Big D band is hot stuff in the Boston music market

By Mary Ann Cook

SKA NOMINEE: Christopher Sallen, '95 Saratoga High grad, is a senior at Berklee College of Music in Boston and a member of the band, Big D and the Kid's Table. Big D has been nominated for the second year in a row as the Best Ska Band by the Boston Music Awards Committee.

Christopher is lead saxophone and sings in the 10-member band. Another former Saratogan is also in the group. He's Marc Flynn, who attended grade school in Saratoga and reunited with Chris at Berklee. Marc is lead singer and plays trumpet in the Big D band.

The kind of music they play is called ska, which is not an abbreviation for anything. For those who, like me, don't have a clue what ska sounds like, it's a cross between reggae (a Caribbean beat) and the big band sound (lots of horns). This definition is according to Chris' mother, Debbie, who also says: "I really like it. I'd enjoy their music even if Chris weren't involved in it."

Big D is well-known in the East, she adds, and the group has just completed a West Coast tour, playing at the Cactus Club in San Jose and Cocodrie in San Francisco, as well as clubs in Southern California. They'll tour the west this summer.

Chris is majoring in music business management, which choice was something of a relief to his father, Doug, a marketing consultant, what with the music business being a chancy thing for earning a living. In high school Chris was in two bands, Crime in Italy and A Tree Called Simon.

This former group won a battle of the bands award in Wildwood Park and played for Celebrate Saratoga the year festivities were held in conjunction with the opening of Highway 85. Chris has been involved with music since he was in the fourth grade. Big D has produced two CDs, which have sold thousands of copies, reports Debbie.

In addition, Chris and Marc have their own record label, called Fork in Hand Records, which produces and distributes music for several bands, including Big D. Their website is www.forkinhand.com. The winners of the award, Boston's version of the Bammies, will be announced in late April.

STUDENT VOLUNTEERS: Two student volunteers will be awarded $2,500 scholarships from the Silicon Valley Charity Ball Foundation this year. The students will be recognized for service to others. Charities that benefit from the ball may nominate one young man and one woman to be considered for the SVCB Founders' Award.

The winners are chosen from these nominees and are announced in July. This year's ball will be held May 1 at the San Jose Convention Center, and the Smothers Brothers are the headline entertainers. For reservations and information call 260-0594.

Saratogan Karen Krueger is again in charge of the event and serves as vice president of the board of directors of the foundation. She recently taped commercials for the ball and reported that she was amazed at how many takes it takes for a two or three minute commercial.

She got into the action so thoroughly that she began calling for more takes. The spot will air periodically from now until the ball date, but viewers won't see Krueger in person. She's the voiceover. The visual portion will show scenes from previous years' balls.

GARDEN ART: Chris Jacobson of Gardenart designed an award-winning Spanish style garden with a plethora of Mediterranean plants in a Saratoga garden. The garden won the regional design category in a competition held this winter.

ANNIVERSARY: The Teen and Family Counseling Center celebrated its 16th anniversary with a pizza party at 2wenty 9ine East Main Cafe in Los Gatos at the end of March. Tickets were $100 each, and each ticket holder won a prize. All proceeds benefited the center at 208 E. Main, Los Gatos.

ANNIVERSARY: Here's an anniversary a bit out of the ordinary: Mary Lou Taylor joined a friend in Los Angeles to commemorate the friend's 50th year--as a nun. The reunion was part of a larger trek that also included catching up with fellow UCLA alum chums with husband Jack, trips to the Getty and the Van Gogh at the Los Angeles County Museum.

WHAT'S FOR LUNCH?: One of the best lunch bargains around takes place every Wednesday at noon at the Saratoga Senior Center. It's $4 and includes entertainment/information. For example, on April 14 Gene Zambetti is presenting a slide presentation about the West African country of Ghana.

And on April 21 Charles Gascoigne will talk about expanding housing at the Saratoga Oddfellows Home; and April 28 the Mystery Readers, dressed as their favorite spy heroines, will hold forth on the whodunit genre, led by Bernice Giansiracusa.

GOLD FEVER: The History Museum of San Jose presents Voices of Gold and Gold Fever, a traveling exhibit from the Oakland Museum, on display until Dec. 31. A special Gold Rush Festival will be held May 29-31 where one can churn butter, pan for gold, ride a burro. The museum is at Kelley Park, and the phone is 287-2290.

VOLUNTEER RECOGNITION: The San Jose Junior League will host its 30th Volunteer Recognition Luncheon April 16 at the DoubleTree Hotel, San Jose.

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