Humphrey's to Offer New Mix for Its 10th Concert Season

By JOHN D’AGOSTINO

March 20, 1991 12 AM PT

SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

SAN DIEGO —

It is no overstatement to say that the Concerts by the Bay series at Humphrey’s has become almost as solid a warm-weather institution in this town as tailgating or beaching.

Success, however, has not bred complacency. Last year, Humphrey’s proprietors spent $1 million renovating the outdoor venue. More importantly, Humphrey’s enters its 10th anniversary season with its most diverse schedule yet--a sign that the series is broadening in scope as it grows longer in tooth.

The amphitheater’s location--behind Humphrey’s restaurant and beside a marina at the Bartell Hotels-owned Half Moon Inn complex on Shelter Island--makes it an ideal setting for the light-jazz programming that is its mainstay. But in recent years, Humphrey’s promoter Kenny Weissberg has expanded its audience base by booking acts whose appeal is not so rigidly governed by radio airplay or record sales. The 1991 campaign crowns that expansion with an unprecedented emphasis on comedy and musical nostalgia.

Besides a more predictable lineup of pop-jazz rainmakers--among them David Sanborn, Spyro Gyra, Hiroshima, Lee Ritenour, and Larry Carlton--Weissberg has signed a number of acts certain to jog pleasant memories for fans over 30.

Returning to the scene of past triumphs will be Lou Rawls, Johnny Mathis, the Righteous Brothers, Harry Belafonte, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, and Joan Baez-- the latter’s two shows on May 12 will kick off the new season. First-time bookings for the venue include the Original Fifth Dimension, the Smothers Brothers, Dionne Warwick, Paul Anka, and Tom Jones.

But perhaps the comedy roster is Humphrey’s biggest coup for 1991. Among the eight confirmed bookings (if you include the Smothers Brothers) are Jay Leno, George Carlin, Roseanne Barr, Dana Carvey, Joan Rivers, and a double-bill of Louie Anderson and Rita Rudner. The previous high of five comedians appeared at the dockside showcase in 1989.

The 6-month-long series will also feature guitar masters Leo Kottke and Chet Atkins, pop-funksters Michael McDonald and the Pointer Sisters, jazz-and-standards vocalists Tony Bennett and Mel Torme, South African mbube -style vocal ensemble Ladysmith Black Mambazo, a cappella vocal groups Bobby McFerrin’s Voicestra and the Nylons, and many others. (For an up-to-date schedule of acts booked thus far, see accompanying article.)

Whereas diversification for some enterprises is undertaken out of either desperation or bold ambition, in the case of Humphrey’s it is a measure of the popular base the series has built for itself. That security was not won without some experimentation, and Weissberg is the first to admit that not all programming moves have born fruit.

“I’m a little disappointed that we haven’t been able to break country music in any significant way at Humphrey’s,” said the series’ 42-year-old brain trust, who moved to San Diego in 1984 after working as a music critic, radio deejay, talk-show host and rock bandleader in Boulder, Colo.

“We’ve brought in Johnny Cash, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Highway 101, Asleep at the Wheel, the Gatlin Brothers and Ronnie Milsap, but we just haven’t been able to establish ourselves with that audience,” he said. “Unless you count Chet Atkins, the only country artist we’re presenting this year is Emmylou Harris, and I’d sign her no matter what because I have a mad crush on her and I love her voice.”

The failure of Humphrey’s to become a viable country venue is especially puzzling to Weissberg because of the initial success he enjoyed with the genre.

“We had a promising start in 1987 with four well-attended shows: Emmylou, Waylon Jennings, Crystal Gayle and Ricky Skaggs. But since then, it has tapered off dramatically,” he said. “Even Skaggs hasn’t drawn well since his first show here. I have no real explanation for that.”

Happily, the venue’s successes render its few failures insignificant, but Weissberg takes neither in stride. Humphrey’s viability was never guaranteed, and in fact at its inception the series was little more than an afterthought.

L.A.-based Southland Concerts promoted the first Humphrey’s series of six shows in 1982 as an adjunct to its higher-profit rock presentations, and followed with 15 shows in 1983. The most successful of those featured acts were associated with pop-jazz, a light-as-air variant of jazz that didn’t require of the listener much more than the ability to nod along to its mellow rhythms and winsome melodies.

The fledgling series didn’t really take off until Weissberg was handed the reins in 1984. Weissberg booked 38 artists into Humphrey’s in his first year, including pop-jazz staples Ritenour, Chuck Mangione, Ronnie Laws, Earl Klugh and John Klemmer (whose “world tour” the next year consisted of one show at Humphrey’s).

By then, radio stations such as San Diego’s KIFM had created broad support for the subgenre among yuppies. The Humphrey’s series caught on with the Brie-and-white-wine crowd and never looked back. Since 1984, Humphrey’s has averaged between 38 and 45 shows per season. In 1987, Weissberg left Southland to book the Humphrey’s series as an employee of Bartell Hotels.

Because his own tastes in music run more to rock ‘n’ roll, R&B;, reggae and world music, Weissberg has attempted to sprinkle more esoteric acts into the pop-jazz schedule, with varied results. Reggae concerts featuring Jimmy Cliff (‘86) and Third World (‘87) did well. So did 1987 shows presenting Latin star Ruben Blades, blues/rocker Bonnie Raitt, and Motown’s the Four Tops; a 1989 concert featuring soul singer Al Green; and a 1990 concert by Brazilian musician Milton Nascimento.

On the other hand, a seemingly can’t-miss 1986 double-header featuring the Roches and ex-Byrd Roger McGuinn died intestate. Others among Weissberg’s personal favorites, including folk singer John Prine and country singer Nanci Griffith (a 1988 double-bill) and “oldies” star Gene Pitney (‘89) fared poorly at the ticket window. From such toe-stubbings, Weissberg learned to introduce new elements into the Humphrey’s mix without straying too far afield. But booking a long concert series remains an imprecise science.

“It’s 80% instinct--such as knowing when an artist’s appeal has cooled--and 20% research,” Weissberg acknowledged. “The research involves figuring out such tangibles as how recently an artist last appeared in San Diego.” Weissberg must be capable on both fronts, because Humphrey’s overall picture has greatly improved in 10 years.

“In 1984, I had to explain to talent agents what Humphrey’s was,” the promoter recalled. “Today, I get calls from artists all over the world. I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say that, as a venue, Humphrey’s is now considered in the same light as the Paul Masson Winery in Saratoga, Fla.; the Greek Theatre in L.A., and the Wolf Trap (Farm Park for the Performing Arts) in Vienna, Va. This is first year in which artists were so anxious to play here that most of them booked well in advance.”

Regardless, Weissberg expressed cautious optimism about the 1991 schedule.

“At the end of each season, I feel that that was the best Humphrey’s is going to get. But on paper, ’91 looks like the most exciting lineup we’ve ever had. Still, because there’s so much competition in San Diego for the entertainment dollar, I’ll remain apprehensive until the final receipts are counted.”

Here’s the Full Lineup for Humphrey’s Series

Tickets for the entire series, which, for the fifth consecutive year, will be sponsored by Security Pacific Bank, go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday at all Ticketmaster outlets and at Humphrey’s restaurant. The following schedule was released Monday. Most dates feature two performances; an asterisk denotes single shows on those dates. May 12: Joan Baez

May 13-14: David Sanborn

May 15: Frankie Valli & Four Seasons

May 17: Louie Anderson/Rita Rudner

May 19*: Keiko Matsui/Richard Elliot

May 23*: Leo Kottke/Tuck and Patti

May 29*: Bobby McFerrin’s Voicestra

May 30: Jay Leno

May 31*: Michael Hedges

June 4-5: George Benson

June 7*: Ottmar Liebert

June 13: Michael McDonald

June 14: Spyro Gyra