BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//www.yoshis.com/oakland//NONSGML kigkonsult.se iCalcreator 2.10.5// X-WR-CALNAME:www.yoshis.com/oakland X-WR-CALDESC:www.yoshis.com/oakland X-WR-TIMEZONE:US/Pacific BEGIN:VEVENT UID:20130620T080208CEST-1933d0Dwhl@www.yoshis.com/oakland DTSTAMP:20130620T060608Z DESCRIPTION:\n\n\n\nFor the past four decades\, Bill Payne has spent more t ime on the road\, in studios\, and working with rock n&rsquo\; roll hall o f famers than most of that rare group of musicians who can pay the bills w ith their talent and endurance. He&rsquo\;s one of rock&rsquo\;s most tale nted keyboardists\, a legitimate legend among peers. A founding member of Little Feat\, he&rsquo\;s appeared on hundreds of studio albums and toured with the likes of Jimmy Buffet\, James Taylor\, and the Doobie Brothers. Most people in the music industry or familiar with rock&rsquo\;s meaningfu l past know this amazing musician&rsquo\;s songs and recognize his chops i nstantly. Countless musicians have shared time with him in the studio or o nstage. More would like to\, because he makes most musicians better.\nBorn in Waco\, Texas\, on March 12\, 1949\, he was raised in Ventura\, Califor nia\, where he began his journey as a musician from the comfort of his Mom &rsquo\;s lap in front of an old upright piano down in the basement. By th e time he was five\, he was taking classical lessons with music teacher Ru th Neuman. He continued for 10 years\, fueled by a growing desire to inter pret\, play and create music. Then he took off on his own\, playing in gar age bands and strengthening his skills.\nAs Bill learned to master those b lack-and-white keys\, he also was broadening and heightening his perceptio n and grasp of a once-conventional America that was no longer black-and-wh ite. His lifestyle &ndash\; in fact his very existence in the &lsquo\;60s &ndash\; had an immediate impact on his artistic vision. He made a brief d etour to San Francisco before an abrupt turn south to Los Angeles with the idea of meeting Frank Zappa. That meeting eventually took place\, but not before Bill was introduced to Lowell George\, whom Frank had asked to sta rt his own band after hearing his song &ldquo\;Willin&rsquo\;.&rdquo\;\nWh at brought Bill to Los Angeles and introduced him to Lowell George produce d one of the most enduring and eclectic bands of the seventies\, one that continues four decades later: Little Feat.\nWhile a member of Little Feat\ , Bill managed to become one of the most sought-after session players in t he seventies in the Los Angeles studio scene. Lowell George&rsquo\;s death in 1979 opened up yet another chapter in Bill&rsquo\;s life as a touring musician. The same status he acquired as a session player applied to his t ime traveling the world playing with other artists.\nThe reformation of Li ttle Feat took place in 1988 with the release of Let It Roll on Warner Bro thers Records. The band&rsquo\;s latest release\, Rooster Rag\, has Bill c o-writing 4 songs with legendary Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter. The y have\, of this date\, 11 songs\, many of which Bill is playing in his ne wly started solo shows.\nAlways a collaborative musician\, it took Bill ma ny years to think in solo terms. Finally\, in 2005\, he produced his first solo album\, Cielo Norte (&ldquo\;North Sky&rdquo\;)\, an elegant\, often delicate soundscape\, a musical equivalent of impressionist painting.\nIn 2004\, while on a photo shoot for Cielo Norte in Corral Canyon near Malib u with his son\, Evan\, Bill discovered that another artistic outlet reson ated within him: photography. His work there has emerged quickly into a fo rmidable body of work (see www.billpaynecreative.com)\, and has become an essential aspect of his art as a whole.\nAll of this came together in 2012 \, when he debuted his solo show\, &ldquo\;Tracing Footsteps\,&rdquo\; whi ch combines tales of the road\, photography\, and solo piano/vocal perform ance. Like the rest of his art\, it&rsquo\;s uniquely Bill Payne. The year also saw him debut a different sort of solo show\, a duo with Gabe Ford. Gabe Ford has been part of the Little Feat family since 2007\, when he bec ame Richie Hayward&rsquo\;s drum tech. Part of a musical family &ndash\; h is uncle is Robben Ford\, and Gabe&rsquo\;s father Patrick and other uncle \, Mark\, have been major players in the Bay Area blues scene for many yea rs. They provided a path for young Gabe to learn the craft of being a cons ummate musician from early on. It definitely runs in the family. When Rich ie&rsquo\;s health failed\, Little Feat discovered that they had a superb percussionist on hand\, and Gabe stepped into the drum seat to applause fr om critics\, fans\, and band members alike. The combination of Bill&rsquo\ ;s music with Gabe Ford is a wonderful handshake.\nBill is an artistic gam bler who is willing\, in fact obliged\, to take the untraveled path and to live and thrive in the gray area that divides black and white. He is not a musician of habit\, nor one who needs his ego stroked regularly to inspi re his creativity. His talent\, resourcefulness\, longevity and penchant f or exploration define Bill&rsquo\;s artistic endeavors. His laid-back deme anor provides a perfect camouflage for the intensely passionate artist he shelters within. He lives and breathes to create. He is an artist. It&rsqu o\;s what he&rsquo\;s always been about. DTSTART:20121201T200000 DTEND:20121201T235959 DURATION:PT3H LOCATION:Oakland SUMMARY:Bill Payne & Gabe Ford of Little Feat with special guest Robben For d END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR