It would seem that a meeting between rocker Ted Nugent and cyborg Mitt Romney would be one of those matter-anti-matter events that would explode the entire time-space continuum.
But besides being local, politics is nothing if not a bed of odd fellows. Nugent who illegally kills Alaskan bears with arrows (left his Bowie knife at home?), has endorsed Romney, who once lamely told a group of hunters that he has hunted “varmints.”
Now, Nugent, annoyed with the way the Constitution allowed the Supreme Court to up and rule that Obamacare is, well–constitutional, opined that it would have been better if the South won the American Civil War–or as the grays liked to call it–the War of Northern Aggression.
“Because our legislative, judicial and executive branches of government hold the 10th Amendment in contempt, I’m beginning to wonder if it would have been best had the South won the Civil War. Our Founding Fathers’ concept of limited government is dead.”
Haha. That whacky Nuge, master of the of presidential decapitation metaphor.
Having lived for some years in Dixie, I found Nugent’s Civil War yearning nothing new. And if one ignores, like Nugent, that the war’s major accomplishment was ending the horrific institution of slavery, many liberals might agree with Ted.
If the South won and North America evolved as a loose confederacy of states (think European Union, with the Southern states playing the parts of Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal), the government in Washington, D.C., probably would have had a hard time herding the cats into questionable involvements like the Spanish-American War, World War I or those never-ending land wars in Asia and the Middle East.
The week ahead is jam-packed with worthy entertainment options–so many, in fact, that it’s impossible to fit them in just five picks. So, you’ll notice there’s a bonus pick this week–you’re welcome–and you’ll also want to consider some fine options that didn’t fit here, including the Liars show Wednesday at The Urban Lounge, Dan Sartain headlining Friday at Kilby court, and Jay Leno yakking about cars on Saturday night at Kingsbury Hall, in association with the very cool Speed show at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts.
Here are six picks for your week:
- RINGO STARR ALL-STAR BAND, USANA AMPHITHEATRE, WEDNESDAY, 8 P.M., $20-$58
First things first: Clearly Ringo Starr has a looser definition of a musical “All-Star” than the rest of us. This year’s version of Starr’s touring band includes ex-Santana and Journey member Gregg Rolie, former Toto guy Steve Lukather and Richard Page, singer for the oh-so-forgettable Mr. Mister. I can only assume the rest of the guys from Wang Chung were too busy to join the party. That said, we are still talking about the chance to see a Beatle do his thing live, drumming along to his fellow band members’ hits and singing a few of his own, like “It Don’t Come Easy” and “Little Help From My Friends.” And with $20 lawn tickets available, the price is certainly right.
Ringo Starr brings his All-Star Band to Usana Amphitheatre Wednesday, July 11.
- UNDERGROUND GYPSY CABARET/JUANA GHANI CD RELEASE PARTY, BAR DELUXE, Friday, 9 p.m., $7
Having established a vibrant community of musicians, writers, dancers and other artists, local band Juana Ghani now has a brand-spanking-new CD of its distinct, gypsy-influenced sound so fans can appreciate the musical chops and lyrical complexities of Juana Ghani’s members outside the sphere of their wild live shows. Shall We Live Forever manages to incorporate sounds from around the world in its nine songs, and you can hear them live when the band takes part in the Underground Gypsy Cabaret Friday, which is also serving as the CD release party. Also on the bill is South of Ramona, a preview performance of the Black Box Belly Dance Affair and a slew of special guests.
- DAMN THESE HEELS LGBT FILM FESTIVAL, ROSE WAGNER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER, FRIDAY-SUNDAY, VARIOUS TIMES, $4 per film
The Intermountain West’s only LGBT film festival, the Utah Film Center’s Damn These Heels fest is bringing no less than 11 films to town, all of them running through the weekend at the Rose Wagner. The one that caught my eye is Wish Me Away, a documentary about mainstream country singer Chely Wright’s brave decision to risk losing her audience, and the support of her family, when she came out in a well-received autobiography. The film earned the Best Documentary award at the Los Angeles Film Festival and Palm Springs International Film Festival, among a slew of other awards at festivals around the country. Wish Me Away plays Saturday at 12:30 p.m., and that’s just one of the strong choices available through Damn These Heels.
- DEER VALLEY MUSIC FESTIVAL: THE MUSIC OF MICHAEL JACKSON WITH THE UTAH SYMPHONY, DEER VALLEY, SATURDAY, 7:30 P.M., $32 GENERAL ADMISSION
It’s easy to be skeptical of these performances that combine the talents of the Utah Symphony with a pop artist’s catalog, but I went to see the Queen show last summer, and I’m now sold that it can work. The singer for that show certainly had Freddie Mercury’s voice down, and the guitar player that joined the fray was a competent-enough Brian May impressionist. This summer’s Deer Valley Music Festival opens with a night of Michael Jackson’s music, and he’s always been a favorite of mine (never mind the tabloid silliness–the man had serious skills as a songwriter and performer). James Delisco is the man tasked with delivering MJ’s vocals; he won some singing reality show on the E! Channel. Here’s hoping he’s up to the task. Even if he’s not, I’m hopeful the symphony members will break out into the “Thriller” dance at some point. It could happen!
- STRETCH ARMSTRONG/SWIM HERSCHEL SWIM REUNION SHOW, RAIL EVENT CENTER, SATURDAY, $12 ADVANCE/$15 DAY OF SHOW
Long-time Utahns will recall that well before bands like the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, No Doubt and Reel Big Fish helped turn ska-tinged tunes into mainstream “alternative” hits, Utah (and particularly Provo) had a thriving ska scene. A couple of the leaders of the Utah ska movement–Swim Herschel Swim and Stretch Armstrong–are reuniting this summer for a show that also includes long-time local faves Insatiable and 2 1/2 White Guys. It’s a perfect night to break out the old dancing shoes and take a ride in the way-back machine.
- CHRIS ROBINSON BROTHERHOOD, THE DEPOT, SUNDAY, 8 p.m., $20 ADVANCE/$25 DAY OF SHOW
When I look at a CD cover and seeing one of the band members credited with “keyboard wizardry,” that’s typically a sign for me to put the CD down and slowly back away from the prog and/or jam band. But I didn’t do it this time because of the man whose name gives the band its moniker–Chris Robinson. Better known as the lead singer for the Black Crowes, Robinson is now leading the Chris Robinson Brotherhood around the country while his original band is on hiatus. The CRB’s new album, Big Moon Ritual, is indeed a big proggy, jammy blast of the blues-rock Robinson is known for, and the band is known for throwing a few worthy covers in its sets.
The Chris Robinson Brotherhood headlines The Depot on Sunday, July 15.
Former Gov. Jon Huntsman, the GOP’s maverick failed-presidential candidate, is in the news again, annoying Republicans by making sense.
Huntsman, failing to win the GOP’s presidential nomination, apparently has gone on to become his party’s conscience. He recently announced he will not attend the Republican National Convention because the party that nominated fellow-Mormon Mitt Romney sucks too much.
OK, that’s not exactly what Huntsman said. He said something more shaming about the Party of Lincoln in which he came of age as a delegate for St. Ronald of California.
“I will not be attending this year’s convention, nor any Republican convention in the future, until the party focuses on a bigger, bolder, more confident future for the United States – a future based on problem solving, inclusiveness, and a willingness to address the trust deficit, which is every bit as corrosive as our fiscal and economic deficits.”
This is the same guy who stung fellow Mormon Mitt with a “Country First” campaign theme–after Romney attacked him for serving as ambassador to China for Obama.
“[Romney] criticized me… for serving my country in China. Yes, under a Democrat. Like my two sons are doing in the United States Navy. They’re not asking [what] political affiliation the president is…. I will always put my country first.”
(If you recall, none of Romney’s many children have served in the military.)
Of course, all this embarrassing turmoil could be cleared up if Rep. Jim Matheson, who is again snubbing the Democratic Convention, simply joined the Republicans in Tampa and Huntsman took Jim’s seat at the Democratic convention.
The treat of seeing Saturday’s Voyeur at the Salt Lake Acting company each summer is learning what cultural fumbles and foibles playwrights Nancy Borgenicht and Allen Nevins seize on to populate the annual production with characters and storylines and songs, and how they twist those events into a trenchant commentary on our community.
In 2012, the plot of Saturday’s Voyeur doesn’t have quite the same “ripped from the headlines” feel as some past editions, but their satirical targets are just as worthy of the mocking they take at the hands (and voices) of an overwhelmingly excellent cast of performers.
This year’s version takes on bigger issues than the day-to-day political buffoonery that happens at the Legislature or the Salt Lake City Council. The roles of women, gays and Democrats within the Mormon Church during this Mitt Romney-driven “Mormon Moment” are the focus of the action, providing plenty of humor as well as some serious social critiques.
The majority of the action takes place in the Church Office Building, where sexual politics–as well as presidential politics–rule the lives of “undercover” lefties like Nephi Jensen (Austin Archer), Mormella (Kelsie Jepsen), Brother Fey (Trent Cox) and MoHanna (Kalyn West). As their political proclivities and sexual identities are uncovered by the reactionary right-wing managers of the COB, they’re systematically banished to “Sub-Level 6” of the building, where they find a thriving underground of good Mormons who also happen to be politically progressive.
Given the hoopla around this year’s presidential election, I expected a heavy dose of Mitt Romney, and while he is present and accounted for (courtesy of Cox, pulling double-duty), the Romney character (described as “a bully, and kind of a creep”) is merely a figurehead of the patriarchal, financially minded Mormon men in the story, especially the comically obnoxious Elder Marriott (Justin Ivie). And Utah’s most relentlessly conservative activist, Gayle Ruzicka, is back in the cartoonish “Godzicka” form of actor Stephen Fehr; I don’t know that she deserved the amount of attention paid by the playwrights, but Fehr is so fun to watch inhabit the little lady that I’m sure it’s hard to resist giving him plenty of scenes to chew through.
Proxy baptisms, the “family-friendly” rules of the new City Creek mall and the Tea Party’s hold over the GOP (“Tea parties are for little girls with imaginary friends”) are all targeted by Borgenicht and Nevins to fine effect. The cast is a blast; Alexis Bague, Jacob Johnson and Fehr are all familiar favorites, while newbies like West (in a follow-up to her excellent performance as Sally Hemmings in Plan-B’s The Third Crossing) and Lauren Noll (Hester in Plan-B’s The Scarlet Letter) as one of the Skittle Sisters who go from BYU/LDS Business College/Eaglet interns to converted Democrats) fit in nicely with the Saturday’s Voyeur veterans. Jepsen, so memorable as a version of Carl Wimmer last year, is great as Mormella–here’s hoping she stays a fixture of the production for years to come.
There are some weak spots, to be sure. The end, designed to be uplifting, falls a little flat as the cast gathers to sing “Be Free.” The story linking the production numbers isn’t as strong as recent years–perhaps Utah was just a little less crazy culturally and politically this year, leaving Borgenicht and Nevins grasping for script fodder. The opening of City Creek was one of the few hot-button local issues to make its way into the script, but it felt a bit haphazardly jammed in to the story of the COB employees.
Even with its lesser moments, though, Saturday’s Voyeur remains a liberal touchstone for Salt Lake City residents, and the matinee audience I joined was laughing and clapping throughout the show, reveling in the sense of being part of the “other” SLC–something people have doing through Voyeur for decades now.
Saturday’s Voyeur runs at Salt Lake Acting Company through Sept. 2. Visit the SLAC Website for showtimes and ticket info.
PROVO–A perfect summer night. A downtown rooftop full of music lovers. A collection of some of Utah’s best musicians and singers, playing tunes from one of America’s best rock ‘n’ roll songwriters.
Put all those elements together, and you have a near-ideal evening of entertainment courtesy of Provo’s Rooftop Concert Series’ July show, Heartbreakers & American Girls: The Songs of Tom Petty, delivered by a band led by organizer Paul Jacobsen.
Many of the same players and singers delivered the Abbey Road show last year on the downtown parking garage roof in Provo, but this year they decided to loosen the reins and tackle an artist’s work rather than a particular album. That turned out to be a good call, especially considering the breadth of Tom Petty’s catalog. The man has written everything from barn-burning rockers to gentle acoustic strummers over the course of his 40-year career, and the band Friday night touched on virtually all facets of Petty’s sound over the course of nearly two hours.
The Devil Whale’s Brinton Jones singing “Don’t Come Around Here No More.”
The show started with some of the permanent fixtures in the band taking turns on lead vocals. Ryan Tanner opened the proceedings with a ramshackle take on “American Girl,” and the band tightened up considerably for the follow-up sung by Jacobsen, “The Waiting.” In fact, by show’s end, that performance early on, with the sun still high and bright, would prove to be one of the highlights of the evening.
Debra Fotheringham singing Tom Petty’s “Room at the Top” Friday night at the Provo Rooftop Concert Series.
After that, Jacobsen welcomed a series of singers to join the musicians on stage, each of them tackling a different tune from the Petty catalog. The Moth and The Flame’s Nat Pyfer tackled “You Don’t Know How It Feels” to great effect. The Devil Whale’s Brinton Jones showed up in full Mad Hatter attire, replicating Petty’s look from the “Don’t Come Around Here No More” video as the band impressively improved upon that song’s very-’80s production on Petty’s Southern Accents album. On Friday, thanks to Jones’ vocal interpretation and the band’s rearrangement, the song was reborn in a wonderful way.
Paul Jacobsen and Brinton Jones Friday night at the Provo Rooftop Concert Series show.
With the rotating cast of singers involved, it’s hard to pick out highlights from the night; there was nary a clunker in the bunch. Sarah Sample was an inspired, and inspiring, choice to do “Wildflowers,” one of Petty’s best late-career tunes. The Neon Trees’ Elaine Bradley and Tyler Glenn covered the Petty/Stevie Nicks duet “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” and it was a blast to see them trade verses. Debra Fotheringham’s “Room at the Top” was excellent, undoubtedly introducing one of Petty’s lesser-known songs to the couple thousand people on hand.
The Neon Tree’s Elaine Bradley and Tyler Glenn doing “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around.”
The Blue Aces’ Cristal Ramirez took on one of the older Petty songs, “Don’t Do Me Like That,” bringing just the right amount of attitude to the garage-rock tune. Dustin Christensen did a fine turn on “I Won’t Back Down” and Fictionist’s Stuart Maxfield led an energetic version of “Refugee” after one of Jacobsen’s typically funny introductions: “A man who could be Robert Plant if he wasn’t so busy being Roger Waters–Stuart Maxfield!”
A set-closing “Running Down a Dream” and quick encore of “Free Fallin'” that brought all the particpants on stage for a last hurrah finished up a night that was a reminder of just how strong Petty’s songs are, and how well they hold up. And it was yet another reminder of the considerable musical talent we have right here in Utah as well.
In case you haven’t made your way into the latest issue of City Weekly, I did a little story about this week’s Provo Rooftop Concert Series show. Local musician Paul Jacobsen gathered a slew of talented folks from the Utah music scene to tackle some of the gems penned by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers through the years, including many of the same folks he used to recreate The Beatles’ Abbey Road last summer.
Daniel Nailen 