RIGGS Reunion in Atlanta May 11th

[James]

The show is Sunday, May 11th at Smith's Olde Bar; tickets are on sale now through Ticket Alternative:

http://www.ticketalternative.com/SearchResults.aspx?sf=riggs&se=riggs

From Rock Detector:

Guitarist Jerry Riggs and frontman Jeremy Graf had met in the early 70's in their home town of Knoxville, Tennessee and had built up something of a reputation for themselves in local bars and clubs before moving to Atlanta, Georgia in 1978. Joining forces with bassist David Ridarick, drummer Stephen Roy Carlisle and vocalist Don Trane, the newly established quintet named the group RAGGEDY ANN and went so far as recording a demo tape, produced by NAZARETH's guitarist MANNY CHARLTON.

In 1979 there was a parting of the ways with frontman Trane, with Jerry Riggs taking over vocal duites. More demos were recorded and this time they struck a chord at Full Moon Records, a subsidiary of WEA. RIGGS' debut album was promptly co-produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Andy Johns. The band were featured on the soundtrack album to the animated movie 'Heavy Metal', but would soon drop off the edge of the world into obscurity, with Riggs joining PAT TRAVERS' touring band following RIGGS' demise.

 

[Rider of Theli]

wow... I was just thinking about these guys again the other day for the first time in years. I've never had the opportunity to see them live on stage.

 

[James]

wow... I was just thinking about these guys again the other day for the first time in years. I've never had the opportunity to see them live on stage.

I only saw them once; Jerry had put together a new lineup (sometime probably around '94 or so), and they played at Charley Magruder's. Jeremy, Dave, and Stephen got up to do the encores; if I remember correctly, they did three tunes ("Ready or Not", plus a couple of other tunes...I don't remember which ones). This will be my first time seeing the original lineup for a full set. Kathy saw them many times back when they were originally together; we're both pretty stoked about this one!

 

[Magius]

Heh. I bought that album in Japan.

 

[Kathy]

My old buds from the `80s!!!!!!!! This will be an awesome reunion for me to see my old friends and my favorite local band from that era!! (okay.. aside from my buds the GA Satellites and Swinging Richards, but I'm pretty sure they don't read this forum anyway) Can't wait!

 

[Pellaz]

wow... I was just thinking about these guys again the other day for the first time in years. I've never had the opportunity to see them live on stage.

I was thinking of them recently too, as I was playing the Heavy Metal soundtrack.

I had no idea they were an Atlanta band, either. (!)

 

[Kathy]

I was thinking of them recently too, as I was playing the Heavy Metal soundtrack.

I had no idea they were an Atlanta band, either. (!)

You must not have lived here during the C.W. Shaws days and Uncle Tom's Cabin????

 

[Pellaz]

You must not have lived here during the C.W. Shaws days and Uncle Tom's Cabin????

Mmmm, we moved here in 1978, I think. I didn't see too many shows locally until later, though.

 

[Kathy]

Mmmm, we moved here in 1978, I think. I didn't see too many shows locally until later, though.

You were definitely here then for the Raggedy Ann and Riggs days..... Just not hanging back then I guess, eh????

 

[Burke]

RADAR RIDER FTW!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Pellaz]

You were definitely here then for the Raggedy Ann and Riggs days..... Just not hanging back then I guess, eh????

Maybe not. I think I had my big 'musical awakening' at LaserDrive at Fernbank Planetarium one of those years......one of those near-religious experiences (Rush, Pink Floyd, Billy Thorpe) that changes one's life forever.

RADAR RIDER FTW!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, hell yeah!

 

[Kathy]

READY OR NOT!!!!!


[ame]http://youtube.com/watch?v=tPgj8LD_uA8[/ame]

Jerry Riggs with Pat Traverse, 1993

Oh, yeah! This reunion is going to kick ass!!!!!

 

[James]

Here's the contents of an e-mail sent out by bassist Dave Ridarick:


RIGGS - READY OR NOT!!!!!!!

Greetings Friends! No... you are not seeing things. RIGGS is coming to Atlanta to celebrate the life of our awesome friend MARSHALL DOWNING!!! And we want YOU to be a part of this event.

RIGGS rocked Atlanta in the early 80's with our first release on the Heavy Metal Movie Soundtrack. Followed up with a solo album and a couple more tunes in the movie Night Shift, a national tour with Rush, and opening shows for too many bands to list here... RIGGS had the most fun playing for our friends in Atlanta. We are back for one night... Jerry Riggs, Jeremy Graf, Steven Roy Carlisle, and Dave Ridarick (me.. haha). We are here to celebrate with our best friend Marshall. He is battling with his health and this benefit is for him. He worked as a guitar manager with Riggs and not only has been a great friend to all of us, he has been my best friend for over 40 years! If you can't see a man's character... look at his friends! Marshall makes me look great!

This event is going to take place at Smith's Olde Bar in Midtown near Ansley Mall. It is on Sunday, May 11th (I know... Mother's Day) and the doors open at 7:00 PM with music starting at 8:00. There will be a $15 entry and all money goes to Marshall for medical expenses. After a couple of RIGGS sets, we are working on getting a jam together with a load of special guests and players. Due to the smaller size of the venue, I would highly recommend that you get there right when the doors open. We have not played together for 25 years and a lot of people will crawl out of the woodwork for this.

This is an awesome chance to show Marshall some love! He has some pretty big medical bills above and beyond his insurance. If anyone is interested in making a donation above and beyond the cover, you can do it there, or there is a donation account set up with Wachovia Bank... any one of them will do. It is called the Marshall Downing Fund, but it is under my name (David Ridarick).

I don't think this will happen again....

Dave Ridarick


As Dave says above, a lot of people will come out of the woodwork for this show (and, it looks like this will be our one and only chance to see these guys), so if you plan on going, I would highly recommend purchasing tickets in advance through the Ticket Alternative link in my original post. Hope to see some of you there

 

[Kathy]

So.... any old school Atlantians going to the show this Sunday? Gonna be a lot of other people there jamming after the RIGGS set....

 

[Rider of Theli]

we're not gonna make it after all. *sigh* ...stupid Mother's Day.

 

[J-Dubya 777]

I'd love to see this...
I really enjoyed Jerry's time in the PTB...

 

[Pellaz]

Can't, as I'll be working at RennFaire, and then obligated for the usual post-Faire "takeover of the restaurant" afterward.

 

[Rock6X]

I can't believe I missed this. Just recently bought some software to convert some old vinyl to digital, and the Riggs album was one of the first on my list. So, I did a search on the Internet while I was ripping the album, and this thread pops up. About a week too late! Grrrrrrrr...

Anyway, I joined up here just to see what's happening. Good to see at least a few fans remember them and enjoyed their tunes as much as I did. I never got to see them live. Someone turned me on to the record, probably after they had already split. But it's remained one of my all time faves.

Btw, I can see from this forum, I'll probably be hanging out in "Old School" a lot. LOL!

 

[Rock6X]

So.... any old school Atlantians going to the show this Sunday? Gonna be a lot of other people there jamming after the RIGGS set....

Wish I coulda been there. Thanks for the YouTube video. May be as close as I ever get to seeing Ready Or Not live!

 

[Kathy]

Wish I coulda been there. Thanks for the YouTube video. May be as close as I ever get to seeing Ready Or Not live!

Sorry you missed it. It was a great show and tons of fun seeing the old crew from way back when...Glad I could bring it to you through youtube!!! I posted a few others from that night as well.

[ame]http://youtube.com/watch?v=2EbBGMlpHOo[/ame]