Carolyn Wonderland
Carolyn Wonderland, with her dynamic guitar playing, formidable songwriting, and pure Texas vocals, has more than earned her reputation as a fiercely independent artist. Wonderland plays original, bluesified, cosmic soul music, mixed with heavy doses of Tex-Mex and riff-fueled rock ‘n’ roll. She has been performing professionally since the age of 15 and has led a colorful and adventurous life. On the road her entire career, she’s played with icons from Townes Van Zandt to Levon Helm, from Buddy Guy to Hubert Sumlin, from Bob Dylan to John Mayall, all while writing her own story. On her new Alligator Records album, Truth Is, Wonderland, with her vividly detailed, instantly memorable songs, reflects on the world with honesty and righteous conviction. Wonderland’s bold and insightful songs tell common-sense truths that, in her words, “need to be told.” They are driven by her sometimes savage and other times gently melodic guitar fingerpicking, along with her full-throated yet still vulnerable vocals. As for the album’s brutally honest subject matter, Wonderland says, “There’s always hope and we’re still here for each other, but at some point, you have to sing about the elephant in the room.” With Truth Is, Carolyn Wonderland stakes her claim among the most influential roots music voices today, delivering the blues’ honest truth to all who will listen. Her courageously empowering music packs an emotional wallop, with every track on the album performed with a rare intensity that is welcoming and ultimately uplifting. “She’s something else,” Bob Dylan once said to Ray Benson. “She should be nationwide.” Minors ok with parent/guardian Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS.
Blues in the Gorge Guitar Masters
Experience these blues and fingerstyle guitar masters ahead of their week of instruction at Menucha Retreat for Blues in the Gorge. Alvin Youngblood Hart The cosmic American love child of Howlin Wolf and Link Wray! Known as a “musician’s musician,” Alvin Youngblood Hart’s praises have been sung by everyone from Bob Dylan to Brit guitar gods Eric Clapton & Mick Taylor. A devout follower of the “no barriers” approach carved out by veteran performers like Gatemouth Brown and the late/great Doug Sahm, Hart aims to delight the masses and points to challenge the so-called blues purists. Vance GilbertVance was born and raised in the Philadelphia area. Starting out hoping to be an R&B and jazz singer once at college, there he discovered his affinity for the storytelling sensibilities of the acoustic singer-songwriter thing. Word spread like wildfire about Gilbert’s stage-owning singing and playing, and Shawn Colvin invited him to be special guest on her 1992 Fat City tour where he took much of America by storm and by surprise. 30+ years into his career, the songwriter’s influence can be felt all over the contemporary Folk and Americana realm as he has helped pave the way for many of the BIPOC artists who have followed. Bill Kirchen From performing with his Who Knows Pickers jug band in Ann Arbor High School’s senior talent show (also on the program: the future Iggy Pop), to birthing the Americana genre with the original “hippie country band,” Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen, this affable Austinite has been everywhere, man, flying alongside some of the planet’s coolest cats — including the Jesus of Cool, Nick Lowe, and Lowe’s old protégé, Elvis Costello. Mary Flower Mary Flower is a brilliant fingerpicking guitarist in the roots blues/ragtime/early jazz tradition. She is a prodigious talent whose seasoned skills earned her the Far West Folk Alliance “Best of the West” award in 2025. She was inducted into the CO.Music Hall of Fame in 2019 for her work with The Mother Folkers.She is a long-time teacher who recently celebrated twelve years of “Blues in the Gorge,” her own guitar intensive. She’s made fourteen recordings that document her profound command and love for blues guitar. It’s entirely appropriate that Jorma Kaukonen called her “a national treasure in your own backyard.” Minors ok with parent/guardianReview our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS
Booker T Jones
From an early age, Booker T. Jones—“one of the legends of soul music” (The New Yorker)—was captivated by the magic of melody, rhythm, and harmony. So magnetic was the attraction, in fact, that by the time he turned sixteen, he was, incredibly, already a working musician with a hit song to his name. As part of the first house band for Stax Records, he formed the category-defining group Booker T. & the MGs, whose first recording, “Green Onions,” was an international sensation, selling more than one million copies and winning a place among Rolling Stone’s top five hundred songs of all time. Not stopping there, Jones continued to push soul music’s boundaries, refining it to its essence and then injecting it into the nation’s bloodstream. From midcentury Memphis, where the brutality of segregation was a stark backdrop to the loving, supportive family and community in which he was raised, to the creative hotbed of Beale Street, the Harlem of the South; from his early friendship with figures such as Maurice White (who went on to form Earth, Wind, and Fire) to the complicated dynamics of the racially mixed MGs—Jones not only was a witness to revolutions but also wrote their soundtracks. His musical legacy includes enduring compositions such as “Time Is Tight,” “Hip Hug-Her,” and the often sampled “Melting Pot” and collaborations with the likes of Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, and Sam and Dave—and later Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Barbra Streisand, Carlos Santana, and Willie Nelson. Nearly five decades later, Jones’s influence continues to help define the music industry, but only now is he ready to tell his remarkable life story. Time is Tight is the deeply moving account of how Jones balanced the brutality of the segregationist South with the loving support of his family and community, all while transforming a burgeoning studio into a musical mecca. Booker T. Jones is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, record producer, and arranger. Best known as the front man of the band Booker T. & the MGs, he has worked with countless award-winning artists of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries and has earned a Grammy Award for Lifetime Achievement. Along with the band, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992. Jones continues to record and tour internationally, both as a solo artist and as head of Booker T.’s Stax Revue. Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian. Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS
Johnny Franco and His Real Brother Dom in THE DO EVERYTHING SHOW
São Paulo native, Johnny Franco is shaking up the Portland scene with his charm and charisma. Join him and his real brother Dom for their iconic and hilarious brand of entertainment- including but not limited to songs. Minors ok with parent/guardian Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS.
Masters of Hawaiian Music with George Kahumoku, Jr, Led Kaapana and Jeff Peterson
Masters of Hawaiian Music features three of the most popular musicians from Maui’s renowned “Slack Key Show,” sharing Hawai‘i’s unique “slack key” –- open tuning — guitar styles that traces its roots to 19th-Century paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy) culture.Growing up in rural Hawai’i, slack key masters George Kahumoku, Jr., Led Kaapana, and Jeff Peterson were immersed from childhood in Hawaiian music and culture that brought family together with entertainment, learning, and joy. All are multiple Na Hōkū Hanohano (Hawaiian “Grammy”) Award winners.Four-time Grammy winner Kahumoku, called “Hawai‘i’s Renaissance Man”—he’s a, vocalist, storyteller, songwriter, author, teacher, sculptor, farmer, and chef. Kaapana is a National Heritage Fellow, unsurpassed in his guitar picking style, with rascal good humor, one of Hawai’i’s most influential musicians. Peterson is a star of the current generation enlivening slack key traditions, known for his versatility from slack key to classical, jazz to film soundtracks. Minors ok with parent/guardianReview our venue FAQ here
Fan Halen
Rock.It Boy Entertainment of America presents, FAN HALEN! Known as “The World’s Most Authentic Tribute to Van Halen”, FAN HALEN sets the stage for a night with Dave, Eddie, Alex and Michael with a true-to-life tribute to not only the band but the spirit of an era! No other tribute looks or sounds closer to the real thing! You won’t believe your eyes or ears when you come to a FAN HALEN show as you’ll feel like it’s 1984 all over again! From the look of the band, the choreography, the note-for-note reproduction of the greatest rock songs ever written to the sonic energy of the performance, nothing is overlooked…in other words, while FAN HALEN is on stage, they are Van Halen! With a songbook including “JUMP!”, “PANAMA”, “HOT FOR TEACHER”, “UNCHAINED”, “AIN’T TALKIN’ BOUT LOVE”, “RUNNIN’ WITH THE DEVIL”, “DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY”, “YOU REALLY GOT ME”, “ERUPTION”, and “I’LL WAIT” to name just a few, So-Cal based FAN HALEN has become a global phenomenon playing to enthusiastic crowds for more than a decade. For more about FAN HALEN visit: fanhalen.com. Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian. Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS.
Portland Queer Arts Spectacular
The Portland Queer Arts Spectacular is Portland Queer Arts Foundation’s flagship annual event—a multidisciplinary live stage production. Each year, the Spectacular centers a unifying theme and curated artistic vision, bringing together Portland’s most exciting queer talent for an unforgettable evening of storytelling and celebration. The World We Create Under the artistic direction of Daniel Switzer, the 2026 Spectacular includes a diverse gathering of artists across dance, vocal performance, spoken word, drag, original music, and beyond, each bringing their own answer to the same essential question. Some content may contain mature themes that may not be appropriate for younger audiences. Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian.Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS.
Portland Queer Arts Spectacular
The Portland Queer Arts Spectacular is Portland Queer Arts Foundation’s flagship annual event—a multidisciplinary live stage production. Each year, the Spectacular centers a unifying theme and curated artistic vision, bringing together Portland’s most exciting queer talent for an unforgettable evening of storytelling and celebration. The World We Create Under the artistic direction of Daniel Switzer, the 2026 Spectacular includes a diverse gathering of artists across dance, vocal performance, spoken word, drag, original music, and beyond, each bringing their own answer to the same essential question. Some content may contain mature themes that may not be appropriate for younger audiences. Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian.Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS.
Lloyd Cole
English born singer/songwriter Lloyd Cole’s cuttingly literate lyrics, unabashedly romantic stance, and knack for melodies both simple and ornate form a solid base for his frequent genre shifts. Starting off fronting the Commotions and delivering some of the ’80s most iconic jangle pop songs — like “Perfect Skin” and the quintessential Rattlesnakes album — Cole soon undertook a solo career that didn’t stay in one place for long. He went from straightforward rock on 1990’s self-titled album to lushly orchestrated pop on 1991’s Don’t Get Weird on Me Babe; he swerved into jangle pop on 1995’s Love Story, then he settled down to make country rock-inspired music for a time before delving into electronics for a record of duets with Hans-Joachim Roedelius on 2013’s Selected Studies, Vol. 1. Albums made in the wake of this newfound interest, like 2023’s On Pain, merged the warm songcraft of earlier work with the colder textures of electronic pop Minors ok with parent/guardian Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS.
Taimane
Virtuoso, songwriter, singer and theater producer, Taimane, has established herself as one of the leading ukulele players in the world, known for her fierce and inventive style of play transcending traditional views of the instrument as a restricted device. Taimane’s musicality and approach to the stage further add to her draw. Through both beautiful originals and one-of-a-kind mashups – seemingly disparate songs (e.g. Led Zeppelin and Beethoven) merged into medleys with pop appeal – Taimane conjures a wide-range of deep emotions smashing the notion of Hawaii music’s being light and simple. Seeing her perform live exponentially amplifies these feelings and makes clear that Taimane is an entertainer first and foremost. Hailing from a musical Polynesian family including her late mother, Palepa Tauiliili Gardner (Miss Samoa 1978), Taimane’s attraction to the four-string island staple began at age 5. By age 10, she regularly performed in public, busking in Waikiki every Friday night. By age 13, Taimane landed a position in Don Ho’s show. Each night, when the typically full house turned its attention to the petite young girl suddenly anointed band leader for a rendition of the surf classic “Wipeout,” it was time to rock. Following her early years in Waikiki, Taimane walked away from its pop scene and leapt into a completely different world, the art houses of Honolulu’s Chinatown. There, she discovered audiences who valued original songs and began to develop her own style of music, eventually merging a wide-array of genres, from Bach to rock, flamenco infernos to tribal hymns, into mesmerizing shows with universal appeal. Fast forward to today, and you have an artist who tours the world shining bright like a diamond (the Samoan translation of her name) renowned for taking the ukulele to new heights while blazing her own trail in the process. “Taimane rocks the stage with a sensual vibrancy and a white hot talent that captivates and beguiles!” – Pierce Brosnan (aka 007) “So much magic unfolded in such short order. Within the first moments of Taimane’s stunning set, we hear her play fiery flamenco, a famous phrase from the opera Carmen, a touch of Bach and more than a nod to her Hawaiian homeland, all on her ukulele.” – Bob Boilen, Host of NPR’s ‘Tiny Desk Concert’ Series Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian. Review our venue FAQ here ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS