He’s been San Jose’s ‘Music Man’ for more than 40 years

If you’ve danced at San Jose Jazz’s Summer Fest, seen a concert at the Mountain Winery or enjoyed a number of outdoor festivals in the South Bay in the past four decades, you can probably thank Bruce Labadie. And it turns out, late San Jose Mayor Janet Gray Hayes, too.

Shortly after finishing at Santa Clara University, Labadie was running a flower shop in the mid-1970s when he read an ad promoting opportunities to speak with Hayes. “There was the mayor sitting at a table and I said, ‘Oh God, this town is so dull,” he recalled. So Hayes set him about making it less dull, hooking him up with the upcoming Bicentennial celebrations and launching a career of 40-plus years producing events and concerts in the South Bay.

Because of that long career as San Jose’s “Music Man,” Labadie was presented with the Cornerstone of the Arts award by the city Friday evening at the downtown Hammer Theatre Center. The San Jose Downtown Association Foundation also was given the Creative Impact award for its Downtown Doors art program, and Southwest Airlines received the Business Support for the Arts award.

Labadie’s early work in San Jose led him in 1979 to the scenic Paul Masson winery in Saratoga, which he eventually developed into a concert venue. He spent a year calling agents and being turned down until he finally booked jazz pianist Ramsey Lewis, who had such a good experience he told his friends — Willie Nelson, Grover Washington Jr., and Ray Charles. “Within two years, we were doing 150 shows at the Mountain Winery,” Labadie said.

And that job brought him into contact with Henry Schiro, Sammy Cohen and other members of the San Jose Jazz Society, putting him in a position to help launch the San Jose Jazz Festival 30 years ago. Labadie’s fingerprints are also on other South Bay faves — past and present — like Tapestry in Talent, the San Jose America Festival, San Jose’s Music in the Park and Los Gatos’ Jazz in the Plazz. It’s been a career, Labadie said, of “building community through presentation.”

“Each event has its own challenges,” Labadie said, “but my greatest pleasure has been to see the thousands of attendees at each event enjoy what San Jose has to offer as one of the great American cities where ethnic and cultural diversity is the norm.”

GIRL SCOUTS GREATS: Two amazing women who really define the word “commitment” were among the honorees last weekend at the Girl Scouts of Northern California’s Adult Recognition Event at Mariani’s Restaurant in Santa Clara.

Marion Mandell, an 89-year-old Palo Alto resident, received an 80-year pin, meaning she has been involved as a Girl Scout and an adult volunteer since 1939. “She started when she was 10 and never missed a year,” said Lissa Kreisler, who emceed the event. Meanwhile, Martha Bratton of San Lorenzo, another volunteer in her 80s, received the Ruth Robertson Commitment to Excellence Award. Bratton, whose nickname is “Pinecone,” leads a troop of 50 girls and volunteers for up to three sessions every summer at Camp Butano Creek in Pesacdero. They’re both certainly role models for girls — and boys — of any age.

SPOOKY FUN IN SARATOGA: The Saratoga Village scarecrows are back, creating an Instagram-ready walk around the town’s shops and restaurants. Leslee Warwick, owner of the Barn Owl gift shop on Big Basin Way, says that in addition to the old favorites, there are a few new scarecrows around including an astronaut on the corner of Fourth Street and a quartet — courtesy of the Saratoga High class of 1968 — in front of Sipan restaurant.

The Witchy Walkabout on Saturday is a great time to check them out, with family-friendly activities taking place and trick-or-treating for kids in costume from 2 to 4 p.m. Hakone Gardens is also getting in on the fun and is offering free admission to costumed kids on Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.