Editor's note: This article kicks off an Anniston Star series of stories on local entertainment options. Another is inside today's newly reformatted Escapes section.

Remember when thousands crammed into Pete Mathews Coliseum in Jacksonville to listen to a Truman Capote reading?

Or Ray Charles pounding the ivory keys at the Anniston High School Performing Arts Center?

How about James Brown or Otis Redding sweating out their souls in smoke-filled venues in Hobson City?

Decades ago, entertainment giants regularly wandered into town.

Today national acts are considered too expensive. Instead, it's Frankie Valli, Marvin Hamlisch, Ruben Studdard, the cast of "CATS" and the latest version of The Drifters.

Headliners bypass northeast Alabama on their way to Birmingham and Atlanta.

An Anniston Star survey conducted in recent weeks confirms that times have changed, but that the lack of A-list entertainers has opened the doors for homegrown arts organizations. Residents have plenty of entertainment options, thanks to arts councils, festivals, public officials and other nonprofit organizations.

There's Music at McClellan, Community Actors' Studio Theatre performances, the Noble Street Festival and the Knox Concert Series.

Organizations like Cheaha Arts Council exist to make the arts more readily available and accessible locally. It is sponsoring an art festival at Lenlock Community Center from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. Saturday.

You ask who played here?!

From 1973 to 1977, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Allman Brothers Band, ZZ Top, Kiss, Linda Ronstadt, Charlie Daniels, Jimmy Buffet, Billy Joel, Kansas, Steven Stills and George Clinton and the Parliament Funkadelic all played here.

Before he was Calhoun County's District 2 commissioner, Robert Downing helped make it happen.

As student government vice president at Jacksonville State University, Downing had a budget of about $50,000 to bring these acts and more to the campus.

To reproduce such a lineup, Downing said organizations with the vision to make it happen need more public support — and cash.

"The limiting factor is money," he said. "The arts programs that benefit the whole community at large have to be subsidized. If you create a strong arts community, then the types of businesses that you want to recruit to provide the economic development are much more likely to come."

Today, the popular musical talent comes at higher costs, as opposed to when Downing secured an emerging Billy Joel for roughly $1,500.

Plus, this area would need larger musical venues to host national touring artists. Other than outdoor venues with potential for higher numbers, the county's largest auditorium is Pete Matthews Coliseum, which seats approximately 5,500 people. Downing said a lot of popular acts require venues seating around 20,000 people.

Mike Stedham, JSU's student media manager and a member of CAST, said the Student Government Association makes annual efforts to secure popular acts with the budget it has. The most recent example he could remember was the band Semisonic, whose 1990s hit single "Closing Time" still plays during the final hour of "The Paul Finebaum Show."

Debbie Taylor, assistant director of student life, said JSU does not have a budget for concerts anymore, citing financial risks and limitations. She said the school spent and lost too much money on performance and production costs to make it worthwhile.

"It's a lose-lose situation," she said.

The last high-profile concert at Pete Mathews Coliseum, Taylor said, was in 2007 when country music artist Sara Evans performed.

Oxford resident and musician Thomas Van Dyke recalls Anniston and Hobson City being major stops for notable blues and soul singers on the "Chitlin' Circuit," which offered black artists places to perform during the Jim Crow era. James Brown, Sam and Dave, B.B. King and Otis Redding played Holloway's and the Chicken Shack in Hobson City.

Intellectual praise

Perhaps the most consistent presence in the county's arts and entertainment culture has been the Knox Concert Series, which dates back to the early 20th century.

Patricia Smith headed the Knox series for 35 years before retiring this year. Smith saw Ray Charles, Wayne Newton, Julio Iglesias, Wynton Marsalis and Alabama perform in the series. She firmly believes that, along with the Knox series, the county does a fine job attempting to entertain the local masses.

"When you have an entity of the Knox Concert Series that can maintain its quality, when it can bring classical events and fill a house — knowing when there is no exposure to classical music — I would say that Calhoun County is doing phenomenally," she said.

Where to go from here

Local artists looking to grow technically and commercially have their own ideas about what the county ought to offer those looking for new entertainment.

"It's very limited to a certain group of people," said Steven Ellison, drummer for local jazz band the Hodge-Podge Orchestra. He thinks venues should offer more music than just rock and country. "I just wish there was more of a variety. I wish there was a place that was a little bit more culturally aware. I think Calhoun County is just limited to a certain kind of bar or nightlife."

Local filmmaker Jason Laray Keener said he's found artistic solace here and has no desire to leave. He also doesn't think Calhoun County has any gaping wounds to heal while nurturing him in his line of work.

"I've never felt it was Calhoun County's responsibility to improve for my sake as a local artist," he said.

The fans and the artists say they still get plenty of kicks out of this region. And that speaks volumes.

Bands and speakers that performed on the JSU campus between 1973-77:

November '77, Atlanta Rhythm Section

November '76, George Plimpton

October '76, Seals and Crofts

October '76, Steven Stills

October '75, Linda Ronstadt

October '75, Jimmy Buffet

October '75, Robert Klein (comedian)

September '75, George Clinton and the Parliament Funkadelic

March '75, Cowboy, Buddy Causey

March '75, Truman Capote

February '75, Wet Willie, Charlie Daniels

February '75, Rufus

February '75, Vince Vance and the Valiants

February '75, Buckingham Nicks, Michael Murphy

November '74, Billy Joel, Kansas

October '74, Harrison and Tyler (comedy duo)

October '74, Kiss, Rush

October '73, Ike and Tina Turner

Art festival

What: Sponsored by Cheaha Arts Council

When: 10 a.m. — 3 p.m. Saturday

Where: Lenlock Community Center