Texarkana Entertainment Blog

I’m sitting here on a Friday catching a small breather from the week’s stories and planning next week’s reads while listening to some Fleet Foxes, Bob Marley and Jane’s Addiction. It’s a good moment to catch up on some local live music happenings coming up for Texarkana, don’t ya think?

This weekend, perennial local faves Ms. Mac & the Groovetones are playing up at Fat Jack’s tonight and then tomorrow it’s Texas country/Red Dirt with Jeremy Phifer at Jack’s.

Catch the great Trey & Dave up there at Jack’s on Thursday night; they’re two of the best things about the regional music scene, to my ears. Tonight they’re at Lee’s Catfish. And Trey will also perform with the Droppers on July 16, a week from tomorrow, at Timothy’s Grill.

Other live acts this weekend include Tragikly White tonight at Shooters Sports Bar (for a “beach party”) and Hopkins Icehouse on Saturday with Synergistic. Then next Wednesday check out North Carolina metal band Burnstitch at The Blues Iguana.

Down the road apiece, it’s a Pocket Park show downtown on Saturday, July 16. It’s all-ages and $5 for four bands: Ballet Brutality, Beararms, Us and the Ship, Buffalo Child. Apart from Bossier/Shreverpot-based Ballet Brutality, that’s a lineup of young, Texarkana indie bands. Get out and support some local kids if you can; I’m sure they’ll appreciate the audience. Ballet Brutality describes themselves as “metal/classical/experimental,” and I’m giving their song “Mrs. Pacman’s Lobotomy” a listen right now as I type. I believe those descriptors apply indeed.

Mystery Machine plays its only summer show up at Hopkins Icehouse that same day. And White Trash Wannabees play The Wooden Indian in Atlanta, Texas, also the same day.  Then The Road Map brings Scorpion Child, Tha Mutha Load and Giganto up to the stage July 21; that should be a fierce show to rock you.

Friday, July 22, brings two different but very interesting acts to town: Oklahoma’s very own Stoney LaRue, who plays that night at Shooters Sports Bar, and, over at Fat Jack’s, Dim Lit Daylight coming in once again from Austin, Texas.

Music City Texas Theater follows up the T-Bone Walker Blues Fest with a fingerpickin’ guitar master and acclaimed acoustic country musician, Doyle Dykes, on July 23. If you’ve never heard his version of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” track it down. It’s a gem.

- Aaron Brand

Doyle Dykes plays Music City Texas Theater on July 23.

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For Richard Bowden, James Lee Reeves, and Denny Johnston, getting up there in years sure doesn’t slow down their comedic view on life. That’s probably true for many of us as we age; life has a way of getting more humorous the older we get. The three of them, each with years of experience in comedy and music, have now come together as a trio by the name of The Smoldering Embers.

They’ll perform together on Saturday, May 29, at 7:30 p.m. down at Music City Texas Theater in Linden. They like to say they “ain’t done yet.” In addition to work with Linda Ronstadt, Dan Fogelberg, Roger McGuinn, and Stevie Nicks, Bowden has displayed his playful wit in the comedy scene, most notably as part of the comedy duo Pinkard & Bowden. Johnston, a winner of Showtime’s “Big L.A. Laff-Off,” has appeared on shows like The Tonight Show, Late Night with David Letterman, Good Morning America, and Evening at the Improv. Reeves has a long history of performing at comedy clubs and Las Vegas casinos, as well as experience at the Comedy Store alongside folks like Jay Leno, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, and Letterman.

Tickets are $12 for this comedy show. You can get them by calling 903-756-9934. More info at the Music City Texas Website: Music City Texas.

- Aaron Brand

Richard Bowden, James Lee Reeves, and Denny Johnston - here pictured in this submitted photo - have formed a comedy/music trio called The Smoldering Embers.

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If you like old school cowboy music like Roy Rogers and Gene Autry—the kind of music suited to an open campfire under starlit Western skies—then you are likely a fan of Riders in the Sky, a quartet of fellas who sing about things as contemporary cowboy crooners. They’re making a return date to this area with a Saturday performance at 7:30 p.m. at Music City Texas Theater in Linden. They’ll also be working the trail on down a few more miles to Jefferson, Texas, that same day as grand marshals of the Mardi Gras Upriver parade starting at 2 p.m.

Riders in the Sky have been singing together for more than three decades and released numerous albums in that time; they have entertained young and old alike all across the country and overseas. Ranger Doug, Too Slim, Woody Paul, and Joey the Cowpolka King will sing a mix of classic Western songs plus their own material they’ve created over the years. They won a Grammy for their work on the Pixar movie “Toy Story 2.” (They sang “Woody’s Round Up.”) I had a chance to talk with Ranger Doug this morning, and I’ll have a full story in Friday’s Gazette. Tickets are $25 for this concert ($15 if you’re a kid 12 and under). Call 903-756-9934 for reservations or check out Musiccitytexas.org for more info about MCT.

- Aaron Brand

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Music City Texas experienced an unfortunate twist in events recently when Hal Ketchum had to cancel his Saturday, Jan. 23, show there at the venerable Linden venue due to circumstances beyond his control.

But that doesn’t mean there won’t be music at MCT that night. The trio Beatlegras (who play, as you’d expect by the name, tunes from The Beatles with a bluegrass bent) have stepped up to the plate, shown their goodwill, and plan to play MCT that evening. As an e-mail alert from Richard Bowden, MCT executive director, enthusiastically stated: “The show goes on!!” Beatlegras members have played a couple shows there at MCT. As well, singer-songwriter Jubal Lee Young will also play that evening. Tickets will be $20. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. with doors open at 6 p.m. Call 903-756-9934 between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays for tickets. If you had a ticket to see Hal Ketchum, you can call MCT for a full refund. More info: www.musiccitytexas.org.

- Aaron Brand

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Beatlegras

Jubal Lee Young

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After a packed house last week for Jackson Browne, there’s not much rest between big shows at Music City Texas Theater. Up next is the Bellamy Brothers, who play MCT in Linden on Dec. 19, a Saturday. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and the doors open, once again, at 6 p.m. You’d be hard-pressed to find a song with a more perfect ’70s vibe than the freewheeling “Let Your Love Flow,” a big hit back in the day for these brothers from Florida. I talked with Howard Bellamy (the older one) earlier this week while he was in Las Vegas. He and David still travel quite a bit after all these years and perform about 170 to 175 shows a year. The Bellamy Brothers have always been popular overseas as well. See Friday’s Gazette for a full story on their MCT show.

- Aaron Brand

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Friday morning I had the pleasure of chatting with Cadillac Sky fiddle player Ross Holmes before he headed into the studio. Holmes and his fellow bluegrass bandmates are based in the Dallas area, though half the band actually calls Nashville, Tenn., home, he said.. They formed in 2002 as a get-together kind of band, and after a brief hiatus they got more serious about their work, said Holmes. Since then the musically eclectic Cadillac Sky has received a bunch of praise for their unique, contemporary approach to bluegrass. “Gravity’s Our Enemy” is their latest full-length CD. Appropriately enough, they’ll come to intimate, cozy confines of Music City Texas Theater in Linden for a show on Friday, August 14. Holmes said their live shows are the “pinnacle point” of the Cadillac Sky experience. Showtime is  8 p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and general admission tickets are $15. More info on the band: CadillacSky.net. Tickets: 903-756-9934. 

- Aaron Brand

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Robert Earl Keen is making a return appearance at Music City Texas down in Linden on May 9, his last appearance at the venue being in December of ’07. Keen, a much heralded singer-songwriter who began playing guitar while an English major at Texas A&M University, reports on his Blog that a new album is in the works and will be released in the fall. Billy Bob Thornton offers some vocals on it, Keen says. As well, Keen has a book out, “The Road Goes on Forever and the Music Never Ends,” which has lyrics to some of his favorite songs and scrapbook-type items Keen has collected over the years. 

At MCT on May 9, he’ll start off at 8 p.m. Tickets: $50. Call 903-756-9934 or visit www.musiccitytexas.org for more info. You can also get tickets at the MCT box office, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday. 

- Aaron Brand

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Tickets are still available for the George Jones concert in Linden, Texas, at Music City Texas Theater. MCT should be a great venue for Jones, one of country music’s most distinctive voices. He’ll play MCT on Sunday, Nov. 30, at 6 p.m. Doors open for the concert at 4:30 p.m. Here’s Jones with one of his songs from the early ’90s: She Loved a Lot in Her Time.

More info: 903-756-9934 or www.musiccitytexas.org.

- Aaron Brand

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