Here they are, nine necessary know-abouts for the week ahead. It\u2019s the hot-August-nights B9:<\/p>\n
\u27a4 You might remember the country music supergroup back in the day known as the Highwaymen, consisting of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson. On Friday<\/a>, audiences in Santa Cruz get a local taste of that kind of supergroup coolness when a quartet of Santa Cruz dudes takes the stage as the Coastal<\/strong> Highwaymen<\/strong>. They are all musical artists in their own right \u2014 James Durbin, Anthony Arya, Dylan Rose and Nick Gallant \u2014 and they\u2019ll spend the evening at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center sharing songs and stories about songs in a songwriters\u2019 round. During the show\u2019s second set, the foursome will jam together on a Coastal collaboration. You want a big dose of Santa Cruz music circa 2025 all in one sitting? This one fits the bill.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u27a4 How to describe the New York-based Budos Band<\/strong>? The group has as many players as a baseball team, and their sound goes aggressively after the funk beat, with blasts of psychedelia, prog rock and 1970s-flavored Afro-soul mixed in as well. It\u2019s a big, brash, cinematic sound that\u2019s as badass as they come. The band brings their chaos and clamor to The Catalyst on Friday<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u27a4 Weed lovers, rejoice. You\u2019ve found your troubadour. He is Collie Buddz<\/strong>, whose love for puff is evident by his name and by such original songs as \u201cSpark Up\u201d and \u201cSensimilla.\u201d The Bermuda-born reggae\/dancehall star is set to light up \u2014 figuratively speaking \u2014 Felton Music Hall with back-to-back shows<\/a> Saturday and Sunday, just a couple of days after his birthday (today!). Be sure to sing him \u201cHappy Birthday,\u201d if you can remember the words.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u27a4 The R.Blitzer Gallery in the Old Wrigley Building<\/a> on Santa Cruz\u2019s Westside is the site for a dazzling new exhibit for those with a love of creative photography. The show is called \u201cThrough Our Eyes,\u201d<\/strong> and it features more than 100 images from eight outstanding local fine-art photographers in color and black-and-white. The exhibit opens this weekend and there\u2019s a big opening reception planned for Friday<\/a> afternoon.<\/p>\n \u27a4 Kinda hate to acknowledge it, but the summer is frittering away. This week marks the penultimate (an English major\u2019s term for \u201csecond to last\u201d) Midtown Fridays<\/strong> summer block party. The event lights up the neighborhood every Friday<\/a> afternoon, beginning at 5 p.m. at 1111 Soquel Ave., the big parking lot next to the fire station. This week\u2019s live band is Jive Machine. Don\u2019t let the summer get away with block-partying.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u27a4 San Francisco folksinger and songwriter Andy Cabic has built a nice career recording under the name Vetiver<\/strong>, emerging from the same vibe as neo-folkies Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom. Cabic brings his distinct, mellow, even tender sound to the Garden Stage at The Crepe Place on Friday<\/a>. I can\u2019t think of a more fitting, relaxing end to a late summer workweek.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u27a4 A late summer Sunday afternoon sounds like a great time for some live blues. Moe\u2019s Alley brings the blues at 4 p.m. on Sunday<\/a> with the magnificent San Jose guitarist Tommy Castro<\/strong> and his band the Painkillers<\/strong>. Castro has played Moe\u2019s about 500 times (that\u2019s a rough estimate), so he knows the room and he knows the audience. Kill your pain while the sun is still up.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u27a4 Pirates, storms at sea, desperate escapes, undying love. It\u2019s all baked into the rarely performed Shakespeare saga \u201cPericles<\/strong>,\u201d<\/strong> one of three offerings at Santa Cruz Shakespeare this summer. The production<\/a> has only one more week, so if you haven\u2019t had your annual immersive Shakespeare experience, there\u2019s no time like, say, Saturday<\/a> afternoon under the trees at the Audrey Stanley Grove.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lookout.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Mark-Overgaard-Through-Our-Eyes-1024x702.jpg?resize=780%2C535&ssl=1\")
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\n Credit:<\/span> Santa Cruz Shakespeare<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n