Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Gary Ràchac

Sponsored

San Diego native Gary Ràchac spent several years working at Tasha’s Music downtown before becoming a singer-songwriter and radio personality. His songs have been recorded by Ray Brandes and Nick Castro & the Young Elders.

“Lyrically, I’d say my songs are half Gershwin and half gospel. Musically, call it proto-country folk punk or R&B psych. I think that covers it.”

He’s also dabbled in record production, music marketing, and journalism — having been an associate of local-bred rock-critic Lester Bangs. The list of local performers he’s worked with includes Chris Hillman (the Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers), to whom Ra’chac presented a Lifetime Achievement award at the 2004 San Diego Music Awards.

Ràchac produces the Vince Martell Rocks America radio show from his home in Bankers Hill, though the program hosted by the Vanilla Fudge guitarist airs on WNJC in New York City. Says Ràchac, “I’m hoping the show can further the ongoing campaign to induct [Beatles promoter] Sid [Bernstein] into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, an effort started by Billy Joel, Roger Daltrey, Tony Bennett...”

Ràchac has been working with Bernstein, the man who brought the Beatles to America and promoted their famed 1965 Shea Stadium gig. “Believe it or not, Sid is recording his first album, at the age of 92! Plus, his autobiography, Sid Bernstein Calling, has just gone into its second edition.”

“To my delight, we hit it off, and I’m proud to say Sid has taken me under his wing. He’s not only appeared on the show three times, but he’s become my showbiz mentor. I’ve been helping in the promotion of his book and spreading the buzz of his album as a publicist, tapping into my contact list.”

Bernstein is credited as the first promoter of stadium rock concerts and for kickstarting the British Invasion by bringing the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, the Moody Blues, and Herman’s Hermits to America for their first stateside performances.

But, really, a record album? “On the album, Sid sings duets with his newest discovery, Dierera Brodwick, like the French standard ‘La Vie En Rose.’” The album is produced by David Spinoza.

Ràchac has accumulated a lot of celebrity tales, and one of his favorites is that of June 13, 1970, the night Who drummer Keith Moon trashed a room at the Mission Bay Hilton Hotel.

“I had hooked up with the band on their first trip through San Diego about a year prior — and especially hit it off with Keith, with whom I shared a love of early surf music — so it was no problem for me to gain access. The band had rented out the entire fifth floor of the Hilton for an after-show party. And party we did, with Keith leading the grand march through the evening festivities. Yes, I did help Keith Moon drop a sofa, albeit a small sofa, from his hotel room balcony five floors up, to land on top of one of the Who’s equipment trucks.”

And that wasn’t the night’s capper. “At about 3 a.m., me, Keith Moon, bassist John Entwistle, their road manager John Wolff, and a few girls poured into a rented station wagon and went to the all-night drive-through of the Jack in the Box on Morena Boulevard. Entwistle and his girl were in the backseat with Moonie, who was shouting out our order to the clown head at the menu stop. I’ll never forget Keith’s jabbering at the poor nighttime employee trying to take the order, who to this day probably doesn’t realize his brief brush with rock-and-roll greatness.”

In early 2012, Ràchac set up temporary shop in Big Bear with Strawberry Alarm Clock drummer/singer Randy Seol and bassist George Bunnell, editing and mixing a band album produced by longtime Alarm Clock collaborator Steve Bartek (Oingo Boingo, Danny Elfman). Around the same time, he began working on new music with English actor Marcus Jean Pirae, and dating Gordon Waller’s widow Georgiana Steele Waller (Peter and Gordon).

Later in 2012, he announced that he’ll narrate the Raul Sandelin documentary film A Box Full of Rock: The El Cajon of Lester Bangs, profiling the writer’s 1968-1973 period spent in and around San Diego's East County. In early 2013, he began producing a NYC radio show hosted by John Lennon's “lost weekend” mistress May Pang.

“Joey Ramone’s younger Brother Mickey [Ramone] Leigh and I are collaborating on songwriting and production of a new album,” Rachac told the Reader in summer 2013, “and I’ve also been helping him promote his new bio, I Slept with Joey Ramone.

In early 2015, Ràchac collaborated with Duncan Faure of the Bay City Rollers. "I will also be helping Duncan with the booking of his solo project and personal appearances," Ràchac told the Reader. Before joining the Rollers in 1978, Faure was a member of South African pop group Rabbitt, which evolved from a band called yhe Conglomeration consisting of members Trevor Rabin (future Yes guitarist), Faure, Ronnie Robot, and Neil Cloud. Faure's song "24 Hours" was featured in Madonna's 1987 movie Who's That Girl.

Ràchac went into 2016 with multiple projects. "I'm working directly in production, booking and musical collaboration with both Paul Cowsill [the Cowsills] and Grammy Award-winning keyboardist Augie Meyers [Sir Douglas Quintet, Texas Tornados, Bob Dylan's band], with whom I co-wrote a song, 'If You Don't Leave Me Alone),' for his new album, which he's recording in Texas with George Strait's band."

2018 marked his 7th season with May Pang and Cynthia Neilson and their interview-talk radio show in New York, as well was working with photographer Baron Wolman, composer Bobby Hart, singer/songwriters Evie Sands, Kate Taylor, the Cowsills, singer Roy Head, author/singer/ songwriter Sylvie Simmons, R&B great Brenton Wood, Grammy winner Augie Meyers, Lovin' Spoonful bassist/composer Steve Boone.

"Most currently," he said at the time, "I'm working in post-production with Brett Berns, son of the late and legendary songwriter and producer Bert Berns, on the DVD release of the award-winning documentary Bang: The Bert Berns Story.

Sponsored

Upcoming Local Shows

No shows scheduled

Post a show View show history
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.