Turning Hot Days Hotter
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Summertime in the city, I’ve been ushering in the hazy hot days with a wealth of adventures! My first stop was Huntington Gardens where I made it just in time to catch the annual blooming of the roses – an impressive court filled with roses in every color that makes for a spectacular floral rainbow every year. I also found myself there during the Shakespeare Festival where actors dressed in period attire performed bits of Shakespeare’s most famous works. While it seemed like a natural compliment to the very English-looking garden setting, it was rather odd to see an abundance of men in velvet frocks and tights prancing about during our peaceful stroll through the nearly 150 acres with sweeping lawns and vistas. If you haven’t been to the Huntington Gardens before, it’s worth a visit, be sure to check out their web site to see what’s blooming: www.huntington.org
Since hearing their self-title album about a year ago, New Orleans rockers Supagroup have been on regular rotation in my car stereo. So I had to go check them out with they came around Spaceland, with their hair flailing, guitar slinging AC/DC inspired garage rock that got the crowd revved up, though it was a modest attendance, probably due to the mid-week, late-night time slot. It got me thinking more people should know about this band – they’re worth losing sleep for!
I got an exciting peek into a historical landmark when I attended at writer’s party at the famous Friar’s Club in Beverly Hills. Known for their infamous celebrity roasts and holding a private membership roster of such notables as George Burns, Frank Sinatra, Steven Allen, Carl Reiner, Bing Crosby, Red Buttons and more, this posh place pays homage to them with a lux lounge loaded with enormous shrine-like framed portraits throughout. While we drank martinis in the “Milton Berle Bar,” regular members came dressed in their finest to dine on the Monday night buffet in the private dining room. I managed to sneak upstairs to find a hallway of framed photos celebrating the famous roasts with timeless images of luminaries such as Bob Hope, Connie Stevens, Jimmy Stewart Liza Minnelli, Don Rickles and Barbara Eden. I also poked my head into the private card room where a group of seniors from the old school comedy world were smoking cigars and playing poker.
I went back to my own rockin’ roots to take in the Mick Rock Photography Exhibit at the Lo-Fi Gallery. Exquisite photos of my idols such as Bowie, Iggy, The Ramones, Debbie Harry, and Johnny Rotten lined this tiny gallery and it was truly awesome to see them up close and bigger than life. Known as “the man who shot the ’70s,” Mick Rock’s career started with Bowie in 1972 and continued to define the genre of live and studio rock photography. If you missed the show, you can see more of his work on his web site: www.mickrock.com
I got my earthy, crunchy organic groove on for Memorial Day weekend at the Topanga Days Festival. Peace, love and good times were the vibe for this three-day fair held up in the blissful hills of Topanga Canyon with a variety of vendors courting hippie style garb, jewelry, all natural beauty products and more. Plus, the music was non-stop with a collection of folk and blue grass bands and an enthusiastic crowd of square-dancing moshers. That’s a new one!
I stayed up late to “Feel the Shake” at the “Hollywood Rocks” record release party at the Key Club. Celebrating the collection put together by Cleopatra Records, the label known for its nod to ’80s metal and goth formed by former band manager and one-time Vinyl Fetish co-owner Brian Perera, “Hollywood Rocks” is a 4-disc box set celebrating a decade of one of LA’s most famous rock scenes. The early ’80s disc features acts such as Hollywood Rose, Candy and the Joneses. The mid ’80s disc features acts such as Poison, LA Guns, Rock City Angels and Seahags. The late ’80s disc features bands such as Junkyard, Salty Dog and Bang Tango. And the early ’90s disc features acts such as Electric Angels, Saigon Saloon and Darling Cruel.
I’m proud to say I saw most of those bands “back in the day” and it was an amazing time in LA. It was great fun to relive a little taste of that with the party featuring reunions by Blackboard Jungle, Fizzy Bangers, The Zeros, Spiders & Snakes, Odin and the gems of the night, Jetboy, who looked amazing and sounded fantastic. Frontman Mickey Finn had freshly shaved bleach blond mohawk just as he did in the band’s 1988 hey day and took off his shirt to reveal and ultra-fit bod and full ab tattoo on his six-pack. Whoa! Nice to see the rockers aging well! And while we partying like it was 1989, it was also good fun to see there are still those in the crowd sporting the big teased black hair and studded belt look.
Rock on!
K.
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