Ventura Music Scene 8/9/23 – 8/22/23

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com Phil Salazar and the Kin Folk’s “The Shut it Down Tour” falls over the weekend of August 19 and 20 at the Santa Paula Theater Center. Phil Salazar was interviewed by Mary Z Wilson during her segment, Americana in the 805, on the Pam Baumgardner Music Hour airing on KPPQ 104.1 FM here in Ventura. Phil clarified that there was no falling out, the band members all get along just fine, he is just shutting down the “Salazar booking agency” aspect of having a band. Whew! Phil took up the fiddle when he was 16 playing with various bands since around 1972. You might remember The Rincon Ramblers or the Phil Salazar Band around these parts over the past couple of decades. Phil has played with artists such as Bob Weir, Jon McEuen, Steve Miller, Jimmy Buffet, Zac Brown, Dwight Yoakam over the years either performing with or just jamming with them. I was pleased to learn that Phil will be playing in the future with Tom Corbett at the Ojai Underground Exchange and at Namba Performing Arts.

The Rubicon Theatre’s Kids for Kids Benefit Concert is Saturday, August 19. The program is called, “What the World Needs Now…” The Music of Burt Bacharach and is conceived, directed, choreographed and produced by the students themselves with coaching support from Carolanne Marano and musical direction by Miriam Arichea. Funds raised will go towards scholarships for young people who might not otherwise be able to afford to participate in Rubicon’s education program, they call it “paying it forward.” Find out more at Rubicontheatre.org.

High Street Arts Center in Moorpark starts their summer concert series of tribute band starting with Journey USA on Friday, August 11, Raymond Michael’s Elvis tribute on Saturday, August 12, and LA Sound Machine on Sunday August 13. The following weekend it’s So Petty on Friday, August 18, and Raymond Michael returns with a tribute to Engelbert Humperdink and Tom Jones.

Harbor View Park 2023 Concerts by the Sea series continues with shows 4-6 pm on Saturday afternoons. Soul Machine plays August 12, and Los Cool Arrows on August 19. The park is located at 3850 Harbor Blvd. in Oxnard, where you’re welcomed to bring picnics, blankets and lawn chairs.

Quick Notes: The final Grandstand Stage act at the Ventura County Fair will be on Wednesday, August 8, featuring Tesla; Doc Strange plays Madewest on Saturday, August 12; Music Under the Stars Saturday evening concerts continue through August with Kings of 88 on August 12 and Soul Infusion on August 19; Dielectric, Casual Business and Birdbrain play an early show on Saturday, August 12 at Bombay’s; Brett Dennen has a sold-out show at the Deer Lodge on Thursday, August 17; and Wild Child, a tribute to The Doors, will be at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center on Saturday, August 19.

Do you have any music-related news or upcoming shows you want help publicizing? Please send all information short or long to Pam@VenturaRocks.com, and for updated music listings daily, go to www.VenturaRocks.com.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 10/6/21 – 10/19/21

Ventura MusVentura Breeze logoic Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

Randy Parsons has left the building? Randy packed up the prime space he had occupied upstairs since 2014 overlooking Main and Chestnut for Parsons Guitars (past clients include Jimmy Page, Jack White, Sammy Hagar and others), it was where he created state-of-the-art, one-of-a-kind guitars, and where he provided luthier workshops for those who wanted to learn how to build their own guitar which included students such as Ventura’s own Gary Best.

I asked Randy for any final words and he told me, “I really loved Ventura, it’s a special place, the people are all pretty damn cool, although I’m still convinced the whole city is some type of witness protection program.”

I thought about it, and I can’t disagree! Though totally talented and incredibly nice, I always admired his love for cats; there’s just something about a man who adores the feline species. Randy and wife have landed in Kansas where they bought a castle looking church moving on to their next adventure.

Colin Bailey and Pam BaumgardnerAnd speaking of next adventures, Colin Bailey has also left the building, he passed away peacefully at his home in Port Hueneme at age 87. I met Colin when I saw him first perform at Squashed Grapes in 2015 with the Frank Potenza Trio. Adam and Josh from the Grape told me to look up Colin’s background which I did and I was just floored. This man had not only worked with Frank Sinatra, Benny Goodman, Joe Pass and dozens more, he not only recorded on more than 100 jazz albums, he not only continued to give drum workshops including those at Pulse Drumming here in Ventura, but he was the drummer on the Charlie Brown Christmas special, a cartoon special that will always take me back to my childhood!

For some reason, there are so many special events falling on the same day, Saturday, October 9; I’ve listed them here along with websites to find out more:

  1. Topa Mountain Music 2021 Benefit Concert headlining is The White Buffalo with sets from Lee Koch Band, Bryan Titus Trio, Will Breman Band and more at the Libbey Bowl. Go to TopaMountainMusic.org for more information and tickets.
  2. Surf ‘n’ Suds at San Buenaventura State Beach, where it’s more about the beer than music, but it’s always a good time. Performing will be Jacob Marquez and the Good Vibes, Mestizo and DJ Hecktik. For tickets go to SurfBeerFest.com.
  3. SteckleStock 2021 at Steckle Park in Santa Paula features a full day of live music from Premonition, Sisterook, Charles Law Band, No Biggee, Tommy Foytek Band and Whiskey Business. You can find more on this via Facebook on Premonition’s page.
  4. Surfers Point Live has a full day of Reggae, 2 – 10 pm at the Ventura Fairgrounds featuring Sublime with Rome, the Dirty Heads, Rey Fresco, Local Love Project and Hirie. Find out more at SurfersPointLive.com.

Quick Notes: Congratulations to Suzanne & Ian McFayden (50 Sticks of Dynamite, Duncan and the Dragonslayers) for tying the knot; tickets are on sale for the Ventura Winter Wine Walk for December 11 sometimes called the event of the season if not the year for downtown Ventura (CBFProductions.com); Cadillac Zack presents the Delgado Brothers at Cantara Cellars on Friday, October 8 and the legendary band Canned Heat plays Thursday, October 14 (call Zack at 323-377-5291 for tickets); Ojai Pops Orchestra has a free show at the Libbey Bowl on Sunday, October 10; Ventura Theater shows include Social Distortion October 6 (rescheduled for Monday, October 11), Pennywise with Dead Kennedys on October 7, Pennywise with Strung Out of October 8, and Elefante, Inspector on October 15; Queen Nation plays a free show at the Collection at Riverpark in Oxnard on Wednesday, October 13 at 6:30 pm; and Phil Salazar & the Kin Folk play the Ojai Underground Exchange on Friday, October 15 and Saturday, October 16.

VenturaRocks.com is undergoing changes. I’ve invested in a new calendar app which doesn’t seem to be saving me much time, but I can load items way in advance which should help in the long run. The look and feel is evolving and for the time being, I’m covering all of Ventura County.

Do you have any music-related news or upcoming shows you want help publicizing? Please send all information short or long to Pam@VenturaRocks.com, and for updated music listings daily, go to www.VenturaRocks.com.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze – 3/18 – 3/31

Ventura MusVentura Breeze logoic Scene
Ventura Just Continues to Rock!
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

Jim Monahan

Fundraiser for Jim Monahan Sunday, March 22, at Bombay’s.

With spring upon us the Ventura Harbor Village brings back music to the Carousel stage; look for Unkle Monkey on March 22 and Smokey & Friends on March 29.

Speaking of the Harbor, we got wind that Andre (805 Wine and Grill Cheese fame) has snatch up more space and will be opening an Ameri-Cubano restaurant featuring live musical entertainment most days of the week.  We’ll keep you posted, but we hear the ETA is early summer.

Tickets are on sale now for Aaron Carter at Discovery Ventura for Friday, April 24th.  There are a limited number of VIP Meet & Greet tickets as well.

The Bluegrass jam which originally started at Zoey’s over twelve years ago, then migrated to Milano’s for the past year has landed at Golden China on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of the month.  Gene Rubin told me, “Phil Salazar and I are usually there and the rest is any combination of the 400 who might show up to jam. Typically we get 20 to 30 musicians at any jam, which means they usually break up into 2 or three jam circles. Summers are always even busier.”

Winchesters Grill will host a fundraiser, donating 20% of food sales to Ventura Music Week on Tuesday, March 31.   Get out and support!

Brothers Fortune is the new project from Kyle Hunt.  I reached out to Kyle to find out more and he told me, “I began working on this project over a year ago and it’s been a slow process. Life gets in the way sometimes and it’s taken a long time to say that a new full length album is just round the corner! March 28th (at Bombay’s) will be our first show with a permanent full line up including Jayce Flauding, Marco Perez, John Sagar, Sean Tauber and myself. We’ve only been playing as a whole for a short while, but I’m really looking forward to gigging with these guys!”

Oh! Just a quick follow up after hanging with the crew on their Squashed Grapes float for the St. Patrick’s Day parade on March 14th; we took two trophies, Best in Category and Best in Show!!  The band rocked it with Trey O’Toole, Franklin Murphy, Rj Root, Jacob Scesney and Guil Juliao (who saved the day), but I can’t help to think us dancers helped as well (wink wink).

And finally, The Have a Heart Fundraiser for local musician Jim Monahan will be held at Bombay’s on Sunday, March 22, to help pay for the overwhelming medical bills as he recuperates from cancer and cardiovascular surgery.  Just a few of the musicians on hand to help out will be: the Jimmy Calire Trio, the Vonettes, National Cat, Restless Hillfillies, Alan Thornhill and Martin Young, Solimar, J Peter Boles & Friends and Fishfry.

If you have any music related news or upcoming shows you want help publicizing?  Send all information short or long to  Pam@VenturaRocks.com.

Ventura Rocks in Ventura Breeze – 1/8/14 – 1/21/14

breezeVentura Music Scene
All Hans on deck
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

I woke up pleasantly surprised on New Year’s Day to find that Hans Ottsen had just released a brand new EP called Music for Mind Movies. While getting to know Hans and his live jazz performances at one of my favorite venues, Squashed Grapes, I learned that he also teaches guitar lessons, and is a well-sought after session musician.  He co-produced and engineered at Filzar Studios for the past year or so, and recently worked on Phil Salazar’s new release, Life on the Edge, in exchange he earned some prime studio time.

So how did Hans use that time?  He told me, “I got the band Tico Trio in there a couple months ago and we’re planning to release that one in early 2014. These tracks were really just me experimenting in the studio. I never really planned to release them as I was creating them.  Then I thought it’d be fun to release an EP without any jazz on it.”

Han’s EP titled Music for Mind Movies is seven eclectic beautifully written and performed songs that if you allow, will take you to another place. Hans explained, “As for the name, the tunes don’t adhere to any one genre. There’s some ambient electronic, instrumental pop, demented circus music, but I can’t really describe it all easily. I’ve been told that it all kinda sounds like ‘music from a movie.’ Those movies have yet to be made. They exist in the mind.  Music For Mind Movies.”   You can buy the new EP at www.HansOttsen.Bandcamp.com

The Ventura County Concert Band (VCCB) is celebrating their 50th season with their next performance scheduled for Sunday, January 26, at the Ventura High School auditorium at 3:00 pm. VCCB is a non-profit Community Concert Band, under the direction of Ms. Julie Judd based here in Ventura.  They perform for the community free of charge 4 times a year. Take the whole family for an incredible show.

And two shows to watch for at the Majestic Ventura Theater this month.  If you like grooving to what they call “Sunshine Reggae,” you won’t want to miss Iration on Friday, January 24 and then Grammy award winning Country artist Dwight Yoakum will be kicking it up on Friday, January 31, as he continues to tour in support of his latest release, “3 Pears.”  Contact Ventura Theater for ticket availability.

And don’t forget we’re helping to get Tommy Marsh to Nashville to compete in the International Blues Challenge in Memphis.  Fundraiser is Sunday, January 12 at Bombay’s with Guy Martin, Kelly’s Lot, 50 Sticks of Dynamite, Mikey Mo, Donna Greene and the Roadhouse Daddies, 4 on the Floor, Ray Jaurique and the Uptown Brothers, and Tommy Marsh and Bad Dog. All this amazing music for only $10 plus it helps get Crooked Eye Tommy to the competition.  See you there!!!

Have any music related news or upcoming shows you want help on publicizing?  Send all information short or long:  Pam@VenturaRocks.com.

Album Review: Hans Ottsen

Music for Mind Movies
By Pam Baumgardner

Hans OttsenI woke up pleasantly surprised on New Year’s Day to find that Hans Ottsen had just released a brand new EP called “Music for Mind Movies.” While getting to know Hans and his live jazz performances at one of my favorite venues, Squashed Grapes, I learned that he also teaches guitar lessons, and is a well-sought after session musician.  He co-produced and engineered at Filzar Studios for the past year or so, and recently worked on Phil Salazar’s new release, “Life on the Edge,”  In exchange he earned some prime studio time.

So how did Hans use that time?  He told me, “I got Tico Trio (Randy Tico, Adam Clark n’ me) in there a couple months ago and we’re planning to release that one early 2014. These tracks were really just me experimenting in the studio. I never really planned to release them as I was creating them.  Then I thought it’d be fun to release an EP without any jazz on it.”

Han’s EP titled Music for Mind Movies is seven eclectic beautifully written and performed songs, that if you allow, will take you to another place. Hans explained, “As for the name, the tunes don’t adhere to any one genre. There’s some ambient electronic, instrumental pop, demented circus music, but I can’t really describe it all easily. I’ve been told that it all kinda sounds like ‘music from a movie.’ Those movies have yet to be made. They exist in the mind.  Music For Mind Movies.”

The first track, “111113 DMS,” remains my favorite, it starts so simply and builds to a beautiful crescendo. You can’t help but imagine how perfectly this would fit in any number of blockbuster movies on the big screen.  “Zoey’s Lullably” is just flat out too cool for school and “Circus Animal Lullaby” just takes you subtly to another place.  They’re all incredible tracks.

You could listen to Music for Mind Movies in the car driving up the coast, listen while working, listen with your headphones on (eyes closed), but just make the time and listen.

The EP was produced by Phil Salazar & Hans Ottsen.  All All tunes were written by Hans Ottsen except Kornflakes (Hans Ottsen & Phil Salazar) and Ayefbe (Phil Salazar).

For now, “Music for Mind Movies” is only available on Bandcamp, where you can give it a test drive, but you’ll want to actually purchase it for a couple of reasons:
1. Have it at the ready for your listening pleasure
2. Support your local artist
3. It’s not okay to steal music
4. It’s only $7.

https://hansottsen.bandcamp.com/
www.HansOttsen.com
www.Facebook.com/Hans.Ottsen.7