Surfin’ in Abingdon; Farewell to Mike Seeger; A free Music Download

SURF CITY
Check the calendar. While dates on the wall say that summer isn’t officially over until late September, for those whose kids are now back to school, summer has come and gone.
So celebrate one final stab of summer with a beach music concert at Latture Field in Abingdon, Va. Starring The Collegians, The Travelers and The Catalinas, the surf-and-sand music show begins by day and concludes by night with rounds of music served on a plate of pure fun.
Take The Collegians. Their Carolina beach music style borrows from 1960s soul music via such renowned R&B labels as Stax and Chess.
Whether singing Sam and Dave’s “Soul Man” or even the Osborne Brothers’ “Rocky Top,” The Collegians have for decades honed their style to one that renders legs to rubber and butts to shaking.
So bring the will, and The Collegians and company will supply the heat.

IF YOU GO
Who: The Collegians, The Travelers and The Catalinas
When: Aug. 15, 4-10 p.m.
Where: Latture Field, Abingdon, Va.
Admission: $5 for adults, children under age 12 admitted free
Info: 1(888) 489-4224
Web: http://www.thecollegians.com
Audio: http://www.thecollegians.com/meetthe.htm

FIREHOUSE
Smokin’ hot.
For a band whose pop metal style went out of style a decade ago, Firehouse still stokes quite a fire in their engines.
See the band known for such hits as “Love of a Lifetime” on Aug. 20 in downtown Bristol during the Food City Family Race Night.
You want hot? During the past year, Firehouse has rocked stages in Spain, Italy, Greece, England and India. And now it’s on to Bristol, home of the world’s fastest half-mile racetrack.
Guess pop metal isn’t dead after all. Then again, while Firehouse maintains their pop metal backbone, as time goes by, they have sprinkled in more current rock styles.
Twenty years into their career as exhibited on their latest album, “Prime Time,” Firehouse is no rock relic. New music spikes old styles that spark quite a fury in the band appropriately named Firehouse.

IF YOU GO
What: Food City Family Race Night (1-9 p.m.)
Who: Firehouse
When: Aug. 20, 7 p.m.
Where: Leclerc Foods Stage, downtown Bristol
Admission: $5 in advance, $6 at the gate, children 12 and under admitted free (for the entire Food City Family Race night)
Info: http://www.foodcityracing.com
Web and video: http://www.firehousemusic.com
Audio: http://www.new.music.yahoo.com/firehouse/tracks/

MUSIC NOTES
—Fare thee well to Mike Seeger. The beloved folk musician, music archivist and founding member of the New Lost City Ramblers died of cancer at age 75 on Aug. 7 at his home in Lexington, Va.
Bob Dylan wrote of Seeger in his book, “Chronicles.”
“He was extraordinary, gave me an eerie feeling,” Dylan wrote. “Mike was unprecedented. He was like a duke, the knight errant. As for being a folk musician he was the supreme archetype. He could push a stake through Dracula’s black heart. He was the romantic, egalitarian and revolutionary all at once – had chivalry in his blood.”
—Happy trails to Brooks & Dunn. Known for such country hits as “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” and “My Maria,” the duo of Ronnie Dunn and Kix Brooks announced on Aug. 10 via a statement posted on their Web site that they are breaking up.
“After 20 years of making music and riding this trail together, we have agreed as a duo that it’s time to call it a day,” Brooks & Dunn said via the statement. “This ride has been everything and more than we could ever have dreamed. We owe it all to you, the fans. If you hear rumors, don’t believe them, it’s just time.”
Brooks & Dunn will release an album, “#1s…And Then Some” on Sept. 8. They will conclude as a duo with The Last Rodeo Tour next year.
—Steve Azar owns a whiplash career. For one, he veers from knee-deep blues and Music City country. For another, Azar has been signed to major record companies and notched a number of country hits, though he now records for his own label, Ride Records.
Azar’s latest album, “Slide On Over Here,” hit stores on Aug. 4. It’s the second album released on his own label, and he said by phone recently from his home in Nashville that he fully understands that challenges await him.
“We’ve got a mountain to climb,” Azar said. “But the positives are that I don’t have to get approval for a record. It’s great to just play music. Now, the records sound like we do live. I play on my records and use my band on my records.”
That’s rare. Country artists almost never use their band in the studio. Then again, Azar isn’t like most country artists. A quick spin of his new album reveals much about the man from Mississippi.
“They’ll know where I come from,” Azar said. “I come from the Delta. I’m open as a songwriter. I hope that with my album that it’s been a journey, that ‘I know who he is,’ that it’s honesty.”
Azar’s honesty carries deeper into his style, a style that’s ever changing. Today, he sings a born-in-the-blues version of country, but make no mistake. Azar is a rambling man, searching for a sound that he may never fully find.
“If we decide that we got there, then where do we go?” Azar said. “At the end of the day, no, you can’t ever get there.”
—But you can get this week’s free MP3 download. Courtesy MTV, Jessie James’ “Wanted” is available by visiting http://www.mtv.com/music/downloads where you may also download a number of other pop songs, including an acoustic version of Justin Beiber’s “One Time.”
Thus concludes this week’s Short Takes and Music Notes. Return next week for another round from the ever-revolving world of music. Meantime and by all means, stay tuned.

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