Beatles tribute band, Yellow Dubmarine plays at 7 p.m. Friday at Ashley Pond. Courtesy photo
By Russ Gordon
The Beatles were the most popular and influential rock band of the 20th Century. You can’t argue too much about that and I’m not going to argue that “… we all live in a yellow submarine.”
From 1962 thru 1970, the Beatles had an amazing 54 songs that made it to #1 on the Billboard Music Charts in the U.S. and UK.
Friends of the Summer Concert Series, this Friday, Aug. 24 we have a fabulous reggae, ska, dub, rock, punk and rocksteady Beatles tribute band, Yellow Dubmarine playing at 7 p.m. at Ashley Pond.
Yellow Dubmarine play and have recorded those 54 #1 songs, plus they’ve recorded the entire Abbey Road album.
This Friday you’re gonna hear almost every-one of those great songs but for the first time … this is reggae music!
Dub is a genre of music, which grew out of reggae and reggae grew out of ska. Ska music is a tremendous, fast dance music that came from Jamaica using a lot of brass.
Rocksteady slowed the tempo and often were love, R&B or blues songs. Then came reggae in the 60’s with emerging superstars like Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff and other greats.
Reggae music has a soulfoul dance groove that almost all of the world recognizes. Most reggae focuses on politics, protest, black consciousness and the Rastafarian spiritual movement.
Dub features electronic instrumental remixes emphasizing drums and bass with lots of reverb and echo.
This combination of Jamaican music is how Yellow Dubmarine play the Beatles’ greatest hits. This show won’t be a Ska-Karioke night. It may sound crazy to you but it’s crazy-good.
All we are saying is give these dudes a chance. What the band is saying is “All you need is dub.”
Yellow Dubmarine is from the D.C.- Baltimore area. They’re known for being an incredible live band, just fantastic!
The next night they’re playing the famous Red Rocks Amphiteater in Morrison, Co. at the annual “Reggae On The Rocks Festival” with Steel Pulse. Pretty cool!
Check out the band at www.yellowdubmarine.com and on YouTube. I recommend that you check out songs like “Something,” “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” and “Come Together.”
On YD’s website, they quote Kurt Vonnegut “…Let this be my epitaph: The only proof he needed for the existence of God was music.”
This show is the last of 2012 Los Alamos Summer Concert Series EXCEPT for a special event on Friday, Sept. 14 and 15.
This will be the weekend of the “Next Big Idea: A Festival of Discovery, Invention and Innovation.”
On Sept. 14, the Summer Series presents Stephanie Hatfield and Hot Mess with Bill Palmer’s TV Killers, two extremely good rock, Americana, alternative and progressive rock bands from Santa Fe.
At this writing, I know that the Chamber of Commerce and MainStreet Los Alamos are planning on two rock bands plus lots of exhibits. ,
This seems like it should be the perfect Los Alamos festival. You can read more about the Fest at www.nbi.snappages.com.
You can also check out www.revernation.com/stephaniehatfield, www.reverbnation.com/billpalmerstvkillers, www.myspace.com/hyfbp#!. Both acts can be found on YouTube.
On Sat., Aug.15, at 7:30 p.m. (after the Next Big Idea Fest) we’re ecstatic about bringing back China’s Golden Dragon Acrobats.
The show will be a thrilling & beautiful night of Chinese acrobats, traditional dance, spectacular and gorgeous costumes, ancient and contemporary music and theater with a history of more than 20 centuries.
They played here two years ago and wow, it was an incredible experience. The show will be a fundraiser for next year’s Gordons’ Concerts Series.
The show will be at Smith Auditorium at Los Alamos High School. I’ll have more information soon. I hope to have tickets printed next week and on sale at CB FOX, Smiths’ in White Rock and at the Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce.
Read more about the troop at www.goldendragonacrobats.com. Hope to see you all over town in the next four weeks. Thanks for your support.
Yellow Dubmarine. Courtesy photo
