Rockabilly On The Route – June 5th – 8th

Tucumcari, NM: The classic car show and music festival that took Eastern New Mexico bystorm in 2013 returns June 5 – 8, 2014, to historic Tucumcari, along the iconic blacktop roadway of Route 66. Adding an additional two days of events to the festival and increasing the amount of rockabilly, Americana and honky tonk bands performing from 9 to 18, event producers Simon  Cantlon and Ungelbah Davila say their goal is to celebrate the unique heritage of America’s Mother Road in New Mexico, as well as the country’s definitive musical legacy.

The event is a fundraiser for the New Mexico Route 66 Museum in Tucumcari, the western Route 66 gateway city. To extend on last year’s success, Cantlon and Davila have extended the festival days to include a bowling event on Thursday, June 5, as well as a gospel brunch, retro matinée, cruise on 66 and a tiki pool party on Sunday, June 8. Friday, June 6, will include a classic car cruise down Route 66, headline bands/acts Mad Max & the Wild One, Eddie Clendening, and Dorados Rockabilly Trio from Medell ín, Colombia, at the Tucumcari Convention  Center with an after-party with live music and burlesque at the Lizard Lounge. Saturday will commence with a parade down Route 66, ending at the Convention Center where the classic car show will last through the day, accompanied by music on an outside stage, beer garden, a wide variety of vendors, a pinup contest and car show awards.

Joining the car show will be celebrity guest Eric Ables, from Lubbock, TX, the “Mad Scientist” and hot rod expert from the hit CNBC show “Car Chasers.” Following the car show, an old  school burnout will take place at the Alco parking lot. The evening will bring headline acts Voodoo Swing, The Lucky Bullets (of Oslo, Norway) and the Graceland endorsed impersonator Justin Shandor: The Ultimate Elvis, at the Convention Center. The night will end with the Midnight Madness after-party at the Tri Star Express.

“We’ve gone not only national, but international this year,” says Davila. “We have bands coming from the East Coast, Colombia and Norway. It’s really exciting to see such an interest in classic American rock’n’roll around the world.” But this event isn’t just a great excuse to put on your blue suede shoes and bobby socks. “I feel that this event has a huge tourism and economical impact on Tucumcari, as well as the state of New Mexico,” says Jessica Elebario, former Convention Center director. “Rockabilly has a huge following around the world and this is our way to bring them to the state of New Mexico via historic Route 66.”

Cantlon, owner of Charleston, SC-based Vive le Rock Productions, and Davila, owner/editor of Albuquerque-based “La Loca Magazine”, launched Rockabilly on the Route last year with an impressive headline performance by the rockabilly queen and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Wanda Jackson. In it’s inaugural year, the festival drew approximately 1,000 attendees from the local community, state and surrounding area. This year the producers expect to reach at least double that attendance. With events for all ages and a little something  for everyone, from hot rods to swing dancing to classic pinup girls, Rockabilly on the Route is the only event of its kind in the state. So pack your dancing shoes, grab the kiddos, load up the classic car and spend the weekend at one of Tucumcari’s historic mid-century motels this June for the biggest dance party of Route 66.