In Los Osos, Red Barn concert series creates community

At the Red Barn Community Music Series in Los Osos, just 6 feet separate the rug-covered stage from the folding chairs in the front row.

“It’s like playing in your living room,” Atascadero guitarist Dorian Michael said. “The audience is so involved. … You’re talking to them. They’re talking back. You can feel their energy.”

Every month, music lovers gather at the rustic, rust-colored Red Barn in Los Osos Community Park to share a potluck meal, play instruments and catch acoustic performances by some of the most prominent acts in the roots music scene.

On Saturday, the Red Barn Community Music Series welcomes Grammy Award-nominee Maria Muldaur, best known for her sultry hit song “Midnight at the Oasis.” Over the course of her five-decade career, she’s recorded 40 solo albums in genres ranging from jazz to gospel to R&B — including 2012’s tribute to pioneering blueswomen, “… First Came Memphis Minnie.”

In coming months, the lineup includes bluegrass family band Thompsonia, Rattlesnake Creek String Band and ragtime-blues duo Jim Kweskin and Geoff Muldaur.

Michael will perform at the Red Barn on Nov. 5 as part of CC Riders. The band — which includes mandolin player Kenny Blackwell, bassist Ken Hustad and guitarist Louie Ortega — plays an eclectic blend of blues, roots country, rockabilly and Latin music.

“It’s all music of the American South. There’s so much that binds it together,” Michael explained. “The audience at the Red Barn is the kind of audience that gets it.”

Typically held the first Saturday of every month, the Red Barn concert series celebrates traditional music in all its forms — everything from blues, folk and bluegrass to Celtic music, swing and gypsy jazz. Past performers include classical violinist Gilles Apap, alt-country guitarist Mark Heyes, folk-Americana multi-instrumentalist Stuart Mason and bluegrass fiddler Phil Salazar.

Richardson came to the Central Coast from Los Angeles in 1972 to study ornamental horticulture and crop science at Cal Poly. After two years living in San Luis Obispo, he moved permanently to Los Osos.

“This town is the best town in the world,” Richardson raved. “It’s really awesome to live here. The people are wonderful. The people are super-great.”

So when Richardson, frustrated with the cost of admission at local concerts, decided to launch his own live music series, he naturally looked for venues in his hometown.

Richardson rejected the Los Osos Valley Schoolhouse as too small and dismissed the South Bay Community Center because “it doesn’t have any ambiance,” he said.

The Red Barn, in contrast, offered a down-home vibe and superior sound quality. It seats about 100 people, with standing room for more.

“The first show was way bigger than I expected,” Richardson recalled. “I invited all my friends, and it ended up being 200 people. People were hanging from the ceilings. It was awesome.”

Richardson describes the concert series as “a labor of love.”

“I run this all by the seat of my pants, completely. I really do,” said Richardson, who takes a charmingly casual approach to his job as concert producer. He rarely emails and keeps what few records he has in the form of barely legible notes scrawled on a legal pad — spelling be damned.

Luckily, he has the help of a dedicated team of volunteers that handles everything from manning the soundboard to setting up chairs to putting up posters. (They also get support from public radio station KCBX.) The producer even hosts post-show parties at his house, where the performers typically stay.

“He opens his home to the musicians who travel here blindly,” said Los Osos singer-songwriter Amber Cross, who’s scheduled to play the Red Barn in April 2017. “He’s a really special guy. He’s just got the biggest heart of anybody I’ve met.”

Cross and her husband, guitarist James Moore, have experienced the concert producer’s generosity firsthand.

While their plumbing is being fixed, Cross, Moore and his 14-year-old son have been showering at Richardson’s home.

“Who else would let people do something like that?” Cross asked with a laugh.

Cross, a Maine native whose music falls in the category of old-timey country folk, has performed as part of the Red Barn concert series four times.

“You feel like you’re among friends as a performer. The evening flies by,” she said.

Next spring, she’ll hold a CD release party at the Red Barn for her sophomore album, “Savage on the Downhill,” her follow-up to 2013’s “You Can Come In.” (The album’s release coincides with the birth of her first child.)

“It’s really nice to have such an appreciative audience,” Cross said. “They really listen to the music. … They really care.”

Michael echoed her sentiments, describing Red Barn concertgoers as attentive and “dialed in.” He’s performed at the venue half a dozen times with various groups, including Guttersnipes and Mystery Trees, and has also experienced it as an audience member.

“The word ‘community’ really applies” to the Red Barn concert series, Michael said, pointing to the potluck and jam session that precede each show. “It says to people, ‘This is a welcoming environment. We all play music here. We all listen to music here. We’re all involved.’ ”

Richardson also stressed the importance of old-fashioned fellowship, noting the concert series’ official slogan: “No politics, no religion and no septic tanks.” (The cheeky saying was inspired by Los Osos’ long-running sewer saga.)

“It’s not (just) about the music. It’s about the people. And the music happens to be a secondary, wonderful thing that happens,” said Richardson, who will perform at the Red Barn in May 2017 as part of a new jug band festival. (The lineup features G Burns Jug Band, Moonsville Collective and Richardson’s own Yo Pitzy Jug Band.)

After a decade of concerts, Richardson’s enthusiasm for the Red Barn Community Music Series remains undiminished.

“It’s magic, man,” he gushed. “Holy crap, magic is what that place (has). I’ll come home from the shows sometimes, and I’ll just float for about a week because it was so cool.”

This story was originally published August 31, 2016 at 10:36 AM with the headline "In Los Osos, Red Barn concert series creates community."