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June 8, 2010
Riverbend June 11, 2010

Chip Baker manages the Riverbend festivities--with a lot of good help. Chip Baker goes over Riverbend plans with Linda Billingslea, Gina Thomason and Barbara Agee. Don Sharp and Dixie Fuller check out setup of stages and vendor stands on Riverfront Parkway.  Photos by Robert Schellhammer Riverbend looking back

Riverfront Parkway
is Vegas or Broadway
for Riverbend Festival

Story by Beth Warren

No doubt about it.

Chip Baker is one of the busiest men in Chattanooga this time of year.

He is the one at the center of the Riverbend Festival, an annual event eagerly awaited in Chattanooga and known nationwide as one of the top entertainment productions in the country, the leading production in the South.  Working with the experienced team of fulltime and volunteer staff members, the team will see the few blocks of Riverside Drive transform from a roadway to a magical kingdom that would challenge Broadway or Las Vegas.

As the executive director of Friends of the Festival, Baker oversees the lineup of top name entertainers, setting up the stages and facilities and managing the vendors who will provide an international flavor of food and beverage.  For these bustling days, the spotlight will be on Chattanooga as countless thousands of people attend and put millions of dollars in the local economy.

Baker supervises the balance of the musical performers with the food vendors, the fireworks, the art and the ambiance. Anyone could get the impression that he is the Wizard of Oz—a master of behind-the-scenes planning and multitasking.  But Baker refuses to take all the credit.

Two of the keys are Dixie Fuller, an experienced show business performer and promoter, and Don Sharp, a retired US Air Force veteran who has the expertise to make things work from setting up stages and vendor stands to having the fireworks go off on schedule.  Most of the Riverbend staff are veterans with the festivity who have been on the job for years.

“We have a great staff working well together and we have solid sponsors like Coca-Cola, Blue Cross and Unum,” he said. “The key is careful planning, being proactive and focusing on getting things done. It's really all in the logistics.”

With 11 years of experience behind him, Baker knows what it takes to make such a large scale operation seamless and successful. Riverbend, now in its 27th year, has grown into Chattanooga's most anticipated summertime festival, drawing some 600,000 patrons annually.

“There's a lot of details,” he continued.  “The vendors apply in January and February. We have a preference, of course, for local vendors and we do a lot of repeat business each year. We use tokens instead of cash to keep transactions honest. If a vendor leaves town with bags full of tokens, they won't be worth much.”

Attracting the right entertainment can be tricky in the Chattanooga market, Baker acknowledged. Locals like getting as much as possible out of their $30 investment, especially in the current economic conditions.

"This is a very price sensitive community and people expect a lot for a good price," he said. "That sometimes is difficult."

Baker says some of his favorite visiting performers over the years have been Art Garfunkel, Martina McBride, Sugarland, ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd. The trend of variety in talent continues as very good vibes have been generated by this years' lineup.

On opening night of the festival, June 11, one of the biggest stars to ever play at Riverbend has been booked--nine-time Grammy Award winning singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow.

The musical performances are the highlight of the festival, but the venue has expanded to include art, such as the large-scale sand sculptures and the works of local artists.

Baker says one of the goals this year has been to make Riverbend include more of Chattanooga's venues, such as the Hunter Museum, the Bessie Smith Hall, local restaurants and even three nursing homes through the “Eat and Greet” and “Riverbend Rewards” program. Engaging more of Chattanooga and focusing making Riverbend more of a year round appreciation of live music and local color.

Baker feels that when people leave feeling their time and money have been well spent the Riverbend crew has done its job.