Advance tickets available from the Ashkenaz front desk on show nights or online from Ticketweb or call 1-866-468-3399.

Show line: (510) 525-5054

Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center
1317 San Pablo @ Gilman in Berkeley

Ample parking across the street in the REI parking lot. Wheelchair accessible. All ages all the time.

Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center is a non-profit, tax-exempt community organization supported by patrons, donors, staff, musicians and volunteers.

Wednesday, 09/01/10
BALKAN FOLKDANCE
Doors at 6:30 pm; Show at 8:00 pm
Balkan dance lessons at 7:00 pm
$7

This monthly event is a revival of ’70s-style Berkeley folkdancing with some international request dancing to recorded music, capturing the spirit that David Nadel was inspired by when he opened Ashkenaz in 1973 with Balkan folkdancing. One does not need a live band to experience the communal pleasure of dancing together, and the dance lessons help newcomers join in the experience.

Thursday, 09/02/10
MANA HUMANA WITH CECIL “P-NUT” DANIELS

Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
$10

Mana Humana was born from a rich history of musical cross-relationships. Drawing on an eclectic mix of styles - funk, rock, jazz, blues, world beat - Mana Humana creates a genre-bending experience that blends infectious grooves, a vast harmonic palette, and a communal vibe. For years, members of Mana Humana have been backing some of the Bay Area’s most progressive and vibrant world-beat ensembles: Zulu Spear, Lutsinga Musical Ensemble, Ivson Lins, and Planet Rio. Now they bring their many experiences together in Mana Humana’s own sound, stretching out in inspired band compositions and soloing.

Mana Humana is trumpeter Scott “Sven” Vento, bassist Carlton Lowe, James Richards on drums, multiple keyboardist Nate Ginsberg, and guitarist Keith Andrew. Joining Mana Humana as a special guest is the venerable MIDI-horn master Cecil “P-Nut” Daniels (myspace.com/pnutdaniels), who has appeared on stage with numerous jam band and funk luminaries including Widespread Panic, Sound Tribe Sector 9, Garaj Mahal, Michael Franti, Bernie Worrell, Eric McFadden, and Daniels’ own band Apocalypse. Additional special guests tonight are percussionist Jeff Weinmann and spoken word artist Shaka Jamal Redmond.
www.manahumana.com

Friday, 09/03/10
THE VISITANTS; ROUGH WATERS + GEMA!
Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
$10

Ashkenaz favorite Sean Hodge (of High Heat) returns, this time in the Visitants, a Bay Area rock & roll quartet who perform original songs as tight and infectiously melodic as they are irresistibly danceable. There is a strong stylistic connection to ’60s and ’70s rock when bands from Creedence Clearwater Revival to the Who and Beatles could deliver the meaning of life in a three-minute song complete with brain-melting guitar solo and heavenly vocal harmonies – everyone in the Visitants sings. The Visitants take the best qualities of the “good ol’ days” of rock and bring them to the present with their own inventive composing and playing on such original songs as “Sunflower Marmalade” and “The Weight of Lead.” Sean Hodge and Riley Bray share electric guitar duties, with bassist-keyboardist Ben Margoo and drummer Gordon Jacobs. www.facebook.com/pages/The-Visitants/149378195072866

Berkeley rock and blues band Rough Waters describes its sound as “Stevie Ray Vaughan back from the dead.” Founded in 2006 by guitarists-vocalists Henry Geller – a New York City native who has opened for such legends as Gladys Knight, Robert Cray, and Etta James – and Jesse Rosenthal and drummer Elijah Fletcher, Rough Waters later added Sam Fletcher on bass. www.facebook.com/roughwaters

GEMA! is a rocking world party band with songs designed for the dance floor. GEMA!’s music draws on favorite global dance rhythms, from cumbia to rock, and musical influences including Santana and Jimi Hendrix, Astor Piazzola, Beny More, and Manu Chao. The hot music reflects the bandmembers’ nationalities, which include Argentina, Cuba, Chile, and the U.S. The project began in Buenos Aires in 2004 with lead singer-rhythm guitarist Gustavo Bustos writing a number of compositions around which the band formed. Bustos moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2008, and in 2009 recruited Gardner Goetze, a virtuoso young electric guitarist who has established himself as one of the hottest players in the Bay Area. Together they formed a new sound, sort of a “rock ’n’ roll/cumbia/reggae del sur.” With the addition of bassist Johnathan Mackenzie and Vladimir Rosales from Havana, Cuba, on percussion, the sound has added an Afro-Caribbean touch that completes the dancefloor magic. www.myspace.com/gemadelosdeseos

Saturday, 09/04/10
LAVAY SMITH & HER RED HOT SKILLET LICKERS

Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
East Coast Swing/Lindy Hop dance lesson with Nick & Leah at 8:00 pm
$15 / $12 students (w/valid ID)




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Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers keep adding new elements to their timeless blues-jazz-swing repertoire. The band's third CD and first in nine years, “Miss Smith to You!”, provides fresh takes on classics for the dance floor, including “Miss Brown to You,” “I'm Not Evil,” and “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

Growing up in Southern California and the Philippines, Smith was influenced early by such singers as Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, Bessie Smith, and Esther Phillips. Since 1989, before swing became a national craze, she and her band (led by co-founder and keyboardist Chris Siebert) have been making music as sharp and irresistible as her period costumes that recall the pinup girls of the Forties. Two decades later they are still the Bay Area’s hottest swing attraction, steeped in not just the songs but also the feel that makes them the real deal. Big, bluesy-voiced Smith has deservedly raked in national attention from network television to NPR, and Johnny Otis proclaims that “she and her band are a breath of fresh air!” Multiple award winners, Smith and her Skillet Lickers present not only the best-dressed but also one of the most exciting shows of East Coast Swing and Lindy Hop dance music, as well as sultry torch songs.
www.lavaysmith.com

Sunday, 09/05/10
MONDO MUZIK NIGHT FEATURING STEPHEN KENT, DAVID MCBURNIE, JOSE RUIZ, KUTAY KUGAY
Doors at 8:00 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
$8 advance / $10 day of show

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Radio personalities from around the globe serve as DJs for Mondo Muzik Night. It’s the first-time-ever teaming of KPFA “Music of the World” programmers Stephen Kent, David McBurnie, Jose Ruiz, and Kutay Kugay. Dance your socks off with global sounds – from soukous to salsa, Middle Eastern grooves, bhangra, and Afrobeat, to reggae, reggaeton, dancehall, and much more!

Music of the World, heard weekdays at 11 a.m. on Berkeley’s listener-sponsored KPFA (94.1 FM), is unique not only in its content but also in that each day’s host comes from a different country: Kugay from Lazona (Turkey), Ruiz from Nicaragua, Kent from the United Kingdom, and McBurnie from Trinidad. They bring a wide range of experience, from being musicians in world fusion bands to staging world music festivals.
www.kpfa.org

Monday, 09/06/10
NO EVENING PERFORMANCE


Tuesday, 09/07/10
MARK ST. MARY LOUISIANA BLUES & ZYDECO BAND

Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
Cajun/Zydeco dance lesson with Cheryl McBride at 8:00 pm
$10

The hardworking Mark St. Mary Louisiana Blues & Zydeco Band has been a favorite of Cajun/zydeco festival crowds for years and was voted best zydeco band of 2007 by the Bay Area Blues Society. Based in the Sacramento Delta town of Antelope, St. Mary began playing accordion when he was 15, inspired originally by “King of Zydeco” Clifton Chenier. Singing in English and Creole French, St. Mary leads his band through his original songs, interspersed with dance floor favorites from Chenier’s “I’m Coming Home” and the classic Harry Choates version of “Jolie Blon” to Rockin’ Sidney’s “Don’t Mess with My Toot Toot.”

Wednesday, 09/08/10
BERNARD ANDERSON & THE OLD SCHOOL BAND

Doors at 7:00 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
West Coast Swing dance lesson with Ariel Bowlby at 7:30 pm
$10


It’s an East Coast meets West Coast approach to swing and R&B, with some blues and a bit of zydeco for variety, as this five-piece band hits well-known and rare gems of those styles for the dance crowd. Led by Doctor B – Bernard Anderson – on saxophone (tenor and baritone) and lead vocals, the group includes drummer Brian Berson (of Blues Alley and Red Archibald’s Internationals), guitarist Dennis Geaney and bassist Henry Oden. Songs come from Motown, Chicago, and Memphis and slower West Coast swing, from Louis Jordan, James Brown, and more. Anderson has issued a solo CD, “Yes, There Is a Doctor in the House,” and has been featured on recordings by such artists as Taj Mahal and Queen Ida, as well as performing with dozens of musicians including Charles Brown, John Handy, Joe Henderson, and Mary Wells. The Bay Area Blues Society named Anderson Blues Saxophonist of the Year in 2005.
www.bernard-anderson.com

Thursday, 09/09/10
THE DEAD GUISE

Doors at 9:00 pm; Show at 9:30 pm
$10

Since 1995 the Dead Guise have been playing music inspired by the Grateful Dead. In their own way, they keep alive the spontaneity, spirit, and ambience of a Dead concert, playing Dead songs as a springboard for their own improvisations. The lineup features veterans of numerous other Dead tribute bands (Workingman’s Ed, Jerry’s Kids), with rhythm guitarist-singer John Heffernan, lead guitarist-singer Ken Younger, drummer Bob Sicotte, and bassist-singer Mike Marino. Together they sail through known and unknown spaces on classics such as “U.S. Blues” and “Playin’ in the Band,” as well as less-traveled routes into “Easy Wind” and “Estimated Prophet.”
www.deadguise.com

Friday, 09/10/10
7TH ST. SOUND SHOWCASE: BESCENTA, ARKAINGELLE, I RAE DIVINE + BLAAK LUNG, BROTHER AYOUBA, DJS BEAT NOK & LUCAZADE

Doors at 9:00 pm; Show at 9:30 pm
$10 advance & students / $12 day of show

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Berkeley’s deep groove band 7th Street Sound propels another of its acclaimed one-night festivals of conscious reggae dance music, playing on its own and backing an array of fresh musical talent. Jamaican singer Bescenta is highlighted, along with Arkaingelle and I Rae Divine. Blaak Lung and Brother Ayouba are special guest performers.

From the St. Andrew hills section of Kingston, Jamaica (also the birthplace of singer Nadine Sutherland), Bescenta brings powerful lyrics. He offers in his original songs a voice for the oppressed, with soul-soothing melodies that are as haunting as they are unforgettable. www.myspace.com/bescenta

A fresh new artist from Guyana, Arkaingelle unites an Afro-Caribbean perspective with a strong Rastafarian message. Though meditative, his lyrics are delivered in a blazing vocal style over deep vibrations. www.myspace.com/arkaingelle

Originally from Philadelphia, I Rae Divine, the Empress of Zion, sings both conscious and love songs buoyed by her lilting high voice and deep bass grooves. www.myspace.com/iraedivine7thstband

7th Street is a Berkeley-homegrown, Ashkenaz-raised band. Friends since high school, Eddie Arnold (drums), Danny McCaffrey (bass), and Benjamin Goff (keys) have been playing together since 1992. They recently added guitarist Jason Collins of the Funkanauts. 7th Street Sound has been called one of the Bay Area’s best-kept musical secrets and has backed many artists, including lovers’ rock legend Lloyd Brown on his first California tour. Other artists 7th Street Sound has worked with include Army, Tuff Lion, Messenjah Selah, Earl Zero, Winstrong, and Roots Natty.
www.myspace.com/7thstreetsound

Saturday, 09/11/10
TRIPLETT, PROUTY & FITZGIBBON, SQUIRRELLY STRINGBAND, STRIPED PIG STRINGBAND WITH CALLERS BILL MARTIN & EVIE LADIN
Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 8:00 pm
$15 / $5 ages 5-18 / under 5 free

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Now in its eighth year, the Berkeley Old Time Music Convention has blossomed into a five-day festival (Wednesday, Sep. 8, through Sunday, Sep. 12) that includes square dances, concerts, films, workshops, demonstrations, and more. Pickers, singers, and fans of old-time music travel from around the country for this homegrown urban get-together; some have come from as far away as Japan and New Zealand!

The convention’s square dance night features acoustic fiddle bands pumping out music that makes you want to get up and dance, plus callers who love to introduce the uninitiated to the fun of a square dance party, with the emphasis on “party”! No dancing experience is needed; the callers will teach all dances from scratch and will call the moves all the way through. No need to bring a partner, although you can if you want. And same-sex partners fit in fine.

Jimmy Triplett, Scott Prouty, and Andy FitzGibbon are younger-generation fiddlers deeply immersed in the older West Virginia mountain style of playing, which includes dance music as well as beautiful solo fiddle tunes. They’ve learned directly from such legendary fiddlers as Melvin Wine, Wilson Douglas, and Lester McCumbers. They’ve all won fiddle contests and have taught at many camps, including Augusta and Mars Hill. In addition to playing and teaching old-time music, all three have been involved in activities related to its documentation. While living in Elkins, WV, Triplett worked for the Augusta Heritage Center, where he co-produced a two-CD compilation of the fiddling of Ernie Carpenter and the DVD “One More Time: The Life and Music of Melvin Wine.” FitzGibbon is an expert banjo player and works as a banjo repairman; he has researched historic banjos and their makers. Prouty has assisted in the production of several recordings and was an archival intern at the Library of Congress’s Archive of Folk Culture and at the Smithsonian.

Oakland’s Squirrelly Stringband took first place in the first two years of the BOTMC string band contest. Since then fiddler Dave Murray, clawhammer banjo player Debbie Berne, guitarist Allegra Yellin, and Rachel Kraai on washtub bass have played old-time Southern breakdowns and backwoods mountain music at countless festivals, parties, and barn dances. The band recently started up a “First Friday” square dance at the Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library. www.spectacularopticals.com

From Arcata, the Striped Pig Stringband is Colin Vance (fiddle), Brian Letts (guitar), Cisco Haggerty (bass), and Matt Brunner (banjo). At home they host a monthly square dance of the hot and sweaty variety. www.myspace.com/stripedpigstringband

The callers: Retired printer Bill Martin (who plays in the Martin Brothers and Uncle Wiggly Stringband) comes from a long line of old-time musicians, and has even called a square dance with the Great Wall of China in the background. He played a key role in fostering Portland’s thriving old-time music and dance scene over the last two decades. www.bubbaguitar.com

Evie Ladin grew up around old-time music in the eastern United States. Along with her square dance calling talents, she’s known for her flatfoot clogging, banjo playing, and singing with the Stairwell Sisters and with famed body musician Keith Terry and his world music ensemble Crosspulse. She recently released her debut solo CD, “Float Downstream,” which features her original material. www.evieladin.com
www.berkeleyoldtimemusic.org

Sunday, 09/12/10
THE PORKPIES WITH CALLERS MAGGIE LIND & CAROLINE OAKLEY
Doors at 2:30 pm; Show at 3-4:30 pm
$4 kids / $6 adults

Family Square Dance at Ashkenaz is a longstanding tradition, and this one is part of the Berkeley Old Time Music Convention. Family dance is a way for the whole gang to have a great time dancing together – no experience is necessary, and all ages are welcome. The callers teach the dances from scratch and prompt the moves all the way through, with some dances that even babes in arms can do!

Maggie Lind and Caroline Oakley call to live music by the stringband Pork Pies. Two of Portland’s best square dance callers and old-time musicians, Oakley and Lind have called dances up and down the West Coast, with many appearances at the Portland Old Time Gathering, which they helped start. They are also accomplished and engaging children’s music teachers. www.squaredancefever.com (Caroline); www.myspace.com/maggiebanjo (Maggie)

Inspired by their shared love of old-time Appalachian music, the Porkpies formed in late 2006. Amy Hofer (returning for a visit from her new home in Portland) and Jordan Ruyle are on fiddles, with Erik Pearson on banjo, Dan Kluger on guitar, and Megan Adie on bass; all have been longtime Bay Area square dance mainstays.
www.berkeleyoldtimemusic.org

Monday, 09/13/10
NO EVENING PERFORMANCE


Tuesday, 09/14/10
GATOR BEAT

Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
Cajun/Zydeco dance lesson with Cheryl McBride at 8:00 pm
$10

Going strong for two decades now, Gator Beat plays full-tilt dance party music. The group’s mostly original songs are powered by its own gumbo of dance rhythms: a blend of Louisiana Cajun and zydeco, a touch of New Orleans funk, and, as the band itself proclaims, “a beat that bites.” Tunes come from the seven Gator Beat recordings, including the just-issued “Let’s Dance” CD with fresh originals and the band’s reworkings of tunes by Sonny Landreth and Buckwheat Zydeco. Gator Beat is a culturally and stylistically mixed crew, with Zydeco Flames founder Bruce Gordon on accordion, guitarist Randy Quan, bassist Linda Hutchinson, washboard player Willard Blackwell, drummer Beau Bradbury, and Australia native David Scott on saxophone, pennywhistle, and percussion.
www.gatorbeat.com

Wednesday, 09/15/10
THE USED BLUES BAND

Doors at 7:00 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
Blues dance lesson with Ariel Bowlby at 7:30 pm
$10

The hard-driving Used Blues Band makes its Ashkenaz debut, demonstrating why it’s considered the #1 traditional blues band in Sacramento and Solano counties. The group recently tied for first place in the Sacramento Blues competition for its dance-inducing approach to electric blues, spanning traditional, Memphis, Delta, and modern styles. The Used Blues Band is harmonica ace Sean McGroarty, keyboardist Kevin Cartwright, guitarist Gary Anthony, bassist Lenny Freeman, and drummer Neil Hampton. They were featured this summer on the blues stage at the East Bay Express Best of the East Bay Party and in the Homegrown Blues Series in downtown Oakland.
theusedbluesband.shutterfly.com

Thursday, 09/16/10
THE HELLADELICS

Doors at 7:00 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
Balkan dance lesson with Jerry Duke at 7:30 pm
$10

The Helladelics return to Ashkenaz for a night of Greek and Balkan dance music. The Helladelics (hellas, “Greece” and delos, “clear, visible”) are a Bay Area band specializing in traditional Greek roots music. While having a special fondness for the hypnotic, bluesy material from the Epirus region of northwestern Greece, their repertoire also spans the region – from upbeat dance tunes of Thrace to sweet vocal songs of the islands, as well as some jaunts to Armenia, Turkey, and Macedonia. The group is Mary Hofer Farris on clarinet, singer and percussionist Michele Simon, violinist and oud player Gari Hegedus, and Tom Farris on laouto.
www.helladelics.com

Friday, 09/17/10
VAGABOND OPERA WITH HANNAH ROMANOWSKY + TARA LINDA

Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
$12




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This is a full-immersion evening in Bohemian cabaret, featuring the wildly eclectic Portland, Oregon, ensemble Vagabond Opera, who for this performance are joined by leading dancer Hannah Romanowsky. Vagabond Opera is described by the Washington Post as “a band of ceaseless charisma, boundless energy, impeccable musicianship and more than a little touch of both the naughty and exotic.” It delivers passionate offerings of Bohemian cabaret, Paris hot jazz, gutbucket swing, tangos, Ukrainian folk-punk ballads, klezmer, and vigorous originals, meeting in a world of riverboat gambling queens, Turkish belly dancers, and the enigmatic Marlene Dietrich. Weaving elements of Kurt Weill, Duke Ellington, and Edith Piaf with absurdist flair, theatrics, and an old-world mood, Vagabond Opera presents the new wave of opera – lusty voices singing in 13 languages and a cabaret of rich musical phrasing, sparkling lyrics, and indomitable stage presence, all played with exuberance, skill, and a gritty Vagabond edge.

Created in 2002 by opera singer-composer Eric Stern, the band includes trained operatic tenor and soprano vocals, accordion, tenor saxophone, two cellos, stand-up bass, and drums. Vagabond Opera has performed all over the U.S. and in Europe. Its music is available on three CDs. Tonight’s show may include excerpts from its recently staged, first full opera, “Queen of Knives.”

A classically trained dancer with a degree in Dance Ethnology, Hannah Romanowsky is an accomplished performing artist and instructor dedicated to the enchanting traditions of North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. She is a principal dancer with acclaimed ensemble Ballet Afsaneh, presenting dance, music, and poetry of the historic Silk Road, and Wan-Chao Dance, an ethno-contemporary company directed by Wan-Chao Chang. Romanowsky is the founder and director of Danceversity, a youth nonprofit cultural arts education program. www.hannahromanowsky.com

Equipped with a sultry voice, button accordion, and baritone ukulele, torch vocalist Tara Linda plays “Tortilla Western”: a blend of spaghetti western, rock, and Tex-Mex. “[Tara] Linda seduces like a siren… and like a poet, the lyrics challenge and enchant,” the San Antonio Express-News recently raved. Growing up in Texas, Tara Linda soaked up the region’s Americana, blues, and Tex-Mex influences. She later fell in love with 1930s Latin torch and picked up the accordion. “The accordion takes you around the world like no other instrument,” Tara says. “As a singer, the accordion is... emotional and endlessly expressive.” Tonight Tara and her band – guitarist Az Samad, horn and violin player Jeff Hobbs, drummer Dean Cook, and a bassist – focus on Tex-Mex and a little desert cabaret. www.taralinda.com


www.vagabondopera.com

Saturday, 09/18/10
TRIO GARUFA

Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
Argentine Tango dance lesson with Andrea Fuchilieri at 8:00 pm
$12


Trio Garufa features an international lineup playing classic and modern tango music from Argentina for dancing, including selections from the band’s two CDs as well as Astor Piazzolla’s Nuevo Tango and the timeless golden-age tangos from the Argentine legends of the 1920s-’40s. Accordionist-bandoneon player Adrian Jost grew up in Switzerland, where he played in various bands before falling under the spell of the tango. After moving to San Francisco, he met Argentine-born guitarist Guillermo Garcia in 1999. Their musical association and mutual love of Argentina’s dance music led to Trio Garufa two years later. Bassist Sascha Jacobsen rounds out the group’s classic tango instrumentation. In addition to having played at the top milongas (tango dance parties) in San Francisco and at several festivals in the U.S. and Canada, Trio Garufa has toured Argentina multiple times. When not performing, the musicians can likely be found out on the dance floor, as all three are obsessive tango dancers themselves.
www.triogarufa.com

Sunday, 09/19/10
ZARYAB ENSEMBLE
Doors at 7:00 pm; Show at 7:30 pm
$10 advance & students / $12 day of show

Buy tickets online!


www.dancesilkroad.org/zaryab/index.htm

Monday, 09/20/10
NO EVENING PERFORMANCE


Tuesday, 09/21/10
JESSE LÉGE & JOEL SAVOY

Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
Cajun/Zydeco dance lesson with Diana Castillo at 8:00 pm
$12

Although tonight’s main performers have both played at Ashkenaz before in other bands, this is their local debut together as the amazing traditional Louisiana Cajun duo Jesse Lége and Joel Savoy. For their West Coast tour the accordion master and young fiddler are joined by the hot band of guitarist Sammy Lind and bassist Nadine Landry (from Portland’s Foghorn Trio) and guitarist Eric Thompson (of California Cajun Orchestra, Aux Cajunals, Todalo Shakers, and many more). They’ll play traditional Cajun dance hall music, as well as some of Lége’s own tunes that have become a part of the traditional Cajun repertoire.

Joel Savoy, son of Cajun music royalty Marc and Ann Savoy, is one of the most requested fiddlers in Southwest Louisiana today. Growing up in Eunice, Louisiana, literally at the feet of Cajun heroes like Dennis McGee, Dewey Balfa, Michael Doucet, and Wade Frugé (to name a few), Joel experienced a strong sense of what makes Cajun Cajun; as a result, he has developed a fiddle style that is at once authentic and on the cutting edge. In performance he represents his culture with an authority that few people his age can, and his playing leaves no doubt that Cajun music is still very much alive. He can be found playing with just about every band in Southwestern Louisiana at some time or other, though most often he’s seen with his brother Wilson and their parents in the Savoy Family Band. www.joelsavoy.com

Jesse Lége defines traditional Louisiana dance hall music. His unmistakable, hard-driving style of accordion playing and his powerful voice get even the most staid listeners up on the dance floor. Lége has been honored with nearly every Cajun music award extant. In 1998 he was inducted into the Cajun Music Hall of Fame. His most recent recording comes from a tour of Europe with Joel Savoy and Linzay Young (Red Stick Ramblers). www.jesselege.org

Wednesday, 09/22/10
NATHAN MOORE + LAEL NEALE WITH TREVOR GARROD
Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
+ live painting by Naomi A and Bay Area Concert Photographers’ Exhibition at
$10

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www.nathanmoore.org

Thursday, 09/23/10
RENEE ASTERIA + RAW-G, GODÉ, LT3!

Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
$10 advance & students / $12 day of show

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Friday, 09/24/10
HEAD FOR THE HILLS + TOWN MOUNTAIN
Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
$8 advance / $10 day of show

www.townmountain.net
www.headforthehillsmusic.com

Saturday, 09/25/10
NORMA FRASER + MYSTIC MAN & LAKAY
Doors at 9:00 pm; Show at 9:30 pm
$15/$12 adv/stu


Sunday, 09/26/10
THE HIPWADERS

Doors at 2:30 pm; Show at 3-4:30 pm
$4 kids / $6 adults

Award-winning kiddie rockers the Hipwaders perform “Hip Music for Kids” and grown-ups, too! Their upbeat, Beatle-esque power-pop has a late ’70s/early ’80s Punk/New Wave edge, with kid-friendly lyrics presented in three-part harmonies. The band has had several top ten songs on XMKiDs Radio, including a #1 hit, “Educated Kid,” from the album of the same name. About.com has called the Hipwaders’ latest release, “Goodie Bag,” “one of the best kids albums of 2009 so far.” The Hipwaders have performed at Chicago’s Lollapalooza Festival, XM Satellite Studios in Washington D.C., and Snowbird Resort in Utah, and they continue to play throughout the Bay Area.
www.hipwaders.net

Sunday, 09/26/10
MO’ROCKIN PROJECT
Doors at 8:00 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
$10 advance & students / $12 day of show

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Monday, 09/27/10
NO EVENING PERFORMANCE


Tuesday, 09/28/10
BEAUSOLEIL AVEC MICHAEL DOUCET

Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 8:30 pm
Cajun/Zydeco dance lesson with Diana Castillo at 8:00 pm
$18 advance / $20 day of show




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At the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Bob Dylan said of fellow performers BeauSoleil, “That's my kind of music!” Led by virtuoso fiddler Michael Doucet, BeauSoleil takes Doucet’s Louisiana Cajun roots (heard in more traditional form from the Savoy-Doucet Band) and artfully blends elements of zydeco, New Orleans jazz, Tex-Mex, country, blues, and more into a satisfying and irresistibly danceable musical recipe.

The world’s best-known Cajun band, BeauSoleil championed the popularization of home state Louisiana’s indigenous French-language dance music in the 1970s and ’80s, helping turn a near-derogatory term, “Cajun,” into a label of pride for members of its Southwest Louisiana culture. BeauSoleil has a Grammy win and 10 nominations over its 30-plus-year career and is one of the most frequent guests on National Public Radio’s “A Prairie Home Companion.”

Doucet and band have performed in such films as “Belizaire the Cajun” and “The Big Easy” and the documentary film “American Roots Music.” They have also collaborated on record with, among others, Mary-Chapin Carpenter (her No. 1 hit “Down at the Twist and Shout”), Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, English rock guitarist Richard Thompson, and the Grateful Dead. BeauSoleil has long been a Bay Area favorite, recording a series of popular and award-winning albums for El Cerrito’s Arhoolie Records. Along with Doucet on violin, guitar, accordion, mandolin, and vocals, BeauSoleil features his guitarist-singer brother David Doucet, accordionist Jimmy Breaux, drummer Tommy Alesi, percussionist Billy Ware, and Mitch Reed on bass, fiddle, banjo, and electric guitar.
www.rosebudus.com/BeauSoleil

Wednesday, 09/29/10
CLEAR CONSCIENCE
Doors at 8:30 pm; Show at 9:00 pm
$10


Thursday, 09/30/10
AUX CAJUNALS, PETER JAQUES, HELM, FELDTHOUSE FAMILY ENSEMBLE, CHRIS CASWELL, BRUNOS, DAN CANTRELL, ALAN & AYA DAVIDSON + MORE!
Doors at 7:30 pm; Show at 8:00 pm
$10-$20 sliding scale


www.GoldenToadCamp.com