Thursday, July 27, 2006 Pasadena Weekly News & Entertainment	BELTRAN DELIVERS PERCUSSIVE PERFORMANCE AT HOLLY STREET By John Sollenberger
Walking down a quiet stretch of Holly Street on the edge of Old Pasadena, you could easily pass by this little restaurant without guessing what goes on here at night.  Behind its unobtrusive exterior, Holly Street Bar & Grill is home to top-drawer musical entertainment most nights of the week.  Some of the top names in the business play their trade here. Such is the case Friday night, as "LOUIE CRUZ BELTRAN & HIS LATIN JAZZ ENSEMBLE" perform. Beltran is widely recognized as one of the entertainment world's top percussionists.  He and his ensemble play a Salsa-hot blend of Brazilian styles laced with Afro-Cuban rhythms and mixed with R&B, Salsa, Reggae, Rock and Jazz.  The percussive music's bound to shake the walls and lighten the soul. Not bad for a guy whose first gig back in high school was a self-described "hippie band" influenced by the Rolling Stones and Iron Butterfly. However, he eventually came home to the music he'd heard as a child, which his Mother sang to him in Spanish.  In his bio, he states, "The beauty of Afro-Cuban music stole my heart. I was born to play congas."  And play he has.  His electic body of work has included stints with The Sylvers (yes, the band that produced "Boogie Fever"), Jazz Guitarist Mary Osborne, Pete Escovedo, Nancy Wilson, R&B Vocalist Brenton Wood and Rita Coolide. Friday night offers a golden opportunity to see a musical master in a venue where you can sit within arms length of the stage.  It doesn't get much more intimate than that. Music starts at 9 p.m. Friday at Holly Street Bar & Grill, 175 E. Holly St., Pasadena. Call (626) 440-1421.
close