Mary McCaslin's Roundup

Aug. 2003

A CHANGE IS GONNA COME

By now, most, if not all of the Santa Cruz area music community has heard the news: The Catalyst has been sold. The historic music club has presented almost all kinds of music, with the exception of classical and opera, and has outlasted many other venues in this county.

Palookaville, which started out in the mid 1990s with such promise, and spent the last few years struggling to stay open, recently folded for good. The building that housed Palookaville has been gutted and no sign that this venue existed remains.

Michael Horne, who owned Palookaville, took many financial risks to bring the finest in world music to our community. And because he was starting a new business, which was not "grandfathered in" like the Catalyst, he had to spend money to comply with more ADA laws and city regulations. It's truly sad that all of his efforts along with his and his investors' money could not keep the doors of this nice club from closing for good. It's even sadder that there is nothing left of Palookaville.

The good news is that the Catalyst will not close. It has been sold to the people who own a club called the Spy Club over in San Jose. Formerly called the Usual, the Spy Club is booked by Gary Tighe, who also happens to be the long time booker for the Catalyst.

Undoubtedly, some changes will be made. I suspect that Gary will bring in more touring acts than the Cat has seen in recent years. This will mean making use of the large back room for more shows than it is used for now. When I moved to Santa Cruz in 1990, there was an average of five shows a week at the Catalyst, almost all of them held in the back room. For the last three or four years that number has dwindled considerably, and most of the shows take place in the Atrium Room these days.

The dire shape of the economy has made presenting music an even more risky business than usual. An act that fills the house one time may barely bring in enough ticket sales for the promoter to break even the next time. There is often no way to tell how successful a show will be. Then there are the sell-out shows that are cancelled at the last moment because of illness or other unforseen occurances. Earlier this year, Americana artist Steve Earl became ill a couple of hours before he was scheduled to take the stage in front of a full house at the Cat. Another time a few years back a power outage happened just before the doors opened for a sold out show with a well known rock band. When a show gets cancelled, ticket prices have to be refunded and it's a logistical nightmare. Everybody loses. It's expensive to present and promote a show, and a club like the Catalyst, which counts on its drink sales, takes an even bigger hit than just losing out on ticket sales when a show is cancelled.

The Spy Club has a dress code, which may work in San Jose, but would go over like a lead balloon here in Santa Cruz. If no "flannels" were allowed, Neil Young would not be able to do any more of his surprise performances at the Catalyst. It's doubtful the new owners will try to enforce a dress code on this side of the hill.

There are things that will go away forever when present owner Randall Kane turns the Cat over to the people from San Jose. One of things I will miss the most is Randall's homebaked Rye bread. I'm sad to say that I only discovered this wonderful treat a few months ago. For years he has baked all the bread and rolls served at the Catalyst. This is something that probably very few music venues with food service can boast.

The first time I came to the Catalyst was in the late 1970s to play a show with Jim Ringer. I never suspected in my wildest dreams that I would one day call Santa Cruz home, or end up spending as much time at this great venue as I have. The man I am married to ran the stage lights at the Cat for many years and still works there occasionally.

Since moving here I've done gigs at the Cat, either opening for a larger show in the back room or playing in the front Atrium Room. I had the good fortune to open for Warren Zevon, who is best known for his songs, Werewolves of London and Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner. At the time we had a Corvair. When I pulled into the back parking lot I noticed this guy slouching by the Catalyst back gate. He seemed to be watching intently as I parked and got out. I pulled my guitar out from the back "seat" and as I walked past him he said, "Great car!" I thanked him and kept walking into the building. Something else must have been said because the next thing I remember was him introducing himself to me. I told him how much I enjoyed his music and how honored I was to open for him.

Warren Zevon is in the final stages of lung cancer and has made a last recording with the help of other artists such as Jackson Browne and Tom Petty. His impressive body of work speaks for itself. I'm so grateful to have had just a few moments conversation with one of my musical heroes and to have been able to open for him at the Catalyst.

That's it for now. Happy trails.

Mary McCaslin will be teaching a Fingerstyle Guitar class at the Santa Cruz Mountains Art Center in Ben Lomond starting Wed., Sept 10. She will also be performing at the Benefit Concert for the Santa Cruz Women's Health Center on Sat., Sept 6. E-mail her at roundup@marymccaslin.com.