Knobby Knees festival will make a racket in downtown Albany on Saturday

ALBANY — Good music, good food and beverages, and a good cause should make for a good time on Saturday for the fourth annual Knobby Knees festival at the Flint River.

The festival has been around for seven years, but had different names prior to 2019, the year after the Flint Riverkeeper’s fundraiser moved downtown from the banks of the Muckalee Creek.

The festival kicks off at 2 p.m., with the gate opening a half-hour earlier. Seven bands are scheduled to play through midnight alongside the Flint River at 117 Pine Ave. Tickets are $25 for general admission and $150 for VIP admission.

“This event kind of had its origins with a group of Flint River volunteers about seven years ago,” Gordon Rogers, executive director and river keeper of the Flint Riverkeeper conservation group, said. “On (Riverkeeper’s) 10th anniversary, we didn’t call it Knobby Knees, but we moved it downtown because a, it was getting bigger and b, we wanted to be a part of that downtown renaissance.

“We went virtual in 2020 due to COVID, then live again last year and live again this year.”

Over the years, the event has brought in between $14,000 in gross revenue and $70,000 last year when 849 attended, and a net profit of between $11,000 and $38,000 for the organization.

“This is our second-most-important fundraiser of the year and the most important in the Albany area,” Rogers said.

Local and regional performers are scheduled to perform. Artists include Black Jacket Bandolier, Sundowner Motel, The Bridge St. Vibe, the Pinkerton Raid, Teddy and the Rough Riders, The Bones of JR Jones, and closers The Brook & The Bluff.

“It’s a fairly expensive event, mainly because we don’t chintz on the talent,” Rogers said. “The Brook & the Bluff are out of Alabama and have Nashville (Tennessee) management. They’ve got quite a following among the younger crowd, high school and college. They’re very popular.

“We pay good money for good talent. It’s a $40,000 party, in terms of expenses. We keep an eye out to bring in music that will appeal to a lot of genres. In other words, there’s probably something for everybody.”

Knobby Knees is family-friendly, and food and beverages will be available on site, Rogers said.

Those who purchase general admission tickets should bring chairs. No coolers will be allowed inside the gates.

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