Columnist Jerry Fink: Las Vegas musicians are making themselves at home

Friday, Aug. 3, 2001 | 9:39 a.m.

Jerry Fink's lounge column appears on Fridays. Reach him at 259-4058 or jerry@ lasvegassun.com.

Las Vegas has every kind of venue for live entertainment imaginable, from tiny lounges stuck in dark corners of casinos to 12,000-seat concert halls.

On Sunday four local musicians performed in one of the more unusual locales in town -- this nightclub had three bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, formal living and dining rooms and a retail price of $354,000.

More than 30 people attended what is believed to be Las Vegas' first house concert, a craze that has been building up steam across the nation for about five years.

The concert was held at the 2,800-square-foot home of Kent Bowen, who recently put the house on the market and moved to California.

Singer-songwriter Kimberli Ransom, who calls herself the Queen of the House Concerts, has written a book on the subject, "House Concerts: A Guide for Musicians and Hosts" (Wordworks, $14.95).

A website (houseconcerts.com) lists 29 states, Washington, D.C., and Canada as places where a person who wants to avoid noisy, smoke-filled bars can relax in the comfort of a living room and listen to live entertainment.

"People have been opening their homes to artists for centuries," Michael Soli, who organized the recent concert, said. "This is just the American version."

House concerts strike me as guerilla warfare against the musical venue establishment that routinely rejects talented musicians who have not created names for themselves.

Promotions of the events are generally word-of-mouth, so most of those who attend the concerts are at least familiar with each other.

Soli said he first heard about house concerts in February when attending a Folk Alliance Conference in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Hosts usually get around the need for a business license by accepting donations instead of charging set fees. Donations routinely run between $10 and $25, with all of it going to the musicians, who, if they have traveled long distances, may be spending the night at the home and sharing meals with the owners.

"Home owners aren't in it for the money," Soli said. "They like the talent."

He said about the only things needed for a house concert are a house and understanding neighbors.

"And adequate parking," Soli said. "And if you have kids and pets, you need to keep them in check."

The house concerts can be alcohol free and smoke free, or, if the homeowners don't mind, there can be drinking and smoking. One artist or several can perform. There can even be jam sessions. Some hosts even include dinner with the donations.

Homeowners control the concerts, which seem to be reminiscent of the days of speakeasies, when you had to know somebody to pass through the doors. They are quasi-public events.

Soli, a singer-guitarist who is performing this weekend at the Reserve, wants to have one house concert per month at different locations and hopes others in Las Vegas will get involved.

"A lot of musicians are making a living doing home concert tours, and it's a great way to supplement your income," he said. "If you are on tour and have a few extra days, you can get on the Internet and find a house concert somewhere nearby."

Sunday's performers included Soli, Ed Jeffers, Tim Torgerson and Jumpin' Kate.

Jeffers tends bar by day and sings and plays acoustic guitar four nights a week at venues around town. This was his first house concert.

It was also Jumpin' Kate's first gig in a living room. She usually can be heard at places such as the Backstop Bar in Boulder City or the Spirits Lounge on West Sahara Avenue.

Guitarist-vocalist Tim Torgerson, on the other hand, is a house veteran.

"I've been a part of a number of house concerts as a performer and as part of the audience," the Montana native said. "My favorite was with acoustic Zen folk artist Chuck Pyle. He had on his cowboy hat and boots and stood in a corner with no mikes or amplification and just played and sang."

Torgerson described house concerts as having the same ambiance as cafes, only without the noise of diners.

Soli said the appeal of a house concert is its intimacy. He hopes the idea will catch on here.

"I'm trying to spread the word, spread the love," he said.

Just don't spread the address in advance or you may entice some burglars who are more interested in merchandise than music.

Lounging around

Open-mike fans are having a gas at the Tropics on South Decatur Boulevard. From 10 p.m.-4 a.m. every Sunday musicians are invited to test their talent in front of a live audience. Rick Duarte, one of the open-mike organizers, says fans are having so much fun that one recent Sunday the nightclub had to be evacuated because of a gas leak next door and everyone hung around the parking lot until the emergency was over and then returned to the club for more music.

Area 51 is still going strong in the late-night slot at the Sahara Casbar. Four months have passed since the group's popular bass player/vocalist Kenny Shauntee died in a car crash.