By Shari Kaplan
Although longtime Los Gatos nightclub WAVES is nearly halfway through its 100-days-to-closing countdown, owners Joel Wyrick and Judy Pearson still feel like celebrating.
Along with draft beer prices equal to the number of days remaining (50 more days = 50-cent beers), Wyrick and Pearson have booked local-band-turned-reggae-giant Inka Inka for a Sept. 13 gig--the halfway point until the bar closes its Old Town doors, where it has served as a modern-rock and reggae venue since the late '80s. WAVES will reopen on Post Street in downtown San Jose in late November or early December.
Inka Inka got their start at WAVES when it was run as Iguana by original owner Bob Keller. As an Iguana DJ, Wyrick remembers Inka Inka members humbly asking if they could play on Tuesday nights. They soon upgraded to Wednesday night performances and became one of the club's most popular house bands for two years. Popularity took them on the road and away from Los Gatos. After seven years they are returning to their home venue of WAVES to play their second-to-last gig together, as the band is breaking up.
Wyrick was a disc jockey at many local clubs before spinning tunes at WAVES. He and wife Pearson--whom he met when they both worked at San Jose club D.B. Cooper's--took over WAVES in 1991, following several ownership changes. Wyrick says the name WAVES originated as an acronym for "Willy & Alex Viva's Exceptional Saloon" when it was run by the Viva family, who lived in the West Valley area.
"WAVES has been the 'alternative spot' in Los Gatos for adults. It's a place for people who didn't fit the typical mold," Wyrick says of the club's reggae and world music sounds, with some modern rock. He also says many patrons told him they appreciated not having to drive into downtown San Jose to find a club of this type.
"WAVES is a love/hate club--either you love it or you're not into it at all. It's like an international fest, hardly any fights and a big mixture of people. Reggae is an international thing and the people who are into it aren't heavy drinkers.
What the San Jose WAVES will have that the Los Gatos one lacked is a full restaurant, featuring barbecue and Caribbean-style foods.
Inka Inka performs Sept. 13 at 9:30 p.m. A cover charge of $5 begins at 8 p.m.
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, September 11, 1996.
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