Tag Archives: rock

Smash! Crash! Bash! Goes Cold Turkey!

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On the day after Thanksgiving, our friends Peter Aaron and Sean McDJ were scheduled to work the dog at the Salt Box for their fabulous Smash! Crash! Bash! DJ night—it was the last Friday of the month. However, both of them have parents who are aged and ailing with whom they wanted to spend the Thanksgiving weekend with, so they bowed out of the gig. The Smash! Crash! Bash! needed to go on, so subbing for them was Pete Pop and Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus.

Since the Smash! Crash! Bash! regulars are accustomed to digging punk and new wave records —and generally rockin’ records from the seventies and eighties and even newer—at these events, that’s what Mr. Pop and El Rapido brought to the show. In fact, Pete Pop went so far as to play LP tracks from actual 12” long-playing albums—something he never does!!! There are photos to prove it!

Because the Funky Kingston (fifth Saturday of the month, when there is one) was scheduled for the next night, Phast Phreddie brought his DJ gear; thus the presence of the Bat Signal! Once again, Miss Nancy supplied some yummy treats. A whole bunch of our friends showed up and the entire night was a swingin’ success. It was so successful that Mr. Pop and the Phast One were asked to return for the next Smash! Crash! Bash! on the day after Christmas for the same reason! Make that scene, won’t you?

Here’s a list of all the records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at the November Smash! Crash! Bash!:

None of these records are for sale!

Smash! Crash! Bash! Boogaloo!

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[WARNING: this post is way out of order—the Boogaloo Blog writers apologize profusely for any confusion that it may incur]

Peter Aaron and Phast Phreddie swing with cool records at Smash! Crash! Bash!

Our friends Peter Aaron and Sean McDJ have a swingin’ DJ night they call Smash! Crash! Bash! that takes place on the last Friday of the month at the all mighty Salt Box in Kingston, NY. On these nights they tend to play a lot of punk, glam and new wave records, as well as old garage, soul, latin, funk—whatever they feel like playing. Both DJs are very eclectic, however, most of the night one will hear a lot of records from the seventies and early eighties. Miss Nancy likes to attend these affairs because they will play Devo, Bowie and T-Rex records, which she likes to dance to. The Boogaloo Bag writers like to attend these affairs because the DJs always play cool stuff they’ve never heard before—and that makes it interesting.

DJ Peter Aaron

Peter Aaron is a musician (most famously a member of The Chrome Cranks), a radio personality (Go-Go Kitty on Radio Kingston), and an arts editor for the Hudson Valley culture magazine (Chronogram), and the author of books (most recently a biography of Ric Ocasek). He’s a busy guy who still finds time to collect groovy records and spin them at the Salt Box.

Sean McDJ

Sean McDJ is equally busy as a photographer, a computer specialist, a professional DJ (weddings, parties, anything) and, we think, several other employments that he doesn’t talk about. He’s also a neat guy who is happy to talk about any record you can think of.

This particular Smash! Crash! Bash! was held on July 25. Originally, Sean McDJ was planning on being absent due to other arrangements. Because of this, Peter Aaron asked Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus to step into his shoes for the night. However, as it turned out, Mr. Sean was able to make the scene after all. Instead of kicking the Phast One off the bill, they decided to add him into the mix. Usually Peter and Sean take turns playing one record at a time. This time, the three of them traded three-song sets. Our pal Pete Pop showed up to dig the scene.

This was a gas for Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus, who had a chance to break out many songs he hadn’t played in a long time, including some new-ish ones and several by his friends from the olden days. He’ll be back on Halloween, as Sean has another gig that night!

Here’s a list of all the songs played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at Smash! Crash! Bash!

None of these records are for sale

Keystone Number Nine takes off for the planet Soul!!

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The Ninth Annual Keystone State Northern Soul Weekender took place on the 24th, 25th and 26th of October. As has been reported in previous Boogaloo Bags, this is one of the most fantastic weekends imaginable! A bunch of great DJs—friends, all (or soon to be!)—playing great records almost non-stop for three days in a row. Plus, folks selling records. Plus, folks dancing to records. Plus, the new location is right next door to a really good Mexican restaurant. You couldn’t get closer to heaven if you said the Hail Mary a hundred times a day for the rest of your life!! It is held in Lancaster, Pennsylvania at the Moose Lodge, which has a fabulous wooden dance floor.

Julio Fernandez is the most gracious host imaginable. There were several first-time DJs at this year’s event—so many that Julio cut his own DJ time in order to make room for them.

Please note that the new DJs are not new to DJing—just new to DJing at the Keystone event. Each of them have had plenty of DJ experience in their respective home towns, as well as nationally and internationally. Among those who worked the Keystone for the first time were Gabe Besaw (Nor’easter Soul Club, Albany, NY), Jon Friesen (Santa Ana, CA), Kenneth MacDonald (Scotland), Michael Chriestzberg (Wig Out, Seattle), Marc Muller (Emerald City Soul Club, Seattle), Gordy Greenawalt (Title Town Soul Party, Pittsburgh) and Kevin Higham (Rare Music Direct, UK).

Returning DJs included Scott Boyko (Garden State Soul Club, NJ), Debbie Benjamin-Koller (Heart of Chicago Soul Club), Sean Connors (Philly Soul Club, Philadelphia), Aret Sakal (Windy City Soul Club, Chicago), DJ Bywell (Soul Buzz, San Diego), Mr. Fine Wine (Downtown Soulville, WFMU), Eric Svirida (Long Island), Yana Lil’ Jerk (Strong G+, Brooklyn), Connie T. Empress (Empire State Soul Club, NYC) Mikey Post (Daptone Records), Jay Boxcar (Garden State Soul Club, NJ), Chey Frazier (Easton Vinyl Assassins, Easton, PA) and, of course, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus (he and Mr. Fernandez are the only DJs who have appeared in all nine events).

Another fellow who has become a regular at the Keystone Weekender was Brother Weems, who has been the MC for at least 7 or 8 years. He’s a friendly chap who, when not announcing the DJs, is on the floor dancing.

This year’s event was very well attended and folks were on the dance floor nearly the entire time—especially during the two evening periods. All of the DJs did such a swell job that, if one were to put a gun to the Boogaloo Bag writers’ heads and ask who was best, they’d end up shot!!!

Although she was unable to make the scene, Miss Nancy baked some very delicious cookies that were properly devoured: Double chocolate cookies and pumpkin flavored cookies.

The Keystone Soul Weekender family!

[try clicking on the photos and they may big-o-fi magically!]

FRIDAY NIGHT

Although he was a late add to the Friday night roster, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus was able to round up a few good records to play:

The Four Larks–Groovin’ at the Go-Go (Tower)
Roy Handy–Baby That’s a Groove (Stephannye)
Cliff Nobles–Your Love Is All I Need (Atlantic)
Maurice McCallister (formerly of The Radiants)–Baby Hang On (Chess)
The Cavaliers–Hold To My Baby (RCA Victor)
Carl Carlton–I Can Feel It (Back Beat)
Shirley J. Scott–Goose Pimples (Stephanye)
Sidney Barnes–You’ll Always Be in Style (Red Bird)
The Jay Walkers featuring Mickey Holiday–Can’t Live Without You (Swan)
Don Covay–Fat Man (Atlantic; France)
Claudine Clark–Buttered Popcorn (Jamie)
The Wailers–The Jerk (Island; UK)

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

During the daytime events, DJs double up on their 30 minute sets. The Phast Man was paired with Gordy Greenawalt from Pittsburgh. This was a reunion of sorts, as Mister Greenawalt was enlisted to be a special guest DJ at a New Year’s Eve Subway Soul Club event many years ago. They hadn’t seen each other since. They traded off playing records and it was a gas. Dig Phreddie’s selections here:

The Honey Drippers–Impeach the President (Alaga)
Kenny Gamble–The Jokes on You (Arctic)
Junior Wells–(I Got A) Stomach Ache (Vanguard)
Ellie Greenwich–Niki Hoeky (United Artists; Philippines)
Herb Fame–You’re Messin’ Up My Mind (Date)


SATURDAY NIGHT

This is the big night. Folks were arriving at the venue early, so Phast Phreddie, who was the first DJ of the night, started a little early and was able to sneak in a few extra spins:

Rex Garvin and the Mighty Cravers–Queen of the Go-Go (Tower)
Lydia Marcelle–Everybody Dance (Atco)
Joe Medwick–Whatever It Takes (Westpark)
The Soul Twins–It’s Not What You Do It’s the Way That You Do It (Karen)
The Charmaines–Eternally (Date)
The Willows–Hurtin’ All Over (M-G-M)
Amanda Humphrey–Power of Love (U.S.A.)
Jewel Akens–A Slice of the Pie (Era)
Isley Brothers–Got to Have You Back (Tamla)
The Happy Cats–These Boots Are Made for Walking (Omack)
Millie Small–Carry Go Bring Come (Fontana; UK)
Jun Mayuzumi–Black Room (Capitol; Japan)
Pal Rakes and the Prophets–Can’t Deny the Hurt (Verve)
Theresa Lindsey–I’ll Bet You (Golden World)

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Once again, Phreddie was teamed with Mister Greenawalt for this brunch-time event. This is a time when the DJs get a little crazed with their selections. Also once again, folks were arriving early so they started spinning early and thus had some extra time on the air. Hence these jams:

Lyn Taitt–Out on a Funky Trip (Randys)
Timmy Thomas–Have Some Boogaloo (Goldwax)
Nino Ferrer–Les Cornichons (Monkey) (Riviera; Canada)
Little Bob–I Got Loaded (La Louisianne)
J.J. Jackson and the Jackaels–Oo-Ma-Liddi (Prelude)
Dave Bartholomew–Shrimp & Gumbo (Imperial)
La Tribu–Para Que (El Eclypse)
The Tammys–Egyptian Shumba (United Artists)

None of these records are for sale!

The Boogaloo Bag writers urge all of its readers to join the Keystone Northern Soul Weekender group on Facebook in order to become aware of the next event—and make sure you be there. You won’t regret it.

The Sham and the Shimmy!

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The Shim Sham Shimmy at the Salt Box in Kingston is the newest addition to the Pete Pop DJ hustle. It is supposed to take place on the first Saturday of the month—but for two months it has been on the second, due to conflicting DJ schedules. Mr. Pop is a very busy man. In December it was the Benny Trokan show at Tubby’s. So for this month the event was held on the 14th, the day after Do The 45 in Beacon—another wild weekend!

Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus and DJ Pete Pop swing at the Shim Sham Shimmy!

For the Shimmy, Pete Pop and Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus bring out their rockin’ stuff: early R&B, rockabilly, rock’n’roll, doo wop, rockin’ blues and all sorts of reet music. They trade off playing sets of three records the whole time. Sometimes the three records played are related in some way. Often they are not. However, the music was boisterous and folks were jumping all night long. Somehow the old building didn’t crumble to the ground!

Pete and Phast were pleased that several of their friends came by to swing; plus there were plenty of other locals who ventured up the stairs to the famous Salt Box Rumpus Room and they all joined in on the fun and excitement, which went into the wee hours of the next morning.

Here is a list of records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at the December Shim Sham Shimmy:

None of these records are for sale.

Benny Trokan Band and The Ar-Kaics Rock!

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The Benny Trokan Band rocks Tubby’s!

A Shim Sham Shimmy was scheduled for Saturday December 7—the first Saturday of the month. However, host Pete Pop got the call from our pal Benny Trokan: his band was to play that night at Tubby’s in Kingston, can he and Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus be DJs for the event? What to do! Pete and Phast moved The Shim Sham Shimmy from the first Saturday to the second Saturday in November—now they need to move it in December!

So it was moved. We’ll see you at The Shim Sham Shimmy on December 14—the day after Do The 45 in Beacon, again!

The Ar-Kaics rockin’ at Tubby’s!

Anyway, not only did Benny Trokan’s great band play, but so did The Ar-Kaics, a cool band from somewhere down in Virginia. Both bands have made some excellent records for Wick Records, a subsidiary of our favorite record company, Daptone. Also, between the bands there was an appearance by the writer Lucy (nee Luc) Sante who read from her new book Six Sermons for Bob Dylan. Another added bonus to this show was that our buddy Mikey Post, a significant DJ himself, plays drums in Benny’s band.

The whole event went fantastically well. What even made it better was the presence of our friend Bruce Bennett. He was the guitarist for The A-Bones and a side-kick to The Hound when he had his radio show. We haven’t seen Bruce in a mighty long time and we were very happy to see his smiling face. He now lives somewhere up in the Hudson Valley and dropped by the joint to dig the heavy rock scene at Tubby’s.

Miss Nancy, a guy with tattoos on his face, Bruce Bennett and Phast Phreddie swing at Tubby’s!
DJ Pete Pop swings at Tubby’s rock show!

Due to the type of music of this big rock show, DJs Pete Pop and Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus mostly played some super rockin’ stuff—spiced with a few exotic beats. The took turns playing three-song sets. All the records played by The Phast One are listed here:

None of these records are for sale!

20 Years of Garage Hangover!

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Chris Bishop of Garage Hangover swings at Do The 45!

The July 12th Do The 45 shindig at Quinn’s was an extra special affair. We celebrated the 20th Anniversary of Garage Hangover, the ultimate on-line Garage Rock source of information by inviting its host Chris Bishop to come and spin a few records.

Garage Hangover is jam packed with information about sixties rock bands—most of which sprung up in the wake of The Beatles climb to fame. The website features photos, bios, discographies, itineraries and other such information. Posts on the website allow for comments, and often the comments are from actual members of the bands or their friends and fans. It’s mind-boggling the amount of detail can go into a post regarding a band that may have made one or two independent singles about 60 years ago!! Dig this post regarding The Galaxies IV as an example.

Pete Pop, Chris Bishop, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus!

Meanwhile, back at Quinn’s—Beacon’s famous rock’n’ramen club—Mr. Bishop played some remarkable records. Of the dozens of boss records he played, The Boogaloo Bag writers could only recognize a handful of them. This guys knows his stuff, that’s for sure.

Do The 45 host DJ Pete Pop was right there with him. Mr. Pop is also a connoisseur of Garage Rock records and he played some fantastic platters. In fact, at one time, Mr. Bishop turned to The Boogaloo Bag writers and said, “Man, Pete Pop just played about $5,000 worth of records in 20 minutes!!!” Mr. Pop played one of The Boogaloo Bag writers’ favorite records: “I’ll Be In” by The Answer. It’s a record we had back in the seventies but lost it due to a… well it’s a long, sad story!

Miss Nancy was on hand with her yummy vittles: pecan tassies and vegan brownies. Plus, Go-Go dancers Sheba Shake and Bella Bombora were in full effect! Plenty of friends were on hand and the event was a total success. With any luck, Chris Bishop will bring his boss records back to Do The 45 again real soon. Let’s not wait for the 30th anniversary of Garage Hangover!!

For his part, Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus played about $60 worth of records in about an hour and a half!! Here’s a list of all of them:

None of these records are for sale.

June swoon at Do The 45!

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Rainbow over Beacon!

On June 14, another fantastic Do The 45 took place at Quinn’s in Beacon. Host DJ Pete Pop and his regular guest DJ Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus were delighted when so many of their lovely friends showed up to bop to the slop that they presented—all on 45 RPM records, mostly original pressings. It had rained earlier in the evening, and as folks were showing up to Quinn’s a rainbow appeared over Beacon! Surly a sign that the night would be a gas.

And it was!

Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus and DJ Pete Pop swing at Do The 45!

As usual, Pete Pop played some fantastic records. Also as usual, Go-Go dancers Sheba Shake and Bella Bombora induced much dancing around by the folks who were in attendance. Pete Pop‘s fabulous videos had folks fascinated and much merriment took place. Our pal Stuart Millman showed up, and whenever he does, the Do The 45 DJs play more rockabilly 45s than usual in order to keep him coming back! He’s a rockabilly cat from way back and the DJs dig it when he’s in the house so they can show off their boss rockin’ jams.

Here’s a list of all the records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at the June edition of Do The 45:

None of these records are for sale.

Blues Wailin’ at the Sunday Soul Scream!

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Robert Kimbrough, Sr. & his band.

Jonathan Toubin is considered the most successful DJ of reet music in the country. His New York Night Train brand stages the Soul Clap & Dance Off that has travelled the country, bringing the reet sound to other towns. Also, Mr. T has a hand in such boss night clubs as 96 Tears and TV Eye. His hustle is boss and we try to attend his shows whenever possible.

Jonathan Toubin swings at the Sunday Soul Scream!

During the summer months he hosts the Sunday Soul Scream, a wild happening that takes place on the rooftop of a venue called Our Wicked Lady, located in industrial East Williamsburg, Brooklyn. On June 2, this event included performances by Howlin’ Hurd, Harlem Slim and Robert Kimbrough, Sr. Guest DJ was Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus.

Howlin’ Hurd swings at Sunday Soul Scream!

Howlin’ Hurd is our buddy Brian Hurd—lead screamer of the great rockin’ blues combo Daddy Long Legs. Here he was joined by a drummer and a stand-up bass player and the trio performed some rockin’ blues wailin’. Fookin’ fantastic!

Harlem Slim swings at Sunday Soul Scream!

Harlem Slim did a solo act with his National steel guitar. He literally kicked up quite a noise by banging his foot on the stage to create a boss beat that had attendees boppin’ around. At one point, Brian Hurd joined him on harmonica for some cool blues harp action.

Robert Kimbrough, Sr. swings at Sunday Soul Scream!

Robert Kimbrough, Sr. is a son of the legendary Mississippi bluesman Junior Kimbrough. The elder Kimbrough worked a style of blues music known as Cotton Patch Soul Blues. It is a rather simplistic style, similar to early John Lee Hooker records, that sets a groove and that groove is worked for the duration of the composition. In the proper setting—such as a small club or juke joint where the band can play all night long—the song can last for ten to twenty minutes, creating a hypnotic beat similar to that of such African musicians as King Sunny Adé, Fela Anikilapo Kuti or the sufi vocalist Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Junior Kimbrough’s son, who played in his band, has continued this tradition in the years since his father passed away. On this night, however, Robert Kimbrough, Sr. was restricted by time limits and his songs were abbreviated—but the message came across: this is boss stuff.

Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus played some jumpin’ blues and R&B records before and in between the acts. After Robert Kimbrough, Sr.’s set, Jonathan Toubin played some fantastic records for a while. There was a change-over of some sort—perhaps the DJ booth was hooked up to the performance public address system and needed to be switched to the house system, or something—and soon after that was completed, The Boogaloo Omnibus took over for nearly an hour as he played some of his favorite party records. He had a long drive back to Dutchess County that night and had to cut out soon after midnight. However, the dance portion of the show was left in the more than capable hands of Mr. Toubin, who, no doubt, played more of his fantastic records.

Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus swings at Sunday Soul Scream!

Here is a list of all the records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at the Sunday Soul Scream:

None of these records are for sale.

Crankin’ It At Quinn’s!!

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This year, Pete Pop’s spectacular rock’n’soul dance party takes place on the second Friday of the month at Quinn’s, the rock ’n’ ramen establishment on Main Street in Beacon, NY. On March 8, his guest DJs were Peter Aaron and Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus.

Pete Pop
Peter Aaron
Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus

Peter Aaron has been mentioned in the Boogaloo Bag before. Suffice it to say, after having been in a cool rock band (The Chrome Cranks) in the nineties, writing some books and hosting a radio show for several years, he’s got fantastic sense of what makes a party rock. Pete Pop asked him to bring some of his boss seventies and early eighties glam, punk and new wave records to spice up the night. Mission accomplished.

Pete Pop has incredible records and played them all night long. Folks were dancing; folks were falling down and drinks were spilled—a super successful party!

Go Go dancers Bella Bombora and Sheba Shake swing at Do The 45!

Also, this year, Do The 45 features two fabulous Go-Go dancers: Sheba Shake and Bella Bombora. Miss Sheba has been getting some dancing gigs down in The City and at local surf music concerts. Bella Bombora, when she’s not on stage, is the official photographer of the Boogaloo Bag as well as baker of treats for DJ gigs when Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus is involved.

Speaking of the Phast One, here’s a list of all the records he played at the March 8 Do The 45:

None of these records are for sale.