The Chronicle profiled the Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society on its fortieth anniversary last Sunday, as well as its owner Pete Douglas. Some of my favorite moments have been Sunday afternoons at the Bach.
The 40-year anniversary will be marked today with a screening of “Jazz on the West Coast: The Lighthouse,” a 77-minute documentary chronicling the famed Lighthouse jazz club in Hermosa Beach. Stars of the so-called L.A. “Cool” style like Bud Shank and Shorty Rogers first gained prominence in now-legendary 1950s Lighthouse jam sessions led by bassist Howard Rumsey. The Lighthouse just happens to be where a teenage Pete Douglas first caught the jazz bug.
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Douglas, 76, is solidly built, with a weathered face and gray hair partially covered by a knit cap, He blends an easy, raspy laugh and a sly sense of humor that he often turns on himself. Dressed in blue jeans and a dark work shirt, Douglas looks indeed the “old Beat hipster type,” as he describes himself. Davis grew up near the beaches around Los Angeles. Discharged from the army after service in the Korean War, and armed only with a sociology degree, in 1957 Douglas took a position as a San Mateo County probation officer, a job he hated.
This is a must-read.
Barry et al.,
Please note that the Chronicle article began with a mention of an atmospheric afternoon featuring the Michael O'Neill Quintet plus Kenny Washington. Michael lives in Moss Beach and can be heard with other top-notch Bay Area jazz musicians several evenings each week at Cetrella.
Carl May