by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
I love and respect the passion that is the Deadhead and Ventura has more than our fair share of them as The Grateful Dead performed no less than 11 shows here between 1982 and 1987. Returning to the fairgrounds for the third year is the Skull & Roses festival celebrating The Grateful Dead with bands playing all day Friday through Sunday, April 5 – 7 at Seaside Park at the Ventura Fairgrounds. Just a handful of the bands will be Cubensis, Stu Allen & Mars Hotel, Oteil & Friends, Melvin Seals & JGB and a dozen or so more bands. And while Seaside Park does not allow overnight parking, SkullandRoses.com reports camping is allowed in original Lot C by the Beach, and they go on to say, and I quote, that this is, “One of the most potent deadhead power spots on planet earth.” Who knew!
The Ventura Theater has a number of concerts over the next two weeks including All that Remains and Attila on Thursday, March 28, The Offspring performs an acoustic show on Thursday April 4 with Johnny Two Bags opening, but in between, they’ll be helping to raise money for a good cause, with Rockin’ for Autisum featuring local bands on Saturday, March 30 with Fallen Saints, Hologram Empire, The Rays and Raised on Vinyl. It’s only a $10 cover, but I’m sure they’ll accept more.
It’s always a great outing for the entire family when the Ventura County Concert Band puts on shows at the Ventura High School Auditorium. Their next one falls on Sunday, March 31 with “March Madness” beginning at 3 pm and as always, it’s absolutely free to the community.
Quick Notes: Smokey & Friends Monday night residency continues at Copa Cubana, the Jerry McWorter Trio plays Tuesdays; Drug Apts out of Sacramento play The Tavern on Wednesday, March 27, with Sweet Reaper and Gunpowder Empires; it’s rockabilly fun with Bad Luck Gamblers, The Cursed Bastards and Three on a Match at Red Cove on Friday, March 29; both Aaron Orbit and Owen Bucey will perform individual sets of original music at Oak & Main on Saturday, March 30; ramping up for Skull & Roses will be Jerry’s Middle Finger at Discovery on Sunday, March 31 (they also perform at Skull & Roses); Jen Leigh is the featured guest for the Session with Tommy Marsh on Thursday, April 4 at Grapes and Hops; recording artist Gary Swan will be Gypsy Blues Band’s special guest on Thursday, April 4 at the Blue Room in the Ventura Harbor; Yachtley Crew returns to Ventura for a date at Discovery on Saturday, April 6; and if you love the Glam Rock, don’t miss Dolls, The Midnight Devils and others at Red Cove on Saturday, April 6.
Do you have any music-related news or upcoming shows you want help publicizing? Please send all information short or long to [email protected]. For updated music listings daily, go to www.VenturaRocks.com.
