Jakob Dylan, Live, the Roots and O.A.R. will headline the River Rocks Music Festival Sept. 19 and 20 on Harriet Island in downtown St. Paul. And those on a budget are in luck, as the first 1,000 tickets sold for each day are bargain priced at $15.
Jakob Dylan, lead singer of the Wallflowers, just released his debut solo album "Seeing Things" last month. He headlines on Friday alongside popular jam band O.A.R.
Live and Experimental hip-hop group the Roots headline on Saturday, Sept. 20. An additional act will also be announced for the festival's second night.
Single-day ticket prices bump up to $20 after the first thousand are sold and increase to $35 at the gate. Two-day admission is $45, or $60 the day of show, while VIP packages are available for $100 for a single day or $150 for both. See RiverRocksMusicFestival.com for further details.
This story was featured on NBC's TODAY show Monday morning and on the frontpage of YAHOO.com .
America's Best Places To Live 2008
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No 1: Plymouth, Minn.
Population: 70,100
Miles from Minneapolis: 10
Number of lakes: Eight
Rank of its main school district: Top three in the state
Pros: Plenty of green, great schools, close to the Twin Cities
Con: A long, cold winter
When Steve and Sarah Berg had their second son, Tanner, back in 1993, they were living in a Minneapolis suburb full of older people and craving a more congenial place to raise their family. They drove through Plymouth and knew they'd found the perfect spot. "It was National Night Out, and we went past all these neighborhoods with hundreds of kids outside, and I said, ‘Okay, we've got to move here,' " remembers Sarah, a 43-year-old stay-at-home mom. She and Steve, 43, a managing director at an investment firm, bought a house near the wooded 310-acre French Regional Park, and they've never looked back. "Whether it's grocery shopping, entertainment, friends or activities," Sarah says, "Plymouth is great for raising a family."
Courtesy of City of Plymouth
Steve Berg and sons Tanner (left) and Andrew head to Medicine Lake
Topnotch schools, good jobs, affordable housing, low crime, an active outdoor culture-yep, they're pretty much all here. Ten miles from Minneapolis and 18 from St. Paul, Plymouth (originally a Dakota Indian settlement) could easily have become just another Twin Cities suburb. But more than 50,000 jobs in industries from professional services to education keep many residents working in town. Home prices, while not dirt cheap, are hardly stratospheric: The typical three-bedroom, two-bath house goes for $350,000. Education is a big draw-the city's main school district is ranked among the top three in the state-and the arts are close at hand. Plymouth's open-air amphitheater, the Hilde Performance Center, hosts numerous summer concerts, including symphonies by the Minnesota Orchestra. Residents are a quick drive from the Twin Cities' professional sports teams and the Mall of America, the nation's biggest mall.
Courtesy of City of Plymouth
Kids playing at the Hilde Performance Center
And did we mention the outdoors? Plymouth boasts more than half a dozen sizable bodies of water, including Medicine Lake, a huge (900-plus-acre) magnet for boaters, water skiers and fishermen. Want to learn how to wakeboard? The city offers a tutorial. And with 53 parks and more than 100 miles of trails, residents such as finance director Darren Harmon, 38, can walk, bike and jog on paths that connect every neighborhood. "There are lots of places to go to enjoy a meal or a cup of coffee," he adds.
Of course, this being Minnesota, winter can be brutal: The average low temperature in January is about 13°F. But when the mercury plummets, the locals get busy. In February the city hosts a Fire & Ice Festival that includes mini-golf, bowling and basketball-all right on the ice. "There are sledding hills everywhere, and ice rinks and lakes for skating," says Della Kolpin, 45, an architect. "When you live in Minnesota, you embrace it."
Monocle magazine has named Minneapolis as the 19th most livable city in the WORLD, one of only two American cities to make its list of the top 20 cities. Monocle is a British magazine that covers global politics, current affairs, fashion, and style, and its listing of the world’s most livable cities appears in its July/August issue. In giving Minneapolis a top-20 ranking, the magazine notes the city’s thriving arts and cultural institutions, festivals, and rising culinary reputation. Monocle also gives Minneapolis high marks for environmentalism, with more than 80 green rooftops and 90 percent of households that recycle. Minneapolis is also one of the sunniest cities on its list. Of the top twenty cities, only four average more hours of sunshine each year. It also recognizes Minneapolis residents’ high participation in block clubs and other neighborhood groups, and notes that Minneapolis is more diverse than most outsiders believe. Monocle also highlights the city’s nearly complete wireless broadband network, which will help the City provide better services and create unique opportunities for businesses, residents, and visitors. Copenhagen, Munich, and Tokyo top the list, and the other American city in the top 20 is Honolulu (which was ranked 12th.) In developing the rankings, Monocle editors analyzed 50 cities, looking at the cities’ cultural footprint, business climate, global transport connections, communications, environmental initiatives, crime rates, architecture, and public services.
The Patrick Brandt “Live Life Give Love” Celebration Benefit will take place August 21st at the Myth Nightclub in Maplewood. The event is hosted by NHL hockey player Bret Hedican and His wife, Olympic Gold Medalist and 2008 Dancing with the Stars Champion Kristi Yamaguchi. Kristi Yamaguchi and her Dancing With The Stars Dance Partner, Mark Ballas will perform for the first time since winning the show in May. They will be performing to the live singing of Franc D’Ambrosio, Phantom of The Opera. Franc is best known as the longest running phantom, having performed over 3000 times. He also played Anthony Corleone in the Godfather III. Almost Amy, an up and coming Los Angeles band featuring Mark Ballas and fellow Dancing With The Stars performer Derek Hough will be performing live after the dancing. Their music is a unique combination of blues, rock and pop with funky base lines, very melodic and great vocals. The headliner for the evening is Rob Thomas, as the driving force of matchbox twenty, Rob Thomas is widely acknowledged as one of the most distinctive vocalists and gifted songwriters in contemporary music. Since making their debut in 1996, matchbox has evolved into one of the most admired and consistently successful rock bands in recent history, with over 25 million albums sold worldwide.
You can get tickets thru Ticketmaster & the Myth box office.
Your best chance of catching a glimpse of movie celeb Kevin Costner when he was in the Twin Cities on Monday was if you're an employee of Minneapolis' Grand Hotel. Costner mostly saw the inside of the hotel when he was here to promote his August comedy, "Swing Vote," but he liked what he saw.
Costner said this is a place he "could see growing up in. It's beautiful."
Costner, who was particularly taken by the view of the skyline on the way to Minneapolis from the airport, financed the $20 million "Swing Vote" from his own bank account, which is why he's taking a personal approach to promoting it.
