Last weekend’s Napa City Nights at Veterans Memorial Park was another of those kid-in-the-limelight moments that parents live for.

Our Jonathan, he of the electric bass guitar, would be performing as a member of the Napa School of Music’s Garage Band 101 summer program.

A big deal, this. Cheryl and I had lived through years of Jonathan practicing in his bedroom at decibel levels capable of raising the dead, but we’d never seen him actually play in a band.

With his hundreds of hours of practice, Jonathan certainly had paid his dues. And, for the record, so had we. The Catholic church makes saints of adults who have endured less.

But was Jonathan ready for prime time? At Napa City Nights we would find out.

Cheryl was jazzed and wanted to get to the park early. I dragged my feet. Yes, Garage Band 101 was one cool name for a summer music program. And a public performance on the river was cooler yet.

But really, when you got down to the nub of it, how compelling could a youth band be?

I flashed back to a much younger Jonathan playing trumpet at a recital for an after-school jazz band, and an older Jonathan’s solo bass performances courtesy of the Napa School of Music.

And let’s not forget those band and orchestra concerts at Harvest Middle School or Jonathan’s tuba contribution to Napa High football games.

Good stuff, all of it, but scintillating? No one would have gotten rich hawking tickets on StubHub, if you get my drift.

Cheryl’s enthusiasm for Napa City Nights prevailed. We arrived downtown nearly an hour before her bassman son was due to perform.  Parking was jammed for blocks. More than 400 people filled the park. A full moon would soon rise above the eastern hills, adding extra magic to the balmy night.

We squeezed close to the stage where a student band, Electric Plaid, was doing covers of rock hits.

Studying the crowd, I wondered who these people were. The older ones couldn’t all be parents, yet here they were, listening to kids make music.

Cheryl searched for Jonathan amid the pack of musicians waiting to go on stage. There was something Jonathan-like about a rocker dude dressed head-to-foot in black with slicked-back hair and really buff arms accentuated by an ultra hip, sleeveless T-shirt.

We exchanged looks of disbelief. While Mom wasn’t looking, Napa School of Music had found a cool-beyond-his-years Jonathan doppelganger.

At 9 sharp, the Jonathan entourage, dubbed the Band of Music, came on stage and launched into “Second Chance,” an early-decade hit by Shinedown.

I’d never heard the song before, but I instantly got shivers. The lead singer, Katelyn, was exceptionally fine, but what in the world was going on in the backfield?

Bassist Jonathan and guitarist Chad exploded during the chorus with synchronized moves. They dipped and bopped and Jonathan even went airborne with some pogo bounces.

My heart pounded. I’ve seen some great performances over the years. As good as Springsteen, Dylan and U2 had been, they hadn’t made my spine tingle like this.

Cheryl was having her own out-of-body experience. After years of financing lessons and coping with endless practice, she now witnessed her son tearing up the Veterans Park stage like a musical colossus.

The lyrics to “Second Chance” tell of a young person saying good-bye to mom and dad so he can go forth to fulfill his destiny. Under ordinary circumstances, that sentiment might have caused Cheryl a moment of sadness. Not this night. She only had ears for the band’s popping bass line.

The Band of Music closed its set with a thunderous rendition of Mötley Crüe’s “Kickstart My Heart,” complete with Jonathan and Chad’s choreographed theatrics.

“Normally I hate Mötley Crüe,” Cheryl said later. The heavy metal sound and those “evil” umlauts had always repelled her. “Today, I loved it.”

Videos of last weekend’s performance are available on YouTube. When you type in “Napa Band of Music,” you’ll be blown away.

Mom certainly was.

Kevin can be reached at 256-2217 or Napa Valley Register,  P.O. Box 150, Napa 94559 or kcourtney@napanews.com