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Prime Time Band is a vibrant group of more than seventy-five amateur musicians (ages 40-90+) with a mission to provide free concerts for the greater Santa Barbara community. Their FREE Spring Concert will kick off the band's 30th Anniversary Celebration year with surprise guests and memories of past performances. Immerse yourself in an afternoon of thrilling symphonic band classics from Gustav Holst and Sousa, to the upbeat swing of Dave Brubeck and the stirring music from the hit film Top Gun. Dynamic director Dr. Paul Mori brings enthusiasm, charisma and energy to the podium.

A singer/songwriter currently splitting his time between Los Angeles, CA and Nashville, TN, Jeffrey has had his songs recorded by artists like Matchbox Twenty, Eli Young Band, Rascal Flatts, Tim McGraw, Jon Pardi, and many others. As an artist himself, he has amassed over 70 million streams and has toured the world.

The Sedalia Ragtime Orchestra, led by Fifty and Better instructor Cary Ginell, consists of local musicians who are devoted to presenting the authentic music of the ragtime era. Some play music professionally, but most do it for the love of performing. The group includes teachers, retirees, and business professionals from a variety of fields.

The cost to attend this special performance is $10 per person, and tickets must be purchased in advance on our website. Ticket sales will close on Thursday, April 24 at 3pm. All community members are welcome! Directions and parking details will be sent to registrants the week before.

A companion lecture on the Ragtime era will take place on Wednesday, April 2. Visit the Fifty and Better website for details.

The Fifty and Better (FAB) program was designed for people 50 years of age and older, seeking intellectual stimulation through university-level courses — without the pressure of grades — for the sake of learning and social engagement.

Wednesday, March 19 · 5:30 - 7pm PDT
Santa Barbara Historical Museum

Join historian Bill MacKinnon as he shares the never-told tale of how a well-educated but now-forgotten Irishman, Owen Hugh O’Neill, emigrated to the U. S. and then made his way across the American frontier to Santa Barbara by way of involvement in two of our country’s greatest undertakings of the 1850s: construction of the Pacific Wagon Road project; and prosecution of the Utah War of 1857-58. The full story of O’Neill’s travels and adventures before arriving here to practice medicine, marry into the Hill-Ortega family, and die heroically in 1875 is unknown even to his descendants, some of whom still live in this part of California.

About the Speaker
Bill is a respected historian and longtime member of the museum. For sixty-five years he has researched and written about the American West, producing five books and more than 130 journal articles. He is a former sheriff (presiding officer) of the Santa Barbara Corral of the Westerners. In his parallel business and public service careers, he has been a vice president of General Motors, chairman of Children’s Hospital of Michigan, and a veteran of USAF. He is an alumnus of Yale and the Harvard Business School.

You've listened to tribute bands, read books, and seen films about The Beatles... but we guarantee you've never seen a show quite like Bob Eubanks’ Backstage with The Beatles! 🤩

Bob has fascinating, hilarious, never-heard-before stories about his experiences with The Beatles, their manager Brian Epstein, and the screaming throngs of fans who attended the concerts. He has put together an entertaining one-of-a-kind show that will appeal to all audiences. Backstage with The Beatles combines seldom heard stories about the Fab Four, never before seen photos of the Bob and the band, and classic Beatles songs sung live onstage by Ticket to Ride, A tribute to the Beatles!

Ventura Music Festival is proud to present this show right here in Ventura on March 22nd at the Crowne Plaza Ventura Beach. Get your tickets today at venturamusicfestival.org

Join the UC Santa Barbara Library’s Special Research Collections for an evening featuring the continued research of four distinguished faculty emeriti — Charles Bazerman, Mario T. García, Suzanne Jill Levine, and Paul Hansma. This event is presented in partnership with the UCSB Emeriti Association.

Please reach out to Jessica Law at jessicamlaw@ucsb.edu with any questions.

This event may be photographed or recorded.

Join us for UCSB Library's Inaugural Kenneth Karmiole Annual Lecture series in Religion in American Life featuring Dr. J. Gordon Melton. In 1968, Melton founded the Institute for the Study of American Religion and then donated the research library to UC Santa Barbara in 1985 providing the foundation for the American Religion Collection. Melton will shed light on the origin of the collection and how his encounter with the psychic/metaphysical world influenced its development and curatorial direction.

About the Speaker
Dr. J. Gordon Melton became Distinguished Professor of American Religious History at Baylor University’s Institute for Studies in Religion (ISR) in 2011 and directs the Institute for the Study of American Religion in Woodway, Texas. Since joining ISR, he has led joint projects, including a census of American Buddhist and Hindu communities (2010, updated 2019) and a church congregation survey in McLennan County, Texas; Whatcom County, Washington; and Richmond, Virginia. For two decades, he has also monitored the evolving church landscape in China.
About the Series
The Kenneth Karmiole Annual Lecture Series on Religion in American Life is an endowed fund established by Kenneth Karmiole in support of an annual public lecture series related to the research, scholarship and collection materials within the UC Santa Barbara Library’s American Religions Collection (ARC).

With its origins in the late 19th century, ragtime burst onto the American scene and quickly became the first uniquely American musical style. Its influence affected early jazz, blues, country, and even European classical music with its infectious syncopation and melodic ingenuity. In this lecture, you will hear about the roots of ragtime: how it developed from 19th century marches, cakewalks from slavery days, and its origins in the saloons and juke joints of the American Midwest. In addition to learning about the lives of ragtime greats like Scott Joplin, we’ll hear examples of rags and their effect on popular music in the early 20th century, played on instruments such as piano, banjo, mandolin, and even full orchestras.

Cary Ginell is a music historian and leader of the Sedalia Ragtime Orchestra, a group that keeps alive the sounds of vintage as well as contemporary ragtime music. Additionally, Cary is a Grammy-nominated writer and author of 12 books on American music.

The Fifty and Better (FAB) program was designed for people ages 50 and older, seeking intellectual stimulation through university-level courses — without the pressure of grades — for the sake of learning and social engagement.

It is during the time period of the Middle Ages in which Paris transformed from a small provincial city into an important commercial and religious center and the seat of the royal administration of the country. The Île de la Cité became the site of the royal palace and the new cathedral of Notre-Dame, begun in 1163. In the late 1100s, the collection of colleges on the Left Bank became one of the first and leading universities in Europe, while the Right Bank, where ports, central markets, artisans and merchants were located, became the commercial center of the city. Paris became a center for the creation of illuminated manuscripts and the birthplace of Gothic architecture. Despite civil wars, the plague, and foreign occupation, Paris became the most populous city in the Western world during the Medieval time period. This two-part lecture will focus on the development of art and architecture of the Middle Ages as centered and still visible in Paris.

Katherine E. Zoraster is an Art Historian and a Professor of Art History at several local colleges specializing in Western art from the Renaissance to the 20th century.


The Fifty and Better (FAB) program was designed for people ages 50 and older, seeking intellectual stimulation through university-level courses — without the pressure of grades — for the sake of learning and social engagement.

Get ready for the Ultimate Elvis Presley Tribute show starring Cote Deonath at the Scherr Forum in Thousand Oaks, Ca on Friday April 4th! You don't want to miss this electrifying performance!