Music for Valentines:
Ten shows coming to the Bay Area — from blues to bluegrass — for the holiday weekend.
R& B singer Charlie Wilson, the front man for the Gap Band in the 1970s and ’ 80s, will headline the Legends of Love show on Valentine’s Day at Oracle Arena.
Artists performing in the Bay Area this weekend are looking to provide a soundtrack for lovers — and singles alike — just in time for Valentine’s Day.
“I am looking forward to giving the audience both romance and funk,” says R& B star Charlie Wilson, who will sing on Valentine’s Day at KBLX’s “Legends of Love” concert at the Oracle Arena in Oakland along with Chaka Khan.
Wilson, who came to prominence as the front man for the 1970s and ’ 80s R& B group the Gap Band, plans to perform a set that includes classic Gap Band hits such as “Burn Rubber on Me” as well as more recent solo hits like “Charlie, Last Name Wilson.” The crooner, whose solo career has in-
cluded two R& B chart- toppers and a gold album certification from the RIAA, also often throws in a medley of collaborations that he’s done with artists like Snoop Dogg, Pharrell Williams and Kanye West.
But if that doesn’t speak to your heart, the weekend is full of shows with varied playlists bound to provide an ideal match.
Oakland Symphony
Conductor Michael Morgan will lead the Oakland Symphony in “Notes From Vietnam,” featuring the world premiere of “Lullaby for a Country” by Vân- Ánh Võ, a dan tranh zither player and music instructor, as well as compositions by Benjamin Britten and Antonín Dvorak.
8 p. m. Friday, Feb. 12. $ 10-$ 75. Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, Oakland. www.paramounttheatre.com
Hillbilly Robot # 3
You don’t have to wait until fall for some ( hardly strictly) bluegrass action when Hillbilly Robot, billed an “urban Americana festival,” can satisfy those needs now. San Francisco’s Belle Monroe & Her Brewglass Boys will celebrate their 20th anniversary, which should be a highlight alongside Grateful Bluegrass Boys, a bluegrass-flavored Grateful Dead cover band.
9 p. m. Friday, Feb. 12. $ 15. Great American Music Hall, 859 O’Farrell St., S. F. www.slimspresents.com
Let’s Dance — A David Bowie Tribute Party
Pay homage to the life and legacy of David Bowie during this all- ages dance party. Ziggy Stardust will be celebrated with the help of Queen Bitch, a tribute band assembled from local acts North American Scum, Debased, King Crow, Solar Keys and Incurable. The band is named for Bowie’s 45- yearold song of the same name, itself a tribute to Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground.
9 p. m. Friday, Feb. 12. $ 10, Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell St., S. F. www.rickshawstop.com
Con Brio
The San Francisco band led by Ziek McCarter, which carries on the local soul and funk legacy as refracted through the lens of contemporary youth culture, is supported on this show by Waterstrider, a chameleonic Oakland ensemble equally at home with rock and Afro- pop sounds.
9 p. m. Friday, Feb. 12. $ 25. The Independent, 628 Divisadero St., S. F. www.theindependentsf.com
Crush San Francisco
The electronic dance music party is a collaboration between Southern California’s Insomniac, promoter of the massive Electric Daisy Carnival events, and the Bay Area’s Another Planet, which produces the annual Outside Lands festival in Golden Gate Park. The Crush lineup features EDM stars like Dutch DJ Laidback Luke, trap remixer Aryay and English duo Jack Beats.
6 p. m. Saturday, Feb. 13. $ 55$ 60. Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, 99 Grove St., S. F. www.billgrahamcivicauditorium.com
Jeru the Damaja
With nostalgia for ’ 90s rap at an all- time high, a local appearance by Jeru the Damaja, one of the East Coast’s most sampled voices from the era, will double as an epic hip- hop sing- along.
9 p. m. Saturday, Feb. 13. $ 10$ 15. Brick and Mortar Music Hall, 1710 Mission St., S. F. www.brickandmortarmusic.com
Legends of Love
KBLX’s holiday concert features Charlie Wilson and Chaka Khan, who have each drawn large crowds at the radio station’s regular affairs at Concord Pavilion over the past few years, and continue to soar on tremendous second winds in their early 60s. Their powerful voices and onstage charms can fill a larger venue like Oracle Arena with ease.
7 p. m. Sunday, Feb. 14. $ 52.38$ 119.05. Oracle Arena, 7000 Coliseum Way, Oakland. www. coliseum. com
Valentine’s Bash with Pookie & the Poodlez and the Younger Lovers
Oakland’s self- styled “bedroom pop” artist Pookie & the Poodlez and former Gravy Train!!!! front man Brontez Purnell’s the Younger Lovers star in a night of lo- fi throwbacks crafted in the name of queer affection and heartbreak.
8: 30 p. m. Sunday, Feb. 14. $ 5. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk St., S. F. www.hemlocktavern.com
Sophie B. Hawkins
The singer best known for her 1992 hit “Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover” performs live for an all- ages audience. Hawkins has performed with stars Melissa Etheridge, Sting and the Bay Area’s own Chris Isaak.
9 p. m. Sunday, Feb. 14. $ 22$ 32. The Chapel, 777 Valencia St., S. F. www.thechapelsf.com
Ashanti & Ja Rule
The hot ticket of the weekend is for this rare performance from the R& B singer and rapper known for early 2000s hits like “Always on Time.” General admission and most VIP presale tickets to the nightclub show are sold out, but there may still be time to snap up tickets by selecting the “Lover’s Labyrinth Bottle Service” for two people. A second show Feb. 15 that was added by popular demand also sold out of presale tickets, but there will be limited tickets at the door.
9 p. m. Sunday, Feb. 14. $ 45$ 1420. 1015 Folsom, 1015 Folsom St., S. F. www.1015.com