Yesterday afternoon's show at the Redwood Bar & Grill felt in some ways like a continuation of Kim's birthday celebration from the previous night at Maui Sugar Mill Saloon. Many of the folks who played at the Redwood had been present at Maui Sugar Mill Saloon. The Williamsons had been there, obviously, as Mike is a member of The Paper Hearts, the final band of that bill; the two members of The Smokey Lonesome had also been in the audience, as had Mini Mendez of The Glimmer Stars. And some others who'd been in the audience at Maui were also in the audience at Redwood. Missing today, however, was Kim herself, but we carried on her celebration without her. And I'm sure she'd appreciate that.
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| The Williamsons |
Strengthening that feeling of continuation or connection to the pvious night was the fact that The Williamsons were up first. So Mike was on stage at the very end of the Maui show and at the very beginning of the Redwood show. A change of venue, yes, and a change in the type of music he played, certainly. But the excellent music continued. Have I mentioned how wonderful the music scene is in this city? The show started a bit later than scheduled, with The Williamsons taking the stage at 2:45 p.m., and opening with a cover of Jimmie Dale Gilmore's "Dallas," which featured a really nice vocal performance. The line "
A rich man who tends to believe his own lies" feels even more pertinent these days, doesn't it? Jessica shouted out to all her family members that were in the audience, and the duo then played "Leaving Louisiana In The Broad Daylight," which had a great vibe. Mini Mendez joined the duo on backing vocals and shaker for a new song titled "Have A Drink." "
Don't mind if I do," someone in the audience responded when Mike mentioned the name of the song. This song was one of my personal favorites of the set. It was followed by a cover of Sierra Ferrell's "I Could Drive You Crazy." Sierra Ferrell, by the way, will be performing at the Wiltern on Wednesday. The Williamsons mentioned that they'll be at that show. The duo then played an original number, "She's Coming Home," which featured some good harmonies. Mini Mendez joined them again on backing vocals and shaker on a sweet rendition of Tom T. Hall's "That's How I Got To Memphis." The Williamsons' set also included good renditions of White Stripes' "Apple Blossom" (featuring a great lead on guitar) and Johnny Cash's "Crystal Chandeliers & Burgundy." After a false start, "These Good Times Are Killing Me" ended up being another highlight, a delightful and fun folk number. Jessica then dedicated "Six Pack To Go" to the bartenders. They wrapped up with the set with a cover of "Jambalaya," with Dave and Natalie of The Smokey Lonesome joining them on electric guitar and backing vocals respectively. The set ended at 3:27 p.m.
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| The Smokey Lonesome |
The Smokey Lonesome then took the stage, one great duo following another, kicking off with "Jasmine" and following that with a rocking rendition of "Koa Box," Dave getting delightfully wild. Some of this duo's magic occurs when they are seemingly right on the edge of chaos. These two are exciting to watch, especially in those moments. "Cannabis" followed, a song that celebrates the legalization of pot here in California. I forget sometimes that it's still not legal everywhere. Dave's guitar cord came loose at one point, but no worries. Natalie then sang lead on an excellent cover of "Besame Much," delivering a superb vocal performance that got much deserved applause. It was a great rendition, with a special power. Afterward, Dave took a drink, joking that her performance was so powerful that he got parched. Natalie also sang lead on covers of "Ways To Be Wicked" and "Don't Come Home A-Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)." Between those two, Dave sing lead on "Mojave," an original song included on the band's 2024 EP
Desert Run. From that EP, the duo also performed "Arid Blues," one they don't do often enough. Before that song, Dave danced around a bit on stage, saying that the next song was a bit of a downer so he wanted to give the crowd a little entertainment first. It was great hearing this one. And it was followed by an especially good rendition of "Desert Run," another of the set's highlights. They wrapped things up with "Truck Driving Man." The set ended at 4:11 p.m. By the way, it was The Smokey Lonesome that organized this show.
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| The Glimmer Stars |
The Glimmer Stars were up next, opening their set with "Better Day," which is the last track on the band's excellent new album
Someday's A Long Time. There was a bright energy about this song, something this band is adept at creating, and part of the group's appeal. "
Moving right along," Mini Mendez said, and the band went right into "I Need It Now," which is also on the new album. It's one of my personal favorites from the album, coming at us with a great, cheerful force. We all need it now, don't we? And with that great stready pounding by Richie on the drums, we're getting it. "If I Only Could" came marching over the land directly to where we stood, and was delicious. After that song, the sound guy checked in on the band. "
Bass too loud?" Mini Mendez playfully inquired. "Pictures Of You" had a strong, fast pulse, and included that nod to Cheap Trick at the end. "Alley Cat" followed, and then Mike Williamson helped adjust Mini's microphone stand. Mini told the crowd that he lost his voice at the Maui Sugar Mill Saloon show the previous night, not performing, but screaming during Paper Hearts' set. They then played "Would You," and followed that with another of my favorite tracks from the new album, "Maybe." "
I would skip the strip tonight/Anything to see your light/I want you to know/I want you to know/Maybe, maybe/I'd climb the graveyard wall/Maybe, maybe/And I would give you all." This song still sounds like a hit to me. When is the world going to figure that out? "
This one's about a girl, and we call her Paulina," Mini then said, introducing "Paulina." The bass slipped out of tune, and so Mini Mendez stopped to make an adjustment, to make things just right. And when they started it again, the song came on with a stronger, more joyful force and ended up being a highlight of the set. That led straight into "I Want You," with Steven delivering some fantastic rock and roll guitar work, to wrap up the set. Understandably, the audience called out for an encore, but the band declined. The set ended at 5:02 p.m.
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| Old Californio Quartet |
Old Californio Quartet closed out the afternoon show. Some sound troubles delayed the start of the set. Rich solved one of the problems by grabbing an amp from the car. But the vocals weren't coming through the monitors. Also, the stage lights cut out. But this band wasn't about to let such things get in the way, and opened with a really nice rendition of Arlo Guthrie's "Coming Into Los Angeles." The song eased in at the very beginning, until Justin put everything into gear on drums. They jammed a bit before starting the vocals, and the song featured some nice stuff by Dan on pedal steel. It was a really good rendition, featuring some wonderful work by Rich on harmonica, as well as some excellent drumming by Justin. "
All right, we got through the technical difficulties," Rich said, and started the next song, "Free Ain't Easy." "
Nothing seems to move me like it used to/So I just keep moving on," he sang in this one. This was a beautiful number, with some good work on pedal steel. The stage lights came on before the end of that song. "Millard Canyon Run" followed, with Rich again delivering some nice stuff on harmonica. There were more monitor problems, including a loss of all vocals in the monitors, and a hiss had crept into both the monitors and the house speakers. While the sound guy was working on it, the band forged ahead, jumping into "Lean Into It." They played in a way that seemed to defy any sound troubles, and the song featured some fantastic work by Bob on bass. I loved watching his fingers dancing on that instrument. The guys jammed on this one, that jam having a few tremendous peaks. Sound issues be damned, this song was a highlight of the set. That was followed by a cover of "That's The Bag I'm In," the band easing into it. They jammed on this one too. Rich commented playfully afterward, "
Started off slow and fizzled out altogether." "Kansas City Southern" followed. Rich's vocals sounded great, not just on this song, but the whole set, which is remarkable considering his vocals were absent from the monitors and could only be heard in the house. That song featured more great stuff on bass. They followed that with one of my favorites, "Shorten Your List," which featured some beautiful pedal steel work. This is a song to help us deal with our times. "
Shorten your give-a-shit list/Accept the world for the turd that it is," Rich sang, substituting "
turd" for "
mess" (and later singing "
Accept the world for the piece of shit that it is"). That was followed by "City Lines," a song that gets in my head all the time, and is always a good one to see them play. They wrapped things up with "Mother Road," Rich mentioning that the road in question is Route 66. The show ended at 6:32 p.m.
Redwood Bar & Grill is located at 316 W. 2nd St. in Los Angeles, California.
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