A new organization announced a Rockin’ Route 66 rockabilly-themed festival in June 2019 in Tucumcari, New Mexico — two years after the town’s Rockabilly on the Route event went on hiatus.
Representatives from Garage 71 and Grease Inc. made the announcement in late June about the new festival, but news of it surfaced on Facebook this week. Rockin’ Route 66 will take place June 27-30. The festival is being organized under the umbrella of Hot Pan Productions.
A website for rockinroute66.com still was under construction Tuesday night, but the festival had set up Facebook and Instagram pages.
Organizers for the earlier Rockabilly on the Route threatened a lawsuit last year against the city for trying to land a substitute music festival. But Simon Cantlon, a co-organizer of Rockabilly on the Route, stated in an email Tuesday: “There is no lawsuit against the City of Tucumcari, never has been.”
The organizers for Rockin’ Route 66, who said they hatched the idea for a festival during a Route 66 road trip in 2015, posted this information:
Rockin Route 66 will be hosted at the Tucumcari Convention Center and Route 66 Museum beginning Thursday, June 27th and running through Sunday, June 30th in preparations for the 4th of July celebration. The Route 66 festival will showcase several local eateries and locations for day and evening events. On Friday and Saturday, Rockin Route 66 will host to headlining shows featuring national artists with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the Route 66 Museum.
During the weekend’s event, we will host several of our signature festival additions including a Classic Car and Hot Rod Show, a Vintage and Hand-Build Motorcycle Show, a Pin-Up contest searching for Ms. Rockin Route 66 and our next Rag Doll in Grease Inc. magazine. We will host several celebrity guests and create a fun show where you may interact with our guests. We will have live entertainment all four days and showcase a world famous Side Show act. We will create our Black Collar Markette and Kustom Kulture Art Bizarre. There will even be a fashion show, so everyone can take the moment to check out any style to wear over the weekend, and all items showcase will be available for purchase.
Lastly, we want to bring the flavors of New Mexico to the forefront for all the traveling visitors. We are working on including a taste of New Mexico for our food truck convoy and food court area. There is so much to offer from these parts, we want to share as much as possible to all visiting guests.
An email to Rockin’ Route 66’s organizers went unanswered.
Cantlon and Rockabilly on the Route co-organizer Ungelbah Davila issued this statement by email Tuesday:
“As the Producers of Rockabilly On The Route, we spent over five years building and creating the Rockabilly On The Route name and brand. We dedicated ourselves to working with the local community, bands from all over the world, a rockin’ team of volunteers, the city of Tucumcari, and others to successfully draw in thousands of people from all over the map. We also helped raise thousands of dollars for the New Mexico Route 66 Museum and introduce a new audience to Tucumcari’s history and culture. We have always been passionate about our little festival that we grew beyond our wildest dreams, and were proud to draw so many new visitors to this historic town every year. To clear up any confusion that may exist we want it to be known that the Rockin’ Route 66 Festival is in no way endorsed by us or associated with the Rockabilly On The Route brand.”
Cantlon now is based out of South Carolina and is helping organize several music events, including Rockabillique in Charleston. He stated Davila is self-employed and works in marketing for American West Jewelry and others.
Cantlon and Justin Nathanson also announced a Motels of Route 66 documentary film and book project in 2012. Cantlon said they still plan to film the second part of the documentary after they secure a grant for it.
Rockabilly on the Route’s organizers announced in February 2017 they would take an indefinite break after the festival — its fifth — concluded that June. City officials consulted with at least two possible organizers for a music festival in 2018 but backed off after Davila said any such bid would be a “theft” of the Rockabilly on the Route trademark.and an infringement of their intellectual property rights. Cantlon told city officials they would go to court if they persisted on organizing a new music festival in 2018.
Davila also told city officials at the time they were discussing the possibility of reviving Rockabilly on the Route in 2019 or a Route 66 festival in fall 2018. Either proposal apparently didn’t happen.
UPDATE 7/13/2018: Brian Whitcomb, president of Garage 71 and Grease! magazine, replied in an email, nearly all which can be read below the jump:
We will say that Rockabilly on the Route was an amazing show. We were hired in various capacities for our expertise and enjoyed every moment of the event. The producers and their entire support team are great people and we enjoyed some amazing experiences with them while working during at Rockabilly on the Route.
With that said, our company was approached about 30 days following the final year of Rockabilly on the Route by members of the city, both officially as well as through general conversations on a regional level. We work with other area events and shops on projects, and many were suggesting we bring our skills to the area and create an event in the mid west. We were asked to begin the proposal and application process a year ago. We provided the City of Tucumcari a very detailed business plan benefiting the city and the people, which is ultimately what the event is designed to do, while celebrating the rich history of Route 66. The event, Rockin Route 66, is focused on a celebration of an era back in the 50’s of what we hope and believe to be true, where people cruised into towns on vacation and celebrated with strangers listening to various music and celebrating life. Rockin Route 66 will focus it’s attention on the flavors of New Mexico, on the nostalgic highlights of classic cars and period attire. We will include some of our signature additions with working with some celebrity builders to come to the festival and interact with many of the local car and bike gearheads. We are actually working on a “scavenger run” throughout all of Route 66 for anyone to participate, but targeting the gearheads by bringing back “The Great American Road Trip”. As you saw on our announcement, we have a lot of planning and organizing to do, as we look ahead for years to come.
Hot Pan Productions, Inc. has been established since 2009. I personally have been in the hospitality and entertainment industry for over 30 years. I have worked with some amazing companies, including a 10 year amazing run with Disney Regional Entertainment. My team consists of professional and educated people who have affluent backgrounds ranging from journalism, radio, entertainment, sound and lighting production, acting, photography, marketing, and graphic design. We have all broken away from “corporate” America to pursue our passions and our expertise. We have created several brands including a monthly nationwide publication, also distributed internationally on-line, Grease Inc. We are known throughout the southeast under the umbrella, Garage71, which is our radio station found on apps like TuneIn. We are hired nationwide to work various aspects of many shows from turn key productions, to marketing, to emceeing, to production. We are generally on the road about 40 weeks out of a year working events and festivals from car shows, to bike rallies, to music festivals and events. We love what we do and are very passionate about it. We have created signature shows including the Rockabilly Rumble
Garage 71 and Grease Inc. magazine is a kulture! The crew here is all about the ‘gear head’ scene from music, turn wrenches, life style, art, pinups, hot rods/rat rods, motorcycles, bobbers, tattoos and the life style. The crew dedicates themselves with being builders, entertainers, artists and DJ’s. We live the scene daily and want to bring it to life in print and on-air.
Garage 71 Radio Station is geared to all motorheads alike. This station covers all your favorites from Rockabilly to wrench bending Garage Rock. Tune in to our feature shows including: Reverend Andy’s Psychobilly Freakout, Erin RadioFox Watson, Two Wheel Adventures, Friday Night’s Junkyard, Tabernacle Sundays and so much more!!! Garage 71 is your “American Radio Revolution”!!!
Grease Inc. Magazine is a nationwide print source for motorcycles, pinups, hot rods, rat rods, music and the “Kustom Kulture”. Every month Grease Inc. will cover features on local artists and builders. The crew gets behind the scene details from your favorite local and national music acts! The Grease Inc. crew promotes local shops and events. We enjoy hanging out, participating and providing insight for upcoming acts and where to go & what to do. “You see us on the street, you hear our music and now you can take us with you!”
I hope this provides a little more insight. Please feel free to continue to reach out. As we come closer to launch of the website, we will continue to keep you in the loop on press releases and information. We are honored to be awarded an event in the City of Tucumcari. I know the City received several proposals for events in general, and we were one of the few events chosen. We have fallen in love with the city and the people. It has felt like home the first year we were in town. Our focus is to create a great time for everyone to enjoy from families, to travelers, and the locals while celebrating the good times on Route 66.
(Image of the Rockin’ Route 66 poster via Facebook)
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I think this is great I am restoring a fireball trailer now and featuring rockabilly so now I have a event to shoot for …this is so cool …was so sad when I miss the last one …I know this isn’t the same group of people who put it on last time …but it is so needed to help Rt 66 and Tucumcari …….count Melba The Mouth in
That’s awesome . I missed being their this year for the festival . will be their this coming year.