Hermosa Celebrates Lighthouse Café With Free Concert

HERMOSA BEACH, CA — The City of Hermosa Beach will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Lighthouse Café with a free concert at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 26 on the Pier Plaza. The Lighthouse Café is considered the "epicenter of the West Coast jazz movement since it began showcasing jazz music in 1949," with performances by Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, Woody Herman and Chet Baker throughout the years, the City of Hermosa Beach press release said.

The concert will feature special guest artists, including jazz musician David Benoit, who grew up in Hermosa Beach and graduated from Mira Costa High School. Benoit is a GRAMMY-nominated pianist, composer and arranger who is considered one of the founding fathers of contemporary jazz, the press release said.

The City will also honor the late Ozzie Cadena and his wife Gloria, with a plaque to be installed at 6 p.m. that recognizes their important role in the jazz scene in Hermosa Beach. When the couple moved to Hermosa Beach in 1974, Cadena was "already a legend in the jazz world. By the 1980s, with Gloria by his side, he had established himself as a leading jazz promoter in Los Angeles and was booking the best the music had to offer at Hermosa Beach’s Lighthouse Café," the plaque notes.

"This is a wonderful tribute to the City’s jazz heritage and the historic Lighthouse Café," said Hermosa Beach Mayor Stacey Armato. "Ozzie Cadena founded the Hermosa Beach Jazz Alumni and led the committee that began the installation of the plaques on Pier Plaza to honor the Lighthouse Café’s incredible history and role in West Coast jazz. He passed away in 2008, and Gloria has continued to build upon a family legacy of promoting and fostering jazz excellence at this historic venue, so we wanted to honor both of them with a plaque."

The Lighthouse Café began showcasing jazz music 70 years ago, when owner John Levine allowed bassist/band leader Howard Rumsey to start a recurring Sunday jam session on a trial basis, the press release said. Soon after, Rumsey became club manager and put together a house band called the Lighthouse All-Stars that included several jazz legends, the City said.

Levine died in 1970, and Rumsey left the Lighthouse in 1971 to open another jazz club in Redondo Beach, according to the press release. The Lighthouse Café was also featured in the movie "La La Land" as the jazz club founded by the character portrayed by actor Ryan Gosling.