Saratoga News
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Open mic attracts talent at Blue Rock Shoot
By Emilie Doolittle
Every city needs a star. The locals of Saratoga can find talented singer-songwriters and poets at the Blue Rock Shoot café's open mic night. Even if the artists aren't as big as John Mayer, the locals know and love them just as well.
New stage lights, curtains, sounding pads and a black and red marbled wall outline the stage, surrounded by candlelit tables and a raised bench at the back wall of the Blue Rock Shoot listening room. Despite the room's reconfiguration, couples don't have to worry because the "lovers' corner" is still there behind the entrance.
Live music plays throughout the cabin café and even into the street at the weekly Out of the Blue Open Mic Night, when the place has the potential to be packed past the porch.
Back in December 2006, an average of 75 people were drinking beer and tapping their feet to the sounds of folk rock at the café's open mic night. Then there was a 10-month pause in the café's regular rhythm. The founder of Thriving Artist and organizer of the open mic nights, Richard Adoradio, moved the event to Mission City Coffee in Santa Clara because he thought the Blue Rock Shoot was going to be taken over by La Fondue. However, building owner Mitchell Cutler found a place for La Fondue across the street, and now Out of the Blue acoustic nights are back in their rightful home every Thursday from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m.
For the Oct. 11 reopening night, at least 15 singer-songwriters played a couple songs each while some of the audience members jammed along on drums and tambourines.
Some of the artists played cover songs such as Teddy Randazzo Jr., who played a multi-octave acoustic cover of his father's song, "Goin' Out Of My Head."
"It's amazing to see the Blue Rock Shoot transform, to see the old and new faces coming back to it," said Lyndie Way, one of the regular performers. "There's a real community of people here and friendships that I've made."
Halfway through the night Adoradio pulled up four musicians who hadn't played together before to do the Band in a Hat improvisation. The four artists had to make up a song together on the spot. They fooled around with keys and tempos for a bit, but eventually a blues song ensued.
One of the iovisers, Mike Simpson, told the audience that he played at the first Out of the Blue Open Mic Night that started a few months after the cafe opened in November 1995.
"As a performer, it's like this self-contained unit. When you're playing to an audience there's lot of distractions, but here it's like somebody is actually listening to you," said music teacher and singer-songwriter Jim Fowler, who goes to the open mic nights a few times a year to perform and listen.
A couple of artists were worth coming back to hear. Kenny Schick had the audience swooning when he was on the saxophone along with vocalist Way and Adoradio on guitar.
Also noteworthy was guitarist Glenn Schoonmaker, who played sensual psychedelic music. He revealed his talents when he completed a song after one of his guitar strings broke halfway through his performance.
The event is open to beginner performers, too. "It's a great place, especially for those who are just starting out, because it's very warm and welcoming," said Way.
From little girls singing songs to older women reading poems, the event includes artists of any age.
Each artist is limited to two songs or no more than five or six minutes per performance. And if someone in the crowd isn't enjoying a performance, they can always take a breather on the balcony or grab a beer and something to eat at the front of the café.
"Anytime I'm here, there's a complete variety. People just want to share their music," said Fowler. Like many of the regulars, Fowler credited Adoradio for bringing the open mic nights back.
"He involved the community," said Fowler. "He created an ambiance."
