It has been a hot second since they've played a show together, but The Coach and Four are bringing their sophisticated indie-pop/rock sound out of hiatus for a show Friday night at the Hi-Tone. Let's hope they keep at it; I found The Coach and Four to be one of the more enjoyable bands in the Makeshift Music scene that ruled Midtown in the mid-00s. (10 p.m.; $5 cover)
Pictures from the FREEZE party a couple weeks ago at Club Shadows have been posted on the Cocks n Hens site. I stopped by after work and had an OK time. Lord T & Eloise were definitely in the house. Check out my Music Fest interview with the crunk aristocrats here.
Memphis always seems to show up on undesirable lists compiled by various magazines. Now here comes Newsweek, slapping Memphis at No. 2 on its list of America's Unhealthiest Vacation Destinations. Apparently it has something to do with our city's penchant for property crimes (No. 1 robbery rate in the country!). I think it's all part of Memphis' unique charm.
The Spring Record Swap at Shangri-La Records has been rescheduled for this coming Sunday. The previous date was rained out. Vendors will have LPs, CDs, 45s, even 78s (!), along with lots of other collectibles for sale. Set up your own table for just $10. The Trips will provide live entertainment. (1 to 5 p.m.; free admission.)
I'll be down at Tom Lee Park on Friday and Saturday for what threatens to be a stormy Beale Street Music Festival. Check out all the coverage, including interviews with bands, photos, interactive listings and -- wait for it -- a "Where's Michael Donahue" feature, at commercialappeal.com's Memphis in May site. Read here for more details on what you can expect.
Just days before her appearance at the Memphis in May Beale Street Music Festival, pop diva Fergie performs Friday night at SunFest in West Palm Beach, Fla. The Palm Beach Post has a few fun facts about the Black Eyed Pea-turned-solo star. Topics include Fergie's humps, her humps, and her lady lumps.
Fergie 101: The facts on the Black Eyed Peas singer
By LESLIE GRAY STREETER
Cox News Service
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- There’s a lot you probably know about Fergie, who headlines tonight’s SunFest festivities.
You know she’s a member of the pop-hip-hop outfit Black Eyed Peas, that she’s famous for singing about her humps and her habit of being up in the gym working on her fitness.
You probably even know that she’s engaged to the equally fetching Josh Duhamel of NBC’s “Las Vegas.”
But there’s a lot more to Miss Stacy Ann Ferguson that only die-hard fans or pop culture savants with lots of Googling time are aware of. And since we’re in at least one of those categories (ahem), we’d like to share:1. She’s got the chiseled Jessica Rabbit-esque body of a 20-something Sports Illustrated swimsuit model, but Fergie actually is 33 years old, which gives hope to all of us 30-somethings. Not hope of actually ever looking like that. But some sort of hope, anyway.
2. She’s proven F. Scott Fitzgerald wrong, having not just a second but a third act in her life. She started as Stacy Ferguson, child star of the syndicated 1980s series “Kids Incorporated,” then became Stacy Ferguson, hottie girl group singer in the threesome Wild Orchid in the 1990s.
3. She was the voice of annoying kid sister Sally Brown in two Peanuts television specials - “It’s Flashbeagle,” “Charlie Brown and Snoopy’s Getting Married, Charlie Brown.”
4. She met future fianc? Duhamel when she appeared on an episode of “Las Vegas,” proving that it’s not always a bad thing to date on the job.
5. She had a small part in the 2006 ocean liner disaster flick “Poseidon,” playing a lounge singer named Gloria. Sadly, Gloria winds up dying. But until that point, her makeup’s perfect.
6. On the recent “Idol Gives Back” telethon, she not only performed with Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart, but did a series of one-armed cartwheels and immediately continued to sing, because she’s just cool like that.
7. She’s been very up front about her struggle with crystal meth, which, she told Time magazine, was “the hardest boyfriend I ever had to break up with.”
8. Her nickname, which she shares with Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, isn’t her only royal connection - she performed at 2007’s memorial concert for Princess Diana at London’s Wembley Stadium.
9. She was only supposed to do one song, “Shut Up” (Black Eyed Peas Song) with the group for their Elephunk album, but was later invited to join as a permanent member.
10. She swears she got her ridiculously cut stomach by devotedly following the exercises in “Basic Ab Workout For Dummies.”
Incidentally, SunFest shares a bunch of acts with BSMF -- including Sheryl Crow, The Whigs, Michael Franti & Spearhead and The Black Crowes -- but adds festival favorites like Hot Tuna, Matisyahu, George Clinton and friends, The Bad Plus and Little Feat.
* To update, this weekend's Rozelle warehouse rave is still on. Check out the nifty flier ...
* Next Saturday, join Memphis music writer/comedian/man-about-town Andrew Earles as he celebrates the release of "Just Farr a Laugh," an album of prank phone calls placed by Earles and his partner Jeffrey Jensen. It's coming out Tuesday on Matador Records. For the release party, Saturday at Goner Records, Earles will perform a little monologue and play a few selections from the album. Heck, he'll even answer some questions. Learn more about the project here on the Matador site, and here on Earles' very own blog. (5:30 p.m., no cover.)
After almost five years in Peabody Place, Swig Martini Bar appears to have closed its doors. It'll be interesting to see what becomes of the prime piece of real estate it occupied.
The Swig closing follows on the news that Pat O'Brien's on Beale is in the process of foreclosure. Off hand, I figure these are both part of a natural shakeout process that takes place every few years, rather than any overall slide in business Downtown. Any Downtown regulars care to weigh in?
I've been deeply involved in this year's Beale Street Music Fest coverage, and we're working hard to get everything going for next weekend. Why, just today I was in contact with publicists for some of the acts to arrange live interviews. Go ahead and poke around last year's site to see what will be in store, and expect even more this time around (it'll be the same URL).
Drop me a word in comments if you have suggestions for Music Fest coverage. Or just comment about whom you're looking forward to seeing, or about how this is the best/worst Music Fest lineup every.
It's been a long, tough season, replete with scratches and abrasions of all manner, but now it's down to just two teams (there are only four total, but I digress): It's time for the championship bout of Memphis Roller Derby. The defending champion Angels of Death take on their archrivals, the Women of Mass Destruction, this Saturday night at the Youth Building on the Fairgrounds. This one's for all the marbles, folks! (Doors at 6 p.m., bout at 7; $10 for adults, $5 for kids, free for ages 4 and younger.)
