Just before the flames and smoke of the massive Thomas fire put a damper on the Christmas spirit in Santa Barbara County, pop singer Jewel brought her real-life musical family to the Chumash Casino. The special Christmas concert featured the veteran performer singing traditional Christmas songs as well as some of her biggest hits.

The longtime bass player of the Eagles, Timothy B. Schmit, headlined a classic rock marathon at the ornate Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills, California. Just getting to the event was a chore for music fans, as the entire block of Wilshire Boulevard directly in front of the teapot has been shut down for a massive construction project.

The Jerry Douglas Band brought their innovative new music to the prestigious Troubadour nightclub in Los Angeles on November 13. The band is on a national tour promoting their new album, “What If.” The band was led by one of the most well-known veteran resonator and lap steel slide guitar players in American music. The singer-songwriter and master guitarist has recorded 14 albums and won 14 Grammys.

David Cassidy a pop music icon of the 1970s, died November 21, in a Florida hospital near his home. The singer, guitarist, and actor was only 67 and had been hospitalized for several days with organ failure. At the height of his career, the teen idol had a number one hit song; I Think I Love You and toured stadiums and arenas worldwide. His success sprang from his appearance on the television show, The Partridge Family, which was hugely successful for four years.

On the third and final day of this year's Fest Forums in Santa Barbara a small army of celebrities turned up for the celebration. It was a full day of films, lectures, food, wine tasting, and great live music. The morning got off to a sleepy start as vendors began closing the exhibit hall and the early birds to the convention sipped coffee and ate fresh fruit and pastries.

A cloudy morning gave way to a spectacular sunny day on the Santa Barbara coastline as the second day of the Fest Forums conference opened at the new Santa Barbara Hilton Beachfront Resort, formerly known as the Fess Parker hotel. The schedule was overflowing with fascinating lectures, intriguing films, delicious food breaks, and was capped off with some excellent music from iconic keyboardist Chuck Leavell.

The former Fess Parker resort hotel hosted a very unusual gathering of music, film, food and beverage festival heavy hitting organizers, at the three-day Fest Forums convention. The event, held annually in Santa Barbara, opened at the oceanfront resort, Thursday, November 16th, on one of the first drizzly days of the fall season. The festivities kicked off the night before, with a pre-party sponsored by TOURtech. The company is celebrating their 15th anniversary as one of the leading providers of network solutions for special events and productions.

Stephen and Ziggy Marley came to the Orpheum Theater in downtown Los Angeles on November 1, to perform a unique concert celebrating the 40th anniversary of their fathers classic Reggae album, Exodus.  The ornate venue in the heart of the original theater district of America’s movie capital was slow to fill up on this sultry night. It was the final night of the World Series of Baseball, just several miles away at Dodger Stadium and the band delayed the show for nearly an hour.

Some of the most prominent stars of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock music descended on the Novo theater in the LA Live entertainment complex, for the Loudwire music awards and concert. The first annual event replaces the former Golden God awards show that used to take place in the same venue, formerly known as the Nokia club. After a several year hiatus, the show is back under their new moniker.

FestForums returns to Santa Barbara for a three-day conference at the Fess Parker Doubletree Resort, November 16-18th. The event is described as “a festival conference for food, beverage, music, and film festival industry leaders. Addressing cutting-edge technology, talent, ticketing, sponsorships, scheduling, merchandising, operations, sustainability, charitable work, innovation, and safety, FestForums® brings together festivals and events of all sizes for collaboration and professional development.”