02 August 2023

BISS List 8.2.23: Spotlight on Jerry Nite + Best of BISS this Week

Happy Jerry’s Birthday People!

If you don’t know that August 1st is Jerry Garcia’s b-day, well then, you must be living under a rock. OR you don’t live here in the Bay Area where we celebrate this day with many many many shows all around the bay all week long, starting tonight with the SF Giants Grateful Dead Night w/ Sunshine Becker and Zach Nugent at Oracle Park.

#This Saturday if you are looking to celebrate Jerry’s birthday with a live show or five, we have a few of them highlighted here for you starting with the 21st Annual Jerry Day 2023 with Melvin Seals & JGB, Stu Allen & Mars Hotel, and BoxSet at Jerry Garcia Amphitheater starting at 11am on the 5th. Then you can roll into Jerry Nite Pub Crawl w/ Hot Mountain Dips, Three Flower Jam, Kim Capria, Sweet Undertow, Six Foot Banditos, and The Bonafides in the Excelsior District (More info in the Spotlight below). There is also a special Jerry Night show taking place in North Beach ft Tom Constanten (*WIN*) & his friends Mark Karan, Wally Ingram, Scott Guberman, and Burt Lewis. We told you all about this one in last week’s BISS. #ICYMI, this is a fundraiser for Go Big For Hunger, an organization committed to helping kids living with food insecurity by implementing creative fundraising solutions. If that isn’t enough Jerry for you, Mr. Hat presents: Grateful Day On The Waterfront w/ Cubensis, The Grateful Dead Experience, Grateful Brass by Jazz Mafia, The Alligators, and Lovin Dead & Love Mischief on Sunday, August 6th.

#ThisWeek, I am personally extremely excited to see the legendary Taj Mahal performing in the Miner Auditorium (4th- 6th). These Summer Sessions concerts are the world premiere performances of material from his forthcoming album Savoy, a jazz-inflected tribute to the music of his childhood and the legendary Harlem ballroom of the 30s, 40s, and 50s, featuring his singular interpretations of Great American Songbook classics. The project has special meaning for Taj, his parents met at the Savoy during an Ella Fitzgerald concert and the music of that era was the soundtrack of his early life. In his words, “I heard (the songs on Savoy) as a kid when all of those people who made those musics were alive and speaking to us through the records.” These only-at-SFJAZZ concerts will feature an orchestra, American folk great Maria Muldaur and more.

#ThisFriday, Sgt Splendor ft Kate Vargas and Eric McFadden are playing for FREE at Golden Gate Park Bandshell. For those of you in the North Bay, you can also catch this dynamic duo on Saturday, they are also playing on Saturday at the Hopmonk Tavern in Sebastopol.

ALSO #ThisWeekend, Papermoon Presents and ALO are back at the Bruns Amphitheater in Orinda on Saturday night w/ Two Runner (*WIN*) and Sunday Matinee w/ the debut of Jay Lane & The Mayhem (*WIN*) I’m having a hard time deciding on which so might have to do both. I’m especially excited about Sunday for the debut of Jay Lane’s brand new band – Jay Lane & The Mayhem, featuring Reed Mathis and Jordan Feinstein. **Congrats to our first round of winners to these shows, Rachel J for Saturday night and Gary S on Sunday! You still have one more chance to win a pair of tickets for each show so keep sharing and submitting your entries!

#NextWeek, I am looking forward to the Afrolicious Party Reunion (*WIN*) – a benefit for Diamond Vibes feat. members of Afrolicious, Smoked Out Soul, and Balkan Bump Thursday, 8/10 at The Rickshaw Stop 💎🥰. And also looking forward to Eddie Roberts and The Lucky Strokes at Sweetwater on Saturday 8/12. Tune in to BISS next week for new music from this band! Then Sunday, 8/13, it’s the Grateful Guitars Foundation Inaugural All-Star Benefit Concert at GAMH.

As always, check out the Best of BISS section and Win Tickets page. And don’t forget there is always more on the Full Calendar.

But wait, there’s more! This week’s #ListenToThis is “Can’t Steal My Heaven” from Caleb Hawley. Be sure to check it out below!

#seeyouattheshows,
~ Pamela aka Miss BISS

SPOTLIGHT ON JERRY DAY AND NITE

Jerry Nite Pub Craw l

August 5th @ Excelsior District

Jerry Day turns into Jerry Nite with a FREE after-party pub crawl through the Excelsior District near Jerry’s childhood homes. Starting with Hot Mountain Dips at Recovery Room, followed by Three Flower Jam at Tala Wine, Kim Capria at The Check-In, Sweet Undertow at Bottoms Up, Six Foot Banditos at Gentilly, and The Bonafides at Dark Horse Inn.

***Check out all of our Featured Shows.

LISTEN TO THIS

Listen to “Can’t Steal My Heaven” by Caleb Hawley, from his album Preshow Music.

There was a time when Caleb Hawley hated being mistaken as his mother when answering the land-line, but it worked out for him in the end, setting him apart with his high, androgynous vocals. His catchy melodies with dark and satirical lyrics bring the listener on a rollercoaster of 80’s vibes and surprising emotional layers.