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A fine gangster patriot! Urban Guide Listings to plan your week by Yankee Doodle Dandy Many react with astonishment and horror when they learn that James Cagney, the slow-burningest, ass-kickingest actor in the history of gangster films, pursued a parallel career as a song and dance man. He even starred in Busby Berkeley's Footlight Parade. Cagney was an agile dancer and an, um, competent singer. But in this 1942 film he performs with such energy and vigor and style that you won't even notice the absence of tommyguns and brass knuckles and bootlegged hooch. This movie is a biopic in which Cagney stars as George M. Cohan, songwriter responsible for "Give My Regards to Broadway," "Over There," and the title song. The film is pure Hollywood hokum, silly and patriotic and sentimental -- just like George M. Cohan's songs. But Cagney sells it so hard that even Noam Chomsky couldn't help tapping his toes and singing along. Good cinematography by James Wong Howe. Fri/18, 8pm. Paramount Theater, 2025 Broadway, Oakl. $5. 465.6400. (CB) Goat see the show at Door. 7. Alexander Kopps/Christopher A. Ruess "Oh shit, there goes the neighborhood." That's what my aunt LouAnn used to say when a shopping cart turned up stranded down the block a ways from her tract home in Hemet, California. "Things sure are goin' to pot around here ...." Alexander Kopps pairs up with the ghost of Christopher A. Ruess (you figure it out) to present a testimonial of "The Conservators of Naturalistic Urbanism, Oakland, California." His sprawling installation of ramblin' wall drawings and moody mixed-media paintings, many on found, weathered wood and other urban detritus, are invested with a consideration of urban phenomena, such as graffiti, abandoned shopping carts, and other urban "decay," as natural events worthy of the same appreciation bestowed upon flowers and trees and such. The charm of this work is its sincerity. Its potential to succeed resides in its more atmospheric qualities, demanding viewers to take some time with it and feel the effect. Door.7 is the natural place for this show to exist, and adjacent Papa Buzz Café has a sweet little back patio to contemplate the urban sky (or whatever) afterwards with a strong cuppa coffee. Through Thurs/31. Door.7.Gallery, 2316 Telegraph, Oakl. 763.6494. Call for gallery hours. (KE) The High Cost of Living It's an old story: community-centered performance spaces are shut down or replaced with slick new businesses. Oakland's own 21 Grand is hosting a benefit to raise money for operating costs as well as the fees to apply for non-profit status. Anyone who's been to this local treasure knows it is an essential forum for artists. Where else can you sit in a warehouse with art surrounding you and experience anything from a range in musical genres to belly dancing? This Friday you'll have a chance to enjoy a head-spinning assortment of performers and help Oakland hold onto its independent creative culture. Featured are choreographer/belly dancer Iris Alroy, the debut performance of Glass Bead Game presenting vocalist Cera Byer and members of the celebrated Lemon Lime Lights, prankster comedian Harmon Leon, a rare solo acoustic performance by Wire Graffiti's stellar front woman Katherine Sawyer, and video artist/electronic musician Brain Science. Dig 21 Grand? Then dig into your pockets. Come feed your senses and keep Oakland's independent scene from starving. Fri/18, 8pm. 21 Grand, Oakl. $7-$20. www.21grand.org. (LH) Kids Make Music Help some kids out this weekend by listening to music that will benefit art programming in local schools. M.U.S.T. (Music in Schools Today), a non-profit organization that raises money to buy musical instruments for Oakland Public Schools, is presenting two benefit concerts this weekend back to back. Stephen Kent, didjeridu master, Oaktown Jazz, a collaboration of student and professional musicians,The Great Wall Orchestra on soothing Chinese instruments, and the Skyline High Jazz Band will all perform at the First Congressional Church Saturday night to raise money for Oakland's schools. Proceeds from the second concert, Sunday at Blake's in Berkeley, will go specifically to the Berkeley High music program. The funky tunes of Sol Americano, along with The Locals, and First Circle will heat up the stage. Enjoy a couple of nights of philanthropy, and if you have any old instruments gathering dust, drop by and donate them. Sat/19, 7pm. First Congreg-ational Church, 2501 Harrison, Oakl. $10-$20 donation. 444.8511. Sun/20, 8:30pm. Blake's, 2367 Telegraph, Berk. $6 donation. 488.6533; www.mustcreate.org. (GS) Prophesying till all are free. Till All Are Free: A Hip/Trip Hop Benefit for PARC Other groups get the headlines, but Oakland's Prison Activist Resource Center does the unglamorous, politically unpopular work of researching prisoner rights abuses and connecting prisoners with the legal resources and family support services they desperately need. Serving as a national information clearinghouse for those who would take on the prison-industrial complex (as well as those caught in its grasp), PARC recently found itself on the move as its old office building was taken over by dotcomlandia. Till All Are Free: A Hip/Trip Hop Benefit for PARC promises to be a bootyshake for a good cause, with Prophets of Rage ripping mikes with Boricua pride behind their latest, My Power, and DJ So Much Soul, a favorite of La Peña's Collective Soul showcase, keeping the vibe going. The Black Dot Artists Collective steps in, with Renaissance, EK Trip, and a whole bunch of other stars from the No on Prop. 21 underground. Sun/20, 7pm. La Peña, 3105 Shattuck, Berk. $10. 893.4648; www.prisonactivist.org. (AS) Picks by Chris Baker (CB), Kelly Eginton (KE), Lisa Hayle (LH), Gabriel Serpa (GS), and Alexi Simon (AS). [ East Bay | Metroactive | Archives ]