File photograph by Ryan Olein

Blues and Chews: Fun-seekers will find what they're looking for at Campbell's annual PruneFestival.




A whole lotta eatin' goin' on

Annual festival promises good food and hot music

By Sarah Gaffney and Genevieve Roja

Sure, the Prune Festival is a good reason to get out of the house and be social, but the real reason people take to the sun and the crowds is the food. Doctors may not approve, but chowing down on a cheese- steak and some curly fries once in a while just feels good. This year at the two-day event on May 20 and 21, 16 food vendors will be selling their tasty delicacies. The mouthwatering choices sound too good to narrow down to just one serving. Garlic chicken sandwiches, Hawaiian barbecue, catfish fillets, strawberry shortcake and beef fajitas are just a few of the menu items hungry festival-goers will be lining up for.

There are other diversions besides calamari and yummy jalapeño poppers. From country to jazz, there's something for every music listener as groups take to the main and west stages from 11 a.m. Saturday to 4 p.m. Sunday. Many of the bands are festival veterans, playing at local venues and events like the Saratoga Strawberry Festival, Willow Glen's Dancing on the Avenue and downtown San Jose's Tapestry in Talent.

For those who feel a little guilty about consuming all those extra calories, there will be some food booths at this year's festival whose proceeds will be donated to those in need. So, when searching for some tasty treats at this weekend's PruneFestival, consider some choices that will help someone less fortunate as well as fill up the tummy. The West San Jose-Campbell Lions Club will be partnering with Jersey Cheesesteaks in grilling chicken cheesesteak sandwiches. All proceeds from the booth's cheesesteak sales will benefit the Lions Blind Center on Bascom Avenue, an organization that provides classes, services and a Braille library for the blind and partially sighted.

Dr. Art Low, Campbell Chamber of Commerce president and Lions Club member, will be spending all weekend at the festival, overseeing the Lions Club booth and entertainment for the festival.

"I'm going to have to wear a double-sided hat that day," says Lowe. "I've got my two kids volunteering. One is volunteering for the chamber and the other is volunteering for the Lions Club. So, we're making it a family affair."

St. Mary's Assyrian Chaldean Catholic Church, a 350-member parish on Civic Center Drive, will participat in PruneFestival for the second time this year. The church's booth will serve kebabs and baklava.

Church member Johnny George chuckles when asked how much the church earned at last year's festival. "Last year it was our first year and to tell you the truth, we didn't make money," says George. "This year we're hoping it will be a better year. What we're doing with the proceeds is helping two kinds of people, those who are less fortunate than us locally and families overseas. We help members of the church who are very poor, and internationally, we send money sometimes to places like Africa. Anywhere people need our help."

George, who is still fine-tuning the ingredients of the kebabs he'll be grilling, hopes his food booth will acquaint people with Assyrian food and culture.

"Participating in the PruneFestival is our way of giving back to the community and introducing people to our church," says George. "We are lucky in a sense that the church is in walking distance. Everything will be fresh from the kitchen to the cooking area."

Westmont High School students will be working the Campbell Kiwanis Club booth, where tube-steak lovers can line up for hot links and garlic and polish sausage. Proceeds from the Kiwanis booth will benefit the Westmont High School Scholarship Fund and Key Club.

The festival's four beer booths will quench the thirst of dry-mouthed festival-goers. This year, Campbell's own Rock Bottom Brewery in the PruneYard Shopping Center will serve as official beer brewer for the event. The brewery will send more than 90 kegs of its specially brewed Brew Fest Pale Ale and Orchard Brown.

Says Rick Hammond, brewmaster at Rock Bottom Brewery, "We've hit both sides of the spectrum in terms of beer tastes. The pale ale is an American-style pale ale with a nice amount of hop character, and the brown ale is an English-style nut brown ale with a real nice maltiness. The pale ale can't be beat and the brown is just nice and easy drinking."

Several bands headline the two stages on both days. Three bands will kick off the PruneFest on Saturday, beginning with Fred McCarty's country-crooning band from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on the main stage, located in front of the Ainsley House and close to Orchard City Green. Two variety/cover bands--Sage and the Reagle Beagle--will play back-to-back starting at 12:45 p.m. and ending at 4:15 p.m. On the stage on Campbell Avenue at Third Street, alternative band Rebecca's Mask will play between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Silicon Gulch Jazz Band will play from 2 to 4 p.m.

Charles Williams will have a lot to celebrate as he and the All-Star Jam take the main stage from 1:30 to 4 p.m. Sunday. Williams was given a second chance at life thanks to his nephew, Alvin Blackmon, who donated one of his kidneys to Williams.

"He didn't want me to suffer anymore and he said he thought he'd give me the gift of life," says Williams, who helped raise his nephew. "I tell you, I'm just speechless. You just look at the world in a whole different way."

Williams is easily San Jose's most famous celebrity, as San Jose's ambassador of music. His Charles Williams Band has enjoyed success from its album If We Try, and San Jose officially named Oct. 25 Charles Williams Day in Santa Clara Valley. Working on and off together since 1988, the All-Star Jam features Los Angeles-based gospel singer Clara Ward; guitarist and singer Lady Bo; Mani Melchor, a saxophonist who once played with John Lee Hooker; Don Frank on drums and Clifford Coulter on keyboard. Many of the members have played all over the country, including the Red Beans and Rice festivals, the San Jose Firefighter's Chili Cook-Off, the Monterey Jazz Festival and at New York's Lincoln Center. The group plays a rousing mix of jazz, gospel and blues that is sure to bop a few heads.

The Jesse Charles Band, regulars at Willow Glen's Dancing on the Avenue, will play from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, followed by Williams, with a brief intermission by the Pop Warner "Diva Cheerleaders," at 2:30 p.m. On the west stage, the jazzy Steve Czarneckie Duo kick off from 11 a.m. to noon, with the Diva Cheerleaders making an appearance from 12:30 to 1 p.m. Pianists Kathy Chan and Mary Ott will play from 1:15 to 2:15 p.m. and 2:30 to 4 p.m., respectively. Suzanne Ewing, who helped book the bands for PruneFest, and DJ Chris Evans will emcee the event from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Annual festival offers a wide variety of food

Children have their own interests when it comes to sports

Police Blotter

Sports Briefs

High school baseball and softball