800 N Country Club Rd, Tucson, AZ 85716
One of Tucson’s most lauded and enigmatic artists, Howe Gelb, turns 70 on Thursday, Oct. 22, and he’s spending the night on stage in the town that has shaped his music for nearly 50 years. The Giant Sand founder will mark what he calls his “70th sun cycle” at La Rosa with a full 70-minute set by Giant Sand, plus short sets from friends he’s collected over a long career.
The Giant Sand lineup for the night is the band’s 2002–2012 edition, which is traveling from Europe for the show.
Jason Lytle of Grandaddy heads a list of guests that includes Patsy’s Rats, Gabriel Pietrangelo with a mini choir,
Brian Lopez and Gabriel Sullivan, Lonna Kelley, and daughter, Talula. In Gelb’s words, there will also be “other lovely guests he can’t remember yet”
Gelb moved to Tucson from Pennsylvania in the 1970s and formed Giant Sandworms with the late Rainer Ptacek in 1980. Over the decades since, he has released more than 40 albums, alone and with a changing cast of collaborators, and his desert-bred mix of rock, country, jazz and noise has earned him a devoted following across Europe while he kept his home base in a downtown Tucson barrio.
Besides Linda Ronstadt, no other Tucson artist has had such a lengthy career, filled with uncompromising, critically acclaimed records. And he continues to create music to this day.
This special show is the perfect opportunity to celebrate the underrated career of this Tucson legend.
And maybe wish him a happy birthday while you’re here!
Event details
Howe Gelb’s 70th Sun Cycle Concert
Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. Doors 6:30, show 7:30pm
La Rosa, 800 N. Country Club Road, Tucson