Jerry Perry is a longtime Sacramento music promoter, talent buyer and club operator, repeatedly described in Submerge coverage as an "icon" and "OG" of the local scene.[1][2] Across decades he has booked clubs, free outdoor concert series and even political rallies, and is treated as a load-bearing figure connecting young local artists to live stages.[1][2][3]
At a glance
- Booked the majority of shows at Old Ironsides for many years.[1]
- Ran the all-ages/teen club The Vortex (a.k.a. Vortograph Center, near 15th and C streets) and the Cattle Club.[4]
- Co-founded the Cattle Club on Folsom Boulevard with Brian McKenna (New View Productions), growing it from every-other-Friday shows to six nights a week; all-ages, capacity approximately 350.[5]
- Long associated with Sacramento's free Friday Night Concerts in the Park at Cesar Chavez Park.[6][7]
- Curated the Hot Lunch Concert Series at Fremont Park in Midtown (begun ca. 2009).[8]
- Frequently threw all-ages shows at Luigi's Slice/Fungarden, calling it "one of the most important rooms in the Sacramento scene."[2]
- Booked live music for Bernie Sanders rallies in Northern California in 2016, including one at UC Davis for ~10,000 people.[3]
- Founded Alive & Kicking, Sacramento's music industry monthly, in 1991; it published for 17 years until September 2008.[9]
- Won the SAMMIES Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019.[10]
Role in the scene
Perry is characterized in Submerge as both a promoter and a steward of Sacramento's music community. A 2014 article calls him a "local promoter and music scene OG," and a 2009 piece names him "another icon of our local scene."[1][2] His work spans booking, club operation and curation of recurring all-ages and free events, and writers credit him with sustaining venues that link young local musicians to live performance.[1][2]
His local standing is reinforced by figures who came up alongside him: singer Allyson Seconds met Perry as a teenager and describes the relationship as "familial," having known him "since I was 15 probably."[3]
In 2019, the Sacramento News & Review's SAMMIES presented Perry with the Lifetime Achievement Award. The SAMMIES page describes him as "Sacramento music's glue and guiding light" and states "Perry might not play an instrument, but he is Sacramento music."[10][11]
Venues and clubs
Perry's name is tied to several Sacramento rooms across eras:
- The Vortex (also rendered "Vortograph Center"), described as a venue near 15th and C streets that was a destination for teens interested in post-punk and new-wave dancing; DJ Larry Rodriguez recalls it as "Jerry Perry's Vortograph Center."[4]
- The Cattle Club, called one of "Jerry Perry's legendary clubs" by Rodriguez, who was allowed to spin between bands there around 1989–1990.[4] Perry co-founded the Cattle Club on Folsom Boulevard with Brian McKenna of New View Productions, initially promoting shows every other Friday before expanding to six nights a week. The all-ages venue held approximately 350 people.[5] Perry's booking philosophy there was deliberately anti-hair-metal and inclusive: he has described valuing the venue's identity as a gay bar, stating that anyone who couldn't accept that was "exactly the kind of person I (didn't) want."[5][11]
- Old Ironsides, where Perry was responsible for the majority of booking for many years; in November 2009 he assembled an "all-star series of shows" at the venue, then celebrating its 75th year of operation.[1]
- Luigi's Slice (in the MARRS Building; also known as Luigi's Fungarden), where Perry frequently threw all-ages shows featuring both national and local acts.[2]
Concerts in the Park
Perry was for years the central booker of Sacramento's free Friday Night Concerts in the Park series at Cesar Chavez Park in downtown.[6][7] At the 2010 edition — described as the series' 18th year — the event was "mostly about Perry and his talented lineup of youngsters," including Simpl3Jack, Dog Party and The Kelps, with a Kepi Ghoulie headlining set.[6] By the 2012 season, the lineup was "not booked by longtime promoter Jerry Perry," but instead by a committee called Play Big Sacramento, marking a handoff of the series.[7]
Perry's civic booking role extended beyond Concerts in the Park: according to the Sacramento News & Review, he also booked live music for the Chalk It Up! Festival (Sacramento's annual chalk art festival) and for the SAMMIES awards show itself.[12]
Hot Lunch Concert Series
Perry curated the Hot Lunch Concert Series, a free Thursday-afternoon (11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.) concert run at Fremont Park in Midtown.[8] In 2012 he told Submerge it was the series' fourth year — placing its start around 2009 — and described his booking philosophy of reserving about half of each year's slots for first-time artists, citing 2012 debuts including Jonah Matranga, Survival Guide and Not An Airplane, alongside returning favorites such as Exquisite Corps, Walking Spanish, Freebadge Serenaders and Musical Charis.[8]
Alive & Kicking newspaper
When Perry eventually departed the Cattle Club, he took the Cattle Club name with him and launched Alive & Kicking, a monthly newspaper focused on Sacramento's music industry.[5][11] Founded in 1991, the paper published for 17 years before ceasing in September 2008.[9][11] The Sacramento News & Review reported on the paper's end and Perry's legacy upon its close.[11]
All-ages advocacy
Perry has been a vocal defender of all-ages venues. When Luigi's Slice was sold in 2014 with the future of its live shows uncertain, he wrote publicly that losing the venue "will create a huge disconnect between young people and live music in the scene," forcing young local artists into stageless coffeehouses, pay-to-plays, house parties "or nowhere at all."[2] He continued booking a dense run of shows there ahead of the sale — including Circle Takes the Square, The Kelps, Sun Monks, Kurt Travis and The Dollyrots — and said he intended to talk to the new owners about preserving all-ages programming.[2]
Beyond the clubs
In summer 2016, Perry was tapped to book the live music for several large Bernie Sanders rallies in Northern California, including a UC Davis rally where Allyson Seconds and Kevin Seconds performed in front of nearly 10,000 people.[3]
Stroke and community response
Perry suffered a major stroke in July 2018. His community described the severity of the brain trauma as equivalent to a "high-speed motorcycle crash." A GoFundMe campaign ultimately raised $30,000; both Deftones and Cake each pledged $5,000, and an additional $10,000 was raised at a sold-out benefit concert at Harlow's.[12][13]
Local status
Perry is treated throughout Submerge's coverage as a foundational figure of the Sacramento scene rather than a visiting outsider — "another icon of our local scene," a "local promoter and music scene OG," and "local booking legend."[1][2][3] His decades of operating Sacramento clubs and curating local concert series make his local origin unambiguous in the sources.