Blue Plate Special CD Release Party BPS is the jazz- and bluegrass-flavored side project of Lounge Cat's Eddie Rosicky (formerly of Bohemian Swingers). The party goes from 9 p.m. till 1 a.m. (March 29, Grand Finale)
LTJ Bukem w/MC Conrad/PFM/Om/Keith MacKenzie/DJ Skills/Daveaux How often does this happen? Over at Amphitheater tonight, there's a house and trance pioneer (Paul Oakenfold); at Frankie's, a premier jungle innovator, Bukem, is behind the decks, accompanied by his fave MC (Conrad). Bukem, born Danny Williamson, is the owner and CEO of the Good Looking/Looking Good Records empire (which includes eight other labels). He brings a breezy jazz-fusion feel to his tracks that, in his early days, set him far ahead of the class. Last year saw the release of his long-anticipated solo album, Journey Inwards. The disc was an eclectic, blissful exploration of Bukem's influences, from Chick Corea and Lonnie Liston Smith to Detroit techno and classic house, that appealed to drum 'n' bass aficionados and strangers to the genre alike. Tickets are $12 at the door, $16 VIP upstairs access. Doors open at 8 p.m. (March 29, Frankie's Patio)
Patti LaBelle Patti LaBelle's funky, insanely glam girl-group, LaBelle opened for The Who, became the first African-American act ever to appear at the Met in New York City, and recorded the excellent, underappreciated R&B/girl group album Gonna Take a Miracle with the late, equally underappreciated Laura Nyro. LaBelle, the group, broke up in 1976, but LaBelle, the diva, continues, releasing When A Woman Loves in 2000. The concert is at 7:30 p.m. and tickets cost $52.50 and $57.50. (March 29, Ruth Eckerd Hall)
Paul Oakenfold Possibly dance music's most popular DJ, Oakenfold fled his native London as a teenager, immersing himself in the club culture of early '80s Manhattan. Returning to the UK, he hopped from one record label job to another before discovering the idyllic, relentlessly fun vibe of Ibiza, and bringing it to the London club scene in 1987. In the early '90s he produced The Happy Mondays; later that decade saw him remixing Massive Attack and U2, and popularizing trance in clubs on both sides of the Atlantic. Last year's Tranceport album broke Oakenfold to Americans in a big way and, with the follow-up, Perfecto Presents Another World, he's now set his sights on Asia. Tickets are $22.50 and doors open at 9 p.m. (March 29, Amphitheater)
Atom and His Package w/Har Mar Superstar/Tomorrow/Next SeasonEven if Atom Goren's DIY Ray Stevens shtick gets on your nerves (and I'm not just saying that because he refused my proposal of marriage last time) you should definitely make it out early to see the rest of this bill. Har Mar Superstar is the nom de guerre of Harold Martin Tillman, younger brother of Sean Na Na's Sean Tillman. (see Music). Tonight also marks the return of Tampa's own contemporary secular humanist rock superstars, Tomorrow. This is an early show, with doors supposedly at 8 p.m. and the music starting at 9. $6 cover, all ages. (March 30, Orpheum)
Ensemble Galilei This all-female quintet bridges the gap between neo-classicism and traditional Celtic styles. Their jigs, reel and airs have a muted, graceful quality, quite different from the relentless propulsion of a band like The Chieftains. The ensemble's instrumentation includes fiddles, pipes, recorders, oboe, pennywhistle, Celtic harp, viola and percussion. The group's most recent albums, on Telarc Classical, are From the Isles to the Courts and last year's Come Gentle Night: Music of Shakespeare's World. (March 30, Tarpon Springs Performing Arts Center) —Eric Snider
Morbid Angel w/Malevolent Creation/ Monstrosity Revisit the music that, for better or for worse, put Tampa on the map. Maleficious!! (March 30, Masquerade)
Red Elvises w/The Fallopian Tubes How do you say tired gimmick in Russian? Eclectic, all-woman septet The Fallopian Tubes open up for the ever-visiting Red Elvises. The show's at 8 p.m. and tickets cost $12 in advance, $15 at the door. (March 30, Skipper's Smokehouse)
Sufi Brothers Back for the second time this year, The Sufi Brothers are singer/flatpickin' maniac Woody from The Blue Rags, and a few more old-timey dynamos. Their last show at New World was a raucous surprise. (March 30, New World Brewery)
'You'll Be In My Heart' New York cabaret performer Jeffrey Lesser presents an evening of musical entertainment to benefit The People with AIDS Coalition of Tampa Bay. The Tampa-bred Lesser will be accompanied by pianists Lisa Fabian and Matt McGee. Tickets are available for a minimum donation of $15, and the event starts at 8 p.m. (March 30, Friday Morning Musicale)
Tampa Bay Blues Festival 2001 See this week's cover story for features, schedule and details. (March 30-April 1, Vinoy Park)
Bolshoi Symphony Orchestra Tickets to see one of Europe's most esteemed orchestras cost $30, $40 and $50. The concert begins at 8 p.m. (March 31, Ruth Eckerd Hall)
Mya w/City High With two albums out on Interscope (the second, 2000's Fear of Flying, featuring such talent as Lisa Left Eye Lopez, Jadakiss, Wyclef Jean and Swizz Beatz), Mya could easily reach the starry heights of Aaliyah. Or she could just tumble into obscurity — it's kinda hard to say. Tickets are $18 in advance. (March 31, Frankie's Patio)
Papa Roach w/Orgy/Alien Ant Farm Coby Dick, vocalist for the alt-metal quartet Papa Roach, is rumored to be applying to various undergrad programs in linguistics, in an effort to find new and exciting ways to use the word motherfucker in his lyrics. The catchier, glammier Orgy will be on the Alyssa Milano/Shannen Doherty show Charmed later in April. They open the show along with Alien Ant Farm, who recently released an album on Papa Roach's label, New Noize (a subsidiary of Dreamworks, natch). Tickets cost $22.50 and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. (March 31, Florida State Fairgrounds)
Warrant w/support tba Get your hair-metal groove on (yet again) for only $15 in advance, $18 at the door. Doors are at 7 p.m., show's at 8:30. (March 31, Jannus Landing)
97X/Club More Spring Break 2001 Party w/Our Lady Peace/American Hi-Fi/Dexter Freebish/Big Sky/The Hazies This free event will feature skateboarding and inline skating demos and big, big giveaways. See this week's Freebie for more info. The event starts at noon and lasts till 6 p.m. (April 1, Coachman Park)
Bobby 'Blue' Bland The legendary blues sex symbol managed to make a name for himself without a guitar or harmonica, but rather with a trademark tortured singing style. (April 1, Centro Asturiano)
Chubby Carrier & The Bayou Swamp Band Tickets to see the zydeco party band cost $10. The show is from 5 till 9 p.m. (April 1, Cajun Cafe on the Bayou)
Reed Martin The guest artist at the 2001 Florida Old Time Music Championships, Martin will give a banjo workshop from 3 to 4 p.m., and a concert at 5. (April 1, UU Dome)
Strangeways CD Release Party The popular ska sextet celebrates the release of its second Moon Ska CD, Another Round, beginning at 5 p.m. (April 1, Skipper's Smokehouse)
Teddy Duchamp's Army w/Closure/ Appalachian Pittsburgh's TDA do that whole angsty, melodic punk thing. They've toured with Hot Water Music and Alkaline Trio, and will also be doing a daytime show at Sound Idea in Brandon (113 E. Brandon Blvd.). Closure features former members of Slap of Reality and Balance, and Appalachian is a new, local, coed concern. Doors are at 9 p.m. and this all-ages show costs $5. (April 1, Orpheum)
Greg Piccolo & Heavy Juice Longtime bandleader for Roomful of Blues, Piccolo fuses blues, jazz and reggae with a solid R&B foundation. The band will be performing material from their brand-new fourth CD, Homage. Show's at 8 p.m., cover's $5. (April 3, Skipper's Smokehouse)
The Mike Plume Band w/Pagan Saints Canadian roots-rocker and singer/songwriter Mike Plume has been compared to John Mellencamp and Steve Earle; his 1998 release, Song and Dance Man, combined pop sensibility, rockabilly and Neil Youngish touches, making for a fine slice of Americana pie. Doors are at 9 p.m. cover's $5. (April 3, Orpheum)
RatDog RatDog is the brainchild of Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir and acclaimed bassist Rob Wasserman (Lou Reed, Elvis Costello, Van Morrison, Dan Hicks). After gigging together for many years (adding a pianist, drummer and saxophonist along the way), the group finally recorded an album, Evening Moods, in 2000. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and tickets cost $28.75. (April 3, TBPAC)
—All entries by Stefanie Kalem unless otherwise indicated.
This article appears in Mar 29 – Apr 4, 2001.