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KIX 96-FM Country Fest

This major live music event brings together some of today’s hottest national C & W acts with a few of the more notable local performers for an entire day of mainstream American music.

The show gets under way at 1 pm with a set by Savannah’s own Hazzard County Band, featuring The Courtenay Brothers, as well as other established players. Also on the bill: two young vocal prodigies.

Ciera Ouellette is a 16-year-old whose style has been likened to both Patsy Cline and Janis Joplin (whew!). This will be her last local show before relocating to Memphis. 14-year-old Morgan Grotheer, on the other hand, is a “power singer” with a modern country (read: pop) feel.

As far as headliners go – Lonestar have been on the scene for nigh on a decade and enjoy one of the most successful careers in country music today. Their hits include "My Front Porch Looking In," which was the most-played country song of 2003. Jo Dee Messina is a multi-platinum artist who’s had 8 #1 singles, and is currently enjoying huge success with her wry hit “My Give A Damn’s Busted.” But that’s not all: Mark Chesnutt plays as well, plus David Ball (in a special solo performance).

Tickets are still available for this rain-or-shine show, and kids under 6 get in free. For info, tickets and directions, call 947-9650 or go to www.kix96.com. Sat., 12 noon, Red Gate Farms.

 

Liquid Ginger

This increasingly popular regional band (their members are divided between the greater Savannah ad Atlanta areas) has released two exceptional indie albums of modern, radio-friendly pop with occasional forays into hard rock territory.

While their local shows have been rather few and far between over the past year or so, they are now taking place with greater frequency, and that can only help to shore up their loyal fanbase. For the second evening of this 2-night gig, they’ll appear alongside Lex & Terry (host of the highly-rated syndicated radio morning show which bears their name).

Events such as these always do well in the Coastal Empire, and it’s a safe bet that not only will this ben a fun and memorable gig by one of the better regional bands in recent memory, it’ll likely be packed to the gills with hard-partying types. Fri. + Sat. (w/The Lex & Terry Radio Show), The Island Grill (Pt. Wentworth).

Pat Donohue

Here’s a show that’ll probably go down as one of the more unique and enjoyable concerts of the year: a solo gig by a tremendously talented guitarist – who’s also known for his weekly role in Guy’s All-Star Shoe Band on NPR’s beloved A Prairie Home Companion.

Praised by the late Chet Atkins as “one of the greatest fingerpickers in the world,” plenty of his peers are quick to gush over his technique, such as Leo Kottke, who calls Donohue’s talent “upsetting,” and says that keeping up with Donohue haunts him. Pat’s live gigs find him blending blues, jazz, folk and storytelling into a fanciful mix that’s appropriate for both children and adults.

Throughout the course of his long and varied career (which includes workshops, master classes and symposiums), the St. Paul, Minn.-based artist has seen his original compositions recorded by such stars as Kenny Rogers and Suzy Boggus. He counts Blind Blake, Charlie Parker, Muddy Waters and Miles Davis among his main influences, but his improvisational range is often compared to that of giants like the late Wes Montgomery and Charlie Christian. For more information or to get tickets for this show, call 786-6953. Sun., 3 pm, Temple Mickve Israel.

Ira Sullivan with The Christian Tamburr Quartet

This well-known jazz trumpeter (and reedman) is versed in an unusually wide range of styles, from bop to hard bop, from post-bop to mainstream. As if that weren’t enough, he’s demonstrated his abilities in each one on the numerous albums and sessions he’s cut since he emerged on the scene in the 1950s.

He served a stint with the travelling college known as Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers in the mid-’50s, ultimately settling in Florida. He prefers to stay out of the limelight, and – as a result – is not nearly as widely known as he perhaps should be, even amongst jazzbos.

For this weekend engagement, he’ll be backed by The Christian Tamburr Quartet, another Florida-based act that has played this supper club before to enthusiastic response. Tamburr is a young and driven multi-instrumentalist who – of late – has specialized in the vibes. Many believe will soon take his place among the ranks of the finest in his field, such as Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson, and Gary Burton. he’s currently working on stage music with famed illusionists Penn & Teller... Fri. - Sat., 7:30 pm, The Jazz Corner (Hilton Head).