Stephen Sanchez Brings The Connie Co Show To San Diego!

Preface: Picture yourself in September 1964. You’ve just turned off your television to try to focus on reading your local newspaper. (Nope, you’re not reading this on a tablet or on an iPhone… those totally didn’t exist back then!) As you skim through the pages of the paper, you come across the following article about Stephen Sanchez’s recent concert in San Diego, which you overheard your neighbors mention was absolutely spectacular. It indeed was spectacular, and here’s a first-hand account of it!

It was a very chilly evening in San Diego, and thousands of fans of all ages shuffled their way into the Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre at SDSU to see the one and only Stephen Sanchez, or Troubadour Sanchez, as fans with a high level of respect for the star would refer to him as. The great Troubadour Sanchez would be performing on The Connie Co Show, revisiting the very stage where he made his television debut in 1958 to perform “Until I Found You.”

There was a particular level of excitement coming from all of the young ladies in the crowd, many who completely abandoned wearing jackets or sweaters for the evening. I couldn’t blame them though – they knew it was about to get very hot, and not because of climate change. In just a few moments, they’d be jumping and dancing along to their favorite songs from the crooner, which would lead them to break a sweat!

Make no mistake – I myself am a huge fan of Troubadour Sanchez too. I had the opportunity to interview him before he made his big break on The Connie Co Show, and it has been nothing short of an honor to be able to see his meteoric rise to fame since then.

Shortly after 9PM, Connie Co made a grand entrance on stage, skipping around like someone who just won the lottery.

“Good evening ladies and gentlemen, how’s everybody feeling tonight?” he shouted. “My name is Connie Co, and I am honored to be your host for this evening. Here on the show, we’ve had so many great musical guests. Folks, let me tell you… this is going to be one hell of a night.”

Stephen Sanchez emerged, and began to sing his dreamy ballad “Evangeline.” The audience screamed and swooned, and my own heart started to flutter as I noticed his eyes glistening like fine diamonds. My feelings of (very valid) giddiness continued as the Troubadour went on to sing “Only Girl.” Oh, good old “Only Girl,” the song that instantly makes me recall one of the happiest moments of my adult life. On the day that Stephen Sanchez released his Angel Face album, I was traveling to San Francisco for the first time ever. The very first song I listened to when I landed was “Only Girl,” and it became the soundtrack to my trip. The song expresses themes of admiration and curiosity for a girl, and I was feeling a whole lot of both of those emotions for a city that was brand new to me. Great stuff, right?

Now, here’s some photos of the Troubadour in action!

After Stephen performed a few more songs, Connie Co made his way back on stage, and could be seen perched at his desk.

“Folks, let me ask you a question…. how are you enjoying the show so far tonight?” Connie Co gleefully asked the crowd, who responded with loud cheers. “I’m right there with ya,” he smiled. Turning to Stephen, Connie said, “Steve, I see how you got this nickname ‘Singin’ Sanchez!'”

“I see how they gave you the nickname ‘Charming Connie!'” Stephen replied.

“Well California Crooner, what do you have for us next?” Connie asked.

There was a sudden darkness all across the stage, which was quickly followed by the opening notes of the timeless love song “I Need You Most Of All.” As the stage lights flashed different hues of blue, Troubadour Sanchez stomped around the stage playing his guitar and sending the crowd in a daze with his voice. As Stephen transitioned into his next selection, “Be More,” a warmth could be felt throughout the crowd. Couples started to hug one another, sway from side to side, and flashlights illuminated the dark amphitheater for a tender moment.

The next song Troubadour Sanchez had in store for the audience was “No One Knows.” As he began to sing, he let out a quick giggle. “Help me sing this song,” he shouted. He kept laughing throughout the song, and I couldn’t help but ask myself what was funny. Not in a judging way by any means, but because I love seeing funny stuff too! Maybe there was an inside joke associated with the song? Perhaps there was an audience member with a funny sign? Oh, to be a fly on the wall… or stage… looking outwards… standing side by side with a legend in the making (and trying very hard to not get stepped on).

“I’m a professional musician,” he said as the song concluded, likely as an attempt to excuse his behavior. Well, there’s nothing wrong with having a lot of fun on stage, right? It’s important for the artist to know the crowd they’re performing for is having a good time, and it’s just as important for the fans to know the artist is having just as amazing of an evening. There’s never been a doubt in my mind that Stephen loves being on stage and singing for thousands of people nightly when he’s on tour, and once again, I received a visible (and audible) confirmation of it.

The great Connie Co invited the Troubadour back to his desk, and he had some questions in store for Stephen. He asked, “Are there any places where, ladies and gentlemen that you shake hands with, you really connect with? You feel like there’s a special place in your heart for those people?”

“I was in Del Mar today,” Stephen said, interrupted by screams. “I was surfing around, swam with some dolphins. It was very cool. I really did fall in love with SAN DIEGO BABY!”

“You know what they say about those California Girls – they’re unforgettable,” Connie said.

That’s a classic one, Connie.

Many folks send Connie Co questions to ask his show guests, and he just happened to receive a question for Stephen from the great Roy Orbison.

“He’s a cool cat,” Stephen said about the “Pretty Woman” singer. “He’s got real piercing eyes. That’s why he wears those glasses, and they’re so big, he can barely make it through a doorway.”

After acknowledging the mild shade Stephen just threw, Connie asked Roy Orbison’s question: What is something you wish you could’ve done before your music career?

“I worked at a steakhouse for a very long time,” Stephen revealed. “I dressed up, slicked my hair back there.”

“How did you take your steak? Medium rare? Well done?” Connie asked.

“I feel like this is a dangerous thing to ask,” Stephen responded. “This could cast a wide judgement on me. I like steak, any kind of steak. I just like it tender.”

“Are you more of a New York strip, or a filet kind of guy?”

“I like filet,” Stephen responded quickly. “I mean, before I played music and everything like that, I did really want to cut hair for a while. Are there any hair stylists in the crowd?”

(I’m definitely not one. That’s why I’m just a journalist.)

Stephen mentioned it would’ve been nice to be a barber, or even own a record store. Being a record store owner is something he still wants to do. Connie Co also read another question sent in by a young lady: What is Stephen’s most meaningful song? An audience member immediately yelled “Lady By The Sea.”

“That’s just because y’all are by the sea all the time,” Stephen laughed.

Eager to read another question to Stephen, Connie Co made sure to point out the target demographic for the information that would proceed. “This one is for the ladies,” he said. “Also, if you gentlemen need ideas, maybe get those notebooks out and write a couple of thoughts out.”

As Connie left the audience in suspense, Stephen recalled a funny moment earlier in the show. Pointing to a section in the audience, Stephen said, “There was a dude up there who I swear, his girlfriend was like ‘OH MY GOD! AHH!'” Stephen tried to mimic a girl’s screaming voice, and then motioned that the man was sitting down looking displeased. “He was so not having it,” he joked. “To the boyfriends that dare bring their girlfriends to our show, thank you, we love you.”

Connie Co then asked a question sent in by a young lady, which read: “What is your idea of a perfect date?”

“I’m going to really walk you through it actually,” Stephen said. “Of course, if I’m taking you on a date… there’s two different kinds of dates. There’s a ‘I’ll take you out and we’ll go have a really nice dinner, and go find somewhere to dance. We’ll dance together, fast or slow, I don’t mind… but slow is nice, because we like to take our time here folks! I’ll probably bring flowers, roll up in an old car… which I do have. I’ll open the door for you, close it behind you, make sure your dress didn’t get caught in it. I’ll tell you how beautiful you look, because it’s true.’ We’d have a great time, we really would. But, if we’re already dating, I’ll probably invite you to eat dinner at my house, and I’ll cook for you with a nice bottle of red wine.”

“Are you gonna make steak?” Connie interjected.

“I’m gonna make a delicious pasta for you,” Stephen continued. “Fantastic. Perfecting the recipe, folks… with meat in it. Whatever you like. Either way, the date’s going lovely! Now going back to the other date. The date’s going lovely, I’ll drive you back to your home, open the door for you, kill the car…”

A male audience member suddenly screamed “KISS ME!”

Stephen quickly went on to say, “I’ll walk up the stairs, and do exactly what that guy just said… RESPECTFULLY. If you’d oblige. Yup. Does that sound okay?”

As Stephen got ready to perform a few more songs for the night, audience members began to shout things that made Stephen laugh.

“Remember during ‘No One Knows’ how I was singing, and then I couldn’t because I was laughing my ass off?’ Stephen said. He proceeded to read the fan’s sign that made him crack up earlier. “It says, ‘Let me sit on your Angel Face.’ If you didn’t know before, the record is called Angel Face, it’s a cheeky thing that she wrote on the thing. Good God.”

After performing an unreleased song, Stephen went into rock and roll mode to perform “Howling at Wolves” and “High.” He swung his microphone stand in the air like a king sized magic wand, and even jumped on Connie’s desk to finish off the song! But as the night came to an end, Connie took a few minutes to reflect on his very first encounters with Stephen Sanchez, and his first time inviting him onto The Connie Co Show.

“I was driving on the street in my pearl Cadillac Coupe DeVille, I turned my radio on to 94.7, and I was hearing the pop hits from the day. This voice came on…. a crooner that I’d never heard before. It stopped me in my tracks, but I didn’t think much of it. I just thought, ‘Man, we’ve got another beautiful singer in America.’ The next day, I go to the barber shop and get my hair trimmed, and the same voice is singing over the radio in the barber shop. Now it’s happened twice, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘Who is this mysterious man?’ Because he can really sing. The next day goes by, a buddy of mine calls me up and says, ‘Hey Connie, have you heard this young Troubadour that’s traveled all across the world to sing his new hit?’ I said no, tell me more. He goes, ‘Buddy, you’ve gotta get him on your show before someone else does.’ Taking his advice, I wrote him a post card to Mr. Stephen Sanchez and said please, would you oblige and come on my show? He wrote back and he said…”

“Oh yes sir,” Stephen chimed in. “I do declare.”

“I do declare!” Connie responded with joy. “About a week went by, he flew into town, came on the show, and on a night much like tonight, I met him backstage about five minutes before he was supposed to debut. He shook my hand with a firm handshake, look me in my eye, but when I looked at him in the eye, you know what I thought to myself? I said, ‘Lord… WHEW! I hope my wife is not in the audience tonight, because if she is, she’s gonna fall in love with this younger, handsome, richer man than me!’ I was like oh no.

(No worries, his wife still loved him and continues to love him profoundly.)

“What happened next was magic that night,” Connie said. “The lights went dim, there was a single spotlight down on the stage, Stephen Sanchez stepped out to the front of the stage with his Rickenbacker around his shoulder, and he poured his heart out into the microphone singing about a mysterious lover… a girl named…”

“Georgia,” Stephen and Connie said in unison.

You can probably guess what came next. Stephen began to sing his biggest hit “Until I Found You,” which upon its release a very long time ago, I dubbed as “a new classic.” The song has lived up to that title and more, and I would regard Stephen Sanchez to be a voice of a generation… my generation! It’s easy for some folks to hear a great song that came before their time and say to themselves, ‘ugh, I was born in the wrong era.’ However, I truly have the privilege of being able to say I was born in the right generation, because every day I get to enjoy the music of such an all-around phenomenal artist like Stephen Sanchez. Even though the night was coming to an end, I can safely say my love for Angel Face will never end.

And of course, Stephen made sure to not depart without gyrating his hips, sliding across the stage, and giving everyone a memorable performance of “Shake.”

Until next time, Troubadour Sanchez ♡

September 15, 2024