Abboud "Ab" Greig, the owner of Joe's Garage in Fort Worth, TX, died on Monday, Janauary 12th at 74, the result of a gun shot to the head.

Arlington, Texas-based thrash/death metallers TEXAS METAL ALLIANCE, which features in it's lineup Scott Shelby (lead guitars - GAMMACIDE/HAMMER WITCH/ROTTING CORPSE), Rick Perry (lead guitars - Gammacide/PUNCTURE), Bruce Corbitt (vocals - RIGOR MORTIS), Joe Gonzalez (drums - DEMONSEED) and Alan Bovee (bass - Gammacide/DEVILFIST), have issued the following:

"FAQs about “Joe’s Garage Tribute Weekend” (In memory of Abboud “Abb” Greig)

Q: Why are you doing this?

A: The loss of Abb was a huge blow to the D/FW metal scene. The majority of us haven’t even seen him since Joe’s Garage closed 15 years ago. But, that is what made him so special. The impact he had on our lives and what he did for the birth of D/FW metal will never be forgotten. There had been talks in recent years about a “Joe’s Garage Reunion” show. So we all thought we should go ahead and do this for Abb and for everyone that loved Joe’s Garage.

Q: Why are you doing this event on more than one night?

A: We are attempting to make this tribute have the same “feel” as Joe’s Garage had back in those good ole days. Of course we considered doing this as a huge metal fest on one day and night. But Joe’s Garage usually just had a few bands playing each night. The majority of people can’t make it for 10 bands over and 10 hr period. We wanted to give everyone a better chance to see all of these bands. Or at least have a chance to make it to one of these nights.

The diehards will go home and recover after the first night, and then be right back out there the next night ready to do it all over again. That’s how it used to be at Joe’s Garage. Or some people will have other plans on one of these nights, but might be free to see the other night. Again the reason is to allow as many people as possible to have the chance to pay their respects to Abb and the memory of Joe’s Garage.

Q: I hear this will be a damn good lineup of bands; couldn’t you have done this at a bigger venue?

A: Absolutely! We also considered doing this at a larger venue with a bigger stage and nicer lights etc. Again as in Joe’s Garage tradition we wanted to make this have that same vibe. Joe’s Garage wasn’t a large venue and it always had a good crowd. Those of you that went to Joe’s Garage before they added a bigger stage will remember the one-foot riser stage that the bands had to play on... which is similar to the Rockstar Stage. We want these shows to have that same packed feeling with the crowd in the band’s faces... just like it was at Joe’s Garage.

The Rockstar Sports Bar also has owners that were Joe’s Garage regulars. For almost 2 years The Rockstar has talked about doing a Joe’s Garage Reunion show. When the tragedy happened to Abb, The Rockstar again expressed an interest in doing a Joe’s Garage show in honor of Abb. To our knowledge they are the only venue that came out and wanted to do something like this for Abb. So for these obvious reasons we decided not to look anywhere else to do Joe’s Garage Tribute Weekend.

Q: How can you charge $5.00 for all of these great bands?

A: One reason is that all of these bands are playing for free. The other obvious reason is this was how much shows were at Joe’s Garage back in those days. Many of you will remember one of Abb’s favorite sayings... “Five measly dollars.” Again we are sticking with Joe’s Garage tradition and we want to make it affordable for everyone to attend. So each night will only be $5.00.

Q: How were the bands chosen? Is there any way my band could play on one of these nights?

A: The slots are already close to being filled for Friday and Saturday night. We thought it would be appropriate to keep the Joe’s Garage tradition going when choosing these bands. A lot of the bands on the bill have actually played at Joe’s Garage. The other bands on the lineup have some members that played at Joe’s Garage in different bands back then.

But now there is even talk of adding more bands and keeping it going on Sunday. So if your band used to play at Joe’s Garage, or if you have a band member or 2 that used to play there... please let us know if you would be willing to play on Sunday. Hell, even if you don’t have any members that played at Joe’s Garage... but you have a good reason you want to be part of this... contact us ASAP.

Q: I just want to know when it is and who is playing?

A: We are close to confirming all of this. The announcement will be coming soon on the actual dates, bands and set times."

Further updates as they become available.