SanLuisObispo.com: Entertainment

An unusual combination: Playing rock music on the flute

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:41 PST

By Patrick S. Pemberton -- It is a little odd to hear flute in a rock song, Ian Anderson admits.

“The flute is an alien instrument in the world of rock music,” he said. “It’s an acoustic instrument that doesn’t really make a lot of noise. It’s difficult to amplify, difficult to integrate. It can become pretty annoying after 2-1/2 minutes.”

Yet, for more than 40 years, Anderson’s flute has provided Jethro Tull its signature sound — that odd, Medieval-meets-prog-rock style that’s a little bit Led Zeppelin and a little bit Pied Piper. While other rock songs have featured the instrument— Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” being one example — Jethro Tull is practically synonymous with it.

Music: A Musical Voice of experience

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:52 PST

By Patrick S. Pemberton -- When I heard Chris Hillman was recording a live album in Nipomo, I had to ask: “If I go and yell, ‘Free Bird!’ can I get on the record?”

Hillman, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, laughed and obliged me.

“I’ll get you on the record,” he joked. “Then I’ll surprise you and do it — acoustically. That would be the worst thing.”

Central Coast scares on the screen

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:42 PDT

By Tribune features staff -- Sunny San Luis Obispo County, with its missions, beaches and oak-covered hills, is the last place you’d typically think of as “scary.”

Yet the region has proved a popular shooting location for thrillers, monster movies and murder mysteries — from “The Monster of Piedras Blancas” to “Murder by Numbers.” The reason might be our rural charm, or our proximity to Hollywood. Or it could be that film crews find the Central Coast’s peaceful setting and friendly locals downright frightening.

Here are a handful of horrifying movies filmed right here on the Central Coast.

Music: Sacred song, sacred dance

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:07 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- Five decades after fleeing their homeland, one group is dedicated to keeping Tibetan culture alive.

The Buddhist monks of Drepung Loseling Monastery bring their touring show, “Mystical Arts of Tibet,” to the Performing Arts Center in San Luis Obispo next week.

The monks will perform sacred songs and dances inspired by Tibet’s religious traditions. They’ll also create a mandala sand painting on the Cal Poly campus over the course of four days.

Stage: A ‘WEB’ OF FRIENDSHIP

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:07 PDT

By Joan Crowder -- Children will see favorite storybook characters come to life when Theatreworks USA brings “Charlotte’s Web” to Cal Poly’s Christopher Cohan Performing Arts Center this weekend. The touching story by E.B. White has become a classic, read in homes and schools for over two generations.

The theater adaptation by Theatreworks was designed with kids from kindergarten through the fifth grade in mind, but it’s a show the whole family can enjoy, said the company’s marketing director, Patrick Dwyer, in a telephone interview from his office in New York.

“It’s a rite of passage for any young reader,” he said. “It’s about the enduring power of friendship, and about someone who would do anything for friends — and does.”

Branching out into a new sound

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:06 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- I n her song “Brick by Brick,” Inga Swearingen describes the slow, sometimes painful process of growing from the ground up.

“Brick by brick, board by board, we’ve never done this before,” she and sister Britta Swearingen sing, “but we’ve watched mom and papa rebuild their house up from the floor.

“We’ve been given the chance of a lifetime to start over, I’m sure. But where do we start with…grass growing up through the floor?”

Music: All about the songs

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:06 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- D on’t be surprised if you find yourself humming along to “Smokey Joe’s Café.”

With a repertoire that includes some of the biggest hits of the 1950s and ’60s, it’d be a strain not to break into song.

“I always tell my cast, ‘You know you’re doing your job when the audience is singing along,’ ” said the show’s director, A. Curtis Farrow. “You definitely want them to be involved.”

Stage: Truth and 'Rumors'

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:06 PDT

By Joan Crowder -- Neil Simon’s comic talents run loose in “Rumors,” and an energetic cast lets out all the stops to make the play a frenetic farce at San Luis Obispo Little Theatre.

“Rumors” is not your typical Neil Simon play — no memorable characters like “The Odd Couple” or good story like “Barefoot in the Park.” This is another generation of characters and another genre altogether. Directed by Ryan Cordero, it brings together a cast of good comic talents.

The play begins as you enter the lobby and find yourself a guest at a wedding reception. Tables are set up with refreshments and the lobby is transformed with wedding decorations. The actors, dressed in weddinglike attire, are talking among themselves in raised voices, discussing the bride and groom and “rumors” about others. Suddenly the bride comes running across the lobby in tears, and someone says the groom has gone out an upstairs window. This was the first act.

CD Pick: �The McLintocks Saloon Years�/�Thunder Road,� Monte Mills

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 10:35 PDT

Mills, a horseshoer, is a true singing cowboy, who celebrates more than three decades as a local performer with two CD�s of cover songs. �The Saloon Years� showcases the most popular tunes he performed live at the steakhouse. The second is a tribute to songs about the road. Veteran musicians, Mills and his band do justice to songs made famous by Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Chuck Berry and Charlie Daniels. While the �Saloon� CD reflects on yesteryear, Mills still performs regularly, keeping his roadhouse country sounds active. To hear samples from these CDs, visit the Ticket section of www.sanluisobispo.com.

-- Pat Pemberton

'The Producers' coming to Clark Center in Arroyo Grande

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:23 PDT

By Patrick S. Pemberton -- Ryan Cordero remembers sitting in the back row of the Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles, watching a touring version of �The Producers� and thinking: �I will do this one day.�

�I really consider this show to be what launched me into to thinking, �This is what I want to do,� � said Cordero, a 23-year-old director. �Jason Alexander and Martin Short are two hysterical comedians, and the show is one of the most amazing things I�d ever seen.�

Last summer, Cordero launched his ambitious Sorcerer Productions with �Thoroughly Modern Millie,� which played to good-size crowds at the Clark Center in Arroyo Grande.

Folk-pop star Karla Bonoff and Kenny Edwards to perform in the Spanos Theater

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:24 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- For singer-songwriter Karla Bonoff, the turning point in her music career came when versatile vocalist Linda Ronstadt agreed to cover one of her songs.

�At the time I was unsigned. She was really starting to crest in her career,� Bonoff recalled.

Ronstadt featured three of Bonoff�s songs on her 1976 album, �Hasten Down the Wind� � �Lose Again,� �If He�s Ever Near� and �Someone to Lay Down Beside Me.�

SLO musicians seek success outside the area

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:53 PDT

By Patrick S. Pemberton -- Back when he was an English major at Cal Poly, Matt Ward would pack up his guitar and head to Linnaea�s coffee house for a mellow gig before a handful of people.

A decade later, Ward has received much more exposure, having recently performed on �The Late Show with David Letterman,� �Late Night With Conan O�Brien� and �Austin City Limits.� But for Ward, success didn�t occur until he left San Luis Obispo, adding credence to a common perception: If you�re a local musician and you want to make it in the music business, you have to move.

�I don�t know anyone who stuck around SLO and got famous,� said Daniel Whittington, the former front man for the band Rhodes, who now lives in Austin, Texas.

Meet Goldar: Morro Bay man lent voice to 'Power Rangers' villain

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 01:42 PDT

By Patrick S. Pemberton -- A few years ago, Kerrigan Mahan discovered a unique way to get out of a speeding ticket.

As the police officer was writing up the citation, Mahan walked up and said, �Hey � you got kids?�

�Why?� the officer asked.

Monte Mills and the Lucky Horseshoe Band salutes F. McLintocks Saloon

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 18:29 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- For nearly three decades, Monte Mills and the Lucky Horseshoe Band were the hottest act in downtown San Luis Obispo.

County music fans flocked to F. McLintocks Saloon on Higuera Street every Thursday to hear the band perform. Some even offered to carry band equipment to get in.

�There used to be lines out the doors in the �70s, people whooping and hollering,� recalled Mills, the band�s lead singer and founder. �They let people dance on the tables in those days.�

On Stage: 'Rip Van Winkle' at the American Melodrama

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 18:16 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- Rip Van Winkle, the protagonist of the Great American Melodrama�s latest show, is not your typical hero.

A drunk who�s squandered his family�s fortune, Rip prefers hunting, fishing and debating politics at the local tavern to working on his own farm. He�s henpecked by his wife and hounded by his landlord.

�He�s not a cruel man,� explained Billy Breed, who plays the title character in �Rip Van Winkle,� based on Washington Irving�s classic tale. �He loves his wife. He loves his children. He just doesn�t see the consequences of his actions.�

Music: Lance Robison’s songs about the sea

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 14:16 PDT

By Patrick S. Pemberton -- For 40 years, Lance Robison secretly possessed an important part of Beach Boys history.

Back in the 1960s, Robison’s brother, John, came upon three master reels from the Beach Boys’s 1964 album, “Shut Down Vol 2.” Needing money, John sold Lance the tapes for $15.

The tapes languished in storage for 40 years until one day, on a whim, Robison contacted local author Jon Stebbins, who had written about the Beach Boys.

Superheroes welcome at this year�s gaming convention in SLO

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 10:55 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- Superheroes and super-villains are welcome at this year�s PolyCon.

Set for this weekend at Embassy Suites Hotel in San Luis Obispo, the annual gaming convention offers more than 150 gaming events including board games, video games, movies and miniatures.

There�s even a chance to mingle with fellow gamers at a Saturday barbecue.

Los Lobos at the Avila Beach Music Festival

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:33 PDT

By Sarah Linn -- After more than three decades with Los Lobos, the Latin rock band best known for the 1987 hit �La Bamba,� songwriter Louie Perez is starting to feel like Mel Brook�s �2,000-Year-Old Man.�

�It�s an amazing thing to be a band for 36 years because we�ve lived many lives and we�ve seen a lot of things come and go,� said Perez, who also plays drums and guitar.

He�s seen the band, formed in East Los Angeles in 1973, go from relative obscurity to instant fame with their cover of Ritchie Valens� �La Bamba.�

Music Scene: John Jorgenson plays at Templeton's Castoro Cellars this weekend

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:39 PDT

Most musicians would lunge at an opportunity to perform with Bruce Springsteen or Bob Dylan. But when John Jorgenson was asked to audition for the two legends� bands, he passed.

�I wasn�t interested in backing other people up,� said Jorgenson, a multi-instrumentalist who had established himself as a top-notch session player by that time. �I just felt like I�d done that enough, and it was important for me to start working on my own music and not go off on another tangent with someone else�s music.�

After working as a sideman for years, Jorgenson � a founding member of the Desert Rose Band � liked the idea of doing his own thing.

On Stage: Kelrik Productions puts on a creative version of Rudyard Kipling�s �The Jungle Book�

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:41 PDT

By Joan Crowder -- Kelrik�s charming production of �The Jungle Book� embellishes Rudyard Kipling�s classic story with creative costumes, puppets, a nice jungle set and a cast that includes entertaining pros and emerging young talent.

It�s the story of Mowgli, a human baby � a �man cub��who is adopted by a family of wolves, befriended by the bear Baloo and the panther Bagerra, threatened by the fierce tiger Shere Kahn, captured by monkeys and finally returned to the human village.

This performance is a condensed version of the original story, running an hour without an intermission, but the story is intact and exciting, just right for young attention spans.