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The Nightcrawler weighs in on his picks for 10 of the most influential people in Valley music.
from: valleyadvocate.com
by Gary Carra
Almost anyone can put their finger on the pulse of the local music scene if they really want to get out there and put the time in. The following people have their digits firmly planted on the radio knobs, computer keyboards and dayrunners that get bands around these parts seen and heard.
Granted, there are undoubtedly other worthy candidates that for whatever reason did not surface on this year's relevance radar. Then again, perhaps these omissions are counterbalanced by the others we do know about who always demur from such public displays as editorial selections (and you know who you are!).
So without further ado, here are 10 of the most influential people in the Valley music scene in 2008Ñsubmitted for your enlightenment, in no particular order.
Julie Rader
Vice President of Promotion, BLACKHEART RECORDS
Many were the top-10 candidates that retraced their career paths by leafing through scrapbooks, photos and otherwise jogging their memories. As Julie Rader recounted her journey through countless labels in New York back in the day, however, the proven promoter/publicist had the benefit of some visual aids not normally found around these parts.
"Yeah, I must have been at Silver Cloud Records then, because I was working with Rex Smith," she says, admiring Smith's gold record for "You Take My Breath Away"Ñone of nearly a dozen such pieces of memorabilia that hang on the walls of her Greenfield home.
Throughout her more than two-decades-long career, Rader has helped advance the careers of Aerosmith, AC/DC, Ted Nugent, The Scorpions and scores of others along the way.
But it would be a chance meeting with two artists not even on her client listÑJOAN JETT and KENNY LAGUNAÑthat would propel Rader's life in directions she had never dreamed.
"They came into the office, and they wanted to give me $50 to work their record," she recalls. "And they were just so passionate. They were selling vinyl records out of the trunk of their Cadillac at the time. And the truth was, I loved what I heard."
As evidenced by "I Love Rock 'N' Roll's" eight-week stay at the top of the charts, such love was contagious.
As V.P. for promotions for Jett's BLACKHEART RECORDS, Rader is still intimately involved with the flagship artist, setting up interviews, pumping out press releases and more from her Greenfield office. But she is equally passionate about the label's up-and-comers, including L.A. pop-punksters The Dollyrots and the newest members of the Blackheart family, The Cute Lepers.
And she still finds time to go out and support acts like Antigone Rising even though she has no official business ties to them.
"What can I say?" she concludes. "I may be getting up there, but I never tire of it, and I still love to get out to punk rock concerts. Although the kids are now starting to call me 'Mama Jules.'""
Michael "Haze" Dejesus
Lazer 99.3 FM DJ
Haze himself is the first to admit itÑthe proverbial road that has led him to his current slot as Lazer 99.3 FM's afternoon drive DJ has been has been as easy to navigate as it has been smoothly paved.
"Right after I was honorably discharged from the Air Force, a friend of mine, Adam Wright, was a program director and brought me in," he recalls. "I had the midnight to 6 a.m. shift, but soon found myself filling in for Adam in the afternoon. Then it became apparent that Adam was moving on, so I was eventually told to 'stay here' at this time slot. And that's where I've been, for nearly a decade now."
Also deciding that Haze had the "Wright" stuff to be his successor was Tommy Pluta, a former high school chum who had invented the wildly successful Big Band Music Explosion program.
The self-described "music geek" would eventually piggy-back on to the Sunday night stapleÑfollowing it with his own Operation New Noise programÑand swiftly establish himself as one of a handful of jocks to spin local/unsigned acts' tunes at a decent hour& and certainly one of if not the highest-profile one.
While sweeping advances in technology have certainly cluttered the on-air field of late (even Oprah, Martha Stewart and Troy Aikman are currently listed as "on-air" talents on satellite radio), the easygoing afternoon man continues to wear his optimism on his sleeve almost as prominentlyÑand regularlyÑas his beloved Bosox cap adorns his cranium.
"I know things are changing, but I really do think terrestial radio will be around longer than people think," he concludes. "Firstly, we can be much more local than the competition, from our news, coverage and even the music we play, of course. Secondly... we're free!"
Scott "Ogre" Lee
Promoter
With all due to respect to Mr. Naismith, the Seuss family and that guy who invented acid, these days one could easily argue that Western Massachusetts' most prized export to the outside world is its precious metal. From Staind to the Acacia Strain, Killswitch Engage to All That Remains and Shadows Fall, area decibel-deliverers can now be found on stages, radios, television sets and magazine racks the world overÑvirtually securing the Pioneer Valley as ground zero for the new Headbanger's Ball set in the process.
As a former club owner and current promoter who has branched out into management (he co-owns Crimson Management with Leah Urbano), talent buying/production management (MassConcerts, with John Peters) and even his own apparel line (Scott Lee clothing), Scott "Ogre" Lee says that he takes the most pride in knowing he had a helping hand in the careers of the aforementioned bands.
Or was that a helping wrench?
"I consider all of these bands like high-performance engines," Ogre explains. "So if I changed Staind's oil and replaced the head gaskets for All That Remains somewhere along the line, I'm just happy knowing I contributed and was involved with such greatness somewhere."
Henning Ohlenbusch
Musician/Record Label Founder
Finding journeyman musician Henning Ohlenbusch in our top 10 influential people in the Valley music scene may not have beenÑas they say in gambling circlesÑa bonafide "lock." But considering that he plays in many of the area's more prominent bands and founded a studio and record label that are utilized by even more, it was certainly highly probable under any statistical scenario.
"I've always been into music, since sitting on a piano bench singing Neil Diamond with my brother to making recordings with my band in junior high to writing songs on a five-dollar guitar with three strings to going to college for music and sound recording and editing with a razor and Scotch tape," says the man who has played bass or guitar with Funnilingus, Humbert, The Aloha Steamtrain, The Greenbergs, The Gay Potatoes, The Fawns, Sitting Next To Brian and The Hallucinajasons, to name a choice few.
In recent years, Ohlenbusch adds that his School For The DeadÑa project that includes guitarist Tony Westcott, drummer Brian Marchese, bassist Max Germer and keyboardist Ken MaiuriÑhas been the primary vehicle for the prolific popster to deliver his seemingly ceaseless string of well-crafted, three-minute ditties to the masses. On Friday, Sept. 26, the School-boys will officially celebrate their second full-length, A Telephone Built For Two, at The Elevens in Noho. In the meantime, his label, Rub Wrongways Records, has also begun lining up a series of "spotlight shows" at The Rendezvous in Turners Falls (for updates, visit rendezvoustfma.com).
Mark Sheehan
Promoter/Manager
Maybe it's just the time of year, but when local promoter/band manager Mark Sheehan tells his story, one can't help but look around for 40-foot jumbotrons emblazoned with images of flags or rows of cornfields to levitate out of the ground behind him.
He came from humble beginnings. "I was actually a DJ at a local strip club in Springfield," he explains. "But I didn't play the typical stripper music the others did. I played Pavement, The Ramones and old Jamaican Dub like King Tubby."
He started a family and had a dream: "When my children were babies, I would take them to Northampton in their stroller and spend my days off there. I always wanted to move there."
Then he worked hard, made his way through the ranks: "I obtained employment at Pearl Street lugging gear for bands, which led to security shifts there and eventually at all the Iron Horse Entertainment Group [venues] and finally achieved the dreamÑmoving to Paradise City and helping to put shows together."
And, in true political fashion, he did it all with a little massaging of the facts and other acts of innocent deceit.
"The first show I was able to book, one of the guys in the band whipped up a flyer and put it all around town declaring a 'Super Secret Thurston Moore Show,'" he explains. "When I arrived at the door, the place was completely packed. I went around telling people that Thurston probably wasn't playing, we're sorry, but it was a free show and some good bands were coming up. Only about 10 left."
Today, Sheehan works for Donal Rooke at The Elevens and manages The Thungs/Others, The Novels, World's Greatest Dad and the purveyors of the now infamous flyer, Curious Buddies.
John Juliano
Big E Talent Buyer
The timing of all this is fortuitous for Juliano, as it's certainly easy for someone whose wares are really only on display for three weeks a year to slip into the back of one's mind the remaining 49.
But in those remaining 49, it is Juliano who scours the globe, attends countless conferences and seminars and otherwise does whatever it takes to fill those auspicious autumn days we know as The Big E with world-class sounds.
"My favorite thing is to try and book bands in the off-season that I think will be huge by the fair," says Juliano, who has been an employee of New England's "great state fair" since 1984. "Luckily, I have been able to do just that a few times, including Destiny's ChildÑwho had the number one record at the time they performedÑas well as Faith Hill."
In recent years, Juliano has been able to enhance The Big E audio experience even more, sprinkling the daily, free-show festivities with a series of paid-admission concerts as well.
Obviously the extra income allows him to lure in bigger-budget acts. And considering the fact that he has served in the Country Music Association (CMA), is a past president of the International Entertainment Buyers Association (IBEA), and is currently on the board of directors for the Academy of Country Music (ACM), John Juliano certainly travels in the right circles to find those bands.
Ray Mason
Musician
Much like the aforementioned Ohlenbusch, sheer numbers (and raw talent, of course) also mandate the inclusion of Haydenville's Ray Mason in any such collections of the influential. But for every band affiliation Ohlenbusch can claim, Mason can counter with years of experience.
He was in his first band before many of today's regulars on the club circuit took their first steps. He had his first song copywritten while Yaz was pinning down baseball's coveted triple crown.
Now, more than four decades, a shoe box full of miscellaneous cassettes and 11 CDs later, Mason can still be found almost any given weekendÑtrusty 1965 Silvertone guitar in handÑregaling the patrons at some local watering hole or a regional festival with a sizeable collection of rambling pop-rockers.
In fact, in 1999, nearly two dozen of Mason's contemporariesÑincluding King Radio, The Ware River Club and Bamboo SteamersÑcovered his tunes on It's The Heartbreak That Sells: A Ray Mason Tribute.
"It was quite an honor," Mason said at the time. "But I'll tell you, I had to check my pulse. I thought they didn't do those tribute things until you died."
Since 1985, Mason also started keeping companyÑand playing tunesÑwith Jim Armenti for a project called the Lonesome Brothers. The current Lonesome lineup is rounded out by Tom Shea, Frank Marsh and Stephen Desaulniers and is expected to drop its eighth studio release this fall.
Jim Neill
Iron Horse Entertainment Group Marketing Director
With three of the area's premier venuesÑPearl Street Nightclub, The Iron Horse and The Calvin TheaterÑin its existing portfolio of direct ownership and scores of other major facilities utilizing its services to put on shows the region over, the Iron Horse Entertainment Group (IHEG) has long since established itself as a veritable powerhouse in industry circles. And when folks like us inquire about IHEG and its operation, we're usually sent straight to the Horse's mouthpiece, marketing director Jim Neill.
A former record shop worker who meandered into radio, Neill even took a shot at the big time, moving to L.A. to work for Rhino Records years back.
Perhaps it was another shotÑdirectly to his faceÑthat got the Valley boy thinking it might be time to head back East.
"I was at Caf? Largo, the Iron Horse of Los Angeles, when a lowered Honda Civic with tinted windows slowly went by, lowered its windows and gun barrels appeared," he recalls. "Everyone else on the sidewalk, smoking and chatting, instinctively dropped to the ground. But New England Jimmy was hit between the nose and the lip."
Neill adds that while the police were completely nonchalant about the drive-by, the up side of Hollywood was that the doctors knew how to repair the injury so as to leave little to no scarring.
In addition to not feeling like a member of a Dick Cheney hunting party every time he goes outside these days, Neill notes that his current stint as IHEG's marketing director is shaping up to be the "purest role" he's ever had in the biz.
"I'm part of a process that puts bands in front of fans in the same room," he concludes. "That's much more satisfying than trying to sell recorded music. Live music is not a downloadable experience."
Keith Weppler
Co-owner, Theodores' Blues, Booze & BBQ
Don't worry, blues fans. We've got you covered. At the place where you can see some of the best-up-and-comers and road-tested veteransÑall without paying a cover.
Over the past decade, Keith WepplerÑalong with co-owner Keith Makarowski and talent buyer Steve WalbridgeÑhave consistently stacked the Theodores' entertainment calendar with enough blues notables to make rivals green with envy.
Young Neil & the Vipers, Rod Piazza, Charlie Musselwhite and even Virgin Records' Cracker have graced the stage at 201 Worthington Street in years past.
"When Keith and I took over, we really took a look at all of the things the previous owner had tried and what we thought really worked," Weppler reveals. "In the end, we decided to really take the 'Blues, Booze and BBQ' motto and run with it, and it's really worked out well."
So well, in fact, that in 2004, Theodores' was named both "Best Promoter" and "Best Live Blues Club" by the Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation.
Today Weppler says that even the local Cityblock Concert Series downtown seems to be yielding unanticipated benefits to the club's already successful system.
"We figured we'd get a bump in attendance on Thursdays, because you have all these people coming into the city," he explains. "But that's also the night we have our blues jams, and once in a while we're finding members of bands who performed at Cityblock earlier making their way over here to jam with our locals later, too."
Donald Robert Jr.
Head Manager/Booking Agent
Maximum Capacity
One could argue that Donald Robert, Jr. has always had just the right mentality when it comes to booking and promotion. In short, he's been filling whatever club he has been involved with by virtually any means necessary.
In the early years, this meant literally knocking on doors, handing out flyers and instituting everything from "black light parties" to jello wrestling any given Thursday night.
"At Tilly's, these college-themed ideas filled the place to maximum capacity in a matter of three weeks after we had only been doing about 40 people previously," he recalls.
From there, Robert says, he rode the momentumÑand officially adopted the Maximum Capacity monikerÑto form his own promotion company, replete with 13 chaps-wearing women ready to make club appearances at a moment's notice. By this time, Robert was hosting events from Springfield to Worcester and was looking to go even farther. That's about the time, however, that his father upped the ante back home.
"He found a bar in Chicopee formerly known as The Spot for sale, and he said he'd buy it and I would run the entertainment."
Maximum Capacity has since moved to its current residence at 116 School StreetÑwhere it routinely hosts everything from top area cover and original bands and food and beer tastings to midget wrestling and mixed martial arts in the parking lot. It is also the new home base for veteran Valley soundman Pete Garvey these days, and on Oct. 4, it will be the official home of the Valley Advocate's Grand Band Slam bash.
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