About Me
Member Comment Author, Musician,The Upstage club Asbury Park,NJ
Report My Post You know i have been reading all these posts for quite a long time..very enjoyable and also quite amusing. First of all I would like to send out My Heart to all My very dear friends that have passed away in the last few years. I have lived it, breathed it,played music from My soul with them,and in a very special way we still jam together...believe it or not the feelings never go away..I walked into the Upstage Club, in Jersey, for the first time when My musician friends from Asbury Park High School told Me about a new place to check out. I was going to school with David Sancious, Ernie Carter, Both who joined Springsteen's E Street Band, also David went on to play with Eric Clapton and Sting, and Many other Jazz greats including his own projects, Jimmy Harris,Patti Scialfa (now Bruce Springsteen's Wife) and Her Brother Michael Scialfa (Michael played keyboards in one of My bands in Allenhurst)...Mike had to give up the guitar and play keyboards because He blew up his hand playing with fireworks...GO Figure We were kids,He traded Me His old Fender Stratocaster for a Les Paul or a Hagstram I cannot remember... Patti sang in a band with My best friend at the time Jerry A. She did an awesome Jefferson Airplane.. Revolution and Volunteers of America were her best numbers..She was incredible. Patti and Her girl friend Robin J. painted a drum head for My band at the time in Mr. Smiths art class..My band at that time was called Paper Sun..I bet she still remembers..It was a Deal crowd kind of thing (inside joke sorry) very intense artistry,... Tom Potter.the owner, was busy setting up the layout upstairs at the Upstage Club while Eddie Laurachi, God Bless his soul, and My great friend (eddies Brother ) John were trying to hook up the speakers...There were sooooo many of them and quite a few blown ones too, lol, I met Margaret Potter (Tom's Wife) and had a wonderful conversation, and She assured Me that this would be the place to be if I was a musician and enjoyed the music scene .We became very good friends, (I even ended up joining Her Band,the Distractions, which was the official House Band at the club towards the end of the scene before the club closed). I hung out at the Upstage for a few weeks,every day while they got it all together for the initial opening, and helped carry the musical equipment up to the 3rd floor where the Electric bands played.. I was 16 and played in a local band already. We played at private party's and at the Allenhurst beach Club (adjacent to Asbury Park, north side) the next town over,and the NCO club and EM club at Fort Monmouth.. Also I had a job on the weekend days working at Fascination on the Asbury boardwalk. Johnny Lyons of the Asbury Jukes, was one of our best customers, He really liked to play,He won all the time,He was working as a US Postman right in the middle of the boardwalk in Ocean Grove (southside of Asbury Park...imagine that LOL)Hence Southside Johnny. Bruce Springsteen would hang out at the arcade right next to where I worked and play pinball for hours..He was very proficient at pinball. He really enjoyed it....... Margaret was awesome....., I was only 16 as I previously mentioned, and at 12pm when all the under 18 people would have to leave she would let Me sit on the stairs that lead upstairs to the third floor. Big black Tiny and Big white Tiny the Main security guys got to know Me and let Me slide upstairs after 1am. Eddie Laurichi and Foo and Big Bad Bobby Williams (I really miss Him, We actually started another band together a few years later) always watched out for Me. They were all so cool. I saw so many great musicians upstairs that I can not even begin to name them. The lead singer in My band Jeff Tramitz got a job seating people at the Green Mermaid Cafe on the second floor. So I hung out there all the time. I watched Southside and Garry Tallent. Bruce S. and Tinker (Carl West) and Albie Tallone, and Johnny Hot Keys jam acoustically all the time. Finally, Tom gave us (My band)a chance to play on the Main stage on the 3rd floor. We were in Heaven. The BIG SHOW. The band sounded really good and one of My greatest musical moments was when "THE" Ricky DeSarno (Ricky D) the absolute best guitarist in the area ,asked Me how to play a certain lead solo that I had written Myself and practiced for many hours, and when We finished our set on stage He came over to Me and He told Me He really liked the solo and wanted Me to show him how to play it...I could not believe it..Practice really pays off..Well since I was at the Upstage since the inception I was also allowed in the sacred office. You had to be really special for Tom to accept You in the office behind the stage on the 2nd floor. I was blessed. I got to spend many, hours with Bruce S. We hung out every day for years and We would play cards,( 500 rummy) and guitar all night long till the sun came up, then He would tell Me stories, and then He would get really creative and start writing songs,both on the Guitar and the Piano. We stayed in Long Branch then Atlantic Highlands and then Colts Neck (all towns in NJ near Asbury Park). I spent hours in the studio with Him and the band at 914 studios in upstate NY. From the albums Greetings from Asbury Park,through Born To Run. I drove the whole E-Street band.Bruce,Danny Federici,Clarance Clemons,Gary Tallent,Vini Lopez,David Sancious, and all the guys that could fit.. to all the tri-state area gigs in PA, NJ, VA,and NY in My old Ford Econoline van..What a awesome time.....Well I guess We all have to grow in our lives so I fell in Love, and then I married Bruce's current wife's(Patti..Duh) best friends little Sister, and had Two Beautiful Children with Her, My Son, Robbie and My Daughter, Abigail,They are The Absolute Best Part of My Entire Life. I Live for My Children.....Well Bruce and I kind of lost touch for a while, but We are still Best Friends Forever.We Made a Promise to each Other.. I Loved to hang out with Vini, Mad Dog Lopez(Still My Bro till this day),Little John L.,Garry T.,Danny Fededici.(RIP MY BROTHER),Billy Chinnock . May God Rest Your Soul), Tinker (He so used to bust My chops for being at all Bruce's band practices..LOL ) He said don't You ever go home...Billy Ryan (lived 5 houses away from Me).,David Sancious.,Ernie Carter.(both high school classmates),and sooo many others not to mention all the special guests who would stop bye. Well the riots finally came to Asbury Park and everything got messed up. Nobody came around anymore.Businesses were closing. I got a job bartending at the Student Prince Night Club on Kingsley Ave. about 6 blocks from the Upstage Club working for Richie Simonson. It turned out to be awesome..Bruces band played there 5 nights a week and Mrs Jay's was just becoming the Stone Pony. The Jaywakers with Billy Ryan were at Steve Brodie's, right down the Street,Three nights a week.I also got to Jam onstage with Bruce at the Student Prince all the time.My Band,at the time was called "Abaline"' would also play there when He had a night off and Bruce would come up on stage and jam with Us.I was in Heaven...Enough for now. God Bless You All.. Peace...
