It’s an early autumn Thursday evening in Sonoma County here on the 3rd of October, though a wicked heat wave elevated the temperature into the mid-90s earlier in the day. But the elevation has thankfully helped cool it down into the 70s as showtime nears at the Phoenix Theater in Petaluma. There was a recent buzz in the Bay Area that guitar icon Jack White would play a show in San Francisco on his small venue pop-up tour (which materializes with a Friday show at the Great American Music Hall). Still, few expected an extra show in the North Bay.
The $125 tickets for the 700-capacity theater reportedly sold out in less than a minute, making it a hot ticket indeed. But kudos to White for also setting aside about 10 percent of the tickets at a $25 price for students, helping to broaden the demographic at this all-ages show. It’s also refreshing to see a big-time rock star consciously decide to value the experience over the profits by playing in small venues. White announced his strategy on Instagram in August when he posted a message with his thoughts on the tour:
“We will mostly be playing at small clubs, backyard fetes, and a few festivals here and there to cover expenses… I also want to walk through orchard fields and grab apples off of trees at will and fill my belly full of that fruit if the desire strikes me. I’m looking for that cool breeze, you know? Lots of love and rock and roll to you all and you are blessed for giving that love to others. We hope that we see you out on the road soon, if not let’s get coffee and a slice of pie sometime? Music is sacred,” White mused, signing off as “Johnny Guitar”…