New Lighthouse All stars draws new jazz audience
La La Land fans and a new house band lead local jazz resurgence by Garrick Rawlings In the early 1950s, the Lighthouse All Stars helped the downtown Hermosa Beach night club establish its reputation as the center of West Coast jazz. The Lighthouse All Stars were led by club manager and bassist Howard Rumsey. Its now legendary players included trumpet player Shorty Rogers, drummer Shelly Mann, and saxophonists Bud Shank and Bob Cooper. The line-up changed but the band continued through the ‘50s before fading into jazz history. Now, thanks in part to the 2016, Oscar winning jazz film “La La Land,” in which the Lighthouse plays a prominent role, the New Lighthouse All Stars has been formed. Jacques Lesure, who appears in “La La Land” as the Lighthouse All Stars guitarist, leads the resurrected band Monday evenings at the Lighthouse. Lesure’s co-host is drummer Marty “Smitty” Smith, a long time member of the Tonight Show band. Rene Camacho, of War, is the band’s bassist, and Adam Ledbetter is the pianist. “I’ve been playing the Lighthouse since I moved to town about 20 years ago,” Lesure said. He has performed widely with Pharoh Sanders, James Brown with Bernadette Peters, and teaches…
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