Story and photos by Josh Warburton
Dozens of music lovers found their way to Zion Canyon Saturday night for a performance by one of the most dynamic outfits to ever visit Southern Utah: the nationally renowned art rock band Banyan. The Bit & Spur restaurant again transformed its typically busy but relaxed dining ambiance into a full-blown live performance venue, featuring a high-watt sound system and a dedicated sound-man.
The Bit & Spur, locally owned and operated for over 25 years, has established a reputation hosting some of the best bands to ever to grace the little canyon town of Springdale, located adjacent to the entrance of Zion National Park but well within within reach of St. George and Southern Utah as a whole.
Banyan, Mother Hips, The Uninvited, and more recently The Rainbow Girls and The Slackers, are just some of the touring level acts “The Bit’s” owners bring in for the enjoyment the locals and visitors alike, and Saturday night was no different. Co-owner Alex Peltram mentioned to me that this show, like so many they’ve hosted before it, comes with a serious price tag. He said that it sucks when people complain about a $15 or $20 ticket price. “It’s not like the hay-days when people were packed in here wall to wall; we still get good turnouts but there was a time when the shows were more likely to pencil.”
For the past decade and a half Banyan founder Stephen Perkins has brought his constantly rotating cast of top-notch musical performers.
Saturday night, Perkins setup center “stage”, which in this case is a slightly raised platform that normally holds a handful of tables for restaurant patrons. He took his usual “rockstar” level preparation of tuning drums and situating his symbols that he does before his performances, and he has the pedigree to back that behavior up, he was after all the drummer for one of the best rock bands of the last 30 years, Jane’s Addiction.
The unannounced performance began rather tentative before the four musicians warmed up and started to get into their grooves. The crowd grew and dancing ensued immediately. By the time the band returned from the set-break, attendees were good and loosened up to shake a leg. I saw some pretty impressive moves and invented a few myself. The band’s high-energy set was matched only by the dancers hip movements and smiles abounded. What a night. 🙂
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