Love, laughter and leaving her mark

Jazz vocalist and pianist Diane Schuur to perform at the Panida Theater Feb. 17

By Lyndsie Kiebert-Carey Reader Staff

Famed jazz vocalist and pianist Diane Schuur — or, as she prefers to be called, “Deeds” or “Deedles” — never doubted her path as a woman of music. The first steps of that path can be found in Schuur’s earliest years, when she proved herself a (perhaps annoyingly) musical child.

“I used to go into my bedroom closet at midnight and try to emulate an artist by the name of Dinah Washington. My mom and dad, they’d come out and they’d say, ‘Diane, shut up!’” Schuur recalled, with a laugh. “I thought that was pretty funny — well, I didn’t at the time, but I’m glad that I didn’t let that admonition stop me from doing what I needed to do.” er and sister,” Schuur said of the school for the blind, which she attended from about 4 to 11 years old. “Music was the thing that I leaned upon very, very heavily.”

The now Grammy-winning artist still sees her musicality as a “need” — a “calling of sorts,” she said. Music became especially important when she attended the Washington State School for the Blind. Schuur has been blind since her premature birth in 1953.

She recalls having a radio as her constant companion during her time away from home.

“I was constantly surrounded by the music that I loved a lot,” she said, naming The Beatles, Elvis Presley, Duke Ellington, Sarah Vaughan and Dinah Washington as some of her favorite artists at the time.

Those influences — particularly of the jazz persuasion — remained critical for Schuur as she launched into her storied career as a jazz legend in her own right.

Diane Schuur

Friday, Feb. 17; doors at 6:30 p.m., music at 7:30 p.m.; $35 adults and $10 youth. Panida Theater, 300 N. First Ave., 208-263-9191, panida.org. Get tickets at artinsandpoint.org; the POAC Office (110 Main St., Ste. 101); calling 208-263-6139; or at the Panida doors. Listen at dianeschuur.com.

“Oftentimes, it was a lonely place without my parents and my broth-

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“It’s just been a fascinating journey in the past 69 years on this planet,” she said.

Of her 69 years, nearly 60 have been spent as a professional performer. Schuur said her first gig was Jan. 4, 1964, at only 10 years old. She continues to tour and perform, and will bring her act to the Panida Theater on Friday, Feb. 17 as part of the Pend Oreille Arts Council’s annual performing arts series. As part of POAC’s Ovations educational program, local choir and band students will be invited to a special soundcheck session and Q&A with Schuur.

“To have an artist of this caliber come to play an intimate venue like the Panida will be a joy for all who attend,” said POAC Executive Director Tone Lund. “Diane Schuur is an enormously talented musician who exudes joy and positivity wherever she goes.”

That joy and positivity translates into a palpable warmth in Schuur’s music, and even in the way she carries a conversation. She is regarded as an artist that has furthered the jazz tradition while injecting a bit of quirk and comfort — adding a touch of humanity with each song and show.

“I look forward to working with my audiences — to be able to get out there and spread the love,” she said, “and be a little bit of a sit-down comedian as opposed to a stand-up.”

With that, Schuur let out a hearty laugh.

“There will be a lot of love and laughter in this show — trust me on that,” she said.

A snapshot of notable live music coming up

in Sandpoint

Mike Wagoner and Utah John, Panida Little Theater, Feb. 21 Stoney Holiday, The Hive, Feb. 18

It’s always good to have options for how you get your entertainment. For some people, it’s going to a live show; for others, it may be listening to a live show from the comfort of their own home. Sandpoint’s own community radio KRFY 88.5 is giving folks the opportunity to enjoy either, with its monthly Little Live Radio Hour streaming Tuesday, Feb. 21 from the Panida Little Theater.

This month features Mike Wagoner and Utah John (a.k.a.

John Stoll), whose original tunes run the gamut of genres from folk to Americana and rock-country.

Do it your way and catch their show in person at the Little Theater, or kick back with your dial tuned to 88.5 FM or browser open to live streaming at krfy.org.

— Zach Hagadone

8 p.m., FREE. Panida Little Theater, 300 N. First Ave., 208-2639191, panida.org. Tune in live on KRFY 88.5 or stream on krfy.org.

If you were familiar with the Sandpoint music scene 15 to 20 years ago (is there anybody left around here who was?), then you know Stoney, a.k.a., Tyler Stonehocker. The raspy-voiced character was a regular all over town, turning every gathering into a party with his guitar and outsized personality. He relocated to Boise, where in 2009 he reinvented his “electric bluegrass outlaw country” sound as Stoney Holiday. Today, the band is based in southern Oregon and has played with or opened for members of The String Cheese Incident, Keller

Williams, Hot Buttered Rum, Railroad Earth, Widespread Panic and more.

Stoney Holiday’s show Saturday, Feb. 18 at The Hive (kicking off the Winter Carnival) will be a homecoming of sorts for its frontman and, if you haven’t already, it’s time you met him.

— Zach Hagadone

Doors at 7 p.m., show at 8:30 p.m.; $10; 21+. The Hive, 207 N. First Ave., 208-920-9039, livefromthehive. com. Listen at stoneyholiday.com.

It’s been almost 34 years since the Exxon Valdez tanker ran aground in Prince William Sound and spilled 11 million gallons into one of Alaska’s most precious fishing grounds. The disaster was made worse by Exxon’s decades-long effort to avoid any responsibility for what was then the worst oil spill in history (the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf was way worse). The American Scandal series tackled the disaster with their five-episode podcast called Exxon Valdez, available on Spotify and other streaming sites.

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When it comes to stand-up comedy, the goal is to make people laugh. With Neal Brennan — who you might recognize as the co-creator of both the film Half Baked and Chappelle’s Show — comedy is only part of his overarching goal. Brennan’s comedy special Blocks utilizes physical blocks on the wall, which represent parts of his life that need improvement. He’s funny, but Brennan also accomplishes a bit of raw honesty and self-loathing that left me feeling grateful it wasn’t just another laugh track filled with fart jokes.