Slideshow-Big Lick Blues
Bellow out the blues with us at the Big Lick Blues!
Slideshow-St. Pat’s Parade
March along with us at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade!
Slideshow- Party in the Park
Dance along with us at Party in the Park!
Slideshow-Festival in the Park
Check out the sights at Festival in the Park!
Festival in the Park
March 22, 2009 by admin
Filed under Our Events
Celebrating Art, Music and Family!
Every year Festival in the Park serves as a showcase for the best, newest and brightest talent in our region – and this year is no exception.
Every year over Memorial Day weekend for four nights and three days Festival in the Park presents a broad and diverse array of talented local and regional and national musicians, dancers and other performing arts groups.
FOR MORE INFO about the festival, dates, times, activities, and applications on the festival powered by EventZone.
- Performing Arts featuring the best of regional and local talent
- Family and Children Entertainment – youth art show, climbing wall, craft activities, and each year we’ll add new and exciting shows.
- The Roanoke Star Singing Contest – were we seek to find the best local singer!
- Fine Arts and Crafts Show- sidewalk art, one of the largest shows in the SouthEast, 100 artists and artisans.
- Scholarship Contest for local young artists
- Appalachian 5K/10K Festival Race on the new Roanoke Greenway
Jim Quick and Coastline
The buzz is on about Coastline. With their legions of fans known as Coastline Crazies, the band travels all over performing more than 300 shows per year. Coastline is one of the most sought after acts on the road today – get ready Roanoke it’s “Coastline-time.”
We’ll plan on inviting Jim Quick and the boys back again in 2010 at least once, and maybe more.
Listen to the Coastlines:2009_Coastline-Medley.mp3
Watch Jim Quick & Coastline at 2008 “Party In The Park”
Band History
Mark Twain once said, “A Southerner talks music.” If this is true, Coastline speaks in volumes. An eclectic blend of soul, blues, beach and rock has produced the sound known as Coastline. From hard driving Carolina back beats, to Georgia southern rock, from Cajun inspired grooves, to Texas and Delta blues; Coastline truly defines the sound of historical Southern music. With finesse, the pure forms of southern music are transformed into a modern contemporary art form.
The inimitable vocals and humorous antics of lead singer Jim Quick are captivating and a perfect hybrid of every essence of soul. He has won more accolades than any other entertainer at the Carolina Music Awards. Guitarist, Casey Meyer is the blues boy in the band. Although the youngest member of Coastline in regard to age, Casey slides on his guitar with the confidence and grace of his many adored older mentors. His partner in crime, Albert Rogers on bass, comes to Coastline via The Band and Grayson Hugh not to mention Albert’s a great singer in his own right. The multi-talented Glen Tippett rounds out this perfect culmination of musicians. This virtuoso is a highly trained saxophonist and keyboardist and completes this unique sound of the south.
Finn’s Fury at Celtic Festival
This ain’t your grandma’s Irish music! Take a traditional Celtic sound, add rock, some blues, just a dash of punk, some major attitude, lyrical vocals and a hard wall of sound, mix in a little infinite possibility, and you get Finn’s Fury: Music that puts a twist in your kilt!. What makes this band unique is its improvising ability. Instrumental jams and a raw edge of unpredictability are a trademark.
Finn’s Fury boasts a solid and impressive group of musicians who have performed with a who’s who of national bands – including Black 47, Dropkick Murphy’s, Josh Groban, Flyleaf, Ninedays, Taking Back Sunday, and many more. Calum Pasqua, Finn’s Fury’s fiddle player, has gained a national and international fan base by winning these recent Fiddle competitions:
2008 Fiddler to the Marquis of Huntley
2007 Glenfiddich Fiddle Championship
2007 New England Regional Championship
2007 Celtic Classic Championship
Finn’s Fury Medley (mp3)
Trust us…You do NOT want to miss either of Finn’s Fury’s sets at the HomeTown Bank Celtic Festival! and the Saint Patrick’s Day Parade in Roanoke
Welcoming new volunteers
March 1, 2009 by admin
Filed under Volunteers
EventZone produces numerous events and festivals throughout the year. The successful execution of these events is dependent to a large degree on the generosity of many volunteers. These dedicated persons help us set up, pour beer, sell soft drinks, sell tickets, and many other functions and duties.
We love our volunteers, and can always use additional help. We can’t provide big compensation, but we can guarantee lot’s of fun, good fellowship, and in many cases a T-Shirt and soft drink – and always the feeling of being part of the community.
If you would like to be part of one of our events, please let us know by filling out the form below and returning to us, we’ll put your name in our data base and we’ll let you know when there is an upcoming event and what the volunteer needs are. Thanks!
The Tams Motown Music
To hear it, you might think you just stepped into Motown. To breathe it, you smell a tropical breeze. To feel it, you let the rhythm grasp your body and whirl it into motion. To see it, is like an extravaganza of light and energy. But to experience it, you must say it …. “I want THE TAMS”!!
Join us at the Star City Beach Music Festival in Elmwood Park!
The Tams have had four #1 songs at the national, and international levels, as well as one major regional hit:
- What Kind of Fool – #1 R& B / #6 Top 40 (1963) -
This was The Tams first national hit record, bringing them into the households of millions through a tremendous amount of airplay. - Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy – #26 Top 40 (1968) -
This song is The Tams’ greatest US Chart success, selling over 1,000,000 copies and becoming their only RIAA Certified Gold Record single. - Hey Girl Don’t Bother Me – Three weeks at #1 in England (1971) One of three UK chart hits for The Tams, this ABC/Dunhill records release also has the distinction of being the the #1 song of year in the UK. Walkin’ Dr. Bill – Officially recorded by “The Tams (with G.C. Cameron),” this was a duet with the former lead singer of The Spinners singing much of the lead. CHarles Pope, Lil’ Red Cottle and the rest of the Tams provided lent excellent background vocals to the song. This heavily R&B-flavored but dancable song sat at #1 for almost a month on the Rhythm-and-Beach Top 40. “Walkin’ Dr. Bill was #1 in the Summer of 2000 and won “Song of the Year” at the 2000 CAMMY Awards.
- I’ve Been Hurt – Although never on the charts, “I’ve Been Hurt” was most likely the biggest regional hit ever (based on sales and airplay) prior to 1980. To show the importance of regional sales and airplay, Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs have an RIAA Gold Record for Maurice’s song “May I” that never made the Billboard Top 100. Many radio stations and DJs consider “I’ve Been Hurt” to certainly be the biggest selling and most played Tams EVER, even though it was primarily popular in the southeast (and not recognized as a national hit by Billboard).
The Tams History: This US group was formed in 1952 in Atlanta, Georgia. The Tams were formed in Atlanta, GA in 1962. It’s members were Joseph Pope and Charles Pope (founders), Horace Key, Floyd Ashton, and Robert Lee Smith. In the beginning, they sang and danced as a way of having fun and to escape their circumstances, hoping to make at least a little money. The group began performing in local night spots for $1.25 each. These small wages only allowed for them to purchase matching Tam O’shanter hats to wear while on stage. From this trademark, the legendary Tams name was born.
The Tams hard work, patience and perseverance eventually paid off when they were signed to Arlen records and had their first Billboard hit in 1962, the single “Untie Me”, which was number 12 on the R&B chart. In 1963, ABC Records signed them and their first album produced a Top Ten hit, “What Kind of Fool”. They began playing throughout the country and a string of hits followed. These included “Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy”, “I’ve Been Hurt” and “Hey Girl”.
Since then, they have released over 15 albums and been honored with one Platinum and two Gold records. They have toured and recorded with Jimmy Buffet and performed with such greats as Gladys Knight, Jackie Wilson and many more. They have received the title “Beach Band of the Decade” and have been inducted into the Georgia Hall of Fame, the Atlanta Hall of Fame and the Beach Music Hall of Fame.
The Tams are still recording today and have recently released their latest singles “My Main Squeeze” and “This Love Will Last” from their newest CD The Tams Comin’ At Cha’.
The current members include Charles Pope, his son Li’l Redd, Robert Arnold, Reginald Preston and Greg Gallashaw. Despite the unfortunate passing of “The Legendary Joe Pope”, The Tams have continued to be as popular as ever. Forty two years after the group’s formation, Charles and Li’l Redd continue to lead The Tams toward success. Fans clamor to see Charles Pope – Living Legend, and Li’l Redd – Fastest Feet in the South! And with a new generation of “Little Tams” coming along, Charles puts it best when he says “The Tams will NEVER die” !!
What’s the Shag?
Party in the Park every Thursday night in Elmwood Park and celebrate the community. You’ll hear great music and and great dancing.
So, what is the “shag”?
The shag is a form of swing dancing that evolved from the jitterbug and jump blues of the Big Band Jazz era and originated along the strands between Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina, during the 1940s. It is most often associated with Carolina Beach Music, a genre of rhythm and blues-based songs that lend themselves to this dance form. According to Bo Bryan, a noted shag historian and resident of Beaufort County, the term was coined at Carolina Beach, North Carolina. Today, the shag is a recognized dance in national and international dance competitions held across the United States.
As one old-timer describes it, “Shag is a warm night with a cold beer and a hot date.” Even without the beer, Shag carries with it the nostalgia of cool wind and ocean waves on a warm summer’s night, hand in hand with someone you like a lot.
