Black Bear and the Cheyenne Autumn Band (Contributed Image)
This is a really exciting week for PE Live. Since we relaunched the series, we’ve had more than a dozen artists come in and perform and talk with us.
Now, with this week’s edition, we are up to 50 videos in the PE Live reboot. I am thrilled that the artist who made us hit number 50 is Black Bear, of Black Bear and the Cheyenne Autumn Band.
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Black Bear, a.k.a. Jonny Miller, crafts impeccable California folk music that has inspiration in everything from transcendentalism to Westerns.
Here’s “1850 Overture.”
Want to know more about Black Bear and see all of the performances and interviews from PE Live? Click the links below.
The Unforgiven in their 1980s heyday. (Contributed Image)
The Unforgiven was from the Inland Empire, merging Spaghetti Westerns with arena rock. And I’ve had the band’s music stuck in my head for days.
They reunited (sadly, without the great Johnny Hickman) at the 2012 Stagecoach Country Music Festival. They were fantastic there.
The Unforgiven performs at the 2012 Stagecoach Country Music Festival. (Vanessa Franko/Staff Photo)
Here’s a story I did on the band before that Stagecoach return. I couldn’t find the link since we’ve changed the website around, so here’s what originally ran on April 27, 2012, by yours truly. I’m sprinkling in the videos, too.
The Unforgiven rides again
BY VANESSA FRANKO
STAFF WRITER
The Unforgiven’s story is the epitome of the parable of the music business, with a plot line as strong as the Spaghetti Westerns that inspired the image of the Inland Empire-based roots rock band.
The legend of The Unforgiven starts nearly 30 years ago, long before there was a Clint Eastwood film or a Metallica song by the same name.
The short version goes a little something like this: friends start a band after taking a film course, band builds huge buzz in the European press before ever playing a show, band is at the center of a bidding war among major labels in the heyday of big music in the U.S., band makes a video for MTV hit “I Hear the Call” that actually looks like a Spaghetti Western with a power pop soundtrack, band’s lone album flops, band gets wild, members quit and by 1988 The Unforgiven is no more.
“We were unmanageable at the time,” lead singer/songwriter Steve “John Henry” Jones said in a telephone interview last week.
But, on Sunday, under the blazing sun and amid the dusty winds of Indio, the scene is set for The Unforgiven’s next act at the sold-out Stagecoach Country Music Festival, a reunion spearheaded by Paul Tollett, head of festival producer Goldenvoice.
Tollett, who was a student at Cal Poly Pomona the same time as Jones in the 1980s, had booked the band in its early years and approached drummer Alan Waddington in 2010 about reuniting the band for the 2011 festival.
“I didn’t see it happening,” Jones said. “I’m in my third career as a TV producer.”
Jones found a second career was in the business side of music and now Jones is the producer of the reality show “Turbine Cowboys” on The Weather Channel.
Likewise, the band’s other members were working on various things. Waddington teaches at Citrus College, bassist Mike Finn and guitarist Mike Jones are teachers with the Los Angeles Unified School District and guitarist Jay Lansford lives in Hanover, Germany, where he works in the music business as an A&R man and still plays in the punk scene.
Growing up, Steve Jones, Mike Jones and Finn were all lifeguards together in Corona, and Steve Jones and Lansford were in seminal Inland punk band The Stepmothers together.
Additionally, original Unforgiven member and Redlands native Johnny Hickman, who won’t be out for the reunion show, is a member of the band Cracker.
Another former member is in poor health and one couldn’t be found.
When the band split up, there was some bad blood among the members, but after the initial reunion proposal, Waddington continued to work on getting everyone back together.
Mike Jones, Finn and Waddington have played throughout the Inland region in the band The Hickmen as well as at the annual Cracker/Camper Van Beethoven Campout.
Waddington’s persistence is what made the reunion happen.
“Alan kept at it. He is the great Gandhi in this group,” Jones said.
One of Jones’ concerns was that he hadn’t played live and wasn’t up for it and there was a lot of healing that needed to be done.
“For me, the moment was when I got back in the room with the guys,” he said.
“I was a very tough guy to be in a band with,” Jones admitted.
The legacy and the music of the band has lived on, influencing others and still talked about and remembered in the Inland music scene. The Unforgiven inspired racks at Hollywood vintage stores filled with bolo ties, long leather jackets and wide-brimmed hats.
“We went out and forged our own way,” Lansford said.
The Unforgiven performs at the 2012 Stagecoach Country Music Festival. (Vanessa Franko/Staff Photo)
Fans who catch the band Sunday can look forward to the old songs off the lone album, as well as a few surprises.
“We have been writing new songs and we will be playing a couple of new things,” Jones said.
Hundreds of fans camped on site at Glen Helen Regional Park to see Mumford & Sons perform at San Manuel Amphitheater in Devore on June 2, 2013. (Vanessa Franko/Staff Photo)
There are a number of activities set up for the campers, including a water park with two water slides, as well as a general store. It’s like a mini-Coachella, with water slides.
Campers can check-in starting Friday, August 23 at 3 p.m. and stay through 3 p.m. Sunday, August 25.
There are two kinds of camping available: car camping and RV camping.
Car camping spots are 20 feet by 30 feet and have enough room for one car and one tent. RV spots will accommodate RVs up to 42 feet long. There are no hookups available for the RV camping.
A two-day camping pass (Friday and Saturday night) is $75 for a car/truck and $125 per RV. A one-day camping pass for Saturday night only is $50 for a car/truck and $100 per RV.
Call 909-880-6500 for more camping information.
Here are the camping rules that Live Nation sent over:
Quiet time will be enforced from 2am – 8am each night.
Underage use or possession of alcohol will not be tolerated.
No illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia.
No firearms or weapons of any kind.
No fireworks, open fires, or charcoal grills. Propane grills are allowed.
No large parties, kegs or binge drinking devices.
Unauthorized vending of food or merchandise, including alcohol, is prohibited.
Please obey all posted “No Trespassing” signs.
Violation of any campground rule or policy may also lead to fines.
Restrooms and showers for men and women will be available in the campground
Fishing licenses are required to fish and must be purchased in advance via Walmart or Bass Pro Shops or other authorized store.
Fishing hours are 7:30 AM to 7:00 PM
There is an $8.00 fee to fish
Swimming: the pool and waterslide are open from 10 AM to 7 PM
Proper swimming attire is required.
Frisbee Golf is available to campers (free of charge, but fans must bring their own golf disk)
Fans dance at the National Orange Show at the Insomniac event Audiotistic. (2010/File Photo)
Electronic Dance Music promoter Insomniac Events finally revealed the long-rumored partnership with entertainment giant Live Nation Wednesday, June 19 just ahead of Insomniac’s Electric Daisy Carnival festival in Las Vegas.
I think we’ll also see multi-day festivals at that site. The Mumford & Sons campout/show on June 2 was a success at using the space at Glen Helen Pavilion and I think it showed Live Nation that the space is viable for larger-scale events. (I’ll go ahead and add weather permitting, because it’s not a great option for the dead heat of an I.E. summer).
Furthermore, the big entertainment news in Riverside this week is that the city is in talks with Live Nation to operate a number of downtown venues, including the Fox Performing Arts Center, the Fox Entertainment Plaza and the Riverside Municipal Auditorium. Of those spaces, I think the Muni could be the right size to get some EDM solo shows.
EDM fans what do you think about the partnership? Does this bolster Insomniac’s ability to put on various events and expand? To use terrible punk terms, did Insomniac “sell out”?
Father John Misty will perform at the Glass House in Pomona on June 22. (Vanessa Franko/Staff Photo)
Father John Misty had one of the most memorable sets of the 2013 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival this spring and not only because of the sun-soaked California country rock the band played with a palm tree backdrop.
Leader Joshua Tillman was the comedian of the fest and with tongue firmly planted in his cheek as he skewered the festival and its attendees, including a spot-on impersonation of a grumpy girl wearing a floral crown and a hippie dress.
This weekend the antics come to the Glass House in Pomona.
7 p.m. Saturday, June 22, The Glass House, 200 W. Second St., Pomona, $20, all ages.
The Stillwinter is playing the Vans Warped Tour on Thursday, June 20. (The Stillwinter Facebook/Contributed Image)
Today’s the day–the 2013 Vans Warped Tour kicks off its twin dates at the Pomona Fairplex. If you’re going, there are a number of local bands playing, including The Stillwinter, out of the Redlands/Yucaipa area.
Vans Warped Tour, 11 a.m. June 20 and 21, Pomona Fairplex, $35 for a one-day pass, $69 for a two-day pass, all ages. Visit www.vanswarpedtour.com for more information.
Temecula’s Finch will perform at the 2013 Sunset Strip Music Festival on Aug. 3. (Vanessa Franko/Staff Photo)
Temecula’s Finch has been announced as one of the artists performing at the Sunset Strip Music Festival in West Hollywood on Saturday, Aug. 3.
The band has been touring the U.S. celebrating the 10th anniversary of breakthrough album “What It Is to Burn,” which kicked off with a string of sold out shows at the Glass House in Pomona in February.
Linkin Park was previously announced as the headliner for the festival. Other artists announced on Wednesday, June 19 included Awolnation, Wale, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Logic, Slick Rick/Doug E. Fresh, Asher Roth and Street Drum Corps.
This year is the sixth for the festival, which has been integral in revitalizing the Sunset Strip music scene.
In addition to the two outdoor stages set up on the Strip, venues inside the street festival closure (Sunset Boulevard from Doheny Drive to San Vicente Boulevard) such asThe Roxy, Whisky A Go-Go and an outdoor Viper Room stage will also feature more music, including The Active Set, who just played with Neon Trees at Vista Murrieta High School on June 8, and Orgy.
Tickets for the SSMF 2013 street festival are on sale now at http://sunsetstrip.eventbrite.com. Ticket options include general admission for the street festival on Aug. 3 for $79 and a VIP option for $145.
Mad N Mack will perform at the Vans Warped Tour on Thursday, June 20. (Contributed Image)
The Vans Warped Tour visits starts its twin visit to Pomona on Thursday, June 20. We have at least seven local artists playing the shows, which also includes Black Veil Brides and Reel Big Fish, among others.
Among the local artists performing are Mad N Mack and Service Interruption, both of whom are playing on Thursday.
Rancho Cucamonga-based Madison Marie and Mackenzie Paige, are known as Mad N Mack and they have a huge following. Now with a full band, the band has a new album, “Everyone’s Watching.”
Vans Warped Tour, 11 a.m. June 20 and 21, Pomona Fairplex, $35 for a one-day pass, $69 for a two-day pass, all ages. Visit www.vanswarpedtour.com for more information.
ColeSlaw, made up of Inland music scene veterans Matt Coleman and Chad Villareal, will perform at the Public House in Temecula on June 21. (Contributed Image)
Two of the Inland Empire’s most beloved songwriters and performers will be at the Public House in Temecula this weekend.
The Fox Performing Arts Center in Riverside. (2011/File Photo)
There’s big news coming out of the Riverside City Council meeting tonight–colleague Alicia Robinson is at the meeting, reporting that the city is in talks with mega-promoter LiveNation to run the Fox Performing Arts Center, the Riverside Municipal Auditorium and the Fox Entertainment Plaza, which includes the black box, exhibit and event space.
Alicia is Tweeting from the meeting that the city should have contract in 4-6 weeks for Fox operator. It will be a three-year-long contract. If the Live Nation deal falls through, the city may still talk with Comcast-Spectacor or VenuWorks.
She’s reporting that the four smaller operators were shut out from the interview process. They included McCoy Rigby Entertainment, which brought theatrical entertainment to the Fox for a season and books the La Mirada Theatre, Golden Crown Productions, which books a number of concerts in Temecula Valley Wine Country, Theatrical Arts International, which booked the California Theatre of the Performing Arts in San Bernardino, and Swanson and Associates.
Alicia also reported that the council directed city to negotiate at least one local person in management with the Live Nation deal.
Here’s what you need to know about Live Nation:
They’re HUGE. They bring in top entertainment around the world. They have deals with mega-artists, too, including Madonna and U2.
Live Nation operates San Manuel Amphitheater in Devore (formerly known as Glen Helen Pavilion, Blockbuster Pavilion, Hyundai Pavilion), the nation’s largest outdoor amphitheater. Like the Fox, the venue itself is owned by the local government. In this case, San Bernardino County. This year there have been four major concerts/music events that have happened so far (Paid Dues and Beyond Wonderland moved there from the NOS Events Center, Mumford & Sons and Tim McGraw were booked as concert events). There are four other events, spanning over five days (Rockstar Mayhem Festival, Brad Paisley, Iron Maiden and Rock the Bells’ two-day fest) already booked and announced for the venue. This makes it the busiest year at the amphitheater in the six years I’ve been covering music at The Press-Enterprise.
Live Nation books well-known music venues in the Southland, including the Hollywood Palladium, The Wiltern, the House of Blues and more. They have a variety of music going into their venues.
On a personal note, every time I’ve emailed or called Live Nation to inquire about covering a show at San Manuel Amphitheater, the folks there have always been responsive. They are also good about letting the media know about on-sale dates and upcoming shows.
So what do you think of the city trying to work a deal with Live Nation? Do you think this means more shows and big entertainment for the Fox? Any local musicians out there have experience working with Live Nation?
Who do you want Live Nation to book at the Riverside venues?
