Series at Humphrey’s : Country Gets Boost at Concerts by Bay

Less than a decade after the “Urban Cowboy” movie fanned a country-Western flame that burned as brightly--and as briefly--as a Roman candle, local promoter Kenny Weissberg, who books the annual “Concerts by the Bay” series at Humphrey’s, is predicting another flare-up.

So, as an event that was once regarded as the nation’s biggest ongoing series of pop-jazz concerts enters its seventh season, no fewer than 10 of the 31 shows already scheduled for the 1,000-seat outdoor facility on Shelter Island are by such country-Western heavyweights as Waylon Jennings, Ronnie Milsap and Emmylou Harris.

“Two years ago, we had only one country concert, and then last year, we went up to four--and all four sold out,” said Weissberg, the former music critic, deejay and rock ‘n’ roll singer from Boulder, Colo., who moved to San Diego in 1984 to assume booking duties at Humphrey’s.

“Based on the success of (local country radio station) KSON and the broad appeal of such new traditional-style country artists as Restless Heart, Randy Travis and Highway 101, I’m convinced that country-Western music is on the verge of a major resurgence.”

Among the country acts appearing at Humphrey’s this spring and summer are Ricky Skaggs, May 16; Asleep at the Wheel and Riders in the Sky, May 22; Chet Atkins and Leo Kottke, June 9; Eddie Rabbitt, June 10, and Crystal Gayle, June 15.

Others are Harris, July 22; Milsap, July 28; Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers, Aug. 3; Jennings, Sept. 18, and Restless Heart, Sept. 21.

As more dates are added to bring the “Concerts by the Bay” series total to a record high of nearly 50 shows, Weissberg said, several other country-Western artists are likely to be tapped, including such upstarts as Highway 101, Lyle Lovett, and the Desert Rose Band.

“Over the years, there has been a definite over-saturation of pop-jazz concerts in the San Diego market, and the only solution is to diversify,” Weissberg said. “Last year, I brought in a lot more oldies acts. And this year, my senses are telling me that an increasing number of San Diegans are going to want to see country artists--and in a different environment than a county fair or a rodeo.”

The recent “over-saturation of pop-jazz concerts” Weissberg talks about is an outgrowth of the astounding success enjoyed by the “Concerts by the Bay” series in previous years, the promoter admitted.

The series was launched in 1982 by Marc Berman Concerts to take advantage of the growing popularity of pop-jazz artists like George Benson and Chuck Mangione among mainstream pop and softrock audiences.

That year, nearly every show--held on a patch of lawn between Humphrey’s restaurant and the Half Moon Inn, overlooking the Shelter Island Yacht Basin--was a sellout, and Berman wisely decided to make the series an annual event.

By the time Weissberg took over from the financially troubled Berman in 1985, the “Concerts by the Bay” series had expanded to more than 40 pop-jazz shows by the likes of Mangione, Pat Metheny, and the Generation Band.

But a year later, the series fell victim to its own success. Competing pop-jazz concert series were started at the La Jolla Village Inn, San Diego State University’s Open Air Theater, and the Kona Kai Club, also on Shelter Island.

And at the end of 1986, it was clear that there had been too much too soon for San Diego pop-jazz fans to bear. The “Concerts by the Bay” series finished its fifth season with only 38 shows--10 fewer than the year before--and all three rivals had folded.

Last year, Weissberg decided to stray away from pop-jazz and experiment with pop, oldies, country-Western, folk and even comedy. The result: more shows, and better attendance--which is why this year he’s employing a similar strategy.

“Other series have come and gone, but ours is still around because it has been able to evolve with the public’s tastes,” Weissberg said. “I’ve always tried to stay one step ahead of everyone else in creative booking. I’m not a typical promoter--my background is as a critic, as a deejay and as a musician, so I know more about music than just what I read in the trades.”

Aside from the 10 country-Western shows, other confirmed dates in this year’s “Concerts by the Bay” series include these pop-jazz concerts: Hiroshima, May 12-13; Earl Klugh, June 1-2; Diane Schuur, June 12; Spyro Gyra, June 16-17; Kenny G, June 19-20; Chuck Mangione, June 22; the Nylons, July 17; the Best of Windham Hill, featuring the Andy Narell Group and Montreaux, July 21; Lee Ritenour, Aug. 19, and the Yellowjackets, Aug. 29.

Also performing will be soul group Kool and the Gang, May 19; legendary rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Chuck Berry, July 29; Motown soulsters the Four Tops, Aug. 11; pop singer Lou Rawls, Aug. 12; legendary bluesman B.B. King, Aug. 23, and folk singers Judy Collins and Donovan, Sept. 25.

On Aug. 5, Humphrey’s will be host to be-bop trumpet great Dizzy Gillespie and his all-star big band, featuring saxophonists James Moody, Sam Rivers and Paquito D’Rivera, trumpet-player Jon Faddis, pianist Monty Alexander, trombonist Slide Hampton, percussionist Airto Moreira and singer Flora Purim.

“I care about music for music’s sake instead of the bottom line,” Weissberg said. “And that makes me sort of an anomaly in a business in which promoters are considered nothing more than egg-sucking dogs.”