June 09, 2009 Adam Sherwood

    Audiophiles itching to experience the latest and greatest music festival, whether it is some iteration of the alternative focused Lalapalooza or the head-banging metal steamroller that is Gigantour, they will have to plunk down some pretty hefty cash.
    Not to mention the travel time or shelling out hard earned cash for insanely overpriced food with no taste.
    Oh, and let’s not forget suffering under the sweltering summer heat. It’s hard to enjoy outdoor music when the sun is burning your skin off.
    Ten dollars for a bottle of water? No thanks!
    However, if you want to go to a music festival and don’t have the patience, time, or money, Statesboro has the perfect compromise.
    The French Quarter Café will be hosting the First Annual Summer Jam on July 18th. Greg Kearney, a Statesboro native and member of the band Tent City, wanted to do something different for his birthday – a blowout that would be something to remember.
    “What better way to celebrate than to be in [my] hometown, surrounded by close friends and family, playing music with some of Athens best bands?” Kearney said.
    After a conversation with Brent at The French Quarter Café Summer Jam was born. The Festival will start at 8 p.m. and will end, in Kearney’s words, “Whenever they kick us off the stage.”
    All three of the bands are from the Athens area.
    Betsy Franck & Bare Knuckle band are a country/blues based rock band featuring the soulful vocals of Betsy Franck. Their seven-song album, Held Up By Progress, has received positive reviews locally. They’ve played in several places in South Georgia, including House of Blues in Myrtle Beach. You can familiarize yourself with Betsy Franck and her band both at their MySpace page and their official website, bareknuckleband.net.
    Sheddfest veterans Jazz Chronic will also be playing their brand of progressive jazz.
    While “Sneaky Pete” and “Shotgun Wedding” – songs on the band’s MySpace – may remind some of an instrumental Dave Matthews Band with perhaps a bit of Spin Doctors thrown in, other tracks like “Share the Wealth” are bizarre jazz tunes that are nigh impossible to classify but are infectious nonetheless.
    It’s serious music by some seriously talented musicians. Check them out at myspace.com/jazzchronic.
    Kearney’s own band Tent City will also be playing at the show. The band has been described as a combination of jazz, blues, and world music with some cover songs sprinkled in for good measure.
    They are currently recording in the studio and Kearney hopes to have samples up on their MySpace, myspace.com/tentcityband, in a week or so – plenty of time to check out the band before the show.
    The best news of all is that seeing this cadre of fantastic musicians in action will only set you back a paltry $6.
    Not to worry if get hungry as the night progresses because French Quarter’s familiar menu will be available. However, the cost of food is not included in the admission price, so remember to bring some extra food money!
    One could argue that the First Annual Summer Jam is actually better than this summer’s festival offerings. It’s local, the bands are awesome, and the food is affordable and excellent.

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