as a mix of "Louis Armstrong and Tom Waits on the raspy spectrum." He played a Baldwin piano. When a participating singer did exceptionally well Dibble rang a cowbell in their honor. When a participating singer made his or her debut singing at The Alley, Dibble rang a much smaller bell in honor of the singer being an "Alley Virgin" regardless of whether the singer did exceptionally well. In the 1980s, Dibble accepted a recurring request, providing "frontier-style" incidental piano accompaniment to the poem "The Shooting of Dan McGrew", recited by "Tex", a regular patron who said he was a Texas Ranger. Dibble was married, had two children and four grandchildren. He lived in Berkeley. When asked if he would ever retire, Dibble stated "I'll never retire, I'll be very happy to die right behind this piano here." Paul Hlebcar Paul Hlebcar has played guitar while sitting at the Alley's piano since the late 1970's. He leads "guitar bar" at The Alley on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and early dinner sets on Fridays and Saturdays. He covers many styles, from Mick Jagger to Sinatra, and songs he will play for singers range from the standards and the Beatles to contemporary pop by Radiohead and Sublime. Jef Labes Pianist Jef Labes has accompanied singers at The Alley since 2016. He plays on Mondays and Fridays. He is known for recordings with Van Morrison and Bonnie Raitt. He has released two solo albums and has been praised for his "rural-flavored piano licks" and "definite sense of drama." Bryan Seet Pianist Bryan Seet discovered The Alley in 2016 and began to lead piano bar on Rod Dibble's nights off. Seet's repertoire extends to contemporary pop music, but he maintains many of the rituals Rod Dibble instituted, particularly passing the microphone around the piano to take your turn, and ringing a 'virgin bell' to celebrate an Alley debut. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when The Alley was forced to shutter for 14 months and faced financial crisis and closure, Seet rallied a group of regulars who raised more than $100,000, ensuring that the bar reopened. Seet has described his work at the piano as 'creating a sacred space, like a church where a congregation of regulars help hold that space together, and support each other and new singers'." Reception The Alley has been mentioned in travel and restaurant guides to Oakland and the San Francisco Bay