It's back! Â I got to attend through free tickets from Yelp, and I had an absolute blast. Â They brought some great acts and the food was actually awesome and unique. Â The weather also was absolutely beautiful. Â I liked how the concert was on the earlier side so it was still sunny and light out. Â All in all, a great time!
Review Source:I am so sad that this event isn't going to happen anymore (lack of funding). Anyways been coming to this event every since I went to SJSU. Crazy shenanigans..people drinking and smoking hella trees. Music was always good, especially the reggae days. If they were still putting on events they should have done an EDM theme show.
Review Source:Definitely a one of a kind atmosphere. All types of people of all races and ages here. It's like a free open party here every Thursday and it's definitely worth going to. Lots of drinking, dancing and I smelled a lot of weed smoking, too.. I'm not really into all that, but just saying if you are.. lol
I would rate it higher, but let's admit it, downtown is not the safest place. I may be stereotyping, but I definitely saw some creepy looking people so if you do come, come with a group! :)
FREE Music in the Park this time I went to see English Beat. Â Saw them last Sun at Stern Grove, SF. Â SJ location they don't beg & beg for Donations - I like. Â Security check purses/bags before entering.
One of the opening bands was Wicker - who? Â Don't know, just loud awful so called singing & rock music. Bring Earplugs! Think it lasted from 6:30-7ish.
English Beat started about 8:30-9:45p (I left that time, maybe they played a song or 2 more). Â They sang about the same songs from Sun. Stern Grove concert. Â I liked Tears of a Clown & Tenderness.
Food they had for sale:
Pizza My Heart - $4/slices; $24 whole
Hot Dogs
Peggy Sue's
Angelou's Taqueria
Fahrenheit
Beer was $7 a cup. Â I didn't get any. - Helps pay for the event.
Alice radio station had a booth - spin-the-wheel. Â Big prize was a CD, I just got a kid bag of cookies.
Tip: Bring a blanket, chair, Earplugs, jacket, sunglasses
FREE bike valet - by the BofA. Â Many Porta Pottys around near the BofA w/ hand washing station next to them.
Website:
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Well, my first time at Music in the Park was on 7/14/2011 and it was mostly to see Neon Trees. It was a good time and they are GREAT live. I would've rated it higher just for them if it wasn't for a lot of the people around. I was turned off by all the weed and shady looking characters.
The second time I was there was the following week and it was the same thing pretty much. Music is cool and it's great to see that San Jose can have such nice cultural events. Unfortunately, the people who smoke weed, cigarettes, and whatever else they can find were back. After the event was over and I was hanging out with my friends nearby the park, a fight erupted between what I would assume was two gangs and we heard a snap that some people thought may have been a gun shot. I wouldn't bring my family here and would be very attentive to the well being of any female friends I bring with me.
I came here for the Neon Trees concert and would've given it 4 stars for the performance alone. Â But I gotta ding it a star because of all the weed present. Â I don't care if people want to do pot, but it stank horribly and made it feel pretty GD stuffy for an open air event! Â
Lawn seating is limited, so if you go, go early and bring some lawn chairs or towels. Â I'd come back only if I were a fan of the headliners, but the weed was the big turnoff.
This pains me to not be excited for Music in the Park, but I'm not. Â I just went this year 2011, and it was gated with security checking my purse for bottles and guns. Â Is this how ghetto it has become? Â
Tons of little hood rats all over the place. Â They are all either drunk or high. Â Some are looking for fights. Â This isn't the peaceful event it used to be. Â
I think I'm over this once great free event.
Free music...That's pretty cool. Â Booze at the park...the're pretty cool too. Â It was so crowded when I came here on reggae night. Â And smelled of cow poop from all the smokers. Â I started to get a head ache. Â
I will definitely not come on another reggae night but maybe for others. Â It's nice to listen to some music outside and had a picnic with friends and family.
Free music and free show.
Music in the Park had a good variety of music for everyone. So far I've gone to the first one, classic rock & the Beatles tribute band. Both were very enjoy about.
Downside is there is limited seating, so get there early to grab a seat on the lawn. Also, it smells like weed, which i'm not a big fan of the smell, especially while i'm trying to eat.
Event is good for all ages. They allow you to bring in food and drinks as long as its in a plastic bottle, no aluminum or glass. Beer and wine is for sale at the event; beer is $7.
It seems, as with all things that start out nice, as time progresses the overall quality of persons is lessened each time I go down there. And not just the fights.
The whole attitude and vibe teeters between unconformable and obscene. It's not just the guys fighting, it's skanky women, illiterate youth, and a whole host of other types doing their best to fulfill every negative stereotype out there.The city and the vendors make the concessions over priced and the citizens make it unsafe.
Through  with all the recent budget cut backs, I've VERY grateful to even have music in the park.
I've been going to this on and off for the past few years and it's gotten so out of hand this year. Went last week for Freddie McGregor and left cause I thought I was going to get killed. No joke, at least hurt really bad. I like to have a good time, drink, even get a little loud... but the violence here is off the charts. Within 15 minutes we saw two big fights within 30 feet of each other. These were fights that went on for a few minutes, serious damage. Not those ones where one person gets in a punch each before it's broken up. We left and went to jack's bar in japantown.
If you're planning on living a long and healthy life, don't go to this event. I hear Sunnyvale is starting theirs up soon, hopefully it will be better than San Jose.
Also, beer prices are now SEVEN dollars, up from the previous 6 dollars.
(copied from my Cesar Chavez park review.)
Recently I went to the first Music in the park 2011 concert featuring Greg Kihn. [I know they have their own review, too. should I copy this twice to the other pages?] I occasionally listen to his morning show on KFOX, there just isn't enough (ital) of him. Seems to be a strange stretch of continuous music to have during the shift when I actually like hearing his conversations and rock stories. I walked around, it was a pretty sunny day, all things considered. There has been unheard of rainy weather for a June, breaking all the weather low records. The consensus of articles I've read suggest the weather has a lot to do with Japan's nuclear winter as well as the Volcanic winter from Rapture Day. Remember the apocalypse?
Interesting members of the community this time. A LOT more feathered back hair than I was ever aware of in the south bay. Rockers unite! Makes me wonder what happened to KSJO. I was away during the whole cannabis collective starting era. So all the secondary I was inhaling actually got me high and got me the munchies, good for all the food stands from neighboring restaurants. I panicked for a bit at the prospect of getting a job interview with weed in my system, but then I figured WHAT job interview? It's been a dry year for that. Yeah, It's June. People brought lounge chairs, I didn't even think of that. someone even had a cool quilt they made form concert shirts. Transients were walking around. People were dancing, uh, very enthusiastically. I hoped someday I could dance again without considering the stiffs around me.
I plunged myself in this environment to try and feel a connection again with the town I left years ago. I talked with a few people and tried to shake off feeling like an outsider. I tried not to think of the community of friends I had to leave hundreds of miles away. I want to belong to a group again, even if it's just those from a job.
Always a great time, the lineup is usually pretty good throughout the summer. there are beer and food vendors on both sides of the park but it does get a bit pricey so I recommend pre-fading somewhere nearby or having an early dinner. There are plenty of places nearby that have happy hours just before the music begins.
Make sure to arrive early if you want a good spot because it will get packed fast. Parking is usually a bit tough if you use the street, but you can always use the San Pedro Parking garage and just walk up market, the cost since it's after hours on Thursday is only about $3.
There are some openers for the main concert @ 7pm, the main show then starts and runs till about 930. Always lots of babes, cops run a muck as well, but will normally leave people alone for the most part. Your also real close to local restaurants so a quick bite afterward is easy. Only thing that is sad is that Eek-a-mouse isn't going to be performing for an unknown amount of time and he is usually a regular who puts on a great show.
This experience I am sure would be better if I go on a night that I would actually enjoy. Â Free concert in the center of downtown san jose!
I have never been to Music in the Park and I wanted to see what it was all about! Â So Hey why not I thought? Â It was the last one yesterday night for the summer 8.26.10. Â This date meant: Reggae Night. Â I don't mind Reggae music at all!! But you know what comes with Reggae!
Last night was definitely not my scene. Â I was about to yack from the massive smell of everyone smoking. Â It felt like I was Hot-Boxing.. but not really.. haha
I can see this being fun though. Â I never realized how many people come for this event!! LOTS! Â All ages are welcomed. Â Beer was $6 and they give you wristbands for alcohol. Â Food such as Pizza my heart and hot dogs are available in booths around the park. Â
Go to happy hours nearby before heading out here! Then Enjoy!
Thank god I have hookups for parking. ;) or else it would of been all bad.
Wow, I had a wonderful and exciting time at Music In The Park. The band that was there this time, Y&T was fantastic. The electric guitarists nearly brought tears to my eyes. So talented. The lead vocalist had an interesting, powerful and raspy voice. The sound quality was great. The crowd turnout was huge.
My only complaint is I am NOT a smoker nor into marijuana at all. It did become overwhelming and annoying with the air tight and filled with marijuana smoke everywhere. Otherwise, the music and feeling of the atmosphere was nice. It was adorable seeing kids rock out and headbanging. I look forward to attending a future concert for sure. Best of all, the event is free!
Foreverland really got the crowd going this past Music in the Park, and everyone and their mom was feeling it.
We found parking on the street two blocks away from the event, but it was free and the walk with friends was nice. In order to purchase alcohol, you need to get a wristband (available at any beer booth), and pay a stiff $6 for a 12 oz. cup. I saw a lot of people bring their own liquor, but also a lot of cops looking for those people. Stay safe!
If you really want to see the stage, you need to get in the crowd, which was jumping and dancing all night. If you bring a chair or blanket, you'll have to sit pretty far away to avoid being trampled (and even then, you risk it).
For a rowdy city like San Jose, I was sort of surprised that EVERYONE I met there that night was nice and friendly. Maybe because the booze was flowing strong. Oh, that reminds me, don't bring your kids here...
Thank you City of San Jose for squeezing that extra cash for this summer's Music In The Park 2010 concert series! Â Â Last night, I watched "FOREVERLAND" in concert!!!
<a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DVzvcobO3BSk&s=7a4e411b95bfb9152136742fad9b734487f72b4991f215ab7668dd4f5f70609f" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/w…</a>
For those that missed out, this San Francisco tribute band had a jam packed show performing not only the King of Pop's greatest hits...but they jammed out with his hits with the Jackson 5 - "ABC" and "I Want You Back"! Â Â I've been going to Music in the Park since 2007, and I have never seen it this packed. Â Early attendees made camp around the plaza with their foldable chairs and lawn blankets. Â Beer and wine booth vendors surrounded the area with unbearable lines of thirsty masses. Â Â And thanks to MJ, this was a definitely one the largest outdoor parties for downtown. Â Â Special shout out to one of my favorite radio stations: Â 98.1 KISS FM for hosting this event!
Logistics:
- Music in the Park Concerts are always free. Â You must get there an hour early before the show begins. Â There is no assigned seating. Â Just break out your chairs and blankets and claim your picnic area. Â
- Parking is horrendous. Â Every year, I end up parking at the lots or public garages. Â Bring cash - Lots are typically $5.00 to $8.00.
- No glass bottles or alcohol at the event site. Â The City of San Jose installs chain link fences for each major concert. Â Security enforced. Â Â
- Make plans to eat a light dinner before the show. Â Â There are food vendor onsite, but the lines are hella long. Â My friends and I ended up taking advantage of the local restaurant happy hours after the show.
Music in the park is always fun... I have been going to this reoccurring event forever, yep I'm that old! = D
It's a nice diverse crowd of people and ages... Most of the time everyone is really cool, of course there can be a few bad apples, that taint the pie... everyone should just chill and enjoy. Security and a mild amount of cops are visible, but no one wants to babysit so.. just take care and have fun!
I bike there, and near security is a bike lock up area. There are little concession stands that offer different types of foods and then the Bevi's although not much of a selection its sponsored by Dos Equis, but the Amber is pretty good.
The venues range from pop to rock, and Ska!!! Woo hoo... Reggae and tribute bands... plenty of seating on the lawn or you can hang out right down the middle of the walking path where the benches are located up near the stage... This makes for a great evening after work, bike over and have a beer be safe and rock out!
Hmm. The low rating is probably due to the night I chose to attend. Â Music was oki and the crowd was pretty ghetto. Â Please do not bring your children here.
Beer and wine is $6. Â Don't buy food from Fahrenheit. Â Overly salty and dry chicken/ beef satay for $6. Â Head over to the taqueria truck for some super nachos for $7. Â Better yet, eat anywhere else downtown and drink up then walk over here. Â Maybe by then those 2 stars will turn into 5.
Anything that is free deserves 5 stars! Â Well, it is not that free since I ended up spending about $24 dollars on beer then some more on food, but that is besides the point. Â It is a great way to spend a warm, sunny Thursday lounging in the grass and listening to some music. Â
And, my favorite hobby of all: people watching. Â People of all types come out for these events. Â At one of the r&b shows I saw tons of men in their 50's standing around a garbage can smoking weed. Â I found it to be very entertaining. Â One of the things that I tend to do is to just stay outside of the gates and lounge on the grass further back. Â That way, I am able to bring my dog and have a picnic without being hassled by security and dealing with the crowds.
I drove up north to go to technology museums with my son before he started his college classes again. I happily found out that there was a live concert in the park a block away from my hotel the night before I was scheduled to leave.
The White Album Ensemble performed all the songs from "Across the Universe". I love The Beatles so this, to me, was a fabulous way to end a trip to San Jose. The City of San Jose knows how to put on a concert! They block off the street, add more porta potties and included local merchants for food and booze. That's right - during the concert, you can drink Dos XX and J. Lohr in the park if you want with no hassles. All the while there is a good police presence and city workers cleaning up the park.
Free? You betcha. So expect tons of freeloaders, some of whom will strangely pay six dollars for a hot dog. The grass gets trampled out, but it seems to grow back. You really have to get here early to get good seats. Even then you might have to sit behind a sea of standing concert goers. If you don't like second hand smoke or pot, don't come. Especially when there are reggae bands! lol.
Music in the Park usually gets three kinds of bands: one hit wonders, bands trying to restart their careers, or bands trying to scrape some money on the side. It's not bad though. You can usually have a good time still leave whenever you want. It's rather strange how I've never witnessed any fights. Police patrol is decent but I think they should really shut down both of the side streets. It would be less of a headache and it would expand the concert area.
I used to be quite a regular at Music in the Park. It offers a great event for the city during the summer months and is free! Woo Hoo! Over the years, they've expanded their food vendors and have been able to offer a good variety of musical entertainment. And c'mon now, who doesn't love seeing them some Mandy Moore or El De Barge!
It does get crowded these days and they have begun checking bags and picnic baskets.....so don't bring things you shouldn't be bringing! :) So if you're free on Thursday evenings in the summer, grab a blanket and your boo/buddies and head on over to Plaza de Cesar Chavez for some good music and entertainment!
Free concert outside -- can't beat that!
This is a great event for a number of reasons: Â 1) Sometimes they have some good bands 2) Great place to hangout with friends for a casual cheap evening 3) IT's FREE!
Downside to hanging out here is it's extremely crowded. If you want to hear the music well, you'll have to <a href="http://www.yelp.com/mailcome">http://www.yelp.com/mail…</a> early to beat the crowd and get a spot in the front. Being in the front is even more crowded. The worst part is the lack of parking. All the lots closest to the park usually get filled up. I think the best place to park is the lot adjacent to San Pedro Square and walk (not too bad of a walk). Another thing to do is take the light rail. I also recommend to have a drink or two after the concert or have dinner downtown as the streets and exits to the garage will be packed.
Loved the music last night but it was way too crowded!
Music:
Reggae, eek-a-mouse: LOVED it
Parking:
is a beetch! After driving in circles for about 25 minutes, my hubby finally parked were I suggested in the first place. $7 bux worth the time of not driving around.
Smell:
Anyone smell that? It smells like skunk :)
Food:
Thank goodness for the Pizza My Heart stand! Yum!
Now that there are practically no concert venues in San Jose (the Pavilion doesn't count), I look forward to summer where I can go to Music in the Park to see some pretty cool bands.
A few years back, I saw Trapt and Acceptance perform-- that was my first experience. My little sister went with her friends and met me at the end of the show with signed posters for both of us and give me a run-through of a convo she had with one of the band members about his Hebrew tatoo.
Another summer, I went to see Matchbook Romance and the Matches. This was technically "Music in the Other Park" but I think it's the same thing. This was right before Matchbook Romance broke up, so I was happy to see them, and the Matches is one of my favorite local bands. It was really easy to get super-close to the stage (ok, so I may have pushed) and we got autographs from both bands.
I haven't gone recently but I really look forward to going soon. I think it's great that the city puts on these events regularly in the summer and offers a variety of musical performers.
I'm not going to review the actual artists, because everybody has different taste in music.
That's what this is really all about. Â The sponsors try to keep the music fresh and different every time. Â Following a different genre every week, there's bound to be something for everybody. Â While the headliners aren't particularly "known" every week--honestly, this year Third Eye Blind is all I know, and last year it was Vanessa Carlton--but this is ghetto San Jose and we have to embrace what we still have.
Music in the Park is far more crowded than Christmas in the Park, and while there's a lot of alcohol vendors, the drunks really aren't that much of a problem. Â The security is pretty tight here, so don't be doing anything stupid.
As far as pointers go, a good place to chill is the Bank of America just across the street. Â You can hear the music, and you won't be bothered by the crazy people standing on the lawn. Â If it's cold, which it shoudln't be, you can bring a blanket, and even though there are plenty of vendors, you can bring your own food.
But um, the kettle corn is good. Â Cheap too.
My favorite in Jr High: Third Eye Blind
Unusual to see them here for FREE!!
Super packed!!
Inside the crowd, but away from the mosh
Coming next time with stilts! :P
Outline of the concert
5:30-6:30: Opener
6:30-7:20: intermission
7:20-8:20: Third Eye Blind
Tips
- Take public transportation. Don't bother bringing a car and trying to find parking.
- Bring a lawn chair or nice big blanket
- Bring a picnic dinner, or food, snacks and water
Go green take: lightrail or VTA buses to Convention Center
Saw third eye blind this week....they only performed for about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Played mostly old songs and a few new ones...
- Sound system was a little muffled. Not loud enough this time
- SUPER DUPER crowded
- Hard to find parking
- For shorties like me hard to see performers over all the people, next time I'm bring a stool so I can see...hehe
Nonetheless great music for free...mostly just chilled in my lawn chair and listened to the live music
- You can drink beer so long as it's in a cup
- You can picnic and bring your own food
- Mixed crowd: teens, college kids, working adults, families
Overall I'd come probably every once inawhile. Cool downtown summer event series....definitely take advantage of it!
First of all, it's free. Second of all, you might have a week where it is a band you actually know.
I went yesterday and was expecting to see Third Eye Blind.
Instead, what I saw was a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while. Mostly my friends who have kids. This is the only way they can go out and get drunk and let their wives take care of the little rugrats.
We pre-drank in the parking garage, as most mature adults do, and filled up water bottles with clear alcohol. Of course, you can't enter the park with water bottles, so we downed our drinks straight right before entering the gate.
Bad idea.
There were free drinks to be had at the "Metro" tent. Cheese and crackers for the fruity wine drinkers. Beer for the drunks.
It's a massive crowd throughout the park and be prepared to have your feet stepped on. There are cholos all along the walkways, so don't eyeball anyone or you will have unknowingly started a fight. I hope you don't have a problem with pissing in a port-a-potty, because, outside of actually going to a place outside of the park such as a hotel or restaurant, you will need to let a stream out on someone else's visible poop floating on blue water.
BY the time Third Eye Blind was on stage, I had already begun to time travel to Friday morning. I didn't even look at the stage once.
Its not that I disagree with the 5 star ratings but I think Music in the Park is a real hit or miss.
Granted I went every Thursday from 04-06 because my apartment was walking distance. After 06 when I moved off of SJSU campus, I notice that Music in the Park was a pain to go too. Parking, people, vendors etc.. total Zoo.
Of course, like you have probably heard, its FREE. The line ups include a reggae night, alternative, pop rock, country etc.. (You can see the summer line up on their website)
I guess I'm just not a big fan of Music in the Park anymore cause my schooling interferes but I would love to come back and give this event a full 5 stars.. Too bad I'll be missing Third Eye Blind.. I'll be in lab..
Reggae night at music in the park was awesome. I brought my dog SATIVA with me and damn was she a Putang MAgnet.
I talked to so many fine females. So many that my friends were like let me borrow SATIVA. They did and as soon as they took her women were just coming from everywhere.
The funny thing was that when my homie was tryin to show them tricks, Sativa just sat there lookin at me. haha Some girls were like why is that dog hella staring at that guy(me).
It was really fun. Met some really fine women. All types from indian to asian to latina to whites.
All Thanks to SAtiva. LOL I love my dog. other then that SAtiva got carressed by every single one of them.
Fun times. OH and there were hella people cheefin it up. Cops don't trip for Shi$
San Jose has like 3-4 awesome things gong for it. This is definitely one of them . I remember working lunches at PF Chang's 5 years ago, then drinking 20 beers and heading here to see Eek-a-Mouse, Goldfinger, Stoke 9, the list goes on and on.
The vibe is mellow, the felons that typically appear downtown are not in full effect at this time, and like the others said the SHOW is FREE.
Highly recommded!
Definitely one of the few San Jose traditions I absolutely enjoy.
Music In The Park always reminds me of the Acceptance. Only because after all our crazy and drunken efforts, my friend and I missed them twice AND she busted her big toe trying to make it there on time. The crazy things people do for a FREE concert.
Take off work early just in time for happy hour at the local bars. Grab a spot on the lawn enjoying the company of friends, random strangers, beer, food and just great music in beautiful weather.
Mark your calenders folks! June 18, 2009 = 3EB. Woo hoo!
Come summer time, the San Jose Downtown Association puts together a FREE concert series every Thursday evening in one of their public dwntwn parks. Â The 1st half of summer (June-July) they hold the shows over at St. James Park. Â Then come July-August the venue switches over to Cesar Chavez Park. Â This is a great outlet for the after work crowd to meet and chill in the warm summer months. Â Equip with a festival setting ie. food and drink booths, porta-potties, and local security, the crowd is made up of families, workers, students and just plain ol' lovers of music. Â And with downtown San Jose at your disposal, there are many other options to get yourself into regarding restaurants, cafes, lounges, dives, clubs etc... Â
However since the music is free, you will not see current high demand acts. Â You will see older acts or specific genre (latin/salsa or jazz). Â Over the past 5 years I've seen such bands as Pato Banton, The Tubes, The Gap Band, Musical Youth, Smash Mouth and Pete Escovedo. Â Every week there is a new band and opener. Â It starts around 5 pm and pretty much goes on til sundown. Â
Great way to unwind and "start" a weekend in the south bay. Â If I notice a particular act I want to check out, I'll start calling friends early in the week to set up a meet on Thursday nite. Â Here's the link to scope out their summer schedule 07. Â Hopes to see ya out there.
*clix dis*
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