Terri Olsen and The Perfect Blend next week

Idyllwild’s free Summer Concert Series (ISCS) continues Thursday, July 27, with Terri Olsen and The Perfect Blend. Opening will be a trio of Idyllwild jazz stalwarts, Paul, Bob and Bill (Carman, Boss and Saitta.) The music begins at 6:05 p.m., with the headliner taking the stage at 7 p.m.

Olsen is a summer concert veteran, having appeared with The Perfect Blend regularly, one of the proven crowd-pleasers that series organizer Ken Dahleen lines up each year. Olsen and the band cover what they call “The New American Songbook,” including rock and pop with Broadway standards new and old.

While still in college, 18-year-old Olsen developed show business discipline, playing five shows a day, six days a week in a musical revue at Marriott’s Great America. In L.A. she studied dance, acting and comedy, working up from commercials into bigger roles. Moving on to New York, her first Equity show was “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” where she played Martha and understudied Debbie Boone for two years. She then performed in Broadway shows: “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” “Into the Light,” “Starlight Express” and “Jerry’s Girls.”

Returning to California she has worked nonstop. After two years with the Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, she formed her own band, The Perfect Blend, always in demand at posh desert night spots, including Frank’s Place at the Indian Wells Resort Hotel. The Perfect Blend is made up of Alex Danson on keyboards, Larry Holloway on bass, David Bronson on drums and Phillip Pollerana on congas and vocals.

The modestly named trio opening up, Paul, Bob and Bill, need no introduction to Idyllwilders, or local jazz fans in general. Stalwart is defined as “loyal, reliable and hardworking,” and these three old friends fit that bill. Saxophonist Paul Carman is part of the backbone of Idyllwild Arts Academy’s (IAA) jazz program and has led a string of original jazz groups including Triorbits and Fourbits, in addition to his work with IAA faculty Marshall Hawkins and Barnaby Finch.

Bob Boss has been a part of San Diego jazz life since 1983, but has spent a lot of time and made a lot of friends in Idyllwild, including teaching at IAA. Boss and Carman both have been busy with this year’s Jazz in the Pines. Boss notes that this will be his third time at ISCS. “I did one with Marshall Hawkins and Sherry Williams, and another under my leadership with Marshall, Michael Peed, Roy Gonzales and the late Ramon Banda. We had a wonderful time. The community was a great audience.”

Joining Carman and Boss is bassist Bill Saitta. A busy man in the Coachella Valley, Saitta has been one of the most enjoyable bassists in Idyllwild’s lively scene.

The concerts are all free, but donations are gratefully accepted. The funding is met through contributions from the community, and the series always starts on a wing and a prayer. The budget this year is $36,900. Contributions, checks payable to “Idyllwild Summer Concert Org,” may be sent to P.O. Box 1542, Idyllwild, CA 92549-1542 or call (760) 413-4638.

Remember that temperatures drop in the summer evening. Come prepared with an extra layer to Butterfield Amphitheater, 54201 Ridgeview Drive, access through the Idyllwild Community Center Playground Parking lot on Highway 243 just south of town.