By CHARLES ANDREWS
WHAT ELSE?
Are they willing to sacrifice for yet more unaffordable housing, denser and taller? CAROLINE TOROSIS, DAN HALL, NATALYA ZERNITSKAYA, JESSE ZWICK. Great park land, perhaps?
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED:
BRAVO GUSTAVO!
BEETHOVEN, ORTIZ, DUDAMEL – Yes, of course, Beethoven’s 7th, with the Master chorale, but you’d be crazy to not come back after intermission of Gabriella Ortiz’s “Revolución diamantina,” an LA Phil commission. I’ve heard several such compositions by Ortiz, and there is a reason Maestro Dudamel is letting it follow the mighty Beethoven. Thurs, Fri, 8 p.m., Sat, Sun 2 p.m., Walt Disney Concert Hall, LA, $271-380.
“HONOUR” – The first theatrical presentation at the new, beautiful Ruskin Group Theatre at the airport, just a couple doors down from the old location, knocks it out of the park. Small in scale with only four characters, I loved the writing, which takes a fairly common family situation and touches on issues much larger. It is running for a while, so I will go into more detail later, but I can tell you that it is Ruskin top-notch, from the provocative writing to the four superb actors. Thurs, Fri, Sat 8 p.m., Sun 2 p.m., Ruskin Group Theatre, SM Airport, $20-45.
LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO – 65 years of their traditional isicathamiya harmonies, transforming a cappella music. Five Grammys. Nelson Mandela called them South Africa’s cultural ambassadors to the world. Paul Simon called them to transform his landmark “Graceland” album. (After Silverlake’s Reggae Beat authority Roger Steffens slipped Simon a LBM recording and whispered, “I think you should hear this.” Founder Joseph Shabalala’s family has carried the torch. A string quartet will play outside The BroadStage 45 minutes before the performance. You could go just for that. Fri 7:30 p.m., BroadStage, Santa Monica, sold out, so, go beg a ticket.
BRANDI CARLILE – Years ago, I saw a buzzing Brandi perform at Amoeba in Hollywood, and I was underwhelmed. Did I miss something? Or has she gotten measurably better over the years? I’ll vote for the latter. She delivers a diverse, powerhouse show now, singing so strongly. And even if she didn’t, we would have to love her for rejuvenating a stroke-stricken Joni Mitchell, now her close friend, mentor, and collaborator. Fri 9 p.m., Kia Forum, Inglewood, $40-431.
GLASS “AKHNATEN,” LA OPERA – I have been anticipating this one for a long time. It promises to be spectacular and memorable on every level. One performance this Saturday, the rest in the following weeks. I will write more about it next week, hopefully from personal experience, but like the headline above cautions, you should grab tickets now. Sat 7:30 p.m., Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, LA, $84-415.
HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES – The HCOLA don’t claim to play note-for-note Django, but they are the spot-on purveyors of his spirit, and I think if he were to walk into the Cinema Bar on a Monday night and sit in with them, they would all be smiling big. Just be sure to call me if that happens. Mondays 9 p.m., Cinema Bar, Culver City, always no cover.
BILL FRISELL TRIO – There’s no predicting a Bill Frisell performance except that it will likely blow your mind. The New York Times hit it neatly: “Frisell has had a lot of practice putting high concept into a humble package. Long hailed as one of the most distinctive and original improvising guitarists of our time, he has also earned a reputation for teasing out thematic connections with his music… There’s a reason that Jazz at Lincoln Center had him program a series called Roots of Americana.” Next Wed, Thurs, 7, 9:30 p.m., Blue Note LA, Hollywood, $38, 55.
RECOMMENDED:
ORIANTHI – Elle Magazine named her one of the Top 12 Female Electric Guitarists. I don’t know. Some think you should drop the “Female” out of that evaluation. She is a badass blues rocker, period. She was Michael Jackson’s guitarist, played toe to toe with Carlos Santana, Steve Vai, and other badasses. An Australian with Greek heritage landed her that great one-name-only. Seeing her has been on my bucket list for years. God bless Blue Note, fairly new in town. They are expanding their bookings all the time, and that’s a blessing for LA. Wish they had settled closer to the beach, though. Thurs 7, 9:30 p.m., Blue Note LA, Hollywood, $49, 66.
AL JARDINE AND THE PET SOUNDS BAND – Not sure about this recommendation, but who doesn’t love Beach Boys music? Jardine was a founding member, and your other choice is the group led by Mike Love, still using the BB name. Both groups have only one original member. A lot of people don’t love Mike, for good reasons. Probably better vibrations with Jardine. They will be playing the entire “The Beach Boys Love You” album, first time ever for that. Fri 8 p.m., United Theater on Broadway, LA, $70, 87.
TOLEDO DIAMOND – Who’s been showing up even longer than the Hot Club, with a very different but also virtuosic show? His decades-long Sunday night residency at Santa Monica’s Harvelle’s, the oldest blues bar in LA (almost a century!), is the stuff of myth. Toledo choreographs 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. Toledo is perhaps the longest-running proof that Santa Monica is a City of the Arts. Sun 9 p.m., Harvelle’s, Santa Monica, $13.
TV RECOMMENDATIONS:
“THE DAILY SHOW” – has been skewering political and cultural figures for 30 years now. Some years were better than others, but they now have probably their best cast ever. In the early days, polls showed that young adults got most of their news from “TDS” – maybe we’d be better off if this were still the case. And that the other meaning for TDS didn’t exist. Mon – Thurs 11 p.m., COMEDY CENTRAL.
“HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU” – Roy Wood Jr. (was a regular on “TDS”), Amber Ruffin, and Michael Ian Black are magicians who take you through the news stories of the week and make you laugh instead of weep. Ridicule has always been a staple of political satire, and boy, do we need it now. And you will become better informed, too, whether you want to or not. Sat 9 p.m., CNN.
‘“DARK WINDS” – I don’t understand how this was passed by for awards consideration. Based on the very popular series of murder mysteries by Tony Hillerman, set on the Navajo Reservation, his daughter Anne took up the series after he died and added a female police officer, and her novels have all hit the NY Times bestseller lists. Four years ago, Robert Redford and George R.R. Martin began producing shows that combined some novels by both Hillermans, and the results have been spectacular. Stunning NM scenery, great stories integrating Native American spiritual beliefs (sometimes metaphysically scary), superb soundtrack, and a phenomenal cast of nearly all Indigenous Peoples. The fourth season started this past Sunday on AMC and also airs on AMC+. The previous three seasons are available on Netflix, and I seriously recommend you binge-watch them all first. You will thank me. Sundays 9 p.m., AMC, AMC+.
COMING ATTRACTIONS (also recommended): “HONOUR,” Ruskin Group Theatre, 2/26-28, 3/1, 5-8, 12-15, 19-22; ORIANTHI, Blue Note LA, 2/26; BEETHOVEN, ORTIZ, DUDAMEL, Disney Hall, 2/26-3/1; AL JARDINE AND THE PET SOUNDS BAND, United Theater on Broadway, 2/27; LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO, BroadStage, 2/27; BRANDI CARLILE, Kia Forum, 2/27; GLASS “AKHNATEN,” LA OPERA, 2/28, 3/8, 11, 14, 19, 22;7; “HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU,” CNN Sat 9 p.m., 2/28, 3/7, 14, 21, 28; ANNE HILLERMAN’S “DARK WINDS,” Season 4, AMC/+, 3/1, 8, 15, 22, 29, 4/4; TOLEDO DIAMOND, Harvelle’s Santa Monica, 3/1, 8, 15, 22, 29; HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES, Cinema Bar, 3/2, 9, 16; BILL FRISELL TRIO, Blue Note LA, 3/4, 5; DUDAMEL, “Dante,” BEETHOVEN 6, Disney Hall, 3/5, 6, 8; SANTA CECILIA, Fonda, 3/6; TAMIR HENDELMAN-JOHN CLAYTON DUO, Sam First, 3/7; BOBBY WATSON QUARTET, Jazz Bakery/Nat Holden, 3/7; CHARLIE HUNTER TRIO, Blue Note LA, 3/9; THE BAD PLUS POTTER TABORN, Blue Note LA, 3/10, 11; NINE INCH NAILS, Honda Center, 3/10; PUCCINI “TURANDOT,” Pacific Opera Project, Aratani Theatre, 3/14, 15, 22;
DOWN THE ROAD (also recommended): MADELEINE PEYROUX, Blue Note LA, 3/17, 18; “VERTIGO” in concert, Disney Hall, 3/21; TOLEDO DIAMOND, Harvelle’s Santa Monica,, 3/22, 29; HOT CLUB OF LOS ANGELES, Cinema Bar, 3/23, 30; NICK LOWE, Bellwether, 3/27; UCLA-USC College Night, Sam First, 4/1; ST. PAUL & THE BROKEN BONES, Belasco, 4/3; FRED HERSCH TRIO, Jazz Bakery, 4/11; DAVID BYRNE, Santa Barbara Bowl, 4/14; SAMARA JOY, Blue Note LA, 4/15, 16; VERDI “FALSTAFF,” LA OPERA, 4/18, 26, 30, 5/2, 6, 10; TAKE 6, Blue Note LA, 4/30-5/3; STANLEY CLARKE’S SANTA MONICA INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL, BroadStage, 5/1-9; MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO, Blue Note LA, 5/4, 5; LA SANTA CECILIA, Fonda Theatre, 5/7; MOZART “THE MAGIC FLUTE,” LA OPERA, 5/30, 6/6, 11, 14, 17, 21.
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 40 years and wouldn’t live anywhere else in the world. Really. Send love and/or hate mail to: therealmrmusic@gmail.com.
