POP MUSIC : A Few Surprises at ‘Jolsons’

The “Jolson” award may not be as coveted as a Grammy, and Encinitas Boulevard will remind no one of the Great White Way. But for San Diego pop musicians hungry for recognition of any sort, the North County Entertainer Music Awards, held Monday night at the La Paloma Theater here, were the next best thing.

At the seventh annual Jolsons, 13 local contemporary, rock, jazz and country acts were singled out as best in their respective categories by more than 7,000 patrons of the North County nightclubs where they performed during the past year.

As usual, many of the winners were expected. One of the two top awards, Entertainers of the Year, went to the Beat Farmers, who have become national heroes for their gritty “American roots” rock. The band’s infrequent local appearances are guaranteed sell-outs.

Tobacco Road, voted Best Vintage Jazz Group, also regularly attracts standing-room-only crowds each Wednesday evening to the Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach, North County’s largest and most popular nightclub.

Still, there were a few surprises. Best Original Rock ‘n’ Roll Group honors went to the Jacks, the blue-eyed soulsters whose relative anonymity in local clubs will hopefully end May 1 with the national release of “Jacks are Wild,” their debut album from Rounder Records, the East Coast label that made stars of George Thorogood and the Destroyers.

And the talented Mark Lessman Band upset such bigger nightclub draws as Fattburger and Hollis Gentry’s Neon in the Best Jazz Group category.

Overall, this year’s polling shows that North County night life is becoming increasingly adventurous. The 1988 award for Entertainer of the Year went to eccentric talkin’ bluesman and recently anointed MTV spokesman Mojo Nixon--instead of to some lounge-lizard mainstay as in previous years.

Similarly, the Musicians’ Choice award was given to progressive jazz guitarist Peter Sprague. Named Best Country/western Group were the Savery Brothers, who have blended Cajun and rockabilly sounds with traditional country/western twang.

Each of the 13 winners was presented with a bronze statuette of Al Jolson, the vaudeville star whose blackface jazz was a half-century and perhaps an extra light-year from the music being honored in his name Monday. The winners were also given a taste of the flash, glamour and pizazz that accompanies the nationally televised Grammies.

For once, there were more tuxedos and evening gowns than shorts and halter tops inside the aging La Paloma movie theater, which is just a few blocks from one of North County’s most popular surfing beaches.

The stage was repeatedly assaulted by a barrage of flashing cameras, and the beverage of choice at the lobby snack bar was white wine instead of Diet Coke.

The North County Entertainer Music Awards were established in 1982 by Brian A. Cook, publisher of the monthly North County Entertainer newspaper.

“I wanted to accomplish two things,” Cook said. “I wanted to give some recognition to the hard-working but underpaid musicians around town, and at the same time raise money for various local charities.”

Since then, the annual ceremony has succeeded on both counts. Over the past six years, nearly 100 nightclub performers have had their moment in the spotlight--performers whose only other reward for plying the North County bar circuit night after night has been a meager paycheck and perhaps a handful of loyal followers.

In the process, more than $25,000 has been collected from ticket sales and subsequently distributed to such beneficiaries as Casa de Ampara in Oceanside, a shelter for abused children, and the Marylou Clack Center for Handicapped Children in Vista, which this year was named permanent recipient.

Essentially, the competition is a popularity contest. But as popularity contests go, it’s a good one.

A panel of North County newspaper pop critics nominated five artists in each of the 13 categories. Ballots were then distributed to more than 70 nightclubs in the area and collected during the first two weeks in April.

This year, Cook said, more than 7,000 ballots were deemed valid and subsequently tallied. Several thousand others were disqualified for various reasons, he said.

Other winners of 1988 Jolsons: Polk Salad Annie, Best Contemporary Single; Bof’us, Best Contemporary Duo; Hut-Sut Ralston, Best Contemporary Group; the Paladins, Best Rhythm and Blues Group; the Belair Boys, Best Vintage Rock Group; and the Who Cares?, Best Rock ‘n’ Roll Group.