At the end of another restless off-season when the pedestal of producer Gary Mandell again was rocked until it nearly tipped over, the 15th annual Summer Music Festival opens a 9-week run on Thursday evening in the freshly flounced-up courtyard of City Hall.
Mr. Mandell, owner of Boulevard Music and the single strand of continuity through most of the Music Festival history, enters the season armed with a new sort-of commitment from the City Council for the next three years.
However, with Sarah Palin newly available, the dogged Mr. Mandell now may have to fight off widely scattered early reports that she is considering applying to be producer of this hit series.
At least he is safe for this summer.
With the outdoor concert seasons at the Hollywood Bowl, MacArthur Park, Pasadena and elsewhere already under way, Culver City joins the parade of melodies tomorrow at 7 o’clock.
But concert-goers know that is just a number.
The birds who are early — say, any time after 4:45 — are rewarded with the best seats, sitting in even as staffers set up chairs and the stage for the popular First Night attraction:
Ricardo Lemvo and Makina Loca headlining what Mr. Mandell colorfully refers to as
“the groovin’ hot 10-piece Afro-Cuban/Salsa band.”
On another hand, Mr. Mandell’s free-floating publicity mill creatively makes the following promise:
“Their dynamic band can literally burn up the dance floor by capturing all of the elements of African and Cuban music.”
If this has a chance of materializing, Chief Jeff Eastman’s Fire Dept. probably will be pulling standby duty for what would be yet another Mandell first — the first conflagration in Summer Music Festival history.
Mr. Mandell goes on to tell us:
“The World Music ensemble blends African soukous and rumba with Cuban salsa and song. A native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), Ricardo sings some of the material in Spanish and some in the African tongues of Kikongo and Lingala.
“Makina Loca,” the producer says, “features a dazzling array of attacking horns, mesmerizing percussion, and a rolling piano that floats along. Grab a window seat on the rumba route dancing to Afro-Caribbean groove.”
Mr. Mandell passes along this one-line review from the San Francisco Examiner:
“These guys play with an intensity that makes it impossible to hold still.”
Motown, Classic Rock, Folk, Blues, Cajun, Irish evenings lie ahead in the coming eight weeks.
310.253-5716, www.culvercity.org, or email info@culvercitymusic.org.
Mr. Mandell may be reached at info@boulevardmusic.com
