If you're in the Southern California area, or just want to drive somewhere and catch a great night of music, circle Thursday, September 15th, 2011 on your calendar. On that night, at the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach Amphitheater in Newport Beach, California the "Friends of Jeff Golub All Star Benefit Concert" will be held to raise money for blues-rock guitarist Golub to offset his growing medical bills. A number of folks have already committed to performing at the event, including Golub himself, as well as Mindi Abair, Rick Braun, Brian Culbertson, Richard Elliott, Jeff Lorber, Eric Marienthal, Phillipe Saisse, John Waite, Peter White, and others to be announced.
While recording his most recent album, the excellent The Three Kings, his heartfelt tribute to guitarists B.B. King, Albert King, and Freddie King, Golub began having trouble with his right eye, a situation that led to the loss of sight in the eye. Earlier this summer, Golub began having similar trouble with his left eye, and has now gone completely blind. Doctors have diagnosed collapsed optical nerves, a rare but not unheard of condition. Golub is currently undergoing extensive testing with eye specialists in hope of a cure for his blindness, but neither the testing nor any eventual fix to the problem are cheap, thus the benefit show on his behalf.
Jeff Golub is a talented guitarist with a lengthy and diverse resume to his credit. Golub toured and recorded with Rod Stewart, spending seven years with the singer, and he recorded seven albums and performed on three world tours alongside rocker Billy Squier. When he launched his own career in the 1990s, Golub instantly won acclaim as a jazz guitarist, but the blues has always been lurking in the background. Golub was a member of the James Montgomery Blues Band while attending Berklee School of Music in Boston, and he plunged headfirst into the genre with 2009's acclaimed Blues For You album. The Three Kings has blues fans sitting up and taking notice of the man's talents.
Check with the Hyatt Concerts website for ticket availability and information on this worthwhile benefit show for Jeff Golub.
Photo courtesy Entertainment One Records
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