Rodeo Clowns

September 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-09-01T19:03:52Z

Another good month... We picked up another festival in Burlingame for the OLA schools, on Sept. 13th, Chris Cobb will be joining us again on Saturday Sept 20th in Pacifica, and on the 27th, I'll be celebrating my birthday at Behan's Pub.

September 5 (Friday) - Grant & Green SF (North Beach), CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
September 6 (Saturday) - Private Party, San Carlos, CA 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
September 12 (Friday) - Pioneer Saloon, Woodside, CA 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM
September 13 (Saturday) - OLA Fun Faire, Burlingame, CA 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
September 19 (Friday) - La Barca's, SF (Cow Hollow), 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM
September 20 (Saturday) - Seahorse Saloon Pacifica, CA 9:00 PM - 12:30 AM
September 24 (Wednesday) - Johnny Foley's, SF (Union Square), CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
September 26 (Friday) - Cafe Trieste (Sausalito) Sausalito, CA 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
September 27 (Saturday) - Behan's Pub, Burlingame, CA, 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM (My Birthday!!)

August 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-08-02T05:26:55Z

We had a great time at the Italian festival and look forward to playing more festivals next season. In August we are back at La Barca, Behans and even have a gig at the Pioneer Saloon in Woodside.

August 9 (Saturday) - Private Party, Cliff Hotel Sf, CA 7:30 PM - 11:30 PM
August 16 (Saturday) - Behan's Pub, Burlingame, CA, 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
August 22 (Friday) - La Barca's, SF (Cow Hollow), 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM
August 23 (Saturday) Blush, Burlingame, CA 3:00 PM - 7:00 PM
August 29 (Friday) - Pioneer Saloon, Woodside, CA 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM
August 30 (Saturday) Blush, Burlingame, CA 3:00 PM - 6:00 PM
August 30 (Saturday) - Private Party, Hillsborough, CA 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM

July 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-06-29T00:12:13Z

Another good month for us. We'll be playing our first festival in San Mateo on Sunday, July 20th

July 3 (Wednesday) - Junior Rodeo, Woodside Mounted Patrol, CA 7:30 PM - 11:30 PM
July 5 (Saturday) - Grant & Green, SF (North Beach), CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
July 12 (Saturday) - Private Party, South San Francisco, CA 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
July 12 (Saturday) - Behan's Pub, Burlingame, CA, 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
July 16 (Wednesday) - Johnny Foley's, SF (Union Square), CA 9:30 PM - 1:00 AM
July 18 (Friday) - Private Party, San Mateo CA 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
July 20 (Sunday) - Italian Festival, San Mateo CA, 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
July 25 (Friday) - Maggie McGarry's, SF (North Beach), CA 9:45 PM - 1:30 AM
July 26 (Saturday) - Johnny Foley's, SF (Union Square), CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM

June 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-06-06T22:56:41Z

Another interesting month for us. Scot and I will perform as a duo at the Seahorse Saloon in Pacifica which is where we live. The following weekend we are at Nick's @ Rockaway which is always a fun evening. There is a restaurant and a hotel with very reasonable prices. Should be a fun weekend. I'll do a Sunday brunch if we can get enough people together. =)

June 4 (Wednesday) - Johnny Foley's, SF (Union Square), CA 9:30 PM - 1:00 AM
June 5 (Thursday) - Blue Chalk Cafe, Palo Alto, CA 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
June 7 (Saturday) - Private Party, Woodside, CA 7:30 PM - 10:30 AM
June 14 (Saturday) - Seahorse Saloon, Pacifica, CA 9:00 PM - 12:00 AM
June 21 (Saturday) - Nick's Rockaway, Pacifica, CA 8:00 PM - 12:00 AM
June 28 (Saturday) - La Barca's, SF (Cow Hollow), 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM

Upcoming Spring/Summer Special Events

2008-05-13T05:56:10Z

We have a busy spring and summer ahead of us. I will continue to email out our gigs for the current week. However, we have several noteworthy future dates in the Spring and Summer I would like to share with you.

May 16 (Friday) Aragon Foundation Fundraiser @ Kingfish 8:30 PM - 11:30 PM This is both a celebration and an attempt to raise a little more money for the Aragon foundation. They have managed to raise $450k+ and have less than $50 to go. This money will be used to put an all-weather surface (track & field) on their existing athletic field. This will benefit the athletic program and also allow students and the community access to the field year around. There is a donation of $25 at the door. For more information on the event, please contact Ken Constantino at 650-814-0277, email: kencon@apr.com

]]> May 30th (Friday), Grant & Green, 7 PM - 9 PM. John Lawton and Blues Guitarist Chris Cobb, will play 2 hours of Blues Based music. This will be my first Blues gig where I get to perform a couple hours of blues-based music. Chris Cobb is a pro, well known for his Blues Chops. It will be just Chris and myself. Expect a lot of guitar playing, this guy rips! Please note its the early show from 7 PM - 9 PM.

June 14th, 9 PM - 11 PM - An intimate evening of music with Scot and John of the Rodeo Clowns at the Seahorse Saloon in Pacifica. Scot may even bring his upright bass this evening

June 21st - Nick's at Rockaway, Pacifica CA 8 PM - 12 AM - Once again we have been invited back to one of the best places to play live music in the Bay Area. Its an old-schoool lounge with Ocean Views that was built with live music in mind. The venue has both a restaurant and a hotel so you can make a weekend of it. They are known for their crab sandwich. If you come out make sure someone orders it. Its my favorite. (The sandwich is mentioned here in the comments section: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/375526)

July 20th - Italian Festival, San Mateo, Stage at B Street & Baldwin. Time: TBD http://festafoundation.org/streetfair.html This event is always on a warm, sunny day. This will be our first appearance at a festival. We look forward to playing more festivals in the future. This events gets a very large crowd.

This week.... there are two events both unfortunately on the same evening that are worth seeing. Marla Goody our favorite female vocalist (she is the female lead vocalist in the Rodeo Clowns) will be part of the featured act Tia Carroll and Hard Work this wednesday at the Little Fox, Redwood City CA. The Band will go on from 9 PM - 10 PM. I just saw this band on Sunday at the Alameda Street festival and they are an excellent Blues influenced band. Tia's vocals are a force to be reckoned with and Marla does a superb job of backing her up. Tia is a special lady. See her now while its affordable (free!! - but you should tip the band...)

The same evening, our friend Sean Cummings, the Tahoe Bagpiper (http://tahoebagpiper.com), who occasionally helps us get the music started with his bagpipes, will be performing with his band O'l Cheeky Bastards at the Red Devil Lounge. They recently released a nice sounding CD (their first) and even got a mention on page 9 of the May issue of Guitar Player magazine. Their band leader Dave Dalton was a member is several well know SF-based punk bands. They are doing the Post-apocolyptic punk/americana thing these days and they have a clever set of songs with an all-star line-up backing them up.

May 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-05-06T06:54:30Z

Spring is upon us. The days are getting longer, the weather is getting better. Its time to start spending more time outside!! This month I will be playing an interesting spot at the Grant & Green with Blues Guitarist Chris Cobb. We will be doing the early shift as a duo, playing 2 blues-based sets. Chris is one of the top players in the area.

May 3 (Saturday) - Johnny Foley's, SF (Union Square), CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
May 9 (Friday) - Blue Chalk Cafe, Palo Alto, CA 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
May 10 (Saturday) - Private Party, San Mateo, CA 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
May 16 (Friday) - Private Party, Kingfish, San Mateo, CA 9:00 PM - 12:00 AM
May 22 (Thursday) - Blue Chalk Cafe, Palo Alto, CA 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
May 23 (Friday) - La Barca's, SF (Cow Hollow), 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM
May 24 (Saturday) - Maggie McGarry's, SF (North Beach), CA 9:45 PM - 1:30 AM
May 30 (Friday) - Grant & Green, North Beach, SF, 8:00 PM - 10:20 PM
*** two Blues-influenced sets with Pro blues guitarist Chris Cobb ***
May 31 (Saturday) - Private Party, Kingfish, San Mateo, CA 9:00 PM - 12:00 AM

About the 2008 Rodeo Clowns

2008-04-06T00:18:52Z

Known as one of the Bay Area's top-flight acoustic/electric bands, the Rodeo Clowns deliver tight, dancable covers of classic Rock & Roll by legends such as the Doobie Brothers, Steve Miller, Van Morrison Jefferson Airplane and Jack Johnson.

The band is lead by John Lawton (guitar/vocals) and Marla Goody (vocals) and backed by a talented, professional rhythm section of Scot Larsen (bass/vocals) and Steve Pefley (drums).

The band performs as a four piece, with male and female lead vocals, guitar, bass and drums. Smaller configurations are also available depending on the event requirements. The Rodeo Clowns are in high demand perrorming 6-8 gigs per month, including private parties, corporate events, weddings, showcase clubs and bars.

]]> John Lawton is a respected guitarist in the Bay Area know primarily to play an acoustic guitar over a wide range of musical styles. He studied music theory at the College of San Mateo and Jazz theory privately with Dave Smith back in the early 80's. John was part of the Bay Area music scene back in the 80's and has returned to bay area music scene as the band leader of the Rodeo Clowns established in 2005.

Other notable musicians that John has shared the stage with include Norton Buffalo (Steve Miller, Doobie Brothers), Hardy Hemphill (Shania Twain) and Chris Cobb.

Marla Goody is a 4th generation vocalist. She has been performing since the age of 10. She travelled with Pink Floyd tribute band "Which One's Pink." Her soulful rendition of "Great Gig In The Sky" could be heard on LA Radio Stations in the late 90's, including the "House Of Blues." She has performed with Michael Douglas of "The Diamonds" and Tommy Sands.

Marla's Blues background is evident in her singing, and her ability extends beyond the blues. Marla has a strong voice, some of her stand out songs include "Wihite Rabbit" - Jefferson Airplane, "Black Horse and a Cherry Tree" - K. T. Tunstal and "Highway to Hell" - AC/DC.

In addition to singing with the Rodeo Clowns you can catch Marla performing with Tia Carroll & Hard Work. (see http://tiacarroll.com) She also sits in several of the Pro-Blues Jams in the Bay Area and will be hosting her own evening at the well-known Redwood City Blues held at the Little Fox on June 25th, 2008.

Scot Larsen is a pure bass player with over 10 years of experience as a professional musician. He excels at all of genres visited by the Rodeo Clowns band. Scot graduated with honors from the renowned Bass Institute of Technology, where he studied under bass greats Gary Willis, Jeff Berlin and Putter Smith.

Scot has performed throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, Japan and the Caribbean with legendary performers such as Dolly Parton, The Jordanaires, Phyllis Diller, Dom Deluise, The Platters, Barbara McNair, and Freddie Bell. A first call bassist in Las Vegas throughout the '90's, Scot performed in many of the Entertainment Capital’s showrooms and lounges before settling down in the San Francisco Bay area, where he can currently be seen performing regularly with the top-notch cover band, The Rodeo Clowns.

Steve Pefley is a consummate professional and an extremely versatile drummer who provides smooth transitions and steady rhythms across a wide range of music styles. His career has spanned over twenty-five years and encompasses a full range of musical experiences. These include studio and theatre work, industrial shows, cruise ship work, casual engagements, club dates and road work in a wide variety of musical styles.

Some of the artists Steve has played with include Nelson Riddle, Danny Thomas, Shirley Jones, Gordon McCrea, Martha Reaves and the Vandellas, Little Anthony, Lady Bo, Joann Castle, Hoyt Axton, Johnny Paycheck, David Frizzel,Bobby Pinson, Noki Edwards, Billy Armstrong, Arthur Duncan, Hong Kong pop artist Anthony Lun, San Jose Symphony Pops Orchestra, Princess Cruises, Contra Costa Music Theatre and Broadway By The Bay.
Steve also teaches drum lessons out of San Jose Pro Drum. (See: http://www.sanjoseprodrum.com)

April 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-03-30T21:04:22Z

What started as a light schedule has changed and looks like another busy month for us. Hope you can make it out to one of our shows!

April 5 (Saturday) - Behan's Irish Pub, Burlingame, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
April 11 (Friday) - La Barca's, Cow Hollow, SF, 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM
April 12 (Saturday) - Grant & Green, North Beach, SF, 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
April 19 (Saturday) - Private Party, Danville, CA 7:00 PM - 11:00 PM
April 24 (Thursday) - Blue Chalk Cafe, Palo Alto, CA 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
April 26 (Saturday) - Private Party, Menlo Atherton, CA 4:30 PM - 7:30 PM

March 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-02-25T22:33:54Z

Feb was a great month for us and March looks promising. We are playing at all of our favorite spots this month. Please come out and enjoy an evening of live music with us

March 8 (Saturday) - Maggie McGarry's, SF (North Beach), CA 9:45 PM - 1:30 AM
March 12 (Wednesday) - Johnny Foley's, SF (Union Square), CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
March 21 (Friday) - Maggie McGarry's, SF (North Beach), CA 9:45 PM - 1:30 AM
March 22 (Saturday) - Behan's Irish Pub, Burlingame, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
March 27 (Thursday) - Blue Chalk Cafe, Palo Alto, CA 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
March 29 (Saturday) - La Barca's, SF (Cow Hollow), 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM

February 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-02-06T04:23:15Z

We have the Super Bowl weekend off, and after that, we are off to the races! Another "first time" for us this month. We will be performing upstairs at Kingfish for a party open to the public!! It is the weekend after Mardi Gras and the weekend before Valentine's Day. So pick your holiday and come down to enjoy some great atmosphere and good music with us.

February 8 (Friday) - Forty's Pub, San Bruno, CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
February 9 (Saturday) - Kingfish Restaurant, San Mateo, CA 9 PM - 12 AM
February 14 (Thursday) - O'Neill's Irish Pub, San Mateo, CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
February 15 (Friday) - Maggie McGarry's, SF (North Beach), CA 9:45 PM - 1:30 AM
February 16 (Saturday) - La Barca's, SF (Cow Hollow), 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
February 22 (Friday) - Johnny Foley's, SF (Union Square), CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
February 23 (Saturday) - Behan's Irish Pub, Burlingame, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
February 28 (Thursday) - Blue Chalk Cafe, Palo Alto, CA 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Kingfish on 2/9/08

2008-01-29T03:23:15Z

We will be playing a special event at Kingfish (San Mateo) on February 9th, 9 PM - 12 AM. It is open to the public and will be held in the Estate Room upstairs. This is a beautiful location for live music.

We have played several private parties in this location and it is a beautiful place. Please come by and join us for a very special evening with us.

Rodeo Clowns - Jack Johnson

2008-01-05T18:26:25Z

I just posted a cover of Rodeo Clowns by Jack Johnson. Its one of my favorite songs and I recorded it to test out a new large diaphragm condenser microphone that I recently bought. I have noticed that we get a few people to the site who are looking for this song. Now they can at least hear my version of it. Its very difficult to pull off his songs because his arrangements are so simple and pure, and perfectly executed.

Enough of me. Here is a link to the song. Let me know what you think.

Rodeo Clowns (Cover) - Written by Jack Johnson, performed by John Lawton (guitar, vocals) and Scot Larsen (upright bass) of the Rodeo Clowns.

Coming soon... I also have a copy of a live acoustic version performed in the KFog play space. Just need to convert it to an mp3 and post it.

2nd Annual IBL Crab Feed Benefit - 1/26/08, 6 PM - 11 PM

2008-01-05T05:15:07Z

We are scheduled to play a fundraiser out in Pacifica at the Community Center in Linda Mar, Pacifica. If you would like to come to this event please take a look at the flyer (view image) and contact Kristi Foster (650) 355-3311 or Charlotte Jacobs (650) 359-6033 to make your reservation.

You will need to purchase your ticket in advance - they will not be sold at the door. Tickets cost $40, you get a nice crab dinner and some wine, and some good entertainment.

Update - The event is sold out. There are a few tickets floating around. Contact me directly mailto:info@rodeoclownsband.com if you are interested in going.

January 2008 for the Rodeo Clowns

2008-01-02T18:27:25Z

Happy News Years! Another first for us, we will be playing La Barca's in the Cow Hollow/Marina district this month. Please come out and join us for an evening of live music.

January 10 (Thursday) - O'Neill's Irish Pub, San Mateo, CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
January 11 (Friday) - Grant & Green, North Beach, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
January 12 (Saturday) - Kingfish Restaurant, Private Party, San Mateo, CA 8 PM - 11 PM
January 19 (Saturday) - La Barca's, Cow Hollow, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
January 24 (Thursday) - Blue Chalk Cafe, Palo Alto, CA 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
January 25 (Friday) - Pioneer Saloon, Woodside, CA 9:00 PM - 1:00 AM
January 26 (Saturday) - Crab Feed Benefit (more info) Pacifica, CA 6 PM - 11:00 PM

December 2007 for the Rodeo Clowns

2007-12-02T18:41:34Z

Heading into the holiday season. This is always a great time of the year for us. This month we play Ireland's 32 for the first time, and we have a Sunday gig at Johnny Foley's the night before New Years. The owner told me that the night before New Years is always packed. Hmm... should be interesting.

December 1 (Saturday) - Private Party, San Mateo
December 14 (Friday) - Private Party, Santa Cruz
December 15 (Saturday) - Winter's Tavern, Pacifica, 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
December 20 (Thursday) - O'Neill's Irish Pub, San Mateo, CA 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
December 22 (Saturday) - Johnny Foleys, Union Square, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
December 28 (Friday) - Maggie McGarry's, North Beach, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
December 29 (Saturday) - Ireland's 32, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM
December 30 (Sunday) - Johnny Foleys, Union Square, SF 9:30 PM - 1:30 AM

** New Years eve is still available for the Clowns!!