Michael Doherty's Music Log: Rick Shea & The Losin' End and I See Hawks In L.A. at Maui Sugar Mill Saloon, 5-20-26

Last night was the night of Rick Shea's monthly "Swingin' Doors" music series at the Maui Sugar Mill Saloon in Tarzana, and joining his band was I See Hawks In L.A., promising a special evening. For those who haven't yet been to one of the "Swingin' Doors" nights, the way it works is Rick Shea & The Losin' End do two sets, and in between those sets, the guest band performs a set. So that's three sets of great music. And there is no cover.

Rick Shea & The Losin' End

Rick Shea & The Losin' End opened the first set with "A Week In Winnemucca," which is the lead track from Rick Shea's new album, Smoke Tree Road, and was a perfect choice to set the tone for the set, the song having such a good vibe. I'm not sure I ever noticed this before, but drummer Dale Daniel held a stick in his right hand (for the floor tom) and a brush in his left (for the snare) for this song. He switched to two sticks for "The Town Where I Live." In introducing that song, Rick mentioned being from San Bernardino. "It was a rough place," he said, and it's gotten a little rougher since then. That was followed by "Mexicali Train," which is about a train trip Rick Shea took a long time ago. The song is one of those that take us all on a trip, the song's rhythm being that of the train (Dale using brushes for this one). The song featured a really nice vocal performance, as well as some pretty guitar work from Tony Gilkyson during his lead. "Mariachi Hotel" also takes us straight into its world, a world populated by interesting characters. The great vibe of this song always hits the right spot, and Rick delivered a cool lead on guitar, with Tony adding his own delightful touches.

Jeff Turmes has a new album in the works, and last night marked the first time he played "I Heard You Were In Town" in concert with Rick Shea. The band has been playing another of Jeff's new songs, "Things I'm Not Gonna Think About," off and on since last summer, and it's clear from these two songs that this is going to be a good album. So keep an eye out for that one. "Guardian Angel," a song from Rick's new album, followed. In introducing the song, Rick thanked Paul duGre, who mixed and mastered the album, and who was in the audience. The band delivered a really nice rendition. "I took a lot of crazy chances/I was lucky that I pulled through." That was followed by "Hold On Jake," with a good energy to the performance. "Hold onto whiskey if it gets the job done." Tony was delivering some particularly wonderful stuff on guitar at the end. Tony then led the band in his "Papa Don't Sleep," an instrumental number that had its own delicious energy and was a whole lot of fun. Rick mentioned that Tony is working on a new album, and Tony said it will be out in the fall. So there's another album to keep an eye out for. The band wrapped up the set with a couple of Midnight songs: "Blues At Midnight" and "Midnight Shift."

I See Hawks In L.A.

I See Hawks In L.A. then took the stage. The configuration was a bit different from usual, with Rob Waller standing stage right, and Dan Wistrom in the center. The band opened with "Raised By Hippies," a fun way to kick off the set. Everything was feeling right, and the song featured a good lead by Dan on pedal steel, as well as some great harmonies, particularly at the end. Dan asked about turning off one of the stage lights, which wasn't possible. He's not the first person in his spot on stage to remark on that light. "I like the dim lights," Rob said, "thick smoke," and Dan finished the sentence with "and loud, loud music." There was certainly a playful vibe last night, something that is always appreciated. A really good rendition of "Hope Against Hope" followed, that song featuring an excellent vocal performance from Rob, some great stuff from Paul Marshall on bass, and a sweet lead on pedal steel. After that song, Rob's beer bottle fell onto his pedal. "I imagine I'm not the first person to spill a beer on this stage," Rob said as he retrieved the bottle. Nubs, the venue's sound guy, immediately confirmed this. Dan switched to electric guitar for the always-fun "Ohio." "I was hooked on my vanity project, but now I'm clean." Rob then announced there seemed to be no damage to the pedal caused by the beer, just as was the case with his brain. That was followed by an excellent rendition of "White Cross" that featured a particularly nice lead on electric guitar that drew applause from the crowd.

The band played a sweet rendition of Willie Nelson's "Me And Paul," featuring a good rhythm from Victoria Jacobs on drums. Rob led Paul into telling the story of meeting Willie Nelson, and about hanging out with him and smoking pot with him, jokingly ending it with the bit of advice that Willie gave him: "Paul, don't be a name-dropper." That was followed by one of my favorites, "Jug Of Misery," a song with some wonderful harmonies, a song that might have you close to tears if you let the music in that way. Rob then mentioned the world losing Clarence Carter. He said Clarence did a lot of dirty songs, but that the band was going to do a clean one. Someone in the audience expressed some disappointment at that. "Am I the only one here who didn't know who Clarence Carter was?" Dan asked. Paul quickly answered, "Yes." But a woman in the audience called out that she didn't know either. The song they chose to play was "I Stayed Away Too Long." Rob then introduced Paul Marshall, and someone in the audience shouted out, "Bass solo!" Paul immediately responded, "So low you can't hear it." The song he chose to do was "Talking To The Dog." The first time I saw him play that one was during a solo set, and the entire audience was laughing so hard that we missed some of the lines. It's hilarious.

Then it was Victoria's turn to pick a song, and she chose "Skipping Stones," another highlight of the set. A good deal of the fun is in the song's delicious rhythm. In the playful introduction to "I Fell In Love With The Grateful Dead," Paul said, "Despite what Willie Nelson told us, this is a song about the Grateful Dead." For those who might not know, Paul Marshall played on Grateful Dead keyboardist Brent Mydland's unreleased solo album (for Dead fans, that album contains an early pre-Dead version of "Tons Of Steel" you're going to want to hear). "I Fell In Love With The Grateful Dead" featured some great drumming. After it, Rob said, "That's all true." He then mentioned that this year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the release of the first I See Hawks In L.A. album, and to celebrate the occasion the band will be doing a special show at McCabe's (with Rick Shea and Tony Gilkyson opening). That show is scheduled for September 19th, though the album was released on September 11th. Yes, September 11th, 2001, and Rob joked about how that was perhaps not the most auspicious beginning for the band. From that album, last night they played "Beautiful Narcotic Place I Reside." It was great hearing this song again, and it featured some nice work on pedal steel. The band then wrapped up the set with "California Country." Now anyone who has been to Maui Sugar Mill Saloon loves Nubs. The main reason for that is he is a damn good sound man. But it's also for actions like what he did last night. As soon as the band finished, he marched over to the stage and told them they weren't done, and made it clear precisely what song they had to do, and then went back to his soundboard, confident that they would do it. And they did. The song Nubs chose was "Good And Foolish Times." It was a good rendition, though without the extended ending. A fun way to wrap up the set.

Rick Shea & The Losin' End

Fifteen minutes later, Rick Shea & The Losin' End were back on stage, opening the final set of the night with "Georgia Bride," a song from Rick's new album. The band delivered a cool rendition. If you haven't yet heard the new album, I highly recommend purchasing a copy (you can order it here). They followed that with a fun rendition of "Juanita (Why Are You So Mean)." You'd swear there was an accordion present at the beginning of the song, though there wasn't. Tony then sang lead on his "Man About Town," a very cool, slow number. Rick followed that with another seriously cool song, "El Diablo Manda," which he introduced as "Another new one that we have not done very much." It's one of my personal favorites from the album, and for part of it Dale played the drums with his hands. That was followed by "The Starkville Blues," Rick changing the lyric at one point to "I knew a girl in Maui Sugar Mill Saloon." Jeff Turmes then sang lead on his "Don't The Moon Look Real," dedicating it to Nubs, who had requested it. There are certain advantages to being the sound guy. The song had a delicious jazzy vibe, and featured some wonderful work on guitar. Tony Gilkyson sang lead on "Tear It Down," keeping the cool vibes going, the song developing into a good jam. The set concluded with "(You're Gonna Miss Me) When I'm Gone," which also became a great jam at the end. The show ended at 11:52 p.m. An excellent night of music.