Last week The Rockford Files covered the June 2 benefit concert produced by the Fish Food Banks of Pierce County and Maurice the Fish Records at Louie G's Pizzeria. I attended the show that Sunday afternoon, and am gladly here to inform my readers that it was - not surprisingly - a tremendous success.

To reiterate, this was the sixth annual Fish Food Benefit Concert - a collaborative event between the two organizations, held to raise money for struggling families in our community. This year's effort raised $7,000. This amount will be maximized to reach the most possible families, as Fish Food Banks is able to purchase $7 worth of food for every $1 donated.

Among the musical guests that evening was Lynn Sorensen, formerly of Bad Company and now playing with Spike and the Impalers. Audentia, Nolan Garrett, the acoustic duet Champagne Sunday, and many others put on spectacular performances throughout the course of the event.

Maurice the Fish Records is currently working with some wonderful Northwest acts, some of which made an appearance at the benefit concert. But in case you missed the show, there are some upcoming dates you may want to mark on your calendar.

This Friday at Jazzbones, you can catch two of the labels' acts in the same night. Raymond Hayden And The Monsters In The Dark will be opening for fellow Maurice The Fish Records artist The Fat Tones. Raymond Hayden And The Monsters In The Dark - featuring soulful vocals, heavy guitar, and tantalizing saxophone - will provide excellent entertainment for the evening. Not to mention, Mr. Hayden is the founder of Maurice the Fish Records. The Fat Tones, of equivalent musical opulence, will be playing their brand of powerhouse blues. Their original music is fresh yet true to blues roots in equal proportion - plus, stick around long enough and you might get to hear Dire Straits reincarnate.

Tacoma natives Sevens Revenge will be making their way up north June 22 to play a show at the Hard Rock Café in Seattle. The local hard rocking band recently reached the finals of the Hard Rock Café-sponsored global battle of the bands, and will represent the South Sound against 95 other acts. Their show at the Hard Rock begins at 9 p.m., with $10 presale tickets available or $13 at the door.

These are the only upcoming Maurice the Fish Records' artist's shows on my radar at the moment, but I'm sure some sporadic research of your own will yield results in the coming weeks.

And now that Maurice the Fish Records is well within my Tacoma conscious, news related to the label and its artists will likely often be found in The Rockford Files.