To a crowded room full of media, city officials and possibly just a few folks wanting free food and drinks, a partnership between Bikes, Blues & BBQ and the AMP was announced at George’s Majestic Lounge today. The partnership is an effort to bring in more music, introduce a new event, and to help make this the best in the bike rally’s ten-year history.
The track complex on the UA campus is no longer available for concerts due to the addition of a permanent track but Bikes, Blues & BBQ Executive Director Nelson Driver along with Arkansas Music Pavilion owner Brian Crowne saw an opportunity instead of a hurdle.
A celebration cake
“Rather than having one main act at the Randal Tyson Track Center as we have done in the past, we have teamed up with the AMP to provide two big nights of classic rock and a Saturday full of free blues music,” said Driver. “By working with the AMP music line-up, we hope to raise more money for local charities and offer people a better venue to listen to great music.”
Scheduled to play are Blackfoot and Molly Hatchet on Thursday night, followed by the Marshall Tucker Band and Oreo Experience – a tribute to Jimi Hendrix and Steve Pryor on Friday night. “And the crazy thing is, tickets are only going to be $10.00,” said Crowne. A portion of the proceeds will go to Bikes, Blues & BBQ and other local charities.
In addition to the concerts, the AMP is also hosting a full day of regional blues music and a brand new event, Bikes, Blues & Hot Rods Too, on Saturday. A car show with over $5,000 in prizes and featuring classic cars, trucks and street rods will highlight the event. Free tours of the Gibson Guitar museum bus, helicopter rides and the Vixen models will also be at the AMP. Admission is free to Saturday’s events and things will kick off at around 9am.
Mayor Jordan listens to Steve Clark
Both Mayor Lioneld Jordan and Chamber President Steve Clark were on hand to say a few words as well. “All of us who attend these events are going to have a great time, but people who don’t attend are going to benefit through the charities that are going to be supported. My hat goes off to all of these gentlemen,” said Clark.
“This is truly people helping people,” said Mayor Jordan. “Because at the end of the day, it’s going to give hope to some who don’t even think they have a prayer. I think it’s a great partnership.”
Bikes, Blues & BBQ is the largest non-profit 501(c)(3), family-friendly motorcycle rally in the country. Organizers hope that with the addition of the AMP as a destination venue, the 10th Anniversary rally will be the best yet. This year’s events are from September 23-26, 2009.
Bikes Blues and BBQ teams up with the AMP (part 1) – by Chance Chapman:
Bikes Blues and BBQ teams up with the AMP (part 2) – by Chance Chapman:
Sounds like a lot of GREAT plans are being made!! Looking forward to the Hot Rod show especially. :)
Um, are we sure that any charities benefited last year? Because I was under the impression that this wonderful event didn’t have any money to give away last time.
Actually, the biggest beneficiary of this event is probably the local ad agency which was paid more than half a million dollars from 2003-07. That’s more than the event has made in “charitable donations” since its inception. And as for some of those needy charities? A retired rich ballplayer’s charity has gotten at least $7,500. Way more than has been given to a local homeless facility. Thousands given to Fayetteville Band Boosters, athletic boosters, athletic department… but only a fraction to a Springdale single parent scholarship fund. Thousands to the WAC. Why? Do they need it? At least $10,000 to something called the Northwest Arkansas Economic Development District. Isn’t this event developing the economy? And particularly sweet is $1,000 given to the “Ozark Military Museum” and another $1,000 given to something called the “Good Time Cruises & Rollin’ Relics” of Lowell.
Really? This is your charitable giving?
Boycott this event.
Blackfoot, Molly Hatchet, and the Marshall Tucker Band: Three of the biggest names in blues. I know I’m not going to be missing this event.
you must be joking. that’s like saying bread, air supply and elvin bishop are some of the biggest names in rock.
Just remember: Just because the band’s called Blues Traveler doesn’t mean they’ll be a great draw for a “blues” festival.
It is the only time of the year when I hate to live in Fayetteville!
There is something fishy about BB&BS and all of Fayetteville should be asking A LOT more questions. They love to quote their 501-3-c status to anyone that will listen, but they are very shady whenever they are asked for someone to see their books! Most reputable charities have no problems showing folks where their donations go. In fact, most will bend over backwards to prove that they are good stewards of their funds. What does B,B& BS have to hide?
What kind of charitable organization do you know that takes out a $174,000 loan for ’08 (in February ’09), and $100,000 loan for ’07 (first part of ’08) just to be able to make their “donations”? The same “charitable” organization that suspended it’s donations after it didn’t make money last year. The organizers love to tell you how it brought in about $700,00 gross dollars last year. Do the Harley math with me. With upwards of 350,000 people leaching off our our town for the week, the cheap bastards are still only donating about 2 bucks a head!!! That’s correct, the city pays for overtime for police, fire, and street maintenance, but they still can’t seem to break even. It just makes you wonder who is running their committee, Bernie Madoff??
Here’s the article where I pulled some of these numbers. http://www.nwanews.com/adg/News/253476
My downtown neighborhood association request every year to have a meeting with the organization to layout problems, and find solutions to last years events. Meeting after meeting has been rescheduled, delayed, or flat our missed by the organization in the past couple of years. As downtown residents, this events keeps us up to two blocks away from our homes for 4 nights in a row, Wednesday through Saturday. It is like having 5 consecutive home football games in a row. No other event gets away with the BS that they do during their event, but yet this event goes on year after year with little effort.
In a year where our city budget is tight, shouldn’t the guys who ask to put on this five day circus be asked to pony up to pay for police? Shouldn’t we be encouraging everyone around that come down to our lovely little city donate more than $5 for their weeks entertainment?
I would bet that we could start a campaign to keep B,B& BS from happening by promising to match the “donations” these clowns claim to give out. It wouldn’t take much, $25 a person? Who’s in?
Every one in Fayetteville needs to be looking behind the “FUN’ event and start asking …..Where’s the Beef?
Gawd I hate BB&BS, I really hate it, I leave town every year during that awful week. I remember the brown cloud of smog over downtown last year, I couldn’t even get my bicycle across the street to get to work, your bike stinks!
“Blackfoot and Molly Hatchet on Thursday night, followed by the Marshall Tucker Band and Oreo Experience ”
Ok I might be a fuddy duddy but I have worked BF and Molly Hatchet and they both sucked ass, drew the same 20 shirt less toothless dirt bags and are NOT BLUES! As for a tribute band, …any tribute band… try some originality.
It should be called:
White Trash, Meth Mouth & Screw the City.
or Dress up and play S&M Look-a-like
@n8r0x – It sure beats a huge gathering of people with your attitude! I would definately leave town for that!
@innarested observer: Arkansawyer is being sarcastic.
Just be clear that the previous ad agency was Taylor Mack until jimbob, Inc. took over in 2008, and they are certainly not lining their pockets as they are concerned primarily the charitable aspect of the event. Make sure that if you are concerned that you understand that all information concerning BBB is FOIA, meaning you can see who gets what, including the agency.
What sarcasm, Urk? I’m serious about not missing that show–but I didn’t say I was attending.
oh, it must have been a spelling error: you obviously meant “Blackfoot, Molly Hatchet, and the Marshall Tucker Band: Three of the biggest names in booze.”
Or, perhaps you meant three of the biggest names in “blooze” that genre of music that originated in the early 90s when the reanimated corpse of Robert Johnson climbed out of his unmarked grave in the Mississippi Delta, turned Beale Street into Disneyland South, and dumped buckets and buckets of money into the pockets of beer merchants, record executives and loud fast white guitar players lacking even a tenth of the talent of Steve Pryor, before clawing off his shriveled mask of a face to reveal his true identity as Ralph Macchio, settling into a comfortable living on the festival circuit and later moving to Eureka Springs to retire.
More seriously, from the article:
“Scheduled to play are Blackfoot and Molly Hatchet on Thursday night, followed by the Marshall Tucker Band and Oreo Experience – a tribute to Jimi Hendrix and Steve Pryor on Friday night.”
-so it looks like there’s a comma or a second dash missing right? It’s the actual Steve Pryor and a tribute to Jimi Hendrix, right, not a tribute to Jimi Hendrix and Steve Pryor? Because Pryor is the real deal but I’m not certaint hat the world is ready for a Steve Pryor tribute band yet.
@dozerlapetus I have looked at the group’s IRS Form 990s for facts supporting my earlier post, which is more than our area MSM appears to have ever done. Because if they had done their homework they would also have an issue with those ridiculous attendance numbers and the hugely flawed method used to assert that 350,000 people attend. It’s actually more like the same people being counted several times over. But that would require reporting and effort, something too tiring for many area outlets.
@Urk: Yeah, I wondered about the “tribute to Jimi Hendrix and Steve Pryor”, since Steve is not (so far as I know) dead and Jimi is still much more live than most of us will ever be.
But I will say this: I bet the Marshall Tucker Band puts on a pretty good show. I’m saving my pennies for the Drive-By Truckers next week at George’s, though.
I sooooo wish I could go to that. the Truckers are such a great live band. I hope everybody is ready for 4 hours of rock and roll mayhem and great stroytelling and carousing!
You should be thankful that your city has the opportunity to benefit financially from this kind of event. Every hotel, every restaurant, every store gets business from the influx of people this event brings. You may have a few days of inconvenience due to traffic…but there certainly isn’t much of any crime related to it. I pulled up the statitics from the 2007 rally and there were only 20-something arrests…the vast majority of them locals. LOL I love Bikes Blues and BBQ…we live in Siloam Springs where there is nothing…not even a good sit down restaurant. Ugh We cant wait to come to Bikes Blues and BBQ. And those of you who are stereotyping people who show up on their bikes and leather…many of those very people are lawyers, doctors, and other upstanding citizens. Get over it…its only a few days.