THE BEAT
Picturing Berkshire Bands
by Seth Rogovoy(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., Feb. 27, 1997) -- Alan B. Grieve's "Berkshire Bands Encore!" (Peter Drozd, 219 pages, $20) is loads of fun. The new volume updates a previous version, bringing this photographic history of music groups in the Berkshires up to 1995.
What is most striking about the book is how the pictures themselves tell the story of changing styles of popular music in the country as a whole. The clothes they wear, the instruments they play and the way the musicians pose all speak to the music they played, whether it's the turn-of-the-century marching bands, the early jazz ensembles, the swing bands, the small combos, the British Invasion-influenced pop groups, the hippie-rockers of the '70s through the hard-rockers and the ethnic music groups of today.
In a few cases you can even follow the musical growth of individuals, such as David Grover, who is seen over a 30-year span as a mop-topped adolescent in the Beatles-styled Marksmen in 1964, a shaggy hippie in Shenandoah a decade later (in a photo that also includes an angelically baby-faced Terry "A La Berry" Hall), and as the clean- scrubbed children's entertainer he is today.
There are a few errors of omission. Surely Arlo Guthrie has lived in the Berkshires long enough (about 35 years by one count) to merit inclusion. And there is no mention of superstar rock drummer Kenny Aronoff, a Stockbridge native who before setting out on his path to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame played in several local bands.
Worse are the errors of commission, however. The valuable lists of bands at the end of the book are marred by some mistakes which suggest that they were compiled hastily based on club listings or mentions in local newspapers without any fact-checking. Thus, non- Berkshire bands like Connecticut's Max Creek, the Pioneer Valley's Ray Mason and Worcester's She's Busy are erroneously included as Berkshire bands. These faults would not matter as much if Grieve hadn't put together such a valuable resource for fans and amateur historians.
Concert watch
While the two big folk and jazz shows this weekend feature John Gorka at the Clark Art Institute in Wiliamstown on Friday night and Royal Hartigan at the Berkshire Museum in Pittsfield on Saturday night, those are not the only shows worth checking out over the next few days.In fact, there are two shadow shows in folk and jazz. Jon Carmen, a Boston-based singer-songwriter, performs at the Campus Center at North Adams State College on Saturday night at 9 as part of NASC's free, CC's Cafe series. And over at the Berkshire Athenaeum, Sax Maniacs, an ensemble featuring five saxophonists plus a rhythm section, performs on Sunday at 3.
Carmen cites Gorka, as well as Joni Mitchell, the Grateful Dead and Neil Young, as a great influence on his own original compositions. >From the sounds of his CD, "Where to Begin" (Watch Bird), the Canadian native by way of upstate New York sings in a lilting, yearning tenor.
The Pioneer Valley-based Sax Maniacs were formed in 1988 by horn player Bruce Krasin, the group plays music specifically written for saxophone players, including works by Med Flory, Charlie Parker and Lennie Niehaus.
In June 1995, the group was invited to participate in the Second International Jazz Festival in St. Petersburg, Russia, where they accompanied that nation's foremost jazz musician, David Goloschokin at the renowned Jazz Philharmonic Hall. In addition to Krasin, the group includes Ken Nigro, Edward L. Mari Jr., David Pope and Dominic Poccia.
Backstage bits
Look for the Suits -- the New York-based club band fronted by executives of that city's law and real estate firms -- to perform a mid-March gig at the Studio. This time the group, which played the Night Shift Cafe in the fall of 1995, is hoping to bring along some special guests with marquee appeal....Speaking of marquee appeal, there's also talk of the Bacon Brothers, featuring actor Kevin Bacon, playing the Studio. Other names being bandied about for the downtown Pittsfield entertainment venue include NRBQ, white R&B artist Delbert McClinton, and country-novelty act/mystery writer Kinky Friedman. Stay tuned....
That's great news about the "In the Fiddler's House" tour headlined by Itzhak Perlman coming to Tanglewood this summer on July 31. The all-star klezmer show features top acts in the genre, both traditional and progressive, including the Klezmatics, Brave Old World, the Klezmer Conservatory Band and the Andy Statman Klezmer Orchestra....
As far as Tanglewood's other pop offerings, it looks like James Taylor has now graduated to perennial status from his previous biannual perch. Apparently what Tea Party Concerts -- the Boston- based promoter that books the pop shows at Tanglewood -- lacks in originality, it makes up for in commercial savvy. That is to say, you can't argue with JT when he's a guaranteed box-office smash....
But what happened to the Labor Day weekend jazz festival? This August's version is down to four concerts from last year's seven, and while it's been a while since we've seen Sonny Rollins and Chick Corea in these parts, we're plenty used to Dave Brubeck and Randy Weston. And what of the plethora of exciting musicians on the scene under the age of 50? As of now Gary Burton, at 54, is the youngest on the program. So much for investing in the future of jazz....
[This column originally appeared in the Berkshire Eagle on Feb. 27, 1997. Copyright Seth Rogovoy 1997. All rights reserved.]
Seth Rogovoy
rogovoy@berkshire.net
music news, interviews, reviews, et al.
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