Politics & Government

State Parks Supporters Nab Eclectic Lineup for Mount Tam Jam Benefit

Galactic, Cake, the Taj Mahal Trio, Mike Farris & The Roseland Rhythm Revue and San Rafael-based Danny Click and the Hell Yeahs are set to perform benefit show June 22 in the Mountain Theater on Mount Tam. Tickets are on sale.

The California State Parks funding crisis of 2010 has induced a number of creative partnerships to keep Marin’s parks alive and thriving.

Now we can add Mount Tam Jam, a day-long music festival on June 22 featuring the likes of New Orleans funk band Galactic, Sacramento alt rockers Cake, blues legend Taj Mahal, Nashville’s Mike Farris & The Roseland Rhythm Revue and San Rafael-based Danny Click and the Hell Yeahs – the first major concert at the Cushing Memorial Amphitheater on Mount Tam since 1967 – to the list of parks revival ideas.

Tickets are on sale now for the 7-hour event, which is a benefit for Mount Tam State Park's ranger and maintenance services, equipment for trail and bridge restoration and improved emergency response. Organizers of the event, led by the Mount Tamalpais Conservation Club, say that additional funding for rangers and emergency services also will benefit users of Marin’s other state parks: China Camp, Olompali, Samuel P. Taylor and Tomales Bay.

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Mill Valley resident Michael Nash, who is serving as executive producer of Mount Tam Jam, said the event is the product of nearly 11 months of efforts to land a diverse lineup of talented musical acts and also garner state approval to make the event a reality.

“No good deed goes unpunished,” Nash says with a laugh when asked about garnering a permit from the state for an event to benefit state parks.

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Mount Tam Jam is already a rarity, as it will be the first major concert in the 4,000-seat Cushing Memorial Amphitheater (aka Mountain Theater) on Mount Tam's East Peak since 1967, when the Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival drew more than 20,000 people over two days in June 1967 to hear the likes of Jefferson Airplane, the Byrds, the Doors and Steve Miller.

The massive turnout for that event sparked much stricter regulations that virtually barred amplified music at the amphitheater. The Mountain Play, whichkicks off its 100th season with The Sound of Music May 19, has been the only consistent event ever since.

A number of smaller concerts have been held in the amphitheater since then, including an unrelated show in 1982 called Tam Jam, which featured George Winston and had a poster depicting a piece of toast with a silhouette of Tam made out of jam, according to Nash.

As for the lineup, Nash says he sought out many of the usual music legends with Marin ties – from Bonnie Raitt to Carlos Santana – but couldn’t get them due to scheduling conflicts.

“Where we ended up is a really nice sweet spot, from funk and R&B to roots and blues,” says Nash, who has lived in Marin for 40 years.

Organizers hope to raise $200,000 from the event, though how much it generates for the park itself is up in the air. Nash said he hoped the event could eventually expand to two days.

“Given the climate of funding at the state government level, it’s not going to change in any dramatic way anytime soon, the parks needs creative grassroots efforts like ours,” Nash said. “Marin County’s state parks need an annual, sustainable revenue source.

Nash, whose background is largely in music and theater production and management, is making his maiden voyage in producing a major concert. He called the experience to date “incredibly rewarding.”

“I love the mountain – I look at it every day,” he says. “And its presence really gives you a sense of the generations of people that have been drawn to it.”

The 411: Mount Tam Jam is Saturday, June 22 at the Cushing Memorial Amphitheater on Mount Tam, from noon to 7 p.m. Gates open at 10 a.m. Galactic, Cake, Taj Mahal, Mike Farris & The Roseland Rhythm Revue and Danny Click and the Hell Yeahs are slated to perform. Tickets are $25 (kids under 12), $50, $75 and $100. Click here to buy tickets. Galactic is playing at the Tam Jam Afterparty at Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley at 10:30 p.m.

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