Short Takes Has a Glimpse at Weekend Entertainment

CAGED CHAOS
Legs lash like whips gone wild. Feet land blows that could double an elephant.
Professional wrestling? Nope. Try Caged Chaos, which stages on Sept. 5 at Viking Hall in Bristol, Tenn.
Fueled by the Bristol-based mixed martial arts Caged Combat Productions, Caged Chaos features a bevy of brawn that do not pull any punches.
Indeed, do not mistake Caged Chaos for professional wrestling. OK, similarities include a cage in which the fighters fight, occasional bloodshed and fellows with seemingly nasty attitudes.
Differences, however, make all the difference. Caged Chaos is real. When they hit, they hit. When they hurt, they hurt. And when these guys win, lose or draw, there’s no predetermined outcome. Vicious stuff, really. For real.

IF YOU GO
What: Caged Chaos
When: Sept. 5, 7 p.m.
Where: Viking Hall, 1100 Edgemont Ave., Bristol, Tenn.
Admission: $17-$47
Info: (423) 764-0188
Web: http://www.cagedcombatproductions.com
And: http://www.myspace.com/cagedcombatproductions

GYPSY JAZZ
The acclaimed Spencer Concert Series kicks off with a show of 1930s-era jazz. But not just any jazz.
When Le Hotclub de Biglick appears at Emory & Henry College in Emory, Va., on Sept. 6, they’ll do so with a sound culled directly from late gypsy jazz guitar legend Django Reinhardt.
Intricate music. Sound with swing. That’s gypsy jazz.
Named after Reinhardt’s jam sessions le Quintette of the Hot Club, the four-man band from Roanoke, Va., features a sound from generations past. Indeed, they play a style that’s darn near extinct. They also perform in tuxedos, play electrifying jazz and entertain as few bands nowadays can.
Classify Le Hotclub de Biglick as le mighty big de treat.

IF YOU GO
Who: Le Hotclub de Biglick
When: Sept. 6, 3 p.m.
Where: Emory & Henry College, Wiley Auditorium, Emory, Va.
Admission: $10
Info: (276) 944-6846
Web: http://www.lehotclub.com

GRITS
Take four distinctly different Southern women from four different backgrounds with four stories and four different styles of songs to sing. Now that’s chaos, right?
Potentially. But it’s also the foundation of “Grits: The Musical.” Set to stage on Sept. 10 at the Niswonger Performing Arts Center in Greeneville, Tenn., the Southern fried musical offers multitudes of insights into the south and Southern women – many more than perhaps non-Southerners can imagine.
There’s humor and humility, grace and gravity, revelation and right-on character. Music taps into that of the South, too, with country, rock, jazz and blues reflective of the widespread span of generations of characters featured therein.
Based on Deborah Ford’s book “Friends are Forevah,” “Grits” connects via stories told that overflow with charm.

IF YOU GO
What: “Grits: The Musical”
When: Sept. 10, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Niswonger Performing Arts Center, 212 Tusculum Blvd., Greeneville, Tenn.
Admission: $27.50 for adults, $23.25 group rate, $10 for students
Info: (423) 638-1679
Web and video: http://www.greenevillenpac.com/shows
And: http://www.gritsthemusical.com

MUSIC NOTES
—While investigators seek answers to Michael Jackson’s death, British police are once again taking a long look into the 1969 death of Brian Jones.
The founding member of the Rolling Stones died at age 27 on July 3, 1969. Found dead in his swimming pool at his home in London, conjecture has long surrounded Jones’ death such that some have long thought his death a result of murder. Perhaps time will tell.
—The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame will welcome the late Tammy Wynette as a new inductee on Oct. 18. The late country singer and songwriter of “Stand By Your Man” will join new inductees Mark D. Sanders (“Blue Clear Sky” for George Strait, “I Hope You Dance” for Lee Ann Womack, etc.) and Kye Fleming (“I Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool” for Barbara Mandrell, etc.).
—Those long-feuding Gallagher brothers of British rock band Oasis appear to have finally resolved things – sort of. Noel Gallagher announced last week on the 15th anniversary of the band’s breakthrough that he was leaving the band.
—Meanwhile, 1980s pop star Tiffany, 37, appears ready to try her hand at a career in country music. Hey Tiffany, check out Alan Jackson’s “Gone Country” first.
—Whitney Houston heralds this week’s new album releases. With “I Look to You,” Houston returns with her first new album in nearly a decade.  Leading rock’s charge, The Black Crowes boogie along with “Before the Frost…Until the Freeze,” two albums in one. Buy the album and get “Before the Frost…” and a receive a download of “…Until the Freeze.”
—And speaking of downloads, from down a country road emerges this week’s free MP3 download. Featuring Brad Paisley and his song “Letter to Me,” the song can be downloaded from http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/family/brad-paisley-download.
Thus concludes this week’s Short Takes and Music Notes. Please do return same time, same place for next week’s installment, though meanwhile friends and neighbors please do and by all means stay tuned.

TOM NETHERLAND is a freelance writer. He can be reached at .