Category Archives: Eastside

Quinceañeras, Jesus Malverde and Adan Sanchez Ohh my

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When I first got word about “Always & Forever” I was hesitant about it. At best, I’m a casual fan of corridos  and I don’t identify with it on any level other than it’s a life style for some and it has millions of fans. When Adan Sanchez died it was just another regular day for me, but to thousands here in L.A. it was the loss of a talented musician and a young man. I didn’t even know that the play first premiered in 2007 at the Ford Amphitheatre and it was originally conceived around 2004 at Casa 0101 by writer Michael Spillers in a writing workshop. Now coming full circle in 2009, the loss of Adan is still felt and his music is still being played by his fans. The play, inretro spect almost seems like on huge homage to Adan, his fans and everything else that is tied to Corridos and Bandas. “Always & Forever” revolves around a quinceañera as family traditions clash with a young girls passion and love for Banda music and Adan. The play follows the family dealing with their everyday drama and the quinceañera, ultimately culminating up to the day Adan died. Anyone who is a fan of Adan of Bandas will love “Always & Forever” and even people who don’t know anything about it can still relate to some of the antics the family gets into.

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Fiesta Shalom pics, part dos

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Chavo was so pressed for time that I didn’t even run into him after I got to the fiesta. I ran into everyone else and their mom, but not C. He’s sneaky like that. But yes I was able to get into the shul and get the quick 15 minute tour everyone was waiting for in the baking sun. I quickly sign a waiver and headed inside wanting to see the inside of the building I have live around and seen, from the outside all my life here in East Los.

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Legends Of The Eastside Sound- An Interview With Mark Guerrero, Part 1

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[audio:https://laeastside.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/get-your-baby.mp3]
Once upon a time, during the late 50’s to the 60’s, weekend nights at Eastside gyms, halls, and youth centers were taken over by dances featuring a young breed of musicians who got on stage and beat out the rhythms of Soul, Blues and Rock & Roll to frenzied crowds of teens making the scene.
That era and that music that became known as “The Eastside Sound” is woven into the historical and cultural fabric of Eastsiders. It has an identity, and a flavor that comes through in a rich shade of brown better heard while cruising in a Ranfla, or by spinning some scratchy 45s and dancing with your Háina.
There have been recent noteworthy chronicles about this Eastside musical heritage such as the book “Land of a Thousand Dances” and the recent video documentary “Chicano Rock! The Sounds of East Los Angeles”. Nevertheless, I have always felt that the Eastside scene was worthy and deserving of something much more in depth. There were overlooked people, places and details that I wanted to help discover, chronicle and preserve for posterity. And, since it doesn’t look like Ken Burns will be undertaking that project anytime soon, I decided to take some steps in that direction all on my own.
I sought someone from that era who could tell me more about it from a front lines, first-hand perspective. “Who could paint a mental picture for me of what those times were like?” I asked myself. Then, I came in contact with Mr. Mark Guerrero.
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More Videos from the Eastside Luv event

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Is it tomorrow yet? Yeah, I was hoping to post these earlier pero que se le va hacer, I’m not racing against some clock. We try to get posts up here regularly but you know, people gotta do stuff. Besides, even if its a week late, where else would you find these fine videos (and a few pics) from East of the river? I thought so.

Click ahead to see que paso!

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Save Golden Gate Theater—here’s what you can do right now!

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Alright folks, eleventh-hour call to action here…

 If we’re serious about doing something to save Golden Gate Theater—the only remaining movie palace in East LA—we need to drop whatever “urgent” matter we’re dealing with now (like updating our Facebook statuses or, even more mundane, working), and figure out which of the following two actions we’re going to take between today and tomorrow.

A)    Plan on attending the hearing tomorrow (May 13, 9am) and expressing your reasons before the LA County Regional Planning Commission for opposing the destruction of this invaluable cultural jewel.

OR, if nothing else…

B)     Write and submit by 6pm TODAY your comments on this matter. You can send your remarks to agutierrez@planning.lacounty.gov

Hopefully, you’ll decide to attend the hearing. Below is the address. It’s the first item on the agenda, so be on time!

Health Services Auditorium
313 N Figueroa (corner street: Temple), Los Angeles 90012

Points to remember…

 *  The 1927 Churriguerresque-style theater is one of LA’s most significant movie palaces and the only one remaining in the future city of East LA…

 * Even if Latino and working class, doesn’t East LA deserve the enjoyment of historic and cultural preservation as much as some Westside neighborhood? The restoration of a beautiful old theater in the community could potentially house emerging cultural/arts organizations on the Eastside and serve as the anchor for an East LA arts district on Whittier Blvd. Why squander this opportunity??    

* If we don’t save the Golden Gate Theater now, the real estate development firm that holds title to it, the Charles Co., will gut the building in order to lease it to CVS Pharmacy—hardly a friend of the community (read all about CVS and their crimes at www.curecvsnow.org…

Brooklyn & Boyle issue 5

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Here it is, the newest issue of Brooklyn & Boyle fresh off the grill. So to speak. It was a long time coming, but the wait was worth it. The magazine keeps improving with each issue. AND YES I see the grammatical errors cabrones, mistakes like that can be easily remedied, but what can I, we just wanted to get this mag out and ready for your viewing pleasure. So enjoy. Ohh and click on the images to see a bigger, more readable version of it.

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Dewey Tafoya at Eastside Luv

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So I braved the poetry and the “wine bar” scene and came away quite energized by this gathering of Eastsiders; people that mostly come from a history of having land stolen, not willing to accept our name be taken as well. It’s late at the moment and I have to get my feo rest but I wanted to post this video so you can all get an idea of what went down in BH. (I hope to post more on this event tomorrow.)

It seems some people have had issues with the title of the event, as they think it might be inappropriate. Where you from? – that inescapable loaded question of my youth. What they don’t understand is the reality of how non-gang members experienced the question, having to say “I’m from nowhere” just to avoid getting beaten up, or worse. Intimidated to being from nowhere. Which is no different when newcomers to the city tell me, not ask me, that the term that has defined our reality is suddenly their domain, that they’re gonna tell me about some “fluidity” and their new logical reasons why I’m, yet again, from Nowhere. Yeah, fuck that.

I was especially awed by Dewey’s piece because the last time I spent much time with him was at Hollenbeck , where we were friends cuz of our fondness for Heavy Metal. I’m glad that all these years later we still have something in common: an understanding of where we come from,  and pride for our Eastside. Nothing like shared experiences to teach you the value of something as simple as a term.

Eastside, presente!