Here's something you might be interested in.
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed
Big Screen — Movie commentary
Blurt — Music's inside track
Booze News — San Diego spirits
Classical Music — Immortal beauty
Classifieds — Free and easy
Cover Stories — Front-page features
Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes
Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts
Feast! — Food & drink reviews
Feature Stories — Local news & stories
Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives — Spotlight on the past
Golden Dreams — Talk of the town
The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it
Letters — Our inbox
Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites
Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans
Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists
Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news
News Ticker — News & politics
Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated
Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna
Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated
Poetry — The old and the new
Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers
Reading — The hunt for intellectuals
Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails
San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds
SD on the QT — Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats — Places of worship
Special Issues — The best of
Street Style — San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater — On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week — Daily event picks
Monday night jam packed at Rosie O’ Grady’s
“It’s always slammed and everyone says it’s a fun hang”
Louis Valenzuela found a venue for his weekly Jam Session.
Guitarist Louis Valenzuela was looking for a specific type of vibe when he was considering setting up a new jam session for local players. “I remember there was another Monday night session back in the day,” recalls Valenzuela. “I really enjoyed that one, but unfortunately it kind of died out. I kept hoping that someone else would pick it up — finally, I realized that I was going to have to do it myself.”
Initially he set up shop in Hillcrest.
“We started out at this restaurant called Busalacchi’s, and we did that for about a year, but they went out of business. It was always kind of sketchy anyway and I didn’t think the vibe was really right.”
So Valenzuela set out in search of a new home for the Monday session using a combination of high and low tech methods. “I searched on the internet, looking for places that I’d go to myself as a customer to hang and have a drink. Finally I just drove over to Adams Avenue, parked, and just sort of hoofed it. I talked to a few bar owners, but they weren’t really feeling it. I would always go around 9pm on Mondays to see what each place felt like.”
Eventually the footwork paid off.
Jazz Jam with Louis Valenzuela
- Rosie O'Grady's, 3402 Adams Avenue, Normal Heights
- 21+
“One night I wandered into Rosie O’ Grady’s and talked with Jason, the owner. Right away he was receptive to the idea. Turns out his dad is a jazz musician and they actually used to have a jam session back in the day. So he was immediately all about it, and we’ve been doing it every Monday night for almost a year and a half.”
So has the jam been a success?
“Yeah, it’s packed,” says Valenzuela. “It’s always slammed and everyone says it’s a fun hang. The management is really cool and I sat down with Jason over the New Year and he’s totally down for the cause. We usually start after Monday Night Football during the NFL season. A lot of sports league type people come in with their jerseys on, and I’ve gotten to know them all. Many of them continue to hang out and enjoy the music.”
When he’s not playing at Rosie O’Grady’s or doing a Tuesday night R&B session at the Riviera Supper Club & Turquoise Room, Valenzuela teaches guitar at Avant Garde Music Company in Chula Vista. “We’re hitting it right now. We have like a 170 students and we’re looking to hire more teachers.”
Here's something you might be interested in.
Monday night jam packed at Rosie O’ Grady’s
“It’s always slammed and everyone says it’s a fun hang”
Monday night jam packed at Rosie O’ Grady’s
“It’s always slammed and everyone says it’s a fun hang”
Louis Valenzuela found a venue for his weekly Jam Session.
Guitarist Louis Valenzuela was looking for a specific type of vibe when he was considering setting up a new jam session for local players. “I remember there was another Monday night session back in the day,” recalls Valenzuela. “I really enjoyed that one, but unfortunately it kind of died out. I kept hoping that someone else would pick it up — finally, I realized that I was going to have to do it myself.”
Initially he set up shop in Hillcrest.
“We started out at this restaurant called Busalacchi’s, and we did that for about a year, but they went out of business. It was always kind of sketchy anyway and I didn’t think the vibe was really right.”
So Valenzuela set out in search of a new home for the Monday session using a combination of high and low tech methods. “I searched on the internet, looking for places that I’d go to myself as a customer to hang and have a drink. Finally I just drove over to Adams Avenue, parked, and just sort of hoofed it. I talked to a few bar owners, but they weren’t really feeling it. I would always go around 9pm on Mondays to see what each place felt like.”
Eventually the footwork paid off.
Jazz Jam with Louis Valenzuela
- Rosie O'Grady's, 3402 Adams Avenue, Normal Heights
- 21+
“One night I wandered into Rosie O’ Grady’s and talked with Jason, the owner. Right away he was receptive to the idea. Turns out his dad is a jazz musician and they actually used to have a jam session back in the day. So he was immediately all about it, and we’ve been doing it every Monday night for almost a year and a half.”
So has the jam been a success?
“Yeah, it’s packed,” says Valenzuela. “It’s always slammed and everyone says it’s a fun hang. The management is really cool and I sat down with Jason over the New Year and he’s totally down for the cause. We usually start after Monday Night Football during the NFL season. A lot of sports league type people come in with their jerseys on, and I’ve gotten to know them all. Many of them continue to hang out and enjoy the music.”
When he’s not playing at Rosie O’Grady’s or doing a Tuesday night R&B session at the Riviera Supper Club & Turquoise Room, Valenzuela teaches guitar at Avant Garde Music Company in Chula Vista. “We’re hitting it right now. We have like a 170 students and we’re looking to hire more teachers.”
Comments