Small Town Newspaper

Got Vinyl? Swing into Swag

Julie Horner

Curator of Boulder Creek’s eclectic collective specializes in vintage vinyl and refurbished stereo consoles

By Julie Horner

If only the vintage West German Grundig stereo console could speak, imagine the secrets it might tell of swanky summer evenings laced with cognac, the mood dreamy with the warm, smooth, easy-listening sounds of Perry Como on vinyl in analog high fidelity. Jeff Brough was head and torso into a neighboring console putting finishing touches on the innards. “Once upon a time it was a Grundig. It has different components now. It was missing stuff so I had to repopulate it.”

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According to Brough, owner of Swag in downtown Boulder Creek, “Most people are un-populating old consoles to turn into bars. I’m the only one restoring them. It’s a niche market, I guess.” Amazingly, you can even plug your smartphone into what appears to be all-original components and play your downloads through the console’s built-in speakers. “Almost all of them I add the ability to use your smartphone.” Brough picks a vinyl album from his collection and powers on the unit for a test spin. The big soulful sounds of Tyrone Davis fill the shop. “I love this old soul music…when I listen to the radio, this is what I tune in.”

Brough looks at it from the assembler’s point of view. “I’ve got four for sale and another one, two, three in queue.” He specializes in mid-century modern, from the mid-50s through the mid-70s. “Any later and they got ugly.” He can doll up just about any console to look just right. For instance, he might put peg legs on some of them to give them ‘that look’ if they didn’t have it when they rolled in. “This one, it’s got a real nice turntable in it.” The cabinet he picked up in Sacramento, the turntable and other components came from another unit. It’s what Jeff called a “triple threat.” It sounds good, looks good, and the turntable is good. “I do name them. I have a personal relationship with each one of them. Tamara’s that I just sold, I called Morse-l.” The brand, of course, being Morse. “I fall in love with them, have a hard time letting them go.” He always wonders, “Is this one better than the one I have in the living room?”

“I’ve driven as far as Santa Rosa to get things that suit my fancy.” He’s got eyes and ears out there now looking for items to add to the collection. The consoles are what got him started.

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“When I retired from Silicon Valley, I spent about a year chilling and figuring out where my stuff would go…I had to downsize. Originally it was a hobby, I don’t know exactly how it evolved, but I’d start finding things on craigslist.” Stephanie, owner of Foundre that used to occupy the space, gave him advice about obtaining old consoles. He would work on them in the basement with his wife and bandmates helping.

A customer walks in. “I have a first pressing of Meet the Beatles,” he says. “I have about 500 vinyl records.” Everyone knows that vinyl has come full circle and is all the rage now. For those who have held on to their collections over the years, it’s as cool as it’s always been to have full size art and sleeve notes. As the customer turns to leave he jokes. “I’m one of the few men who is married and still has his vinyl!” Brough is quick to point out, “There’s more here if you want to add to your collection!” Indeed, the sign out front that drew the customer in says, “We’ve got vinyl!”

“My selection of vinyl is comparative to any record store in Santa Cruz, maybe better. I’ve got some cool old records.”

Jeff has owned the building about seven years, with residences upstairs and now his business downstairs. “Even as a youngster, I’ve always been a creative collector with an entrepreneurial spirit so it only made sense to open my own space! My daughter and mother contribute time and energy…it’s all friends and family at this point.” And he’s looking for a partner to collaborate with, someone who might put their artwork on consignment and tag-team to help keep the doors open on weekends.

Swag. Affordable retail in Boulder Creek featuring restored mid-century modern stereos, vinyl, vintage and locally crafted apparel, jewelry, art, consignment, and event space.

13026 Highway 9
Boulder Creek, California
(831) 295-9191
http://www.facebook.com/JEFFSWAGSTORE

Copyright 2017 Julie Horner

When Least Expected

Julie Horner 1 Comment
By Julie Horner
Today I was hugely humbled by the generosity of the folks at Valley Churches United Missions. What started out as an opportunity to conduct an interview for the Santa Cruz Mountain Bulletin turned into an unexpected “we can help you.”

As some know, I lost my high tech job back in February and have had trouble finding a replacement. I applied for unemployment insurance for the first time in my life. Months have passed and I’m now at the end of my ability to maintain the mortgage and will be taking in a renter (or two) to try to keep head above water while I continue to look for work.

I’m the one who donates to things I feel passionate about. I’m not the one who asks for help. Now the fork is on the other plate. Thank you VCUM for coming to the rescue with bags of food and grocery store gift cards, and for letting me know that I can apply for food stamps and emergency mortgage assistance. Thank you for reassuring me that there is nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone has a story to tell and I’m not the first detached techie they’ve seen come through the doors.

Valley Churches United Missions is here to help keep mountain residents from becoming homeless. If you have a chance, please consider donating money or groceries and pet food to San Lorenzo Valley’s wonderful Valley Churches. If you live in SLV and need a hand to see you through, please know that you are welcome. www.vcum.org/

Copyright 2017 – Julie Horner

Boulder Creek’s Barry Tanner – The Gift of Go-To

Julie Horner

By Julie Horner

It’s all happened here, at the corner of Forest Street and Pine just behind the Odd Fellows Hall in downtown Boulder Creek, in the building that formerly housed the town’s post office and is now often referred to simply as “Barry Tanner’s studio.” Whether for fundraisers, remembrances, band practice, or recording, the studio is as no-nonsense on the outside as its owner. Inside is where the magic happens and the place has become a community hub through the generosity of a man who has energy to burn and an innate talent to make things happen. “I grew up in Davis. My mom was campaign manager for the first socialist mayor in the United States. I was born to organize people.”

Once on the coast, he jumped deep into the Santa Cruz music and theater scene. He lived off-grid in Last Chance for a while and then bought a place in Boulder Creek in 2003 when, he says, “places were boarded up…it was dead.” He had choices…and a little inheritance…so he spent some time traveling, most notably to New Orleans and France, where he spent years playing music in a 7-piece jazz/blues band. “I never saved any money doing it but got paid well and treated well.” He bought a tiny apartment overlooking the Mediterranean and was inspired by vibrant festivals, painters, jugglers, and dancers. He brought that joie de vivre back to Boulder Creek: “I either had to move or create some kind of scene here.”

In 2004 he was instrumental in organizing live dinner music on Friday and Saturday nights at Blue Sun (now Los Amigos), “and from there to Joe’s,” he says. Then he landed the old post office. It was a “serendipitous horsehead in the bed” moment: He could either “keep running around Europe eating French food” or make an offer.

“This building has led to Joe’s Bar and Boulder Creek Music Works. From the minute I took possession of the building people started showing up…Tim Welch (Funkranomicon) was waiting outside with his drums in his pickup truck.” Barry’s studio filled a need, and word-of-mouth the news got out. “There’s so many phenomenal musicians up here; the studio provides a pivot point, a hub, to rehearse and record, all those kinds of things.”

“It’s what I love doing…I’d be doing it anywhere…that’s my curse.” But he’s doing it here.

He and Todd Reed started regular music at Joe’s in 2008. “There’s a long list of musicians who played benefits there, but we were the first to start regular music on Thursdays for the Camp Krem kids. All money from the tip jar went to Doctors Without Borders – this was right after Haiti.” Every Thursday is the pro-jam now, where top talent comes together to form ad hoc bands for a night. Dozens of local bands got their start playing together at Joe’s, he says. Barry himself plays bass in Badenov (“as in Boris and Natasha”), an example of what he calls “putting a band together at short notice.”

“I book and do sound for over 200 bands a year at Joe’s, plug-and-play.” And this doesn’t count local festivals. He gets calls from three or four bands a week from around the world, he says. And he’s just completed a series of seven First Friday concerts at the Odd Fellows Hall; he often finds himself running back and forth across the street between Joe’s and the I.O.O.F.

Countless bands have recorded albums and shot video in Barry’s studio, and he just got his 16-channel system up and running. “Everyone and their brother has a home setup. I have the perfect room for recording a large group.” Funkranomicon, Take One, Live Concert Series with Carolyn Sills, Vito and Friends, Research and Development, all have recorded at Barry’s. Agents for some of them, like High on Fire and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, “sneak their people here to get them out of the cities to help them get focused.” The recording space is more like being in a living room than being in a high-pressure studio. “I measure my success by how busy the studio is, how much is getting done.”

Barry’s studio also boasts fully operational live-broadcast radio capability. The equipment was initially set up for KBCZ 90.1 Boulder Creek Community Radio before the station moved to the Visitor Center. “I started with the radio before there was even a station. It was just a dream.” Barry lay the groundwork to broadcast from his place, produced the morning show from there, and trained volunteers. “I love teaching. I was having a ball teaching people how to be on the radio.”

“Go-to people pop up, they’re going to make it happen. There are people in this community who have that gift.” But, he says, everybody should step in and lend a hand. “You gotta get your shovel out to keep the go-to people from burning out.”

Three years ago, Barry was told he would only be alive for another year. Now he doesn’t waste his time. “I’m going to go to festivals…I’ve got to get my tickets to Kate Wolfe…I’ve got an air mattress that fits perfectly in the back of my van, my folding chairs…”

Contact Barry: BCMusicWorks@gmail.com

Copyright 2017 Julie Horner

Camp Krem – Camping Unlimited – Anticipates the Arrival of Summer Revelers with Fifth Annual Do-It-Ourselves Festival April 28-30, 2017

Julie Horner

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By Julie Horner

As antidote to the dark and wet, rustic Jon Lucchese Center stands on a sandy plateau in full sun biding over a sweeping panorama of forest and blue sky. The air, soft and moistly fragrant with oak and bay, is gratefully languid after an eternity of torrential rain, mud, and cabin fever. It is peacefully still, the only sounds being the rush of nearby Peavine Creek and the roaring press of silence. Founded in 1957 by special needs educator, Alex Krem, Sr., Boulder Creek’s family run campground created especially for “giving exceptional people the opportunity to be themselves,” welcomes the coming of spring and “new worlds of discovery, adventure, and friendship.” Summer, says camp manager Christina Krem, “is rowdy” with campers of all ages eager to embark on outdoor educational experiences that will help them build lifelong relationships with nature.

In addition to sprucing things up for the anticipated 500 or so adults and young people with disabilities who will revel on this mountaintop over the course of the spring and summer, the staff at Camp Krem is also about to do it up for Do-It-Ourselves, the fifth annual DIO Festival, a reliably sold-out weekend music experience which brings world-class up-and-coming talent to Boulder Creek for three days in late April. DIO Fest is one of the groups outside of regular summer camp programs who responsibly rent the facility; the intention is to present an intimate festival vibe while giving back to the community.

The connection between Camp Krem and the DIO Fest goes back to when DIO Fest co-founder, Jon Labeaud and his wife, Andrea, worked as camp counselors. And in part because of that relationship, Christina says, the team that puts on DIO Fest has given back to the Camping Unlimited community by donating a portion of festival proceeds to the camp’s musicology program, with monies going directly to the salary of the on-staff music therapist. And the team of volunteers who set up and tear down lend their energy every year to improving existing infrastructure; Christina noted specifically the addition of a permanent roof on the amphitheater and new and reinforced structural stage elements inside Jon Lucchese Center. These are performance areas that campers use during the rest of the season for the talent show, a highlight of the camping experience, which helps develop a sense of individual self-worth, while being built-in fun.

Part of the ethic of giving back includes the opportunity for musicians, dancers, and artists of all kinds to volunteer their time at Camp Krem to help inspire and delight. Several musicians who have performed at DIO Fest have returned at later dates to share their music, Christina said, including Kendra McKinley, Big Bear, McCoy Tyler Band, and Marty O’Reilly & the Old Soul Orchestra. Local talent is very much invited to come share what they do best. Whether by volunteering time or by making a monetary gift, “donations are hugely appreciated.”

Come explore Camp Krem, meet the staff, and tour the facilities at their open house, Saturday, May 13, 2017 from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm | 102 Brook Lane, Boulder Creek | 831- 338 – 3210 | http://www.campingunlimited.org

Fully Fledged – KBCZ 90.1 Boulder Creek Community Radio

Julie Horner
The only thing missing is the moose…
By Julie Horner
From the window overlooking the bustling intersection of this one-stop small mountain town, a constant stream of people and cars kaleidoscope past in a blur of sound and color. Afternoon sun brightens newly painted walls, the space clean, comfortably spare, and cozy yet with plenty of wiggle room to work the imagination. Sheltered within the KBCZ’s freshly functional broadcast digs, music mingles with the muted sounds of life at full speed.
For a moment it feels like “Chris in the Morning,” the fictional DJ from the make-believe Alaska radio station KBHR (“K-Bear”) from Northern Exposure, the TV series that aired in the early 90s. At some point that ubiquitous moose will wobble past the window.
KBCZ is a non-profit, non-partisan, non-commercial educational (NCE) live broadcast and cloud streaming radio station committed to serving the local community. Programming pulls from local expertise, boasting a team of 25 DJs producing original content that includes music, local history, art, agriculture, lifestyle, weather, emergency information, safety issues, community events, and the local economy. KBCZ is operated by the Boulder Creek Recreation and Park District, which holds the FCC license and pays music industry fees. The station is sustained financially through donations, fundraising, and local business underwriting.
Program Manager, Tina Davey, has been with the project since the beginning, about three years. Well known on the Central Coast as a professional voiceover artist, when the opportunity arose to help start a community radio station, she jumped on it. She went to the initial meetings when Tim Welch was spearheading the early effort and together with a growing team of local talent, has been instrumental in bringing the station “out of the closet” and fully fledged to the well-intentioned but underused Boulder Creek Visitor Center located in the Burl Business Center at 13200 Highway 9, Suite A, adjacent to Boulder Creek Pizza & Pub.
Initially the station shared space with the Santa Cruz Mountain Bulletin above Jenna Sue’s. They eventually moved to a converted closet in the BC Rec building, all the while growing the station’s music archives, building the on-air team, and gaining support throughout the community with periodic fundraisers like Flicks in the Sticks (an outdoor family movie night held at Junction Park), themed dances, and outdoor festivals.
The station went online late in 2016 with their first regular live broadcast – the KBCZ Morning Show – at Barry Tanner’s Boulder Creek Music Works in the former post office building. Then the Visitor Center became available and in January, 2017, station devotees, Leslie and Matt Buchanan began remodeling the interior from the ground up, completely transforming the space into a fully functional DJ booth and reception area. Tina Davey said of their first officially dedicated public broadcasting space, “We were in the closet for over a year. We’re just thrilled to be here…like we’re in the Taj Mahal!”
Tina says KBCZ is actively looking for community members who would like to program their own shows. Prior DJ experience is always welcome but is not a prerequisite, and training on the computer-based broadcast program is provided. “We are also looking for grant writers and members to be on an advisory board; we already have two people from KSCO who are helping.”
The goal, Tina says, is to fill all the empty DJ slots with NCE content…cars, cooking, kids sports (they’re planning to approach student talent at SLVHS), and other ideas from community members. “The radio station is going to explode this year. We need people who want to be engineers, work the software, talk, and interview. We need more people – just everybody!”
As KBCZ gears up for their April 22 fundraiser – a 60s inspired time machine dance and silent auction at BC Rec’s newly acquired Bear Creek Country Club – Tina and her team are soaking in the excitement of the new broadcast space at the Visitor Center. “We’ve wanted this space for a long time…we finally got it. Now we’re going to be visible.”
Listener supported radio for the San Lorenzo Valley, local original programming at 90.1 FM and streaming online. http://kbcz.org/ | www.facebook.com/BCRadioNow
Copyright 2017 Julie Horner
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Get Out Productions Presents: Ike Reilly with the Coffis Brothers

Julie Horner
Live seated concert tonight at the I.O.O.F Boulder Creek. Tickets at the door or at Brown Paper Tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/ev…
Doors: 6:30 PM Show 7:30 PM 18+ $20.00

Live Music Local – Get Out Productions

By Julie Horner & Traci-lin Buntz
Standing under a dripping awning in front of Loch Dog Business Center in downtown Boulder Creek, I met up with Traci-lin Buntz, founder of Get Out Productions, to talk about how Boulder Creek has become a steaming hot hub for talent. Her new event production company, based in the Santa Cruz Mountains, will bring live music to Boulder Creek and all of San Lorenzo Valley. “I want to expand the range of opportunities for music fans in our area to see live music without having to make the drive to SF or even to Santa Cruz.”
“I was promoting shows under Blackbird Presents and working over the hill at Club Fox and the Kuumbwa in Santa Cruz, and even though these are beautiful venues, I want to spend the time and effort to bring music to my own community.” A recent success added fuel to the fire. “I organized the Homegrown at the Hayloft event at the newly renovated Odd Fellows Hall in Boulder Creek in May of 2016. With the support of the community and our local sponsors, the show sold out and was a success in raising money for a friend fighting cancer.”
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Ike Reilly

She has already started partnering with a variety of local entities to host more events in innovative venues throughout the valley. “Our first project is a series of live events called Music in the Mountains, which will kick off with a launch party/concert on February 22 at the I.O.O.F. I am excited to host our first official Get Out Productions event here and show off this beautiful historic building in the heart of our downtown.” Her goal is to have one concert per quarter in various venues in Boulder Creek. “The frequency and success of the events will depend on the support we receive from our community…if people buy tickets, the series will continue to grow.” She adds that she’s already received enthusiastic backing from Boulder Creek Business Association, Boulder Creek Recreation and Park District, Santa Cruz Mountain Bulletin, New Leaf Market, BC Pizza, and more.
With a background in theater and a passion for sharing her love of live music with others, Traci-lin’s vision for Get Out Productions aims to attract nationally touring artists on their way between LA and SF in addition to supporting home-grown music. “There’s so much local talent in our mountains.”
Get Out Productions presents Ike Reilly with The Coffis Brothers on Wednesday, February 22, 2017. On Facebook: www.facebook.com/getoutprods/
Copyright 2017 Julie Horner

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Tending Toward the Bluesy – Damdave and the Left-Hand Band

Julie Horner

By Julie Horner

Looking out from the “fishbowl” at the Boulder Creek Brewery Outpost, heads close together in comfortable familiarity in the late afternoon light, Dave Gillett and I sipped our “usual” and went to town reminiscing about spirited times in old haunts around the San Lorenzo Valley. Known affectionately as “Damdave,” he is front-man singer-songwriter and guitar player for the Boulder Creek-based Americana group, Damdave and the Left-Hand Band.

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Asked how he got the name “Damdave,” he explained how he had arrived in Brookdale – some 20 or more years ago – and started a folk jam at the Brookdale Lodge. He was just up from Santa Monica. “I was working for a health club in LA – had short hair and looked straight – one of my supervisors said, ‘You know, Dave, you seem like someone who might enjoy the Santa Cruz area.’” So he moved up and found a 1906 cabin in the mountains within walking distance of the Lodge.

One night he put his kids in bed and went over to check it out. “I didn’t drink at the time,” but he wound up earning his PhD hanging out in the bar. He remembers one of the bartenders, “Jenny Gilbert – Penthouse pretty – the owner’s daughter.” At one point someone asked his name. When he said, “David,” someone else at the bar shouted, “Not another damn Dave!”

Tuesday nights at the Brookdale Lodge were the slowest. “You had a couple of guys from the bar and we formed Damdave’s Odd-Ass Instrument Jam on Tuesday nights from ‘98-ish to 2008 or so,” Dave said. The Tuesday night jam was the forerunner of the Brookdale Bluegrass Festival. Eric Burman came to Dave’s jams and they decided after a time, “’Hey this would be a great place for a festival’…and it took off.” March 2000 was first year of the festival, he recalls, and featured a precursor to a band called the Waybacks, Faux Renwah, and the late yodeling lady, Lolita. “She was a great yodeler – played at the Lodge in its heyday – give her a couple of drinks and “Oh, goddam!”

Now Dave’s a Boulder Creek townie. “It’s a nice little town. I’ve written five songs about this town, I Love These Mountains, Bear Creek Road…there are more.” He’s also written three Brookdale songs, among them, Brookdale’s Burning and Highway 9, a takeoff on the old song Highway 55 co-written with Eric Burman. “She always walks alone, neither flesh and neither bone, ooooo!! There’s some really good lyrics. Eric always made it a 20-minute long instrumental thing with audience participation.”

For a while he was Damdave and the Hot Damn Band. The name change reflects the distinction that Dave plays left-handed. Along with Graham MacFarlane (standup bass), “Mando” Mike Reynolds (vocals, mandolin), and occasionally “Joebro” Adams (any of whom may or may not also play left-handed), the guys will entertain you with “a mix of dysfunctional bluegrass, country, blues, soul, and a healthy dose of Damdave originals.”

“I’m not bluegrass, I don’t want a bluegrass band,” he says. His sound is Americana tending toward the bluesy. “I’ve always been a blues kind of guy.” He was raised in Ann Arbor, between Detroit and Chicago. “My voice is kind of gravelly, I grew up with Bob Seger. I like Gregg Allman…I like all kinds of music. I was thinking about this not too long ago. When I listen to people singing, when I listen to blues or Motown, the way they sing a song, the emphasis is on the words and music together. I want to develop my voice and my songs to be able to express the parts of the music I want to express…with an honesty in my voice.”

Damdave and the Left-Hand Band play every Tuesday at the Boulder Creek Brewery Outpost and every few weeks at Casa Nostra in Ben Lomond. Watch for a GoFundMe campaign for Dave’s upcoming CD. Online: damdave.brookdalebluegrass.com | www.facebook.com/damdave.gillett

Copyright 2017 Julie Horner