Afroman, famous for the hit song “Because I Got High,” has had his lawyers issue a cease-and-desist order on a performer who has been impersonating Afroman in appearances up and down the West Coast.
The good news, though, is that the real Afroman will be appearing Friday, Jan. 21, at Sticky Fingerz in the River Market district.
Afroman has gone totally online with his record label Hungry Hustler, recently releasing “4ro:20” and the “Hungry Hustlerz: Starvation is Motivation.” The latter includes live backup from 2Zigg Zaggs and DJ Mr. Mixx from 2Live Crew.
As for his battle with the California impersonator, our question for Afroman would be, “Why would someone want to impersonate you?”
One Up, from Dallas, will open the show at 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $10.
Nan Maureen, a jazz torch singer as well as a member of the Arkansas Chamber Singers, will be the featured artist for the Afterthought’s monthly Arkansas Jazz Heritage Foundation Monday Jazz Project show on Monday, Jan. 24.
The former Little Rock School District employee retired two years ago and says she’s now enjoying focusing on her singing career. Maureen has released a CD, “Love Lines,” with song samples available online at www.amazingproducts.com/ nan/maureen.
The show starts at 8 p.m., and admission is $5 at the door.
The hours at Uptown Tavern, 2602 Cantrell Road, have changed, according to management.
The club now opens at 4 p.m. and will stay open until 2 a.m. nightly as long as folks are drinking and playing pool, but will close earlier on weekdays as business slows. Also the club no longer is open for lunch on weekdays.
Saturday and Sunday hours are 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Uptown Tavern is a private club. Annual memberships are $5.
Live music is still going on at weekends, with cover band Third Degree performing Friday and Saturday, Jan. 21-22. Lucious Spiller is scheduled for happy hour (4-7 p.m.) on Thursday, Jan. 20. A spokesman said the club is negotiating with Spiller for additional dates.
After a couple of months of musical hibernation the Press Box has been gearing up for some acts in February, and the owners are seeking to bring people into its intimate juke-joint style environment.
Jess Hoggard of Jess and the Mess told us he has been touring lately with former members of the Muddy Waters Band, and he’s also in the process of recording an album with them. Jess will play the venue Friday, Feb. 4.
Jimbo Mathus and his newly renamed Knockdown South band have been booked for February as well. Most recently, Mathus and company were featured on the New Year’s Eve edition of NPR’s “Toast of the Nation.”
We spoke with Guy Malvezzi, uncle and business partner of Mathus, who told us that their retro-recording studio in Clarksdale, Miss., has changed names to Delta Recording Services Studio. Various artists have been traveling there to record with the studio’s old-school equipment, such as the RCA 44-series ribbon mics and cube amps. Elvis Costello, in fact, was so impressed by the setup that he recorded his October album “The Delivery Man,” which sired a 2005 Grammy nomination for Best Rock Album as well as Best Rock Performance By a Duo or Group with Vocal for the single “Monkey to Man.” Costello also recorded another album with Mathus, “The Clarkdale Sessions,” available appropriately enough on 10-inch vinyl.
Mathus continues to play dates with the legendary Buddy Guy, who he has toured with for years. Mathus gets guitar credits with Guy on the W.C. Handy- and Grammy-award winning album “Blues Singer,” not to mention the much acclaimed album “Sweet Tea,” which includes an appearance by Mississippian T-Model Ford.
The Mathus show on Saturday, Feb. 12, will start around 9 p.m., and the admission charge will be $5.
Who says there’s nothing going on during the week in Arkansas? Those strong on propriety and high on class may want to stay home on Wednesday, Jan. 26, but for the rest of you, a hardcore midget wrestling “Rok’um Sok’um” tour comes through Little Rock at the Electric Cowboy.
Our inquiry to Electric Cowboy management informed us that the “Bloody Midgets” show is actually a 2-to-3-hour comedy act with little people boxing and wrestling as well as audience-participation activities like a midget limbo contest and a real live little person DJ. Their web site at www.bloodymidgets.com promises the show to be “No Silence, All Violence.”
The show makes a stop at the Electric Cowboy location in Fayetteville on Tuesday, Jan. 25; the Little Rock date on Friday, and then Fort Smith on Thursday, Feb. 27.
Admission to the 9 p.m. Little Rock show is $5.
The Living Room’s basement music room is still closed for repairs after flood damage suffered a couple of months ago, but they’re moving the music upstairs to the restaurant part of the venue. Appearing this weekend are Sno-Globe on Friday, Jan. 21, and Dana Falconberry on Saturday, Jan. 22. The music starts around 10 p.m., and admission is $5.
Cornerstone Deli and Pub in North Little Rock will be hosting Pocahontas native and the jam-trumpeter El Buho and his band every Thursday at 10 p.m. The cover charge is $5.

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