Kevin Costner had the neighbors over on Friday and it was quite the side yard shindig!
An all-star lineup of big name celebrities — Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, Kenny Loggins, Rob Lowe, Cameron Diaz, Zoe Saldana, Peter Noone, Alan Parsons, Richard Marx, Jeff Bridges, and Pink, among others, all donating their time and talents — and approximately 3,000 guests (donating hard earned cash) convened at the actor’s Summerland ocean view estate to support the work of One805, the nonprofit First Responder support-focused group formed in the aftermath of the Thomas fire and subsequent mudslides.
The big show, was of course, the show itself, with headliner Pink — performing with Dallas Green as the duo You + Me, and with guitarist Justin Derrico, who she’s been playing with for 18 years — in a wonderfully stripped down set that gave her exceptional vocal gymnastics a chance to shine in a different way than the more elaborate, physical gymnastics performances she’s so well known for. The Santa Barbara County resident and vintner/owner of Two Wolves wine was warmly funny and comfortable onstage in a sparkly, high-necked black dress, as she quipped, “This is the most clothing I’ve ever worn on a stage. This is a little different.”
Indeed it was different, in a good way. Pink kicked off the set with her 2001 hit “Don’t Let Me Get Me,” about which she said, “This song is old enough to drink.” That was followed by the acoustic version of her 2017 political anthem “What About Us,” which seems eerily even more prescient in 2024, particularly with the bare bones presentation. With the audience — at least those of us who read the adverts carefully and expected to hear only the lesser known You + Me songs — pleasantly surprised to hear the more familiar pop-rock Pink tunes, it was equally enchanting when Green (who also plays with the indie band City and Colour) joined in with his more folk-rock style harmonies and guitar picking.
One of the highlights from You + Me was “Love Gone Wrong,” the beautiful 2014 song that Pink said was what made the longtime friends decide to form a band. And they also did a crushingly beautiful duet of Sade’s “No Ordinary Love.” Pink said they have a new album coming out soon, which would be their first since the 2014 Rose Ave.
Earlier at the event, radio host Catherine Remak and musician Kenny Loggins each received the “Heart of the Community Award” from One805 for their philanthropic contributions in Santa Barbara and beyond.
With a heartfelt story about he and his wife being rescued by First Responders during the mudslides, Jeff Bridges introduced his friend Loggins, who retired from touring after a show at the Santa Barbara Bowl last year. Loggins then performed a hit-filled set that included “Danger Zone,” “Heart to Heart,” “Conviction of the Heart,” and “Whenever I Call You Friend,” with the talented young singer Hunter Hawkins. By the time Loggins ended his set with “Footloose,” the entire party was up dancing and singing along.
Additional performers at the event, which filled the stage from 4 – 10 p.m., included Kevin Costner & Modern West (his country-rock band), Alan Parsons (who also served as musical director), Joe Bonamassa, Al Stewart, Richard Marx, Alyssa Bonagura, Jordan Asher Huffman, Plastic Harpoons, and The Santa Barbara Symphony.
Along with appearances by several First Responder representatives, Prince Harry presented the Heart of the Community Award to Loren Courtney, a veteran Army helicopter pilot who served as a Flight Lead for air assault missions. He manned the flights for many high-ranking officials from the Secretary of Defense to Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, to President Clinton’s visit to Africa. He worked with Special Operations teams, infantry soldiers (both U.S. and foreign soldiers), humanitarian resupply missions, Medevac, and firefighting He now flies for the Santa Barbara County Air Support unit which supports both the Fire and the Sheriffs Departments.
There were definitely a few hiccups throughout the night, with restrooms and transport to remotely parked cars, but overall this was a very lovely night of feel good entertainment for a good cause. See One805.org for more information.
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