By CHARLES ANDREWS
HOWDY!
(I grew up in New Mexico, I get to say that.)
Welcome back to NOTEWORTHY, my attempt to make sure you don’t miss some great live show that you would have been front row for… if only you had known about it. These are not listings; they are my personal recommendations. I would be at every one of these if I could.
The easiest way to get both my columns, in your email, is to subscribe (free) to my Substack, MUSIC, POLITICS, LIFE.
Go to – https://bit.ly/3UGkK1F
And hit the “subscribe” button. It’s free, or you can choose to contribute, and then I will really love you.
“1984”
Have you read George Orwell’s 1949 masterwork lately? Good time, now. You could warm up with his brilliant novella from four years earlier, “ANIMAL FARM.” Such timeless and prescient insight, and concise, evocative storytelling. Chilling, when it was cautionary fiction that seemed so improbable. Now – what are we going to do? Orwell offered no way out, once in.
JIMMY KIMMEL
Was due to return to the airwaves the following night, as I wrote this Monday evening. TACO. Resist: it works.
NEIL YOUNG
I missed his Farm Aid performance (on TV) last Saturday, but heard it was really good. Not surprised. I was at his Hollywood Bowl show the previous Monday, and it was beyond so dang good. Here’s a blurb I wrote about it on posts: Neil Young’s 2-hr show at the Bowl last Monday was spectacular. So many hits, and what a stunning range, from the sweetness of “Harvest Moon” and “Only Love” to rocks-off “Southern Man” and “Ohio.” He’s 84 – two years older than Jagger, and still shreds his axe like a 19-year-old with something to prove. Thank you, Nicole!! Yes, “Teach Your Children,” and maybe they will take you to great concerts!
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED:
LA PHIL, DUDAMEL LAUNCHES FINAL SEASON – Sob, boo hoo, boo! But we revelled in his gifts for 17 years, and now it is time to take pity on that East Coast cultural backwater, NYC. You’re welcome. For this first concert of the last season, The Dude has chosen wisely and coherently. Leading with superb Pulitzer-Prize winning modern composer Ellen Reid, this premier of her “Earth Between Oceans” utilizes the LA Master Chorale as it slides through nature between LA and NY, showcasing the power and resilience that endures past geopolitical disasters. After intermission, Richard Strauss’s “An Alpine Symphony,” conducted for the first time by Dudamel, similarly throws nature against humanity’s foibles. Sounds like something we need right now. Thurs, Fri, Sat 8 p.m., Sun 2 p.m., Walt Disney Concert Hall, LA, $29-180.
LA OPERA’s “WEST SIDE STORY” – Conceived as an opera, it hit Broadway 9/27/57 as a musical, hit very big, now also two high-profile films, but this is how it was meant to be experienced. The large ensemble sings, dances, and acts at a very high level, but without diminishing Kim Duke’s “Tony” or the rest of the cast, the powerful and “lusciously colored” voice of Nicaraguan-American soprano Gabriella Reyes’ “Maria” soars over it all. You might say, how could it miss, with Leonard Bernstein’s masterpiece composition (still sounding “modern” and edgy), moving lyrics and dialogue by Stephen Sondheim, and the unmistakable choreography of the great Jerome Robbins, brought to the LAO stage intact. Give all involved great credit for inhabiting these genius and oft-examined elements. It continues to thrill audiences despite some antiquated settings and language, daddy-o; it is unnervingly a tale for this moment in history, probably more so than at any time in its endless run. This gritty mid-20th century West Side New York update of “Romeo and Juliet” again demonstrates how timeless were The Bard’s plays, but don’t give him too much credit. This was the magical convergence of so much great creativity that it changed the course of American theatre and music. A very high bar that his production scales. You have no excuse for missing this: it has been such a smash out of the box that LA Opera has added several performances, a rare thing. And dig this, Santa Monica: it will be simulcast on the Pier on Saturday, free. Thurs, Sat 7:30 p.m., Sun 2 p.m., Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, LA, $33-350.
HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES – You can go to the Cinema Bar any Monday night, 9-11:30, free, for almost 14 years now, and hear these hot players run through Django Reinhardt-style ‘30s jazz. This amazing ensemble is a treasure. Mon 9 p.m., Cinema Bar, Culver City, free.
RECOMMENDED:
THEATRICUM BOTANICUM: – Outdoors in the Topanga Canyon woods, now in their 50th year, it is one of the very best theatre companies in LA, with a mastery of The Bard and moving, thought-provoking topical productions. You had all summer, but it’s not too late. Their killer production this season is “STRIFE,” which sounds like today’s horrible headlines (“what compromise is possible when human dignity and health are on the line?”), gripping, with a great ending, Sun 7:30 p.m. Ditto “WINE IN THE WILDERNESS,” which takes a few mind-bending turns, Sat, Mon 7:30 p.m. “THE SEAGULL: MALIBU” is the only misstep I have seen this company take in 20 years of performances. Maybe it had to do with two principles being sidelined when I saw it. Mon 3:30 p.m. Will Geer’s TB, Topanga Canyon, $15-60.
“HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU” – Panel game show format takes on politics and current events, but the object is not so much to have correct answers but hilarious ones. The chaos is overseen by one of my favorites, Roy Wood Jr., but his two team captains, Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black, dish up the biggest laughs, most of them spontaneously. Every Sat, 9 p.m., CNN
JOAN OSBORNE – You remember her, right? “One of Us,” big hit, great storytelling, five years ago. Well, her entire first album was a knockout. I admit I haven’t followed her since. But that voice. And now she’s released an album of Dylan songs, and will be performing those at the intimate Venice West. A bit sketchy for a recommendation, maybe, but I think it’s worth the gamble. A tad expensive, though. Sun 8 p.m., Venice West, $62-190.
TOLEDO DIAMOND – His decades-long Sunday night residency at Santa Monica’s Harvelle’s, the oldest blues bar in LA (almost a century!), is a treasure that you shouldn’t assume will always be there. Toledo choreographs (literally) a truly unique show, a blend of ‘50s hipster jazz and his dancing dames and a most modern smokin’ hot band that gets better all the time. Every Sunday, 9:30 p.m., Harvelle’s, Santa Monica, $12.
COMING ATTRACTIONS (also recommended): “WEST SIDE STORY,” LA OPERA, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 9/25, 27 (free simulcast on the Pier), 28, 10/4, 5, 7, 11, 12; THEATRICUM BOTANICUM: “STRIFE” 9/28, 10/4, “WINE IN THE WILDERNESS” 9/27, 29, 10/5, 12; TOLEDO DIAMOND, Harvelle’s Santa Monica, 9/28, 10/5, 12, 19. 26; HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES, Cinema Bar, 9/29, 10/6, 13, 20; LA PHIL, DUDAMEL LAUNCHES FINAL SEASON, Disney Hall, 9/25, 26, 27, 28; JOAN OSBORNE, Venice West, 9/28; KAMASI WASHINGTON, Blue Note, 9/30-10/5, 10/7-12.
DOWN THE ROAD (also recommended): DUDAMEL, LA PHIL, STRAVINSKY, Disney Hall, 10/2, 4, 5; AL GREEN, YouTube Theatre, 10/4; DENGUE FEVER, Alex’s Bar, 10/9; DUDAMEL LA PHIL, MAHLER #2 “RESURRECTION,” Disney Hall, 10/9, 10, 11, 12; TY SEGALL, Bellwether, 10/10; PETER ERSKINE TRIO, Sam First, 10/11; LOS STRAIGHTJACKETS, McCabe’s, 10/12; LIBRARY GIRL, Ruskin Theatre, 10/12, 11/9, 12/14; LA PHIL GALA, DUDAMEL’S FIESTA, BEETHOVEN, DVOŘÁK, REVUELTAS, more, Disney Hall, 10/14; CHRISTONE “KINGFISH” INGRAM, Ford, 10/16; ALEJANDRO ESCOVEDO, McCabe’s, 10/17; OZOMATLI, Venice West, 10/17, 11/14, 12/12; BRANFORD MARSALIS QUARTET, Blue Note, 10/21, 22; BOZ SCAGGS, Disney Hall, 10/25; MARIANNE WILLIAMSON, Saban Theatre, 10/25; TIM BURTON’S “THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS” in concert, Hollywood Bowl, 10/25, 26; ITZHAK PERLMAN, Disney Hall, 10/28; SIMON MOULLIERE QUARTET w/ GERALD CLAYTON, Sam First, 10/29; Halloween “HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME,” film + organ music, Disney Hall, 10/31; QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, Dolby, 11/11; PATTI SMITH, “HORSES,” Disney Hall, 11/15; LA TRIO, Sam First, 11/15; ROBERT PLANT, United Theater on Broadway, 11/22, 23; DENGUE FEVER, Venice West, 12/5; JACKSHIT, McCabe’s, 12/9, 10, 11; LA PHIL, MOZART, SIBELIUS, Disney Hall, 12/12, 13, 14; CHARLES LLOYD QUARTET w/ GERALD CLAYTON, Blue Note, 12/15.
Charles Andrews has listened to a lot of music of all kinds, including more than 3,500 live shows. He has lived in Santa Monica for 39 years and wouldn’t live anywhere else in the world. Really. Send love and/or hate mail to: therealmrmusic@gmail.com
