Southern Literature Converges in the City
Last year I wrote a piece about my friend Flossie McNabb at Union Avenue Books. I told, among other stories, the story of how she and I met sometime back in the 1990s at Davis Kidd...
Culture
Armstrong/Strong Alley Update: New Art
It’s been a long time since I wrote about the Artist Alley Revamp Project. For the back stories, which started nearly two years ago, start here, go here, here, here and here. It’s been almost exactly a year since I checked...
Written in Stone: Inscriptions on Market Square
Recently a friend asked about the inscriptions written in granite on Market Square. She’d looked at them and found them wanting. Focusing on the three primary, and larger, quotes on the square she noted that they...
Five Plus Six Jazz Ensemble
Knoxville is a jazz-rich city. It shouldn’t logically have a jazz scene at all. As an Appalachian city our heritage runs in other directions from old time to bluegrass, from a bit of blues to country,...
Art That Captures the Senses
I enjoyed the art last Friday and the small crowds I mentioned earlier made it possible to actually enjoy it up close. I’m afraid First Fridays aren’t usually the best viewing times for the various exhibitions,...
Scott Miller Highlights Final Tennessee Shines for the Season
It’s one of the best musical series going in a city that has many excellent musical series ranging from daily to weekly, monthly and annually. Tennessee Shines in its first incarnation offered a monthly show in...
Exactly Where is Parkridge and What is Happening There?
The title alone is a confession of my ignorance. I’d heard “Parkridge” mentioned in the same breath as “Old North” and “Fourth and Gill,” so I knew it was one of the “ring” neighborhoods around downtown....
“Princess Cut” Forces a Painful Conversation
Our culture’s willingness to talk about anything no matter how personal at anytime seems to expand with every Cialis commercial. It’s as if any topic is an acceptable topic no matter where or in what company...
Knoxville’s Tenth Annual Bob Dylan Birthday Bash
In a way it seems it has been around forever, but for the last ten years, in one form or another, a celebration has been held to honor the birthday of Bob Dylan who turned 73...
Steampunk Carnivale Just Gets Better in Second Year
It’s as urban as anything gets. So urban it’s dystopian: steam, gears, corsets, vintage hats, goggles and other elements collide with everything gadgets to make a futuristic and, yet, retro world that’s both fun to visit...