{"id":490312,"date":"2026-10-09T11:50:37","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T11:50:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/490312\/"},"modified":"2026-10-09T11:50:37","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T11:50:37","slug":"the-four-san-diego-concerts-only-a-neer-do-well-would-miss-san-diego-union-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/490312\/","title":{"rendered":"The four San Diego concerts only a ne\u2019er-do-well would miss! \u2013 San Diego Union-Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cBecause of You\u201d \u2014 Voices Of Our City Choir annual benefit concert<\/p>\n

Voices Of Our City Choir won\u2019t celebrate its 10th anniversary until December. But 2026 is already shaping up as a landmark year for the ensemble, which was formed to spotlight and empower homeless San Diego singers, songwriters and instrumentalists. Voices will celebrate the release of its debut album, \u201cHere We Are,\u201d next Thursday with a performance that will double as its annual fundraising concert. The album will take on an even greater significance when many of its 11 songs are featured in \u201cSongbird,\u201d a documentary being produced by London\u2019s award-winning Groundtruth Productions. The executive producers of the film are actor Woody Harrelson and his wife, Laura. The album, like Voices itself, is a testament to devotion, tenacity and the power of the human spirit \u2014and music \u2014 to uplift, enlighten and bring people together. \u201cAs rising costs push more San Diegans into isolation, Voices Of Our City Choir offers a powerful lifeline,\u201d said choir co-founder and director Steph Johnson. \u201cMany of our singers are navigating housing insecurity and physical and mental health obstacles. But through music, they find belonging and purpose and you can hear it in the music.\u201d Indeed, you can. Eight of the 11 songs on \u201cHere We Are\u201d are original compositions. The lyrics speak to the challenges of everyday life, the quest for safety and community, and \u2014 crucially \u2014 the vital importance of providing hope for those in need. Witness such stirring songs as \u201cSounds of the Sidewalk,\u201d \u201cAnd Still We Sing,\u201d \u201cFalling Upward\u201d and \u201cI Am Home.\u201d Equally noteworthy are the choir\u2019s heartfelt versions of John Lennon\u2019s \u201cImagine,\u201d Nina Simone\u2019s \u201cYoung Gifted and Black\u201d and \u201cThe Wizard of Oz\u201d classic \u201cSomewhere Over the Rainbow,\u201d which is performed as a duet by Voices singer Phyllis Davis and top San Diego bassist Rob Thorsen. All 11 songs were recorded at least in part at St. Paul\u2019s Episcopal Cathedral in Bankers Hill. The cathedral hosts free weekly rehearsals and gatherings every Monday for the choir, which in 2020 earned national acclaim for its performances on three episodes of the \u201cAmerica\u2019s Got Talent\u201d TV series. The album was co-produced by Johnson and Natalie Bradley. Its executive producers are Qualcomm co-founder Irwin M. Jacobs and the San Diego nonprofit MusicPower, which is presenting next week\u2019s Voices Of Our City fundraising concert. 5:30 p.m. next Thursday, Oct. 15. JULEP,1735 Hancock Street, Midway District. $325 and up (includes cocktail reception, dinner and concert). cbo.io\/app\/public\/bidapp\/voicesofourcity<\/a><\/p>\n

\"KeyboardistKeyboardist Benmont Tench\u2019s second solo album, \u201cThe Melancholy Season,\u201d was released in 2025. The co-founder of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers will perform a solo concert next week in San Diego at the Music Box. (Josh Giroux)<\/p>\n

Benmont Tench: Best known for his long tenure in Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers \u2014 a band he cofounded in 1975 \u2014 Benmont Tench is one of the most prolific keyboardists around. His numerous credits includes playing on albums by Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones, Steve Nicks, Roy Orbison, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, Elvis Costello, Chris Stapleton, Green Day, Johnny Cash, John Prine, Ringo Starr, Nickel Creek co-founders Sean and Sara Watkins, Alanis Morrissette, The Replacements, X and many more. Tench is now on an intimate solo tour, sans band, to promote his second solo album, the aptly titled \u201cThe Melancholy Season.\u201d The Florida native completed the album prior to the 2024 mouth cancer surgery that required the removal of \u2014 and subsequent rebuilding of \u2014 half his jaw. His singing voice, which has always been understated, now has an added degree of poignancy. Tench\u2019s recent setlists have mixed his original songs and a few Heartbreakers\u2019 favorites with such varied gems by other artists as Dylan\u2019s \u201cBlind Willie McTell,\u201d Irving Berlin\u2019s \u201cHow Deep Is The Ocean,\u201d Joy Division\u2019s \u201cLove Will Tear Us Apart,\u201d Velvet Underground\u2019s \u201cRock & Roll\u201d and the Grateful Dead\u2019s \u201cChina Doll.\u201d I have no idea what he might throw in for his concert here next week, but I\u2019m eager to find out. 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13. The Music Box, 1337 India Street, downtown. $66.55 (must be 21 or older to attend). 619-795-1337. ticketweb.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe fast-rising New York City band Geese will be swooping in for a concert at Gallagher Square at Petco Park. (Mark Sommerfeld)<\/p>\n

Geese, with Bill Orcutt: The Brooklyn-bred indie band Geese may not be \u201cthe new saviors of rock \u2019n\u2019 roll,\u201d as a major British newspaper breathlessly proclaimed late last year. But Geese manages to make existential dread, helter-skelter quirkiness and sonic mayhem sound like a whole lot of fun. The group\u2019s sold-out San Diego show here at Quartyard last Halloween night juxtaposed its potent original songs with memorable homages to The Stooges and Velvet Underground. 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13 Gallagher Square at Petco Park, 840 K Street, San Diego. $62.20. ticketmaster.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cBecause of You\u201d \u2014 Voices Of Our City Choir annual benefit concert Voices Of Our City Choir won\u2019t…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":490313,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[967,181,6682,74,76,75,420,1696],"class_list":["post-490312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-entertainment","tag-latest-headlines","tag-music-and-concerts","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-headlines","tag-san-diego-news","tag-things-to-do","tag-top-stories-sdut"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/490312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=490312"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/490312\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/490313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=490312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=490312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=490312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}