Founding member of The Replacements to play Olympia show at 7 p.m. Sunday

From The Replacements to Soul Asylum to Olympia

You might not recognize his name, but Tommy Stinson has major rock credentials. A singer, songwriter and bass guitarist, Stinson — performing Sunday, Jan. 11, in Olympia — was a founding member of The Replacements, a group that helped to define alternative rock. He replaced Duff McKagan in Guns N’ Roses and played with Soul Asylum from 2005 to 2012. He’s had a long and storied solo career and is at work on a new album. Also on the bill for Sunday’s show are Karla Rose and Little Venom. The music begins at 7 p.m., with doors open at 6:30, at Wild Child, 414 Fourth Ave. E, Olympia. Tickets (https://www.purplepass.com/events/342591-tommy-stinson-(of-the-replacements)-w--little-veno-jan-11th-2026) are $25.50 in advance or $30 at the door.

Jazz galore

This weekend will be a jazzy one in Olympia. Although Randy Halberstadt’s Black Box concert (https://www.washingtoncenter.org/event/randy-halberstadt-1-9-2026/) at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts is sold out, there are at least three other options. It’s practically a mini-festival.

• The Cove is launching Jazz Night in its music venue, The Cave. Trumpeter Jackson Rice (https://www.reverbnation.com/jacksonrice) of Bellevue will perform from 8 to 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9, at the bar, 311 Capitol Way N., Olympia. There’s a $5 cover charge.
• Olympia Jazz Central is hosting Portland guitarist/composer Jack Radsliff on Monday, Jan. 12. Radsliff, organist Joe Bagg and drummer Michael Raynor will play from 7 to 9:30 p.m. at the Eagles Hall, 805 Fourth Ave. E, Olympia. The cover charge is $15-$30 with no one turned way for lack of funds. Because the Eagles is a member-and-guest club, Jazz Central asks that those planning at attend RSVP on the Facebook event page (https://www.facebook.com/events/1411634317164847/).
• First Christian Church’s Fridays at the First (https://www.firstchristianolympia.org/2025-26-fridays-at-the-first-concerts) series continues with the Mud Bay Jazz Band. will play classics, swing and more from noon to 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9, at the church, 701 Franklin St. SE, Olympia. Admission is free with donations to the band encouraged.

Heartsparkle celebrates 35 years of stories

Olympia’s Heartsparkle Players, a theater group that crafts on-the-spot theater from audience stories, is celebrating 35 years with a special performance on Friday, Jan. 9. The group practices Playback Theatre, listening deeply to stories and then retelling them and helping to illuminate their meanings through improvisation and music. “In these times, I believe we need these moments of listening, witnessing and caring more than ever,” Heartsparkle founder Deb Edden wrote. The troupe performs at schools, non-profit organizations and businesses and does monthly public shows at Traditions Fair Trade (https://traditions.life/pages/events), 300 Fifth Ave. SW, Olympia. “Stories That Shaped Us” happens from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Traditions. A $10-$20 donation is suggested, with no one turned away for lack of funds. Call the café at 360-705-2819 to reserve a table if you’d like to have dinner during the show.

Freelance writer Molly Gilmore heard Guns N’ Roses live in the days before Duff McKagan quit.