Mac Davis & The Zots at Misty Waters

Is the above photo that of the famous Misty Waters, the venue that gave Mac Davis and the Zots their start ?

No, the photo above is of the venue where an 11-year old named Gram Connor walked backstage to the dressing room to talk with the singer who was performing that night. It was 1957 and the singer, Elvis Presley was just beginning to make his mark. Some time later Gram Connor became Gram Parsons .

However, we would love to have a photo of Misty Waters which was located on Candler Road in Atlanta, Georgia. If you read this and know someone who might have one, forward it on.



Greg


Pat Hughes made all of the arrangements for recording "The Little Black Egg". He also made the arrangements for the Yardbird gigs and recording at American studios. He acted as our manager and producer, even though we had no formal arrangement (I don't think) with him. He chose the song, The Little Black Egg. It was way out of sync with the types of stuff that we were playing, but he thought that it would be a good idea. He booked us on shows with many popular acts during that time period. Beach Boys, Paul Revere, Bo Diddley, The Byrds, Jan and Dean, Willie Tee, Jackie Wilson and more.
You know, I have seen no mention of bands at Misty Waters on the blog or in the book. It was one of the most prominent venues for R&R in Atlanta in the 50's and early 60's. We played there often appearing with Lovin' Spoonful (their first tour), John Lee Hooker, Joe South and many more. I remember seeing Mac Davis and the Zots, Bobby "Harmonica" Jones, Felton Jarvis(of RCA A&R fame, an Atlanta boy), Tommy Roe, Ray Stephens etc. there. I am surprised that more people have not mentioned it.
An aside, our band was "The Kommotions", plural with an "s".
Another place that we played often was Fun Town on Stewart Ave.
Thanks, Rick




Rick,

Thanks for your continued input. We list Misty Waters in the book on page 483 as one of the Atlanta venues that featured bands of the era that played “the Music.” Our first reference to the place came from Roxy, a band that played there on occasion.


Your email adds to the richness that we have sought from the very beginning. Prior to the book’s publication and the happenstance discovery of your email address, we did not have a go to person that could give us the detailed information that you just did above. We were aware of remotes from Misty Waters by WQXI but much of the other information that is now on the Internet was not there until well after the book was published. However I did read Zell Miller’s outstanding book, “They Heard Georgia Singing “ but missed the reference to the place in reference to Mac Davis. Most of the newer information about Misty Waters is references in blogs from people who considered it one of their favorite places for music. Most of the references are about Mac Davis, certainly one of the greats from Georgia. However, it’s the lesser known that we have been most interested in like the Swinging Apolloes who played there as well as opened for the Rolling Stones in Statesboro in 1965. We did not overlook that in the book but have never been able to find much about them until recently in conjunction with of all things, “Misty Waters” I found a site on the Internet which includes some very interesting tidbits. Also another site has a blurb about Misty Waters. The site is also a great name for a band: The Soul Purpose Band.

One of the more interesting items that we came across even before the book was published was an eBay item which included a WQXI radio ad for a concert at Misty Waters. That is an ad I would like to hear. Maybe it was an ad for the Kommotions. Would that be a hoot?

Actual Broadcast Recording (Aircheck)
Station: WQXI - Atlanta, Georgia
DJ: Tony "The Tiger" Taylor
Date: April 1,1965



24. Concert Promotion: Be at Misty Waters for the show tomorrow night--Friday night!

Other Internet Blurb;
WQXI Played country music in very early '60s. It was a great rock station in the '60s, complete with background reverb. Did live remotes from Misty Waters Roller Rink with appearances by local stars like Ray Stevens, Mac Davis, and Brenda Lee. Quixie was home to Tony "The Tiger" Taylor, Patrick Aloyisius Hughes, Tom & Paul, The Tiger Twins, Mike Shannon, Paul Drew (submarine races at Piedmont Park) and many more.

Here is an interesting factoid from a high school web site:
We did lose a cornerstone of that community where some now famous personalities, Mac Davis for one, got their start - that being Misty Waters. One member of our class does have possession of the ol' Misty Waters Juke Box though.


Finally, I was not aware that it was a skating rink or that it was on Candler Road, I knew it was in that area but did not know the specific location. We call it a country club when we list in as one of the 20 Atlanta party location of the 60s. That’s a stretch. Now, if Wayne L. would only send that photo of him teaching a young lady to dance at the Bikini-A-Go-Go club in Atlanta, we’d be set.

Regards,

Greg