Lisa Haley and the Zydekats will perform on Friday, April 15, at 5:30 p.m. on Bowling Green Lawn, Scripps College. Bring a picnic or purchase dinner at the Malott Commons Dining Hall for this outdoor concert. This event is free and open to the public. It is part of the Levitt on the Lawn at Scripps Concert Series presented by Pasadena’s Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts and sponsored by Scripps alumna Elizabeth Levitt Hirsch. For more information, please contact the Scripps College Malott Commons Office at (909) 607-9372.
Lisa Haley and the Zydekats are Lisa Haley, lead singer, David Jackson, accordion and vocals, Chuck Alvarez, guitar and vocals, Gary Ferguson on drums and percussion, Skip Edwards on keyboards and accordion, and Andy Anders, bass and vocals. Lisa Haley and the Zydekats have performed at thousands of venues throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan. The band has been featured on “The Rhythm of Life,” currently broadcasting on BBC-1 in Europe and on the Discovery Channel in the U.S., and has recorded soundtracks for television commercials.
Lisa Haley, lead singer, also plays the violin, viola, mandolin, Cajun accordion, guitar, and washboard. The Los Angeles Times describes her as a “one-of-a-kind cornbread voice…Ã la the bluesy moans of Janis Joplin.” Lisa has worked with George Martin, The Beatles producer; Grammy winner KebMo’, who co-produced her latest album “Talking to the Sun”; Brian Setzer; John Hiatt; Toad the Wet Sprocket; and a host of others.
Jazz guitarist Chuck Alvarez has toured extensively with Tim Weisberg. He has also performed and recorded with David Benoit. Before joining the Zydekats, he was a member of The Twisters and musical director for the Grammy winning group, The Emotions.
Gary Ferguson, drummer, has performed with Stevie Nicks, Ray Charles, John Hiatt, Steve Luthaker, k.d. lang, Edgar Winter, Cher, Olivia Newton John, Eddie Money, Billy Preston, Etta James, and Gary Moore. His music has also been featured in many television shows, commercials, and films.
Skip Edwards, on accordion and keyboard, has also performed with rock and country-rock greats such as Eddie Money, Lucinda Williams, the Desert Rose Band, Johnny Rivers, and Buck Owens.
Andy Anders, bassist for many years for Cajun accordion legend Joe Simien, has also performed with T. Lou, The Platters, and is a protégé of great jazz bassist Alphonso Johnson.
The performance on the Scripps College campus serves as a prelude to the summer concerts at the Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts in Old Pasadena. In the spirit of the Levitt, the concerts are free and open to the public. As an alumna of Scripps College, Elizabeth Levitt Hirsch is producing these concerts as a means to give back to the Scripps community and increase awareness in the greater Los Angeles area of the summer concert series that she has brought to life in Pasadena.