Santa Barbara has a way of quietly building something special. What began last year as an ambitious collaboration between Santa Barbara Records and The Granada Theatre returns this April as something more: a tradition.
Locals & Legends: Celebrating the Music of James Taylor comes back to The Granada Theatre on Saturday, April 25, 2026, bringing together the musicians, institutions, and community spirit that make Santa Barbara’s arts scene unlike anywhere else on the Central Coast.
The concert pairs five Santa Barbara Records artists—Omar Velasco, Céleigh Chapman, Mendeleyev, Will Breman, and Jess Bush—with The Santa Barbara Symphony under Music and Artistic Director Nir Kabaretti. Each artist will perform reimagined versions of James Taylor’s most beloved songs, including “Carolina in My Mind,” “Fire and Rain,” and “Country Road,” alongside original compositions inspired by Taylor’s legacy. It is an evening that honors where music has been while making room for where it is going. Click here to learn more about the artists.
Returning to the stage are five special guests from last year’s inaugural concert: James Raymond, celebrated musician, producer, and son of the late David Crosby; Steve Postell, singer-songwriter and Crosby’s final musical director; Miriam Dance, performer, educator, and beloved Santa Barbara staple; Lois Mahalia, a vocalist who has shared the stage with Joe Walsh, Kenny Loggins, and Joe Sample; and Glen Phillips, frontman and primary songwriter of Toad the Wet Sprocket, whose folk-driven alt-rock sound and warm baritone have defined a career spanning three decades of deeply personal songwriting.
Photo by Baron Spafford | Locals & Legends: Celebrating the Music of David Crosby, 2025
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Backing the full lineup is an all-star house band led by Music Director Tariqh Akoni—Santa Barbara native, Berklee-trained musician, and current Musical Director for Josh Groban, whose credits include Stevie Wonder, Christina Aguilera, and Bette Midler—alongside Randy Tico on bass, David Delhomme on keys, Jesse Siebenberg on pedal steel, lap steel, and dobro, and Austin Beede on drums. Their collective credits include collaborations with Whitney Houston, Jeff Bridges, Kenny Loggins, and José Feliciano, and film projects including Top Gun: Maverick and A Star Is Born.
Photo by Baron Spafford | Locals & Legends: Celebrating the Music of David Crosby, 2025
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At its heart, Locals & Legends is about what happens when a historic venue, a world-class symphony, and the musicians of California’s Central Coast share one stage—and what that kind of collaboration makes possible for the artists who step into it. For Santa Barbara Records, the series is part of a longer vision: building Santa Barbara into a destination for music, a place where artists can grow, audiences can discover, and the community can gather around something truly its own.
Photo by Baron Spafford | Locals & Legends: Celebrating the Music of David Crosby, 2025
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The concert is sponsored by The Hazen Foundation and The Fansler Family. The Granada Theatre, now in its second century after celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2024, continues to anchor Santa Barbara’s performing arts community as home to eight resident companies, including the Santa Barbara Symphony, now in its 73rd year.
Locals & Legends: Celebrating the Music of James Taylor takes place Saturday, April 25, 2026, at The Granada Theatre. Tickets are available now at granadasb.org.
Presented by Santa Barbara Records and The Granada Theatre. Supported by The Hazen Foundation and The Fansler Family.
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Sponsored by the Granada Theatre.
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