I believe it's a good time for a road trip.
Hit the Festival and then hang with my friend in Florida. She says that she's finding lot's of good shells, beach glass and such after the hurricane.

I'll be at Lakewood because I work shows there. usually I'm on the lawn handicapped access area on the far right as you are looking at the lawn, also known as the west side or pryor street side--I know there will be two stages but I'm not sure which bands are playing which stages, I'll try to find out before Saturday.

I'll be at Lakewood because I work shows there. usually I'm on the lawn handicapped access area on the far right as you are looking at the lawn, also known as the west side or pryor street side--I know there will be two stages but I'm not sure which bands are playing which stages, I'll try to find out before Saturday.

I've never been to this venue. Are there any insider tips for parking, entrance or . . . ?
Is it easy to lit up in this venue ?

My experience with Lakewood is that parking is not a problem. The only problem I've ever had there is the way they route some of the parking lots back out. You don't always come out the way you come in and it's easy to get turned around and end up on some shady places.

I'm happy this is at Lakewood as it is close to where I live and I'm not having to hike up to the other big amphitheater in Alpharetta. I saw so many shows at Lakewood back in the day but now-a-days there is rarely anything there I want to see.

I will be doing uber but parking is relatively easy. I've got a feeling Saturday is going to be a nice, Laid Back day of music!

I've got a feeling Saturday is going to be a nice, Laid Back day of music!

Great minds think alike

Patrick, I always enjoy running into you and Barb at local shows. I will certainly look for you Saturday. The weather is looking to be fantastic this weekend and I cant wait to see Gregg and his band. Father Time will catch up to all of us but I will roll the dice on Gregg each and every time!

Good for you guys, Enjoy!! it's going to be a great day and night of music.

don't quote me but I'm looking for blackberry smoke, mother's finest, ZZ and Gregg on the main stage, the rest on the other stage, where ever they put it. show should run until 11 pm. should be nice and warm for sure!

Hope everyone has fun. The Chicago show was really good. I enjoyed the Blackberry Smoke and Frampton sets better but I had never seen either and of course I've seen Gregg a million times. Same thing he always plays.

Still a fun time and worth going to. And Atlanta is always fun anyway.

Enjoy! 😉

Mother Nature sure dialed up a beauty of a day in Atlanta as it was nothing but blue skies on an abnormally hot October day in the ATL. It was a a good sized crowd ( 75% full would be my guess) and certainly an older crowd (counting myself as one!). The music started at 4 PM and Gregg closed out the night at 11:00 PM. Jaimoe's Band kicked off the day and I am not sure why they did not earn a spot on the Big Stage as they were one of the highlights of the day! I love this band and think they really should put more effort into taking it to another level. Mother's Finest never has been my cup of tea and I painfully sat thru their set with ear plugs in and wishing it would stop. Blackberry Smoke is really a fine band that continues to evolve and grow and they really had the crowd up and into it. I have never seen this band in an indoor venue (always at festivals) and I bet they tear it up indoors. I have seen ZZ Top several times and never really have enjoyed their shows but I felt that this was the best I have ever seen them. With that said, I am just not a fan. I spent the duration of their set laid back on a blanket, ear plugs in and snuggling with the wife. In fact security came by and inquired as to my health; informed them that it was a case of ZZ Top Doldrums :). Brother Gregg closed the night and it was a bitter sweet performance. He looked and sounded much stronger than he did at Red Rocks. With that said, he just lacked stamina as on one song he sound strong and he would sound very weak in the next one. It is very apparent that the band has slowed things downh to accommodate his limitations (kudos to Scott). I could not help but think that as much as it pained me at the time, the ABB called it quits at the perfect time. It is almost like they had a look into the future. As always, his band was incredible and the show was very enjoyable but you just have to accept the limitations that come with his age and health.

My $.02:

Great day, fun crowd, but a little hot. We had seats about 10 rows back which was great for viewing but the sound was way too bass heavy that close up. So we went back some of the time and on the lawn the sound was much cleaner.

I can’t understand why they didn’t start the festival earlier if they’re only going to give acts like Mother’s Finest and Michelle Malone 30 minutes to play. Michelle was the highlight for me – I think she had every intention not to be outplayed and if so she succeeded. It's been a long time since I've seen her and I was really impressed with her energy. She also has a great band behind her.

Blackberry Smoke and ZZ Top were a lot of fun, particularly ZZ Top who I had never seen before. I love their shtick – the way Billy and Dusty sway in unison to their music is really cool and both are such a tremendous presence. They still seem to get a lot of joy in what they’re doing and 45 years in that’s wonderful to see.

It is always a thrill for me to see Gregg but I thought this set was one of the weakest I’ve maybe ever seen. His voice was good and the band played well but some of the songs came off really tepid and out of synch. I agree with what Buzzy said, there wasn’t much fire and it seemed dialed down. I think Gregg’s show would be much better in a smaller venue, where the vibe could be more relaxed. With a big stage and audience, plus some stiff competition, the pressure is on to deliver more. From my perspective that didn’t happen.

ditto from me back on the lawn--these were pretty mellow versions of the tunes Gregg usually plays plus soulshine, which is slow enough as it is--it was good to see tommy talton sit in on one tune and billy gibbons came out for the one way out encore. got a laugh that the staff checked on buzzy, I talked to somebody before the show & she said they look around for folks who "haven't moved in a while" so I guess buzzy fell in that category! A lot of folks left after the ZZ set, it was a long afternoon, and I'm sure a lot of them didn't even know there was a second stage. I'm a huge mothers finest fan so 30 minutes from them was far from enough for me & I'm guessing they had a tough time fitting in that time period--they didn't do "baby love" which surprised me--I'm sure the sound was good and way loud down front because it sounded pretty good from the lawn which was better than usual--found myself thinking of the last beacon show and what everybody in the band has done with their time since then--oh, also got tipped off Gregg's new recording will be called "southern blood" and should pop up in January, that was news to me, maybe others already know that.

in an unrelated topic, I'm halfway through bruce springsteen's book and it's a good ride following someone from his bar shows to the big advance from the record company, etc. it's like he's taking you along with him. very enjoyable and enlightening.

[Edited on 10/31/2016 by patrickcrenshaw]

I am mostly of a mind w/ Buzzy (imagine that!), that for me Jaimoe's band was my highlight. I had never seen them and hope to again. Somebody needs to tell the guy doing band intros that it should not take 15 min though!

I had rear reserved seats and we had to retreat to the back of the lawn for Mother's Finest. The speakers that project onto the lawn were right in front of us so it was too loud (and otherwise pretty bad to boot).

First time seeing and enjoyed most of BBS. Some of it was a little too over the top guitar-godish, but any band that does Zep's Your Time is Gonna Come is ok w/ me. I have seen Charlie Starr individually in other settings and now know I prefer him that way. They sure had a lot of fans here, so they're doing something right.

I had walked out on ZZ Top a couple yrs ago when they were paired w/ Jeff Beck as their sound then was a too bass-heavy muddy mess. This time they sounded very good and I even got a kick out of their doing Tennessee Ernie Ford's 16 Tons.

I was surprised at how many were streaming out after ZZ. Gregg was certainly not 100%, but was mostly ok, and Stormy Monday was a nice semi-surprise. Very glad to see Talton on Melissa. Gregg seemed to sound stronger when he was on guitar and standing; maybe that helps to open the pipes some.

I did not expect too much from Gregg and was just glad to see him still out there and be told for the 50th time that I was in a great bunch.

City Winery NYC run of 10 shows will allow Gregg to get back in the routine of steady work . We've seen him bounce back miraculously many times over the years to just count him out as a has been. At some point early in the run Gregg will find that bounce in the step once more. I'm sure Gregg and the band are in Savannah or NYC right now rehearsing daily to make sure the City Winery run is as memorable as any Brother's Beacon run .