Temecula winegrower returns to musical roots in Keith Urban Tribute Band

November 11, 2014 (PRLEAP.COM) Entertainment News
TEMECULA, CA – November 11, 2014 – When John Brodersen moved his family from Orange County to Temecula in 1999, he was interested in getting back to the country environs he'd experienced growing up in Laramie, Wyoming. That included a ranch setting with horses that eventually resulted in utilizing them for carriage rides to neighboring vineyards.

"I never really intended to start a winery," Brodersen admits, "but since I had the land, I planted a small vineyard. From there, I started reading books on winemaking and taking some classes. My curiosity ended up in developing a full blown vineyard that now produces 10,000 cases annually."

While Brodersen got permits to begin making wines in 2003, life in Temecula was never just all about these new beginnings. His love for music was a constant that he carried with him since his teenage days when he left Wyoming for the lure of Hollywood's Rock scene. He had his own band there, while also auditioning and singing/playing guitar in rehearsals with the like of Cher, Peter Chriss of KISS, and The Temptation's Richard Street.

"I played with several bands in the '90's," Brodersen recalls. "One great experience came in 1996 when Danny Thom and I formed Sundance, produced a CD and did a cross country tour performing at Barnes & Noble stores in malls. It was at the end of the unplugged acoustic scene, but the best part was that it was all music we'd written, engineered and produced."

Fast forward back to Temecula where Brodersen kept up with his music by attending open mic venues in town. In 2003, as the winery had four offerings of its own, Brodersen began Saturday night cook-outs that started with a few people, and grew to 150 people over the next several weeks – all by word of mouth.

"I built a small stage in our picnic area where our Bonfire Saturday Nights could be enjoyed with live entertainment," Brodersen says. "At first it was just me on acoustic guitar, and then it grew to where we were having all kinds of musical acts. It became an outing for folks in the Valley to come to with their families, complete with mechanical bull rides, a petting zoo and face painting for the kids. It became so popular, it still goes on from April through October."

The concerts also gave Brodersen an opportunity to sit in with musical acts, while also re-channeling his creative and artistic juices into creating award-winning wines. The winery currently produces Estate grown varietals including tempranillo, sangiovese, malbec, cinsault, syrah, petite verdot, cabernet sauvignon and merlot. As the winemaker, Brodersen was a recognizable fixture at Longshadow, and he started having lots of people telling him that he resembled Keith Urban. With the resurgence of Tribute bands in the past decade, Brodersen saw the opportunity to once again form a band of his own. This time it would be called Urban Skies paying tribute to Keith Urban's music.

"In November of 2013, I got a group together to start practicing Keith Urban songs," Brodersen remembers. "Our first show (inside our Grand Lodge at Longshadow) in February drew 250 just from the word of mouth that a Keith Urban Tribute Band was going to be performing. It was encouraging, to say the least, and after a summer of performances, our act is really ready to hit the road."

In August, Urban Skies drew a crowd of 800 at Hemet's Ramona Bowl, so it appears that Urban Skies has a bright, solid future. Brodersen's 24/7 winemaking career may just have to make a little more room again for music – and that's an idea that he doesn't mind at all.

For more information, see www.urbanskiesmusic.com www.longshadowranchwinery.com
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