Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay Announces 2018 Full Season

On Sunday, Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay announced their 2018 concert season. I'll be busting out the canoe on a couple nights, but apparently housing in San Diego isn't the only thing outrageously priced in San Diego. I included the base ticket prices by show, but obviously you can check their full site for details on dinner or room packages. Shows that have already been on sale or sold out are in italics, the new announces are on sale Saturday, April 7th at 10am online or at the Humphrey's Box Office.

Alt-J

• Tue, Apr 10 7:30 PM Chromeo, Phantoms (On sale. GA. Standing Only. $43.50)
• Fri, Apr 13 7:30 PM Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox (On sale. $59)
• Sun, Apr 15 7:30 PM Fleet Foxes, Amen Dunes (On sale. $60)
• Tue, Apr 17 7:00 PM Miguel, SiR, Nonchalant Savant (Sold Out. GA. Standing Only)
• Thu, Apr 19 7:30 PM alt-J, Twin Shadow. (Sold Out. GA. Standing Only)
• Sat, May 12 7:30 PM "Weird Al" Yankovic - The Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Tour, Emo Philips. (Sold Out)
• Sun, May 13 7:00 PM An Acoustic Evening with Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness & Friends (On sale. $32.50)
• Sun, Jun 03 8:00 PM The Monkees present The Mike & Micky Show (On sale. $65)
• Mon, Jun 04 7:30 PM Stephen Stills & Judy Collins, Joe Purdy ($70)
• Thu, Jun 07 8:00 PM Michael Franti & Spearhead - Stay Human Tour, Victoria Canal & Dustin Thomas ($58.50)
• Fri, Jun 15 7:30 PM Eric Burdon & The Animals, Edgar Winter Band ($59)
• Fri, Jun 22 6:30 PM Dark Star Orchestra (GA. Standing Only. $35)
• Sat, Jun 23 7:00 PM Trampled by Turtles, Deer Tick (On sale. GA. Standing Only. $45)
• Mon, Jun 25 7:30 PM Violent Femmes, Blaise Garza, John Sparrow. ($45)
• Fri, Jun 29 7:30 PM The Go-Go's ($66)
• Tue, Jul 10 8:00 PM Straight No Chaser ($59)
• Thu, Jul 12 7:00 PM Happy Together Tour 2018 ($59)
• Sun, Jul 15 8:00 PM Pink Martini ($62)
• Tue, Jul 17 7:30 PM Chris Isaak ($85)
• Fri, Jul 20 7:30 PM Big Bad Voodoo Daddy ($40)
• Mon, Jul 23 7:30 PM George Thorogood and The Destroyers Rock Party Tour 2018 ($58)
• Tue, Jul 24 7:30 PM Supertramp's Roger Hodgson - Breakfast In America World Tour ($60)
• Thu, Jul 26 8:00 PM Joe Bonamassa - The Guitar Event of the Year (On sale. $149)
• Fri, Jul 27 8:00 PM Joe Bonamassa - The Guitar Event of the Year (On sale. $149)
• Sun, Jul 29 7:30 PM Adam Ant: The Anthems Tour ($50)
• Mon, Jul 30 7:30 PM The Decemberists, Whitney (On sale. $64)
• Fri, Aug 03 8:00 PM Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons ($105)
• Sun, Aug 05 7:30 PM The Gipsy Kings featuring Nicolas Reyes & Tonino Baliardo ($87.50)
• Tue, Aug 07 7:30 PM Toto - 40 Trips Around The Sun (On sale. $67)
• Wed, Aug 08 7:00 PM Hippiefest 2018 ($50)
• Fri, Aug 10 7:30 PM Willie Nelson & Family, Alison Krauss ($185)
• Thu, Aug 16 7:00 PM Brandi Carlile ($66.50)
• Thu, Aug 23 8:00 PM Rodriguez ($50)
• Fri, Aug 24 8:00 PM The Fab Four: The Ultimate Tribute ($47)
• Sun, Aug 26 7:30 PM George Benson ($79)
• Mon, Aug 27 8:00 PM YES - 50th Anniversary Tour featuring Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Rick Wakeman ($75)
• Fri, Aug 31 6:30 PM Lost 80's Live ($67)
• Fri, Sep 07 7:30 PM The Australian Pink Floyd Show - Time 2018 (On sale. $58)
• Sat, Sep 08 8:00 PM Jake Shimabukuro ($50)
• Sun, Sep 09 7:30 PM The Stylistics, Harold Melvin's Blue Notes, Eddie Holman ($55)
• Tue, Sep 11 8:00 PM An Evening with Lyle Lovett & his Large Band ($65)
• Wed, Sep 19 7:30 PM Kenny G ($55)
• Fri, Sep 21 7:30 PM Air Supply ($63)
• Wed, Sep 26 7:30 PM Boz Scaggs ($100)
• Thu, Sep 27 8:00 PM Ringo Starr & his All Starr Band ($148)
• Fri, Sep 28 7:30 PM A Bowie Celebration: The David Bowie Alumni Tour ($52)
• Fri, Oct 05 7:30 PM America ($70)
• Sat, Oct 06 7:30 PM The B-52s ($80)
• Fri, Oct 12 8:00 PM Jesse Cook ($45)
• Sat, Oct 20 7:30 PM Allen Stone, Nick Waterhouse. ($34.50)
• Tue, Oct 30 7:30 PM Joan Baez - Fare Thee Well...Tour 2018 (Sold Out)

Humphrey's Concerts 2017 Lineup

Get your canoes and kayaks ready, because Humphrey's has released their summer lineup. I was already excited when Father John Misty was announced several weeks ago, but I'm also pretty excited that Blind Pilot will be coming back this summer. You can check full pricing and room package deals here.

Wed, Apr 12     Father John Misty, Tim Heidecker (GA/standing only)
Thu, Apr 13     BANKS, Raury. (GA/standing only)
Mon, Apr 17     Steely Dan
Tue, Apr 18      Steely Dan
Thu, Apr 20     Lila Downs
Sun, Apr 23     An Evening with David Crosby & Friends
Wed, Apr 26    Willie Nelson & Family, Steve Moakler
Tue, May 23     Rodriguez
Wed, May 24    Melissa Etheridge: M.E. Live, Celisse Henderson
Fri, Jun 02     Dana Carvey
Tue, Jun 06      Sheryl Crow - Be Myself Tour, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real
Wed, Jun 07     Brian Setzer's Rockabilly Riot!
Sun, Jun 11     TajMo: The Taj Mahal & Keb' Mo' Band
Mon, Jun 12     Ziggy Marley (GA, standing only)
Mon, Jun 19     An Evening with King Crimson
Fri, Jun 23     Gordon Lightfoot In Concert: The Legend Lives On
Sun, Jun 25     Blind Pilot (GA, standing only)
Thu, Jul 13     The Temptations / The Four Tops
Fri, Jul 14       50 Summers of Love starring Mickey Dolenz, Mark Lindsay and The Fab Four
Mon, Jul 17     Chris Isaak
Wed, Jul 19     Happy Together Tour 2017
Tue, Aug 01     Huey Lewis and The News
Tue, Aug 08     Diana Krall
Sat, Aug 12     America
Thu, Aug 17    Lost 80's Live
Fri, Aug 18     Lost 80's Live
Wed, Aug 23    Bryan Ferry
Thu, Aug 24     Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home "Love and Comedy" Show
Fri, Aug 25     Dave Koz & Larry Graham: Side By Side Summer 2017
Sat, Aug 26     Pink Martini
Sun, Aug 27     The Gipsy Kings featuring Nicolas Reyes & Tonino Baliardo
Wed, Aug 30     The Doobie Brothers
Wed, Sep 06     Stephen Stills / Judy Collins, Numa Edema
Sat, Sep 09     Jake Shimabukuro
Sun, Sep 10     George Benson / Kenny G - The Breezin' & Breathless Tour
Wed, Sep 13     Indigo Girls
Thu, Sep 14     Steve Winwood
Fri, Sep 15     Il Divo
Wed, Sep 20     City and Colour - USA Tour 2017
Sat, Sep 23     An Evening with The Beach Boys
Sat, Sep 23     An Evening with The Beach Boys
Sun, Sep 24     Bill Maher
Thu, Oct 05     The Mavericks (GA standing only.)
Fri, Oct 20     Felipe Esparza
Sun, Oct 22     Carla Morrison
Sun, Oct 29     Keali'i Reichel

Photos: Culture Club @ Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay, 8/24/2016

I'm up in Seattle at the moment, so I thought since I have a little hotel wi-fi I'd share some of my photos from Culture Club. They played at Humphrey's on August 24 and I never thought I'd get to see them in my lifetime, for one because in my adulthood I don't think they toured a whole lot, and when they did, it was always cost prohibitive. So when I was given tickets, I worked it to my advantage and shot away. It was as amazing as I'd hoped. I was maybe 7 when my sister and I walked into the new Target that had just opened in Chula Vista and saw Boy George's glamorous face on the vinyl and we split the $5.99 sale price. I still have the record, though it's definitely been tattered over the years. Flash forward to concert night, and it was amazing. More photos after the jump.

Humphrey's 2014 Calendar

I'm currently at Darren's, watching Coachella via YouTube on his massive plasma screen as I try to catch up on work. It occurred to me as I'm doing my listings that I never posted the 2014 Humphrey's Concert Lineup. Willie Nelson & Family, The Cult, and Rob Thomas kicked off the season, but since I keep emphasizing all the Coachella bands coming through town, I thought it was time to post. Now that I'm working for The North Park Theatre, I can honestly say there are about a dozen of these shows that would be way better if they were booked at the theatre, but maybe we'll beat them to the punch next year.

• Tue, Apr 15 7:30P City and Colour, NO
• Wed, Apr 16 7:30P Broken Bells, Au Revoir Simone
• Thu, Apr 17 7:30P Bryan Ferry: Can't Let Go Tour, Dawn Landes
• Fri, May 09 7:00P Ingrid Michaelson, Storyman and Sugar + The Hi-Lows
• Tue, May 13 7:30P Lindsey Stirling, Dia Frampton
• Wed, May 14 8:00P Christina Perri, Birdy
• Sun, May 18 7:30P Gregg Allman  
• Sat, May 24 8:00P Raphael - Tour Mi Gran Noche  
• Thu, Jun 05 7:30P Danity Kane - No Filter Tour  
• Fri, Jun 06 7:00P Neon Trees - Pop Psychology Tour, Nightmare & The Cat, Smallpools
• Mon, Jun 09 8:00P Il Volo  
• Sun, Jun 15 7:00P Matt Nathanson / Gavin DeGraw, Mary Lambert
• Tue, Jun 17 7:30P Steve Winwood  
• Thu, Jun 26 7:30P ThePianoGuys  (Gold Circle seats available)
• Fri, Jun 27 8:00P Jo Koy  
• Tue, Jul 01 7:30P Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon Rangers featuring Edie Brickell 
• Sun, Jul 06 7:00P Bob Weir & RatDog  
• Fri, Jul 11 8:00P Ringo Starr & His All Starr Band  
• Sun, Jul 1 3 7:30P Steely Dan  
• Wed, Jul 16 7:30P Chris Isaak  
• Thu, Jul 17 6:30P Happy Together 30th Anniversary Tour  with The Turtles feat. Flo & Eddie, Chuck Negron, Mark Farner, Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels and Gary Lewis & The Playboys
• Fri, Jul 18 8:00P Jesse Cook  
• Sun, Jul 20 7:30P Jewel (solo acoustic)  
• Tue, Jul 22 7:30P Doobie Brothers  
• Wed, Jul 23 8:00P Lyle Lovett and His Large Band  
• Thu, Jul 24 7:30P Tori Amos - Unrepentant Geraldines Tour  
• Wed, Jul 30 8:00P Boston - Heaven On Earth Tour  
• Thu, Jul 31 7:00P Los Lonely Boys  /  Kenny Wayne Shepherd  
• Fri, Aug 01 7:30P Dave Koz & Friends Summer Horns Tour 2014  with Mindi Abair, Gerald Albright & Richard Elliot
• Tue, Aug 05 7:30P Amos Lee - Mountains of Sorrow, Rivers of Song Tour  
• Fri, Aug 08 8:00P Russell Peters  
• Mon, Aug 11 7:30P Iron & Wine  
• Mon, Aug 18 7:30P An Evening with YES  
• Fri, Aug 22 7:00P Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue  /  Galactic  
• Wed, Aug 27 7:30P B.B. King  
• Sun, Aug 31 7:30P Gipsy Kings - 25th Anniversary Tour featuring Nicolas Reyes & Tonino Baliardo  with special guest Ole' Noys
• Thu, Sep 04 6:30P Retro Futura Tour 2014  starring Thompson Twins' Tom Bailey and Howard Jones with Ultravox's Midge Ure, China Crisis and Katrina (of Katrina & The Waves)
• Fri, Sep 12 8:00P Chicago  
• Sat, Sep 13 7:30P Air Supply  
• Fri, Sep 19 7:30P Andrew Bird  
• Sat, Sep 20 7:30P Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone, The Grass Roots
• Sun, Sep 21 8:00P Engelbert Humperdinck  
• Wed, Sep 24 7:30P The Australian Pink Floyd Show  
• Fri, Sep 26 8:00P Gordon Lightfoot - 50 Years On The Carefree Highway Tour  
• Sun, Oct 05 7:30P The Beach Boys  
• Sat, Oct 11 7:00P Tower of Power/Average White Band  

Recommended Shows In San Diego August 19-25, 2013

Summer rolls on with another week of great musical shows in San Diego. A closer look reveals some events worth attending.

On Monday celebrate the music of Jeff Buckley with a tribute concert (many talented local performers) at the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre in Balboa Park...Australian synth pop band Strange Talk begin a West Coast tour at The Griffin...

L.A. indie folk band Yellow Red Sparks return to The Griffin for a headlining show on Tuesday....they recently released their well received eponymous debut album...

Austin psychedelic rockers The Black Angels play the Belly Up on Wednesday...

The Casbah is the place to be on Thursday when Blackout Party and The Palace Ballroom play a benefit show for Rady Children's Hospital...

On Friday Tim DeLaughter brings his choral pop collective The Polyphonic Spree to the House of Blues...they just released Yes, It's True...TV Girl and Races headline a stellar lineup at the Casbah...

Toad the Wet Sprocket and Grant Lee Buffalo will be bayside on Saturday at Humphrey's...Kim Lenz & the Jaguars bring their rockabilly act to Soda Bar...

Sunny and the Sunsets headline the Casbah on Sunday...curiosity seekers may want to head to the Belly Up to catch Courtney Love...

The above only represents a sampling of shows happening in the upcoming week...whatever you choose, be sure to support music here in San Diego by attending a show (or two) this week...

Watch a video of Cast Away by Strange Talk below.


Watch a video of You Don't Know Me by the Polyphonic Spree below.

Recommended Shows In San Diego August 5-11, 2013

The first full week of August means summer might be winding down, but there is no shortage of great musical happenings in San Diego. A closer look reveals some shows worth attending in the upcoming week.

For those not going to the sold out show featuring The Heavy and The Silent Comedy at the Belly Up on Monday, consult the listings for your choice...

On Tuesday Foo Fighter Chris Shiflett brings his country tinged band The Dead Peasants to the Casbah...Ex Twin Shadow bassist Russell Manning headlines Soda Bar with his project Rush Midnight...

Head to the San Diego Museum of Art on Wednesday...Teenage Burritos are performing as part of the 10 day Summer Break...http://www.sdmart.org/programs-events/summer-break-2013#7...

The Casbah Presents those wild and crazy lads from Oxford Foals at the House of Blues on Thursday...local faves The Donkeys headline The Griffin...

Fifteen (?) piece touring band Mother Falcon swoop into Soda Bar for a night of orchestral pleasure on Friday...Vancouver based duo Lightning Dust hit the Casbah behind recently released Fantasy...Ivan & Alyosha open for Brandi Carlile @ Humphrey's...

Saturday marks the return of indie rockers Sebadoh to the Casbah...a new album, Defend Yourself,  is due to be released next month...

Lo-fi band White Fence headline a great bill on Sunday at the Casbah...Jessica Pratt and Jonathan Rado (Foxygen) open..

A great week of music lies waiting for those willing to check out San Diego's under appreciated music scene...

Watch a video of Bad Habit (nsfw) from Foals below...

Recommended Shows in San Diego April 15-21, 2013

April 15 is officially Tax Day and unofficially the start of the week in between Coachella weekends...this also means a plethora of quality shows featuring bands playing in a variety of venues here in cooler San Diego...such as:

On Monday Wild Nothing and Little Green Cars (Dublin) hit the Casbah for a can't miss show...Franz Ferdinand and frenetic opening band Palma Violets play this season's inaugural show at Humphrey's...

Tuesday the one and only Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds play the beautiful Balboa Theatre downtown...afterwards catch Brooklyn upstarts DIIV for an intimate show at Soda Bar...

Canadian twin sisters Tegan and Sara will be at Humphrey's on Wednesday playing songs from their new album...fellow Canucks Stars open...Casbah welcomes The Faint to downtown party club Fluxx...

R&B flavored indie rockers Polica (Minneapolis) make their San Diego debut at the Casbah on Thursday joined by Night Moves, also from MN....definitely worth checking out...

Friday brings Cloud Nothings back to SD, this time at the Casbah...their music is both wild (in a good way) and infectious...

Soda Bar has a great show at the all ages venue The Irenic on Saturday with Brooklynites Beach Fossils...Mrs. Magician opens...

Sunday finds Australian rocker Paul Kelly playing the 5th Avenue Stage at the House of Blues...

What  promises to be a memorable week of music awaits live music lovers in America's Finest City...

Watch a video of  Closer from Tegan and Sara below...

"Localchella" Shows Coming to San Diego in April

While the folks at Goldenvoice celebrate the second consecutive year of both Coachella weekends having sold out in the desert, there is plenty to get excited about here in San Diego. Playing back to back weekends has afforded those bands playing Coachella to book shows during their time off in between (weekends). Since most of the shows booked here will likely sell out, I thought a brief rundown would help those who are undecided purchase tickets while they are still available.

In order (by date) here are the shows...all shows are all ages unless otherwise noted...

April 11...Ben Howard @ Belly Up (21+)...tickets can be purchased here...

April 12...Kurt Vile @ the Casbah (21+)...tickets can be purchased here...

April 15...Foals @ Porter's Pub...tickets can be purchased here...

April 15...Wild Nothing, Little Green Cars @ Casbah (21+)...tickets can be purchased here...

April 16...Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds @ Balboa Theatre...tickets can be purchased here...

April 16...Youth Lagoon @ The Irenic...tickets can be purchased here...

April 16...Alt-J @ Belly Up (21+)...sold out...

April 17...Aesop Rock @ Belly Up (21+)...tickets can be purchased here...

April 17...Tegan and Sara with Stars @ Humphrey's Concerts by the bay...tickets can be purchased here...

April 17...The Faint @ Fluxx (21+)...tickets can be purchased here...

April 18...Polica @ the Casbah (21+)...tickets can be purchased here...

April 19...Cloud Nothings @ the Casbah (21+,,,tickets can be purchased here...

April 22...Gaslight Anthem @ Belly Up (21+)...sold out...

April will be an epic month, to say the least...see you at the show(s)!

New San Diego Show Announcements

I added some shows on the Casbah calendar, and while I was going through the weekend listings, I noticed a couple adds at Humphrey's, too.

The tickets all go on sale Friday, April 20, at 10am. Humphrey's tickets will be on Ticketmaster. The Casbah shows are linked to Frontgate below.

• Gillian Welch @ Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay- May 30, 2012
• Motion City Soundtrack, The Henry Clay People, The Front Bottoms @ Casbah - June 14, 2012
• Friends @ Casbah - June 29, 2012
• Ledisi, Eric Benet @ Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay, July 18, 2012

Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay 2012 Calendar Announced

Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay released their 2012 calendar over the weekend.
Tickets for all shows go on sale March 31 at 10 am (except for the ones that were already on sale, in italics), and Ticketmaster fees are waived for tickets purchased at the Humphrey's Box Office, with just a $3 per ticket service charge.
There is a 12 ticket per show/10 show limit on March 31. (Is that supposed to stop scalping?)
Below is the full schedule. Tickets prices vary by show, but range from $28 (James Morrison)-$138 (Ringo Starr). For all show times, specific ticket pricing, and hotel packages, click here.

Mon, Apr 16	Elvis Costello & The Imposters   - The Revolver Tour
Tue, Apr 17	Madness
Sun, Apr 22	Craig Ferguson
Sat, May 05	James Morrison - The Awakening Tour  with special guest honeyhoney
Sat, May 12	Devo
Sun, May 13	Rufus Wainwright  with special guest Krystle Warren
Sun, May 27	Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas
Fri, Jun 01	Chris Botti
Fri, Jun 15	Indigo Girls (with full band)  with special guest The Shadowboxers
Wed, Jun 20	k.d. lang
Sun, Jun 24	The Queen Extravaganza
Mon, Jun 25	The Dukes of September Rhythm Revue 2012  featuring Boz Scaggs, Michael McDonald & Donald Fagen
Mon, Jul 02	Lyle Lovett
Wed, Jul 11	Happy Together Tour 2012  The Turtles, Gary Puckett & The Union Gap, The Grass Roots, Micky Dolenz, The Buckinghams
Fri, Jul 13	Lisa Lampanelli
Fri, Jul 20	Ringo Starr & his All Starr Band  8-ticket limit enforced on first day of ticket sales only.
Sun, Jul 22	An Evening with Yanni Under the Stars
Thu, Jul 26	Sheryl Crow  with special guest honeyhoney
Fri, Jul 27	Sheryl Crow  8-ticket limit enforced on first day of ticket sales only.
Sun, Jul 29	Earth, Wind & Fire
Wed, Aug 01	Los Lonely Boys  with special guest North Mississippi Allstars Duo
Thu, Aug 02	Chris Isaak
Mon, Aug 06	Seal  with special guest Macy Gray
Thu, Aug 09	Buddy Guy  /  Jonny Lang
Fri, Aug 10	Gipsy Kings
Sun, Aug 12	America
Tue, Aug 14	Colbie Caillat  /  Gavin DeGraw
Thu, Aug 16	Joan Rivers
Fri, Aug 17	The Fab Four - The Ultimate Tribute
Sat, Aug 18	Yes  /  Procol Harum
Tue, Aug 21	Esperanza Spalding
Thu, Aug 23	Steve Martin  /  performing with The Steep Canyon Rangers  An Evening of Bluegrass and Banjo
Fri, Aug 24	Air Supply  with special guest John Waite
Thu, Sep 06	Pink Martini
Fri, Sep 07	Jewel (solo acoustic)
Mon, Sep 10	Olivia Newton-John
Tue, Sep 11	Chicago
Thu, Sep 13	Doobie Brothers
Sat, Sep 15	Tower of Power  /  Average White Band
Tue, Sep 18	Roger Hodgson: The Legendary Voice of Supertramp
Sun, Sep 23	Tony Bennett
Tue, Sep 25	Bonnie Raitt
Fri, Sep 28	Bill Maher
Sat, Sep 29	Crosby, Stills & Nash
Fri, Oct 05	Basia

Adele's Concert @ Humphrey's Canceled

As posted on Jambase.com:


"British singer Adele has been forced to cancel the remaining 9 dates of her sold-out North American tour due to ongoing illness, including the June 8, 2011 performance at Humphrey's Concerts by the bay in San Diego. Adele recently postponed 5 shows under doctor's orders when she was diagnosed with laryngitis.
While resting in Los Angeles, Adele met with an Otolaryngology specialist who determined it was imperative that she take the next few weeks to recover with absolute voice rest.

The 23 year old singer, renowned for her powerful live vocal performances, was intent on resuming her tour on June 4th in Berkeley, CA before learning of her advanced condition. "

"I'm really frustrated. I was hoping with a week's rest I'd be better to sing again straight away. However there is absolutely nothing I can do but take the doctor's advice and rest some more. I'm so sorry. See you soon, love Adele"


A note on Humphrey's website states:

"We are hopeful that our June 8 Adele date will be rescheduled and would encourage all ticket holders to hold on to their tickets until further information is available. Any tickets purchased for June 8 would be honored for a newly-rescheduled date, however refunds are available at point of purchase."

We wish her a speedy and healthy recovery.

Photos: Crowded House @ Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay

Perhaps you remember that back in April, I posted the schedule for Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay. I knew there were a few shows I hope to catch- Broken Bells, The Comedians of Chelsea Lately, Bill Maher and a couple others. My wish list might not have been completely fulfilled, but when I found out on Friday that I was going to get to see Crowded House, I was ecstatic. Still, I didn't want to get too excited because things happen and sometimes guestlists have issues, and being a Sunday show, I knew there was a chance I'd be shit out of luck and have nobody to call if that was the case.

Fortunately I reached out and in the end, I'm not sure who made the magic happen, but when I arrived to the venue, I not only got tickets to the show, but my photo pass as promised as well as VIP passes. I met Oliver, who works for Universal Music Group, for a band meet and greet. We met with Brett who works for the Concord label (who was AWESOME, by the way) who escorted us backstage to meet Crowded House before their show.

Everyone in the band was kind and gracious, and though it wasn't an interview, they fielded our questions like how they pick their setlist, how they feel about LA, what they thought about Bob Lefsetz gushing about their show. Matt, the drummer, seemed intrigued by my name, asking if there were any songs about "Rosemary". At first they thought we'd won a contest, but when we explained that I'm a blogger and had been invited, they didn't shy from asking about my site and what I do. (What is it exactly that I do?) We took a group photo, then I took a band photo, and they excused themselves...Lawrence Arabia was mid-set and Crowded House still had to create a setlist for the night. Neil said they'd play just around two hours, so we let them get to work and went to find our seats.


For more about the show, photos, and setlist, click 'keep on reading'.

It's no secret that Humphrey's quite possibly has the most uncomfortable seating known to mankind, so instead of going to our seats, we attempted to sit along the wall on the bay side of the venue. Seeing that the area was full, and that our tickets were all separate, we sought out another plan. I asked a security guard if we were allowed on a balcony near the soundboard in the back, and with our VIP passes, we were, so that's where we enjoyed the show. And seriously, we enjoyed the show. Turns out that Brett is not just a label rep but a total fan of the band, so we all sang our lungs out, trying to keep our chatty excitement to a minimum, and absorbed two hours of Crowded House. There were some beautiful crowd singalongs. There were funny banter moments. There were some tasty beverages served up by our lovely friends who waitress at the venue. And then more singalongs. The band served up a lovely mix of songs from all of their records and there was so much music packed in that it was hard to be upset if they didn't play this song or that. In the end, it was a beautiful night along the San Diego bay and the concert easily goes down as one of my highlights of the year.

Sunday: Crowded House & Lawrence Arabia @ Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay

Sunday night, Crowded House take the stage at Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay. I know that ticket prices are steep, but if you can swing it the show is going to be a good one. Though I wasn't a big Split Enz fan (I was too young), I loved Crowded House from their debut self-titled record. I actually remember being 11 years old and buying a knockoff version of the cassette from the Swap Meet. Early piracy, I guess.

Anyway, the band split in 1996 and pursued several projects and since they reunited a few years ago, this will be my first time seeing them. I've seen Neil Finn before (at 4th & B) and I've seen Tim Finn (a KPRI Hornblower Cruise), but I couldn't be more thrilled to catch them back as Crowded House. I don't always agree with Bob Lefsetz, but after reading him gush about their show at the Nokia Theatre in LA, I'm even more excited.

Tickets are available here or you can buy tickets at the venue to avoid service charges. It appears that there are plenty of tickets still available.

"Saturday Sun" from Intriguer

San Diego Music Award Nominees Announced!

Congratulations to all the San Diego Music Award nominees.

This year's event will take place on September 12 at Humphrey's by the bay. Tickets are available now.

The night will be sprinkled with performances by The Night Marchers, The Nervous Wreckords, Maren Parusel, New Mexico, Miss Erika Davies, Transfer, and lifetime achevement honorees, Iron Butterfly.

See you at the awards!

Crowded House release new video: Saturday Sun

I LOVE Crowded House. One of my first band crushes many, many years ago, I still remember buying a cassette and listening to "Something So Strong" over and over (and over) again. The band is releasing a new record on July 13, titled Intriguer, and will be coming to San Diego this summer at Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay on August 22. Tickets are available here.

Broken Bells Kick Off Humphrey's 2010 Concert Season

Broken Bells kicked off their first tour with the opening of Humphrey's 2010 concert season. The show never reached any epic peaks, but if you've listened to their self-titled release, you didn't expect any major showboating, and if you've seen James Mercer perform before, you know that he delivers a straight-shooting show. The crowd wasn't limited to the indie rock set, which means there were plenty of people there just to enjoy a night out by the bay and spend gobs on adult libations.

Morning Benders opened the night with a set of material mostly off their latest release, Big Echo, and when they asked people to come to the front to dance, you could see Elite security losing their minds, attempting to let the crowd enjoy one song but promptly sending everyone back to their seats. This is the curse of a seated show; the crowd can't agree whether to sit or stand, and with the narrow chairs and cramped rows, there's not much wiggle room. I've seen Morning Benders about half a dozen times now, though always in small venues, so it was nice seeing them spread their wings a bit on a huge stage.


With just one album under their belts, Broken Bells performed just under an hour, including their two song encore, topping out at 12 songs including a cover of Crimson & Clover, which incidentally was the song that got the people in my section to all finally stand and the chatterboxes behind me to declare their love for the song only to then continue talking through it (and the whole set). If the music is playing, you have NO REASON to be flapping your lips. period. Shut the hell up during shows. Treat it like a movie. Or church. Or kindergarten.

Aside from that, I enjoyed the show. I especially appreciated how smoothly things went when I got my photo pass (Thanks, Nikki!). They accidentally gave me a VIP pass instead of Photo, but once we figured that out, it was smooth sailing and the Elite security were friendly to me as I asked the parameters, since there was no waiver or rule sheet to sign and no specific photo area. There were a handful of real photographers there (or at least people with professional cameras), but it was still fun attempting to shoot the stage that was taller than me with my Sony Cybershot.

If you wanna know more about the show, there's a great review of the show at SDNN. Last, I'd be remiss if I didn't thank Jeff for buying such awesome tickets (4th row!).





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Broken Bells