It Got Chilly in the Desert

Pioneertown Days

Last Saturday I headed to Pappy & Harriett's in Yucca Valley, the Pioneertown side of things, to see Cold War Kids. 

So basically, I saw Cold War Kids in a small cowboy bar that has huge barbecue pits and picnic tables outside and a little cowboy village that doubles as a hotel. When we were checking in at the door, two men rode up and asked where the horse parking was. One was trailed by a mule.

I have always been intrigued by the place. Having maintained calendar listings for OC Weekly, IE Weekly and LA City Beat, I know a lot about who has played where during the last 12 years. 

Pappy & Harriett's is awesome. I was standing smack on the other side of lead singer Nathan Willett's keyboards. The set list was two inches from my belt buckle. There couldn't have been more than a couple hundred people crammed into the entire place.

Of course I took that set list the moment the show was over. Snag. 

I cannot say enough good things about Pappy & Harriett's. I have already said my piece about Cold War Kids. They were amazing, as always. But this is really about the digs. Next show I got to—and I have a few interesting ones to choose from—I am having dinner too. They serve drinks in mason jars, so I am sure they have portions bigger than a hubcap. 

Upcoming shows include Dick Dale, I See Hawks in L.A., The Country (with members of Gram Rabbit), Masters of Reality, Merle Jagger and, most interestingly, The Evangenitals—a punk rock, hillbilly love-in "of the freak-folk variety." I'm in. Plenty of greats have passed through Pappy & Harriett's in previous years, most recently Robert Plant, Arctic Monkeys, Vampire Weekend, The Donnas, Peaches, Billy Corgan, Lucinda Williams and plenty more.

The hotel looks like a good time, interesting if nothing else. Pack your corsets and spurs. But instead we camped in Joshua Tree for the night, which is better than getting a room at the Standard in LA after a show anytime. And there is a cool hippy/hiking store not far from the campground—next to the Home of the Dome where signs hang that say witty things like "Dome Sweet Dome." 

I scored a Mega Ball, an ice cream maker in a ball that is perfect for shaking up around the campfire, incense and a tic-tac-toe game made out of sustainable, environmental-friendly materials. And we never hit traffic once. 

Robert Plant with the house band at Pappy & Harriett's

Check them out:

http://www.pappyandharriets.com/index2.html