PUT THIS UP TO THE RIGHT!
Why? Because sometimes you can somehow lose sight of the most important thing, and this week I almost made it. Love Revisited, with co-founder Johnny Echols on guitar, is playing a rare gig at an unusual location, the Federal Bar in N. Hollywood, and they play two of their biggest albums in a row, note by note: “Da Capo” and “Forever Changes” . Not interpreted, but note for note, and I can promise you from experience that it will be like hearing the original band just a few meters away 54 years ago. Sun 2 p.m., Federal Bar, North Hollywood, $ 25.
GRATEFUL FOR MUSIC PEOPLE
I have so much to thank for living in Santa Monica that yesterday’s CURIOUS CITY column left a lot out.
I write a lot about HARVELLE’S, our nearly hundred year old blues bar on Fourth Street Downtown, because they have a great variety of live music seven nights a week, and a lot of it is a find. (That means: really good, but not everyone knows about it.) Thanks go to the long-time owner and booker Cevin and his four-year-old partners Json and Damian. I was a little worried about “new guys” coming in (but from the closed Liquid Kitty, a really special dark, intimate, cozy bar on Pico so they had good credibility). They have created a great team that not only recognizes Harvelle’s historic place here, but has improved everything from the booking to the decoration to the sound to the utensils that hang from the ceiling and the walls for the dancers to do their thing can do. And sometimes these things, right in front of you, can rival Cirque du Soleil.
The pandemic closure seems to have finally reached Booker and of all people Jane Koko Peterson at McCabe, who has gone to greener or at least open pastures. (McCabes will be back with live shows after the New Year.) She did a fantastic job during her years there, and we in Santa Monica and all of LA are richer for that. Thank you and good luck, Koko.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED:
EM THE MASTER – I HAVE HIGHLY RECOMMENDED EM’s show for months and I still do. “The master”? Too much hype in the marquee? Not if you can back it up, and em will. She sings, dances, has dancers. She crawls across the floor like a reptile, grabs the microphone and never misses a beat. She doesn’t play the piano, she attacks it. Use your voice as an instrument in a creative way. Your energy is uninterrupted and seemingly limitless. Writes great songs that are a perfect fit for her act, and she may remind you of a more energetic Lady Gaga with whom she wrote a New York Times bestseller. Yes, this girl is more talented than anyone has any right to be. And she puts it out here in your garden every Tuesday for a starvation wage. Hm, what should you choose? A burger that clogs your arteries, coke and fries for $ 10 or something that will hit you and make you grin and remember. Every Tuesday 9:30 p.m., Harvelle’s, DTSM, $ 10.
RECOMMENDED:
THIS EVENING! – HAMILTON – I think the only way I can go wrong is if I don’t recommend it, based on what I’ve heard and read. Best to hurry up, it might be over soon! Tonight – Thu, Fri, Sat, Tue, Wed, next Thu 8 p.m., Sun 1 p.m., 6:30 p.m., also Sat 2 p.m., Pantages Theater, Hollywood, $ 49-3000 +, depending on date / time.
LA OPERA presents ROSSINI’s “CINDERELLA” – What’s wrong with a comedy with your great music and spectacular sets? Comical acting is not easy, and this production of the classic fairy tale receives rave reviews. What’s wrong with retelling the familiar story of the poor Cinderella who defies her imposed social status and wants to snatch the hottest guy in the kingdom and live happily ever after? With all of the screen time lately for Princess Diana, another who wouldn’t settle for her imposed status, it is actually about the time. Sat, Wed 7:30 p.m., Sun 2 p.m., Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, DTLA, $ 18-282.
JEFF ELLWOOD QUARTET – This has to be a “cautious” recommendation because while I can personally testify to the creativity and performance of the band members, I have never heard Elwood whose gig it is. And the descriptions on the Sam First website surprise me a little. What would I get into? Genius or chaos? “Known as a consummate improviser with a convincing approach to the tenor saxophone …” Convincing. Improviser. Good things, but be careful. “Grammy-winning pianist Bill Cunliffe says Ellwood is ‘his own man who always brings a new perspective to every project.'” Hmmm. But his pianist for the show, Alan Pasqua, one of my favorites, said that Ellwood “is one of my favorite tenor saxophonists on the planet”. Oh. Well. With the companions of this show being Pasqua, Darek Oles on bass and renowned drummer Joe LaBarbera this will be a good bet and RECOMMENDED. This performance will feature the music from his pandemic-released CD, The Sounds Around the House, which features all of the great players here plus another of my favorites, guest saxophone master Bob Sheppard. Sat 7:30 PM, 9:00 PM, Sam First, LAX, $ 25.
UPCOMING SIGHTS: THE SCATALITES, Venice West, 03/12; CHARLIE HUNTER – SCOTT AMANDOLA DUO, Venice West, 12/4; PONCHO SANCHEZ and his Latin Jazz Band, Catalina Jazz Club, 12/10/12; JOHN MAYALL, WALTER TROUT, Saban Montclair, 12/12; LIBRARY GIRLS, Ruskin Group Theater, 12/12; TAKE 6 CHRISTMAS, Pepperdine, 12/15; X, BLASTER, Henry Fonda, 12/16; LA SANTA CECILIA, Novo, December 17th; STEVIE WONDERS 23rd HOUSE FULLY USE TOYS CONCERT, Microsoft Theater, December 18.
Charles Andrews has heard a lot of music of all kinds, including more than 2,000 live shows. He has lived in Santa Monica for 34 years and would not live anywhere else in the world. For real. Send him love and / or rebuke to [email protected]
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