Along with the coastal area’s vibrant restaurant scene, comes its reputation for live entertainment. We have legendary Rehoboth idols, entertainers who’ve become welcome regulars, and newcomers raising the roof in song.
On the legendary list, you can catch Pamala Stanley at the Blue Moon Sunday brunch or weeknights at Happy Hour. We’re thrilled to have this world-renowned disco diva here in town, performing from her 1979-80s hit albums like This is Hot and Coming Out of Hiding. She holds forth at the piano with bold banter, singing pop and Broadway, but gets up on her feet for the retro disco tunes. She’s the real deal and calls Rehoboth home.
Equally legendary is Viki Dee, an entertainer who practically invented live music for women’s happy hours—whether it was her famed nights at the late Cloud 9 Restaurant, or holding forth these days at Aqua, The Swell, Murph’s, the Rehoboth Jazz Festival, and so many more places. The annual Welcome Party at the CAMP Rehoboth Women’s FEST is one of her signature events.
Viki has been in the biz for over 25 years and here in town since the late 1990s, providing music for happy hours, holiday weekend dances, or private parties.
Viki tells us, “When I started a Ladies Happy Hour back in 2005 at Cloud 9, I was amazed by the comradery, the friendships established, and the growth of the event. So many people became Friday regulars! It always brought me so much joy to see the dance floor full of energy. Obviously, it also kept me on my toes, lol.
“I feel the same to this day. Living here and performing here has brought me a whole other family. There’ve been engagements, birthdays, political fund raisers, festivals—you name it—WE all came together. Music is the tapestry and we all are a part of it. I never leave a gig without thanking those that attend and reassuring them that ‘I can’t do it without them.’” Google Viki’s schedule and dance to the music!
John Francis Flynn has been the piano man around town since 2000, known for entertaining on his own at venues like Murph’s, Shorebreak Lodge, Blue Moon, and more. This Philly native has been at the keyboard since he was a kid and always knew exactly what he wanted to do for a living. Whether on his own or collaborating with Holly Lane at Café Azafran on Thursday nights, this music man has fans all over the coast.
“Playing in the Rehoboth area full time is a dream come true. I’m grateful for our local friends here, and visitors too, who truly appreciate live music and are so supportive!”
And speaking of Holly Lane, catch her with John on Thursday nights only at Café Azafran. She sings while bartending, a delightful feat to show off both her mixology and her experience as an authentic French chanteuse—she sang in Parisian clubs for 15 years. She’s been in Rehoboth since the late ‘90s, sang jazz at the former Sydney’s Jazz Restaurant on the avenue, and sang for a decade with the group Shore Jazz. Nobody can have their way with “La Vie En Rose” better than Holly, and nobody can sing and shake a Cosmo like she does.
Matt Kenworthy, who can make a keyboard rock like nobody’s business, tickles the ivories around town at La Fable and Rigby’s. He’s a Carnegie Mellon grad, loves music, hails from New Jersey, and first came to Rehoboth about 14 years ago to play at the restaurant Partners, which is now Rigby’s—find him there for some fun. And he’s at the piano bar (seriously, the piano is the bar) at La Fable on weekends.
“My job at the piano at Fable reminds me of when I was playing at Marie’s Crisis, a staple piano bar in NYC. The talent present in this town rivals that of any major city! It’s wonderful to deliver that kind of city-style entertainment in our perfect little town.”
If you’re in the mood to rock ’n’ roll, catch The Girlfriends, a rock band revived for the new millennium. They’ve been rocking out at Paradise Grill a lot this summer, as well as entertaining at Murph’s, The Swell, Grey Hare Tavern, BJ’s on the Water, and more.
Pioneers in the “all-female” rock band genre, this hot Philly group, made up of musicians Kim Butler, Robin Rohr, and Jill Brady, sported the techno sound in the early to mid 1980s. They reunited here at the beach in 2011, with acoustic guitar, bass, and drums, adding a bit of tech lately with Kim on the Electro-Harmonix “9” series of keyboard pedals.
Kim Butler says “We love playing in the Rehoboth area because live music is really ‘alive and well’ here! There are such a variety of venues, and audiences are extremely receptive to just about any music genre. There truly is something for everyone here, and the people don’t seem to mind that, well, we’re not exactly spring chickens anymore!”
And you’ve probably heard the name Bettenroo, a duo made up of Lori Jacobs and Anne Davey. Bettenroo is a dynamic, versatile duo with undeniable vocal strength. The gals’ blended harmony is complemented with the instrumental versatility of guitar, bass, and occasionally percussion. Bettenroo has an extensive list of tunes from popular covers across five decades, along with their own signature originals. They make beautiful music at venues like Rehoboth’s Blue Coast, Coconuts in Ocean City, Lefty’s Alley and Eats in Lewes, and the Rehoboth Ale House.
Lori says “Our hometown community is so supportive that it drives us to stay fresh and deliver the best we can everywhere we go. They make it easy to feed our musical passion since they are so much an integral part of it. We’re also fortunate to be surrounded by a very talented musical community here.” ▼
REGULAR GIGS
Pamala Stanley
Blue Moon, 35 Baltimore Avenue
Sunday Brunch, 10 a.m.
Monday–Thursday, 6 p.m.
John Flynn
Monday, Murph’s Open Mic
Wednesday, Shorebreak Lodge, 5 p.m.
Thursday, Café Azafran, 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Shorebreak Lodge, 5 p.m.
Holly Lane
Thursday, Café Azafran, 6:30 p.m.
Matt Kenworthy
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
La Fable, 5 p.m.
Monday, Rigby’s, 5 p.m.
Images above, clockwise: Holly Lane, John Flynn, The Girlfriends, Viki Dee, Matt Kenworthy, Bettenroo, and Pamala Stanley.
Girlfriends’ photo by Tiffany Caldwell.