Billy Vera Live at The Write-Off Room
August 5, 2023

Article by Don Parent

It's Time for another of:
Don & Ginger's Adventures In Live Music
Part #1 Travel and Concert
See Part #2: For Artist Bios

The Adventure Begins:
The packing and travel start any of our Adventures in Live Music.
Travel is a part of any adventure.
We live in the High Desert past Mojave, California, so any getaway is an Adventure.
Please remember these are In Depth Music Articles, so they can be a little long. There is a lot of Music History in here!
That is why I break them up into:
Part One is Travel and the Concert.
Part Two, the Artist Bios and added History of Music
Don't be surprised if any of my articles end up having a Part Three!!!
I do love to write.
These articles are meant to be picked apart and enjoyed over time.
Enjoy the History and Fun Facts with links to much more info.
Expect to see Historic Playbills like the one at right from the 1980s.

Billy Vera is a Multitalented  Singer, Musician, Writer, and Actor.

What is especially fun for me is that Billy is also a Respected Music Historian.

Travel Time:
We packed up Charlie "The Dog" and our overnight bags.
It is time to vacate the High Desert and our 112 Temp.
We are heading for the San Fernando Valley, where the temp is only probably 112.
That is why we have air conditioning in our car, Hotel, and The new location for the Write-Off Room.
If you haven't been there yet, it is an excellent new location at the other end of Ventura Blvd from its original spot:
Here's the new address:
11502 Ventura Boulevard in Studio City,
Ginger and I visited Darrell Leonard's Line-Up several months ago.
That Music Article is in the new website's growing archive of past Adventures.
Darrell is playing trumpet in Billy's show tonight.
History Note: Billy reminded me the other day that in the 1980s, Darrell was a member of Billy and the Beaters.
In the 1980s, they both played Trancas a lot.
Note: See the Playbill on the right above from the 1980s. Both Billy and Darrell are on it with their respective bands.
More on that in my upcoming book: "The Early Music Scene in Trancas Beach, California."
It is easy to see why these Super Talented performers are so great.
Over 50 years of "Use It or Lose It"!!! "Practice Makes Perfect"!
You get the idea.

Music Tip: To perform in any of the top bands I write music articles about, you need to understand the 10,000-Hour Rule:
The 10,000-hour Rule based on becoming the best of the best requires tremendous practice (and some innate talent) to reach the top 1% in a given field.

OK, where was I?
We would drop Charlie "The Dog" at the Canine Country Club in Lancaster.
He got the Lush Digs, and we headed to our Rent-a-Wreck Room in the San Fernando Valley.
We have been staying at this place for over 60 years, so it can't be too bad.

History Note: In the 1970s and '80s, this Hotel had a dance club, and Ginger & I Rocked the place all night to the Band "Stark Naked and the Car Thieves." Great Band. We would sweat off 10 lbs or more a night dancing.
Extra Note: I believe Stuart Copeland, Drummer for "The Police," had something to do with the band's early days.

On to the TWOR:
It was only a 20-minute drive from the Hotel onto the Hollywood Fwy and off on Vineland to Ventura Blvd.
The last time we were at WOR for Darrell Leonard Line-Up, they had a great Taco and Mexican Food Pop-Up outside.
You will want to get there before the show to enjoy this great Taco experience.
That evening, we had run into Trombone Player Extraordinaire Tom "Bones" Malone sitting outside eating a  taco. Ginger and I bought some food and carried it inside to our table.
Tom had the right idea.
The small tables are for Cocktails. I made kind of a mess digging into our Tacos and hot sauce.
We will sit outside eating with the musicians this time before the show.
We got VIP Seating in the first row, front and center the last time. That was fun, and when I say Front and Center, you could count the nose hairs on the Musicians.
OK, that's gross, but it is in your face.
The tables are small, making it hard to take the many notes I need to write these articles.
This time, we took a High Top Table a bit further back.
It is a much larger table, and I could spread out my notebook and stuff.
An added benefit was the attention from curious onlookers to what I was up to, flipping back and forth through my pages and jotting down notes.
Ginger answered their questions, handed out Biz cards, and took their emails to receive this Article I will send out.
We made new friends like Louann Daugherty (?sp). Sorry Louann. I probably misspelled your name. We enjoyed meeting you and your friend at the next table.
Note: Today, 08/05/23, is exciting as while I am typing this report, I expect our new website to go live at any minute. The Official opening of "Don & Gingers Adventures in Live Music" will be Bonified.
If you hear a big bang, that was me smashing a Champaign bottle on my keyboard. NOT☹

It's Showtime 7:30:
The band had filtered into their respective spots on the raised stage area.
Front & center Saxophone player Terry Landry, in his role as Conductor, launched the band into
Their first number is "Killer Joe".
Here is a version by Benny Golson to give you a taste. Couldn't find one by Billy on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5aC0G3JBKA

After a couple more songs by the band, Billy came on stage to Big Applause……

Billy went right into "If I Could Be With You"
and then Frank Sinatra’s: "Nice  N Easy"
Music written by Lew Spence
Lyrics written by Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman
Franks Version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuANCcsODq0

So, what is the Spice I am talking about that makes getting off the couch and heading to a Live Show so much Fun? Here's some:
During the break between songs, Billy had Fun, giving us exciting stories of his life in the Music Biz and Acting Worlds.
He introduced us to his old friends in the audience, like Actor/ Singer Joe Pesci, who I love.
(Billy and Joe at Left)
Many think of Joe in Gangster Roles, but he is also a fantastic Comic Actor.
If you haven't seen him in "My Cousin Vinny," you are missing out.
Look it up in Streaming T.V. His New Jersey accent is Comic Genius.
Here is a short clip:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hu8tX2BAD1k
His table was two over from ours, and it was fun interacting.
I didn't know until Billy told us that Joe is a good singer.
Joe Pesci as a singer? Who knew? A Man of many talents:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUS5C-0DcdU

Another friend of Billy's in the audience was Singer/Actor Frank Stallone.                                                        (Below Rt with his brother Sly).
He is a fairly Big Guy and a very nice guy at that. He and I bonded over my Vietnam Purple Heart Baseball cap.
He knew a lot about the 1968 Tet Offensive in Vietnam. I got wounded five or six times in that ugly war during Tet.
I told Frank that all the wounds, except two, were in my rump. I did keep my head down!
And for this indignity, I got to write the song "Shot in the Butt Blues".
People bond over Music in many ways!!!
Frank is a damn good Guitar Player and Singer.
He was at Billy's show with his Music Director, Jonathan Huges.
They mentioned they would be doing a show later at WOR, and I told them Ginger & I would cover it and write an article.
Music Connections:
As I mentioned, Music at the Top is very interconnected. Millions of people play an instrument, but few are willing to do the 10,000-Hour Rule.
It is a Small World at the top of the music chain.
I was talking to our old friend Kenny Lee Lewis, who has been in the Steve Miller Band for around 40 years.
I mentioned Billy Vera and Kenny Lee told me the story of when he subbed with Billy's band on the Rick Dees television show during the 1990s.
Billy and the Beaters were the House Band for the show.

Authors Note: Billy Vera's Big Band performed this night's Live Show at TWOR.
Billy also still performs with "Billy and the Beaters", his Legendary band. See the Album Cover at left.

More music history.
As mentioned above, Billy and the Beaters played Trancas many times in the 1980s.
Kenny Lee's early band "Lunch Money" played there as well.
Trancas launched many of today's top Music Stars.
More Connections:
I mentioned Frank & Sly Stallone to Kenny, who told me the story of playing bass for Bill Conti for the Music to Rocky III.
Earlier, Bill Conti had hit Paydirt when he got signed to compose the Music for a then small movie by the name Rocky!!! Wow!
I know that doesn't sound like dramatic connections; however, the more I write and research for these Music Articles, the more these connections Pop Out at me.
When I dig into the history of Kenny Lee's wife, Diane Steinberg Lewis, the more dramatic the connections become.
I intend to do a whole article on the background of Kenny & Diane for this website.
More Connections in Today's Live Music Scene:
As I mentioned above, the more Music Articles I write, the more I am amazed at the Artist Connections that Pop Up across Music Genres.
For example, Billy's Sax Player and conductor Terry Landry, whom I mentioned above, Ginger & I will see again next Wednesday on the sax in Darrell Leonard's Line-Up at the TWOR.
Watch for that upcoming Article.

Next songs:
"I Want To Be Loved (But Only By You)" is a 1947 ballad written and recorded by Savannah Churchill and The Sentimentalists. The single was Savannah Churchill's most successful release on the R&B charts, spending six months on the chart and reaching number one on the R&B Juke Box chart.

"I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So" is a 1945 song composed by Duke Ellington, with lyrics written by Mack David.

"At This Moment"
Here is one of the Highlights of the Musical Evening.
Ginger & I were so happy to hear this Live.
From Wikipedia:
"At This Moment" is a song written by Billy Vera and recorded live by Vera and his band under the name Billy & the Beaters in 1981  during a string of performances at the Roxy in West Hollywood (January 15–17) and featured on their self-titled live album Billy and the Beaters, released that year as the album's second single, on the American subsidiary of Japan's Alfa Records.
Moments Like This pushed us to build "Don & Ginger's Adventures In Live Music."
Hear it for yourself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2ur063fMhs

Next Songs:
"I Want a Little Girl":
That is an album by saxophonist/vocalist Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson. It was recorded and released by the Pablo label in 1978.

 

"When It's Sleepy Time Down South":
By Billy Vera:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1nCSv5H6hk
"When It's Sleepy Time Down South", also known as "Sleepy Time Down South", is a 1931 jazz song written by Clarence Muse, Leon René, and Otis René. It was sung in the 1931 movie Safe in Hell by Nina Mae McKinney and became the signature song of Louis Armstrong, who recorded it almost a hundred times during his career.
Note: This song is one of Joe Pesci's favorites, sung by Billy.

"Misty" is a jazz standard written in 1954 by pianist Erroll Garner. He composed it as an instrumental in the traditional 32-bar format and recorded it for the album Contrasts. Lyrics were added later by Johnny Burke. It appeared on Johnny Mathis' 1959 album Heavenly, and this recording reached number 12 on the U.S. Pop Singles chart later that year. It has since become the signature song of Mathis.

"Round Midnight": Billy stepped off the stage to give the Spotlight to Tenor Sax Player Lon Price (at right), who has been with Billy for over forty years, including being an original member of "Billy & The Beaters."
"Round Midnight" (sometimes titled "'Round About Midnight") is a 1943 composition by American jazz pianist Thelonious Monk that quickly became a jazz standard and has been recorded by a wide variety of artists. Monk's quintet recorded a version that was added to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1993. It is one of the most documented jazz standards composed by a jazz musician.
Fun Facts: Billy Vera, The Actor
I recently discovered Billy Vera was "Pinky" in one of my favorite "Cult Classics". The Scify Comedy  Buckaroo Banzai was released in 1984 with many top Hollywood Actors, including Billy, Peter Weller, John Lithgow, Jeff Goldblum, Christerfer Lloyd, and many others………
Billy was also in the Accused,
The Doors (Movie).
Ted 2
and more…….
(Above Right: Billy's Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame)

 

Why  These Adventures in Live Music Can Be So Much Fun:
Billy's Sidekick, the Fight Promoter John Means, stood near the Club's front door.
The WORs Upstairs is a Comedy Club.
During one of Billy's livelier numbers, people were filtering in and heading up the stairs near where John was standing.
One of the gals snuggled up to John's backside, dancing a Hoochi Coochi move. The look on John's face was priceless.
A few minutes later, she descended the stairs and did it again.
This time, the look on his face caused Ginger and I to almost fall off our chairs laughing.

Back to the Music:
"At Last"
Written by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren for the musical film Sun Valley Serenade (1941). Glenn Miller and his orchestra recorded the tune several times, with a 1942 version reaching number two on the U.S. Billboard pop music chart.
This song has a special meaning for Billy.
He first heard Etta James' version of At Last while riding with his mom in her car.
This song became Etta's Signature Song throughout her career.

"I'll Never Be Free" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin and George Weiss and performed by Kay Starr and Tennessee Ernie Ford. It reached #2 on the U.S. country chart and #3 on the U.S. pop chart in 1950.
"I'll Never Be Free" was first an R&B Chart Hit by Paul Gayten & Annie Laurie, then covered by Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Jordan.

"You're The One"
Billy mentioned the version of this song by Lou Rawls,  so here is that version:

Music Trivia: Billy introduced another name sitting in the audience.
Lee Newman is the grandson of the Late Great Songwriter Jimmy McHugh.
Who wrote standards like "On The Sunny Side Of The Street" and "I'm In The Mood For Love."
Billy sang Jimmy's "You're A Sweetheart" at this show.
Lee runs the publishing arm of Jimmy's songs.
There is just too much to post about Jimmy McHugh's excellent songwriting, so here is a link:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_McHugh
Jimmy was inducted into the Song Writers Hall Of Fame in 1970.
That's some Music Royalty!!!

Next Up:
"In the Wee Small Hours:
This song was in the ninth studio album by American vocalist Frank Sinatra. It was released in April 1955 by Capitol and produced by Voyle Gilmore with arrangements by Nelson Riddle—all the songs on the album deal with themes such as loneliness, introspection, and melancholy. The cover artwork reflects these themes, portraying Sinatra alone on an eerie, deserted city street at night awash in blue-tinged street lights.

"Room With a View"
There is a great story behind this song.
Billy was visiting his friend, the great Bluesman Lowell Fulson, at his home in Baldwin Hills, Calif.
They were listening to Lowell's new song, "Roomful Of Blues."
When Billy returned to his apartment, he sat down with his dinner while looking out across the courtyard. His beautiful actress neighbor stepped out of her shower with open windows.
She walked down her hallway to her bedroom au natural.
He said out loud, "I've got a room with a view of the blues"!!!
He called Lowell with this story, and Lowell loved it for the new song's title.
Should a Gentleman have looked away?
Come on, Billy's a Rock Star. Instead, he helped name a Standard.
Music Trivia: This song has since been recorded by Lou Rawls, Eric Burdon, and many more.
Billy Vera and Michael Cusuna produced the Lou Rawls version of this and also "You're The One"
It was also recorded by New Orleans group The Spiders and later the O'Jays.
Let's wrap up this Music article with a video for the song. Plus it has great animation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1sTWs7BY8Y

I love ending this Article with a  Video of the History of Billy Vera:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tS0HA65qvDs

Stay Tuned for Part 2:
Artist Bios of the Band
Note: I love this "Stay Tuned." Well, it is a music article, after all!