Johnny Rawls is on the tour that never ends. Since going out on his own, he’s been on a relentless jaunt from club to club, festival to festival, nation to nation. And the long road comes through Dunsmuir on Thursday, December 13, as Rawls comes to the POPS venue with his “Northern California All-stars.”. He will have spent November in Europe, and early December in Utah. Before December’s over he will also perform in Indiana, New York, and at Buddy Guy’s Legends in Chicago.

Johnny’s style of music can best be termed “soul blues,” and his warm, engaging manner draws the listener into his stories. The irony and glory of love give him plenty to sing about, and his show features his knockout guitar playing underlining his vocals. His recent album, Tiger in a Cage, went to number one on the Living Blues radio charts in its first month of release. He recently told me, “I’ve been playing around northern California for 15 years now, and it’s really a one-of-a-kind area. There’s some great people there, some great Blues fans. I love playing there.”

We hope everyone comes out to see this real deal blues and soul legend playing with the Northstate All Stars.

We do have a ball when Johnny comes to town, and it’s a real-deal showcase for deep south soul and joy when his journey from Purvis comes through northern California.

Saturday, September 30, 7 pm
Jazz in the Canyon Allison and Victor  + Midnight Band
Music Release Party & Concert for Nation of Jubilation

Tickets $12 in advance 
you will be placed on will-call at the door no paper tix. 
$15 at the door
Allison and Victor are celebrating the release of their new recording Nation of Jubilation with a concert for Jazz in the Canyon. With Victor Martin on saxophone and Allison on guitar and vocals, they will be performing with stand-up bassist Bruce Calin and Mike Whipple on percussion. CDs and custom Nation of Jubilation flashdrive with peace sign keychain will be availalble at the show and

on their website at www.allisonandvictor.com

You can read more about thier new recording from interview in the After 5 Magazine: “The latest album from Siskiyou County’s sax, guitar and vocal duo, Allison Scull and Victor Martin, is Nation of Jubilation and was released in May. But it took a while for the final product to reach the finish line. “The album was a longer journey than the others to finish,” Martin said in an email. “The recording process started before the pandemic and it features more Redding area musicians. It’s more soulful and jazzy and reflects our growth, musically.” With Scull on guitar and vocals and Martin on saxophone and vocals, the two create a fusion of musical forms uniquely their own by blending jazz, folk, blues, a little funk, originals and some jazz standards laced with some French lyrics. Scull learned French where she grew up in Belgium while Martin was born and raised in Middletown, Delaware. The title track of their latest album is an original song that Scull said is autobiographical about their travels. “It’s about all of the people we meet along the way and how they become our friends and family and the common ground between all humans,” she said. Martin added that there is a special guest appearance by their friend Ignacio “Nacho” Chavez from Mazatlan, Mexico who can be heard on electric guitar. Another track, co-written by the duo, is “Blisters on Her Feet.” “It’s a song about Victor’s stepmother who walked the historic march in Washington D.C. in 1963 where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his ‘I have a dream speech,’” Scull said. She added that the recording features two duets and highlights the intermingling of vocals and sax on the jazz standard “Day by Day.” Aside from Martin on saxophone and vocals and Scull on guitar and vocals, others performing on the album are Mike Harris on percussion, Bruce Calin on stand-up bass, Patrick Wiseman on drums, Stefan Schittko on keyboard. and Bruce Turgon on electric bass. The album was recorded at Turgon’s After Hours Recorders in Redding and both Martin and Scull said it was a real pleasure to work with him. “We are so excited to share our music and proud of the musicians who played on the album,” Scull said. An album release party is scheduled at 6 p.m., July 4, at Pops Performing Arts and Cultural Center, 5819 Sacramento Ave., Dunsmuir with more information on their website. The album is available on CD and custom flash drives with peace sign keychain on their website allisonandvictor.com. It will also be available soon on all streaming platforms.” – Ron Harrington

— July 2023 After Five North State Magazine

Celebrated seven-string jazz guitarist Ron Jackson and his trio will perform for the 10th Annual Jazz in the Canyon. With Ron Jackson on seven-string archtop guitar, Essiet Essiet will take the stage on bass while Sylvia Cuenca performs on drums.Versatile and sophisticated jazz guitarist Ron Jackson has performed, recorded and taught music in over 30 countries. With a varied career as a performer, composer and arranger, Highlights include shows and tours with artists such as Taj Mahal, Jimmy McGriff, Larry Coryell, Benny Golson, Oliver Lake, Russell Malone and Mulgrew Miller. Ron has been featured as a leader in jazz festivals all over the world, including the North Sea Jazz Festival, Edinburgh Jazz Festivals and Winter Jazzfest, NYC.

Born in the Philippines, lived in many states as a kid, then settled in Harvard, Massachusetts, west of Boston, Ron was initially influenced by rock guitar greats like Jimmy Page, before falling under the spell of jazz and following the style and career of jazz guitar luminaries like Pat Metheny and George Benson. After attending Berklee School of Music on scholarship, studying jazz composition and arranging, Ron spent two formative years in the mid-1980’s living and playing guitar with the lively expat jazz community in Paris, France. Ron moved to New York City where he remains an active participant in Gotham’s always vibrant jazz scene. A master of the six, seven and twelve string guitars, Ron appeared on over 40 albums by such artists as Hal Singer, Graeme Norris, Ron Blake, Gisele Jackson and T.K. Blue, before founding the independent record label Roni Music in 2003 which has since released some of his eight of his albums as a leader including The Dream I Had (2003), Flubby Dubby (2008) and Akustik InventYours (2014).  His latest project, Jazz Standards and Other Songs (2019) is an alluring mix of familiar jazz numbers and innovative adaptations of songs from other genre’s like his trendsetting arrangement for jazz trio of Drake’s “Passion Fruit.”

Ron was grateful to be selected as the winner of the 1996 Heritage International Jazz Guitar Competition. He has also been a recipient of the 2012 Donald Knutson Memorial Development Fund and the 1991 and 2000 Meet the Composer Performance Fund. He endorses, Eastman Guitars, Kremona Guitars, Aria Classical Guitars, Paul Reed Smith Guitars and Godin Guitars.

An acclaimed music educator, Ron currently teaches guitar at Jazz at Lincoln Center, The New School, Midori and Friends, and is the founder and director of the website www.practicejazzguitar.com. Ron has held master classes, concerts and workshops at Jazz at Lincoln Center-Jazz in the Schools, The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, Escuela Creativa Musica in Madrid, Spain and California State University.

Ron has made appearances in several major motion pictures including The Greatest Showman, Vulgar, and Fly by Night. He has also performed in pit orchestras on many Broadway and off-Broadway shows including Avenue Q, Fosse, Shuffle Along, and Bring In `Da Noise, Bring In `Da Funk.

In recent years, Ron has also developed a side career as a freelance writer for Acoustic Guitar magazine where he’s published educational and guitar instructional articles.