Show at House of Blues Jan 11th

Upcoming Shows House of Blues - Sunday, January 11th, 7:30 sharp! 1055 5th Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101 playing a half hour set to support our participation on the "Staring At The Sun" compilation album featuring San Diego! Be there or be square!

Review in SD Troubadour

Christopher Cash Invisible By Bart Mendoza

With a name like Christopher Cash Perkins, incorporating as it does the sur-names of two of the founding fathers of rock music, the standard is always going to be high when it comes to both musicianship and songwriting. His first album, 2005’s Hollywood Mirage , hinted at what was possible. Invisible delivers. As might be expected of an artist who cites watching the "Ed Sullivan Show" on February 9th, 1964 as a key influence, Invisible is a pleasing mix of sixties-era pop rock with country and folk overtones. The album wears its influences on its sleeves with a sound somewhere between the Smithereens at their hit-making best, a Chris Hillman jam, or Richard Thompson in his pop prime. Cash is backed by an excellent band that features bassist Bill Maine; guitarist Mark Schmidt; and drummer Kevin Walker; with Barry Hovis contributing keyboards; and an all-star group of backing vocalists, including producer Jeff Berkley, Catheryn Beeks, Bill Coomes, and Barbara Nesbitt. Invisible kicks off with its strongest track "Morning Star." Any disc that opens with radio static and sitar is going to grab your attention, and this song does just that. Beatle-esque without being obvious, "Morning Star" has hooks a mile long, capturing the musical innocence of a sixties pop hit, but with a modern edge, particularly noticeable in the layered harmony vocals before the choruses. The title track is also a winner. A mid-tempo ringing guitar riff adorns a melancholy melody line that would sit comfortable in a collection of Townshend demos. Also interesting is "Tangled in Wire," which mixes angular new wave sounding keyboards with a more traditional rock sound. It’s am ear-catching aural experiment and clearly shows that Cash isn’t afraid to take chances with his music. Indeed, Berkley and Cash must be commended for Invisible’s warm, lush production. Case in point, "Houdini Knew." A great title to be sure, and it has nice hooks. But where many performers might be happy to have your basic guitars, bass, drums and overdubbed vocals, for Cash this is just a starting point. Percussion, synthesized strings, spoken-word parts, electronic, and more are blended in, complete with counter melodies. The arrangements really bring out the best in these songs. Even with excellent production, songwriting, and playing, the secret weapon here is the diversity in song and sounds. Cash has his foot in a lot of musical stylings, so Invisible will appeal to a broad spectrum of music listeners, particularly country, power-pop, singer-songwriter, and indie fans. All will find an excellent album worth investigating. Invisible manages to maintain a high standard from start to finish and shows that Cash really knows his way around a melody. Once you hear these songs, you’ll want to hear them again and again. You can get your own copy at CDBaby.com/christophercash2

New Album Available!

	Our new album is finally available for purchase. It has been a long time coming, I know, but I think it came out very well. I'm pleased to report that initial feedback has been very positive. You can get your own copy at CDBaby.com/christophercash2
At this point, I'm not sure if we're going to do a CD release party or not. There have been some efforts made along those lines but its up in the air right now. I'll keep you posted.

Update at last

	Sorry I have been remiss in updating my site. Much has been going on. For starters, my dad died late January so I have been tied up putting he and his affairs to rest. I also have taken a new position with the same company I’ve been working for the last seven years which will require me to travel more. This will be fun as much of the travel will be in Europe, but it will also take a toll on my ability to make music.
The new CD has finally been sent to the duplicators and I expect everything to be complete with product in hand by the end of March. Long time coming, I know, but I am quite happy with the results and I think you will be too. Now that things are settled with my family, I will be trying to reinvigorate my musical efforts. I have got my computer recording stuff all hooked back up and am itching to write some more songs. Stay tuned.

Shows this Friday and Next

Upcoming Shows Boat & Ski - Friday, December 7th, 9pm! 2606 N. Mission Bay Drive - 858-270-0840 NO COVER, ALL AGES, FULL BAR and FOOD. We are opening for our pals "The Bigfellas and playing a full hour! Java Jones - Friday, December 14th, TBA! 631 9th Ave., San Diego CA 92101 (between G & Market) click here for map NO COVER, ALL AGES. This is our first time at this, small intimate venue. Just Bill, Kevin and I will be going unplugged. Should be lots of fun! Dublins Square - Wednesday, January 30th, 10pm 554 Fourth Avenue San Diego, California 92101 Phone: (619) 239-5818 NO COVER, 21 & up. This is a great little pub where we can do out thing and have a beer too ;) Just Bill, Kevin and I will be going unplugged. Should be lots of fun!

Narrow Escape

Another narrow escape for San Diego citizens! The fires really made this Halloween season scary. I was in Boston for work that weekend. On Monday morning, October 19th, I called back home to check messages and was surprised to find two from the San Diego Sheriff’s department telling me to evacuate immediately.

My elderly in-laws live in neighboring Rancho Bernardo and it didn’t take us long to find out that most of that town had been evacuated also. I cut my trip short and hopped the next flight back to San Diego. As the airline circled the city for landing, there were fires everywhere. From that height, we could see what looked like dozens of different patches of smoke and flames. It really looked like a war zone. On the ground you could taste and smell the smoke everywhere. Cell phone use was extremely intermittent. We were able to reach the in-laws briefly and found them rattled and disoriented. They were unable to give us a clear answer about where they were before the call went dead. One thing was certain, the Freeways were closed preventing us from getting anywhere near our house in South Escondido. We went to the area where we thought the in-laws had evacuated to, but could not find them. We searched for an hour or so and then found a Denny’s open serving only a couple of menu items but it was a welcome sight since we had nothing since breakfast at 9am Boston time. I found a place to plug in, and recharge my cell phone while we ate, and again picked up the search for the in-laws. At about 11pm, we finally found them in an ‘overflow’ shelter in Poway. We stayed camped out in the parking lot for another few hours. I heard on the radio that the Northbound Freeway had opened up so I decided to take a drive to see if I could fine out if our home was still standing. The drive North in the wee hours of morning was frightening. I could see on both sides of the Freeway where the fire had been. The Southbound lanes were closed and several trucks were still fighting flames where Lake Hodges comes under the Freeway near Palmerado Rd. Police had most of the exits barricaded and guarded. Northbound Freeway was closed at the 78 but I was able to take the last open exit and reach my house at about 1am. Everything was safe. There was an eerie quiet as I sat on the porch for a few minutes trying to assess whether or not it was safe to bring the family up from the shelter. I could hear only distant sirens, and could not see smoke or flame from my vantage point so I called and had the family make the drive up to our house. We spent a mostly sleepless night on Monday getting up every few minutes to make sure no flames were approaching. We gathered a few valuables and put them into our cars incase we had to make a hasty exit. At about 10am Tuesday morning, the Del Dios fire was in full blaze and I could see flames and smoke getting closer and closer. Helicopters were circling nearly overhead. When I saw a plume of smoke some thirty feet tall rise up above the trees that looked like it was only a block or so away, I decided it was time to make our escape back to the shelter. The folks at the shelter were all very nice, and extremely considerate of my fragile in-laws. They made them feel as welcome and safe as was possible under the circumstances. We stayed at the shelter for a few hours and watched the television for continuous coverage of the fires. By afternoon, they had the Del Dios fire under control and it looked like it was safe for us to return. The Freeways were more operational at this point and only a few exits in the Rancho Bernardo area were still barricaded. We were happy to learn that one of our favorite watering holes was open in Caramel Mountain area so we went there for a hot dinner. Everyone was talking about their experiences. Wednesday morning after breakfast, the in-laws were able to get back to their home. They were spared too, except that the electricity had been off for two days and everything in their refrigerator/freezer was spoiled. I had gotten up quite early and sat out on the porch that morning. In the morning light, it looked a little like a sprinkle of fresh snow had fallen during the night… but this time it wasn’t snow. It was a fine layer of ash. By Thursday, things had gotten back almost to normal. Day jobs, Pets, responsibilities, all back in place as they should be. I was somewhat disappointed to discover that a couple of the guys in the band had left the area during the fires, and would not be able to make it back in time for our show at the Boat & Ski club. I had to cancel, nearly last minute, which is not something I like doing. Under the circumstances, it was ok… but I’ve always been a ‘The Show Must Go On” kinda guy. Have no fear, the Dec 7th show will go on as planned! Some of the things I found the most interesting about the whole were how everyone really pulls together when things get tough. People were far friendlier, and more considerate during this crisis than under normal circumstances. Signs began to spring up around the neighborhood thanking Police and Firefighters. One of my local pubs, sent word out the firefighters that they were welcome to come by for free dinners. I was there when a whole squad of them parked their fire trucks in the lot and came in. The crowd stood up and applauded. It was nice to see them being recognized for their heroic efforts. I was also surprised at how resilient people are. Even those who lost everything seemed to bounce back remarkably. All in all, everyone did a fantastic job dealing with this crisis. People reached out to each other, volunteerism was so plentiful that people had to be turned away. I feel very lucky in that no one I know was really hurt or displaced. Considering the magnitude of the event, very few people were. The whole thing give me a renewed faith in human nature, and makes me proud to call myself a San Diegan.

Another Summer update

	Greetings from beautiful Escondido, California. Summer has been really nice so far this year. The pool is warm and inviting. I've been doing some woodworking... including just finishing up the Mahogany, and Ebony ceiling fixture in the style of turn of the (last) Century Architects Greene and Greene. The glass design is inspired by the big Oak just outside our kitchen window. Kevin my good friend and drummer, has been coming over to my shop to complete work on a beautiful set of Cherry nightstands. They have marble tiles inset into the cabinet tops. They will certainly be a handsome set once completed.
I've signed up to play at "Its a Grind" coffee house in San Marcos on Saturday, September 1st. Still working out the details of the show but it should be good fun. I've got two hours to kill so I'll probably share it with one of my musician buddies. If time permits, I'll show up at this month's The Game. I know you've heard it before, but the album is almost done... only a couple backing vocal sessions and mixing and we can call it complete.

Summer Vacation

	Our Game show back on June 22nd went real well. Smaller crowd than usual but I think lots of people are traveling on Summer Vacation. Speaking of Summer Vacation, the band and I are going to take a few weeks off without scheduled shows. We've been playing live a few times per month for the last two years, so we're going to give it a little rest. Don't worry...No one is quiting!
I'll probably play some acoustic shows when the mood strikes me, but no band shows until around Sept. You'll more than likely see me at The Game shows over the next few months. Oh... I had a great thing happen... got back in touch with Louis Pugliesse of The Intelligence. What a fun, great guy. He's running for LA School Board. Hope he succeeds. He has always been passionate about education and cares about people and progress.

The Game - This Friday June, 22nd 10:30pm

	Well its time for another Game and the Christopher Cash Band will be there to play another set of original music. I didn't have a chance to write my version of the featured song... plus I really couldn't make heads or tails with this month's title "Why I Play." Hell... if I knew that, it would answer at least one of my life's many mysteries. We dusted off a few songs we've not played for a while and, as usual will be featuring several from our almost ready to release album. Hope to see you there. This is the last show we've got on the books for a while so don't miss it.
Here's how to get to The Boat & Ski Club 2606 N. Mission Bay Drive - 858-270-0840. From 5 North take Clairemont exit, go left to N. Mission Bay Drive, turn right and follow it (stay on it!) until it dead ends, gates to the club are on your right just past the bike path. From the other way take Grand/Garnet and head straight towards the Mission Bay Golf Course turnoff (just before 5 south onramp in Pacific Beach). Take a right and continue heading north (past the golf course entrance) until you reach the end of the road and the open gates of the club.

Boat & Ski Club - May 11th, 9pm - Be There!

	We had a great time playing The Game last Friday and we look forward to coming back to the Boat & Ski club again this coming Friday, May 11th at 9pm. We'll be playingi a 45 minute set that includes several tunes from our forthcoming CD, as well as a couple of rockers from the first album. We'll be mixing it up a bit and not playing the same set as last Friday so come on down. It should be a real blast.
Here's how to get to The Boat & Ski Club 2606 N. Mission Bay Drive - 858-270-0840. From 5 North take Clairemont exit, go left to N. Mission Bay Drive, turn right and follow it (stay on it!) until it dead ends, gates to the club are on your right just past the bike path. From the other way take Grand/Garnet and head straight towards the Mission Bay Golf Course turnoff (just before 5 south onramp in Pacific Beach). Take a right and continue heading north (past the golf course entrance) until you reach the end of the road and the open gates of the club.