June 22nd: Robert Kennedy and the No-Mads!
Robert Kennedy is a San-Francisco-based jazz organist, accordionist, pianist and composer, born and raised in the American South and a resident in the Bay Area since 1988.
He has released two albums as a leader of organ-centered jazz combos, and appears as a sideman on commercial recordings of straight-ahead and acoustic / hot-club jazz, rock, fusion and pop.
He played accordion in the pit orchestra for Broadway Sacramento's 2024 production of Fiddler on the Roof, and through memberships in The Vivants, Bistro Moustache, Mission Hot Club and numerous freelance projects he has become one of the Bay Area’s busiest jazz accordionists.
The No-Mads are guitarist Ned Boynton, accordionist (today) Robert Kennedy, and often their musical guests. In 2015, Robert got the call to play organ on one of Ned’s gigs, and the two quickly discovered a shared taste for TV themes, rock anthems, hot-club tunes, Italian folk music, popular music of Europe and the Americas, novelty songs and jazz standards.
For several years Ned and Robert freelanced on guitar and jazz organ in each other’s groups, also crossing paths as hired guns in other bands. An accordion / guitar partnership was natural for Ned thanks to his long history with accordionists in Los Pinkys, Surfer Roma and The Caffè Trieste Family Band, so the composite sound of accordion and guitar naturally became the foundation of The No-Mads.
July 27, 2025: Club Picnic!
Mark your calender and join fellow club members for good food, good conversation and good music at the Rinconada Park Sequoia Grove Picnic Area, 1120 Hopkins Ave, Palo Alto on Sunday, July 27th from 11:30 am to 2:00 pm.
Watch the SFAC Newsletter for more information!
See you at The Cotati Accordion Festival, August 16-17, 2025
Check the Cotati Accordion Festival Facebook Page for up-to-the-minute details!
September 21st: Reno Di Bono
Reno Di Bono grew up in San Francisco, graduating from Sacred Heart High Scholl. In the 1950’s, Reno’s father Tony, along with his two sons, Reno and Peter, enrolled in the Dino Benetti Accordion School in San Francisco. They all played Giulietti accordions and performed in the summer accordion picnics at Wildwood Park in Saratoga, CA.
After high school, Reno attended Santa Clara University on a baseball scholarship. Reno became a high school teacher and baseball coach, but at the age of 33 he gave up coaching to devote more time to the accordion. Eventually, retirement from teaching school gave Reno even more time.
Reno’s specialty is Italian music and his reperatoire includes over 30 Italian songs that he can sing in their native Sicilian, Neapolitan or Piemontese dialects. He has played at Italian weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and even a few funerals. Reno has produced two CDs: Songs of My Father (Italian)and The Jazz Accordion. At over 80, Reno is still actively performing, arranging and teaching.