe., Jackie Greene, Drive-By Truckers, Flaming Lips, Toubab Krewe, Max Creek, George Clinton & P-Funk, Furthur, Zappa Plays Zappa, Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi. 

UPDATED: 10:21 AM - 7/2 - The webcast schedule for Friday is:

2:15 - Umphrey's McGee


3:40 - Keller Williams

4:45 - Jakob Dylan & Three Legs

5:50 - Jackie Greene

7:00 - Passion Pit

8:30 - Ghostland Observatory

10:00 - moe.


On Saturday here in Richmond, Capital Ale House will hold their 3rd Annual Virginia Beer Festival.  It will be at their Midlothian restaurant at 13831 Village Place Drive in the Midlothian Village parking lot in front of the restaurant under a 4000 sq ft tent. There will be VA beer, food and music from Slack Family Blues-12:30 to 3:30, Aces in Irons-4:00 to 7:00, Souler Coaster –7:30 to 10:30.  Entrance to the event is free. For guests over 21, beer tasting tickets are $10 and include a commemorative pint glass and 5 tasting tickets.

Canadian crooner Michael Buble will be at the Richmond Coliseum on Tuesday night.  Tix run $50 - $90 and the show starts at 8 PM.  Good seats are still available.  Here he is doing a song you may recognize and I gotta say, this version swings, daddy-o!


That's about it for this week.  Have a great 4th of July weekend!

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."



Tony Jordan

Real Life Intervenes, The Mothership Lands, Steady Rollin' and Junior Brown

Last week, I had planned on hyping the opening of the National Theater with Dark Star Orchestra, my going to the Van Halen concert in C'ville, and the Radiators at the National. Then real life intervened and threw a monkey wrench into all those plans. My five-month old son caught the flu, got dehydrated and ended up in the hospital for two days while he got IV fluids. It was frightening to say the least, as he lost 10% of his body weight and didn't look or act like himself at all. He is thankfully OK now and is back to his chubby-cheeked, happy self. Well, mostly happy, as his first tooth is coming in and that's starting to piss him off a little.

Just as I was on my way to hand my Van Halen ticket to my friend to try to sell at the show we got the word that the show had been postponed due to the freezing rain in C'ville. A valid weather excuse as I would guess at least half the crowd is coming from the Richmond, DC or western VA regions to see the show. I was quite excited as I thought I would miss VH with David Lee after waiting 25 years to see them. And I like that the show will now be in May or June as VH was always more of a summer band for me. Driving in my friend's green LTD with the windows down blasting VH 1; hanging with my friend Chris W. and listening to 1984 on his boom box as we walked the neighborhood on hot summer nights; or cruising the boardwalk in Sea Isle City with Chris G. trying to attract the ladies by playing Fair Warning (especially Unchained) over and over again (it didn't work). All great summer memories fueled by VH's rock with their California harmonies. To get a little VH fix until the show rolls around, here is the "true" story of how VH got Ted Templeman to produce their first album. This is part of my favorite video series "Yacht Rock" and this one has guest host, Drew Carey. Watch out for bad language if you're watching this at work: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGjL4hsBs3M. Van-F**kin'-Halen!

By the way, my three year old son came downstairs tonight as I was listening to VH II and, unprompted by me, started playing air guitar and said "I'm rocking out." Must be genetic.

The National had their own...ahem...weather issues and postponed their opening. I never heard of an indoor show being canceled due to rain. If they weren't ready to open, they should have just said that on their site. Anyway, they piggybacked the Dark Star Orchestra on top of the Radiators show on Monday night, pissing off DSO fans who had made plans to see them on Friday night and Radiators fans who now had their band as an opener instead of a headliner. Hopefully, things will run better at the National in the future.

Let's move onto this week's shows. This is one of the weeks where if I had no kids, some money and a job where I didn't have to be in until 10 or 11 AM, I would be out every night of the week.

We start Wednesday at Toad's Place where the Godfather of Funk, George Clinton, lands the P-Funk Mothership with doors opening at 8 PM and tickets $30. Rest up before you go. If I remember the review correctly from the first time they played at Toad's, P-Funk played for four hours straight. You'll definitely get your money's worth.

Friday night at Capital Ale House Downtown you can get your blues fix with Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin. Doors open at 9:30 and tickets are just $10. Per the Capital Ale House site: "Steady Rollin’ Bob Margolin is a Blues guitar player and vocalist, carrying on the deep Chicago Blues style and creating his original music today. From 1973-1980, Bob played guitar in the band of Chicago Blues legend Muddy Waters, touring worldwide and recording, and learning to play Muddy's powerful music directly from him. In 1980, Bob started his own band, and he's still on the road and recording. He won the W.C. Handy award for guitar in 2005, and was nominated again in 2006."

Keep the Blues thing going on Saturday night but mix in a little honky-tonk and country and you've got yourself Junior Brown. He'll be at Toad's Place, doors open at 7 PM, tix are $16 in advance, $18 day of show.

Coming next week to Toad's, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, which I hope to get to for my first show of the new year. More on that next week.

Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan