Ben Fong-Torres
Former all kinds of stuff in media and music
He may be saddled with the ID tag, “rock journalist,” but Ben always dug all kinds of music. The American song book. Pop, rock, R&B, blues, jazz, folk, country. And he finds it all in San Francisco.
Event Picks
Saturdays, Nov 15, and 29
Jules Broussard’s New Orleans Jazz Band at Savoy Tivoli
Broussard probably has 88 credits to match his 88 years. His tenor sax has backed Santana, Van Morrison, Boz Scaggs, Ray Charles, and Elvin Bishop, and his four solo albums are collectors’ treasures. But you can catch him and his band for free on alternate Saturdays at Savoy Tivoli. He has fun, playing two horns together and calling up guest vocalists. Plentiful pleasant surprises.
Tuesday and Thursday, Nov 18 and 20
Rachel Garlin’s Ballad at Potrero Stage
I discovered Rachel Garlin early in the coronavirus shutdown, when she played and sang in front of her garage for neighbors and passersby. Her warm and winning voice is on display online, caressing her own compositions. Now, she’s produced a song cycle, a solo theatrical piece, The Ballad of Madelyne & Therese, about two lovers in 1940s New York. It’s a long way, in many ways, from San Francisco in the ‘20s.
Saturdays, Nov 6, 13 and 20
The Many Sides of Quincy Jones at SFJazz
Q, who became a friend after I interviewed him onstage one night in 2001, loved to say that his musical history ranged “from be-bop to hip hop.” Correct. And with film scores, “We Are the World” and Michael Jackson’s greatest hits in the mix. Now, he’s being saluted by SFJazz with a series, just underway, of weekly sessions, The Many Sides of Q, in the Joe Henderson Lab. Check out “Hollywood Swingin’”, “Pop Idols” and “From Jazz to Hip-Hop.”
Saturday, Nov 29
Jackie Greene @ The Fillmore
I’ve been a fan of Jackie’s since his New Years Eve show at the Great American Music Hall in 2009. After a first set including his buddies, the Grateful Dead’s “New Speedway Boogie” and “Scarlet Begonias,” and his own signature tune, “Gone Wanderin’,” he returned for the countdown, then launched into “Midnight Special,” “After Midnight,” “Midnight Rider” and “In the Midnight Hour.” Only thing missing was “Midnight at the Oasis.”
Saturday, Nov 29
Petty Theft @ The Chapel
While other cover bands swear they’re paying “tribute” to the acts they’re impersonating, Petty Theft owns up to what they’re doing. And they do it well. For fans for whom Sirius/XM’s Tom Petty radio channel isn’t enough, go to the Chapel. A throbbing venue on Valencia, in the heart of the Mission.
More great picks in SF
As Willie Nelson, among others, put it, “Don’t get around much anymore.” But on occasion, for a special occasion—or just for a drinkie-poo, we hit the Mission, Aquatic Park, the Tunnel Tops in the Presidio, North Beach, Dogpatch, Hayes Valley, Mill Valley, Cole Valley—even Frankie Valli.
From the couple who brought us the Beat Museum, Estelle and Jerry Cimino, comes the Counter Culture Museum, in the heart of the Haight. Exhibits on the Beats, the Summer of Love, the women’s movement, civil rights, and the underground press, including the psychedelic paper, The Oracle. When I was editor of the daily at SF State, we put out a parody, The Orifice. It, too, is on display. Plus books and guest speakers like Dr. David Smith, founder of the Free Medical Clinic.
counterculturemuseum.org
1485 Haight Street
Between the Chinese Culture Center and the CHSA Museum, you’re pretty well covered on Chinese history. But only CHSA has Bruce Lee. Take in his story, which went far beyond his movies and his kung fu mastery. As the museum shows in its exhibit, “Who Is Bruce Lee?”, he was a visionary, a combo athlete/dancer, a thinker who blended east/west thought, and unifier. He was no “Number One Son.” Just Number One.
chsa.org
965 Clay Street
Ben Fong-Torres photo credit: Nob Hill Gazette