The Tuesday Night on the Plaza music series is over for the year, but that doesn’t mean all the guitars and drums have been put away until next May. In fact, September is shaping up to be a pretty busy month for musical diversion—if the heat doesn’t melt it all away.
Coyote Sonoma is forging ahead with danceable tunes, highlighted on Saturday, Sept. 10 by guitar great Albert Lee with The Sonoma All Star Band. Lee is known for his lightning-fast guitar licks and tasteful solos—fans of Emmylou Harris recall the extended ending to “Luxury Liner” from back in the day—as well as his stints with the Everly Brothers, Eric Clapton and others.
Rare opportunity here for guitar fans, as the Sonoma All Star Band includes Volker Strifler, no slouch himself on the Telecaster. Show starts at 7:30pm, tickets $25 at the door. coyotesonoma.com.
Across the parking lot, the Elephant in the Room continues with its many diverse musical offerings, from roots rock to electro.
Don’t miss Junior Toots, billed as “roots reggae royal scion,” which means he’s son of the legendary Toots Hibbert (“Pressure Drop” et al). He performs with his band, the Fyah Squad, and carries on the tradition with his own modern approach. It’s $40—high for the Elephant, but worth every penny—on Saturday, Sept. 17, 8pm. elephantintheroompub.com.
More sophisticated musical audiences might prefer the season’s first classical offering at The 222, the Mesa-Yakushev Duo at the eponymous Healdsburg Avenue address. Pianist Ilya Yakushev (Russian) and cellist Thomas Mesa (Cuban-American), both in the first wave of their young careers, perform Brahms, Rachmaninoff and a few surprises on Friday night, Sept. 23, in this intimate and classy venue. $35 or $75 tickets. The222.org.
Santa Rosa’s own Julian Lage, who has been a well-known talent in jazz and blues since he was 12 (he’s now 34), shows up at Trione Winery on Sept. 25 for two shows, 2 and 5pm. Lage has proven to be more than a novelty over the years and now clearly ranks as one of the best guitarists in jazz; his new release, “View with a Room,” will be his second on Blue Note. Trione is at 19550 Geyserville Ave. in Alexander Valley. $75. Trionewinery.com.
So there you go: jazz, classical, reggae, rock. Are we missing anything? Keep an eye on some of the other Healdsburg venues—Hudson Street Wineries (hudsonstreetwineries.com), Hotel Healdsburg (Healdsburgsburg.com), Truett Hurst (truetthurstwinery.com) and Bacchus Landing (bacchuslanding.com), to name a few.
