By CHARLES ANDREWS
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED:
TONIGHT! -- “DEATH OF A SALESMAN” by ARTHUR MILLER starring ROB MORROW (Tony- and Pulitzer-winning play from the brilliant Arthur Miller, no Morrow Fri-Sat), Thurs-Fri-Sat 8 p.m., Sun 2 p.m., Ruskin Group Theatre, SM Airport, $20-$35.
PACIFIC OPERA PROJECT presents THE MIKADO (I’ll tell you more about this next Thurs after I’ve seen it but I can tell you this, I’ve seen a few of their shows and this very young opera company, only 10 years old, is a sure bet, they did this one in 2013 so it should be whip sharp this time through, tickets go fast so don’t mess around, my friend Jeff did and now he’s sad), Fri 8 p.m., Sat 2 p.m., 8 p.m. through 8/31, Highland Park Ebell Club, $15-$25, tables available $80-$180 with food, wine, cushions.
RECOMMENDED:
TONIGHT! -- JOSHUA WHITE 6TET (San Diego rising star “steeped in classical, gospel, and modern jazz,” he is indeed “an improviser of startling versatility and intellect,” I saw him tear it up with The Gilbert Castellanos Quintet at Jazz Bakery last June, his own group should give us a better picture of his skills and vision), Thurs 8 p.m., Hammer Museum. Westwood, free.
TONIGHT! -- STEVE EARLE & The Dukes (you should always go hear Steve Earle... really), Thurs 7 p.m., The Troubadour, W Hollywood, $40.
TONIGHT ONLY! -- “DAVID CROSBY: REMEMBER MY NAME” (coaxes Crosby of The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash and CSN & Young into unflinching candor as he confronts mortality and assesses the damage of earlier days with a redemptive journey back to music, more touching than I thought, you keep rooting for him, any redeemable qualities? -- you decide), Thurs, Music Hall, Beverly Hills;
TONIGHT ONLY! -- “YESTERDAY” (don’t quibble obvious plot holes, it’s a lot of fun), Thurs, Music Hall, Beverly Hills;
TONIGHT! -- “PAVAROTTI” (a reliable source said I must see it), Thurs-?, Music Hall, Beverly Hills;
TONIGHT! -- “ECHO IN THE CANYON” (another first-person account of rock and roll history, of and by the creative denizens of Laurel Canyon), Thurs-?, Music Hall, Beverly Hills;
TONIGHT! -- “A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM” (here in the outdoor theater, you don’t have to imagine a forest from painted cardboard), Thursday 8 p.m., Thursdays in Aug, also Sept. 2, Theatricum Botanicum, Topanga Canyon, $10-$42;
“AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE” (check my previous CURIOUS CITY column for some description of this excellently acted, thought-provoking adaptation by Artistic Director Ellen Geer of a classic Ibsen about… a poisoned water supply, and racial tensions, topical enough for ya?), Fri 8 p.m., and various Sat-Sun through Sept. 28, W.G.’s T. Botanicum, Topanga Canyon, $10-$42;
“MOBY DICK-REHEARSED” (based on Orson Welles’ 1955 adaptation of the novel, it sounds like it requires a lot of “acting,” no whales, no ship -- cool!), Sat 8 p.m., and various Sat-Sun through Sept. 29, T. Botanicum, Topanga Canyon, $10-$42;
“THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH” (set in WWII-era New Jersey and the Ice Age -- !?! -- Thornton Wilder’s oblique, mysterious, confusing, thought-provoking and wonderful), Sun, 8 p.m., and various Fri-Sat-Sun through Sept. 29, W.G.’s Theatricum Botanicum, Topanga Canyon, $10-$42;
“TWELFTH NIGHT” (they’re known for their mastery of The Bard), Sun 4 p.m., and varuious Sat-Sun through Sept. 28, W.G.’s TB, Topanga Canyon, $10-$42.
TODAY! TONIGHT! Through Sun night -- ECHO PARK RISING (a gazillion bands, no, really, that many, many of them good, some of them mind-blowing, and a gazillion people trying to make their way between venues to catch the mind-blowers), free.
ROY ZIMMERMAN, Dreven Green, Ned Douglas (has shared stages with Ellen DeGeneres, Robin Williams, The Chambers Brothers, John Oliver, George Carlin, Roy’s RiZe Up show is an affirmation of Peace and Social Justice, laughter and encouragement for progressives, what, in SM? -- "I get accused of preaching to the converted," he says, "but I think of it as entertaining the troops"), Fri 8 p.m., McCabe’s, SM, $25;
-- also Sat, 2 p.m. with an acoustic Americana music tribute to the original acts from the legendary LA folk club THE ASH GROVE, briefly reborn in SM, featuring Zimmerman, Bernie Pearl, Claudia Lennear, The Ash Grove Players, LA Central Library, Mark Taper Auditorium, DTLA, free.
GLUEY BROTHERS (a mysterious explosion of comedy, kitsch, experimental theater, neo-Beat poetry and pop culture run amok, backed by a super-tight band navigating a turbulent sea of funk, hip-hop, metal, blues, and tango, and mainly, they’re from Albuquerque), Fri 9 p.m., Molly Malone’s, LA, $10.
CHRIS LEWIS QUARTET (not much jazz right now but Sam First is always a good bet, consistent booking and a cool decor, and saxman Lewis is a protege of Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, good enough for me), Sat 8 p.m., 9:30 p.m., Sam First, LAX, $15-$25.
SUBURBIA, restored ROCK’N’ROLL HIGH SCHOOL (with SUBURBIA director Penelope Spheeris in person, a seminal teenage wasteland double feature), Sat 7:30 p.m., Hammer Museum, Westwood, $9, UCLA students free.
JAZZ ON THE LAWN with Mayaztek (Latin, reggae, cumbia), Sun 5-7 p.m., Gandara Park, SM, free.
NATIVES IN THE NOW (sounds interesting, the inaugural showcasing of LA Native American artists and musicians, traditional and contemporary culture through live music, ceremonial dances, authentic cuisine -- oh, I hope there’s fry bread! -- and art installations), Sun 4 p.m., Levitt Pavilion, MacArthur Park, free.
JOHN REYNOLDS (is one of those too-well-kept LA musical secrets, a helluva jazz guitarist bound to be leading a swingin’ hot band), Mon 9 p.m., Joe’s Great American Bar & Grill, Burbank, free.
HERBIE HANCOCK: Next Generation (special guests Thundercat, who one of my music sources much hipper than me digs, and Phoelix, hard to realize HH has become one of the Grand Old Men of Jazz, just shy of 80 but still smokin’ keyboards and stayin’ relevant, joined the Miles Davis Quintet and helped redefine the jazz rhythm section, one of the primary architects of the post-bop sound), Wed 8 p.m., Hollywood Bowl, $12-128.
TWILIGHT ON THE PIER (not Twilight Dance Series or Twilight Concert Series, just… twilight, Wed not Thurs as it was for 34 years, 6 shows not 8, not a single name I know but probably some really good performers, who knows, it’s free, it won’t be crowded, go, tell if I missed anything, another long-standing great thing in SM that got ruined, starting when they took the booking away from local Katherine King years ago, she did a brilliant job through fat times and lean and it has spiraled downwards since then), Wed 7 p.m., Santa Monica Pier, free.
THE AVETT BROTHERS with LAKE STREET DIVE (I thought about skipping this because I’m a bit back-and-forth on The Avetts, then I noticed the opening act and I’m all in, big fan of LSD -- oh! I always wondered where the odd name came from, hmm -- especially the incredible vocalist Rachael Price, that voice, I fell in love with that voice like no one since Amy Winehouse, and that red hair, those red lips, c’mon, I love everything about her, excellent band with bassist Bridget Kearney driving them, one of the best plunkers on the scene, and oh, seems like I heard a new Avett song that sounded pretty good), next Thurs, 8 p.m., Greek Theatre, Griffith Park, $40-$75.
COMING ATTRACTIONS: TONY GILKYSON, I SEE HAWKS IN LA, 8/23, Highland Park Bowl; KACEY MUSGRAVES, 8/23, 25, Greek Theatre, Griffith Park; KRIS KRISTOFFERSON 8/24, Starlight Bowl, Burbank; STRAY CATS 40th Ann. Tour, EAGLES OF DEATH METAL, 8/28, Greek Theatre, Griffith Park; CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE BIG BAND, THE ROOTS, 8/28, Hollywood Bowl; BRYAN FERRY, 8/29, Greek Theatre, Griffith Park.
BAND NAME OF THE WEEK: Danny & The Doorknobs.
Charles Andrews has listened to a lot of music of all kinds, including more than 2,000 live shows. He has lived in Santa Monica for 33 years and wouldn’t live anywhere else in the world. Really. Send love and/or rebuke to him at therealmrmusic@gmail.com
