Pasta Glut

The Ventura Theatre will be country music “action central” this week for two big concert events. But with two bands both known as Spaghetti Western slated to play, it seems almost like “Showdown at the OK Corral.”

Tonight, Nashville MCA recording artist Tracy Byrd will appear in concert. A very successful balladeer--”The Keeper of the Stars,” “I Wanna Feel That Way Again”--Byrd has also scored hit singles with upbeat tunes such as “I’m From the Country” and the song that spawned a popular line dance, “Watermelon Crawl.” What more can I say?

He’s good-looking. He wears a black hat. And he “sings pretty.”

The ads have listed Byrd’s opening act as “Spaghetti Western.” But David Blasucci, lead singer-guitarist for the Los Angeles-based group, gave me this update:

“We are changing our name to Pacific Coast Highway to avoid any confusion. There are just too many Spagehtti Westerns in these here parts,” he said.

Blasucci was referring to the Spaghetti Western country band from Santa Barbara, which predates his group. So what can you expect from this newly christened band?

According to Blasucci, the 3-year-old group performs only original songs that compare with the Eagles’ style of country-edged, pop-rock music. “We’ve got an edge, but our songs are definitely country. We’ve got a fiddle player and a pedal steel guitar,” he said.

The buzz around the group’s music is that it’s fun and danceable. The band just cut its first CD and opened for Chris LeDoux last week at the Midnight Rodeo, a mega-dance hall for California’s more discerning two-steppers. So hear for yourself tonight. The show starts at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are $35 per person.

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On Wednesday, K-HAY country radio will host the station’s annual Toys for Tots Christmas Show at the Ventura Theatre. The starting time and admission cost were not settled by press time. But K-HAY’s program director, Mark James, said the show would open about 6 p.m. with two popular bands, Caught Red Handed and the original Spaghetti Western from Santa Barbara. The Warren Brothers, BNA recording artists, will take the stage about 8:30 p.m. with the group’s new single, “Guilty.” The Warren Brothers will perform an electric show with full instrumentation.

Also on the bill will be Asylum Records singer-songwriter Mark Nesler, whose current single is “Slow Down.” Nesler also penned Tim McGraw’s recent hit, “Just to Make You Smile.”

New RCA crooner Andy Griggs will make an appearance, along with two performers yet to be confirmed. It is believed that admission to the Toys for Tots show will be $10 per person or a grocery bag full of new, unwrapped toys. But to confirm time and ticket prices, call the Ventura Theatre, 26 S. Chestnut St., 653-0721.