Blue Ridge Fest is Friday Night in Pickens

Pickens is the place to be Friday night for classic cars and classic music.

The 16^th Annual Blue Ridge Fest will be held Friday at at Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative's Pickens equipment facility.

Each year's Blue Ridge Fest brings classic tunes and cool rides to Pickens.

“We are really excited about it,” Holder said. “We are bringing four fabulous bands to the stage this year.”

This year's headliners are The Drifters with Charlie Thomas, known for such hits as There Goes My

Baby, Save the Last Dance for Me, and Up on the Roof.

The Clovers – known for hits including Love Potion Number 9, Blue Velvet and Devil or Angel, will also perform at Friday's fest.

Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs are also part of the entertainment lineup. They are known for

their massive national hit, Stay.

“My generation, I can relate to 'Stay' from Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze dancing in 'Dirty Dancing' to 'Stay',” Holder said.

Leading off the evening will be the Party Prophets Band.

“They bring beach music, blues music, rhythm, soul, Motown, anything you want to hear,” Holder said. They'll be a great band and a lot of dancing will be going on on the dance floor while they're performing – as will with all of these bands.”

Blue Ridge Fest features the largest cruise-in in the Upstate, with hundreds and hundreds of classic cars.

Each year's event features a number of prize drawings.

“The number one gift we're giving away is a 2013 Ranger XP Browning edition,” Holder said. “It comes with the gun rack and all the fun stuff. That's our first prize. The second prize we're giving away is $5,000 cash and the last prize is a $1,000 mountain vacation package in the Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area. So, for only $5 a ticket, you can have a chance to win all three of those prizes.”

The annual festival raises money for area agencies that serve the cooperative's four-county service region. Those that will benefit from this year's Blue Ridge Fest are Anderson Free Clinic, Arc of the Tribble Center, Dot’s Kitchen, Feed a Hungry Child, Foothills Alliance, Harvest Hope Food Bank, Hidden Treasure Christian School, Mary’s House, Rosa Clark Medical Clinic, Sabrina House Children’s Charity, Samaritan Health Clinic, SHARE, and United Christian Ministries.

“This is the reason we do Blue Ridge Fest, to support Upstate charities,” said Liza Holder with Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative.

In its first 15 years of existence, Blue Ridge Fest has produced $1.4 million that was distributed to

local charities, she said.

Blue Ridge Fest tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children, with discount admissions available prior to May 10. These can be purchased online or at any Blue Ridge Electric or Blue Ridge Security office. For more information, call 1-800-240-3400 or visit online at blueridgefest.com.