Knoxville music lovers have valiantly traveled all over the country this festival season to attend the best live shows. From Ultra Fest, the electronic music festival held in Miami in March, to the massive Bonnaroo camping festival in Manchester, Tenn. held a few weeks ago, Knoxvillians have proven that they aren't afraid to take a road trip to hear great music .

B"All Good Festival is an absolutely wonderful festival. It's awesome."2009 Jambaseut the festival season is not over--not by a long-shot. Many are already preparing for their next round of shows, undeterred by the heat and distance. The All Good Music Festival held July 8-11 in Masontown, WV is one event that stands out above the rest as an ideal July vacation destination. All Good boasts a great artist line-up (see sidebar) this year without the problems involved with crowds of 100,000 or more.

Matthew Smollon, UT Journalism student and host of the weekly WUTK 90.3 radio show "Unclaimed Hours," is one of the many Knoxvillians hoping to go to All Good this year. Smollon again already attended the massive Bonnaroo this past June, and like many other patrons, he admits that sometimes the crowds and sheer size of that particular event are overwhelming.

"Bonnaroo was huge this year; I have never seen that many people. And that's a good thing, but it's also a huge pain," Smollon said. "I like people, I love people coming together into these little cogs and all having a nice time at this giant amazing machine of a festival, but at the same time, I kind of like it when there are less people there. It's a lot more comfortable."

"While no festival is perfect, All Good 2009 came pretty damn close!"Honest Tune This year's fourteenth annual All Good Festival is shaping up to be just as strong musically, with headliners like Widespread Panic, Umphrey's McGee and Bassnectar. But it's the other perks that have some Knoxville festival goers excited as well, like a crowd half the size of Bonnaroo and a third cheaper. Though no music festival is your typical vacation, the All Good Music Festival has developed a great reputation for a summer getaway.

On Marvin's Mountain Top in the heart of the mountains of West Virginia, the All Good festival provides a beautiful view, somewhat milder temperatures, and a delightfully simple setup. Because the festival has stuck to their two-stage system, the pressure is taken off the campers to pick and choose shows strategically, and they can avoid the disappointment of missing shows because of conflicting set schedules or just pure exhaustion.

Smollon commented, "It seems like All Good has it set up in a much more fluid way. Bonnaroo may actually be a little bit top-heavy, with the number of stages and the way they try to pack everything in. You pay $275 for a ticket, and they are gonna give you a $275 experience and line-up of bands, but you have to choose carefully. The heat in the summer and how everything is so spread out and all going on at the same time, it's hard to enjoy it all because you get so tired."

It should be quite a relief to know you won't have to choose between any of your favorite acts at All Good. In fact, one could sit in the same spot all day and not miss a note.

Smollon mentioned, "I missed Phil Lesh at Bonnaroo '06, and I really wanted to see that, really bad. I also missed Bassnectar at Bonnaroo. So those are two acts I definitely would like to catch at All Good."

Some of the other artists this year at All Good include Further (former Grateful Dead band members Phil Lesh and Bob Weir's new band), Dark Star Orchestra, Keller Williams and the Added Bonus, Yonder Mountain String Band, The New Mastersounds, Railroad Earth, and a special late night performance by Lotus--who will be finishing up their 2010 Spring/Summer tour that night--and many more.

However, one performance may stand above the rest when it comes to memorable moments--All Good headliner George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic. The legendary funk band sadly lost their guitarist Garry Shider on June 16. He decided to take one last tour with the band after he was diagnosed with brain and lung cancer in March, and he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame just before his death. But the show must go on, and the band will strongly play on for the many fans looking forward to seeing them this summer, including the July date at Marvin's Mountain Top.

"It depends how into the music you are. If you are really into it, no, it's not too far."Mathew Smollon, WUTK Radio To be fair, the All Good Music Festival is around a seven to nine hour drive from Knoxville, but this detail doesn't seem to bother most festival lovers. The experience is worth the effort. This artist line-up will never be duplicated, and All Good 2010 certainly has some artists, like P-Funk, that won't be seen at many other festivals, anywhere.

"It depends how into the music you are. If you are really into it, no, it's not too far," Smollon said.

If you are someone who loves music and has been looking for a real escape, this festival is certainly worth taking a look at. It's not just the music that makes this festival a wonderful vacation, it's the whole package.

"I love being able to get away from everything for a weekend, being able to put my cell phone in my car and not worry about it. I don't wanna talk to anyone. If you wanted to come or wanna know what's going on you shoulda paid to come. I will show you pictures later," Smollon said with a slight chuckle.

"It's just that detachment from everything I have embedded myself in for the last year. I"It's going out and having fun, sweating horribly, dancing around, making lots of friends and drinking lots of water."Mathew Smollon, WUTK Radio t's going out and having fun, sweating horribly, dancing around, making lots of friends and drinking lots of water. I enjoy that, and I enjoy that disconnect."

The 2010 All Good music festival will begin Thursday July 8, and will end on Sunday July 11. This year's festivities are sponsored by JamBase, Relix Magazine, Starr Hill Brewing Company, Budweiser, Conscious Alliance, Technaflora Plant Products Ltd, Head Count, Rex Foundation, and Rock The Earth.