When one collects recordings over 25 years many things come and go. It’s strange how much we appreciate a recording once that person is gone. I have many home recordings of people that are no longer in this world. I’d like to think they are somewhere in heaven, subscribed to our RSS, and enjoying the show. I’m sure heaven has a fast internet connection, I mean, it’s heaven after all.
In today’s image enhanced podcast we start out with Stu Bonney singing the song, The Observer, in the band The Pilots. I have to warn you that The Pilots are terrible. These dorks are all 13-14 and in the 7th grade. This was recorded in 1979. They are the best example of a band being so bad, they’re good again.
Stu later in life committed suicide. His wife asked for a divorce and Stu drove his car to his parent’s house, parked the car in their garage, hit the remote to close the garage door, rolled down the windows, and that was it for good old Stu. I think he was 26 years old. He was one of the most talented artists I ever knew, and I miss him to this day.
A podcast of dead friends would not be complete without Frank’s Depression. When I met Frank he collected wellfare because he had broken his knee. It looked like the patella had migrated south about 4 inches out of place. Just seeing it would make you cringe. He also claimed to have HIV due to sharing needles. With all this one would not expect old Frank Hobbs to last too long, but none of these things killed him.
Instead he was beaten to death by a bouncer in New York City that was fed up with Frank hanging in front of his club selling hand Xeroxed poetry mags. I’m sure Frank did not like to be asked to move along. He died Aug 21, 1996. He was 30 years old.
Another amazing artist that did himself in is Tucker Fucker Katonah! (He always wrote his name that way, exclamation point and all. Tucker is performing in his band, The Boring Films, and the song is, Forget There’s A World. I recited lyrics from this song that he wrote at his funeral. The lyrics go: “Forget there’s a world, Always speak poetry, Always seeking the new, Celebrate life. No excuses, Live in the present, Forget your fears, and walk freely.” One day Tucker took a bunch of tranquilizers, laid down on the beach in Portland Maine, and let the high tide carry him away. Very poetic, don’t you think? He was 25 years old in 1990.
And last but not least is San Francisco’s cult karaoke performer, Richard McGhee Star Vocalist. This 60 year old man became a famous crooner in the Bay Area. He got the coolest gigs, opening for Smashing Pumpkins, Swell, The Cramps, and other way cool bands. The kids loved him. He suddenly was diagnosed with cancer, and was gone in 3 weeks. Richard died in 1995, he was 63.
IMAGE ENHANCED PODCAST – July 27, 2005
MP3 PODCAST