I’ve got good news and I’ve got bad news… The good news is – there’s so few live music events to report I might get done writing this guide in time to make it out to the Blue Wing’s Monday Blues to see the Loralee Christensen Band play, (I always write this on Monday). Woohoo! The bad news is – there’s not much going on this week in regard to live music. Boo! Oh, well, guess we better make hay while the sun still shines, so to speak… Here’s the live music report for the week of 11/28 through 12/4…
MUSIC
Got your turkey thawed out yet? It’s that time again. What can I say about Thanksgiving that I haven’t said before?… Well, on Thanksgiving Day, it’s gonna be all about turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, yams, cranberries, string beans, dinner rolls, tons of snacks and pumpkin pie. Friday, it’s leftover turkey, mashers, stuffing, yams etc. Then from Saturday on it’s turkey parmesan, turkey crepes, turkey sandwiches, turkey a La king, turkey casserole, turkey enchiladas, turkey crunch wrap, turkey tetrazzini, turkey and stuffing meatballs, turkey eggrolls, turkey tacos and of course, the leftover skeleton makes a great turkey soup. By the time all the turkey and other foods are gone, it’s time for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Rohatsu, New Year’s Day and Solstice, plus a host of other celebrations and parties where gorging is a part of the event. It’s enough to make one cry on New Years Day, “TGIJ!” (thank goodness it’s January…). Well, there are gonna be some music events happening this weekend that are just waiting to make you wanna dance in both preparation and reparations, well, you know… Here’s the live music guide for the week of 11/21 through 11/27…
Right now, I’m nursing myself back to better. Friday night, when I finished playing a gig, I was walking down the stairs, missed a step, and accomplished something akin to a triple gainer off the diving board. Fortunately, I landed more on my guitar case than my face. No damage to the case, but I ache from my shoulder to my toes. Chalk it up to a stupid old man incident. Fortunately, no one was there to witness it. Here’s something we can all witness – the live music guide for the week of 11/14 through 11/20…
Well, it was a bittersweet weekend for me, closing the books on two of my bands, Dr Groove and the 1st Sunday Open Jam. Bittersweet only because it’s always sad to see something come to an end, and sweet because of the turnout at the Sunday Jam. They will both be forever locked in my memories. But these endings serve to bring on new beginnings and other fun things to come. No, folks, I’m not hanging up my guitars, just the opposite – I’m preparing for something even more exciting. Stay tuned… In the meantime, there’ll still be many live music opportunities here in The LC for the week of 11/7 through 11/13. Check it out!…
I just read how there are quite a few slang words many of us Boomers and Millennials still use that have become so outdated it’s embarrassing to some to just hear them used. Words like; groovy, rad, fo shizzle, tubular, cowabunga, righteous, bitchin, bogus, cool beans, word and psyche. Bummer, Dude, that eliminates most of my vocabulary… Slang is for the most part a regional expression and much of it is embedded in the lexicon associated with certain eras. Well, maybe I’m just getting senile, but I stand by the slang words I grew up with. Who’s with me?!?… Um…, okay, here’s the live music guide for the week of 10/31 through 11/6…
Seems there’s a National Day for just about everything. Case in point, just yesterday, March 27th was declared National Quirky Country Song’s Title Day. I mean, how goofy is that? RIGHT?!? Well, this upcoming Saturday has been declared “National Haiku Day”, a day when everybody is supposed to come up with a Haiku poem. For the uninitiated, Haiku is a poetry style from Japan that involves three lines; the first has five syllables, the second has seven and the third has five. For example, here’s one I just came up with –
Lake County Music
Is a privilege indeed
It’s good for the soul.
Now, how poetic is that? So, you all have until Saturday to come up with your own Haiku. In the meantime, here’s the local live music guide for the week of 3/28 through 4/3…
Tuesday afternoon in Kelseyville, August. Mike Guarniero and Danny Prather perch on barstools next to the front window, half-full beer glasses on the floor next to them. Danny’s taken the lead on a Neil Young tune he’s finishing, and odds are they’ll switch it around on the next song. Between the two of them, they could play all day and never repeat a tune. Danny gives a hearty strum on his guitar as the song ends, then grins as he leans over and takes a sip of his beer. Caroline Chavez, co-owner of Kelsey Creek, sees his glass empty and quickly brings over two full ones. “Now everybody,” she says, walking the smooth walk of a skilled bartender, “You all need to pitch in. I’m the only one buying them beer right now.” Mike and Danny happily grab their full brewskis, sip off the foam, and start a new song.
The good news: it’s gonna be a pretty busy week in terms of holidays and observances, where Hannukkah started two days ago on Sunday, Winter Solstice happens on Wednesday, Christmas is on Sunday and the doubleheader of Kwanzaa and Boxing Day occurs on Monday. The bad news: because Christmas eve is on Saturday and Christmas Day is on Sunday, many places will be closed for these observances. But despite those days being sans live music, there’s at least one joint each day from Tuesday through Saturday to go out and get your live music fix. WOOHOO!!! Here’s the schedule, plus an updated NYE rundown for the week of 12/20 through 12/26.
“Eenie weenie chili beanie, the spirits are about to speak!” Anybody out there remember where this famous quote came from? Here’s a hint… Boris Badenov referred to this dynamic duo as “Moose ‘n’ Squirrel.” Okay, times up! It’s a line from the Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, which aired from 1959 through 1964. Like most kids, I would watch cartoons, but this was pretty much the only one I really liked because it was silly in a Three Stooges sort of way – full of puns, sarcasm, self-referential dialog, and other socially unacceptable wordplays, especially so for impressionable children like I was. I would watch the show with friends, laughing hysterically – but they didn’t really get it. I could relate to the patience and empathy of Rocket J Squirrel, marveled at the perseverance of Bullwinkle J Moose, who never stopped trying despite his constant failures, and sneered at the comic depiction of Boris Badenov, Natasha Fatale, and Fearless Leader. This, to me, was cartooning at its comic best. Okay, maybe I’m entering into my second childhood, but I hope you don’t mind me including references to the show throughout this music schedule. Here’s the live music guide for the week of 12/13 through 12/19…
This week’s activities should run the gamut between Shredding and a Car Show, with lots of live music events scrunched up in between. With Friday, Saturday and Sunday predicting good weather, the outdoor events are stacking up, while the indoor ones are gonna be just as busy. Enough prattle – here’s the live music schedule for the week of May 12th through May 16th…
Technically, the First Sunday Jam is an open mic, but don’t for a second think it’s the kind with poorly played guitar riffs sung by tone-deaf singers. Nope. This jam is made for musicians. John wanted a chance to play more with his friends, so he decided to schedule it on Sunday, the one day of the week that hardly ever has music scheduled. And every musician in the county knows about it. In one night, the ever-changing band will play classic rock, blues, jazz, a bit of reggae, fusion, and original tunes. It’s like visiting every musical event in Lake County at once.
The sun’s setting behind the casino, leaving imprints of red and orange on Hogback Ridge across the lake. Kids swim in the pool, laughing and splashing each other. People spread across the grass, swaying to the music while on the stage, the Higher Logic Project, Lake County’s local reggae band, has just finished their set. Now it’s time for reggae legend Pato Banton. “We’re going to chill the vibe for a bit here. Antoinette ‘Roots Dawtah’ Hall kicks in on the keyboards. Sing with me,” Pato begins. “Life, oh life. Life is a miracle.” He stops for a second and holds the mic out to the audience. “Now you know the lyrics. It’s your turn.”
The sun’s still above Cobb, but it’s steadily easing behind it, stretching the light into the four-car garage, where, tucked in a corner and surrounded by sound-dampening cloth, Breaker One-9 finishes up a song. A few thumps and bass notes fiddle around, then quiet as the band takes a break from practicing their first set. In an empty bay of the garage, papers, a tablet, and Diet Coke spread across the pool table. Mike Mendenhall sits at its edge in a foldup chair, his knees pressed against the table.
While you may not know musician Mike Guarniero personally, odds are you’ve seen him play. For years he has been involved in the Lake County music scene and played with over twenty different bands. You might have heard him play with his band, Dr. Groove, which regularly has performed in the county. Or you might have caught his Lake County Music Guide, which posts on Facebook and in The Bloom (when there is live music).
Sitting in the courtyard of Pogo’s Pizza in Kelseyville earlier this week with Mike felt as if we were seated with a long-time friend we haven’t seen in a while. You might feel the same if you are a music lover in Lake County; Mike’s friendly personality makes conversation easy.
It’s nine in the evening at Robinson Rancheria. The Kentucky Jugglers have finished warming up and kick into their first song, “Keep on Rockin’ me, Baby.” On the left of the stage, Danny Hogan, a black cowboy hat on his head and cowboy boots on his feet, plucks away at his bass. It’s been a while since he’s played; over a year ago, he was diagnosed with stage 3 cancer. But now he’s back, and stands tall, thumping away to the beat. Tonight is special, and not just for Danny. Once the band found out about Danny’s illness, instead of replacing him, they decided to stop their gigs and wait until he got better. Tonight, they are playing together for the first time in over a year.
Kim Rippy-Thomas sits at a picnic table on the deck of her house. Cobb Mountain…
It’s a bright blue spring morning. A hint of crisp floats in the air, but…
