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First Friday for Folk Music to kick off its 14th year
Drew Gibson 3
Drew Gibson will perform at the First Friday for Folk Music on July 3. - photo by Photo provided

The 157th “First Friday for Folk Music,” Savannah’s monthly showcase of local and touring folk musicians, will feature Judy and Zach Williams and Drew Gibson.

The show, kicking off the 14th year of “First Fridays,” begins at 7:30 p.m. on July 3 at First Presbyterian Church, 520 Washington Ave.

Drew Gibson is one of the most talented singer-songwriters to emerge recently from Virginia. Gibson crafts heartfelt lyrics that are confessional, personal and poetic — the kind of music that makes your heart ache.

Gibson is a talented blues musician with great vocals and songs. Reminiscent of an old Grog favorite, Ben Andrews, Gibson skillfully plays Delta blues with a great hook. Gibson reaches deep into his roots as an American musician and arrives at the blues on his own terms. He is true to his musical heritage, yet constantly redefining this legacy.

Judy Williams is a well-known, long-time Savannah folk singer whose strong voice and fine guitar playing are particularly notable. She often appears with her husband, Bob Williams, as a duo called Cynergy.

Developing a love for music, voice, guitar and composition in her teenage son, Judy appears at this First Friday with Zach Williams. Zach has competed and placed in the top three of the Savannah Folk Festival's Youth Songwriting Competition on multiple occasions. This will be the first mother-son performance at First Friday and promises to be most entertaining.

“I have been singing since I was 3, and harmonizing since age 6, when I sang with my three older sisters a four-part rendition of the theme from Oklahoma and won first prize at the Howard County (Md.) Fair’s talent show,” Judy Williams said. “Since then, I took five years of piano lessons (still don't play), but when my parents bought the family a guitar for Christmas (I was 11), I fell in love.

“I taught myself how to play, and at age 13 began co-writing songs with my sister, Debbie (age 15). We recorded 10 or 11 of them after a couple of years, and then kind of went our separate ways after we graduated high school.

“I began singing with choirs, and playing with several locals in Maryland, semi-pro. I had a good job during the day in the computer industry, so I couldn't just drop it and take my music ‘on the road.’

After I moved to Savannah with my second husband (Bob) at age 35 (1986), we played music as a side business, and participated with friends in what eventually became the Savannah Folk Music Society (Bob was the only one with a computer!).

“Zach began ‘making up’ songs at age 3, played a plastic guitar to accompany himself (as well as occasional ukulele, piano, and bongos), and when he was 14 we bought him a guitar for our driving vacation out west, Judy continues. “He expressed a little interest, but the first (and only) riff I ever taught him was the intro to ‘Sweet Home Alabama.’ From there, he just took the guitar and ran. The following year, at the Festival’s

Noteworthy Art auction, a friend of ours bought a guitar signed by Charlie Daniels. We were all shocked when he came backstage after he picked up the guitar —. and gave it to Zach!

“Zach (aka: Moose, as his buddies call him) has been creating songs and backing them up on his Charlie Daniels guitar since then. We bought him a steel guitar and a slide, which he uses, again having had no instruction.

“He even occasionally changes his tunings. He has entered the Savannah Folk Music’s Youth songwriting competitions three years in a row, winning prizes at two of them. I am in awe of his self-creative abilities, and am quite proud to perform with him in this,” his  mother said.

For more information, contact Hank Weisman at 786-603 or on the web, www.savannahfolk.org.

Savannah, Richmond Hill, Tybee ready for July 4 celebrations
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The Savannah Waterfront Association will hold its annual 4th of July celebration, including fireworks, Monday on River Street from 4-10 p.m.

VIP seating for viewing fireworks will be available for active and retired military and will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Hypnotics will perform from 8-10 p.m., including a patriotic set during the fireworks to complement the show.

The fireworks sponsored at 9:30 p.m. Guests are encouraged to park off of River Street since the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department will close the street from 6 p.m.-3 a.m.

Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police are gearing up for this weekend’s July 4th and First Friday festivities; and ask the public to be mindful of traffic conditions in the Downtown area.

In anticipation of potential road delays, Metro will increase traffic and foot patrols in the Downtown festival area, starting Friday afternoon. Officers also will patrol Hutchinson Island in greater force to assist with traffic flow, prevent bottle-necking and help move motorists safely. To ensure safety and help minimize delays, motorists are asked to be vigilant, patient and co-operative.

Public parking lots on River Street will close on Monday at about 3 a.m. until early Tuesday afternoon. River Street will close to vehicular traffic Monday at 3 p.m. and will reopen early Tuesday morning.

All traffic and parking laws will be enforced on in Downtown Savannah and Hutchinson Island. Vehicles parked in the roadway, or in a manner that obstructs traffic will be towed at the owner’s expense. Please note that parking vehicles on the Truman Parkway and Talmadge Bridge also is dangerous and illegal.

Interstate 16 will be available to drivers leaving the firework show. To leave Downtown, traffic originating from points beyond Bay Street will be directed away from Martin Luther King Boulevard to other routes, such as Whitaker and West Bay streets. Westbound traffic on Bay Street will be directed to East Lathrop Avenue to access I-16 via Louisville Road.

Police recommend use of city parking garages, where drivers will be given maps for the easiest Downtown exit routes following the firework display. Motorists are encouraged to plan ahead, expect delays and heed posted signage. The key components of the traffic plan include:

Prohibiting traffic from turning southbound onto Whitaker from Bay. Westbound traffic on Bay Street will be directed to alternate routes to I-16 through East Lathrop and Louisville Road, or through Garden City.

Parking garage traffic will be routed southbound on MLK, Whitaker and Price streets.

Alternate routes to I-16 are West Gwinnett and 37th streets. Price Street also can be used to get to 37th Street, which will take traffic to westbound I-16.

Additional signage will be deployed to assist drivers in locating the alternative routes to I-16.

Traffic may be heavy along Highway 80 for those leaving Tybee Island’s fireworks display. There is a slight potential for shallow coastal flooding due to King Tides July 4.  At this time, this flooding is not expected to close Highway 80. Remember if there is shallow coastal flooding:

Traffic headed toward Wilmington Island via President Street should flow as usual.

Also please remember that the city curfew law remains in effect for this event.  All persons 16 years of age and under must be off the streets at 11 p.m. unless accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. Officers will be enforcing this ordinance.

As always you can stay up to date with the latest on the Festival, road closures and other related updates by following the Twitter feed @SCMPD, Facebook or www.scmpd.org.

Richmond Hill will host 4th of July events Saturday, starting with Star Spangled Cars and Coffee from 9-11 a.m. Car owners can bring in a car and interact with other automobile enthusiasts. Visitors can bring the family to view the cars and tour the Richmond Hill History Museum, formerly the Henry Ford Kindergarten. Admission to the event is free and coffee can be purchased for 25 cents with a $1 donation to the museum. This event will take place at the Richmond Hill History Museum located at 11460 Ford Ave. 

Fort McAllister will hold its 4th of July celebration Saturday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. with living history programs including demonstrations of Civil War drills and rifle and cannon firings. Visitors can participate in old fashioned games including sack races, an egg toss, wheel barrow races and a Civil War-era baseball game. Fresh watermelon will be available.  Admission for this event is $8 per adult (18+), $5 per Youth (6-17), under 6 are free. For more information, call (912) 727-2339.

Richmond Hill will kick off its annual Red, White, and Blue Independence Day Celebration at J. F. Gregory Park located at 521 Cedar St. For more information, visit www.richmondhill-ga.gov or call (912) 756-3345.

Tybee Island changed the date of their annual  fireworks from Sunday, July 3 to Monday, July 4. The Independence Day celebration will held be at the Tybee Island Pier and Pavilion with a fireworks extravaganza. It will be held from 9:30-10 p.m.