West Coast Sound is founded by our current CEO Paul Doty and wife Leslie. It is quickly joined by business partner Chris Gray. Its first event is an Easter Sunrise service in 1986. Paul & Chris are found mixing sound nightly in Modesto's booming nightclubs throughout the early years of the company.
Paul and Chris are chosen to be the touring crew on Bloodgood's historic Detonation Tour, kicking off a 35+ year history with Paul as the bands front of house engineer. The relationship continues today making Bloodgood one of the companies oldest clients along with others like California State University Stanislaus.
Modesto's event center The Modesto Centre Plaza opens in 1987 and West Coast Sound is chosen as its production provider. In the first year the company provides sound & lights for Bob Hope and oversee's major events like the touring MTV dance party with network celebrities and VJ's.
A second Bloodgood tour paves the way for other major national acts in the Christian metal genre. Building on the Bloodgood reputation, Paul is picked up by Christian heavy metal band Barren Cross and a company truck rolls out for the State Of Control Tour. The national tour has both a sound and light rig and the company officially changes its name to West Coast Sound & Light, or WCSL for short.
This era is filled with national country music acts, festivals, fairs, and a lot of growth. In 1994 WCSL helps to re-open the historic State Theater in Modesto as an entertainment venue as well as movie house. WCSL promotes one of the first events, a Star Trek themed night to celebrate the end of The Next Generation series. Money was raised to renovate the seating in the venue. During the years to come, over 100 events would happen in the theater during WCSL's time there.
In 1995 Paul buys out partner Chris Gray and a new era of sole proprietorship is born. Paul runs sound for jazz artist Slim Man for the first time and is still his friend and engineer to this day. This era is all about jazz as the company provides production for a who's who of the smooth jazz genre. In 1997 WCSL becomes an installation company as well as a live production company. Paul also goes to work for California concerts during this time as Production manager for The Cadillac Club in Fresno.
WCSL builds a catalog of international artist during this time. Ray Charles, John Denver, Kris Kristopherrson, Johnny Cash, Vince Gill, Glen Campbell, Wille Nelson, Merle Haggard, Dionne Warwick, the list goes on....
WCSL has the honor of providing sound and lights for TV legend Steve Allen in Texas. Promoters across the country are now bringing WCSL trucks out of California for one offs because they can depend on WCSL for their shows.
In 1999 Paul & Leslie's daughter Ashley begins working in the industry as a crew member. She is exposed to the Hollywood Makeup industry at the International Makeup Trade Show. This would start her on a second generation career path in the entertainment industry. Decades later she has now served as head makeup artist on NBC's A Little Late with Lilly Singh and is currently enjoying work with James Corden and the NBC shows.
In 2000 WCSL becomes the production company for the only KISS tribute band in the world, doing so with KISS' blessing. The band Larger Than Life works for KISS on a number of special events and is featured in the Steven Soderbergh film Tribute. The KISS shows of the 70's are reproduced by the band and WCSL crew in great detail to the delight of audiences. Like KISS, the motto of both the band and WCSL though this time is "If it's worth doing...it's worth over doing".
Matt Cross becomes WCSL's General Manager
WCSL is in arenas now. Arco Arena, The Cow Palace, The LA Forum, Oakland Coliseum all become familiar turf as the quality and scale of WCSL shows, systems, and clientele escalate.
WCSL becomes the production provider for California's largest one day street festival...X-Fest. During the festival's decade plus history, WCSL would provide large outdoor festival systems for all of them with the only exceptions being the very first...and the very last. At the peak of the festival WCSL handled 50 artists on numerous stages during an 8 hour period. The crews worked 24 hour days to pull it off.
WCSL is forced to move into a much larger facility at 1019 N Emerald Avenue in Modesto
WCSL is now providing production for majors like The Doobie Brothers, Three Dog Night, STYX, Kansas & Kenny Logins. Its inventory of line array is growing to keep up with the demand.
WCSL has a banner year that includes lighting and audience monitors for the television series Three Wishes with Amy Grant.
Paul has the honor of working with Don Rickles as his monitor engineer. Paul & Don hit it off and Don invites Paul to come "hang out" as he returns to the Sands in Vegas to officially close a venue that he had actually opened.
Former Showco engineer Tim Nesbitt opens WCSL Southern California in 2007 and stays at the location until his death a few years later. While Tim's time with us was short, he was a colorful soul with stories for days.
Paul is the Lighting Designer on the Steve Oliver DVD One Night Live. We even landed some footage in the bonus features of the DVD.
In 2007 WCSL becomes The WCSL Corporation.
In 2008 we loaded up a semi and took X-Fest on the road to Las Vegas. Californa's largest one day event just became a California X-port to the entertainment capital of the world. The multiple stage event was hosted on historic Fremont Street.
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