All the glitz and glamour of Tinsel Town’s Academy Awards night once again came to the annual Capital City AIDS Fund benefit gala, Oscar Night Sacramento. Chosen by the Academy of Motion Picture and Arts and Sciences, Oscar Night Sacramento is one of only 49 sanctioned events in the country. Oscar Night America is a "grassroots program that enables local charities to host glamorous Oscar viewing parties and raise money for their organizations," according to an AMPAS press release. To set these parties apart from the thousands of unsanctioned events on Oscar Night, each ONA party receives copies of the official commemorative poster and show program among other items. The downtown Hyatt

A veteran of the Vietnam War, writer, director and producer, Oliver Stone began his movie career as a screenwriter in the late 1970s with credits that included “Midnight Express,” “Conan the Barbarian” and “Scarface.” He won an Oscar for best director for “Platoon,” his semi-autobiographical film about the ground war in Vietnam. He went on to make a string of successful and controversial films like “Salvador,” “Born on the Fourth of July,” both Wall Street sagas, and “The Doors.” His historical dramas “JFK” and “Nixon” earned Stone a reputation as a historical pragmatic and paranoid conspiracy theorist. Stone is currently producing a movie to be released this summer, “Savages.” The stor

Think Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and Willie Nelson rolled into one, and yet you can only begin to imagine the sensation of a Lukas Nelson performance. Hitting the stage at the Powerhouse Pub in Folsom, with his talented band Promise of the Real, Nelson immediately captured the respect of his audience with his opening poetic dirge, “Let Me Smoke My Pipe.” He spent the evening rolling them into his powerful, soulful, rockin’ blues concert that left all satisfied with a truly smokin’ hot afternoon, indeed. At 23, showing off his recent clean-shaven face and shorter locks, the strikingly handsome yet still boyishly charming son of music legend Willi

It may be winter, but the warm sand and cool surf are calling, and what better way to ring in 2012 than a trip down to Kokomo with the legendary Beach Boys. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and recent California Hall of Fame inductees will be showcasing their fun in the sun songs that are set against a backdrop of surfing, girls and cars at Thunder Valley Casino 's Toast of The Coast-New Year’s Eve 2011 Celebration” in the Holiday Pavilion this Saturday in Lincoln.   Founded in Hawthorne, Calif. in 1961, The Beach Boys were originally comprised of the three Wilson brothers: Brian, Carl and Dennis, their cousin Mike Love, and school friend Al Jardine. Neighbor David Marks joined the group

Having had a grandfather who was a nightclub owner as well as a record distributer in the 40’s and 50’s had its benefits. One of which was the wonderful collection of music left to some of his children and grandchildren upon his passing. Some of my fondest memories were listening to the tunes from the juke boxes filled with the old 45’s  and later on the turntable from such great’s as Little Richard, Elvis Presley, Sam Cooke, The Big Bopper and, of course, Buddy Holly. As a young child, I’d dance and sing to them all! Then in 1971 a friend and I were sitting in her room listening to the radio when a DJ from the now defunct Sacramento radio station, KNDE announced, a song by Don Mclean, “

The Palm's Playhouse in Winters once again proved that you don’t have to travel to a big city to get top quality entertainment. Starting out Sunday evening in front of a packed house was the devilishly fun surf revival group, Los Straitjackets. The group shocked me into submission with their succinct musical arrangements and a stage show that included the players wearing colorful Mexican wrestling masks, black clothing and a purposely disturbing choreographic routine with “Pulp Fiction” coolness. Los Straitjackets’ lead guitarist is Eddie Angel, a noted rockabilly from Nashville. The group also included Pete Curry on bass; Danny Amis, aka "Daddy-O Grande," Greg Townsen, aka "El Gregori

The Palm’s Playhouse in Winters always has a great list of performers. I remember the original Palm’s back when they were in Davis.  I must confess, however, I have never made the effort to drive from wherever I happen to be in California to check out a show at their “new” location until recently, when I saw that Marshall Crenshaw was on the bill. Many of my friends and family who either live nearby or have visited the small town of Winters had recommended, if ever I happen to pass thru the area (geographically speaking, like Mendocino or Timbuktu, nobody just happens to “pass thru” Winters), besides the Palm’s, I should also check out the famous Buckhorn Restaurant located across the str

Mick Martin and His Blues Rockers along with the legendary Big Brother and the Holding Company helped open the two day Nor Cal Blues Festival in Auburn Friday evening. Martin not only put a sparkle in the twilite with his classic list of hits, but also brought on stage one of his protégé’s, and his Great Grandson, Kyle Rowland who proved that he too can blow a soulful tune on his harp with as much talent and mood as his seasoned and proud Great Pappy Mick has demonstrated on stages all over the world for more then 25 years.    Janis Joplin may have left the band, but Big Brother and the Holding Company (BBHC) never left Janis. Evolving out of the San Francisco rock scene of the 1960s, Bi

As the sun set and the warm Delta breezes swept up the banks of the Sacramento River just 18 miles south of Downtown Sacramento and only a few miles off Highway 5 in the tiny farming community of Clarksburg, Whisky Dawn took the stage at the “Old Sugar Mill.” Breaking out songs from their first original album, Dear Nashville, as well as some covers, Dawn, brought line dancing fans to their feet and non-believers to their knees. From their smooth as honey self- titled song, Whisky Dawn, to their dirge to nearby Elk Grove’s, “Grant Line Road,” this band is not afraid to admit they are California Country, and a hell of a lot of fun! Although Whiskey Dawn is just in their third year of per

“Tony Silva rides the bus to see the punk rock bands    He rides out from BFN and no one understands   He doesn’t have a car and he’s not old enough to drive    But seeing punk rock concerts is what keeps Tony alive.” --“Tony Silva Rides the Bus”, by The Secretions   Despite a bad economy and multiple venue closures this year, punk rock is alive and well among the under-18 crowd. “There will be times when things get closed down, and it’ll affect the scene negatively, but in the long run, there’s a resilience in Sacramento,” said Craig Usher, who has been going to punk shows since his freshman year of high school. Usher, now 42 with children, runs a Facebook page cataloguing shows. He sa

The K Street Mall saw some unusual activity last night as the Dive Bar/Pizza Rock VIP Party came to life. Located between 10th and 11th Streets, three new development projects are reaching completion with the intention of pumping new life into the pedestrian mall area. The Dive Bar boasts an enormous salt water fish tank above the bar, complete with live "mer-people" swimming leisurely overhead. Pizza Rock offers gourmet pizzas, a full bar stretching underneath a life-size Peterbilt truck rig crashing through the wall. Pizza Rock's ceiling displays a variation on Michelangelo's "Creation of Adam" from the Sistine Chapel - in this version God is handing an electric guitar to Adam. A plush d

 I recently wrote a piece on the "Death of the Record Store." I was very impressed by the amount of feedback that the article received, be it in the Sacramento Press, via email or in person. Inevitably the conversation led to fond memories about fun times and good music. I was reminded particularly of the live music experiences I've had. Along with the demise of too many record stores, I contend there is a serious lacking in the quality and quantity of live music available today, especially in the smaller to mid-size venues, and towns. While the experience of a big Grateful Dead show in Oakland was always a fun time, the smaller, more intimate performances of a Jerry Garcia Band show at