- Many artists, including Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Joni Mitchell, The Eagles, the Mamas and the Papas, Jackson Browne, and others, composed and recorded songs with intimate lyrics on a range of topics, including Vietnam War and relationships.
- The new cabaret production “The Music of Laurel Canyon,” which opens on June 18 at Florida Studio Theatre’s Court Cabaret, centers on songs by those artists. It’s the second in the theater’s summer cabaret series, which consists of three shows.
Florida Studio Theatre Celebrates Fifty Years
- Recently, Florida Studio Theatre in downtown Sarasota commemorated 50 years of development and progress.
- It includes Buffalo Rome, a band that has been playing original music for over 20 years in addition to renditions of popular folk, pop, and rock songs.
- Michael Visconti, the singer-songwriter and group’s creator, claimed that he came up with the concept for Laurel Canyon after talking with a buddy at the Casa Manana theater in Fort Worth, Texas, about doing cabaret events. The performance will make a return to Casa Manana in May of 2022.
- Visconti performs onstage with Kevin Douglas, who accompanied the group in Fort Worth, and Mark Schaffel, a veteran of the band. Douglas is scheduled to join the Sarasota production around midway through its run. Broadway veteran Miles Aubrey will step in for a few weeks.)
Reorienting attention to the enduring band
- Nashville-based Buffalo Rome rose to fame with tight, three-part harmonies that, according to Visconti, complemented the Laurel Canyon sound beautifully.
- According to Visconti, “Crosby, Stills, and Nashville became our nickname.” “As a singer/songwriter, you always want to perform your own original material, so playing covers seemed like a step backward. However, the cabaret format allows us to share narratives, the meaning behind the songs, and the history of the music. It resembles a VH-1 “Behind the Music,” virtually. And it seems that people react to it.
- The ensemble plays music like “Turn, Turn, Turn.” “California Dreamin’,” “Take it Easy,” “Heart of Gold,” “Desperado,” “Take it to the Limit,” and “Love the One You’re With” are among the songs.
- These were songs that arose at a time when youth were socially concerned. According to Schaffel, “It was a time of counter-culture, youth rebellion, and protests against the Vietnam War.”
- The songs are still powerful and relevant even in these changing times.
- “There’s a time for peace, I swear it’s not too late,” is a phrase from the first song we perform, “Turn, Turn, Turn.” That still has resonance today, according to Aubry. “Even if it seems outdated to us, it’s still really relevant. Relationships are constants. War and peace are still issues that we face.
- Furthermore, it wouldn’t be too difficult to draw parallels between any of Taylor Swift’s breakup songs and Stephen Stills’s song “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes,” which is about his split from singer Judy Collins.
What then made Laurel Canyon the epicenter?
- According to Visconti, “it was in L.A. above Sunset Strip, where a lot of these bands were hanging out.” “People simply kind of gathered together in the relatively inexpensive cottages up there. It resembles the West Bank of Paris and is somewhat Renaissance-style.
- The artists said that there were hundreds of options for songs, making the selection process difficult.
- “We selected songs that the audience would at the very least recognize,” Schaffel added. “You risk losing people if you delve too far into the album tracks, particularly in a cabaret performance. However, these songs are not only a lot of fun to perform; they’re also kind of an audience courtesy. The viewers adore it.
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