After 458 days of silent anticipation, live music and entertainment as we know it has returned to the Tahoe Sierra.
On June 15, the State of California officially reopened from the coronavirus pandemic. For the first time since March 15, restaurants, bars, casinos and resorts throughout the region were allowed to operate at full capacity. It has been 15 months to the day since music venues had been able to conduct live concerts the way they used to: without masks, social distancing or limited crowd sizes. Nevada rescinded similar restrictions on June 1.
Find the lineup for Harvey’s, Music on the Beach, Tuesdays Bluesdays, Music in the Park, Valhalla & Heavenly Village
After entertainment suddenly shut down on both sides of the state line, producers and venues tried to hold on to hope for a swift return, but all public gatherings of more than a few dozen people continued to be banned. Crystal Bay Casino managed to pull off one socially-distanced “Loud as Folk” show on Oct. 24 before being forced to postpone its December and January concerts. Some artists rescheduled two or three times as nationwide restrictions persisted.
Beginning in April, whispers of hope began to resonate in the mountains. Crystal Bay Club brought back canceled artists for three-night runs, two shows a night, for 150 people in pod seating. That’s what it took to sell 900 tickets and meet the sales of one typical night at the 750-person Crown Room. Audience members were required to have their temperature taken, conduct a brief survey prior to entry and wear masks during the performance.
“To have everything I created for the past 22 years here in Tahoe taken away from me was quite a blow. Moving forward, I think people are ecstatic about it. They can’t wait to see their favorite band again. I think we all realized how much we took live music for granted.” –Billy Drewitz
“There were a lot of regulations we had to abide by, but at least we got music back,” says former general manager Bill Wood. “We were able to have music when everyone else went dark. The bands were anxious to play and we were anxious to have them. We really have to thank the artists because we couldn’t have done it without them understanding the situation.”
The casino’s first full volume concerts since March 2020 are happening July 2 and 3 when Bay Area folk-rock stars The Brothers Comatose and Reno’s Americana quintet Six Mile Station take the stage to a max capacity in the Crown Room. More concerts are expected to be added this summer now that venues are feeling confident their reinstated freedoms will remain intact and bands are finally able to route national tours to major West Coast cities.
“It’s like night and day,” says Wood, who retired on June 18. “I can’t tell you how difficult it was to try to maneuver around all those restrictions. Our staff really took a beating from people who refused to wear masks. The whole idea of masks being taken off the agenda was such a breath of fresh air, so to speak.”
On South Shore, Harvey’s Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena in Stateline, Nev., is gearing up for its first full-capacity, reserved-seating shows with up to 7,500 in attendance. On July 10, retro-soul band Earth, Wind & Fire kicks off the celebrity-studded schedule. Award-winning country superstars Old Dominion rock the house on July 23 and 24. On Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, perennial jam band kings Phish will return to a standing-room-only, sold-out crowd of 9,300 people at the outdoor venue representing the largest gathering planned in the Tahoe Sierra this summer.
Harveys Lake Tahoe was contacted from this story but declined to be interviewed.
Take it fast, take it slow
Throughout the Tahoe-Reno area, a region long associated with entertainment, the news of reopening was met with a distinctive mix of relief, exuberance and cautious optimism. In spite of the excitement, or perhaps because of it, not all area venues are rushing full steam ahead into massive live-music gatherings.
Moody’s Bistro, Bar & Beats will host New Orleans indie jazz ensemble Bon Bon Vivant on July 5 and 6 on an outdoor stage. It is a socially-distanced, seated show with dinner reservations required — a far cry from the raucous revelry once seen inside the downtown Truckee restaurant and venue.
“I just want to wait until it feels right all around,” says managing partner JJ Morgan. “You know what it’s like when it’s packed in here. I would rather wait until we can take it right from where we left off.”
Brass Mafia and Shotgun Wedding Quintet will play similar shows on Aug. 15 and 29 respectively, but Moody’s beloved Jazz Camp and Truckee Craw Thaw Festival are both postponed until 2022.
“I always knew what music did for me,” says Morgan. “This solidified how important it was in my life. It was a challenging time to survive. No music was definitely a big part of that.”
Alibi Ale Works was one of a handful of area venues that continued to host live music throughout the pandemic, even as it adjusted on the fly to constantly changing regulations. In order to keep business alive, the restaurant and brewery first pivoted to take-out orders and canned beer, before installing a beer garden with heaters at its locations in Truckee and Incline Village, Nev. The outdoor space made hosting music a possibility.
“The musicians were just dying to play,” says owner Kevin Drake. “It was important to me that they had a place. I know the people there listening we’re stoked to hear music played by humans. Everyone in society needed it.”
Now that restrictions have been lifted, Drake isn’t rushing into hosting the any of the late-night concerts Alibi Ale Works once did. For a variety of reasons, he’s sticking with daylight solo and duo acts for the time being.
“We are looking forward to the bigger bands and the party environment, but we’re going to ease back into it,” he says. “Right now, we’re focusing on what’s working and there are lot of people coming in earlier.”
Like many small businesses in the area, Alibi Ale Works has struggled to maintain the staff team required to run into the wee hours of the night.
“Housing is definitely an issue,” says Drake. “We’ve lost people who’ve hit their breaking point. Also, a lot of people who were happy working at bars and restaurants are shifting industries. They’re fearful of being shut down again and not feeling that it’s the stable job it once was. We’ve focused more on retention than recruiting. Our No. 1 priority is making sure the people who work for us are happy.”
As Tahoe opens for the summer, the pandemic continues to be an era of reinvention for venues and artists alike.
“Covid forced us to take stock of who we are and to do less things better,” says Drake. “Coming out of it, we are a stronger business than we were before. There is no shortage of bands knocking on the door, but we’re trying to take it a month at a time.”
Adapt and plan for the best
Rather than cancel its summer concert series in 2020, North Tahoe Business Association (NTBA) took Music on the Beach virtual, broadcasting live performances of popular local bands on its website and on 101.5 FM Truckee Tahoe Radio.
“We wanted to keep it going one way or another,” says community relations manager Kerry Andras. “It was a little weird playing without an audience, but it we got a great response. Moving into this year, we started laying the groundwork for both options. When the Governor made the announcement that California would open on June 15, we felt that was our green light.”
The preparation will pay off when NTBA launches its Friday night concert series at Kings Beach State Recreation Area on July 9 with San Francisco reggae group Pacific Vibration.
“We are going to encourage people who are unvaccinated to wear masks and practice social distancing, but we’re not going to be out there enforcing anything,” says Andras. “We are super excited to be doing this. We feel like it is going to be healing for our community. Everyone is so ready for it.”
Other summer concert series are making similar plans now that limitations have been raised. Music in the Park in Truckee kicks off on July 7 with Tahoma American group Dead Winter Carpenters. Tuesdays Bluesdays in Village at Squaw starts on July 13 with local favorites, The Blues Monsters. Truckee Thursdays opens on July 15. Concerts at Common Beach is planning to return on Aug. 1 with a six-week series.
On South Shore, Valhalla Tahoe’s summer program opened on June 15 and a five-week Live at Lakeview series begins on Aug. 5. Heavenly Village has more than 60 free concerts booked throughout the summer. The first one was held on Memorial Day weekend with Sacramento rock-fusion band Island of Black and White.
“We had 600 people packing the village that weekend,” says events producer Dreu Murin. “A band member was riding a unicycle and playing accordion through the crowd. For this year’s concerts, I’m really bringing a diversity of performers.”
During the pandemic Murin helped channel $14 million dollars in Paycheck Protection Program loans through Greater Commercial Lending to help small businesses retain their staff teams and plan for the future, he says.
“It was sad,” he says. “All the big guys were getting help and the little guys were being pushed to the side. It was a great partnership to help people in the basin.”
After South Lake Tahoe’s “Lights of the Lake” fireworks show was cancelled, Murin stepped in to organize fireworks displays on July 3 from the roof of Hard Rock Casino Lake Tahoe and on July 4 from the top of the Michael Laub Building in Stateline, Nev. (Read the details in this edition.)
Billy Drewitz of Late Nite Productions has been hard at work getting things going again, too. While some of his longtime clients, such as Jub Jub’s Thirst Parlor in Reno, were forced to shut down permanently due to the pandemic, others are primed and ready to do business.
He has confirmed a comedy show with Rob Schneider on July 9 and Extreme Midget Wrestling on Sept. 4 at MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa. Reggae featuring Don Carlos of Black Uhuru and Trinidadian reggae artist Marlon Asher will come to Truckee River Regional Park Amphitheater on July 20.
“I’m anxious to get back to work,” says Drewitz. “My industry is one of the last to be allowed to. It’s been tough because music is in my blood. To have everything I created for the past 22 years here in Tahoe taken away from me was quite a blow. Moving forward, I think people are ecstatic about it. They can’t wait to see their favorite band again. I think we all realized how much we took live music for granted. It was a real eyeopener, not only for the industry, but for the world.”
Light at the end of the tunnel
Across the region, music lovers are rejoicing as they gather again with colleagues and friends to share what they love most. Block parties have spontaneously popped up in neighborhoods throughout the Tahoe Basin, weekly jam sessions are off the screen and back at the bar and bookings are hitting the calendars like never before.
After losing 80 percent of his events in 2020, wedding producer Isaac Freed is now looking at his busiest season since founding Music in Tahoe in 2013. A large amount of postponements combined with a wave of new engagements has led to a record number of weddings this year.
“We effectively have two years of events to do this year,” he says. “There were a lot of people who got engaged through the pandemic who were home alone together. They are looking at unconventional dates like midweek. All of these are things that would’ve never happened in my 12 years of doing events. This is what we had our fingers crossed for. It’s back and it’s happening in a big way.”
While the private events market is booming, public concerts are steadily making their own comeback. For the past decade, Jesse Dunn and Jenni Charles have devoted their lives to building the popularity and reputation of Dead Winter Carpenters. As one of the only nationally touring acts based at Lake Tahoe, they depend on live performances to earn a living. When Covid arrived, everything stopped.
The couple turned to virtual gigs to stay connected with their fans and earn some money through donations, but the novelty soon wore off. Dunn picked up summer work as a house painter. They retreated to Vermont and Idaho with their 4-year-old daughter during the winter and spring to spend time with family.
“It’s kind of surreal to reflect on what happened during the past 15 months,” says Dunn. “Rewinding back, none of us knew exactly what would come of it. Basically, the brakes were slammed on live music or anything social. We hustled and did the best we could. This month it feels like that fog has kind of lifted again. I am extremely grateful to be on this end of it, even though we know it’s not completely gone away.”
Dunn and Charles performed as a duo in Mammoth Lakes earlier this month. Their first show with Dead Winter Carpenters since Valentine’s Day 2020 is scheduled for July 7: opening night of Truckee’s Music in the Park.
“We’re looking forward to circling the wagons and knocking the rusts off the axles,” says Dunn. “I’m a bit nervous, but also excited to get back on the horse, rework these songs and present them to a live audience. The anticipation is building.”
Don’t take anything for granted
On March 15, 2020, the night before everything shut down, Sean “Chango” O’Brien was providing sound for a concert by Southern blues guitarist Tinsley Ellis at The Saint in Reno. By end of the night, he knew something big was happening. Ellis, a longtime touring musician, was in tears.
“It was really extremely stressful,” says O’Brien, who delivers live entertainment to the region with his production company, Chango Presents. “The level of anxiety was something I had not experienced in my life. I was scared of losing my home. Everything I had worked for the past 10-plus years had completely evaporated overnight.”
O’Brien’s regular gig as an audio engineer at Crystal Bay Casino was also on hold. Through a combination of unemployment relief, grants and loans, he was able to keep his business afloat while he focused on parenting and educating his children. He organized weekly beach cleanup days, coached his daughter’s baseball team and spent more time snowboarding than he had in years.
“I focused on these things because the reality of the situation was too hard to deal with,” he says. “I couldn’t talk about it. I had to stop people who would try to ask me because I became very emotional.”
This summer, O’Brien is working as a soundman for Music on the Beach, Tuesdays Bluesdays, Monday night open mic at The Grid in Kings Beach and at the Crown Room at Crystal Bay Casino. He echoes the sentiments of so many people, both in and out of the music industry, when he sums up his greatest lesson of the pandemic: don’t take anything for granted.
“This life and my profession are such fleeting things,” he says. “It’s so precious. I am blessed to be one of the moving pieces that helps to facilitate this beauty. Even as much as I love what I do, when you strip it all down, what truly matters and why I live in this area are community and family. Everything else is secondary.”
If anything, the pandemic has given all of us a much-needed perspective on just how essential live music and entertainment are to the fabric of our community. This summer, as we all enjoy each other’s company and the amazing artists who perform here, perhaps we’ll all take a moment to remember just how lucky we are.
“When I look around from my mixing console and see people smiling and happy, it gives me that warm and fuzzy feeling,” says O’Brien. “The joy these musical performances bring to people are unparalleled. They cannot be replaced. Let’s make sure we always focus on that this summer.”
