Daria Grace & The Pre-War Ponies (2021)

The Pre-War Ponies was formed in 2007 by Daria Grace, who wanted to put to use her growing collection of sheet music and repertoire of not-quite-hits from the 20s, 30s, and 40s. She quickly recruited her old friend, trombonist and soprano uke player J. Walter Hawkes, to be a part of the madness, and they have become the core duo of the band. They see no reason to re-hash standards that have already been done so beautifully so many times. They like to dig a little deeper. You have likely heard of Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, and Johnny Mercer, but you probably haven’t heard some of their under-rated chestnuts like “Pardon My Southern Accent” or “Find Me A Primitive Man.” They don’t just stick to the famous songwriters, either. There are plenty of gems from that golden era by the likes of Fred Ahlert, Joe Young, Chas Tobias, and Eddie Jones, none of whom are exactly household names. But maybe they should be . . . More recently, Daria and Walter have been digging into songs from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, so you can expect them to pepper their pre-war repertoire with songs by the likes of The Bee Gees, The Church, and Eleni Mandell.

Doors open at 7:30pm. No reservations required. Capacity is currently capped at 150 attendees per performance; seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Free parking is available.

This program was part of the 2021 Summer Amphitheater Series. Learn more about the free series here.