Jazz On The Square

Knoxville Marathon 2013

Posted on April 12, 2013 Written by KnoxvilleUrbanGuy 2 Comments

Knoxville Marathon Start, April 2013

It’s hard to know at the end of this week whether I should continue recounting last weekend or move the focus to the upcoming weekend. I’ll go with last weekend, but I must mention that this weekend is likely the biggest of the Dogwood Arts Festival, with the Arts and Crafts Festival on Market Square and throughout Krutch Park. The artisan works are phenomenal and the food tent, in which chefs prepare dishes with wine pairings, is one of my favorite single events of the year.

Mayor Rogero, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

American Flag on Clinch Avenue, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Arm Cyclists, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Still, I must give a nod to last weekend’s Knoxville Marathon which drew several thousand people. The race has grown to include a 5K, Half-Marathon, Marathon and Marathon Relay. Urban Son-in-Law backed off to the half-marathon this year and many Urban Friends ran various other races. I think one reason for the massive crowds last weekend was the marathon, as a number of people came in from out of town or simply stayed downtown to enjoy the other events going on.

Health and Fitness Expo, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Arm Cyclists2, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Arm Cyclists, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Arm Cyclists3, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Arm Cyclists, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

I love the fact that a fitness-based event has become so big in the city. It also works beautifully to have so many great activities downtown to greet any out-of-town visitors. There is no way someone visited the city last weekend, encountered the beautiful weather, pianos on the square, Chalk Walk, First Friday, Rhythm and Blooms and came away with anything other than a very positive impression of what is happening here. They also spent time and money in the Health and Fitness Expo on Saturday.

Knoxville Marathon Start, April 2013

Knoxville Marathon Runner, April 2013

Knoxville Marathon Start, April 2013

The starting line and staging area always attract me. Nerves jangle about at every turn, runners giddy with excitement warm up maybe a bit too much. Proud families wish their loved ones well. The mayor spoke at this year’s opening and the national anthem makes any sporting fan’s blood reach a quick boil of anticipation. Some are there to win, others to have fun and others simply to finish. Music pounds from a PA system as it will throughout the race as live bands play for the runners.

Entertainment on Market Square, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

John D. Cable and the Empty Bottle Band, Clinch and Locust, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

I photographed eventual winner Wojciech Kopec (2:22:15) as he left the start line (red jersey above, number 2), but missed him at the twenty-five mile mark. I did catch Edward Tabut passing the UT Conference Center, heading into the final stretch. He was about three minutes behind first place. He also nearly left the course by not turning onto Locust, but a policeman yelled, pointed and Edward corrected his course.

Second Place Runner (No. 4), Mile Tweny-five, Knoxville Marathon 2013

Second Place Runner (No. 4), Edward Tabut, Mile Tweny-five, Knoxville Marathon 2013

Third Place Runner, Mile Twenty-four, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Third Place Runner, Bryan Morseman, Mile Twenty-four, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Fourth Place Runner, Mile Twenty-Three, Knoxville Marathon 2013

Fourth Place Runner, Stewart Ellington, Mile Twenty-Three, Knoxville Marathon 2013

Fifth Place Runner, Mile Twenty-four, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Fifth Place Runner, Abraham Kogo, Mile Twenty-four, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

About four minutes behind him was Bryan Moresman in third and I really felt for the next two guys as I photographed them leaving Market Square. They ran within steps of each other around the twenty-four mile mark and clearly, they would battle to the finish line. In the end, while Stewart Ellington (No. 6) lead by a few yards at that point, Abraham Kogo (No. 3) would pass him in the end to win fourth place. Two seconds separated them at the finish line. You can find complete results here.

Half-Marathon Medal, Knoxville Marathon, April 2013

Others would pass through downtown on into the afternoon. In fact, Urban Son-in-Law spotted a couple going through around 4:00, well after the official times have stopped. It reminds me of Cake’s awesome song, “The Distance.” All that matters at that point is finishing. And whether anyone else knows or acknowledges the fact, you know. It has to feel good. I never made it to the complete marathon and I admire those who do.

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What’s Happening, Brother?

Posted on July 18, 2011 Written by KnoxvilleUrbanGuy 6 Comments

So much is happening that I’m going to drop a few lines to promote upcoming events. It’s something that I do from time to time, though more often I’d suggest other sources for that kind of information. This seems like a good time to make an exception because I’d hate for you to miss some of the great things happening in the near future in the city.

Bella Luna: Opening today?

Today there are two red-letter events happening on Market Square, if what I’ve heard is true. The first should happen at 11:00: Bella Luna is set to open at 15 Market Square featuring modern Italian food. I did hear this on the street and there is nothing on the website that confirms it, so show up hungry at your own peril.

Black Cadillacs at recent Sundown appearance.

The second event is definitely happening: The Black Cadillacs, one of my favorite local bands, is performing a show on the recently opened patio atop Preservation Pub. The word on the starting time for their show is “around 10:00,” and Black Jet Radio is opening. It’s one of those late-night, work-night shows that challenge all of us working people – but I’m not working Monday! Look for me at that one. This may be the waning era for seeing this band in a club.

Regular readers of this blog know that I consider jazz music to be a higher art form than pantomime wrestling. You can get your jazz fix with world-class jazz Tuesday night on Market Square. The event is free, but please come prepared to drop a few dollars in the hat (actually, it’s a vase). It’s been rumored that a certain Urban Fellow might just pass that vase under your face. You wouldn’t want to be embarrassed, would you?

The stage is set for Shakespeare on the Square

Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings starting last week and continuing through August 14, the Tennessee Stage Company presents Shakespeare on the Square. This edition includes “Othello” and “The Comedy of Errors.” The show begins each night at 7:00, weather permitting. Bring a chair and a few dollars to donate (suggested donation $5 per person).

All the vegetables are in at the Market Square Farmer’s Market!

Sunflowers are rampant right now!

Dazzling city girls making butter at the Farmer’s Market!

Of course, there’s the Farmer’s Market Wednesday and Saturday – in what has to be the peak vegetable season. I got some crazy bad bags of goodies last week. Then there’s the WDVX Blueplate Special every day at noon and the Carib Sounds Steel Band playing this Friday at Alive After Five at the Knoxville Museum of Art and it’s enough to drive a blogger right out of the bloggosphere.

Filed Under: Bella Luna, Black Cadillacs, Downtown Knoxville, Downtown Knoxville Blog, jazz on the square, Market Square Farmer's Market, Preservation Pub, Shakespeare on the Square

Who are we? Who will we become?

Posted on July 11, 2011 Written by KnoxvilleUrbanGuy 10 Comments

Those of you who read this blog regularly know I’m prone to making odd connections. Several events I’ve attended or walked past in the last few weeks merged in my mind and presented the question: Who are we? Of course, if we are a city – even a small one – the answer to that question isn’t simple. We are and should be diverse. Some of us prefer the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra while others prefer Sundown in the City. Many people love the Vols while others are simply irritated with game day traffic and don’t have any use for college football. We all, apparently, love biscuits.

So, if we are diverse and diversity is good, what is the question? What decision do we have to make? While there is little danger that the KSO or the Vols will disappear any time soon, there are other, smaller scale pursuits that will only survive if they are supported, will only grow if they are supported in a large way. Some of these caught my attention.

Linda Parson Marion reads her poetry at Union Avenue Books

I attended a poetry reading at Union Avenue Books. I mentioned it in a previous post: Linda Parsons Marion read from her book Bound. It was a great event and plans are underway to make it a monthly happening at Union Avenue books. I believe the appreciation of poetry, while always more limited in appeal, is a measure of the intellectual pulse of a culture. For a poetry reading it was well attended: around twenty people listened and a few purchased the book.

Greg Tardy takes a solo at Jazz on the Square, Knoxville, June 2011

Jazz Great Donald Brown mingles at Jazz on the Square, Knoxville

I’ve also enthusiastically supported the Jazz on the Square series. The music has been absolutely phenomenal when the weather hasn’t interfered, which has been the case a couple of nights. Isn’t jazz about as sophisticated and urban as any American music?

Lance Owens sits in with the regular band at Jazz on the Square

Knoxville Jazz Legend Lance Owens

A reliable group of about fifty to seventy-five people station themselves in front of the stage and probably some number of those dining outside at the various restaurants chose that time so they could eat and enjoy the music.

Then there is wrestling. This fine sport, some of you will remember, has been prominently featured on this blog as a part of my post on least appropriate Christmas floats. On a recent night when a decent crowd gathered at Union Avenue Books for a special event, hundreds of enthusiastic wrestling fans gathered on the square. Masks, Mohawks and mullets could be spotted throughout the crowd of mostly families. The pantomime of wrestling, which is the best it could be called, was awful. The crowd roared; hundreds of them delighting at every move.

I stayed only long enough to take the pictures and pondered as I walked home – is this who we are? More people will come to downtown for wrestling than for jazz or poetry combined? The announcer at the wrestling match even put it directly: “Forget music, we’re gonna make this a wrasslin’ town.” Is that true? Is it possible? You vote by what you support, so what do you want to see downtown, jazz, poetry or wrasslin’? It’s your choice.

Filed Under: 1 Market Square, Downtown Knoxville, Downtown Knoxville Blogs, jazz on the square, Knoxville Tennessee, Poetry, Wrestling

Posted on June 7, 2011 Written by KnoxvilleUrbanGuy Leave a Comment

Jazz on the Square, Knoxville, June 2011

Tonight: 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM (and the next three Tuesday nights)
Greg Tardy – tenor saxophone, Vance Thompson – trumpet, Keith Brown – piano, Taylor Coker – bass and Kenneth Brown – drums.

A few dozen jazz fans – can’t we do better?

It’s funny as time passes which memories stick and which memories fade. When I was a child, maybe twelve years old, my family traveled to New Orleans and, as we had many times, waited patiently in line to drop our dollar in the bucket, stand for a while then, when it was our turn, sit on wooden benches and sweat in the thick humid summer night to the sounds of the greatest jazz players in the world. Preservation Hall was long since legendary and on the best nights anything could happen.

Jamming to the jazz in style.

That particular night I looked across the pulsing room to see Stu Cook. Probably no one reading these words has a clue that he was the bass player for Credence Clearwater Revival. But I knew. They were my first rock and roll love thanks to some older friends. So, that I’d remember that isn’t a surprise, right?

The surprise is that I don’t clearly remember his companion, but many years later my mother would remind me that I told her Stu was jamming to the jazz with Janis Joplin. Now I think I remember, but do I? Meanwhile, my mother, who would have had no way to know that name if I hadn’t told her and who remembered it for thirty years to tell me the story, now can’t remember Janis Joplin, Preservation Hall or even jazz as Alzheimer’s steadily erodes all memory.

What does all this have to do with the here and now? Tonight on Market Square you have a chance to hear the best jazz Knoxville has to offer – and it’s as good as you’d find most any other place with a set of players who could hold their own on any stage. It will be hot and humid, perfect for a night of jazz, and who knows who you might see? You might watch for a woman dressed in bell-bottoms with flowers in her hair and a piece of her heart on display.

Filed Under: Downtown Knoxville, Downtown Knoxville Blogs, Janis Joplin, Jazz, jazz on the square, Knoxville Tennessee, preservation hall, stu cook

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