Hi friends,

Merry Christmas to one and all … especially all those who drive delivery trucks. You da real MVPs. 

Now, on with the show.

This Just In!

Music fans of a certain age get excited when the name Robert Fripp is invoked. Fripp was the genius behind the amazing progressive rock band King Crimson, and he comes to the Kuumbwa Jazz Center on Feb. 23 in a co-bill with fellow Crimson-ite David Singleton. The group is called Qwanqwa, they hail from Ethiopia, and they feature a Santa Cruz-born-and-raised violinist. See them May 16 at the Kuumbwa. The Long Beach Dub Allstars come to Moe’s on Jan. 27. And there’s something called the Santa Cruz Chocolate Festival hitting the Beach Boardwalk on Jan. 13.

Be sure to check out Lookout’s carefully curated and constantly updated planning guide, Down the Line, for the staggering riches and amazing choices awaiting Santa Cruz audiences. It’s our look ahead at the best shows, concerts and events through the rest of the year at clubs, stages and venues all over the county.

B9 logo

B9: What’s what in the week ahead

We’ve come to the one week of the year where the clubs go quiet, the events dry up, and the social scene takes five. In that spirit, the B9 throws a curveball. Here they are, nine ideas for getting in the holiday spirit and/or finishing the old year on a high note:

  1. Call somebody you haven’t spoken to in five years or more — forget email or texts. Real-time one-on-one conversation. No warning. Out of the blue. Don’t even give a reason. 
  2. Give. A charity, nonprofit, school, public radio. Not out of guilt or duty, but solely to make a stranger’s (or many strangers’) life just a little better. 
  3. Yes, of course, sit on the couch and watch a movie with someone you love, but make sure it’s one you can talk over — a throwaway comedy, a campy horror flick or something you’ve seen 10 times already. Make sure your commentary is the memorable part the next day.
  4. Learn something about a topic a bit out of your comfort zone — like the species of trees in your yard, what an “arpeggio” is, the presidency of Calvin Coolidge — then share it with someone. Don’t let them change the subject. 
  5. Make a “fave five” list — your five favorite beaches in Santa Cruz County, your five favorite sandwiches in town, your five favorite things at the Boardwalk.    
  6. Identify the 49ers fans in your life and watch the big game this week with them, especially if you’re ignorant of or dislike football. Whoever that is in your life, you can’t give them a better gift than pretending you care.
  7. If you don’t already have a signature cocktail or mocktail that you’re good at making, find one. Practice at it. Then, unveil it at the right moment. You’ll know that moment when it comes.      
  8. Sing — in a group of carolers on the sidewalk, karaoke with the fam, on a road trip to see Grandma, in the shower. Doesn’t matter what or when. It only matters how loud.  
  9. Ask someone in your life about their childhood, their weird adolescence, their wild 20s. Ask them questions you think you know the answers to. Chances are you don’t. Have a conversation with someone you love without using the word “I,” unless it’s “No, I want to hear about you.”

The Tammi hour

Santa Cruz’s Tammi Brown was the woman of the hour last weekend at a benefit concert at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center. If you haven’t already, check out Ken Doctor’s account of the show last Sunday, which includes an amazing account of her struggle with a cancer diagnosis as told by Tammi herself. 

If you want to join the many who’ve already pledged to help, Tammi’s GoFundMe campaign is still ongoing. And there will be another benefit “Tonight for Tammi” show, this one taking place in Carmel Valley’s Hidden Valley Music Seminars Institute on Jan. 26.

Circus is in town

The Flynn Creek Circus returns to the Capitola Mall with its new show, "Arctic Myth," opening Thursday and running through Jan. 7.
Credit: Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz

OK, so there is one big performance event happening this week. Just as they did last year, the acrobats and aerial artists of Flynn Creek Circus are back in town. Last December, they wowed Santa Cruz County audiences from their big-top tent in the parking lot of the Capitola Mall. It’s starting to feel like a tradition. The circus opens Thursday and runs through Jan. 7.

Read more here.

Earworm of the Week

This week, The EWW is taking the holiday season off … except to say, I dare anyone to find a more satisfying Christmas album than this one.

Santa Cruz County Trivia

It’s not technically in Santa Cruz County, but local golfers are certainly aware of the landmark tournament on the other side of Monterey Bay that today is known as the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Every winter, big-name golfers and often bigger-name celebs gather for a round of golf at Pebble Beach. The tournament dates back to the late 1930s, and for years it was known by an informal alliterative name that suggested celebrities and fun. What was that name for the Monterey Bay area’s most famous golf tournament?

Alfred Hitchcock in his garden at his estate north of Scotts Valley.
Alfred Hitchcock in his garden at his estate north of Scotts Valley.

Last week: So, who was the local celeb in the 1940s and ’50s who attracted such visitors as Jimmy Stewart, Ingrid Bergman and Grace Kelly to Santa Cruz County? Yes, many of you got this one right. It was Hitch — aka Alfred Hitchcock, the iconic movie director who for more than 30 years owned a retreat in the hills near Scotts Valley where he and his wife, Alma, entertained many of the biggest stars of the era. The Hitchcocks eventually sold the property in the 1970s.

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That’s all I got, friends. Come at me with comments, ideas, complaints, or thundering insights. Thanks to all Lookout members for your faith and support, and please, spread the word on what we’re doing.

Wallace reports and writes not only across his familiar areas of deep interest — including arts, entertainment and culture — but also is chronicling for Lookout the challenges the people of Santa Cruz...