Bonny Jean Scott wrote her first song — a made-up-right-on-the-spot ditty about riding her horse — when she was just 3. Belting out the lively tune before a delighted crowd at the annual Twentynine Palms Pioneer Days Little Miss and Master Contest also marked the singer-songwriter’s first solo performance. Scott has no memory of that day, but 14 years later, she is no stranger to the musical spotlight. If she isn’t performing with the Twentynine Palms High School marching band, you may find her singing at the 29 Palms Inn, Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace, the Palms in Wonder Valley or other venues around the Southland, her beloved double bass or guitar in tow.
Listen to the 17-year-old sing and you aren’t likely to forget it — her voice is big and robust, her words thoughtful and compelling. Inspired by her mom, Deb Scott’s, stories about playing in a garage band in the 1980s, Scott began playing the flute — her first instrument — at age 5. She began guitar lessons at Brown’s Music after her dad, Aaron Scott, taught her to play three chords: D, G and A minor.
From there, she moved on to lessons with Alice and Albert Williams, who made her write songs instead of merely practicing what they taught her. “They’d say, ‘Bring in a new song next week, words and music,’” Scott recalls. “It really helped me.”
Just how well their teachings, and Scott’s hard work, paid off is evident when she describes being tapped to perform at a student night at the now-defunct Beatnik Cafe in Joshua Tree. The performers had to come prepared with 13 to 15 songs, enough to fill a 45-minute set. Scott hit the stage with three original numbers augmented by tunes by her favorite artists. “It was fun,” she says. “Got nervous, forgot some words, but you know...”
That gig behind her, Scott moved on to other local stages and beyond, backing up a friend at the Huck Finn Bluegrass Festival in Victorville and playing at places like Boulevard Music and Dizzy’s in Los Angeles, and the Menghini Winery Arts, Wine and Music Festival in Julian. She’s also performed with Scott Gates, a Victorville-based mandolin player who is her boyfriend.
Like most musicians, Scott’s inspiration comes from multiple and varied sources — the Beatles, violin concertos she watched on TV when she was a toddler, even ska music. “It’s like punk with horns,” she says of ska. “The horns really make it.”
A long time GATE — Gifted and Talented Education program — student, Scott will graduate in January, a semester early, so she’s been working with her dad, a talented stonemason, saving her earnings for college. She plans to attend Riverside Community College for two years before transferring to the Thornton School of Music at USC. “They have an amazing marching band,” she says of RCC. “They have played for the Queen (of England), gone to Ireland, been in the Rose Parade.”
Music will be Scott’s major, of course, but she’s also got other plans. “I can get my teaching credential and have that as a backup if music doesn’t work out,” she says. While her life’s work will definitely revolve around music, Scott says she has no plans to go on the road and live out of a suitcase. “I would love to be a studio musician for bass or vocals,” she says. “I don’t want to be away from people ... I just want to make a good life for myself.”
TPHS Music Director Mike Mays, who has worked with Scott since she was a freshman, says he has no doubt the young musician will enjoy success or whatever path she follows. “She is outstanding, both as a student and as a musician. She is one of the most talented musicians I have in the band,” Mays says. “She’s got a great attitude; she’ll play whatever I need her to play.” Scott regularly asks him for parts she knows she’s not going to be tapped to play, Mays says, “Just to learn it. She’s that dedicated to music.”
