Critic's Pick — Bootsaroo: A Windows on the Cumberland Celebration

Back when Charlie Fenton opened Windows on the Cumberland in 1986, the nominal windows of the tiny club just off Broadway looked out on a very different downtown Nashville than the one we know today. The same could be said for when Jackson “Boots” Hill took over as proprietor in 1997, as well as when he was informed his lease wouldn’t be renewed and he shuttered the place in September 2006. However, places like Windows — where management would take chances on alternative acts, from jam bands to string bands and beyond, bubbling up out of the local underground music scene — have constantly been vital to the health of Music City’s music ecosystem. (For one small example: Rock stars Cage the Elephant played their first Nashville gig at Windows.) Friday evening, five acts who performed at the club will return to the stage, this time at The ’58 at Eastside Bowl, with Boots himself as guest of honor. Catphish, Zentrance, The Reliables, Ballhog! and Mile 8 will gather to celebrate the spot’s legacy, call up some memories and start plotting some future celebrations. 

7 p.m. at The ’58 at Eastside Bowl

1508A Gallatin Pike S., Madison