Music & Concerts
Eclectic offerings
A little drag, a little stand-up, jazz, pop, classical and more
Among the season’s big concert draws are Jennifer Holliday, Big Freedia and Cher. (Photos courtesy the Howard and Verizon Center)
As always, Washington is as hot a concert town as ever.
Lesbian singer-songwriter Melissa Ferrick performs at the Birchmere (3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria, Va.) tonight at 7:30 p.m. Her latest album “The Truth Is” was released last year. Ferrick will be joined by singer Natalia Zukerman. Tickets are $25. For more information, visit birchmere.com.
RuPaul’s Drag Race winner Bianca Del Rio will begin hosting “Bianca’s Comedy Cabaret,” a monthly show, Wednesday at Town. Bianca will be joined by a variety of guests performing different acts. V.I.P tickets are $25 and include a pre-show meet and greet with Bianca. General admission tickets are $15. Doors open at 7 p.m. for the meet and greet. Show starts at 8:30 p.m. For more details, visit towndc.com. Aussie “Drag Race” runner up Courtney Act will be at Town Sept. 27.
The von Trapps perform at Jammin Java (227 Maple Ave E., Vienna, Va.) on Monday at 7:30 p.m. The great-grandchildren of George and Maria von Trapp, whose lives were portrayed in the musical “The Sound of Music,” have continued the family tradition of making music. Sofi, Melanie, Amanda and August von Trapp have recorded six albums and toured internationally. Tickets range from $15-20. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit jamminjava.com.
The Patricia Barber Quartet, helmed by the out pianist, plays Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club (7719 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda, Md.) on Sept. 19 at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are $25. Visit bethesdabluesjazz.com for details.
British musical duo Erasure performs two sold-out nights at 9:30 Club (815 V St., N.W.), Sept. 19-20.Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, who is openly gay, rose to prominence in the 1980s. Their songs “A Little Respect,” “Sometimes” and “Star” were all chart-topping hits. Their latest album “The Violet Flame” will be released in September.
Comedian Wanda Sykes, who is openly gay and a D.C. native, performs her stand-up show at Strathmore (5301 Tuckerman Ln., North Bethesda, Md.) Sept. 20 at 8 p.m. Sykes has been one of Entertainment Weekly’s 25 Funniest People in America and also was on the sitcom “The New Adventures of the Old Christine.” Tickets range from $35.10-$129. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit Strathmore.org.
Camp Rehoboth presents Well-Strung, a singing string quartet, at Rehoboth Beach Convention Center (229 Rehoboth Ave., Rehoboth Beach, Del.) on Sept. 26 from 9-11 p.m. For more details, visit camprehoboth.com.
Broadway legend Patti LuPone will perform “Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda … Played That Part,” at Concert Hall at George Mason Center for the Arts (4373 Mason Pond Dr., Fairfax, Va.) on Sept. 27 at 8 p.m. LuPone, who is known for her roles in Broadway shows “Evita” and “Gypsy,” will perform songs from “Hair,” “Bye Bye Birdie,” “Funny Girl” and more. Tickets range from $60-100. For more information, visit cfa.gmu.edu.
The eighth annual Phasefest Queer Arts and Music Festival, the largest queer music and arts festival on the East Coast, is at Phase 1 Lounge (525 8th St., S.E.) Sept. 26-27.There will be performances by “The Real L Word’s” Hunter Valentine, Sick of Sarah, The Pushovers, Glitterlust, Frankie and Betty and many more. Admission is $20 for Sept. 26 and $20 for Sept. 27. A festival pass is available for both days for $45. Admission is limited to guests 21 and over.
Broadway legend Jennifer Holliday performs at the Howard Theatre (620 T St., N.W.) Sept. 27 at 8 p.m. Holliday is best known for portraying Effie White in the hit musical “Dreamgirls” where she performed the classic ballad “And I Am Telling You, I’m Not Going.” She has collaborated with popular musical artists such as Barbra Streisand, Luther Vandross and Michael Jackson. Tickets range from $35-$70. Doors open at 6 p.m. Visit thehowardtheatre.com for more details.
Washington Concert Opera presents a staging of Vincenzo Bellini’s “I Capuleti E I Montecchi,” a retelling of “Romeo & Juliet” on Sept. 28 at 6 p.m. at Lisner Auditorium. The highly acclaimed outfit, a professional concert opera company offering concert versions of rarely heart, full-length operatic works, also has several other events throughout the fall. For details, call 202-364-5826 or visit concertopera.org.
Cher’s “Dressed to Kill” tour, named after a song on her latest album “Closer to the Truth,” returns for a fall performance at the Verizon Center (601 F St., N.W.) Sept. 29 at 7:30 p.m. As always, gays were out in droves when she was here in April. Tickets range from $34.20-$170.75. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit verizoncenter.monumentalnetwork.com.
Rapper Big Freedia comes to the Howard Theatre (620 T St., N.W.) Oct. 2 at 8 p.m. Big Freedia, who is gay, helped begin the “Bounce” rap movement, a sub-genre of hip-hop in New Orleans. She has been featured on two RuPaul songs, “Peanut Butter” and “Freaky Money.” She is also the star of her reality show “Big Freedia.” Tickets are $15 in advance and $17 day of show. For details, visit thehowardtheatre.com.
Grammy-winner Rufus Wainwright performs at Rams Head on Stage (33 West St., Annapolis, Md.) on Oct. 18 at 8 p.m. Wainwright, who is gay, has released 10 albums and collaborated with musical icons such as Elton John and Lou Reed. Admission is limited to guests 21 and over. Tickets are $79.50. For details, visit ramsheadonstage.com.
The Birchmere presents Gladys Knight at the Warner Theatre (513 13th St., N.W.) Oct. 25 at 8 p.m. The seven-time Grammy winner has produced hits in pop, R&B and adult contemporary and will be touring behind her new gospel album which dropped this week. Tickets range from $80.25-$116.50. For more details, visit warnertheatredc.com.
Fleetwood Mac brings its “On with the Show” tour to Verizon Center on Oct. 31 at 8 p.m. This is the first time the full classic-era ‘70s lineup including longtime pianist Christine McVie, has all been together since the late ‘90s. Tickets range from $60-205. For more information, visit verizoncenter.monumentalnetwork.com.
Grammy legend Aretha Franklin comes to Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric (140 W Mt. Royal Ave., Baltimore) Nov. 13 at 8 p.m. Franklin has achieved 20 number-one R&B singles and is one of the best selling female artists of all time. Her songs “Respect,” “Think,” and “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” have become well-known anthems. Tickets range from $82.10-$190.40. For more details, visit lyricoperahouse.com.
Gay Men’s Chorus of D.C. presents “Love Stinks” on Nov. 15 at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Ticket prices to be announced. For more details, visit gmcw.org.
Music Center at Strathmore (5301 Tuckerman Ln., North Bethesda, Md.) presents “Guitar Passions: Sharon Isbin, Stanley Jordan and Romero Lubambo” on Nov. 23 at 4 p.m. The guitarists will play different guitars including jazz and Brazilian. Tickets range from $26.10-70. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit Strathmore.org.
Rams Head on Stage (33 West St., Annapolis, Md.) presents Amy Ray, half of the duo Indigo Girls, on Dec. 4 at 8 p.m. Her latest solo album is “Goodnight Tender” released this year. Tickets are $22.50. Admission is limited to guests 21 and over. For more information, visit ramsheadonstage.com.
Saxophonist Dave Koz brings “Dave Koz and Friends Christmas Tour” to Music Center at Strathmore (5301 Tuckerman Ln., North Bethesda, Md.) on Dec. 9 at 8 p.m. R&B and gospel singer Jonathan Butler and singer-songwriter Christopher Cross will join the out jazz performer. Tickets range from $34.20-85. For more details, visit Strathmore.org.
Cult film director John Waters brings his Christmas show “A John Waters Christmas” to the Birchmere (3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria, Va.) on Dec. 22 at 7:30 p.m. The show is a selection of Christmas monologues by Waters. Tickets are $49.50. For more information, visit birchmere.com.
Music & Concerts
Underdog glorious: a personal remembrance of Jill Sobule
Talented singer, songwriter died in house fire on May 1
I’ve always prided myself on being the kind of music consumer who purchased music on impulse. When I stumbled across “Things Here Are Different,” Jill Sobule’s 1990 MCA Records debut album on vinyl in a favorite Chicago record store, I bought it without knowing anything about her. This was at a time when we didn’t have our phones in our pockets to search for information about the artist on the internet. The LP stayed in my collection until, as vinyl was falling out of fashion, I replaced it with a CD a few years later.
Early in my career as an entertainment journalist, I received a promo copy of Jill’s eponymous 1995 Atlantic Records album. That year, Atlantic Records was one of the labels at the forefront of signing and heavily promoting queer artists, including Melissa Ferrick and Extra Fancy, and its roster included the self-titled album by Jill. It was a smart move, as the single “I Kissed A Girl” became a hit on radio and its accompanying video (featuring Fabio!) was in heavy rotation on MTV (when they still played videos).
Unfortunately for Jill, she was a victim of record label missteps. When 1997’s wonderful “Happy Town” failed to repeat the success, Atlantic dumped her. That was Atlantic’s loss, because her next album, the superb “Pink Pearl” contained “Heroes” and “Mexican Wrestler,” two of her most beloved songs. Sadly, Beyond Music, the label that released that album ceased to exist after just a few years. To her credit, the savvy Jill had also started independently releasing music (2004’s “The Folk Years”). That was a smart move because her next major-label release, the brilliant “Underdog Victorious” on Artemis Records, met a similar fate when that label folded.
With her 2009 album “California Years,” Jill launched her own indie label, Pinko Records, on which she would release two more outstanding full-length discs, 2014’s “Dottie’s Charms” (on which she collaborated with some of her favorite writers, including David Hadju, Rick Moody, Mary Jo Salter, and Jonathan Lethem), and 2018’s stunning “Nostalgia Kills.” Jill’s cover of the late Warren Zevon’s “Don’t Let Us Get Sick” on “Nostalgia Kills” was particularly poignant as she had toured with him as an opening act.
Jill was a road warrior, constantly on tour, and her live shows were something to behold. My first interview with Jill took place at the Double Door in Chicago in early August of 1995, when she was the opening act for legendary punk band X. She had thrown her back out the previous day and was diagnosed with a herniated disc. To be comfortable, she was lying down on a fabulous-‘50s sofa. “I feel like I’m at my shrink’s,” she said to me, “Do you want me to talk about my mother?”
That sense of humor, which permeated and enriched her music, was one of many reasons to love Jill. I was privileged to interview her for seven of her albums. Everything you would want to know about her was right there in her honest lyrics, in which she balanced her distinctive brand of humor with serious subject matter. Drawing on her life experiences in songs such as “Bitter,” “Underachiever,” “One of These Days,” “Freshman,” “Jetpack,” “Nothing To Prove,” “Forbidden Thoughts of Youth,” “Island of Lost Things,” “Where Do I Begin,” “Almost Great,” and “Big Shoes,” made her songs as personal as they were universal, elicited genuine affection and concern from her devoted fans.
While she was a consummate songwriter, Jill also felt equally comfortable covering songs made famous by others, including “Just A Little Lovin’” (on the 2000 Dusty Springfield tribute album “Forever Dusty”) and “Stoned Soul Picnic” (from the 1997 Laura Nyro tribute album “Time and Love”). Jill also didn’t shy away from political subject matter in her music with “Resistance Song,” “Soldiers of Christ,” “Attic,” “Heroes,” “Under the Disco Ball,” and the incredible “America Back” as prime examples.
Here’s something else worth mentioning about Jill. She was known for collaboration skills. As a songwriter, she maintained a multi-year creative partnership with Robin Eaton (“I Kissed A Girl” and many others), as well as Richard Barone, the gay frontman of the renowned band The Bongos. Jill’s history with Barone includes performing together at a queer Octoberfest event in Chicago in 1996. Writer and comedian Julie Sweeney, of “SNL” and “Work in Progress” fame was another Chicago collaborator with Sobule (Sweeney lives in a Chicago suburb), where they frequently performed their delightful “The Jill and Julia Show.” John Doe, of the aforementioned band X, also collaborated with Jill in the studio (“Tomorrow Is Breaking” from “Nostalgia Kills”), as well as in live performances.
On a very personal note, in 2019, when I was in the process of arranging a reading at the fabulous NYC gay bookstore Bureau of General Services – Queer Division, I reached out to Jill and asked her if she would like to be on the bill with me. We alternated performing; I would read a couple of poems, and Jill would sing a couple of songs. She even set one of my poems to music, on the spot.
Jill had an abundance of talent, and when she turned her attention to musical theater, it paid off in a big way. Her stage musical “F*ck 7th Grade,” a theatrical piece that seemed like the next logical step in her career, had its premiere at Pittsburgh’s City Theatre in the fall of 2020, during the height of the pandemic. The unique staging (an outdoor drive-in stage at which audience members watched from their cars) was truly inspired. “F*ck 7th Grade” went on to become a New York Times Critic’s pick, as well as earning a Drama Desk nomination.
In honor of the 30th anniversary of Jill’s eponymous 1995 album, reissue label Rhino Records is re-releasing it on red vinyl. Jill and I had been emailing each other to arrange a time for an interview. We even had a date on the books for the third week of May.
When she died in a house fire in Minnesota on May 1 at age 66, Jill received mentions on network and cable news shows. She was showered with attention from major news outlets, including obits in the New York Times and Rolling Stone (but not Pitchfork, who couldn’t be bothered to review her music when she was alive). Is it wrong to think that if she’d gotten this much attention when she was alive she could have been as big as Taylor Swift? I don’t think so.
Music & Concerts
Tom Goss returns with ‘Bear Friends Furever Tour’
Out singer/songwriter to perform at Red Bear Brewing Co.
Singer Tom Goss will bring his “Bear Friends Furever Tour” to D.C. on Sunday, June 8 at 8 p.m. at Red Bear Brewing Co.
Among the songs he will perform will be “Bear Soup,” the fourth installment in his beloved bear song anthology series. Following fan favorites like “Bears,” “Round in All the Right Places,” and “Nerdy Bear,” this high-energy, bass-thumping banger celebrates body positivity, joyful indulgence, and the vibrant spirit of the bear subculture.
For more details, visit Tom Goss’s website.
Aussie pop icon Kylie Minogue brings her acclaimed “Tension” world tour to D.C. next Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at the Capital One Arena. Tickets are still available at Ticketmaster.
The show features songs spanning her long career, from 1987 debut single, “The Loco-Motion,” to “Padam, Padam” from her album, “Tension.”
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