Sounding the 805
Stay gold and get Dirty: rockabilly revivalism takes over
By Chris Mastrovito 12/17/2009
Having just about finished the first decade of the 21st century, it’s no surprise that people look back and seek to revive memories of things that made our last century great. One of those distant memories is the golden age of rock and roll.
Ventura has long had a vibrant rockabilly scene, but the leather and hair grease have been working overtime lately with a series of rock and roll shows at the Dirty Vinyl Bar and Gallery in Ventura. Walking through the door of the nightclub on the night of one of Stay Gold Promotions’ rowdy events, featuring local and touring ’50s-style rockabilly bands paired with a burlesque show by Vixen’s Vixens, an L.A.-based troupe of girls offering a provocative dance show reminiscent of early 20th century vaudeville striptease, is like crossing a threshold into a wonderful time warp where somehow these two forms of American entertainment actually coexist.
To the left is a 20-something greaser type with a 3-inch pompadour and full-color neck tattoos; to the right, a young woman in a lacy red bustier and bloomers, who looks like she just stepped off a carriage; and dead-ahead, Ventura’s twice-voted best bartender Erik Myles, whose slicked-back mobster-hawk and chin-level Elvis chops are the icing on the New Year’s cake that says “Who cares what year it is?”
Stay Gold Promotions, a solo venture started by local tile and stone worker Nick Martinez, started setting up the 21 and older rock and roll/burlesque shows at the Red Cove bar in Ventura in March. Martinez has organized six such shows since then, including the packed after-party for the Primer Nationals Hod Rod & Motorcycle Show.
Martinez brought the show to Dirty Vinyl (aka “the Dirty”) in November as a birthday bash for friend “Rockabilly Joe,” and with it practically the entire Ventura rockabilly/psychobilly community. Martinez, well-connected in the scene and incredibly sociable and likable, is extraordinarily adept at rallying the masses for his events, which are always packed, and never more than $5 to attend (a big plus). The birthday party was such a success for the Dirty that bringing these shows back more regularly was the obvious move.
Last weekend a two-day rockabilly event, starting with Saturday’s “Holiday Ho Ho Ho Down,” drew close to full capacity and featured burlesque girls and the upright bass-wielding Ventura local band Deadbeat Sinners, “Japanese lightning” Inazuma, and L.A. bands Pal Joey, The Henchmen and Dead End Stiffs. And since wherever there is a rockabilly show, there are almost without exception vintage cars nearby, Sunday’s follow-up bash was Cruise for a Cause 2009, a vintage auto show courtesy of Deadbeats Car Club to benefit the Ventura County FOOD Share, featuring three live bands, some 40 to 50 classic hot rods and bikes overflowing the parking lot, roller derby girls West Coast Derby Knockouts, raffle prizes, and another packed house. “We wanted to do something special for the
holidays while keeping the American hot rod thing going,” says Deadbeats president Isaac Hendrix, “and this FOOD Share benefit seemed like the way to do that”.
Luckily, there will be many more chances to be a part of the fun for those who missed out this month. “We are going to be doing a lot more of this,” promises Myles. The Dirty Vinyl plans to team up with Stay Gold Promotions for monthly events with live rock and roll and a new charity each time. “We want to keep doing things to benefit the community and support the local music scene,” explains Myles.
Bringing back the spirit of ’50s rock and roll culture doesn’t take the DeLorean from Back to the Future. It takes a few enthusiastic people, some revivalist rockabilly bands, vintage cars and a place to bring it all together. “Nostalgia,” wrote American columnist Florence King wryly, “is an ephemeral composition of disjointed memories.” Perhaps, but that doesn’t make it any less fun.
Sounding the 805 is Ventura County’s only biweekly local music column. If you have a tip, a suggestion, a complaint, some dish or just a kind word, shoot Chris Mastrovito an e-mail.
DIGG | del.icio.us | REDDIT