Ann Magnuson and her impeccable band performed the 30th anniversary of The Luv Show album these past two Sundays, and it was one (two) of the greatest shows I've ever seen! Legends! Ann has (and continues to be) such an important influence on me and an inspiration. I feel very honored to have been asked to introduce Ann as the character of "some kind of swinger" with the "1995 Ann." I was sent this stealthy video of Ann granting me a wish with her magic wand -however, my wish was already true then and there! This show went through so many moods: yes, it was funny, but there were plenty of emotional goosebumps, too.

The Birthday Experience happens again this Friday, January 2nd, 2026! We know NYE is overrated and full of scary drunk pukers who are still puking New Years Day -or shopping for deals, so JANUARY 2nd is where the party is at with The Birthday Experience! This show is so much FUN!!! This particular Birthday Experience is a very puppet heavy show. Maybe accordion and PowerPoint too! This Month’s very Special Guests are Cryptid Cabaret (two puppeteers and an accordion player!) and Land Smith (comedy!) Free admission if it's your birthday week!!!*
"It's your birthday -whether it's your birthday or not!" Even if it's not yours -or anyone's birthday ever- you can come to this birthday party comedy variety show and have so much fun! The Birthday Experience features Robert Dayton as your excitable host, wonderful puppeteer Molly Fite with Puppet Molly -a very good dancer, along with bandleader and sparkling keyboardist Lance Piebenga, and George Chen as substitute clown Mike Hans! Yayyyy! A gaggle of new friends for the audience to visit each and every show! There's also FREE CAKE, balloons, prizes, and surprises! And loads more birthday style entertainment!
*with proof of photo ID
TIX:
https://www.elysiantheater.com/shows/birthdayexperience0102

I have just uploaded a 1992 VHS of The Jades playing Vancouver, BC's 50 Bourbon bar in The Hildon to my Youtube channel. Link in bio. Thanks to @tape_losangeles for digitizing: support them. The Jades played "Music You Will Remember." Keyboardist and band leader George Hillaby gave me this VHS in the 1990's. The Jades were the house band at The 50 Bourbon bar in The Hildon Hotel for some time. My oldest brother Frank and his friends lived there on a month-to-month with a hotplate in the mid-1980s before they politely asked him to move for the Expo 86 worlds' fair tourism dollars. The Jades had previously played at the nearby Metropole bar, all on Vancouver's downtown east side, an area that may be the origin of the term "skid row." Prior to The Jades playing at the 50 Bourbon, the bar was a strip club for a spell and the owners never bothered to remove the pole giving a split screen effect to the video which was set up by The Jades' drummer Jerry (no last name found), probably on a tripod. The bar still exists but has been extensively renovated. As seen by the opening moments of this video, people used to sell contraband goods like meat and cheese, probably taken from nearby stores like The Army and Navy department store next door (a unique building/s that was separated by an alley). Across the street for a time was the Cruel Elephant which booked a lot of local and touring bands like The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion who would often come delight to the sounds of The Jades. Before starting the Jades, George was an active musician in the 1940s in Alberta with his own regular 15 minute radio show. He told me that he played with such popular Canadian musicians of the day as fiddler King Ganam, along with Gaby Haas and his Barn Dance Gang. He stopped playing music for many years to focus on an accounting career before starting The Jades. Besides George and Jerry, Norm Shackle was the saxophonist alternating with David (unsure). George also played in my band July Fourth Toilet: the name given to us by Zip Code Rapists (Gregg Turkington and @fieldtone ) when I interviewed them for my zine while we were watching The Jades.
#thejades #georgehillaby #vancouverbc
I can only post a snippet here but the full video is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqE2Rogr5AE