{"id":126484,"date":"2025-08-07T13:57:11","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T13:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/126484\/"},"modified":"2025-08-07T13:57:11","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T13:57:11","slug":"nuggets-rock-champion-lenny-kaye-is-tiki-oasis-bound-with-el-vez-johnny-eckles-san-diego-union-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/126484\/","title":{"rendered":"Nuggets rock champion Lenny Kaye is Tiki Oasis-bound with El Vez, Johnny Eckles \u2013 San Diego Union-Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lenny Kaye has performed in San Diego a fair number of times since making his area debut in 1976 with the Patti Smith Group at San Diego State University\u2019s long sadly defunct Back Door. The veteran guitarist, songwriter, author, music critic, rock historian, producer and archivist has also played with Smith at two other sadly defunct venues here \u2014 the California Theater and 4th & B \u2014 as well as at the also sadly discontinued San Diego Street Scene festival in 2004.<\/p>\n

\n

Patti Smith talks music, writing & religion<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Kaye\u2019s performance here this weekend at Tiki Oasis will mark several notable firsts for this dedicated music champion, whose 1972 double-album compilation, \u201cNuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era: 1965-1968,\u201d remains a vital celebration of first-generation psychedelia and garage rock.<\/p>\n

His Sunday gig at Mission Valley\u2019s Town and Country Resort is his debut at Tiki Oasis, the 25-year-old retro festival that has been described as \u2018the Comic-Con of tiki\u201d culture. It is also the first time Kaye will do a Nuggets-themed show here. His appearance is being billed as Lenny Kaye & The San Diego Nugget Pickers.<\/p>\n

The lineup will feature El Vez (the San Diego-bred \u201cMexican Elvis\u201d), Johnny Echols of Love, guitar ace Deke Dickerson and the mainstays of two veteran San Diego bands, Ron Silva of The Crawdaddys and Carl Rusk of The Nashville Ramblers. La Mesa\u2019s The Loons, led by Ugly Things magazine founder Mike Stax, will serve as the pitch-perfect house band.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a tribute to a certain undying spirt in rock \u2018n\u2019 roll, the urge to make a noise with your guitar,\u201d said Kaye, 78, speaking from his Pennsylvania home.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be accompanied by Mike and The Loons, who know and play this music great. And we have some incredible guest artists, including Deke, El Vez, and Johnny from Love, which is one of my Top 10 favorite bands of all time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Ugly Things turns 40! Music magazine a longtime labor-of-love for San Diego husband-and-wife Mike & Anja Stax<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Loons\u2019 leader Stax was featured in 2023 when Kaye performed his first Nuggets-themed 50th anniversary concert \u2014 a year late \u2014 at the Alex Theatre in Glendale. The lineup for that show, a benefit for the Wild Honey Foundation autism charity, also included San Diego singer-songwriter Cindy Lee Berryhill, R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, \u201cWeird Al\u201d Yankovic, Evie Sands, Love co-founder Echols and former members of The Bangles, The Seeds, The Electric Prunes, The Chocolate Watchband, The Leaves, Count Five, MC5 and more.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got to open the show singing The Shadows of Knights\u2019 \u2018Oh Yeah\u2019 with Kathy Valentine of The Go-Go\u2019s playing lead guitar,\u201d Stax said. \u201cIt was an amazing night. Lenny was onstage the whole time with a revolving cast of musicians.\u201d<\/p>\n

El Vez (born: Robert Lopez) co-founded the pioneering San Diego punk-rock band The Zeros in 1976. He made his debut as El Vez in 1988 and went on to make such memorable records as\u00a0\u201cGraciasland,\u201d \u201cYou Ain\u2019t Nothing But a Chihuahua,\u201d \u201cEsta Bien, Mamacita,\u201d \u201cG.I. Ay, Ay! Blues\u201d and \u201cEn El Barrio.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

El Vez, the Mexican Elvis, turns 25!<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Sunday\u2019s performance at Tiki Oasis will be the first time Lopez and Kaye have shared a stage together in San Diego. Lopez vividly recalls being unable to see Kaye perform in 1976 with Smith at SDSU\u2019s Back Door in 1976.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince I couldn\u2019t get in, I broke into their tour station wagon and stole a set list and a comb!\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, the \u2018Nuggets\u2019 collection Lenny put together was a backbone of my music knowledge as a teenager. I had meet Lenny a few times in my El Vez European tours. I had the pleasure of opening for him and playing with him when we both did solo sets in Seattle in Seattle in 2020, the night before the COVID pandemic shutdown. His Patti Smith gig for the next evening had just been canceled, so we put together an impromptu show.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ElEl Vez, the \u201cMexican Elvis,\u201d is the creation of 2025 Tiki Fest performer (and San Diego native) Robert Lopez. (File photo)<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s edition of Tiki Oasis opened on Wednesday night and runs through Sunday. The roster of bands that will perform ranges from The Bomboras, The Ghastly Ones, The Blue Hawaiians and Jason Hanna and The Swingin\u2019 Bananas to The Tikiyaki Orchestra, The Ding Dong Devils, The Greasy Gills and San Diego\u2019s award-winning Slack Key Ohana.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Tiki Oasis lineup seems really off the wall. Where do all these bands come from?\u201d Kaye said, sounding clearly impressed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d heard of Tiki Oasis before. But I didn\u2019t know anything about it and it seems so much wilder than I could have imagined. Some of those bands they have, it\u2019s just amazing. We\u2019ll be the cherry on top of the cake, but \u2014 man! \u2014 I\u2019m really looking forward to spending the weekend in San Diego, just immersing myself in tiki culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

He chuckled.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of the music at Tiki may seem kitschy, but it\u2019s not,\u201d Kaye said. \u201cA lot of it is Hawaiian-based and I love Hawaiian music, especially the lap steel guitar. The sensibility of Polynesia seems to be an opened-ended scene of musicality through obsession.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaye will also do a DJ set spinning some of his favorite vintage 45 rpm records.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have enough to play for two hours and I\u2019ll try to throw in some surprises,\u201d he said. \u201cI hand-carry them on the plane in a very nice green wooden box.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MikeMike and Anja Stax of the band The Loons are shown in their La Mesa home. They will perform Sunday at Tiki Oasis with Lenny Kaye and various guest artists. (Alejandro Tamayo \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)
\n\u2018Every year is special\u2019<\/p>\n

For the Stax-led Loons, Tiki Oasis has become something of a tradition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have performed there several times,\u201d Stax said. \u201cWe put together the Sunday night show every year, which is kind of the garage\/rock \u2018n\u2019 roll night of the event. This one promises to be special, but every year is special.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe get to see a lot of old friends that travel from other cities to be there. For three or four days, you can immerse yourself in tiki and mid-century culture \u2014 music, art, film, dancing. Everyone has their own preferences of how to experience it. Some people are really into exotic cocktails and the whole mixology culture. Others are into the burlesque shows or the symposiums.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me it\u2019s mostly about being with friends and seeing some great bands play. This year I\u2019m looking forward to The Phantom Surfers and The Ghastly Ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now based in Mexico City, El Vez has also become a regular at Tiki Oasis, where he has been featured in an array of roles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have taught yoga classes, given lectures, played with my various bands, MC\u2019d and had some wonderful drinks,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a yearly catch-up with various friends in one fell swoop weekend!\u201d<\/p>\n

Some Nuggets-era songs are staples at nearly all of Kaye\u2019s performances. Stax is especially looking forward to collaborating with Love cofounder Echols and to singing the 1966 Electric Prunes\u2019 classic, \u201cI Had Too Much to Dream Last Night\u201d with Kaye.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe thing is,\u201d Stax said, \u201call those Nuggets songs are guaranteed crowd-pleasers if they\u2019re done right \u2014 especially the ones we\u2019ve chosen \u2014 and we plan on doing them right!\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaye hopes to have local musical treasure Berryhill, a longtime friend, do a song or two at Tiki Oasis on Sunday. But he is reluctant to plan or divulge too much in advance.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not a person who figures out things too early,\u201d Kaye said. \u201cI like to see what the atmosphere is like and what the night calls for. I\u2019m pretty loose-limbed. If it gets too scripted, it gets to be a drag and you feel like you\u2019re performing it, as opposed to living it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis will be fun, and that\u2019s what the point of Tiki Oasis seems to be. Don\u2019t take yourself too seriously, have some levity and a sense of humor, and also a sense of the bizarre. That, to me, is what Nuggets is about.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0Tiki Oasis\u2019 Shake, Shout & Shimmy closing concert<\/p>\n

With: <\/strong>Lenny Kaye & The San Diego Nugget Pickers, The Bomboras, The Ghastly Ones, The Blue Hawaiians<\/p>\n

When:<\/strong> 5 p.m., Sunday<\/p>\n

Where:<\/strong> Town and Country Resort, 500 Hotel Circle North, Mission Valley, San Diego<\/p>\n

Tickets:<\/strong> $45 (online advance price), $55 (at the door on Sunday); three-day Thursday through Saturday passes cost $195 at the door<\/p>\n

Online:<\/strong> tikioasis.com\/ticket<\/a><\/p>\n

In tune with Tiki Oasis<\/p>\n

Gerry Casale of Devo and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Al Jardine of the Beach Boys have performed at previous editions of Tiki Oasis. So have such varied acts as The Chocolate Watchband, Lavay Smith, The Sonics, Los Straitjackets, Tremolo Beer Gut and Man Or Astro-Man?<\/p>\n

But pinpointing exactly how many bands and solo artists have performed at Tiki Oasis since its inception 25 years ago is difficult, even for the event\u2019s organizers. This partial list provides a reasonable overview.<\/p>\n

Adrian Demain\u2019s Cheap Leis<\/p>\n

Agent Orange<\/p>\n

Al Jardine and His Endless Summer Band<\/p>\n

Alika Lyman Group<\/p>\n

Alvino and The Dwells<\/p>\n

Ape<\/p>\n

Big Sandy and His Fly Rite Boys<\/p>\n

\"VeteranVeteran surf-rock favorites Los Straitjackets are one of the many bands that has performed at Tiki Oasis over the years. (File photo)<\/p>\n

Big Sandy with Los Straitjackets<\/p>\n

Black Magic Beach Party<\/p>\n

Bomb\u00f3n<\/p>\n

Boss Fink<\/p>\n

Bovver Street Scorchas<\/p>\n

Bradipos IV<\/p>\n

Calypso Cats<\/p>\n

Casino Royale<\/p>\n

Chris \u201cSugarballs\u201d Sprague and His 8 Wheelers<\/p>\n

Chum<\/p>\n

Clouseaux<\/p>\n

Codename Carter<\/p>\n

Creepxotica<\/p>\n

Davie Allan & The Arrows<\/p>\n

Deadbolt<\/p>\n

Debra Iyall<\/p>\n

Deke Dickerson & The Whippersnappers<\/p>\n

Dirty Fuse<\/p>\n

Don Tiki<\/p>\n

Donna Loren<\/p>\n

Drifting Sand<\/p>\n

El Vez<\/p>\n

Ernie Menehune<\/p>\n

Fisherman 203 Kitty Chow<\/p>\n

Fono 66<\/p>\n

Frankie\u2019s Baja Marimba Mania<\/p>\n

\"GeraldDevo\u2019s Gerald Casale has performed at Tiki Oasis, sans Devo. (Drew A. Kelley)<\/p>\n

Gerry Casale of Devo<\/p>\n

Geronimo and The Scalpers<\/p>\n

Ghoulygal<\/p>\n

Hale\u2019iwa Island Trio<\/p>\n

Herb<\/p>\n

I Belli Di Waikiki<\/p>\n

Infernal Order of The Black Flame<\/p>\n

Ixtahuele<\/p>\n

Jack \u201cMr. Bongo\u201d Constanzo<\/p>\n

Jackie Mendez Band<\/p>\n

Jason Hanna and The Swingin\u2019 Bananas<\/p>\n

\"JesikaJesika von Rabbit is a Tiki Oasis music alum. (Aydra Swan)<\/p>\n

Jesika von Rabbit<\/p>\n

Jimmy Psycho Experiment<\/p>\n

Joey & His Showmen<\/p>\n

Johnny Aloha & Sage Guyton<\/p>\n

Johnny Ramos and Jaalene \u2018Queen of the Teens\u2019<\/p>\n

Jon & The Nightriders<\/p>\n

Jonathan Stout & His Campus Five<\/p>\n

Josie Cotton<\/p>\n

Kahulanui<\/p>\n

Kid Ramos & Johnny Ramos<\/p>\n

Kim Tsoy<\/p>\n

Kimo Delgado<\/p>\n

King Kukulele<\/p>\n

King Paris<\/p>\n

Kitten on the Keys<\/p>\n

L\u2019Exotighost<\/p>\n

Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers<\/p>\n

Lee Presson & The Nails<\/p>\n

Les Grys Grys<\/p>\n

Lil\u2019 Mo and The Dynaflos<\/p>\n

The Little Richards<\/p>\n

Los Freneticos<\/p>\n

Los Pakalolos<\/p>\n

Los Shimmy Shakers<\/p>\n

Los Straitjackets<\/p>\n

Los Sweepers<\/p>\n

Los Tiki Phantoms<\/p>\n

Los Venturas<\/p>\n

Love<\/p>\n

Lushy<\/p>\n

Man Or Astro-Man?<\/p>\n

Marc and The Escorts<\/p>\n

Martini Kings<\/p>\n

Marty Lush & His Latin Livers<\/p>\n

Maureen & The Mercury 5<\/p>\n

Meshugga Beach Party<\/p>\n

Millionaire Beach Bums<\/p>\n

Mitch Polzak<\/p>\n

Mohama Saz<\/p>\n

Mongo Lounge<\/p>\n

Monsters From Mars<\/p>\n

Orchestra Superstring<\/p>\n

Par Avion<\/p>\n

Pearl Harbour Country<\/p>\n

Phast n\u2019 Bulbous<\/p>\n

Point Doom<\/p>\n

Pollo Del Mar<\/p>\n

Preston Epps<\/p>\n

Project: Pimento<\/p>\n

Richard Cheese & Lounge Against the Machine<\/p>\n

Robert Drasnin Orchestra<\/p>\n

Roy Rapid and The Rhythm Rock Trio<\/p>\n

\"GuitaristGuitarist Pat Beers and his San Diego band The Schizophonics have performed at Tiki Oasis. (David Wolff-Patrick\/Redferns)<\/p>\n

The Schizophonics<\/p>\n

Seabase<\/p>\n

Seksu Roba<\/p>\n

Shorty\u2019s Swingin\u2019 Coconuts<\/p>\n

Sir Bald Diddley<\/p>\n

Skip Heller Noirchestra<\/p>\n

Slack Key Ohana<\/p>\n

Slim Jenkins<\/p>\n

Smokin\u2019 Menehunes<\/p>\n

Southern Culture on the Skids<\/p>\n

Surfer Joe<\/p>\n

Taimane Gardner<\/p>\n

The 5.6.7.8\u2019s<\/p>\n

\"JesseThe reggae-fueled Los Angeles band The Aggrolites, featuring guitarist and singer Jesse Wagner, has performed at Tiki Oasis. (Kelly A. Swift)<\/p>\n

The Aggrolites<\/p>\n

The Amalgamated<\/p>\n

The Amandas<\/p>\n

The Apemen<\/p>\n

The B-Stars<\/p>\n

The Barbwires<\/p>\n

The Bikini Beachcombers<\/p>\n

The Black Widows<\/p>\n

The Blue Hawaiians<\/p>\n

The Bomboras<\/p>\n

The Capsouls<\/p>\n

The Charades<\/p>\n

The Chocolate Watchband<\/p>\n

The Colony Boys<\/p>\n

The Crawdaddys<\/p>\n

The Creepy Creeps<\/p>\n

The Del Reys<\/p>\n

The Diaboliks<\/p>\n

The Diddley Daddies<\/p>\n

The Ding Dong Devils<\/p>\n

The Greasy Gills<\/p>\n

The Double Whammy\u2019s<\/p>\n

The El Caminos<\/p>\n

The Engine Room<\/p>\n

The Exotics<\/p>\n

The Fleshtones<\/p>\n

The Friki Tikis<\/p>\n

The Ghastly Ones<\/p>\n

The Go Go Rillas<\/p>\n

The Go Going Gone Girls<\/p>\n

The Hang Ten Hangmen<\/p>\n

The Hukilau Hot Shots<\/p>\n

The Hula Girls<\/p>\n

The Huntington Cads<\/p>\n

The Hypnotiques<\/p>\n

The Insect Surfers<\/p>\n

The Intoxicats<\/p>\n

The Kilaueas<\/p>\n

The Lampshades<\/p>\n

The Lively Ones<\/p>\n

The Loons<\/p>\n

The Love Me Nots<\/p>\n

The Lucky Stars<\/p>\n

The Maikai Gents<\/p>\n

The Manakooras<\/p>\n

The Messer Chups<\/p>\n

The Mission Creeps<\/p>\n

The Nashville Ramblers<\/p>\n

The Neptunas<\/p>\n

The New Les Baxter Orchestra<\/p>\n

The New Waves<\/p>\n

The Nightimes<\/p>\n

The Ogres<\/p>\n

The Outta Sites<\/p>\n

The Phantom Four<\/p>\n

The Phantom Surfers<\/p>\n

The Phenomenauts<\/p>\n

The Primitive Finks<\/p>\n

The Red Fox Tails<\/p>\n

The Rosalyns<\/p>\n

The Sand Devils<\/p>\n

The Satin Chaps<\/p>\n

The Satin Dollz<\/p>\n

The Scimitars<\/p>\n

The Seeds<\/p>\n

The Ship Disturbers<\/p>\n

The Shockwaves<\/p>\n

The Sonics<\/p>\n

The Sound Reasons<\/p>\n

\"PublicityA latter-day edition of the band The Standells performed at Tiki Oasis. The group is shown here in 1967, two years after scoring its biggest hit with \u201cDIrty Water.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Standells<\/p>\n

The Surfbroads<\/p>\n

The Surfrajettes<\/p>\n

The Tiki Tones<\/p>\n

The Tikiyaki Orchestra<\/p>\n

The Tourmaliners<\/p>\n

The Trailer Park Casanovas, with El Vez<\/p>\n

The Unclaimed<\/p>\n

The Untamed Youth<\/p>\n

The Untouchables<\/p>\n

The Volcanics<\/p>\n

The Whys<\/p>\n

The Woggles<\/p>\n

The Wyld Gooms<\/p>\n

Thee Swank Bastards<\/p>\n

Threesome<\/p>\n

Tiki Joe\u2019s Ocean<\/p>\n

TikiTronic<\/p>\n

Tim Polecat<\/p>\n

Tom Kenny & The Hi-Seas<\/p>\n

Tremolo Beer Gut<\/p>\n

Truus De Groot<\/p>\n

Ukulele Hiro<\/p>\n

Venturesmania<\/p>\n

Vic Trevino<\/p>\n

Vicky Tafoya & The Big Beat<\/p>\n

Waitiki<\/p>\n

Zombie Surf Camp<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lenny Kaye has performed in San Diego a fair number of times since making his area debut in…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":126485,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5134],"tags":[5229,1582,276,171,1370,5424,3549,3550,7264,1072,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-126484","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-california","11":"tag-entertainment","12":"tag-latest-headlines","13":"tag-music-and-concerts","14":"tag-san-diego","15":"tag-san-diego-county","16":"tag-sandiego","17":"tag-things-to-do","18":"tag-united-states","19":"tag-united-states-of-america","20":"tag-unitedstates","21":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","22":"tag-us","23":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114987837800761039","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=126484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126484\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/126485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=126484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=126484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=126484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}