Catch a local band this weekend

Local musicians are making waves this weekend.

Jade Jackson, a 15-year-old girl from Santa Margarita, squares off Saturday against some of California’s finest singer-songwriters.
Judges with the SLO West Coast Songwriters Showcase, held once a month at Linnaea’s Café in San Luis Obispo, selected Jackson to compete against other musicians in Berkeley.
She won Best Song in June with “It's All Right, Girl,” her song about a girl struggling with strict parents and other travails of teenage life. Earlier this month, Jackson beat out other Central Coast musicians for the chance to go to the finals.
Saturday’s concert will showcase top contenders from across the Bay area, Sacramento and Southern California, playing their original songs for a panel of celebrity judges.
The Song Showcase Finals start at 8 p.m. at the Freight & Salvage Coffee House, 1111 Addison Street, Berkeley. Tickets are $17.50 in advance and $18.50 at the door.

Learn more about the SLO West Coast Songwriters Showcase, organized by Pismo Beach musician Steve Key, at the group's MySpace profile.

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Two Central Coast bands play Sunday as The Cliffs Resort wraps up its “Live on the Rocks” summer concert series in Shell Beach.
Threes and Nines, an acoustic rock trio from Arroyo Grande, will perform from 1:30 to 3: 30 p.m. on the resort’s oceanfront lawn.
They’re followed by Louie Ortega, from 4 to 6 p.m. The Latin guitarist shared a 1990 Grammy Award with the Texas Tornados for his song, “Soy de San Luis.”
Past bands in the concert series, which began July 22, include the Damon Castillo Band, Incendio and Resination.
A full bar and barbecue is available Sunday at The Cliffs Resort, 2757 Shell Beach Rd. in Shell Beach. Call 773-5000 or visit www.cliffsresort.com for more information.

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Also on Sunday, Los Osos musician Matthias Clark releases his latest album, “California Soul” at the Frog & Peach Pub.
Matthias recently brought his blend of free-styling pop and folk rock to the SLO West Coast Songwriters Showcase, held once every month at Linnaea’s Café in San Luis Obispo, and to the Winery Music Awards in San Miguel.
The concert starts at 10 p.m. Sunday at the Frog & Peach, 728 Higuera St. in San Luis Obispo.

-- Sarah L.

Rock Savants win at Winery Music Awards

Central Coast favorites Dominic Castillo and the Rock Savants seized first place Saturday at the Winery Music Awards.
The San Luis Obispo rock band edged out Arizona singer-songwriter Amber Norgaard as the top-place winner. The quartet advances to the final competition on Oct. 7, where they’ll compete for cash, studio time and other prizes.
Tom Cartwright, president of RNB Entertainment Group of Los Angeles, praised the band.
"Dominic has great stage presence and the whole band has professional poise," said Cartwright, one of eight judges at Saturday's concert.
Hosted by former "Bachelor" star Andrew Firestone, the five-hour event at Paso Robles’ Stacked Stone Cellars also featured Templeton’s Machine and Los Angeles acts Delaney Gibson and Hard Rain.
Producer Kathy Kelly created the Winery Music Awards in 2005 to highlight independent musicians and the North County wine country.
Musicians are graded on their originality, skill and marketability to the ever-expanding demographic of wine drinkers. Top prizes include a record contract with RNB Entertainment.
Arroyo Grande acoustic rock trio Threes and Nines won the grand prize in 2005. They plan to release their debut album later this year.

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The Winery Music Awards continue with an Aug. 11 concert at Silver Horse Winery in San Miguel.
For more information, check out The Tribune’s special Winery Music Awards site.

-- Sarah L.

Feeling the (musical) heat in Paso Robles

Head for the North County hills this weekend for wine, music and fun.
The Winery Music Awards returns on Saturday, July 14, for a five-hour concert hosted by “Bachelor” heartthrob Andrew Firestone.
Two Central Coast bands — Templeton’s Machine and San Luis Obispo indie rockers Dominic Castillo and the Rock Savants — will compete against artists from California and Arizona.
Also competing in July’s elimination round are: Amber Norgaard of Tuscon, Ariz.; Delaney Gibson of Los Angeles; and Andy Hill, Renee Safier and Hard Rain from Los Angeles.
The Winery Music Awards officially kicked off June 9. Sacramento pianist Shannon Curtis beat out an all-female line-up from as far away as Portland.
As the contest continues, musicians will compete in August and September to earn a slot at the final showdown on Oct. 7. Musicians are graded on their originality, skill and marketability to the ever-expanding demographic of wine drinkers.
Top acts will take home prizes including cash, studio time and a record contract with RNB Entertainment Group of Los Angeles.
Arroyo Grande acoustic rock trio Threes and Nines won the grand prize in 2005.
The group, which plans to release its debut album later this year, performs this Sunday at Downtown Brewing Co. in San Luis Obispo.

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Producer Kathy Kelly created the Winery Music Awards, which highlights independent, unsigned bands and musicians, in 2005.
Saturday’s concert starts at 4 p.m. at Stacked Stone Cellars, 1525 Peachy Canyon Rd. in Paso Robles. Tickets are $40.
For more information, visit the Winery Music Awards Web site.

-- Sarah L.

Local band hits the big time

A local band is opening for one of alternative rock’s most popular bands.
Threes and Nines, an acoustic rock trio from Arroyo Grande, will open for favorites Violent Femmes on Sunday at Ventura’s famed Ventura Theatre.
Led by guitarist Jake Brebes, Threes and Nines gained regional attention after winning the grand prize at the 2005 Winery Music Awards in Paso Robles.
The band, which includes drummer Max Triplett and stand-up bass player Tasha Brittain, took home cash, studio time and a record contract with RNB Entertainment of Los Angeles.
Threes and Nines plans to release its self-titled debut album later this year.
Tickets for the Violent Femmes show, which starts at 7 p.m., are $25. They're available through Ticketmaster.
Threes and Nines returns to the Central Coast next month for a locals-only outing with Iamb, Candle and Eddie Bunsen and the Burners.
That show will take place July 15 at Downtown Brewing Co., 1119 Garden St., in San Luis Obispo. Tickets are $5.

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Threes and Nines isn’t the only local band with links to a big name.
San Luis Obispo prog-rockers Criticnue open for Southern rock icons Lynyrd Skynyrd on July 15 at the Pozo Saloon, 90 W. Pozo Road in Santa Margarita.
Tickets cost $47 to $65.
Visit the Pozo Saloon Web site for more.

Trading beer and bars for wine and awards

With the Winery Music Awards just a month away, musicians throughout the county are tuning up for a summer of fun.
The Winery Music Awards, which run June 6 through Oct. 7, showcase local independent bands in the midst of the Paso Robles wine country. Musicians are graded on their originality, skill and marketability to the ever-expanding demographic of wine drinkers.
As producer Kathy Kelly told The Tribune in April, “It’s music with wine as a very big backdrop.”
The top bands will take home prizes including cash, studio time and a record contract with RNB Entertainment Group of Los Angeles.
You can catch last year’s grand prize winner, Arroyo Grande acoustic rock trioThrees and Nines, this week.
The band plays a free set at 8:30 p.m. Friday at Mongo’s Saloon & Coffee Bar, 359 W. Grand Ave., in Grover Beach.
Threes and Nines plans to release its self-titled debut album later this year. The band’s members are lead singer and guitarist Jake Brebes, drummer Max Triplett and stand-up bass player Tasha Brittain.

Music, wine and memories

As The Tribune’s features staff begins a brand-new week, we reach into our grab bag of arts-and-entertainment tidbits:

Pulling out the stops

Tickets are now available to the public for the first pipe organ concerts at the Performing Arts Center in San Luis Obispo.
Oliver Latry, organist at Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral, will perform June 11 and 13 on Harmon Hall’s new pipe organ.
Built by legendary organ maker C.B. Fisk of Glouchester, Mass., the organ is three stories tall and features more than 2,700 pipes ranging from a pencil’s length to 32 feet.
It’s a gift to the PAC from Burt and Candee Forbes, founders of the local computer development firm Ziatech Corp.
Tickets to Latry’s free recital on June 11 are available by contacting the PAC ticket office at 756-2787 or visiting
www.pacslo.org.
You can also purchase tickets for the June 13 concert featuring Latry, the San Luis Obispo Symphony and a community choir.

Wine, women and song

TV's "Bachelor" will host this year’s Winery Music Awards.
Andrew Firestone, son of vintner Brooks Firestone and former contestant on ABC’s "The Bachelor," will serve as the host of the summer-long music competition held at wineries throughout Paso Robles.
According to producer Kathy Kelly, bands will compete one Saturday every month from June to October. Participating wineries include Maloy-O’Neill Winery and Silver Horse Winery.
Winners receive cash, prizes and industry recognition.
Arroyo Grande rock band Threes and Nines, recipient of 2005’s grand prize, won a recording contract with RNB Entertainment Group of Los Angeles. They’re set to release their first album this year.
RNB also plans to release a compilation disc this summer featuring many of 2005’s artists, Kelly said.
For more information, visit the Winery Music Awards Web site

Tell me a story

Out past the cow pastures on west Foothill Boulevard, there’s a rustic restaurant with a varied past.
The 1917 building has been known alternately as the Callaway House, This Old House, This Ole House, A.J. Spurs and Pinky Carmine’s.
Now it’s got a new name: The Clubhouse At This Old House.
According to publicist Cheryl Westfall, owner Andrew Adams plans to turn the space into a restaurant, music venue and local sports clubhouse. It opens April 19.
To celebrate, The Clubhouse is seeking stories from its 90-year history. Winning stories will be published in the menu, Westfall said.
The Clubhouse is also offering prizes for the three best stories ranging from $100 to $300 gift certificates.
It’d be hard to beat this: According to Dan Callaway, his father Harold watched oil tycoon J. Paul Getty pass out drunk on the front porch.
Send your memories to clubhouseslo@gmail.com, fax them to 805-548-8506 or mail them to 740 W. Foothill Blvd., San Luis Obispo, CA 93405.
The deadline is this Friday, April 6.

- Sarah L.