Michael Doherty's Music Log: Sandy Rogers Band at Unurban Coffee House, 1-15-26 Concert Review

Friday, January 16, 2026

Sandy Rogers Band at Unurban Coffee House, 1-15-26 Concert Review

Sandy Rogers Band

Sandy Rogers Band returned to Unurban Coffee House in Santa Monica last night. This time the band was a trio (Sandy Rogers, Paul Marshall, Victoria Jacobs), as guitarist Dan Janisch wasn't able to make it. And so the songs had a somewhat different vibe, perhaps a rawer edge, delivered on acoustic guitar, bass and snare drum. Interestingly, Sandy did some things vocally that I don't think I'd heard before. She always delivers a great vocal performance, but last night was something special, with her trying some different things. And everything she tried worked perfectly. Seriously, she gave a phenomenal performance. And Paul Marshall had a chance to do a lot more with the bass, filling in some of the holes created by Dan's absence. It was one hell of a good show. And apparently, Sandy Rogers Band is going to be playing somewhat regularly at this venue, once a month, which is great news for music fans, especially for those of us who love some blues in our country.

"One Of Those Kind"

The first set kicked off at 7:44 p.m. (just a little late, as the doors hadn't opened until just after 7), Sandy Rogers starting the night with "Tingling Blue," the title track from her excellent new album. And immediately the world seemed a better place. You know? Isn't it great how artists can do that, how the right song can do that? We certainly need it, especially these days. The band followed that with "One Of Those Kind," which also follows "Tingling Blue" on the album. And even this early in the show, Sandy was delivering some impressive vocal work. There were signals then that she was going to be pumping even more life into these songs. "Then he's gonna find some other fool/Like you."

"Fool For Love"

"This is the song that started all this off," Sandy said in introducing "Fool For Love," a song written for the movie Fool For Love, but actually used in the movie Reservoir Dogs. She started that one off solo. That was followed by "Suburban Boys," a fun number that featured a kind of adorable bass line that had me smiling almost immediately. After that song, Sandy mentioned that it was written about South Pasadena. She followed that with "Train Fare To Memphis," which featured another tremendous vocal performance. Hers is a voice that has so much going on behind it, or within it, and we feel it all as we listen. She can take us on a great emotional ride all within a single line, and sometimes within a single word. "I can still see him waving goodbye." Then in "Lonesome Man," she sang, "I waited so long/For you to really love me." I especially loved Sandy's delivery of that section toward the end where she sang, "Missing me, you're gonna be so crazy." That was one of those moments where she surprised us with all she was doing vocally. Fantastic and captivating work. Paul delivered some cool stuff on bass on that song too. It was certainly a highlight of the set. "That's my favorite off the record," Sandy said afterward.

"In Her Auto-mobile"

"In Her Auto-mobile" is also from Tingling Blue, and was another fun number last night. It was followed by "Missouri Blue," a song that never fails to make me feel good. It's all about the journey, isn't it? "I keep on searching." The band then gave us "Wild Bill," a song written by Paul Lacques. "My days of fun are through," Sandy sang at the beginning of this one, with a great ache in her voice. That song comes from a play that Paul Lacques wrote, and after the song Sandy turned to Victoria and said they should put on that play, maybe do it at the Unurban. That would be great! The first set then wrapped up with "Trailer Up On A Hill," another fun one with a rhythm that makes you feel like moving, or at least tapping your toes. The first set ended at 8:34 p.m.

"Let's Ride"

Less than fifteen minutes later, the band was on stage again. "Okay, we're back," Sandy announced, and went into "Let's Ride," which featured some very cool touches on bass. The band then slowed things down a bit with a beautiful rendition of "Why Wyoming." This was another of the songs to feature an incredibly impressive vocal performance, making it a highlight of the evening. Seriously, she was giving the audience something new, something special on this one. Don't you love when you realize in the moment that you're witnessing something fantastic? You could feel it in the room, that everyone was cognizant of what was happening, and was appreciating it. "Turn Around" followed. That's a song that had me smiling from its first notes, its first chords. "Close your eyes and see the joy/Turn around/Turn around/Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy." And here again Paul got a chance to deliver some great work on bass. The second set was much shorter than the first, and Sandy Rogers Band wrapped it up with "No Antidote" and "Run Out Of West." "Run Out Of West" is an excellent song, written by Nick Gravenites, and last night's rendition included some great stuff on bass. The show ended at 9:12 p.m.

Set List

Set I