By Sweet Baby J’ai
Every Thursday I ask myself the same question: Where’s the groove this week?
Summer makes you work a little harder for the answer. Some of our favorite rooms have dimmed their lights for a seasonal rest. The Purple Room has taken its annual summer pause. Vicky’s of Santa Fe has closed for the season, and Alice B.’s dining room has also taken a summer break.
If you didn’t know better, you might think the music packed its bags and headed for the coast.
But after years of chasing great performances through this valley, I’ve learned something.
The music never really leaves. It just changes addresses. Winter belongs to the headliners. Summer belongs to the musicians.
Summer strips away the crowds and the headlines. What’s left are the musicians who play because they love to play, the regulars who know every lyric, bartenders who know your name before your drink, and intimate rooms where community matters more than capacity. Maybe that’s what I’ve been chasing all along—not the biggest concert, just the next great story.
One of those new addresses is Gertie’s Salon & Bar.
I recently spoke with owner Loren Ostrow about Gertie’s stepping forward this summer, not just as another beautiful room with cocktails and live music, but as something Palm Springs has long needed: an official lesbian bar, a gathering place, a listening room, and a cultural heartbeat all tucked into one.
And how fitting is that?
A bar named for Gertrude Stein, tucked inside Alice B.’s, carrying forward the spirit of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas’ Paris salon. Together, Stein and Toklas welcomed artists, writers, musicians, and dreamers into a home where ideas were exchanged, friendships were forged, and culture was created. In its own Palm Springs way, Gertie’s is reaching for that same kind of magic—a place where people gather not just to hear music, but to connect with one another.
Gertie’s launched its summer music series on July 1 with Leanna and Miguel, who now perform every Wednesday and Sunday, bringing warmth, rhythm, and easy chemistry to a room that already feels like it’s finding its soul.
That got me thinking about all the places where the music is still playing.
A few years ago, while wandering through VillageFest, I stopped to listen to a young woman with a keyboard and an unforgettable voice. Her name was Abi Carter. Long before America knew her as the winner of American Idol, she was simply a local artist sharing her gift with anyone willing to stop and listen. That’s the beauty of VillageFest. You never know when you’re hearing tomorrow’s headline.
The same thing happened to me recently at Kitchen 86 on El Paseo. I was enjoying dinner on the patio when live music drifted across the evening air and suddenly became part of the meal. It reminded me that some of the best performances aren’t found in concert halls—they’re discovered by accident.
The music continues all across the valley. The Roost in Cathedral City showcases artists like Gennine Francis Jackson and Marisa Corvo while building a loyal neighborhood following. Patrice Morris keeps the classic supper-club tradition alive at the Indian Wells Resort Hotel. Cascade Lounge at Agua Caliente invites guests to dance the night away, while Eddie V’s, Babaloo’s, The Sandbar in La Quinta, Big Rock Pub in Indio, and neighborhood venues throughout Desert Hot Springs remind us that live music never really takes the summer off.
I’ve only scratched the surface.
So this summer, The Groove Report is officially hitting the road. I’ll be wandering into lounges, patios, cafés, neighborhood bars, and places that don’t always make the headlines but always seem to have a good band. If you know a hidden gem where the music is still playing, send me a note. Some of the best stories begin with someone saying, “You’ve got to hear this.”
Because the best groove isn’t always on the biggest stage. Sometimes it’s just waiting behind an open door.
So if you hear music drifting onto the sidewalk this summer, don’t keep walking.
Step inside. There’s a good chance you’ll find me there
Sweet Baby J’ai writes The Groove Report for Coachella Valley Weekly
