Last time I visited this topic about places I enjoyed hearing good music and dining on good food and beverage, I received an interesting assortment of responses. One was a booking agent disappointed that I didn’t mention his name as the person who created the blues program at one of the rooms I mentioned. Another was a guitarist who tried to convince me to include a venue that he knows I don’t favor due to crowd disinterest and loud conversation. A third musician commented that a few of the rooms I mentioned were impossible for him to get a booking in. He received a rebuke from a couple of singers and some advice from a busy guitarist on how to overcome those obstacles. Finally, a promoter wrote me to say that there is “a gaping hole” in my article because I didn’t mention a Somerville venue that she frequents.
My last article about “venues that don’t suck” was merely an off the top of my head recollection of many greater-Boston area restaurants/music venues. It was incomplete, as can be expected from any off the top of the head recollection. Almost immediately after I posted it, a torrent of additional rooms and experiences came into my head all at once. Here they are.
One of my favorite rooms in the area is the historic Grog in Newburyport, Massachusetts. I can just feel the history in that room and I’ve always loved its old-fashioned charm. The last time I went I caught the Sunday night jam hosted by its timeless front man Parker Wheeler. Wheeler had Amadee Castenell in tow who added his own special swirls of horns. On keyboard Wheeler had brought in Tom West, one of the area’s better known Hammond Organ players. That Sunday night jam always has incredible energy and there is just something so funky about that basement bar/venue. The second to the last time I caught the dynamic talents of that incredibly beautiful singer Elle Gallo. Gallo got funky on her originals, standards, some Grace Potter songs, and her perennial closing favorite “Over The Rainbow.”
A short walk away from the Grog is Newburyport’s other really interesting nightspot, Glenn’s Cool Bar And Restaurant. The upscale restaurant has incredible food and the bands will knock you socks off. Last time around, I caught the Kit Holliday Band with Curtis Jerome Haynes on keyboards. Holliday handled the smoky jazz vocalists from the early 20th century and then mixed in blues, some modern funk, R&B, and anything else real she likes to wrap her voice around.
Heading west into Haverhill is Mal’s Lounge, upstairs from George’s Restaurant. You actually need to take an elevator up to the third floor venue, which I thought was really cool. The room is nice and clean and spacious and the bar is huge. I’ve seen Luther Guitar Jr. Johnson there the first time I went. It was a good time, except for an annoying middle aged couple who kept shoving their flashing, light up bunny ears on everybody in the room. My second time there was to review Diane Blue’s CD Release party. Now that was a party. Blue had Jimmy “Two Suits” Capone on saxophone and Timo Arthur on guitar. “Two Suits” is a non-stop laugh riot, and Arthur played some truly gripping lead guitar phrases. If you don’t enjoy Arthur’s guitar work than you need to have the wax blown out of your ears. If you don’t have fun at a gig featuring “Two Suits” as the co-host, you need to check your pulse because you’re probably dead.
Back up in New Hampshire is the Press Room in Portsmouth, the bustling seacoast city that has more of a Boston feel in the streets than the rest of the Granite State. I cannot recall the name of the few people I saw in there, as I was just stopping by on the way to places like The Music Hall and Seacoast Repertory Theater. I do remember that the Press Room is by and large a blues-roots venue and the few times I stopped by, it had classy musicians who knew how to play blues right.
Epsom, New Hampshire is home to the Circle 9 Ranch, a place that teaches you how to line dance before bringing on true country and western talent like Shana Stack. The one time I stopped by this establishment, Stack and her band played fulsome, dynamic renditions of traditional and modern country and rock and roll with country-honky tonk influences. The Circle 9 Ranch is one of the largest local venues around. It is actually a wide open, old-fashioned dancehall that’s been retooled country style. It is not a bar, but I did manage to rustle up a good cup of coffee from their mess hall. The regulars there were dang friendly folks from the greater-Concord area, where you can still find real, honest to goodness small town people. If you like country, this slightly north of Manchester hoedown will be worth your drive.
The Bay State has the most to offer simply by its sheer size. The city of Boston, as you know, is home to its own version of the Hard Rock Cafe. The Hub’s take on the national chain offers a comfortably spacious function room for its music program. I went there to catch A Ton Of Blues perform with a few other bands. Aside from everything looking good and sounding good, I was delighted to find that everything tasted good. We munched on a huge plate of nachos that had every detail just right.
Stoughton, Massachusetts is the home of The Last Shot sports bar. Don’t let the “sports bar” tag fool you. The Last Shot is owned and operated by a professional gentlemanly fellow who keeps it much more upscale than what you’d associate with sports bars. Granted, there are about a dozed TV sets tuned into the Boston teams. Yet, the walls are shiny and polished and the acoustics work well in the band area. I saw the Pat Benatar tribute Fired Up, which was a hell of a good time. All that kick ass lady rock from the 1980s, “Hit Me Your Best Shot,” “Fire And Ice,” and “Heartbreaker.” Fired up featured Suzie Hatton and bass player Richie Sulloway, both of whom honed their talents to get a lot of details just right. I remember having a tasty burger at the Last Shot and their coffee was really good too.
Cranston, Rhode Island is the location of “L’Attitude Modern Eatery, the venue where Donna and I saw Travis Colby’s Wednesday night gig simply titled Travis Colby And Friends. One of those friends was trumpet player and Colby’s Roomful Of Blues band mate Doug Woolverton. The two, with drummer Mark Teixeria, played a lot of classy, jazzy, bluesy renditions of many modern favorites. “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers is the tune that stands out the most in my recollections. I can still remember Woolverton singing the refrain gently into his trumpet microphone. Aside from Colby and his gang, the food was outstanding. I had a simple meatloaf with potatoes and gravy and I enjoyed the savory gravy so much I wanted to order three more for the road.
Located in Woonsocket, Rhode Island is the intriguing Chan’s Chinese Restaurant. Chan’s. aside from having incredibly good food, features a large and lovely listening room where owner John Chan features some of the finest blues bands, jazz bands, and rock bands in New England. Despite its size, the listening room is actually kind of intimate. There is a flow to the length of the room and the stage is open on all sides. I felt so apart of the experience when I saw Doors tribute band Through The Doors there a few years back. I also couldn’t get over how good the food is. Just when I thought I loved Chinese food, Chan’s brought me to an even higher level of appreciation.
Well, gentle readers, that was just a few more I thought I’d share with you. Please feel free to keep suggesting more rooms for me to check out. I doubt I’ll be able to get to all of your suggestions any time soon, but I’ll see.
Thank you for the kind words Bill. Wanted to let you know that sadly, Mal’s doesn’t host live music anymore, it’s now a 20-something club with DJ’s and all that goes with that. However, George’s itself (the Restaurant downstairs from Mal’s) is now hosting a music venue with really incredible acts every Thursday night in the VIP Lounge. Maybe someday we’ll get Mal’s back too
Cant remember if this was mentioned in the first article:
Chan’s in Woonsocket RI. Interesting place and the guy pulls in some great acts.
Adam,
I have been to Chan’s. For a tribute to The Doors. I just happened to space it off when I was writing this. I’m going to pencil in Chan’s shorty.
Bill
Elle,
I noticed you were referring to the room as George’s Restaurant. I assumed you meant Mal’s because it was the same location/building and because a lot of people were calling it George’s at the time I went there. Thank you for updating me. It is good that we still have George’s Restaurant.
Bill,
Perhaps you should talk to basically any blues musician in Boston about the “annoying middle aged couple who kept shoving their flashing, light up bunny ears on everybody in the room”. They are 2 of the most respected blues fans in the area and do so much to promote live blues music, and A LOT of the musicians you have wriiten about would agree, in my opinion. It’s too bad that you have to insert this into you review. If it makes you feel better about yourself, good for you.
Jim
JIm,
I had to mention that annoying MoeJoe couple in my article about venues because they impact my listening experience. I think you’re only half correct when you say “any blues musician” in our area would back them up. I am aware that there are those players and venues owners who appreciate them for getting the word out with their amateur camcorder recordings.
I have also heard from quite a few people who find then annoying and distracting. One singer told me she is “glad they don’t come to all of my shows any more.” Some have expressed concern about copyright issues when their original material get broadcasted all over the internet before their CD is released. Others are concerned about the poor sound quality of their video recordings, which I know from my own experience viewing them on Facebook then hearing a singer live in person. I often came to the conclusion that some lead vocalists were only B-list singers based on what I heard on Facebook after MoeJoe posted the video. When I caught some of those singers live, I realized that they were A-list singers with beautiful voices and that it was the poor MoeJoe sound reproduction that dampered their vocals.
In one of his own videos, a woman on stage is asking them not to put those flashing light up bunny ears on her head because “It could throw off my rhythm, which is very important to this next song.” So, what did Mr. and Mrs. Clown do? They shoved their bunny ears on her head anyway, leaving her looking uncomfortable and unhappy in the clip. But hey, MoeJoe got themselves into the video and that is what’s more important to them.
It is also very unsanitary to keep shoving that same pair of bunny ears on numerous heads. People get headlice from their chilrden who get it from other children at school. They might not know they have it for a while. This is a modern age in which people old enough to have adult age children should know a little bit better than that.
I also have a problem in that the two of them are very busy during the performances. I don’t think I have ever seen the two of them sit still for an entire set. They seem to be working the room. That indicates to me that they don’t want the evening to be about the band or the venue but about themselves. I find it distracting, especially in a small room, when they’re moving around a lot and when she has those flashing light up bunny ears. I don’t like seeing them flash on and off in the perifiery when I’m trying concentrate on watching the band in front of me. From my perspective, the light up bunny ears and the strutting about with the camcorder are their ways of drawing attention away from the bands and bringing it onto themselves.
I think it was the second time I dealt with those two that I picked up on their desperate need to draw attention to themselves. Mr. MoeJoe came upon me when I was listening to the band and he started a conversation with me about some nonsensical, irrelevent topic. Blah, blah, blah and laughing at his own jokes. I really wanted to be listening to the blues band in front of me rather than the obnoxious bore beside me. Finally, when he seemed to have exhausted his topic, I said to myself, “Good, now he will go wander off and find someone else to pester.” But I was wrong. He jumped right into another nonsensical gibbering about nothing at all. I could not help but to let out an audible, notable sigh. I was not trying to give attitude or show my impatience. It just happened because I was so overwhelmingly annoyed. When Mr. MoeJoe noticed it, he simply said, “Yeah, I pester people until I wear them out.” I just thought, at that moment, he was just being a jerk. I never gravitated to him and his wife because they never struck my fancy. They didn’t seem like the kind of interesting, intelligent people I would enjoy chatting with. In fact, they reminded me a little of Mia Farrow’s awkward, intrusive neighbors in “Rosemary’s Baby.” So, Mr. MoeJoe had to come over and get my attention. It seems as if they see someone not bothering with them, they then have to go over and make the person pay attention to them.
As I paid a $15 cover to see a talent like Luther Guitar Jr. Johnson in an upscale room like Mal’s Lounge, I thought that Mr. MoeJoe was extremely self-centered to think I’d be interested in him rather than the band.
I noticed the same thing at the last Eve Rising Festival. It was held atop a parking garage in Haverhill. The two of them, instead of sittig in their chairs and watching the bands, were on either side of the parking lot pacing up and down its length trying to get people to talk with them. To me, that indicates a neediness for attention. And again, it was distracting. They circulate way too much for my liking during the performances.
I don’t have anything against the two. I just wish they’d learn to sit in their seats during a performance, stop bringing their flashing light up bunny ears, and learn to listen to people’s clues and hints that they don’t want to be bothered, at least not until after the band finishes their set.
Thank You,
Bill Copeland
Bill,
Why would you say anything bad about the 2 middle aged couple who do more for the blues scene then you have ever done. Where do you get off on dissing these people. I and I’m sure everyone else will agree with me that without these two, we wouldn’t be able to enjoy the videos and pictures that they take for all of us to enjoy. I once had you as a friend on my friend list but got tired of you posting too much of your comments and reviews that didn’t give those folks their credit. So, next time you post anything, think before you type, because there are a lot of us that do care what we read and see. all the power to the flashing rabbit ears middle aged couple.
Paul Marrocco
Wow Bill. I’ll start by saying that Mo and Joe are two of the sweetest people I’ve met and, unlike yourself, work to spread positivity and a love of music. The fact that you so openly detest such people says everything we need to know about you as a person.
If I were a “journalist” such as yourself I would hope to not sink to using my soapbox (built on a pile of shitty ramblings and shallow opinions) to belittle and attack the fans of the musicians that I “review”. And to double back and hit ‘em again even harder in your own comments section? I can only hope that these kind of high school girl antics reveal you as a petty no talent pseudo-journalist.
And yes, I wish to remain anonymous as to not have my name anywhere near this mickey mouse website. But fear not Bill, as I have no tolerance for your brand of negativity, you’ll figure out who I am when I politely ask you to leave my next show.
Bill,
I don’t know who you are, nor do I really care. This article and specifically the comment section really bothered me. I don’t know MoeJoe that well, I met the husband a couple times, and he seems to be nice enough. I just don’t understand why a “professional music journalist” would take the time to specifically single out a couple who happens to be at shows that you go to.
From what you said in you comment I could see your point where they could be a nuisance, yet I don’t believe that they should be criticized so harshly. They’re just having fun and maybe want to socialize. I don’t remember the last venue I went into with a “no talking to other audience members” sign. I feel like you spent hours devising the perfect comment on these two. At least it was a better read then your article.
Bill, the last mini paragraph in your comment you open with, “I don’t have anything against the two.” I don’t know if you enjoy contradicting yourself but you wrote seven, count em’, seven paragraphs in detail bitching about how you can’t stand them. Who knows though, right? maybe he kicked your dog or something and you feel like you need to lash out at him and his wife. Probably not. You’re like the Clinton of the New England blues journalism scene, and you didn’t have sexual relations right? Nah, you just fucked them over in this article. People may read your comment about them and tend to steer away from MoeJoe at shows all because of you. Just like Jim said, they are huge fans of the local blues scene, just let them be. If he bothers you again, politely ask him to go away or something its that simple. You don’t need to be some giant passive-aggressive-cyber-bully-dick who doesn’t have the chutzpah to tell some one to their face that you don’t want to talk to them during a bands set. its not a big deal man (on a side note, i’m writing this here because I truly don’t want the displeasure to be in the same room as you).
This comment might make me sound like a giant douche but believe me when i say this, I’m truly a very nice person. Maybe you’re a cool guy too, doubt it though. I’m just standing up for MoeJoe cause they really didn’t do anything wrong. I don’t know why I was so compelled to write in this comment section defending two people I don’t really know but it just felt right. Bill, what I’m trying to say here is that you’re an asshole. You get off on putting people down, I believe it’s what the Germans call it “Schadenfreude,” look it up. Just get that giant pole out of your ass because it isn’t raising you above everyone else, it just makes you look like an idiot on a stick.
I hope this changes your whole outlook on how you choose your words. I don’t think any real journalist would do something as moronic as you have.
best,
Neal
MoeJoe are leeches. They’ve forced themselves onto a scene that doesn’t need or want them. Any jerk off with a Flipcam can match their “contribution” to the music scene. They are simply a couple of cheap assholes who try and mooch anything they can off of hard working musicians. While you Bill, paid $15 for your ticket to see Luther I assure you they paid nothing to get in. They convinced someone to let them in or they snuck in. Their whole bag is to suck musicians/venues dry while convincing them that they are doing those people an incredible favor by posting shitty videos on YouTube. Jim, they are not respected, far from it. They are mocked, ridiculed and loathed by mostly everyone. “Can I get a free ticket, can I get a free CD, can I get a free t-shirt?” No. Fuck you freeloader. Get a goddamn job and contribute to society. He’s the truth MoeJoe: Almost no one in the music community likes you. They tolerate you, your stupid bunny ears & your never-ending pot stench in hopes that you’ll finally crawl under the rock you came out of and not come back.
Bill,
I am trying to remember who you are…? I believe you wrote or reported for some local station at some point, am I right? It doesn’t matter, I can’t picture your face and that’s fine after reading what you wrote. I think to myself is this man really this nasty or is HE looking for attention?! In a world where pain thrust upon our phyches is an everyday occurance due to the strife of war and suffering, poverty and pain….WHY? Why so damn mean? I have met MoeJoe only once and found them enchantingly genuine, a rarity in a world full of haters and egomaniacs. I also noticed they were running around helping people with where to park. By the way..the ears are cute, remind me of my mom <3
Bill, be nice and climb down from your self built pedestal…there are some really nice people here that believe we are all equal.
Sharon
I’ve volunteered for Boston Blues Society, Heatherfest, The Blues Audience, Boston Blues Festival and more for 20 years. In this time there is only one person who many people tell me that they ‘put up with’ because they are worried about getting a overly critical review. Feel free to guess who this person is….. Jealousy is an ugly thing, Bill. I know you will delete this, but I don’t really care. Have a nice day!
Sometimes what we see in others is what we don’t like in our self. ( food for thought ) and one more thing the last time i checked this was still the U S A . I respect your opinion and what you have to say , so to end with judge not that ye shall be judged >>>>>>
As someone who knows this couple personalty I have to say that your personal attack on them is more than unsettling. The fact that your comment is almost as long as your article is interesting.
I’m friendly with Moe and Joe and a whole host of others who are frequently promoting shows in and around Boston. What they do for getting people out to shows is noble. And while it is always nice to see a full room when I’m out to hear music, I find it distracting when people opt to discuss whatever it is they have on their minds when I’m trying to listen to a show. I’m not singling out Moe and Joe, but I’m in agreement with Bill Copeland when he offers his opinion that some of the people who frequent the music clubs are obnoxious in their behavior. I’ve come to expect it in places like Smoken Joe’s when there’s not a cover charge. It frustrates me when I pay good money to see/hear a band and large groups of blues friends gather to chat and boast about all the shows they’ve seen. Above, Neal makes the point that some people view these nights as a opportunity to socialize. But must I have to become a part of that if I prefer to listen to the music?
Lastly, I find this blog the appropriate place to opine about what bothers Bill when he goes out…
Thanks,
Brian
That’s because he’s not a real journalist. There are typos all over his reviews, and he rarely researches the music that he “reviews”. He is just a guy with a website, nothing more.
This message was e-mailed to my website yesterday. It is from a parent of a young musician who met the MoeJoe team at Roma and also saw them in action at The Sad Cafe in Plaiston, New Hampshire. I hope that all of you fans of Mr. and Mrs. Marino pay particular attention to the situation at the Sad Cafe.
To: Webmaster
From:
Music Lover
Message:
I just finished reading “Venues That Don’t Suck II”. I must admit that
while I know who you are, I tend not to sit at the computer and read a
lot of blogs, so this is the first of yours I have read. It came to my
attention only because MoeJoe posted it on Facebook and asked for
comments. I’m not going to comment on Facebook; I’ll make mine
anonymously to you.
I met Joe at the Roma; he showed up at the jam one night a few years
ago, began making friends with musicians, and then began showing up to
all kinds of gigs. My boyfriend (we began dating after I had met
MoeJoe) has been a musician in the Boston scene for more than 20
years. It’s rare that his gigs coincide with the ones Moe and Joe
attend (we run in different circles most of the time), though I doubt
I’ve ever seen you at one he has played, either. It was plain from the
start that once Joe began “making friends” with the musicians at the
Roma, they enjoyed the attention and thought they were, pardon the
expression, “the shit”. In addition, you can’t NOT know why they have
become popular with musicians and others in the Haverhill area. It’s
pretty common knowledge. I’ve not watched an entire video Joe has
posted, as the quality is horrible; I attended many of the shows he
recorded and five seconds into the video I quit watching. The BF has
been in many, but I just can’t watch them.
I’d rather not start a war, but do want to tell you one thing about
them that really disturbed me, my boyfriend, and quite a few others at
a recent gig at The Sad Cafe in Plaistow, NH. I doubt you’ve been
there, but for years the Sad Cafe has been the place where the
students from Timberlane Regional HS and other local schools who have
garage bands were able to go and play…it was meant to keep kids out
of trouble. Both of my boys have played there. Tradition is that each
band and its members get to sign the walls inside the building. My
kids played there over 10 years ago and I found their names on the
wall at that gig. An up and coming blues band played and signed the
wall that night. Somehow, MoeJoe convinced the owners to let them sign
the wall as well. Almost everyone in attendance that night was
appalled that they were allowed to do so, since they are not musicians
and did not play there.
I agree that they are very distracting at a gig. But when I’m
somewhere and someone’s interrupting my enjoyment of the music, I look
at them, excuse myself, and move closer to the stage. They usually get
the message. If they continue, I look them square in the eye and tell
them I’m trying to listen to the music.
I would like to thank everybody for taking the time to respond to the comment page of my article. Again, my concern is that this MoeJoe Couple is distracting and annoying to the fans of local venues. As the two posted the link on THEIR OWN Facebook page, it is only common sense and logic that it would be THEIR OWN circle of friends who made most of the response.
I’m sure that the players and fans I have heard from about them over the last three years will want to stay out of it. But, I can assure you all that MoeJoe are not as popular with the masses as their circle of friends would have you believe.
Several players have commented that they were glad when the two moved onto other bands and venues and stopped showing up at theirs.
The reason I included my observation about Joe pestering me during a live performance was to demonstrate how they don’t like being ignored. I was one of the many who didn’t care for them. So that is why Joe had to come over and push me to have a conversation about him when he really didn’t have anything to say. (I’m used to putting up with bores in bars and clubs as that is how I often find story leads. That is how I discovered what the selectmen and planning board were really up to. I drank with them.)
MoeJoe’s need for attention and to turn the whole evening into their show can become extremely distracting, as they never wait for a band to take a break to do their socializing. Between her flashing light up bunny ears and his strutting around his amateur camcorder like he’s Francis Ford Coppola on the set of Apocalypse Now, it pulls people’s attention away from the band.
If they were true band supporters, they would turn off the flashing lights, sit still, and shut the hell up until the band finished their set. If you ever take the time to notice, professional photographers and professional videographers are barely noticeable at band gigs. You see them briefly here and then maybe an hour later you see them briefly somewhere else. I cannot say that about Joe. He is never unobstrusive. He wants to make sure everybody knows he is there with his camcorder. That is a clear indication that he is not a pro but somebody who wants to put on his own show.
Thank You,
Bill Copeland
Of course “this annoying couple” posted the link to your amateurishly written column on THEIR OWN Facebook page after you publicly slung slanderous drivel about them across an internet music community. Where else did you expect them to share your nastiness? You emphasize this with capitals as if you’ve made an important point.
Moe and Joe’s popularity aside, (and that is a contest you lose, by the way) it is rabidly inappropriate and amazingly unprofessional for any writer or journalist worth their salt to make their point at the expense of someone else in our small music community. Rather than retracting and rephrasing after the one line shitbomb about them in your column, you choose to go on and produce several novelettes chronicling their personal shortcomings in the comments section. Middle school much?
I’ll keep this brief, as any decent writer knows two basic things: more words do not make a better story and repeating something over and over does not magically make it truth (lessons you could stand to learn). I removed you from my “friends” list years ago after you repeatedly demonstrated attention-seeking, argumentative, nasty behavior.
Since I hate talking behind backs, I’ll share here what I posted in response to Moe and Joe’s link to your article: “Bill Copeland is an overblown dumbass with an inflated sense of self importance. The fact that he perceives himself a writer is laughable. If he had a dick, I’d tell him to go fuck himself.” Crass, for sure, but less damaging than the tripe you’ve been serving up about Moe and Joe.
By the way, anonymous posts containing malice are the disgusting bane of any frank discussion. Grow some balls, Music Lover.
Now be nice, honest and fair, or I’ll sic my Mama on you.
Yes, there is freedom of speech & I protect your right to it. One thing to note though that people often forget…freedom of speech comes with consequences. If I decide to bash my place of employment for instance, I can’t be surprised when I don’t get a raise or I get demoted/fired for it. In your case, your nasty words about this couple, who you’ve rambled on about now for a multitude of paragraphs, shows that you are a sad, jealous, and pathetic person–one who most people in the blues arena don’t wish to be around. I am involved in the blues scene and one correction, folks, Mr. Copeland here is the one who is “tolerated,” and not thought of well. Also, I don’t know the couple he refers to in this article. I have heard of them, but only in a good light, never anything negative, but I have never met them. There are many well-known stories, however, about Mr. Copeland’s rude, crass and disgusting behavior toward musicians. I guess the consequence here is that your reputation is no good. The point of your article “Venues That Don’t Suck” is totally lost now. I’m sure the one or 2 fans of yours who were hoping to read an article about good places to see music are now regretting that because all you have done is continue to harp on this couple instead of focusing on what I think the aim of the article is supposed to be…about great places to see live music. I’d be embarrassed if I was a venue listed in this article because of your constant bashing versus focusing on the venues you are claiming to support and like. As someone else said, look in the mirror. I’m sure you see your ugliness every day and boy does it come out in your pen. That’s your right though. I will choose not to read your columns going forward though and will urge others to follow my lead. I’d rather support sites that post stories about music rather than focusing energy on name-calling and other childish things.
I would truly like to thank all of MoeJoe’s friends for posting their angry, hostile, misinformed, reactive, defensive, and incoherent comments. It proves my point about what kind of people they are by demonstrating what kind of people they attract.
In case you’re wondering, my analytics report does not show any unusual amount of activity on my site. I get a much larger bump in visits, readers, and feedback when I post a Feature Article, Live Review, or CD Review. So lets just end the silly myth right here and now that MoeJoe have a huge fan base. My numbers do not bare that out.
Nancy’s comment that musicians put up with me because they fear a bad review comes out of her own imagination and probably from too much Martini. Professional musicians don’t pay much attention to reviews, postive or negative. They read an unfavorable review and say, “Oh, I guess he didn’t like our show last night.” They read a positive review and say, “That’s nice.” Then, they put down the newspaper and get back to rehearsing. Why? Because they are professionals.
Ruth’s obscene comments indicate she is another bar person who likely enjoys the silly antics of a middle-aged couple who are obvious just attention seekers. By the way Ruth, I wrote about them linking their Facebook post to my comments to indicate why most of the responders are on THEIR side…because THEY are THEIR friends.
And…for those of you who are saying I singled out some innocent pair of fans, not true. MoeJoe are not just an anonymous pair of fans. They have made themselves into local celebrities who own a website for their videos which have gone viral locally. They also deal with bands and venues on a professional basis in that they barter their video services in exchange for comps and other free stuff.
I really don’t believe you MoeJoe supporters have a case. None of you can answer the important questions I have raised about them. If they are such stalwart supporters of blues music and live music, then why are never sitting still and quiet when the bands are playing?
What does shoving bunny ears on unsuspecting and unappreciative music fans have to do with supporting bands?
Why do such diehard fans of live music make amateur videos by leaving the camcorder in one place most of the night, neglect the sound levels, and then post them unedited with poor sound quality? If they cared so much about bands, then why don’t they put more care and effort into making better quality videos?
Why are they all over the room instead of remaining quiet and unobtrusive as is the custom with professional photographers and professional videographers?
Can any of you answer those questions? I bet none of you can.
Thank You,
Bill Copeland
I’ll make this brief. I know many of the people who have commented here and of course I know Bill as well as Maureen and Joe – and I consider them all friends. Most of us count ourselves as part of the Boston blues community. I use the word “community” because as I have observed and felt it, we are more than a bunch of fans. I have seen us come together to support each other and just plain have fun together. Again, the together part is a major contributor to the fun.
Let’s face it folks, the blues community is a tiny subset of the Boston Music scene. None of us, musicians, club owners, journalists, and fans are getting rich or famous. We are mostly middle-aged and mostly, in my opinion, happy hanging with a group of warm friends. Within any family people will do things that annoy us but we let it go because they are family. I am not proud of my own conduct on a few occasions.
I would like to see this thread die even as I add to it. I consider you all friends and I hate to see us tear each other apart. I have seen this kind of online war break up other communities before and it would be a tragedy to damage one of the strongest blues community in this country. One that I feel lucky to belong.
This is sad…this site used to be about the music. Now it’s just about Bill Copeland. Few people have aggravated so many people in so little time, but why? It’s obvious. The only time I hear about this site is when he goes off and acts like a total douche-rocket. Nobody cares about his insights and writing style, they want dirt! Yellow journalism is all Copeland has to bolster his name and site hits.
Wow! Even after Wendy was so diplomatic and took the high road someone had to post another anonymous, foul, shallow comment. It’s a shame that none of you can’t seem to concede my valid points and then just let it go and move on. Please. All I’m asking is a little less flamboyance until the band goes on break. Is that too much for a middle aged man to ask of this middle aged couple who love the blues scene?
Thank you,
Bill Copeland
I agree with Wendy.
Bill, why did you have to be so mean to MOJO, what did this accomplish?
If you have a “bone to pick” with them do it in private, why be so passive aggressive?
This only splits the blues community apart and music is supposed to bring us together.
I think you owe them an apology so everyone can move on.
I
Bill,
I thought you review venues, cd’s, and musicians but apparently you review fans as well. If their flamboyance as you put it is an annoyance to you, to me that seems a tad intolerant. The more I see comments you post about this, comments about you and your history, that is not suprising.
Have a good day.
Jim
Here we go again; another anonymous comment from friends of the opposition. I’m starting to think it is MoeJoe themselves who keep making these comments with different names.
I think people should read the comment e-mailed to me about their behavior at Sad Cafe in Plaistow, New Hampshire. The two signed their names to wall that is reserved for young musicians. How can that leave any doubt as to how self-centered their motivations are. It’s obvious.
But, as many of you would like to see this end, can you please ask MoeJoe to stop working the rooms until after the bands finish their sets?
Thank you,
Bill Copeland
Jim,
You must have missed my previous comments. MoeJoe are not merely fans. They have made themselves into local celebrites with their antics and their videos.
They have a website for their videos called MoeJoeVision.com, and they barter their video services in exchange for comps and other free merchandise.
That would make them a video production company. They even have a trademark on their site: BUNNY EARS!
Based on that, they are not merely fans. For the record, I often field questions/requests from venues/bands when I’m watching a live show. I also tolerate quite a few distracting people each year. My point about MoeJoe is even if you choose to ignore then and let them do their own thing, they will seek you out and make you pay attention to them. Whenever they are at a show I’m reviewing, I have to stop and wonder whose show it is. The bands? MoeJoe’s? It can be hard to tell most times.
Thank you,
Bill Copeland
Bill,
Nothing anonymous here…my name is Jim Panici and in my opinion, you are a long winded blowhard.
Dude, just write about what you know…. and don’t worry about blah, blah, blah. Like it or not, your expressing an opinion. To heck with whoever doesn’t like it. Write on brother, write on. ZAY
On top of it all, Mojo and Wendy are friends of mine and I think highly of them and they too have a right to express their thoughts and feelings. I’m more than certain that this can be worked out between you. So, quit the online Hatfield and Mc’Coy thing, or i’m tellin my mother. So there….
Thank you, Jose!
Jim who?
After a few weeks have passed we see that clearer heads prevailed. According to my analytics report, this article was read by nearly ten times the number of people who actually commented both on this page and the number on the couple’s Wall post. As I figured, most stayed out of the fray.
The couple and I still have 400 plus mutual Friends on Facebook which demonstrates that they were not successful in their campaign to get the blues community to unfriend me in a mass exodus. Friendship wears thin for people who base it on viral videos and marijuana.
The whole matter was also blown out of proportion. The number of site visits to the article was 300 to 500 less than my articles and reviews of popular local artists. Many of the previous comments here and on the couple’s Facebook Wall post were angry, hostile, and posted by people I had never heard of. Many were posted by people from the music scene who were difficult, unreasonable, and unprofessional in my previous dealings with them The people I consider to be professional stayed out of it, except for a few who felt the need to offer diplomatic comments.
Clearly, a rational person will not get agitated by the suggestion that sideshow antics going on while a band is playing might be annoying and distracting to the people who go out to listen to the music. I can only hope that some good will come now that this issue has been brought into the light. Maybe there will be fewer people complaining to me each year about being pulled away from their agenda at blues shows: to listen without unnecessary distractions, disruptions.
I would like to thank the greater-Boston/New England blues community for their continued love and support. Please keep reading.
Thank You,
Bill Copeland
Dear Readers,
I was so hoping that I wouldn’t need to return to this topic. But there have been recent developments that I thought you all should know about. Joe Marino has been trying to harass me at recent blues events.
Marino approached me at the beginning of Smoken’ Joe’s 5th Anniversary party. He said something to the effect that he was going to make sure nobody in the blues community posted any more of my articles and reviews(boy, I didn’t know he had that authority over everyone). Then he gave me the middle finger, said “fuck you,” and then he walked away.
Although Marino never approached me again that day, his behavior was juvenile and disgusting. He kept looking back at me from his table, pointing me out to anyone who would listen to him, saying something about me, then laughing at his own jokes, leaving his listeners uncertain how to respond to him. At one point, after I had left my table, Marino approached the person seated in front of me to tell him “I wasn’t laughing at you, I was laughing at the asshole behind you.” At another point, Marino approached one of musicians he had seen chatting with me. He said to this guitarist, “That guy who you were talking to is an asshole. He’s the scum of the earth. You can’t be friends with me if you’re friends with him. (My girlfriend was still sitting at our table after I had left briefly and she heard every word of this, for those of you Marino supporters who will predictably question how I could know what was being said if I had left that part of the room).
At HeatherFest, Marino was even more confrontational with me. It happened before the first band started playing at 1:00 p.m. Apparently, Marino had prior knowledge that he was going to win the HeatherFest award called Keeping Blues Alive. He walked right up to my seat, prompting me to get up and take a step and a half in his direction in case he did something stupid. Marino gestured with a sweep of his arm at all the people who were already in attendance. He said, “Everyone at HeatherFest today is going to know you’re an asshole.” I didn’t respond because I didn’t want to provoke something silly. But my girlfreind Donna walked right up to him and said ‘You just leave us alone or I’ll call the police.” Marino gruffly replied with “Go ahead and call them. I don’t care.” But he ran off when we whipped out our cell phones and started dialing the number for the Norton Police Department. We keep the local police station in our cell phones when we think we’re going to be running into Mr. Marino.
In a way, I’m honored. I must be the first person in the five year history of Smoken’ Joe’s to get verbally harassed by another patron in the otherwise low key, cozy, intimage blues venue. I’m certain that I’m the first person in the 18 year history of HeatherFest to be verbally harassed at that otherwise peaceful, friendly, sunny atmosphere.
I can only hope that Mr. Marino never does anything stupid enough for me to have to press charges. That could end up dragging the venue into a whole world of aggravation, especially if Marino has his ever present pot stench when the police talk to him.
Anyway, I’d like to address all of you Marino supporters who sided with him on in my comments pages and on their Facebook Wall post. This is the guy you stood by, an arrogant, obnoxious bully who cannot get over the fact that someone suggested that his antics might be a distraction to other blues fans. If you’re not seeing a proble with how Mr. Marino conducts himself at blues venues/events, then you sorely need a moment of clarity and or to get off the pot.
To the blues singers like Diane Blue, Cookie Pierce, Sunny Crownover who commented that Marino is doing a good job and that he’s welcome at any of your shows, stand by your man, ladies. To Joe Marino: PLEASE, Joe, don’t do anything stupid that will prompt me to call the police to the scene. Club owners don’t need the hassle and the bad publicity.
I would think, after the slander and stuff you laid on mr marino’s head, he really might like to bust ya one right in the chops. Hell, you earned it. Never in my 43 years as a professional musician, have I seen a “journalist” behave the way you do, Billy…you really do make YOURSELF look like a total D-Bag….I dont know marino or the mrs., but your treatment of them is horrific.
Maybe if you asked mr marino to pose in a bikini for ya, all would be forgiven?
Again Bill…you are hurting yourself so much with this witch hunt. Too bad you can’t see it.
I have asked you privately to remove any reviews of cds or shows from your BLOG. Now I am asking publicly. I want nothing to do with you. I want you no where near my shows. I am hoping all the other musos and fans who are in agreement with me to stand up and fight the bully. But for me…you are NOT welcome anywhere near me.
I hope people see you for what you are bill…a no-talent, envious, spiteful little man.
I am appalled by your actions regarding the marinos.
Fran,
I think you have a serious problem. You’re all worked up over something that does not concern you. You suggesting assault, using words like d-bag, and telling a journalist he can’t review you. Press can review your CDs, live shows, whatnot regardless of whether you like the journalist. A pro should know that. I’ve never seen in all my years of music journalism a musician take things as personal as you, Fran. I’ve been wondering why someone as talented as you are is limited to playing out in that contiguous stretch of small towns from Littleton to Sterling. And the answer is clear: your reactive personality. As for the bikini thing, I freely admit to trying organize a promo shoot with a professional photographer and professional models. Someone in the music scene suggested I use some of the great looking women from bands instead of hiring models and using a variety from different genres to cross promote the music scenes. Since we are in the modern music business and in the modern entertainment business, it can only come across as desperate attempts to smear me by bringing up the kind of imagery that’s been used on the cover of Rolling Stone, Blender, Spin, and countless others in a mock prudish display of contempt. Have you seen the way women performers are dressed up on stage these days?Get help for your anger, Fran.
Bill Copeland
P.S. I only accused MoeJoe of being annoying and distracting at shows. Big deal!
sir….you accused these people of dealing drugs at shows.
i stand up for them because i hate seeing people victimized. and bullied.
and i hope others join me.
have a nice day
f
There is nothing in this zine that accuses anybody of dealing drugs at shows. You need to stop libeling me and libeling these people. My only gripe is that about a hundred times a year I hear people complain that they felt pestered, annoyed, distracted by them at shows. Maybe some of you players and some of the club owners appreciate their viral videos, hoping that they will bring more people in to rooms. But…blues fans drive up to an hour or more to see a blues band. They pay for gasoline, a cover charge, food and beverage, and they expect to see a band without silly interruptions. You can try being diplomatic and drop a subtle hint or politely request that they let you listen to the band, but they seem to “not hear” those voices. One night, while leaving Smoken’ Joe’s, I overheard a couple on the sidewalk who had left just before us: “Those MoeJoe’s are so damn annoying,” the male said. “Their agenda is obvious,” said the female. “They’re trying to draw everybody’s attention away from the bands and bring it onto themselves.”
When I no longer hear a hundred people each year complain about their distracting antics, I will drop this. Until, I have to ask: Who the hell are they to pester blues fans who pay their hard earned money to see a blues band?
Bill Copeland