Where the Bands Are

With several country-style New Year’s Eve parties planned around the county and up the coast, there’s no excuse to stay home watching reruns of “The Dukes of Hazzard.”

Here’s a sampler of what to expect. Reservations are recommended.

Simi Valley: Always a delight, Larry Dean and the Shooters are a perfect choice for a night of high-energy two-steps, buckle-buffer ballads and any tempos in between. At Mixer’s Night Club. $35 per person buys a tri-tip dinner served at 7:30 p.m., in addition to party favors, champagne toast and breakfast; $25 per person gets you everything but dinner. Show time is 9 p.m. at 2381 Tapo St. Call 520-7787.

Thousand Oaks: It’s a night of dancing to deejay music under the neon saddle and glitter ball at the Borderline Bar and Grill, 99 Rolling Oaks Drive. Open admission for dancing, party favors and champagne toast is $10 per person after 10 p.m. The price of a prime rib and ham dinner served 6 to 9 p.m. ranges between $25 and $35 per person according to seating. For reservations, call 446-4435.

Ventura: Chances are the same people who get their mail at the Ban-Dar Nite Club will start counting down the new year at 8 p.m. with house band Johnny Mosby and the Desperados, at Ventura County’s original honky-tonk. $10 in advance or $15 per person at the door includes party favors. The club is at 3005 E. Main St. For more information, call 653-9176.

Ventura: Deejay/instructors Vince and Madeline Fiske will host a country-western dance at the American Legion Hall, which has one of the biggest and best dance floors in the area. A tri-tip dinner will be served between 6:30 and 8 p.m., followed by a deejay playing music and dancing. Admission of $50 per couple, $30 per person, includes dinner, party favors and a champagne toast. The hall is at 83 S. Palm St. For reservations, call 643-8833.

Goleta: If you’re more interested in dancing than dining, the Galleon Room is an intimate place for couples. Starting at 9 p.m. the seven-piece band, Last Call, will ring in the new year with a popular mix of top-40 country songs and traditional tunes--all served up with textured vocal harmonies and that pedal-steel guitar that cowfolks love so much. Budget-conscious revelers will like the cover charge, $10 per person, which includes party favors, a champagne toast and gas money for the band. The club is inside the Orchid Bowl at 5925 Calle Real. For information, call 967-0128.

Happy trails until we meet again in 1999!