07.12.18

PW OPINION PW NEWS PW LIFE PW ARTS
•INTO THE NIGHT•
BY BLISS BOWEN
I See Hawks in LA
•NITELIFE•
Thursday July 12 through Wednesday July 18
PLEASE NOTE: Deadline for Calendar submissions
is noon. Wednesday of the week before
the issue publishes.
PASADENA, SOUTH
PASADENA & ALTADENA
1881 Bar
1881 E. Washington Blvd., Pasadena
(626) 314-2077
facebook.com/1881bar
Fridays—Live jazz
Saturdays—Gypsie jazz
Wednesdays—Reggae
The Blue Guitar
Arroyo Seco Golf Course
1055 Lohman Lane, South Pasadena
blueguitar.club
Thursday—Hank Mehren Trio w/special guest
Loren Story
The Boulevard Bar
3199 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena
(626) 356-9304
blvdbar.com
Fridays—Drag performances hosted by Tia
Wanna every Friday
Cabrera’s Mexican Cuisine
655 N. Lake Ave., Pasadena
(626) 795-0230
cabreras.com
Thursdays—Live jazz
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays—Karaoke
Coffee Gallery Backstage
2029 N. Lake Ave., Altadena
(626) 798-6236
coffeegallery.com
Thursday—Ed Gerhard
Friday—The Evangenitals
Saturday—The Miskey Mountain Boys
Sunday—Matinee show w/Live from Earth;
evening show with the Ukelele Orchestra of the
Western Hemisphere; Brit Rodriguez
Der Wolfskopf
72 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena
(626) 219-6054
derwolfskopf.com
Fridays—“Night Court” features Deejay Kind
Cromang spinning vinyl soul, funk, disco and
boogie
Edwin Mills by Equator
22 Mills Place, Pasadena
(626) 564-8656
edwinmills.com
Friday—Gretje Angell
Tuesday—Sabine Pothier
Wednesday—Christine Gordon
El Portal Restaurant
695 E. Green St., Pasadena
(626) 795-8553
elportalrestaurant.com
Fridays—Mariachi México
Saturdays—Alanniz
Sundays—Mariachi Bella
Ice House
24 N. Mentor Ave., Pasadena
(626) 577-1894
icehousecomedy.com
Thursday—Hal Sparks
Friday—Brian McDaniels and Friends; Big Mike
Presents
Saturday—Cool Beans Comedy; Six Weeks
to Stand Up w/Rudy Moreno; Fritz Coleman
Speaks to a Generation Marine Mammal Care
Center Los Angeles and Family Promises;
Nancy Bellany and Friends Silly Saturday Com-
–CONTINUED ON PAGE 26
Revival of a
Movement
I SEE HAWKS IN LA LEADS PROTEST SING-ALONG
‘NOW MORE THAN EVER’ AT GRAND PERFORMANCES
With the country gripped
by raging political fever,
it seems an apt time for
protest songs. Not that artists are
keeping silent; Kendrick Lamar,
Beyoncé, Drive-By Truckers, Father
John Misty, Fantastic Negrito,
Margo Price, Prophets of Rage,
Eminem, and Hurray for the Riff
Raff are just a few who have protested
injustice, gun violence, environmental
devastation, and the
Trump administration in song. But
not even Childish Gambino’s viral
“This is America” has achieved the
mass traction of protest songs by
Buffalo Springfield, the Chambers
Brothers, Bob Dylan, Curtis
Mayfield and the Staple Singers
that, during the 1960s, served as
rallying cries for the civil rights
and antiwar movements.
Friday night’s “Now More
Than Ever” concert at California
Plaza aims to revive that protest
song tradition. The brainchild of
Grand Performances Director of
Programming Leigh Ann Hahn, the
event will be led by I See Hawks in
LA, who will back various guests,
including actor Roger Guenveur
Smith, soul-jazz vocalist Nailah
Porter, R&B singer Ivan Kady,
hip-hopper Dice Raw, and Grand
Performances Executive Director
(and nueva cancion veteran)
Mari Riddle. Hawks bassist Paul
Marshall will lead a miniature harmony
workshop with the audience;
the goal, per Hawks guitarist Paul
Lacques, is to “get everyone up and
singing.”
“The idea is to jumpstart the
tradition of songs helping lead
social and political change,” he
explains. “The song was the newspaper,
going way back, especially
for underground sources of information.
In the 1960s it came to this
amazing blossom.”
Songs will range from labor
and social justice anthems “El
Picket Sign” and “De Colores (In
Colors)” to Peter Gabriel’s “Biko,”
Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song,”
and classics by Dylan, Woody
Guthrie, John Lennon, Nina
Simone and Neil Young. All have
folk roots in earlier struggles for
equality and justice. The Hawks
will also perform originals upholding
that tradition; sociopolitical
consciousness has defined
the substance of their music
since their first, self-titled album
in 2001, particularly with regard
to environmental issues. That
extends to the just-released “Live
and Never Learn,” whose lead
song “Ballad for the Trees” they’ll
perform Friday.
“I do hope the protest movement
gathers steam,” Lacques says.
“We need it badly. Humanity has
reached a crisis point. But for me
personally, the big issues are still
eco issues. There’s seven-and-ahalf
billion people on Earth and
something’s gotta give, and all the
noise right now is absolutely ignoring
that fact. I feel like we’re on the
beach arguing about sand castles
and there’s this 100-foot wave on
the horizon.”
They’ll also perform the bittersweet
“Hope Against Hope,”
which, like most of their work,
tempers anger with humor and
melodic uplift. Lacques can be
blisteringly cynical about politics,
but when it comes to young
people he expresses genuine
hope.
“They’re less deluded,” he
notes. “They’re more aware of
what’s really happening, and the
stakes for them — because they’re
gonna live through more of whatever’s
coming than we are. I just
hope they can translate that into
meaningful action.” n
Grand Performances presents “Now More
Than Ever: Protest Songs Sing-along”
at California Plaza, 350 S. Grand Ave.,
Downtown LA, at 8 p.m. Friday, July 13;
free admission. Info: (213) 687-2190. Iseehawks.com,
grandperformances.org
Rita Rocks
LEGENDARY SINGER RITA COOLIDGE
VISITS THE ROSE SATURDAY
Rita Coolidge, a legendary vocalist with some 50 years of making hits, visits The
Rose in Pasadena Saturday for a night of soulful sounds.
The two-time Grammy winner is known for her soothing voice and top-shelf
delivery. Her songs include “We’re All Alone,” “One Fine Day,” “The Way You Do the
Things You Do” and many others.
The former wife of fellow hit-maker Kris Kristofferson formed a musical power
couple that put its stamp on the musical landscape starting years ago and continues
to this day. Her compositions take inspiration from her own life, as did her 2015
memoir, “Delta Lady.”
Her recently released album, “Safe in the Arms of Time,” features contributions
from artists including Graham Nash, Stan Lynch, Chris Stapleton and Keb’ Mo’.
Visit ritacoolidge.net. — John Sollenberger
Doors open at 6 p.m. and Coolidge performs at 9 p.m. Saturday at The Rose, 245 E. Green
St., Pasadena. Tickets are $24 to $38. Call (888) 645-5006 or visit roseconcerts.com.
07.12.18 | PASADENA WEEKLY 25