Free Stuff LA

Wine & Song – concert series

Hosted by Brad Colerick every Wednesday evening at WineStyles of South Pasadena (1007 Mission Street), the series features two accomplished songwriters each week.  Also special guest performances and some wonderful wine selections from the Donati Family Vineyard. Shows begin at 7:00pm and wrap up around 9:30pm.

1910 Ocean Way, Santa Monica , CA 90405

ALFRED JOHNSON: Highly-Regarded Singer/Songwriter/Keyboardist

Performing Live at The Rumor Mill

Saturday, 9/11/2010 from 7:30-10:00 pm

ALFRED JOHNSON is a charming and energetic performer who plays keyboards and sings. He is a highly-regarded songwriter noted for his  ability to deftly turn a phrase and to create evocative songs that catch the ear and play in the mind like little masterpieces of cinematic compression. He has traveled and played all around the world, experiences which have fed his imagination and provided grist for his art, and he has been featured in many venues in Venice and Los Angeles over the past twenty years. Alfred has written somewhere in the close neighborhood of nine hundred songs, some seventy of which have been published. He is perhaps best-known for his 1979 collaboration with Rickie Lee Jones on her platinum Grammy-nominated first album, which contained the hit single “Chuck E’s in Love.” Diane Reeves has recorded and performed his song, “Company,” which he also counts as one of his finest collaborations.  His knowledge of the American musical firmament is broad (he is an avid vinyl album collector with over 9,000 LPs in his collection). Among hismusical influences he counts Taj Mahal, Leon Russell, Dr. John,Randy Newman, Danny O’Keefe,David Wilcox, and Bill Champlin. His own musical style is, consequently, very diverse and encompasses pop, rock-and-soul, “rhythm and bluegrass,” and music that will have you wanting to dance. Alfred is an infectiously engaging performer in addition to being a brilliant songwriter and pianist. The only thing better than hearing his songs is seeing him perform them live. Don’t miss this show!   Admission is free.

The National Academy of Songwriters has said of Alfred Johnson that “…a talent of this caliber is a rare treat,” adding that “most everyone else just knows him as an amazing person and prolific writer with unique spirit and drive.”

“Alfred Johnson is one of those writer’s writers who, likeCole Porter, Marie Caine, and Stephen Sondheim, takes your breath away with the sheer craft of it, and makes you proud to be in this often underacknowledged profession of songwriting.” –Harriet Shock

“I think he is a genius lyricist, and I really enjoyed his singing. And, if that’s him playing the piano, my hat’s off to him in that department, too.” –David Freshberg

THE RUMOR MILL, a coffeehouse/gallery/performance space.

11739 West Washington Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90066

310-397-5400 therumormill.us

If you would like to play your music at the Rumor Mill

Contact booker/event programmer,

Joe Staats at 310-889-6172, or via email at:

joe-staats@hotmail.com

Classical Thursdays:

July 8 – Finalists from Loren L. Zachary National Vocal Competition present a program of opera arias and ensembles with the Marina del Rey Summer Symphony

July 22 – The Marina del Rey Summer Symphony with soloist 19-year-old pianist Claire Huangci

August 5 – A symphonic program featuring music of The Beatles and George Gershwin

August 19 – The Marina del Rey Summer Symphony with soloist 22-year-old violinist Hahn-Bin

Pop Saturdays:

July 17 – Florence La Rue and The 5th Dimension

July 31 – James Darren and his ensemble

August 14 – Oscar Castro-Neves and his musicians in a program of Bossa Nova

August 28 – Shirley Jones

Public Parking
Public Lot #4 ;13500 Mindanao Way; one block from Chace Park (370 spaces) $7
Public Lot #5 ; 4545 Admiralty Way; three blocks from Chace Park (219 spaces) $7
Dock 52 ; 13501 Fiji Way; between Admiralty Way and Fisherman;s Village (232 spaces) Free

Burton W. Chace Park
13650 Mindanao Way
Marina del Rey CA

Water taxi service is available from one side of the Marina to the other, and a fun way to start and end the evening when visiting from Venice.

KATHY LEONARDO with GREG CRUZ & THE VENICE STREET LEGENDS

(Greg Cruz, Petr Hromadko and Wolfgang Maus)

Saturday, August 28, 2010 from 7:30-10:00 pm

KATHY LEONARDO, the diminutive acoustic/folk/blues singer-songwriterfrom Venice, CA, is proof positive, should  proof be needed, that great things come in small packages. She writes original songs with telling and emotionally intense lyrics, and her music ranges from soothing ballads to rollicking uptempo blues rock, all driven by her soulful and passionate performances. She has been writing songs for herself and others for over a decade. She has an unaffected emotional honesty and directness that grabs audiences, a big heart, and powerhouse vocals.

Kathy is also an actress, has worked on Broadway (one of the reasons, no doubt, for the huge voice emanating from this tiny frame) and on TV shows such as The Cosby Show. She currently has a sketch comedy show running on Cable TV called The Ground Floor.

Kathy will be singing her original ‘Strong Woman Blues,” as well as performing some Patsy Cline songs, and Johnny Cash-June Carter duets with singer-guitaristGREG CRUZ of The Venice Street Legends. The Legends, who also include Petr Hromadko andWolfgang Maus on bass and acoustic guitar, will also be performing their own set of classic acoustic country. A horn player will be joining the band for both sets.

The Rumor Mill a coffeehouse/gallery/performance space

11739 W. Washington Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90066

website: therumormill.us 310-397-5400

VINNIE CAGGIANO: Eclectic Guitarist

Live Encore Performance at the Rumor Mill!

Saturday, August 21, 2010 from 7:30-10:00 pm

Vinnie Caggiano is a magician masquerading as a musician, which is simply to say that his aural prestidigitations are as amazing to behold as to hear. Like some ancient Chinese calligrapher who must create his art with a perfect stroke that admits no possibility of erasure or correction, Vinnie employs a recording technology called ‘looping’ with which he lays down a first track that requires intense concentration of eye, ear, and feet while yet playing his guitar with impeccable technique. This is a musical high-wire act, for there are no second chances, no studio stripping of tracks or retakes. It is an astounding demonstration of creativity in the moment. (To err while looping would be to hear the mistake over-and-over in the track that is being recorded on this first pass.) Vinnie then plays back the loop, and accompanies himself to the just recorded track with new soaring guitar leads and fills. Many guitarists would give their right arm for the first track alone, and the layered sound he creates using this technology makes for a sonically rich musical experience and one that is a great deal of fun to watch. Vinnie composes and plays music in an exciting and eclectic variety of  musical genres including ‘hot and spicy funk and roll,’ ‘extra caffeinated funk’ (for all you coffee lovers!), textural ambient explorations, and blues, rock, and jazz hybrids. If you missed him the first time we had him, we encourage you to make every effort to come out and see him in this special encore performance. Vinnie Caggiano is a passionate and masterful guitarist—and one of our favorite performers — and this is a very rewarding music performance to see and hear. Unless you’ve seen Vinnie live, you’ve not seen the like of this before.
Listen to tracks of Vinnie’s music at http://www.vincognito.com His CD,Loop-de-Jour, will be for sale the night of the performance. Admission to the concert is free, but do yourself a favor and bring an extra five bucks for the CD. Proceeds go directly to the artist.
The Rumor Mill, a coffeehouse/gallery/performance space

11739 West Washington Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90066 310-397-5400  website:therumormill.us