oganookie Entertainment History Music 

Oganookie Reunion at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center

By Julie Horner Guitarist, piano player, and songwriter Jack Bowers talks about it like it was yesterday. “We came to Brookdale in 1970 and set up camp in a big house on the top of Western Drive with an apple orchard.” Dubbed the “Oganookie Farm,” Bowers said it was “14 musicians, a manager, and kids and women living cooperatively.”  According… Read More
Mojo Navigators Ben Lomond San Lorenzo Valley Entertainment Music 

Page Brownton and The Mojo Navigators

Reformed but Unrepentant! By Michele Murphy Approaching the rustic and whimsical dwelling of local treasure Page Brownton and his lovely wife Gael, one is greeted by a magical, mythical homestead handcrafted by Brownton himself using found treasures and antiquities collected over many years. A musician, philosopher, and carpenter, Brownton has cultivated a slice of heaven in the Santa Cruz Mountains… Read More
Entertainment Music 

Absolute Surrender: Sarah “Songbird” Fishleder Releases First Album

By Julie Horner Local singer-songwriter Sarah Fishleder weaves a certain gospel, creating a testament to healing through music with her first album, After the Winter, a collection of six songs that chronicle the journey from pain to acceptance and celebrates the joy of coming into the spring. Co-produced with Elie Mabanza of Mokili Wa and recorded mostly in Nevada City… Read More
Music 

Santa Cruz Latin Collective – Suavecito!

By Julie Horner The Santa Cruz Latin Collective has its roots deep in the Latin rock and Afro-Cuban dance music genre with simmering rhythm-forward salsa, mamba, and brown-eyed soul influences. Lead guitarist, vocalist, and co-founder Oscar Estrella is an originating member of Sapo, the legendary Latin rock band that came out of the 1970s Chicano music scene in the San… Read More
Boulder Creek Music 

Concertino Strings Boulder Creek’s Orchestra in Residence

By Joanne Tanner and Julie Horner The Boulder Creek United Methodist Church was welcoming on a rainy Wednesday morning in October. Classical music enthusiasts of all ages settled into their pews and the overflow audience stilled to an anticipatory hush. Stained glass windows cast muted colors, the soft patter of the season’s first moisture the only sound through an open… Read More
Henflings Ben Lomond Local News Music 

Henflings: Still a Community Hub

By Michele Murphy When rumors became reality and the historic Henflings Tavern was to be closed and shuttered back in 2018, resident bartender Erin (then Zimmerman) Miller, and her husband, Josh, seized the opportunity to try their hands at running the iconic and infamous live music venue.  Josh and Erin heard that the previous owner wasn’t planning to renew his… Read More
China Cats Berkeley Entertainment Music 

China Cats Magic!

By Michele Murphy The magic happens on stages and dance floors where Santa Cruz’s favorite Grateful Dead tribute band plays to reveling, twirling, cavorting fans.  What makes these cats different? For starters, they seem to have more than the usual allotted nine lives. This improvisational partnership between the same five members has been delighting “deadicated” dancers and toe-tappers alike for… Read More