From Folk Songs to Film Music, the Westside has the Sounds of the Season this Week

By Tomm Carroll

Friday, December 14-Thursday, December 20—It’s beginning to sound a lot like…well, you know. And the Westside is giving the gift of live music this season with several recommended shows to attend in between your last-minute Christmas shopping.

McCabe’s Guitar Shop in Santa Monica has scheduled its last performances of the year for this weekend, and it’s a three-day holiday hootenanny highlighted by the welcome return of the great John Wesley Harding Sunday night for two shows – 7:00 and 9:30 p.m. A literate and witty Brit now based in the US Northwest, Wes is an intelligent and prolific folksinger-songwriter still in his 30s but wise and talented beyond his years.

Wes’ solo shows are always a treat at McCabe’s, and this evening should be no exception. You’ll undoubtedly hear material from his upcoming album as well as some of his classic songs and, given the time of year, probably even a holiday favorite or two. A musician’s musician, he’s also got a lot of talented friends, and you never know who may drop by for a surprise visit. Several years ago, it was none other than Bruce Springsteen who joined him on the McCabe’s stage (see accompanying photo). Opening the show is young singer-songwriter David Lewis, whose latest album, For Now, Wes co-produced.

The fun starts at McCabe’s on Friday night when Stacey Earle (Steve’s little sister) and her musical and marital partner Mark Stuart perform their country-ish folk – much like they do on their new live double-CD, Must be Live (Gearle) – available only at their live shows or from the record company’s website, www.gearlerecords.com. Opening is local singer-songwriter Tom Freund.

Saturday night at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., McCabe’s welcomes folk legend John Stewart, one time a member of the Kingston Trio, as well as the folk group that specialized in Civil War songs, the Cumberland Three. Stewart has continued to write and record over the years and has a massive repertoire from which to choose.

Sounds of the Season: Christmas is nearly upon us, so it’s time for some holiday concerts. If you prefer small, intimate gatherings, check out the free show featuring harmonica master David McKelvy and his Trio at Culver City’s Boulevard Music Sunday night. But if you’d rather join massive amounts of revelers, then head on over to the Great Western Forum in Inglewood Saturday night for Stevie Wonder’s House Full of Toys benefit concert, featuring such soulful performers as Brian McKnight, Boney James, Indira. Arie, Musiq Soulchild, Pam & Dodi, Regina Belle, Tyrese, Jah Rule and Babyface.

Other shows of note this week include:

Friday

Soulive shakes up Temple Bar in Santa Monica, with support from The Body of John Brown.

The Rumblebees bring some stinging blues rock to Rusty’s Surf Ranch on the Santa Monica Pier.

Saturday

If you missed funny folkie Loudon Wainwright III at the Getty last month, you can catch him at the Borders in Westwood at 2 p.m. today, where he will be performing live and signing copies of his latest CD, The Last Man on Earth (Red House).

‘Frisco surf band (and surfers) The Mermen join fellow water mammals The Otterpups, along with Millhouse and Timpauer, on the bill at Santa Monica’s 14 Below.

Acoustic Western Swing never sounds so good as when it’s performed by The Hot Club of Cowtown at Boulevard Music.

The great jazz-blues vocalist Linda Hopkins celebrates her birthday tonight with a show at Lunaria in Century City.

Sunday

It’s a pure, unadulterated soul cabaret with The Toledo Show at Santa Monica’s Harvelle’s.

Afro-pop invades Culver City when the Jazz Bakery serves up Blay Ambolley’s Afrikan Hi-Life Jazz Band for a 4:00 p.m. matinee.

Monday

Temple Bar holds its holiday party tonight, and such regular acts as Maimou, Merrick and Gary Myrick are the music-makers.

J.J. Bad Boy Jones and The New Breed host open mic night at Harvelle’s blues haunt.

Tuesday

The New Breed Orchestra, presided over by the Reverend Carl Roberts, preaches its revisionist funk at The West End in Santa Monica.

Wednesday

It’s another "Guitarapalooza" at Rusty’s with Curtis and Rick Brannon leading the year-end jam session.

Thursday

14 Below presents "Lilith Unfair" with femme artists such as Smitten (featuring Marla Sokoloss), Jenna Music, Bliss, Mara and Claudine.

MICHAEL NYMAN BAND ROYCE HALL, UCLA WESTWOOD FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14

The man who coined the term "minimalism" when he was a music critic back in the 1960s, Britain’s Michael Nyman has gone on to excell at -- and redefine -- that genre of post-modern classical music as a pianist, bandleader and composer.

Today, Nyman is one of our greatest living composers, although in this country at least, he is best known for his film scores. And that’s just what he and his "band" (an orchestra, really) will be performing tonight at Royce Hall – another booking coup for the university’s Performing Arts department, as Nyman last performed in the Southland over six years ago, and then only in Orange County.

From his recent scores, the more traditional "End of the Affair," "Gattaca," "The Claim" and the deservedly acclaimed "The Piano," to the earlier frenetic yet hypnotic soundtracks he provided for the shorts and first features by the iconoclastic director Peter Greenaway, such as "The Draughtman’s Contract," "A Zed and Two Naughts," "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover" and "Prospero’s Books," Nyman was a wealth of film music with which to mesmerize us. Don’t miss it.