Published: November 12, 2008 11:30 pm      

Howlin’ at the Moon

Hill Country Revue, Mayhem String Band and Scott Holt howl this weekend

Special to The Star



The Hill Country Revue, Mayhem String Band and Scott Holt will headline this year's Howlin' at the Moon Fest Saturday, Nov. 15, at Waverly Waters Resort in West Point.

Hill Country Revue is the North Mississippi Allstars side project featuring Allstars drummer Cody Dickinson and bassist Chris Chew as well as W.C. Handy Blues Award winner Kirk Smithhart from Memphis on guitar, Gary Burnside of the Burnside Exploration on guitar and Daniel Coburn on lead vocals.

Scott Holt has been the lead guitarist in Buddy Guy's band for nearly a decade, and is now on tour with his own all-star blues band. Since first joining forces with Buddy Guy, Holt has shared the stage with such rock and blues legends as Eric Clapton, Iggy Pop, Tony Bennett, the Rolling Stones and Carlos Santana, and he has made appearances on the Tonight Show, Conan O' Brien and Austin City Limits. He even made the cast of the film "Things to do in Denver When You're Dead."

Oxford renegade bluegrass quintet Mayhem String Band is the festival's other headliner, and the rest of the festival's roster includes Nashville's Stagolee (formerly of Starkville), Memphis blues legend Blind Mississippi Morris, Montgomery, Ala.-based Blues Old Stand, up and coming rockers Smooth from Hattiesburg (by way of Jackson) and local favorites Graball Freerun, Aunt Caroline Dye and Dovecote.

The music will get started at noon and run until 2 a.m.

SEC Football will be featured in the Wolf's Juke Pavilion, along with an art show provided by Starkville 's Cre8tive Warehouse.

Waverly Waters will be equipped exclusively with Peavey Electronics sound and engineering, and catering will be handled by 2 Brothers BBQ, Little Caesars, Lazy Magnolia Brewery, Coors Light and Northeast Mississippi Coca-Cola. Other sponsors include Cumulus Broadcasting, First Team Marketing, Mississippi Dept. of Tourism, YallSports.com, and SuperSport930.com.

Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 day of show and are on sale now at BIN 612 in Starkville, the West Point/Clay County Growth Alliance, Waverly Waters Resort, Bank First (Golden Triangle locations), Renasant Bank, Robin Hoods in West Point and the Columbus Arts Council.

Coolers will be allowed in the campgrounds for a $5 charge (but not inside the staging area), and camping is available for $5 per tent as well.

Waverly Waters Resort is a Bill Dance-designed fishing camp, hunting lodge, campgrounds, festival grounds, overnight cabins, hiking, biking and 4-Wheeler trails, and all-around multi-purpose event venue that has featured Civil War re-enactments, Howlin' Wolf Blues Festivals, fishing rodeos, celebrity fishing tournaments and hunts, corporate events, wedding receptions, birthday parties, family reunions, university events, etc.

The venue is located five miles East of Old Waverly Golf Club and one mile from Waverly Mansion on Waverly Road, Waverly Marina and the Tombigbee River. It is a short drive from the Howlin' Wolf Blues Museum, Anthony's Restaurant, the Mossy Oak Outfitters Outlet, and convenient to Columbus , Starkville, Tupelo, Macon, Okolona, Amory, Aberdeen and Tuscaloosa.

Waverly Waters also serves as the World Headquarters of 2 Brothers BBQ.

Howlin' at the Moon Fest is a Howlin' Wolf Blues Museum benefit.



Here’s the Schedule



• Noon-1:30 p.m. Dovecote (Southern Rock)

• 2 p.m.-3:30 p.m. Hill Country Revue (Hill Country Blues)

• 3:45 p.m.-5:15 p.m. Mayhem String Band (Bluegrass)

• 5:30 p.m.-6:30 p..m. Aunt Caroline Dye (Blues)

• 6:45 p.m.-7:45 p.m. Smooth (Rock/Jam)

• 8 p.m.-9 p.m. Stagolee (Folk Rock/Blues)

• 9:15 p.m.-10:30 p.m. Scott Holt Band (Blues)

• 10:45 p.m.-midnight Blues Old Stand featuring Blind Mississippi Morris (Blues)

• 12:30 a.m.-2 a.m. Graball Freerun (Rock/Blues)