Heads up kiddos!

This year’s Decatur Beer Festival tickets will go on sale Monday, September 19th at noon, according to the Fest’s Facebook page.  As you may recall, last year’s tickets sold out in 7 hours.  With the many disappointed folks who were caught off-guard by the quick sellout last year, I wouldn’t be surprised if they went even faster this year.

From the Decatur BBQ, B&B website…

Mark your calendar for August 20, 2011, and don’t miss the 11th Annual Dekalb Medical Decatur Barbeque, Blues, & Bluegrass Festival, at Harmony Park in Decatur. The gates open at 4:00pm and there will be live music until 10:00pm. Kids 10 and under admitted free. Please note that no outside coolers will be permitted on the site.

Decatur’s 11th Annual Dekalb Medical Decatur Barbeque, Blues, & Bluegrass Festival is brought to you by three non-profit groups: the Community Center of South Decatur, the Oakhurst Neighborhood Association and the Decatur Recreation Department. All proceeds of the festival will be invested directly into the Decatur community.

• When: Saturday, August 20 – 4pm-10pm
• Location: Harmony Park in Oakhurst, south of downtown Decatur [map]
• Scrumptious Food: BBQ by Community Q, Fox Brothers and Black Tie BBQ
• Cold Beer: Fat Tire Amber Ale, Mothership Organic Wit, Ranger IPA, New Belgium Seasonal

Entry Fee: 21 and Older: $10: On-Line ticket price / $15: ‘Day Of’ ticket price / 10 to 20 – $5 /Children under 10 admitted FREE!

Angie Macon writes in…

2011 Oakhurst Arts and Music Festival — Calling all Volunteers!

Come make the 14th annual Oakhurst Arts and Music Festival the best ever! You’re invited to volunteer at this great neighborhood festival for a few hours or all day — it’s up to you. This year’s festival is Saturday, October 8th. It kicks off with the 5K Fun Run at 8 a.m. followed by an exciting lineup of artists and musicians from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Volunteers are needed to set up the 5K run, help manage the parade, oversee children on the inflatables and help with the artist market. Volunteers have a great time and get an event t-shirt. To volunteer, contact Jackie Lee at oakhurstartsfestival@gmail.com or 404-371-9583.

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2011 Oakhurst Arts and Music Festival — Join the Parade!

Local residents and groups are invited to be part of this year’s Oakhurst Arts and Music Festival Parade. It’s fun and it’s free! All entries are welcome (except gasoline vehicles, sorry). Parade Marshalls this year are Louise Jackson and Mary Whitehead—long time Oakhurst residents. The new parade route is only one third of a mile and winds directly through the heart of the festival. So get creative and have fun. Your club, your team, your co-workers, fellow dog owners, skateboarders or your kids’ decorated bicycles would all be great additions. To enter yourself or your group in the Parade, contact Jackie Lee at oakhurstartsfestival@gmail.com or 404-371-9583.

We couldn’t be prouder, nor more excited than to announce that The Blind Boys of Alabama will take the stage at Presser Hall at Agnes Scott on October 22nd, as part of the Eddie & Agnes concert series.

Plain and simple–this is the kind of act for which this series was formed.

From the band’s website:

“ Celebrated by The Grammys and The National Endowment for the Arts with Lifetime Achievement Awards, inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, sung for two presidents in the White House and winners of five Grammy® Awards, they have attained the highest levels of achievement in a career that spans over 70 years and shows no signs of diminishing. Longevity and major awards aside, The Blind Boys have earned praise for their remarkable interpretations of everything from traditional gospel favorites to contemporary spiritual material by acclaimed songwriters such as Curtis Mayfield, Ben Harper, Eric Clapton, Prince and Tom Waits. Their performances have been experienced by millions on The Tonight Show, Late Night with David Letterman, the Grammy® Awards telecast, 60 Minutes, and on their own holiday PBS Special. The Blind Boys’ live shows are roof- raising musical events that appeal to audiences of all cultures, as evidenced by an international itinerary that has taken them to virtually every continent.”

Tickets available through the Eddie’s Attic website.

Karen from the Decatur Library reminds us…

The Friends of the Decatur Library will host a book sale on Saturday, September 3rd from 9:00am to 3:00pm on the front lawn, weather permitting.  Thousands of gently used books will be available for low prices.  Dealers must scan at tables.  Donations of saleable books can be brought to the library security desk until August 27 for this sale.  Proceeds support programs and materials for the Decatur Library 215 Sycamore Street, Decatur 30030.

To volunteer, contact Jane Miller at .

Heather at CSD writes in to remind us about this Sunday’s Open House at the new 5th Avenue Academy.

Here’s the invitation from Superintendent Edwards.  (Click to enlarge)

Cathy writes in…

The 7^th annual SkaterAid 2011 Skate & Music Festival will be held on 9/25/11 (Sunday) 2:00p – 7:00pm at East Decatur Station to raise funds for the Brain Tumor Foundation for Children and honor the life of Ian Wochatz.   This is the first call for volunteers.  I am looking for volunteers to help out in many areas with this great Decatur event.    We have an early shift (2p-4:30p) and a late shift (4:30p-7p), but also some earlier and later times for set-up and break-down., as well as other areas that would involve assisting in the art auction.      Please contact Cathy Keeler at for a volunteer shift.

Please visit our website:  http://www.skateraid.net  and join the SkaterAid fan page on FaceBook!

From the Decatur Minute…

The July 4th fireworks were rained out last night. We had hoped that last rain would clear out around 9:15 but instead the lightning came and we were forced to cancel the fireworks.

Our rain date is Saturday, September 24 immediately after the last Concert on the Square at dark. The concert ends at 9:30 p.m. and the fireworks will go off some time between 9:15 and 9:30. We will put out a reminder closer to the time.

Thanks for your patience and to those of you who braved the rain up until the last minute, thanks for your support!

“The Civil Wars are by far the BEST live band i have EVER seen. They are magical and stunning, they make my heart hurt but make it a bit stronger at the same time too! perfect timing! please check them out, their record is beautiful.  i’ve never been so blown away. i could go on gushing forever…”

I know, I know…that sounds like a teenage girl going over the top about some new CD. Actually, it’s a twenty-three-year-old. Named Adele.

In the past year, the Civil Wars have toured with Adele, and played A Prairie Home Companion, All Thing’s Considered and The Tonight Show, where even Steven Tyler, of all people, went kinda crazy over them. If you’ve got Steven Tyler, Adele, Taylor Swift (who has been all a-twitter about them), Paste’s Josh Jackson and Garrison Keillor all gushing about you at the same time, you’ve got to be doing something right.

All this for a act barely three years old. Live at Eddie’s Attic was their first release, a 2008 live recording from down there on N. McDonough of the second show the duo of Joy Williams and John Paul White ever played under the name “The Civil Wars,”.  It’s been downloaded over 100,000 times.

These days, when people talk about the history of Decatur music, they talk about how the Indigo Girls are from here, and how John Mayer worked the door at Eddie’s Attic, and how Sugarland formed here and how Shawn Mullins broke out of here. The Civil Wars’ 2011 Album, Barton Hollow is lining up awards, selling like crazy, and next year, everyone will be talking about Decatur’s connection to them in the same breath as those others. I’ve been proud of every act that we’ve brought to Agnes Scott under the Eddie and Agnes banner, but these guys are something very special.

What do they sound like? Alison Krauss, Hem, The Cowboy Junkies, maybe even a little Nick Drake at times. But, at heart, they are a duet, and it is the shimmering interplay between Williams and White that defines them, and it is something absolutely unique.

And no, that isn’t Johnny Depp lip syncing in the video.

The Civil Wars will play Agnes Scott’s Presser Hall on October 9, tickets on sale today.

For more,

Civil Wars website

NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert

Live at Eddie’s Attic free download

KCRW review

Yes, you can download Barton Hollow from iTunes, but I’m not going to link to it. Instead, go buy a copy from Decatur CD. It’ll sound better.

P.S.–We’ve got another great act lined up for October, for Eddie and Agnes, just need to work out ticket sales. Stay tuned…

At the last Decatur city commission meeting, City Manager Peggy Merriss quipped that unlike in year’s past, this year’s Fourth of July celebration would take place on the actual holiday.  So keep that in mind before you stake out a spot on First Christian’s lawn on Saturday night, only to find the only entertainment is watching drivers get exasperated over the painfully long light at Nelson Ferry/Northern and Ponce.

From the city’s Visit Decatur website…

Join Decatur’s July 4th Pied Piper Parade as it winds through downtown Decatur. Decorate your wagon, ride your bike, skate, or walk in this event.

The City Commissioners will lead the parade in the mini-firetruck. Neighborhoods and organizations are encouraged to make floats and join the fun.

Parade line-up is at the First Baptist Church of Decatur at 5:30 p.m. The parade begins at 6 p.m. It ends at the Community Bandstand on the square with a presentation of colors and the Star Spangled Banner.

Anyone may participate in the parade but those with vehicles must register by completing the July 4th Pied Piper Parade Guidelines form.

The concert, featuring the Callanwolde Concert Band, begins at 7 p.m. in the Community Bandstand. Fireworks begin at dark (approximately 9 p.m.) and are shot from the top of the DeKalb County parking deck.

Avondale’s July 4th plans – which includes fireworks at dusk over the lake – are detailed over on the city’s website.

After the jump, check out the details of this year’s July 4th weekend Sidewalk Sale all around the city.

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