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OH, SISYPHUS! (The Musical)

(March Madness brings April Gladness)

I’ve tended to use the Sisyphus Myth  mostly as a metaphor for great effort exerted for no other payoff than the futility of having to do it again immediately and unendingly thereafter. And that’s not inaccurate. But, anyway, I decided to go back and read the Camus. The story wasn’t only about the futility of the act, it was about the moment AFTER the moment when you’d finished the job and stood on the top of that hill watching the rock… roll… back… down. It was the small pivot of your feet as you begin the walk back to do it all again. Albert Camus calls that the “hour of consciousness.” I know I’m not gonna write the perfect song, but I’m gonna write one anyway. We’re suspended between our ability to see things clearly and yet dream the impossible. Futile, but fabulous.

The month of March is half-over, and dividing it nearly perfectly is a cool gig this Saturday, March 15th I’ll be at West Valley Music Center in Woodland Hills, along with my friends Cynthia Carle (funniest songwritin’ woman on the planet), and the immensely cute and talented Shelby and Tieg. This venue is owned and run by a great songwriter in his own write, Jeff Gold. I hope Jeff will do a few songs himself that night. Reservations are requested (you CAN just show up, but it would be so much cooler if he knew how many were coming).

Then April comes in with a bang: On April 5th, I get to do another House Concert with The Koles at Linda Lee’s House Concerts in Camarillo. At 7pm you come to a beautiful house in the Valley and listen to me, and then to the tuneful sounds of Bill and Arlene Kole and their band.  I’m very lucky to be on a bill with this group that Music Connection named one of the Top 100 Indie Acts in the US.

Then the very NEXT Saturday April 12, I will be performing with James Hurley at one of my favorite places, The Coffee Gallery. James is one of the premier performing songwriters in CA. Recently, we were on the same bill at Bill Berry’s great “Songwriter’s Square” series and we jammed a bit on each others’ songs, so we thought it would be a cool thing to perform together. We have a MYSTERY GUEST STAR who will be on the show with us. I’ll sneak that name shortly before the show. There may be other surprises as well – stay tuned.

Second to last but not least, I will be performing at the American Atheists Convention in Salt Lake City on April 18th,  along with the inimitable Eric Schwartz. Eric and I have performed for a lot of events for the Skeptic/Science/Atheist crowd (my people), and we’re looking forward to this one: The biggest Atheist event of the year smack dab in the middle of Mormon country should be a match made in…well… it’ll be an interesting combination, and Eric and I will be part of an official comedy show along with the hilarious John Dore. Thanks to David Silverman for putting us on the bill. (Not to be confused with David Silverman).

Oh, and come catch me and the redoubtable Chauncey Bowers at Fools on Stools, hosted by the rockin,’ rollin’, and retro Skip HellerApril 13 at 3pm the Redwood Bar and Grill in downtown LA.

OK, time to go back and push that damn rock again.

Why the reference to the classic tune by Thee Midniters? Because I’m playing a concert in a beautiful theatre on Saturday night, Feb 15th  at 8pm: The Shannon Center for the Arts, at Whittier College (the town where Richard Nixon grew up). I’m doing a full set, and also sharing the bill with two great acts: John Zipperer and Friends, and the delightfulSabrina and Craig.

This is very upscale venue, and, though it might be a schlep for some of you who live further west, it’s going to be a very good show, so please make the drive and come say hello.  Many thanks to Ron Maurer, who was also one of the people responsible for my appearance last summer at the Western Arts Alliance Convention, and thanks also to Shane Cadman at Whittier College.

This month is busy! Here are other cool gigs coming up in February:

ORANGE COUNTY and LAGUNA PEOPLE! THIS TUESDAY, Feb. 4th, 7:30 I’m playing Beth Fitchet Wood’s Tuesday Songwriter Showcase. Beth is a unique and sophisticated songwriter (check the link).    And I’m appearing with Joyce Woodson, and the rockin’ JC and Laney.

Feb. 12,  7pm, David Harvey Presents at the Coffee Gallery in Altadena. David has done this showcase for a few years now, always with the great Dylan Brody providing some verbal wit. I’m happy to be on it again, along with my friend John M., and musical comedianRobin Roberts.

Feb. 18, 7:30pm, a tribute to John Cartwright, Tracy Newman’s bass player, but before that, for 35 years, he was Harry Belafonte’s bass player and sometimes producer. John has had a life in music like almost no other, and there are too many great people performing with me on this show to list here. So go here.

Feb. 25, 7:30pm, another tribute, this time to the late, great Warren Zevon. This is an annual event led by Paul Zollowhom Dave Morrison called “The Bard of Los Angeles.” Check the link for all the multi-hyphenates he has earned. And, again, too many great performers to list here. So go here.

For those of you who are still reading, you may not have gone to my website recently, or to my YouTube page. There are new(ish) songs up on the website, and performances from last years’ concerts on the YouTube page. Please visit, and leave a comment if you’d like. Here’s a cool photo of me by Anjani Lynn White. Thank you!

Back in the ancient days of mail and stamps, etc., I always used to send out New Years’ cards. I started doing that kind of thing way back in 1991 when I was in New York on a nationwide tour with David Cassidy (yes, Keith Partridge – Danny Bonaduce opened for us), and I took a pic of myself at the “Imagine” monument in Central Park. (Actual film; pre-cellphone, pre-selfie.)

This year was a great one for me as a performing songwriter: Following in the footsteps of people like James Hurley, James Lee Stanley, and John Batdorf, I’ve begun performing at house concerts. These are where people can hear some of the best singer-songwriters, in a relaxed, intimate setting without drunks, espresso steamers hissing (usually always at the quietest moment in a song, right?), and where the artists are paid well. House concerts are a labor of love for those who host them. The granddaddy of all house concerts is Russ and Julie Paris’s series, in Oak Park. They have unselfishly hosted so many great performers in their lovely home, and their concerts are a model for anyone who thinks they would like to do this. Here is a link to how to host one, if that’s something you think you might like to do. They are popping up all over the country, and it’s my goal to play at as many as I can.

Now, if you’re not all partied-out on New Years’ Day, please come to the Firefly Bistro in South Pasadena at 7pm. My pal Brad Colerick has hosted a great songwriter night there called “Wine and Song” for some years now, and this is a special New Years’ Day celebration featuring the hilarious Eric Schwartz, neuroscientist/singer/songwriter Chauncey Bowers (yes, science is his actual career but his beautiful twisted tunes would suggest otherwise), and yours truly. The Firefly is a great restaurant to boot, and the New Years’ menu will feature (I’ve heard) black-eyed peas; a Southern tradition that is supposed to bring good luck for the whole year. Whether or not that’s true, come enjoy some good food and music, and you will feel lucky, I ga-ron-tee.

Oh, and though I will admit it’s nice to get a handwritten card or letter now and then, I couldn’t be happier that email makes it possible for me not to have to moisten hundreds of stamps to reach the people I care about on special occasions. And, truly, every ONE of you who said “Yes” to receiving my emails are important people in my life, and I am so very grateful for the hundreds of you who came to see my shows this year. I have put a “Gig History” on my website of most of the places I’ve played in the last few years, and when I look at it, I am reminded of your faces smiling back at me, and I feel pretty damn good. Hope to see all of you in 2014 and beyond.

Special thanks (in no particular order) to: Jeanette Lundgren, Donna Mason Adams and Matthew Burke, Julie and John Zipperer, Peggy Flinn Glenn and Helen Nicholas, Severin and Melinda Browne, Scotty Breadman, Bob Stane, Maggie Rowe, Brad Colerick, Saria Kraft, Sabrina Schneppat and Craig Lincoln, Mark Beltzman, Lauren Adams, Garry Corman, Wendy Hammers, Ron Sarfaty, Mark Pitta, Bill Berry, Teresa Tudury, Chappell and Dave Holt, Steve Brogden and FAR-West, Harriet Schock, Teller, Pablo Marz, JC Hyke, Eve Brandstein, Ron Maurer, Emery Emery, Robert Morgan Fisher, Rick Overton, Cynthia Carle, Paul Provenza, DJ Grothe, Aaron “Captain Danger” Steinberg, Kahlil Sabbagh and Ginger Smith, Brad Kay, Suzy Williams, Ric Taylor, Steve Witt, Ed Ivey, Leanne Summers, Bruce Gleason, Ian Dodd, Lissa And Jim Reynolds. Apologies to anyone I left out who helped put me in front of an audience this last year. – GS

ORANGE COUNTY FRIENDS: STOCKDALE MUSIC IN THE O.C.!

(and PlayDead at the Geffen in Westwood)

A bunch of my Orange County friends said to let them know when I’m playing down in their area, so this is the OFFICIAL notice! I’ll be doing the 22 Rabbits House Concert Series in beautiful Irvine on NOVEMBER 14th, at 7:15pm. Tickets are $20, payable at the door, and, as is the case with House Concerts, you need to email  the host, Peggy Flinn Glenn, to get the address. Her email is ItzPeggy@gmail.com. This will be my first solo house concert!

Now let me tell you a little bit about Ms. Peggy. I first met her when she read some of her poetry at a salon at Severin and Melinda Browne’s house (called “The Abbey” because it looks like an 18th-Century monastery. It was used for the abandoned church where Edward James Olmos and Colin Hanks killed their victims in Dexter, Season 6). Soon after, I started seeing her everywhere there were songs being sung: Kulak’s Woodshed, Julie’s Joint, and spoken word shows like “Tell It.” There are actually people in this world who, though they are artists themselves, give a good deal of their energy to lifting up other artists, encouraging and gently nudging them to be their best. Peggy is one of those people. Besides attending so many of our shows, she worked tirelessly for all of us at FAR-West, helping me jump through all the hoops for my first Official FAR-West Showcase. A spoken-word artist, a poet, a lyricist, and an editor, Peggy is one of the people who make our community a beautiful place. Come to this cool show, and hang with Peggy and her talented boyfriend Jime Van Booven, bass player for John Zipperer and Friends.

PLAYING DEAD with TELLER and TODD ROBBINS

Some of you may know that, for 20 years or so, I have been the composer for most of Penn & Teller’s TV and live performance projects, including the award-winning Penn & Teller: BULLSHIT! One of the greatest things about this has been my relationship with Teller, who, besides being part of the team that made magic “cool,” is a brilliant director and writer himself. In 2010, he brought me in as composer for an Off-Broadway play he directed and co-wrote with Todd Robbins (another good friend who also stars in the show) called PlayDead.

This show may be one of the scariest things you’ve ever seen. In service of its macabre examination of those villains who have sought to play upon our grief and fears of death, it plunges the audience into TOTAL DARKNESS (not even exit lights), and proceeds to scare the living bejeezus out of everyone without the aid of digital effects or high-tech devices. I composed music that is played live onstage by a ghostly piano. It officially opens November 20th at the Geffen Playhouse in Westwood and runs until December 15, or you could see one of the preview performances from now until the opening. Todd himself is truly an amazing performer, who is a walking encyclopedia of the world of the Carny.

By the way, the Orange County Concert is one day before my birthday, so I would love to celebrate it with all of you. It won’t be as big a party as last years’, but it will be just as much fun.
Happy Thanksgiving, and I hope to see you in Irvine.