“We feel so fortunate to have grown up around this magical music,” said Steve Postell as he introduced his latest project, “Lookout Mountain: The Music of Laurel Canyon.” Debuting at the Lobero Theatre on November 17, Postell and his top notch team of musicians — Kiki Ebsen, Kipp Lennon, Gary Novak, Andrew Ford, Jeff Pevar, special guest Glen Phillips, and James Raymond, who spearheaded the project along with Postell — took us on a magical journey through some of the music of the late 1960s and early 1970s.
“Lookout Mountain: The Music of Laurel Canyon,” Lobero Theatre, November 13, 2025 | Photo: Leslie Dinaberg 
“Lookout Mountain: The Music of Laurel Canyon,” Lobero Theatre, November 13, 2025 | Photo: Leslie Dinaberg 
Henry Diltz with one of his photos of Mama Cass. “Lookout Mountain: The Music of Laurel Canyon,” Lobero Theatre, November 13, 2025 | Photo: Leslie Dinaberg 
“Lookout Mountain: The Music of Laurel Canyon,” Lobero Theatre, November 13, 2025 | Photo: Leslie Dinaberg
With a setlist that included singalong favorites like Neil Young’s “Old Man,” featuring fabulous high notes by Lennon; the Eagles’ “Desperado;” Jackson Browne’s “Rock Me On the Water;” Buffalo Springfield’s “For What’s It’s Worth;” “California Dreamin’” by The Mamas & The Papas; and “Happy Together” by The Turtles, the whole evening was a nice trip down memory lane for just about everyone in the audience.
I personally thanked my lucky stars for the many awesome mix tapes my best friend’s dad supplied with me throughout my childhood. If it were up to my parents’ record selection, the only music I would have known about would have been Neil Diamond and the Free To Be… You and Me album, but our personal mixtape master Bruce Lofthus kept us all supplied with enough Crosby, Stills & Nash, Joni Mitchell, The Mamas & The Papas, Carole King, the Eagles, Neil Young, and Jackson Browne for me to share in the magic and sing along with everyone else.
In addition to a solid evening of music, esteemed rock photographer and entertaining storyteller Henry Diltz opened the show by sharing some of his iconic shots from the Laurel Canyon era, including Joni Mitchell in “her very fine house,” Crosby, Stills & Nash, Linda Rondstadt, The Doors, Mama Cass, and many, many more. He shared more shots right after intermission, adding James Taylor, Carole King, The Byrds, Neil Young, and the Eagles to the impressive list of rock superstars he has helped immortalize.
As Postell and Raymond shared in a preview interview, the plan is to take this show on the road and share these songs from the Laurel Canyon music scene widely. A mixtape of sorts for a new generation — sounds like a great idea to me!
