Perhaps the Palos Verdes Peninsula is not the first place you’d think of when it comes to live music and dancing. Particularly on a Wednesday night. But that’s exactly what you’d find if you ventured over to the park next to Malaga Cove Library in Palos Verdes Estates, just behind the Plaza, on Wednesdays during July and August. . .
My friends and I recently met there on three different Wednesday nights to listen and sway to the acoustic rock ‘n’ roll of Andy and Renee, the smooth jazz of David Benoit, and the nostalgic beat of the Eagles Tribute Band.
Andy and Renee set the tone with just the right harmonic blend for a warm summer’s evening, playing soulful sets of their own original folk rock tunes. The park was filled with a colorful patchwork of blankets and lawn chairs as relaxed Palos Verdes residents, family, and friends enjoyed the mellow musical vibe and the cool breezes coming in off the ocean. My friend Yuka, her friend Sarah, and I drank rose and chatted between sets as their three children played in the pathway by the library. Afterwards, we stayed to catch up with other local friends who had arrived after the concert had begun.
The following Wednesday evening was an amazing treat: David Benoit, the Grammy-nominated pianist and Palos Verdes resident, played his own contemporary jazz compositions to a capacity crowd at the park. In a tribute to his mentor, Dave Brubeck, he also played Brubeck’s ‘Blue Rondo a la Turk,’ a lively blues piece which earned Benoit one of two standing ovations from the audience. No easy feat to get up from lawn chairs on a grassy hillside to salute a performer! Benoit’s accolades were well-deserved, and his teenaged bandmates, one on bass, the other on drums, demonstrated that he was paying his debt to Brubeck forward by mentoring the next generation of musical talent.
Part of the crowd’s affection for Benoit stemmed from his stories of life on the peninsula. He and his wife had originally settled in Redondo Beach when they moved to the South Bay, but one of their neighbors habitually played loud music, so they didn’t last long in that location. Clearly their neighbor’s musical tastes did not include quality smooth jazz! Benoit’s wife suggested they look at houses in Palos Verdes, and they immediately fell in love with the peninsula’s natural beauty and embraced its more reasonable real estate prices. Their first house was in Malaga Cove; they have since bought land and built their dream house on the peninsula. According to Benoit, they plan to live in Palos Verdes for the rest of their lives.
After David Benoit’s contemporary jazz style, last Wednesday’s concert was a nostalgic trip back to the rock and roll of the sixties and seventies, courtesy of musical tour guides Chris Farmer and Timothy B. Schmit, bass player and singer for the Eagles. Schmit’s and Farmer’s group, A Peaceful Easy Eagles Tribute, created a peaceful, easy vibe for another appreciative capacity crowd. Audience members lifted their arms and swayed to the music of songs like ‘Heartache Tonight,’ ‘Best of My Love,’ and ‘Life in the Fast Lane.’ By the end of the evening, individuals among the crowd had come together to form a conga line and dance in front of the stage. They settled back into their seats to soak in the last song of the evening which was, fittingly, ‘Hotel California.’
The Malaga Cove Concert Series has two remaining musical groups on its Wednesday evening schedule: Jim Curry and Company, a John Denver tribute band, will perform on August 23rd, and The Cody Bryant Show, will play country and honky tonk on the 30th. Each concert starts at 7 pm and lasts for a little over an hour. Come to the park with your blanket on Wednesdays before 3 pm so you can reserve a spot on the lawn for the evening’s entertainment. You are welcome to bring a picnic dinner, and alcoholic beverages are also allowed. The Malaga Cove concerts are a wonderful way to reconnect with local friends and make new ones as the community gathers among the trees to listen to relaxing live music, chat, and share desserts, drinks, and sometimes even extra blanket or lawn space with neighbors and friends.
Photography by E. Geno Frazier, Langley Avenue