The San Diego Music Hall of Fame has announced its class of 2024 and the honorees represent a suitably diverse array of genres. They will be saluted when the induction ceremony takes place Nov. 8.
The inductees include two acclaimed singer-songwriters, Cindy Lee Berryhill and Cathryn Beeks, award-winning jazz guitarist and album producer Peter Sprague and former San Diego Symphony percussionist and jazz drummer and vibraphonist Jim Plank. Also being inducted is the 35-year-old Grateful Dead tribute group the Electric Waste Band, whose weekly Ocean Beach gigs regularly featured basketball legend and avowed Deadhead Bill Walton as a guest percussionist before his death in May.
This year’s two other inductees will be honored posthumously” San Diego blues godfather Tomcat Courtney, who died in January 2020 at the age of 91, and jazz patriarch Daniel Jackson, who died in 2019 at the age of 77.
“We always strive to induct musicians who are shining reflection of our city and county — and to induct as many of them as possible at a time that is meaningful to them and to the friends and fans who have followed them,” said Jefferson Jay, who launched the San Diego Hall of Fame in 2018 as a labor of love. “We think this years honorees are timeless and very deserving.”
And, in several instances, the awards are timely, as well.
Beeks, who since 2007 has spearheaded San Diego’s weekly “Listen Local” radio show, released her latest album, “The After Times,” in May. Sprague’s new album, “Sunshine of Your Love: Peter Sprague Plays Cream,” was released June 7. Electric Waste Band this year celebrates its 35th anniversary.
“Being inducted into the San Diego Music Hall of Fame feels like the sweetest of all thank you notes,” said Beeks, who has also championed local music at countless open-mic nights for more than two decades.
“Being acknowledged for the 20-plus years I’ve been lucky enough to serve the San Diego music community is something I never expected and never thought I needed. But dang, it sure does make me feel great. To be honest, though, to be included with the group of legends who are also being inducted leaves me absolutely speechless and so humbled I can barely believe it’s actually real. I love this music scene in San Diego and I hope to be of service to it for another 20 years.”
This year’s honorees will be saluted at the Nov. 8 induction ceremony and concert, which will be held at Mission Valley’s Vision: A Center for Spiritual Living. Scheduled performers include Beeks, Sprague, Berryhill, Electric Waste Band and 2023 inductees Fred Benedetti and Jeff Berkley, along with musical guests Chickenbone Slim, Scottie Blinn and Tony Tomlinson.
“This year we are honoring seven inductees, up from six in previous years,” said Jay, who is the curator of the La Jolla Athenaeum’s “Acoustic Evenings” concert series. “There are so many deserving artists in San Diego and expanding to seven helps to show that.”
Music fans looking for through-lines between this year and last year’s inductees don’t have to look far.
Drummer and percussionist Plank helped induct jazz piano great Mike Wofford, a longtime collaborator, at the 2023 induction ceremony. Violinist Jamie Shadowlight gave a shout-out to the late Jackson, one of her key mentors, during her acceptance speech last year. Shadowlight ed away last month from stage 4 cervical cancer.
“Jamie talked about Daniel (Jackson) in her speech last year,” Jay said. “It seemed like a great time to honor him because he did so many great things and mentored so many musicians in San Diego who are still around. This city has more than 100 years of music history and the awards only started seven years ago, so we’ve got lots ahead of us.”
Tickets for the 2024 San Diego Music Hall of Fame induction ceremony and concert are available online at eventbrite.com/e/san-diego-music-hall-of-fame-6th-annual-induction-ceremony-tickets-951270374297.
