Ticket Alerts lead a Chockful Thursday, Feb 6, 2014

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We haven’t started with a quote for a while, so let’s do that.

"The two most important days of your life are the day you were born, and the day you find out why." ~ Mark Twain, in a quote sent to us by Michael Ann Azoulai.

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There's plenty of time to catch some live music and still get home in time for the last-ever "TONIGHT SHOW with JAY LENO."

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February 6 in History…

TODAY marks the birthdays of GEORGE HERMAN “BABE” RUTH (1895) and RONALD WILSON REAGAN (1911).

It is also smackdab in the midst of several officially-proclaimed days. Today is “Lame Duck Day.” It comes two days after “Create A Vacuum Day,” which is followed by “Disaster Day” (yesterday). And today is one day before “Charles Dickens Day.” Some may wish to draw significance from all or part of that.
 
 
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In this edition…

♪  PICKS for Thursday
♪  TICKET ALERTS (lots of ’em – all things that’ll sell-out)
♪  NEWS FEATURE ~ an editorial
.   √  INDIE MUSIC, SUPER BOWL COMMERCIALS AND CLIMATE-CHANGE DENIERS
♪  THURSDAY-Only MUSIC & ART EVENTS
 
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♪  PICKS for Thursday


√  LOS LONELY BOYS celebrate their latest CD, “Revelation,” at The Troubadour in WeHo, 8 pm.

√   “MAESTRO OF THE MOVIES” brings JOHN WILLIAMS conducting PACIFIC SYMPHONY for a benefit concert in Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa, 8 pm.

√  SARAH LEE GUTHRIE & JOHNNY IRION play Saint Rocke in Hermosa Beach, 8:30 pm.

√  Jazz saxophone maestro GRACE KELLY performs with her trio at the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena, 8 pm.

√  TOULOUSE ENGELHARDT and JOHN YORK play the Irvine Valley College Performing Arts Center, 8 pm.

√  "MOULIN RUSSE" is “an all-new set of the French music you love,” at the Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood, 8:30 pm.

√  MIKE DAISEY does a STORYTELLING performance at the Center for the Art of Performance in Royce Hall at UCLA, 8 pm.

√   “PALM SPRINGS LEGENDS” show, with THE LINDY SISTERS and tribute artists portraying Lucille Ball, Bing Crosby, the Andrews Sisters, Bob Hope, Liberace, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, and Red Skelton, backed by THE LEGENDS ORCHESTRA, at the lovely McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert, 8 pm.

√  JEFFREY FOUCAULT plays Pappy & Harriet’s Place in Pioneertown, 8 pm.
 
 
 
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♪  TICKET ALERTS (lots of ’em) ~

All are things that will sell-out, so you need to jump on the ones you want to see…

Show is Thu, Feb 20:
THE QUEBE SISTERS return to the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena, essentially the only small venue they still play, anywhere in America. Every member of this young Texas-based band is a fiddle champ, either state or national, and their vocal harmonies are amazing. They are western music’s best crossover / breakout act to come along in decades.

Tix ALWAYS sell-out. Reservations, 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There may be more on the venue’s website, at www.coffeegallery.com

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Concert is April 25:
THE NATIONAL, plus special guest PORTUGAL. THE MAN, at the Santa Barbara Bowl.

Advance tix available FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 10 am-10 pm, REQUIRING PASSWORD, TROUBLE
at:
http://m.ticketmaster.com/event/09004C3FCFEAC736?artistid=959669&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=1&brand=nederlanderla&camefrom=cfc_ndrcon_ned_Feb5

Available to everyone else without the above password, starting Feb 8 at noon.

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Show is “in February:”
Grammy Winner TIM WEISBERG returns to the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena.

He always sells-out here. Reservations, 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There may be more on the venue’s website, at www.coffeegallery.com

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Event is Fri, Feb 7, in Pasadena:
8 pm  "PIANO SPHERES: THE INTREPID HARPSICHORD PART II," performed by GLORIA CHENG, at Boston Court, 70 N Mentor Av, Pasadena 91106; 626-683-6883; www.bostoncourt.org

It's the second edition of Gloria Cheng's "Intrepid Harpsichord" program, featuring some of the most beloved and audacious works from the past and present. The program includes Michelangelo Rossi's daring "Toccata Settima" from 1634, works by various members of the Couperin family, and contemporary works by Toru Takemitsu, John Harbison, and Carolyn Yarnell. The “First Edition” sold-out.

Tix, $25, $20 for seniors.
Use the code SPHERES to save $5 per ticket.
Available at:
https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/930323

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Concert is Fri, Feb 7:
8 pm  SUSIE GLAZE & THE HILONESOME BAND, plus Piedmont blues expert ERNEST TROOST, at the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena, playing the inaugural edition of “The Woodshed Sessions,” a new show each month with new songs in development from the band and their special guests, with a goal of delivering Southern California's finest singer-songwriters.

Tix, $20, and it will likely sell-out. Reservations, 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There’s more on the venue’s website, at www.coffeegallery.com

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Event is Sat, Feb 8:
7 pm  I SEE HAWKS in L.A. plus TONY GILKYSON and BRANTLY KEARNS at the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena. The “Hawks” are Southern California's leading alt country psychedelic folk rock ensemble, with seven critically acclaimed albums, known for witty and sardonic lyrics, rich vocals, and a pushing-the-envelope instrumental sound. Dave Alvin calls them, "One of Southern California's unique treasures."

Tix, $18, and they ALWAYS sell-out here. Reservations, 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There’s more on the venue’s website, at www.coffeegallery.com

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Event is Sat, Mar 8, in OC (Anaheim):
8 pm  Annual "OC MUSIC AWARDS" at City National Grove of Anaheim.

OC Music Awards is Orange County's premier annual music event, honoring the best and brightest in local talent. Over the past 13 years, the Awards have provided a platform for local artists to gain recognition and exposure in one of the nation's most vibrant music scenes. Each year the Awards organization presents a season of live music starting with a free weekly “Showcase Series” in January in February, leading up to tonight’s Awards night ceremony, where the music industry comes together to honor the achievements of local artists in 27 categories.

Advance tix available now, at:
www.citynationalgroveofanaheim.com/events/event_details.asp?id=2719

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Event is Sat, Feb 8, in San Pedro:
HARD RAIN with special guest MARTY RIFKIN (Bruce Springsteen’s band) in San Pedro is officially Sold Out, but rumor has it that they might open up 10 more seats. Go immediately to www.grandvision.org to secure tickets.

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Two shows, both Sun, Feb 9:
3 & 7 pm  “JIM CURRY'S TRIBUTE TO THE MUSIC OF JOHN DENVER” at the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena. He was the singing voice of the late John Denver in the movie.

Tix, $18, and he ALWAYS sells-out here. Reservations, 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There’s more on the venue’s website, at www.coffeegallery.com

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Event is Mon, Feb 10, in L.A.:
7:30 pm Pre-OSCARS free screening / filmmaker panel event, with two French shorts nominated for the Oscar®, both in French with English subtitles, at Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz, 10361 W Pico Bl, Los Angeles 90064.
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Screening are:
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√  "Mr. Hublot," directed by Laurent Witz and co-directed by Alexandre Espigares. Mr. Hublot lives in a world where characters made partially of mechanical parts, driving huge vehicles, rub shoulders with each other -- a world where the giant scale of machines and the relentless use of salvaged materials reign supreme. (11 mins, 48 secs).
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√  "Avant que de Tout Perdre (Just Before Losing Everything)," directed by Xavier Legrand. While her children pretend to go to school, Miriam hurries to pick them up and take them to her work place. She explains to her boss that she has to leave the region in a rush. (29 mins).
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Screening is followed by a Q&A with "Mr. Hublot" director Alexandre Espigares and animation supervisor Mickaël Coëdel, and from "Avant que de tout perdre," Q&A with director Xavier Legrand and producer Alexandre Gavras.
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This event is made possible with the help of the Film & TV Department of the French Embassy in Los Angeles.
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FREE, but reservations required at:
rsvp.trk@lyceela.org
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Include your name, email address, phone number, and number of people attending.

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Show is Mon, Feb 10:
8 pm  RICHARD BERMAN & SANDY CASH at the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena.

Tix, $15, and will likely sell-out. Reservations, 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There’s more on the venue’s website, at www.coffeegallery.com

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Two shows Fri, Feb 14:
8 & 10 pm  DAN HICKS & THE HOT LICKS play McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Sure to sell-out both shows. Tix, $26.50, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Event is Sat, Feb 15, in Pasadena:
6-9 pm  COYOTE CREEK RAMBLERS play a western music "dinner-and-a-show" night for their CD release of "Songs of the Hearth," at Porticos Art Space in Pasadena; www.porticosartspace.org
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$15 at the door includes dinner, concert, and the new CD. Reservations appreciated by Wed, Feb 12, to guarantee enough food, by contacting Judy@CoyoteCreekRamblers.com, or phone 909-894-9899.

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Event is Sat, Feb 15:
7:30 pm  BERNIE PEARL plays his CD release celebration show for "Take Your Time" at the Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center in L.A. “Schmooze with the blues” begins at 7:30 in the atrium with a Champagne reception ending at 8 when the house bar opens; the CD Concert is at 8:15, with Bernie, Barbara Morrison, Mike, Al, and Hurricane, and at 9:30, there’s a Blues Jam, hosted by Big T. and Jamie Powell and special guests.

This will surely sell-out promptly. Tix $20, at http://barbaramorrisonpac.com/?ai1ec_event=bernie-pearl-cd-release-party&instance_id=29427

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Concert is Sat, Feb 15:
8 pm MARIACHI VARGAS DE TECALITLAN plays City National Grove of Anaheim.

Internationally acclaimed as the best mariachi in the world, the group makes a rare local appearance.

Originally founded by Don Gaspar Vargas, Manuel Mendoza and two violinists in the town of Tecalitlan, Mexico in 1898, this mariachi group has since starred in more than 200 movies, recorded dozens of albums of pasodobles, valses, bailables, polkas, and danzones, as well as collaborated with various artists including Juan Gabriel and Linda Ronstadt.

Today the group is composed of three trumpets, one harp, one vihuela, guitar, guitarron, guitara and six violins. With this ensemble, a new sound has been brought to light that crosses all international borders. Their music today now ranges from traditional sones to classical works as well as other styles that continue to enchant their worldwide audience.

Ticket prices start at $43.25 and are available at www.ticketmaster.com or at 800-745-3000, or at The City National Grove of Anaheim Box Office.

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Concert is Sun, Feb 16:
8 pm  BETTMAN & HALPIN return from their Colorado base for a CD release tour and a few Southern Cal shows, including this, their big one, at McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Tix, $20, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Concert is Sat, Feb 22:
8 pm  THE CHIEFTAINS, “Ireland's Musical Ambassadors to the World,” play the Valley Performing Arts Center at CSUN in Northridge.

Tix, $75 / $60 / $45 / $30, at www.valleyperformingartscenter.org/calendar/the-chieftains

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Concert is Feb 22:
8 pm  FRANK FAIRFIELD banjo and multi-instrumentalist purveyor of old-time string band merriment, plays McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Tix, $15, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Concert is a matinee kids show, Feb 23:
11 am  LISA LOEB at McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Tix, $15, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Concert is Feb 23:
8 pm  SYLVIA TYSON, CINDY CASHDOLLAR, SCARLET RIVERA play McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Tix, $24.50, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Concert is Sun, March 2:
8 pm  LUCINDA WILLIAMS plays a newly-added second show at McCabe’s in Santa Monica. The first show on March 1 sold-out promptly.

Tix, $55, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Concert is March 5:
8 pm MERLE HAGGARD plays the City National Grove of Anaheim.

Whether fugitive, troubadour, misfit or crusader, California country music legend Merle Haggard has explored each perspective with a critical acuity, a hard-won skill that's allowed him to score no less than 40 number one country hits. Immediately embraced by country fans, Haggard also earned the respect of his peers. He has won just about every music award imaginable, both as a performer and as a songwriter, and in 2010 he was honored at the Kennedy Center Honors in recognition for his lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts. His body of work easily places him beside Hank Williams as one of the most influential artists in country music.

Over a distinguished fifty year-plus career that's taken him from a drastically misspent criminal youth to solitary confinement in San Quentin to the Country Music Hall of Fame, Haggard has memorably portrayed, in song, myriad archetypal characters. After being diagnosed with lung cancer in 2008 and having part of his lung removed, Haggard shows no signs of the disease returning and continues to produce songs and perform live with more energy and enthusiasm than many a younger man or woman.

Advance tix available now, at:
http://m.ticketmaster.com/event/09004B72C5B37552?artistid=821092&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=2&brand=nederlanderla&camefrom=cfc_ndrcon_ned_Feb5

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Show is Fri, March 7:
8 pm LEWIS BLACK at the City National Grove of Anaheim.

"I can't wait to see what our leadership isn't going to accomplish next." - Lewis Black

Lewis Black, Grammy Award-winning stand-up comedian, is one of the most prolific and popular performers working today. He executes a brilliant trifecta as stand-up comedian, actor and author. Receiving critical acclaim, he performs over 200 nights a year to sell out audiences throughout Europe, New Zealand, Canada and United States. He is one of a few performers to sell out multiple renowned theatres including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Brooks Atkinson Theatre, New York City Center, the Main Stage at the Mirage in Las Vegas and most recently a sold out Broadway run at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in NYC.

His live performances provide a cathartic release of anger and disillusionment for his audience. He is a passionate performer who is a more pissed-off optimist than mean-spirited curmudgeon. Lewis is the rare comic who can cause an audience to laugh themselves into incontinence while making compelling points about the absurdity of our world.

Lewis Black came into national prominence with his appearances on The Daily Show in 1996. Those appearances on The Daily Show led to comedy specials on HBO, Comedy Central, Showtime and Epix. In 2001, he won the Best Male Stand-Up at the American Comedy Awards. He has released eight comedy albums, including the 2007 Grammy Award-winning "The Carnegie Hall Performance." Lewis Black won his second Grammy Award for his album "Stark Raving Black." Lewis has published three bestselling books, Nothing's Sacred (Simon & Schuster, 2005), Me of Little Faith (Riverhead Books, 2008) and I'm Dreaming of a Black Christmas (Riverhead Books, 2010).

Advance tix available now, at:
www.citynationalgroveofanaheim.com/events/event_details.asp?id=2699

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Concert is March 14:
7 pm YOUNG DUBLINERS plus special guests THE HUMBLE HOOLIGANS, and BROTHER, at the City National Grove of Anaheim.

Advance tix available now, at:
http://m.ticketmaster.com/event/09004B83DBE07647?artistid=806054&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=1&brand=nederlanderla&camefrom=cfc_ndrcon_ned_Feb5

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Event is Sat, Mar 15:
8 pm  THE FENIANS play the St. Paddy's Day Celebration Concert at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano. Doors at 6 pm.

Tix at 949-496-8927 or   HYPERLINK "http://www.thecoachhouse.com" www.thecoachhouse.com

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Concert is March 19:
8 pm  KENNY ROGERS, with MICHAEL ANN AZOULAI opening, at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. Michael Ann says, “apparently out of quite a few submissions, my music was chosen!”

Half the tickets are already sold-out. Jump on it at 323-655-0111 or www.sabantheatre.com

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Concert is Sat, April 5:
8 pm  PETER CASE plays his “6OTH BIRTHDAY SHOW” at McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Tix, $20, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Two shows: Sat, April 12, & Sun, April 13:
8:30 pm  BRUCE COCKBURN at McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Tix, $30, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.

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Show is Mon, April 28:
8 pm  JOHN McEUEN journeys from New York and takes a break from touring with The Nitty Gritty Dirt band to play with Matt Cartsonis, and his back up guys, at the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena.

His infrequent solo shows sell-out early, and Matt Cartsonis is a show all by himself. Reservations, 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There may be more on the venue’s website, at www.coffeegallery.com

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Festival is Sun, May 4:
24th Annual "DYLANFEST" runs Noon-8 pm, at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center, outside on the Torino Plaza, 3330 Civic Center Dr, Torrance 90503.

Early-Bird tickets are available until April 1 at the discounted price of $25 adult, $10 child, $100 vip, at: http://andyandrenee.com/store.php

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Sat, June 7:
7:30 pm  ERIC ANDERSEN plays McCabe’s in Santa Monica.

Tix, $26.50, at  HYPERLINK http://www.mccabes.com www.mccabes.com or 310-828-4497.
 
 
 
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Our NEWS FEATURE for
Thursday, February 6
Is an editorial
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√  INDIE MUSIC, SUPER BOWL COMMERCIALS AND CLIMATE-CHANGE DENIERS

We live in an age when everything we write is collected and analyzed by countless supercomputers and sold as prepackaged marketing data that brings us unwanted email and arranges the sequence of Facebook posts every time we open our pages.

That’s not some standard applied to the songwriter’s output. It’s the standard for scrutinization of our emails, social media posts, tweets, and supposedly private e-messages.

Now, the wholly unnatural world of spying supercomputers has produced an eerie parallel of natural systems for our internet interactions. Didn’t expect that one, did you? Anyone studying the earth’s natural environment, and the inherent impacts and assimilative capacities of natural systems, learns at the starting gate that “everything is connected to everything else.”

Now, manipulated electrons cause everything to be digitally compiled and compressed, skewed, screwed and reviewed, and ultimately distilled and packaged and fed back to us as a non-nutritive soylent green aimed at altering or controling our behavior in ways the hidden hands can exploit for profit or political power. It’s happened overnight, and it’s already beyond rampant. It’s ubiquitous. It’s evidenced by the obscene amounts of money spent on dumb commercials aired during major sporting events.

We’ve seen considerable comment about the Coca-Cola Super Bowl commercial. Seems it has conservatives’ teeth on edge, and plenty of others commending the maker of high-fructose (or saccharine) –laden beverages for a hideously-expensive celebration of cultural and ethnic diversity. Let’s get real with the real thing: airing that ad was simply following market research data that indicated sales would increase if you did it. So, should we single-out Coke and their ad? No need to.

Simply put, anything and everything we encounter is probably the ultra-expensive product of propagandizing manipulators whose bloated salaries are dependent upon marketing to us every waking hour, and they probably get even bigger bonuses when they do it subliminally while we sleep.

In the world of market-research-driven / internet-dossier-tailored advertising, nothing is sacred but the quest of the dollar, and let’s be clear, they have no concept of privacy. Nor are there moments (for them) when it is inappropriate to see us as subjects from which to extract money. Same holds for their expensive campaigns launched for rich clients and political interests to shape our opinions or imbed “facts” in our belief systems that are based on nothing more than the lies they must disseminate – and likely have themselves accepted – to bring their clients greater control of our buying impulses.

Indeed, plenty of ordinary worker bees continue to admire and aspire to joining the octopus-like money-manipulating ultra-wealthy.

Simply being aware of the presence and magnitude of all that is the essential first step to discerning and deciphering how it works and what it means. But one wonders how many, among the masses, are even at that “recognition” stage? The way millions of people indiscriminately post intimately personal information on their social media pages would suggest a miniscule level of awareness of – indeed, it may represent being oblivious to – the potential consequences of handing ammunition to exploiters to use against us – all of us.

There are so many dichotomies and contradictions in the crazy new methodology and amorality and devoid-of-ethics cyber world and its attendant and purposefully targeted and infallible memory. Somehow, everyone gets outraged over government databases, but they’re not concerned over corporate files that dwarf anything the government has, files and algorithms that probably predetermine whether you’ll get the job or get into the school you want, regardless of how much you study, your skills and talents, and how hard you work. And we willingly let the unseen datamasters compile ever more on us, every time we click a permission box that no one reads because it’s a required click to download a new phone app or a pizza coupon.

We are only selectively oblivious. All of us are all appalled, and we share our shock and outrage on social media, when we see the mindset and thought control practiced in a North Korea – but how many of us question whether the puppet masters of Wall Street’s short-term profit-taking and their devotion to the supremacy of Corporatocracy are much different? No, we are not seeing rivals for control of our personal cyberdata being fed-alive to packs of starving dogs, like rivals for power in North Korea. Well, we don’t see it here, literally.

But we do see professional assassinations through clandestine innuendo, and trashing of dissenters. We’re all connected, so we see that all the time – if we manage to look past the towering canyon walls of distractions, the media’s obsessive hyping of hypodermic needles in the arms of dead actors, the obliviously narcissistic rich-kid pop-music twits behaving badly, the rehab dropout celebrities, and Kartrashians, the “we’re-the-only-ones-you-can-trust” Faux News birther/truther/Benghazi noise machine, and turn on the TV and fill-in-the-blank with the latest transitory distraction-of-the-day. Ultimately, does it matter? Or is the entire purpose to numb us into dismissing the very idea that it might matter?

The visual artist, the poet, the songwriter – particularly the indie performing songwriter – can choose to be valuable in helping society see the question (more accurately, the related set of relevant questions) just as the atmospheric chemist and ocean-temperature research scientist and conscientious journalist can do. Indeed, all of us can choose to ask the questions and not accept answers that come with no support from science, and to see and seize the responsibility that is accorded us with our more visible status as artists or scientists or journalists. Our diverse grouping is thus curiously related, and uniquely positioned to say “wait a minute” to propagandizing corporatocracy, and to help determine how humanity responds to the most pressing issues we have ever faced.

We’ve been shown the way. Woody Guthrie and John Steinbeck helped America face and overcome economic injustice during the Great Depression. Pete Seeger and Joan Baez helped us to become the “we” that shall yet overcome social and racial injustice. But all of us, regardless of where we reside on this fragile blue orb, are challenged like never before: we face the issues on which the rise and fall of human civilization itself will be determined. Can a songwriter write a song that’s the three-minute equivalent of the Great American Novel, that motivates the masses to wake up and reject being manipulated?

Our time is the ultimate test of music. Can we move humanity to a galvanized state of awareness and action? If we can, the time for it to happen, if it can, is now. Can we end obsessive consumerism, act to save the planet’s ability to sustain more of us than the Earth’s natural carrying capacity should be able to sustain, end admiration and acceptance of uber-rich narcissists who isolate and insulate themselves from the struggles of millions? Inherent in the answer is recognition that any music that tries to do that – any part of that – can’t come from someone who is signed to a big corporate conglomerate label. The moguls would never stand for one division of their empire hurting the profitability of other appendages of the “corporate person” / behemoth.

In politics, you need enough unity to carry a consensus for action. In art, sometimes it only takes one person.

But we have arrived at a time when the stakes have never been higher. For in the end, it's either everything, or it's nothing. Maybe it’s too late to matter. Last summer, the Arctic Ocean was ice-free along the margins of land, and ships sailed the Northwest Passage for the first time ever. Maybe Greenland and Antarctica will melt no matter what we do now.

Perhaps we should pull all the stuffed-and-mounted coal-fired steam locomotives out of the parks and restore them and enjoy them and let them belch smoke, because they’re fun and romantic – and their carbon soot and coal ash and C02 is comparatively insignificant if corporate America can’t be stopped from building Canadian tar sands pipelines, and the earth is already past the tipping point of catastrophic climate change, anyway.

When the coastal plains, where most of the planet's population lives, are inundated by rising seas, human migration inland will erase arable food-growing regions. Starvation will ensue. Wars will follow, for the same reason as the most ancient of wars – the need for lands that can feed people. And with that, all the dedicated efforts to preserve habitats for endangered wildlife will go by the wayside. Biodiversity will diminish. Extinctions could even happen at a rate to rival the demise of the dinosaurs. Food production will be a fraction of what it takes to feed us, and if the bees are gone, there won’t be much of the pollination required for plant propagation.

If we're already past the tipping point that we understand conceptually but cannot accurately measure, then what the hell, buy all the stupid self-indulgent crap they advertise endlessly to make you believe you need it. Blindly succumb to the totality of addicted consumerism. Party like there's no tomorrow. Because there isn't.

But if we're not yet past that tipping point, then maybe, just maybe, it matters that we stop the manipulation and the endless sense of entitlement by the few who believe nothing is as important as their “need” for ultra-enrichment, fed by their right to make their fortunes ever bigger, by steering the rebels among us like Thelma and Louise toward one inescapable course.

An old John Fogerty song may be your compass:
Wrote a song for everyone
Wrote a song for truth
Wrote a song for everyone
When I couldn’t even talk to you.

Thus, the challenge, right there in that last line, to speak to the consciousness of enough of the rest of humanity, to reach enough of our fellow humans, to change the equation, in time.

Anyone for the challenge? Thelma? Louise? Buehler?
 
 
 
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♪  THURSDAY-Only MUSIC EVENTS
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Thursday, February 6, 2014
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Thu-Sat, Feb 6-8;
continuing through Feb 23,
live theatre,
in South Pasadena:
3 pm  "FROM The BEST of The FEST" presented by the L.A. Women's Theatre Festival and the Fremont, at the Fremont Centre Theatre, 1000 Fremont Av, South Pasadena 91030; 626-441-5977.
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This powerful "From the Best of the Fest" Benefit highlights some of the multicultural and multi-disciplined performers from the L.A. Women's Theatre Festival from 1996-2013. The Annual Festival honors the achievement of extraordinary women in theatre.

Runs Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at 8 pm, Sundays at 3 pm. Tickets are $25 at the door, cheaper in advance; $20 general, $15 students and seniors..

Tix and info at:www.FremontCentreTheatre.com or toll-free at 866-811-4111.

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Thu, Feb 6, in Long Beach:
5 pm  KEN O'MALLEY brings a solo show of his authentic and original Irish music to the Auld Dubliner, 71 S Pine, Long Beach 90802; 562-437-8300.

++++

Thu, Feb 6, in VC (Camarillo):
6 pm  “AGOURA IRISH SESSION” is a structured jam at Brendan’s Irish Pub & Restaurant, 1755 E Daily Dr, Camarillo 93010; 888-811-5818.

++++

Wed, Feb 6, in Torrance:
6-8:30 pm  ANDY & RENEE of HARD RAIN, named the Best Band in the South Bay for 2013, play the Buffalo Fire Department, 1261 Cabrillo Av, Torrance 90501; 310-320-2332.
+
Renee tells us, "The food is delicious and reasonably-priced; the staff is friendly and helpful; all ages are welcome, and it's a great place to hear music."

++++++

Thu, Feb 6, in OC (San Juan Capistrano):
7 pm  CITIZEN COPE plays an acoustic show at the Coach House, 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano 92675; 949-496-8927.

++++

Thu Feb 6, in Burbank:
7:30 pm  JERRY HALL & TRICK SHOT plays the monthly “WESTERN MUSIC NIGHT” cosponsored by the Western Music Association’s California Chapter, at Cody’s Viva Cantina, 900 Riverside Dr (next to L.A. Equestrian Center), Burbank; 818-845-2425 or 818-515-4444;  HYPERLINK "http://www.vivacantina.com/" www.vivacantina.com.
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No cover. Venue is known for its Mexican food and full bar. Okay to park free across the street at Pickwick Bowl (free, nearly unlimited parking for Viva patrons).

++++++

Thu, Feb 6, in L.A.:
7:30 pm SHEETAL GANDHI from “Cirque Du Soleil’s Dralion” plays Theatre Raymond Kabbaz, 10361 W Pico Bl, Los Angeles 90064.
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It’s a “stunning solo performance… combining elements of traditional Northern Indian dance and song, Bahu-Beti-Biwi portrays multiple generations of Indian women while injecting a healthy dose of humor and irony.”
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Arrive early for the exhibition by ADNAN HUSSAIN before the show, at 6:30 pm.
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Tix at www.lyceela.org

++++++

Thu, Feb 6,
stage play, in Santa Monica:
7:30 pm  “THE STRANGE UNDOING OF PRUDENCIA HART” on the Edye Stage at the Broad, Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center, 1310 11th St, Santa Monica 90401; 310-434-3200.
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This is an “interactive theatrical production,” by the National Theater of Scotland, unleashing a company of five raucous actors and musicians to tilt your kilt in a rollicking, wildly entertaining evening of supernatural storytelling, music and theatre, inspired by the Border Ballads, Robert Burns, and the poems of Robert Service. This ballad about ballads is written with a contemporary twist and is staged with an interactive and inventive sense of fun. Life-affirming and touchingly beautiful, you don't have to be Scottish or like haggis to agree with the critics. "...more vibrantly, sexily alive than any piece of theatre I've seen in Scotland for years." ~ The Scotsman).
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Tix, $70-$50; discount available using promo code PUB at checkout.
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Tix at:
http://thebroadstage.com/prudencia

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Thu, Feb 6, in WeHo:
8 pm  LOS LONELY BOYS celebrating the release of their latest album, “Revelation,” at The Troubadour, 9081 Santa Monica Bl, West Hollywood.
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The Guide did a feature story (feature #2) on the new release the day it came out, in our January 21 edition. It’s available at:
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http://acousticamericana.blogspot.com/2014/01/news-tuesday-tunefulness-jan-21-2014.html?m=0
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Tix, $30, at www.troubadour.com/event/390029-los-lonely-boys-los-angeles
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They have one more local show, tomorrow night in San Juan Capistrano at the Coach House.

++++++

Thu Feb 6, in OC (Costa Mesa):
8 pm “MAESTRO OF THE MOVIES” brings JOHN WILLIAMS conducting PACIFIC SYMPHONY for a benefit concert evening in Segerstrom Hall at Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Dr, Costa Mesa; 714-556-2787;  HYPERLINK "http://www.ocpac.org" \t "_blank" www.ocpac.org. 
+
As the man responsible for the most recognizable film music in history, John Williams is a Hollywood legend. His scores — including "Star Wars," "Jaws," "Superman," "Indiana Jones," "Harry Potter," "E.T., the Extra Terrestrial" and more — have provided iconic soundtracks for multiple generations. He conducts Pacific Symphony for the first time in a decade during this special one-night-only benefit concert.
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Tix at 714-755-5799 or www.PacificSymphony.org

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Thu Feb 6, in Altadena:
8 pm  Jazz saxophone maestro GRACE KELLY performs with her trio at the Coffee Gallery Backstage, 2029 N Lake Av, Altadena.
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Grace Kelly was “the” featured artist at the recent 10th Anniversary of The Producers Guild Of America in Hollywood. She followed that with a special appearance at The Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl. Venue impresario Bob Stane says, “Last times here she got standing ovations. This is a jazz super star. You will love her.”
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The trio is Grace Kelly on saxes and vocals, Jeff Babko on keys, and Jerry Watts on bass.
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GRACE KELLY has performed everywhere, from Birdland in New York to Carnegie Hall. She has appeared at the Kennedy Center, and Symphony Hall in Boston as well as a leader in over 500 jazz clubs and festivals worldwide, including the 2010 Newport Jazz Festival where she opened and the 2010 Montreal Jazz Festival. Of course, this is her third time at The Coffee Gallery Backstage. A logical progression of dates. (How did this happen thrice?) Bob Stane says, "I have just whispered in your ear. Absolute money back guarantee. You will be on your feet cheering. www.coffeegallery.com to see her photo and write up.”
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Tix, $25. Reservations a must, as this will sell-out. Call 626-798-6236, 10 am-10 pm, seven days. There’s more on the venue’s website, at: www.coffeegallery.com

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Thu Feb 6, in Silver Lake (L.A.):
8 pm  Weekly "HONK TONK HACIENDA" at El Cid, 4212 W Sunset Bl, Silver Lake 90029; www.ElCidLA.com; 323-668-0318.
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This week, it’s “elegant and hot swing from the 1930s,” with:

♪  SAM OUTLAW, country singer living in Los Angeles, plus,
♪  MOONSVILLE COLLECTIVE, old-time band.

Every Thursday, El Cid turns into “Honky Tonk Hacienda” with bands, songwriters and musical instigators tearing it up with Outlaw Country, Roots, Old Time and Americana.
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No cover before 8:30 pm, $5 thereafter. Doors at 7 pm, music starts at 8. Ample street parking; valet parking available.

++++++

Thu, Feb 6, in OC (Irvine):
8 pm  TOULOUSE ENGELHARDT and JOHN YORK team-up to play the Main Stage at the Irvine Valley College Performing Arts Center, 5500 Irvine Center Dr, Irvine 92618; 949-451-5333; srochford@ivc.edu

++++

Thu, Feb 6, in Palm Desert:
8 pm  “PALM SPRINGS LEGENDS” show, with THE LINDY SISTERS and tribute artists portraying Lucille Ball, Bing Crosby, the Andrews Sisters, Bob Hope, Liberace, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, and Red Skelton, backed by THE LEGENDS ORCHESTRA, at the lovely McCallum Theatre, 73000 Fred Waring Dr, Palm Desert.
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Tix, $25-$75, at www.mccallumtheatre.com or 760-340-ARTS.

Thu Feb 6, in SFV (Chatsworth):
8 pm  An undisclosed “AMERICANA / ALT-COUNTRY / TRAD COUNTRY BAND” plays the Cowboy Palace, 21635 Devonshire St, Chatsworth; 818-341-0166.
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This is L.A.’s last real honky tonk. No cover, full bar, lots of fun. Go early for the nightly free dance lesson.

++++++

Thu, Feb 6, at UCLA:
8 pm  MIKE DAISEY does a STORYTELLING performance at the Center for the Art of Performance in Royce Hall, on the UCLA Campus in Westwood 90095; info and tix, 310-825-2101 or 310-825-4401.

++++

Thu, Feb 6,
FREE with reservation,
in Pasadena:
8 pm  “FULL THROTTLE COMEDY” show makes its once-a-year visit to the Pasadena Ice House in the Main Show Room, on Mentor Av just N of Colorado Bl, in old town Pasadena.
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Lineup features Adam Richmond, seen on Tonight Show; Kabbir Singh from Comedy Central; Eric Meyers, who just did a new one-hour special; plus more.
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100 tickets are given-away. You can reserve up to 10 free tickets, at:
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www.comedymadnessshow.com.
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You receive email confirmation of tix held under your name on the guest list. Check your spam box as well.

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Thu, Feb 6, in Murrieta:
8 pm  BRIAN CALDWELL from HIGHLAND WAY plays the Shamrock Irish Pub & Eatery, 39252 Winchester Rd #145, Murrieta 92563; 951-696-5252; www.theshamrockirishpubandeatery.com

++++++

Thu, Feb 6, in L.A.:
8 pm  “L.A. HOOTENANNY” happens at Villains Tavern, 1356 Palmetto St, near downtown Los Angeles 90013; 213-613-0766.

++++

Thu, Feb 6, waaay out in the desert in Pioneertown:
8 pm  JEFFREY FOUCAULT plays Pappy & Harriet’s Place, 53688 Pioneertown Rd, Pioneertown 92268; 760-365-5956.

++++

Thu, Feb 6, in Hermosa Beach:
8:30 pm  SARAH LEE GUTHRIE & JOHNNY IRION play Saint Rocke, 142 Pacific Coast Hwy, Hermosa Beach 90254; 310-372-0035.

++++

Thu, Feb 6, in Hollywood:
8:30 pm "MOULIN RUSSE" at the Catalina Jazz Club, 6725 W Sunset Bl (just W of Highland), Hollywood 90028.
+
It's "An all-new set of the French music you love, by Dassin, Brel, Kaas, Macias, Vaya Con Dios, Piaf and more, and Russian favorites by Rosenbaum, Makarevich, as well as beloved classics," in "a truly unique show you won't likely find anywhere else," says producer Paris Chansons.
+
Performances by:
√  The Paris Chansons ensemble of Julia & Jacob Kantor, Jean-Louis Darville & Max Cohen; featuring Jeff Lams on piano, Arthur Shane on accordion, Endre Balogh on violin, Jacob Kantor on guitar and guest musician, Alex Grager.
√  Plus, L.A.'s premier French dance troupe, Cabaret Versatile.
+
If you haven't heard Paris Chansons before, here's a 3-minute video of their recent French show:
+
http://youtu.be/FIVcuk0WlKI
+
$15 admission, plus 2 drink or dinner minimum. Advance tix:
www.frenchsingersla.com
+
Doors at 7, showtime 8:30 pm. Remaining seats on sale at the door.
 
 
 
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More, soon, as always.
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♪  The Guide will be making CH-CH-CHANGES – turn, embrace the change -- in 2014. Some folks will like some, others will not. There will be points of departure to make room (and time) for the new. We’ll do what we can, because as always, we operate with the editor’s motto, “One does what one can.”
 
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The ACOUSTIC AMERICANA MUSIC GUIDE endeavors to bring you NEWS and views of interest to artists everywhere, more specifically to musicians and the creative community, and music makers and fans of acoustic and Folk-Americana music, both traditional and innovative. We provide a wealth of resources, including a HUGE catalog of acoustic-friendly venues, and schedules of performances in Southern California venues large and small. We cover workshops and other events for artists and folks in the music industry, and all kids o’ things in the world of acoustic and Americana and accessible classical music. From washtub bass to musical spoons to oboe to viola to banjo to squeezebox, from Djangostyle to new-fangled-old-time string band music, from sweet Cajun fiddle to pre-bluegrass Appalachian mountain music to proto blues.
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