Labor Day Weekend at the Shed Smokehouse and Juke Joint in Maryville Tennessee was one for the books! Thanks to the Return of The Grammy winning Southern Rock Royalty The one and only The Kentucky Headhunters! This marked the Sheds 21st Birthday and boy was it a Great one! I arrived early and it was already Packed! They were bussing people in earlier than I’ve ever seen before. People were anxious to “ Get The Party Started” . Kicking off The show was a band called Parker Barrow. They had a good set. Got the crowd ready and warmed up.
Then it was time for the Legendary band The Kentucky Headhunters!
They Hit the Stage and didn’t stop!
This years show was extra special as it was the return of original drummer Fred Young with the band! Fred missed last years Shed show as he had some health issues so it was Great seeing him back behind those drums!
You could feel the excitement in the air. The crowd was really into the show and you could feel the audience and band feeding off of it. The band gave an electrifying show! The crowd singing along to their favorite Headhunter songs! some of the songs they did were “ Oh Lonesome Me”. “Dumas Walker”, “ Daddy Was a Milk Man” “ House Of The Rising Sun” They Also did a few of my favorites “ Spirit in The Sky” and “ Big Boss Man.” Greg Martin and Richard Young Rockin on their Guitars and Doug Phelps on Vocals and bass, and Fred Young On The Drums round out THE Kentucky Headhunters. Sounding Great as ever! Fred gave his usual Exciting drum solo and boy he was beating those drums like they owed him money! The crowd was chanting Go Fred Go! and he would pound harder! and at one point with his hands too! That is always a fan favorite part of the show but you could tell Fred was Thrilled to be back at the Shed and we were glad he was.!
Now it wouldn’t be a Shed show birthday bash without The Owner of The Shed Mr. Scott Maddux joining the band on stage for a rousing rendition of “ Little Queenie” . That is always a lot of fun . He was Given Richard Youngs Big Red Guitar to play. You could tell everyone was having a blast by all the smiles on their faces. Now at the end of the show they had an extra special guest Join the band on stage. It was none other than Singer/ Bassist Doug Phelps Grand Daughter! She helped bring it on home for the night and helped the band sing The Beatles classic song “ Hey Jude”. She was just so precious and wasn’t nervous at all. As you can see this years show was extra special. A very High Energy Fun electrifying show.
The Kentucky Headhunters latest album is “Thats a Fact Jack” they released a few years ago but I have Great and exciting news! They are going to Re-Release their album “Big Boss Man” !!!! It will be re-released on October 31st 2025. ( Halloween) and Singer Doug Phelps says its “Scary Good! Get ya one!”. It was originally released in limited copies in 2005 and sold out of hard copy print in three months after its release. The Guys made a deal with Sony’s president in publishing Kathy Scobey so the album can be released once again! It will be available on cd, vinyl and digital distribution and available on all digital platforms and.. as well as cds and vinyl at select record stores! and also don’t forget you can also get it on the Kentucky Headhunters online store. The album was mixed and remastered by the legendary engineer/ producer Rodney Mills. Rodney is known for his work with all the great southern acts like Lynyrd Skynyrd, James Brown. The Outlaws, Atlanta Rhythm Section and every southern great act in between. So he knows his stuff. “ Big Boss Man” the album is a 12 song list of all Sony music classics . In 2005 Sony wanted the guys to “Headhunterize” the 12 songs for pitching for movies and sync licenses. They were happy to oblige. The songs are very eclectic ranging from Hank Williams, Bob Dylan to Patsy Cline to the Beatles and much much more. I know I’m looking forward to getting a copy and highly recommend you getting one too! Don’t forget the band has an all new online store to get all your Kentucky Headhunter merchandise and you can also find all their tour dates at http://www.thekentuckyheadhunters.com get out there and see them! Guaranteed a great and fun time! Check out some of the Shed show photos below. Angela Richardson-Newman Music Matters Magazine.