Stoneman Village Playout

Posted on by

June 28, 2013

By: Bud Pearce
Photos and video by: Bob Nelson

What a better time to have an ice cream social than on one of the hottest days of the year! With the temperature in the triple digits outside, the EBBC strummers got the residents of Stoneman Village Senior Center in a patriotic mood by performing a mixture of patriotic tunes and some good old traditional jazz. The residents seemed to enjoy the performance as much as the ice cream! The crowd rose to their feet on the last song, “God Bless America,” ending the performance with rich applause to our final bow.

Gearing up the audience for the approaching 4th of July holiday were EBBC members Guy Black, Tom Brunetti, Betty David, Don Granberg, Karen Hefter, Garry Kerr, Mickie McDonald, Phil and Linda Myers, Kit Nelson, Bud Pearce, and Ken Williamson. Bob Nelson assisted with set up and took care of the photography and video.

P1030221

Yankee Doodle from East Bay Banjo Club on Vimeo.

Quail Lodge Playout

Posted on by

June 16, 2013

By:  Karen Hefter
Photos and audio by:  David Hefter

We had a nice turnout of seniors at the Father’s Day Playout at Quail Lodge, in Antioch, CA.  Betty David was our leader for the playout and she started us out with our five “power songs,” which were:  “Take Me Out To The Ballgame,” “Bill Bailey,” “This Land is Your Land,” “Shantytown,” and “California, Here I Come.”  From there, we played a variety of crowd pleasing songs.  We had a small (but loyal) group of players for this playout, including Guy Black, Jim Blankenship, Betty David, Don Granberg, Karen Hefter, Ardie Jarrett, Garry Kerr, Bob Malucelli, Diane Malucelli, Mickie McDonald, Linda Myers, and Phil Myers.  Don sang his signature song, “Just Because,” and Mickie really came through for us and sang many, many songs.

Click on the song title to hear our performance of “Marching To Pretoria.”
Click on the song title to hear our performance of  “Carolina In The Morning,” featuring Mickie on vocals

P1030199

Merrill Gardens Vallejo Playout

Posted on by

June 15, 2013

By:  Ardie Jarrett
Photos by:  Bob Nelson

Merrill Gardens always seems to enjoy having us to come and play for them, and this early Father’s Day performance was no exception.  Betty David was our band leader and chose a nice variety of songs that the group enjoyed listening to, singing with, and dancing to.  Some of the songs that we played were, “Take Me Out to The Ball Game,” “This Land Is Your Land,” “California Here I Come,” “Bill Bailey,” and “Shanty Town.”  Our singers were:  Kit Nelson, Bud Pearce, Mickie McDonald, Don Granberg, and Chris Lardge.  Other members in our band were:  Guy Black, Tom Brunetti, Karen Hefter, Garry Kerr, Phil and Linda Myers, and Ardie Jarrett.  Bob Nelson was our support member and took pictures throughout the afternoon.  Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and have a good time and one couple danced to several songs!

P1030162 P1030139  P1030156

Montecito Senior Living Playout

Posted on by

May 27, 2013

By:  Karen Hefter
Photos by:  Bob Nelson

Fourteen members of the East Bay Banjo club performed for a festive Memorial Day luncheon at Montecito Senior Living in Concord, CA.  We played in a beautiful courtyard and the audience sat at tables that were decorated festively in red, white, and blue for the occasion.  The only problem was…rain!  This is NOT a normal occurrence on Memorial Day weekend in the Bay Area.

However, the performers and the audience were not turned off by a little drizzle and we went on with the show.  Betty led the group in an All-American program for the occasion. Many patriotic songs and songs that are part of Americana were performed for the appreciative audience by performers with slightly numb fingers.   East Bay Banjo Club performers for this playout were:  Guy Black, Tom Brunetti, Betty David, Don Granberg, Karen Hefter, Terry Horner, Bob Malucelli, Diane Malucelli, Mickie McDonald, Linda Myers, Phil Myers, Kit Nelson, Bud Pearce, and Sheila Welt.  Loyal club member, Treasurer, and photographer Bob Nelson was in the audience.  Extra thanks goes to the set up and take down crew whose job was made more challenging than usual by the rain.

Montecity Senior Living PlayoutMontecito Senior Living Playout

Walnut Creek Senior Center Playout

Posted on by

May 24, 2013

By:  Karen Hefter
Photos by:  Bob Nelson

It was a gorgeous day in Walnut Creek and it was perfectly suited for a fabulous playout at the Walnut Creek Senior Center monthly luncheon.  A big thanks goes to our set up crew, who arrived an hour and a half early to set up.   We all joined the seniors for a luncheon of soup, hot dogs, and sides before our performance.

Jack Convery was our leader for the performance and he started off the show with the “Marines Hymn,” since the performance kicked off Memorial Day weekend.  We played several other patriotic songs, which roused the 65+ member audience and got their toes tapping.  Jack honored veterans from the various armed services.  Then, Jack went up and down the rows of the band and introduced each player individually and asked them to select a song for us to play.  We ended up with a great variety of songs this way and the audience was very appreciative.  They sang along from time to time and there were reports of a woman in a wheelchair dancing on the side.

We had a nice turnout of players for this show, including:  Guy Black, Tom Brunetti, Jack Convery, Bill Dowling, Don Granberg, Karen Hefter, Terry Horner, Ardie Jarrett, Chris Lardge, Bob Malucelli, Diane Malucelli, Mickey McDonald, Herb Moore, Linda Myers, Phil Myers, Kit Nelson, Bud Pearce, and Sheila Welt.  Terry and Don were featured on their washboards in “Coney Island Washboard,” which was a real crowd pleaser, and Terry even sang!  One of the interesting things about this playout was that it featured so many of our talented singers.  Jack, Terry, Chris, Mickey, Herb, Kit, Bud, and Sheila all sang during the playout.  Loyal club members Jim Abele, Dorothy Cahill, and Bob Nelson were in the audience supporting the performers.

All in all, it was a great playout and it’s hard to tell who had more fun – the band or the audience!

Walnut Creek Senior Center Playout  Herb Singing at the Walnut Creek Senior Center PlayoutBill and Ardie at the Walnut Creek Senior Center Playout

Delta Hawaii Memorial Park Playout

Posted on by

May 11, 2013

By: Don Granberg
Photos by:  Linda Myers

We got started a little late, but we started out by playing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” and “Bill Bailey” to a crowd of 100 to 150 people. We played from 7:40 to 9:10 pm to the enthusiastic crowd. We had dancers from the crowd enjoying themselves doing waltzes, the can-can, and slow social dancing.  The crowd clapped to the songs and sang along to many of their favorites. We had 12 members playing out their hearts.  Garry Kerr, Ardie Jarrett, Sheila Welt, Don Granberg, Dina Melamed, Mickie McDonald, Phil Myers, Linda Myers, Bob Malucelli, Diane Malucelli, our leader Betty David, and our dazzling Bass player Guy Black all attended this play out.  Guy was also our main man for set up.  Dina as well as Don entertained with their washboards.

Delta Hawaii Memorial Park PlayoutDiane and Bob at the Delta Hawaii Park Playout

Bill Cooper – In Memoriam

Posted on by

Bill Cooper

August 26, 1950 to April 4, 2013

The Eastbay Banjo Club lost a large part of its heart and soul when we learned of the sudden passing of Bill Cooper, our dedicated Music Director since 1978. Bill’s passion for the banjo and traditional jazz music inspired many, many others to learn and then promote the joys and happiness the banjo brings to the world. He raised the spirits of countless numbers of people while leading the club on stage and during practice. He accepted and encouraged banjo players of all skill levels to practice and perform the music he and the audiences loved. Bill was not only a highly accomplished banjo player, but arranged all the music for the club. His rich collection of arrangements will be played to the delight of audiences for years to come.