Live music for this weekend (and beyond)

*Local musician Chet Smith shot us an e-mail to let us know he was playing 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday Aug. 28 on the deck at Pizza Time Saloon, 1900 West Point Pike. He's also going to be across from Molly Maguire's in Lansdale During September's First Friday. I'll take him over the Tea Party any day of the week!

*The former Crazy Carl's, on North Gravel Pike/Route 29 near the Lower Frederick/Perkiomen Township border, now Ringers Sports Bar and Night Club, is the venue for a live music showcase. Proceeds benefit Bikers Against Child Abuse. Starting at 8:45 p.m. Friday Aug. 27, the featured bands are Hiccup Hellen, Peacekeeper, Pollycotton and the Blends (haha), Revel 9, plus three acoustic musicians. Cover is $6. Ringers has a Facebook page, I hear.

*The act I'm most excited about at this year's Allentown Fair is actually one of the openers - The Gaslight Anthem, who are opening for the hopelessly dorky Weezer Sept. 1. Rush has been playing the "Moving Pictures" album in its entirety during their latest tour. They're at the fair Aug. 31. Country crossover stars Lady Antebellum, whose hit "Need You Now" is posted somewhere on Talk about the Passion, hit the stage Sept. 2. And strange as it is that a COUNTRY singer has a name like Keith URBAN, he's in concert Sept. 3. This generation's Davy Jones, a.k.a. Justin Bieber, has Sean Kingston opening for him Sept. 4, and my son has lost all respect for Sean Kingston over it. Another of my kid's faves, Jeff Dunham, will have all his puppet buddies Sept. 5. Didn't care much for his off-color TV show, but people must have liked him because this makes back-to-back years at the fair for Dunham. Since you're already online, go to www.allentownfairpa.org for ticket info.

Incentive to camp at Philly Folk Fest

Because I should be working on The Reporter's Philadelphia Folk Festival preview for "Go" Aug. 19, I'll keep this brief.
The Folk Fest's annual Campground Concert, an exclusive to the campers, on Thursday night will feature Audra Mae, the grandniece of Judy Garland.

Go to www.folkfest.org to get your all-fest camping tickets. Hurry, time's a-wasting!

Now, it's extremely unlikely that 2010 Folk Fest headliner Jeff Tweedy (Uncle Tupelo, Wilco) will actually perform Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," but wouldn't it be hilarious if he did?

Legendary guitars ... but EXPENSIVE

C.F. Martin & Co. in Nazareth, makers of handcrafted acoustic guitars for 177 years, will open their famed factory and museum doors to more than 1,400 members of the Martin Owners Club, as well as wave hello at an event organized by the Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum (UMGF) this weekend.

Martin Guitar enthusiasts from across the country and around the globe will come together 8-4 Friday Aug. 6 for a day-long event of musical camaraderie, entertainment, exclusive first looks at new guitars and product demonstrations, factory and museum tours, live music, guitar clinics, an open mic staging area and an opportunity to socialize with Martin Guitar employees and Chris Martin IV, the sixth-generation head of the company.

“This annual weekend continues to grow with every year and one day hope to eventually out do Woodstock!,” Martin said.

After shelling out all that $ for a Martin, owners definitely deserve some perks! www.martinownersclub.com

Saturday Aug. 7 is the "Martin on Main" event, which will feature an all-day music and arts celebration with more than two dozen performers on stages throughout the city of Nazareth. What exactly makes the UMGF "unofficial" is unclear.

The Martin Guitar factory and museum is at 510 Sycamore St., Nazareth. Even if you don't own one of their guitars, I recommend visiting the museum and taking the tour sometime. Get started at www.martinguitar.com.

For all the gorgeous guitars in the museum, ironically, one of the most famous Martin guitars of all is Willie Nelson's notoriously beat-up"Trigger."