YUM YUM EAT ‘EM UP! – OK that was silly but hopefully got your attention. I love chain restaurants that practice giving back to the community and Jersey Mike’s has been doing it for years. THIS WED, MARCH 26 - they will donate 100% of NET SALES, every penny that comes in the door, to a local charity. They are also my favorite sub shop of all, for taste. Lincoln & Broadway, or just across the border in Venice at 245 Main Street. If you think of it, tell them the Daily Press sent you.
R.I.P. JESSE COLIN YOUNG, 83, formed The Youngbloods in The Village in ‘65, not a big deal except for one song. “Get Together” (c’mon people now, smile on your brother, everybody…), which became an enduring anthem. (We could use that sentiment now.) I also loved their “Darkness, Darkness.” When the band broke up in ‘72 he headed for Marin County and loved his “Ridgetop” home, until it burned down in 1995. He released 15 solo albums and was active until the end, releasing his memoir and working on a children’s book.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED:
MOZART’S “COSI FAN TUTTE,” LA OPERA – There’s no question that Wolfgang A. was one of the most inspired and popular composers of all time. His music will live forever. He loved operas and wrote 22 of them (10 while still a teenager). Most experts name “Figaro,” “Don Giovanni” and this one as his three best. Stage and Cinema just declared,"LA Opera’s exceptional ‘Così’ production seduces with wit, beauty, and the unsettling aftertaste of truth, lingering long after the final note fades." The LA Times outstanding critic Mark Swed complained about Amadeus’ story line, but I find I sometimes have to ignore that flaw in many operas, often centuries old. You go more for the music, which you likely won’t hear anywhere else. Sat, next Thurs 7:30 p.m., Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, LA, $49-400.
HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES – You can go to the Cinema Bar any Monday night, 9-11:30, for more than a decade now, and hear these hot players run through Django Reinhart-style ‘30s jazz. This amazing ensemble is a treasure. Mon 9 p.m., Cinema Bar, Culver City, free.
RECOMMENDED:
TITO PUENTE JR. – Devotion to keeping your famous musician father’s name alive, when he was such a beloved high voltage performer as Tito, is an admirable career choice, and Junior has been successful, playing with his 10-piece band at festivals, concert venues and with symphony orchestras. Moss Theatre is a superb small auditorium, and Puente Jr. may just tear the roof off. Sat 8 p.m., Jazz Bakery, Moss Theatre, Santa Monica, $45.
LA FOLK FESTIVAL/EMMYLOU HARRIS – It’s a two-night folk festival, but I don’t recognize any of the names except this one, and this one is worth the price of admission, though I wouldn’t put her in the “folk” category. But big congrats to Bellwether on landing her. I saw EmmyLou a couple years ago at Disney Hall and she was mesmerizing. This is more intimate than Disney Hall. Take advantage. Sat 5:30 p.m., Bellwether, LA, $141-173.
TOLEDO DIAMOND – His decades-long Sunday night residency at Santa Monica’s Harvelle’s, the oldest blues bar in LA (almost a century!), is a treasure that you shouldn’t assume will always be there. Toledo choreographs (literally) a truly unique show, a blend of ‘50s hipster jazz and his dancing dames and a most modern smokin’ hot band that gets better all the time. Every Sunday 9:30 p.m., Harvelle’s, Santa Monica, $12.
COMING ATTRACTIONS (also recommended): MOZART’S “COSI FAN TUTTE,” LA OPERA, Dorothy Chandler, 3/22, 27, 30; TITO PUENTE JR., Jazz Bakery, 3/22; TOLEDO DIAMOND, Harvelle’s, 3/23, 30; HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES, Cinema Bar, 3/24, 31; LA FOLK FESTIVAL/EMMYLOU HARRIS, Bellwether, 3/22; FRANZ FERDINAND, Wiltern, 3/29; “WE L.A.!,” DUDAMEL, LA PHIL, Hwd Bowl, 4/1.
DOWN THE ROAD (also recommended): CARMEN LUNDY, Jazz Bakery, 4/5; TONY GILKYSON & RICK SHEA, CINDY LEE BERRYHILL, McCabe’s, 4/6; LA OPERA Presents TERENCE BLANCHARD QUINTET, TURTLE ISLAND STRING QUARTET, Soraya, 4/6; TOLEDO DIAMOND, Harvelle’s, 4/6, 13, 20, 27; HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES, Cinema Bar, 4/7, 14, 21, 28, 5/5, 12, 19, 26; POPAGANZA, Pacific Opera Project, Ebell, 4/7; MIGUEL ZENON QUARTET, Jazz Bakery, 4/13; LIBRARY GIRL, Ruskin, 4/13, 5/11, 6/8, 7/13, 8/10, 9/14, 10/12, 11/9, 12/14; PUSSY RIOT, Lodge Room, 4/20; PHISH, Hwd Bowl, 4/25, 26, 27; ALBERT LEE, McCabe’s, 4/26; LIGHT UP THE BLUES! NEIL YOUNG, STEPHEN STILLS, more, Greek, 4/26; LUCKY STARS, Broadstage, 4/26; PATRICE RUSHEN, Disney, 5/2; BEETHOVEN with ESA-PEKKA, Disney, 5/2, 3, 4; BEACHLIFE FESTIVAL, PRETENDERS, JACKSON BROWNE, ALANIS MORISSETTE, MARCUS KING, more, Redondo Beach, 5/2, 3, 4; JACK WHITE, Hwd Palladium, 5/12, 13; JON BATISTE, Disney, 5/19; GERSHWIN, “Also Sprach Z,” LA PHIL, Disney, 5/23, 24; DIEGO FIGUEIREDO/KEN PEPLOWSKI, Jazz Bakery, 5/24; LOVE, Echo, 5/31; PAUL SIMON, Disney, 7/7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16; ALISON KRAUS, UNION STATION, Greek, 7/13; FATHER JOHN MISTY, LUCINDA WILLIAMS, Greek, 7/25; TEDESCHI TRUCKS BAND, Greek, 8/13; NEIL YOUNG, Hwd Bowl, 9/15; NINE INCH NAILS, Kia Forum, 9/18, 19; ORIANTHI, Canyon Agoura Hills,
Charles Andrews has listened to a lot of music of all kinds, including more than 3,000 live shows. He has lived in Santa Monica for 39 years and wouldn’t live anywhere else in the world. Really. Not even Kauai. Send love and/or hate mail to: therealmrmusic@gmail.com
