Written by Ronnie Sweeting —
MARIPOSA — Now in it’s 26th year, the free summer concert series — Music on the Green — continues into the 2017 season with a weekend of great Bluegrass on Friday, June 23 with The GrassKickers, and powerful electric Blues on Saturday, June 24, with Steve Johnson & Those BobTones.
We welcomed the return last year, after a long absence, of The GrassKickers – popular perennial performers of many past Music on the Green concerts – and by popular demand, they’ll be back on the Art Park stage this Friday.
Playing Traditional, Contemporary, and Original Bluegrass music with expert vocal and instrumental aplomb, this band of seasoned professionals also incorporates laugh out loud humor into their very entertaining set.
Those BobTones assembled in Merced in the late seventies gaining instant popularity in the area, with some members going on to success on the broader music scene.
Original member/guitarist Steve “Mouse” Johnson, moved east to the New York City area, where he enjoyed immense success as a respected performer and session recording artist for over 30 years. Johnson has won Guitar Player Magazine’s 1992 competition as “Best Blues Guitarist,” been twice voted “Best Blues Band” by the New York Jazz & Blues Society, recorded numerous CDs, toured internationally, and established himself as as one of the busiest and most popular Blues singer/guitarists on the East coast.
Mouse (now relocated to Southern California) and his west coast cohorts, Those BobTones, gather for a reunion once or twice a year and have performed at Music on the Green/Mariposa Evenings seven out of the last fourteen seasons, often breaking attendance and tip records in their past exciting performances at the Art Park. This year’s performance will again include a horn section, featuring Tim White, and Julie Sax.
Check www.mariposaartscouncil.org for the complete 2017 season line-up & more.
All performances begin at 7 p.m. (unless otherwise noted) at the Mariposa County Art Park, located on Highway 140, between 4th and 5th Streets, in historic downtown Mariposa, Calif. Free parking on 5th Street along the Creek Walkway to the Park, also providing handicapped access.
The shows are free to the public – tips for the performers will be solicited, encouraged and appreciated.
The Mariposa Arts Council, sponsor of Music on the Green, is funded in part by Mariposa County, the California Arts Council, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
The MARIPOSA COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL, INC. is an incorporated not-for-profit organization, created to promote and support all forms of the cultural arts, for all ages, throughout Mariposa County.
