Saturday May 13, 2023 the Carlsbad Community Concert Association (CCCA) hosted its first members only event. Originally set to take place in the beautiful garden at the Fiddler’s Inn Bed & Breakfast, the threat of rain prompted a venue change. Alas, the show must go on, thus moving to The Other Side at Milton’s Brewing enabled the association to continue with their plans.
Established by a group of like minded residents, interested in providing world-class and culturally relevant entertainment to the people of Carlsbad, the Carlsbad Community Concert Association is nearing 80 years of bringing quality and affordable live performances to the community.
Their most recent performance included blues musician Jhett Black along with his wife Callie Sioux as Jhett & the Ginger. The addition of his father-in-law, Walt Evans on guitar creates a lovely ensemble; one that will have you moving in your seats, clapping your hands along to the rhythm, and singing along. Powerhouse vocals, foot stomping rhythms, and a boisterous slide guitar meld together for a one of a kind sound fueled by years of experience with the folk-rock band Gleewood and a deep appreciation for American roots music.
“To say it was an overwhelming success would be an understatement! Jhett Black & Callie Sioux’s sound, stage presence and storytelling through blues and harmony had me on my feet the entire concert. The intimate setting was perfect, and we all had a blast spending the evening listening to them,” shared Karey Jeffress, CCCA Executive Director.
“If you haven’t been a member of the Carlsbad Community Concert Association before, or maybe haven’t even heard of us, now is a great time to get in the loop! We have two more concerts coming up this season, and we are already gearing up for next year’s lineup. Next up, we have partnered with the Cavern City Renaissance Festival and will be hosting Tomas Vigil Saturday morning at the Fest, and then again that evening at P.R. Leyva. The Friday after Thanksgiving, we will again host Jason Lyle Black at P.R. Leyva. He opened our season post-COVID last November and he was such a huge hit, we had to get him back for an encore performance,” Jeffress said.
CCCA is currently updating their website to have more up-to-date information, however the Facebook page is the best place currently to get all CCCA info. You can also email carlsbadcommunityconcert@gmail.com for more info on how to become a member, volunteer, or check in to see what’s new with us. Or, if you’d like to make a direct donation to the association to assist in bringing world class entertainment to the Cavern City, those tax deductible checks can be mailed to: Carlsbad Community Concert Association P.O. Box 1712 Carlsbad, NM 88221
The mission of CCCA is to provide quality live performances at affordable prices for the community of Carlsbad, NM and the surrounding area. One of CCCA’s goals has been to bring outreach programs to students, providing them a forum to interact with culturally-diverse, world-renowned musicians, artists and performers with the intent to inspire these young people to develop a lifelong appreciation of the arts.
Story and photos by Michele Robertson
