It may seem like handing out a participation trophy to list every album released by local artists in 2017 at least, all that we knew about as essential for your collection, but we stand by it.

We can’t repeat this enough: You can pay $30 or $60 or $100 to see marquee names from seats closer to the rafters than the stage at places like Thompson-Boling Arena, and you will likely be entertained. But you can also pay $5, or nothing, to see any of these acts at intimate venues and have your life changed. Not every record on this list is life-changing, but the earnestness and heart and enthusiasm and love these artists put into their records, and by extension their live shows, is at the heart of a vibrant and dynamic entertainment scene.

We’ll point out that this list is not the be-all, end-all of local releases we probably missed a few, or forgot a few, or simply weren’t made aware of their existence.… READ MORE...

Early February we’ll all convene upon the Relix in Happy Holler for WayneStock 8. On Friday night I’ll be playing guitar with Brian Waldschlager, then on Saturday night I’ll be paying tribute, along with a who’s who of Knoxville musicians, to the legendary Tom Petty. Visit www.waynestock.org for the full schedule and make plans to join us.

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Happy 2018! Y’all stay warm and behave yourselves tonight.

photo by Bill Foster… READ MORE...

A busy holiday season with several upcoming shows. Sunday the 10th I’ll be doing a set at Scruffy City Hall for Scruffy City Pet Aid benefiting Young-Williams Animal Center. Make sure to check out the other concert benefiting this event on Sunday the 3rd, also at Scruffy City Hall. Then on Sunday the 17th I’ll be performing a song as part of Mike McGill’s 5th Annual Christmas Spectacular at Barley’s Taproom in the Old City benefiting Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee. On Thursday the 28th I’ll be back at Barley’s playing guitar with Mic Harrison And The High Score celebrating Mic’s birthday with two shows – first we’ll be playing the WDVX 6 O’Clock Swerve at 6:00 PM, then at 9:30 we’ll be playing a full set for the birthday shindig.

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Tomorrow night the band and I will be heading down to Blount County to play “Behind The Barn” at Barley’s in downtown Maryville. “Behind The Barn” is a free weekly concert series hosted by Jeff Barbra & Sarah Pirkle and broadcast live on i105 WFIV. If you can’t join us at Barley’s you can tune in live on your radio dial at 105.3 FM or online via streaming audio at www.myi105.com. On Friday, Mic Harrison, Josh Smith and I will be heading up to play a house concert in Richmond, Virginia, then at the Berkeley Cafe in Raleigh, North Carolina on Saturday. For more info click on over to the Shows page.

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Our good friends Tim and Susan Lee have had some rough days lately. Susan lost her father, and then Tim’s mom passed just a week later. If you know the Lee’s, then you know they’re always first responders for anyone who needs a hand, so a bunch of folks decided it was time to pay it forward and show them the love they so freely give to us. What better way then with friends and music and hot dogs? Come join us at Lost & Found Records for the Rock-n-Roll Cookout on Sunday the 17th from 1:00-9:00 PM. This is a free event, rain or shine, with hot dogs on the grill and raffle prizes all day!

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The band and I will be playing Sunday at A Benefit for Hurricane Harvey Disaster Relief at Scruffy City Hall on Market Square. A lot of great music for an even better cause. Hope you can join us!

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Kevin Abernathy is an old school rock and roller, a bar band veteran who has been plugging away for 20 years in the Knoxville, Tennessee musical landscape. Every good scene needs a guy like him: approachable, professional, and stubbornly creative. Fans might not grab every album upon release, but they know that when they do, it’ll be solid and entertaining, just like his stage show. The same can be said of his latest EP, Family Hour, the cover of which resembles a classic children’s Golden Book. It’s as straightforward and effective as that inspiration.

Opener “You Kids” touches upon a familiar—if also under-expressed—parental impulse: the impatience of waiting for the nest to empty. Afterward, “Don’t Say My Baby” is a bar-band blues brag with requisite guitar pyrotechnics, while “Beach Music” is a sweet piece of nostalgia with “na-na’s” that evoke the hard rocking of Joe Walsh in his prime. “Rock Star Dyin’ Blues” expresses the mourning-overload so many have felt over the course of the last 18 months of rock and roll losses.… READ MORE...

Here’s the link to the audio of last weeks WUOT Flipside interview with Mr. Todd Steed. Click on it and listen to us talk about Lynyrd Skynyrd for half-an-hour.

http://wuot.org/post/kevin-abernathy-rocks-home-front… READ MORE...

Some artists have the gift, that is, the ability to pluck songs out of the ethos and make them sound whole on arrival. East Tennessee’s Kevin Abernathy possesses that quality, one reason why he’s not only one of the region’s best, but also a singer/songwriter worthy of national renown.

Add to that the fact that he’s a great dad. Sure, raising a family sometimes takes second place when the demands of show biz take precedence. But the fact that he’s got three talented daughters, who themselves are making waves with their sisterly band the Pinklets, further testifies to his ability to balance the personal and the professional. Consequently, his new eight song EP, aptly titled Family Hour, finds a common bond in ways both sweet and subtle. “I’m living the dream,” he proudly proclaims on “Appearances,” a song Shawn Mullins would likely love to call his own. Elsewhere, “You Kids” speaks directly to his offspring about that inevitable day when they’ll leave home, leaving him and his wife as empty nesters.… READ MORE...