Back Issue
MyWeek in Music January 24th to 31stby Scott Zensen
Photographs by:
Scott Zensen
Steve Covault
Can you believe it is already the 5th MyWeek of the New Year or at least the fifth one since the new format? This one will be a little short because of personal issues. Here goes!
Wednesday I started out like I usually do at Farmers market in OB. It was a real treat because one of my favorite singer/songwriters and one of the oldest friends I have had in the music scene was playing and she was playing with a new but final configuration of her band. Normally we see her solo because she can do solo better than most. I am talking about Anna Troy. When I first got into the scene I used to follow around basically three artists because I barely knew a few others. That was the incomparable Gregory Page, Michael Tiernan and Anna Troy. I can't remember where I first saw Anna perform I know it was before last years Roots Festival on Adams street because I went there specifically to get a chance to watch her. She is very young in fact I am old enough to be her dad I have a daughter that is only like a year or two younger, but I was impressed with her talent right away. I like the blues; I kind of grew up with it. Most Saturday mornings when I was growing up I woke up with a start to very loud music usually B.B King or John Lee Hooker or other great's and also to R&B great too! So I have a healthy like for the Blues. Anna will be the first to tell you that there are not many female blues singers. There are more now than there were when I was younger and I believe that Anna is going to be a great asset to the blues sung by women.
Now at the mkt. she did a lot of her songs solo first wowing the crowd also impressed with her sound. One lady was so impressed she tired to steal the show with her dancing and whistling! She really liked what Anna was doing and what she was doing was playing mostly her own original blues songs in her own style. She also delivered a few older blues songs but mostly she did her originals. After she finished her acoustic set she got her band together for a plugged in set. A few more of her songs and a few new ones and a few covers but the addition of drums, bass and keyboardist really changed the sound. It was still blues but it was more electric and really good. Nobody walked away that night not enjoying the show! Anna has a new CD she is selling so if you get a chance to pick it up you will really enjoy her sound her songs even though in a blues style are not depressing and always fun to listen to, so when you get the chance pick one up. And go see her next time you see she is going to play somewhere you will enjoy it.
So later that night I went to Winston's to see Anna perform again but she was also performing with one of my other favorites Barbara Nesbitt. Barbara was there to play for an underwhelming crowd because it was so cold no one was coming out to do anything the other bars were mostly empty and no one on the street because people just didn't want to leave the warmth of their homes. It was a mistake because listening to Barbara or Anna is enough to warm up anyone. Now it was an interesting set because Barbara's normal Drummer Bill Coomes is downunder in the land of Australia playing for Christopher Dale on a short tour down there. So playing drums for Barbara was Jeff Berkley of Citizen Band (or Berkley Hart) showing us once again that he is mega-talented. He did a pretty good job considering he hadn't had time to practice her songs. Luckily he has been around her in the studio since he is producing her CD due out possibly in May! Barbara sounded great as usual and I remember talking to somebody talking about her and remarking how beautiful she is! We decided it wasn't so much that she was more beautiful than normal, it was that she looked really healthy and happy because at least from outside looking in…it looks like everything is going really good for her. She has love, a new city, a new band, a CD on the way and she just looks really happy!
After Barbara was Citizen Band who treated us with another batch of Jeff Berkley's incomparable wit and his wonderful singing and songwriting. His band is no slouch either he has one of the best drummers in town (Danny Cress). Hands down one of the more talented female bassist in town (Marcia Claire), and new-comer to the band but not new to the scene and once called jokingly by his main band (Deadline Friday) a guitar whore! Mike Spurgat! An extremely talented guitar player, it's no wonder he takes any chance he gets to play! Besides, look who he gets to play with besides Deadline Friday he is also in Barbara Nesbitt's Band and Citizen Band all great bands! The night went off surprisingly well, considering there were not many of us who decided to brave the cold! But it was everybody else's loss. I had a great time!
Friday was a big night of gigs but I decided to stay home deciding to keep it warm till Saturday to go to the Acoustic Alliance. Saturday turned out to be a lot of fun as well I got to the Brick By Brick too early because of miscalculating the time it would take to get there by bus and foot. But once the party got rolling it was loads of fun! The People to perform this night were some of the best in town. Lindsey Yung, Alex Arnt, Steve Ybarra, Blake Williams was a no show but the grass Gypsies from Boston filled in nicely. Also there was Lee Coulter, Shiela 
Sondergard, Billy Raphael, Derek Evans, Michael Tiernan, Nisha, Chris Torres, Kemistry and to top the night off after the Alliance was The Donnis Trio. Now I know I have explained this before…in fact I laid it out in my last issue but the Acoustic Alliance has three sets with four artists (basically four) each taking a turn at singing their three best songs in a round robin style of presentation. The first set even though some of my favorite friends were playing in the other two was the first set with The Grass Gypsies, Steve Ybarra and friend, Alex Arndt and Lindsey Yung. Now Lindsey Yung is a real favorite so that may be biasing my opinion but I felt this set served up the
best in entertainment the whole night. There just seemed to be a synergy between the artists that were up there for this first set the seemed to me made it seem like a easy going jam session. They each just seemed to be digging each other and feeling all that energy being passed between them. I had heard all their music before but it was just wonderful what happens on stage sometimes. It was fantastic! Not to take away from the rest of the evening all the other sets were good as well but they didn't seem to be feeling each other the way the first set was?
Second Set had Billy Raphael going first then Lee Coulter, Derek Evans, and Sheila Sondergard. Each of these performers were outstanding especially Billy Raphael who was pulling out all the stops. He sounded great and was sporting a Mohawk since the last time I saw him. It looked pretty cool! Next up was Lee Coulter who I think is one of the best new performers to the San Diego Music Scene he was pictured 
as one of the many up and coming artists in San Diego on the cover and feature story of the Troubadour. Whenever he is in the crowd people just want to get up and dance or bounce around. He has a lot of energy up there that he passes to the crowd every performance. Next came Derek Evans whom I had never heard before and I really liked what I saw, I definitely like to go see him in a smaller show showcasing his talents. Last on this first round of this set was Sheila Sondergard whom I also had not heard before. She sounds great I liked her songs and she has an energy to her as well which actually gets her up and dancing around with her guitar. I'll bet she is a firecracker in her own shows. It would be fun to go see one when I can!
The Third set was really good on a whole other level it started with Nisha who is always fun to listen to, someday I will have to concentrate more time to her songs and career. Next came someone else new to me named Chris Torres I had never heard him before but I am definitely looking forward to hearing him again. I like his vocal qualities and would like to hear more someday. Next came Michael Tiernan and well Michael is a friend in my book so I don't think I have ever heard him sound better I am not sure he can sound bad anyway! He has wonderful songs and if you listen to him even if this is not your first pick for style of music (acoustic) you listen to, he will win you over as soon as you hear him play and sing. The Last people on the round are called Kemistry. Now there were only two members of the band because I am told it is a large band consisting of members of "Sprung Monkey" and "Dirty Sweet". And yet the lady who played with him is from the band "Call Down Fire" by the name of Britney Sandoval and the gentleman who sang from Sprung Monkey was Steve Summers. Steve didn't mean to steal everybody's thunder on this set he couldn't help it he just sounded great! The last thing of the night was the Donnis Trio who I am 
sorry but I really didn't listen too much. Socializing had started in ernest and it was talking to people or miss them because they were heading out the door. As usual the Acoustic Alliance was a great success so a lot of thanks goes to Cathryn for putting on and arranging such a good show. Her dedication shows through time an time again. Special thanks to her for writing up a note to or whomever it was who wrote the note for people to keep the talking down or not talking at all during the performances it made a real difference this time! Thank you!
So I did go out for a last foray in the music scene on Sunday. I went to the Listen Local Presents Tower Two to see Castners, Aquatribe, Mary Grasso, The Siren's Lure, Kevin Thomas. I was not feeling grand that morning but I couldn't figure why I just figured it was I have been skipping a lot of meals lately! How was I to know it was just my body in the first stages of the Flu? So I took a bus down to OB to go to Tower Two and I got there and sat in the freezing wind in the shade since it is hard to get any of the sun at that time of day. And finally it was time for the Castners. If you don't know the Castners are the core of the group Compass Rose. They started off on their set but unfortunately I had started with a cough and I thought it was my asthma acting up because of the cold. But then it got worse and I excused myself and headed home to pass out for a couple of days. (Fevers and me don't mix) Anyway I had really wanted to see my friend Sherri from Siren's Lure play because I had sat in a bar in OB talking with her about it on the last Wednesday before the show at Winston's. But unfortunately my body had other plans! Well that is it for MyWeek in music this week. I am not sure how next week will go because I am not yet well enough to go out and maybe I should just stay home until the spring thaw…naw. I couldn't last without my dose of local music that long so eventually I'll be out there! 'Til then I'm Out!
Ciao
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