Snapshots Of New England
Snapshot #1 – Boston had a vibrant music scene in the ‘70s and musicians were migrating to the city from all over. There was a friendly-but-strong rivalry among the bands that I believe drove the greatness that emerged in Aerosmith, The J. Geils Band, Boston, The Cars, my band New England and many, many more. All of us were a product of the era.
Snapshot #2 – Our very first live performance as New England was our record-release party under the famous dome at Quincy Market in the spring of 1979. What a special night! In attendance were many local radio celebs, the late Bill Aucoin (our manager), VP of Aucoin Management Ric Aliberte, our producers (Paul Stanley of KISS and the late Mike Stone) and, most importantly, our families and our friends.
Snapshot #3 –We were playing at Bangor Auditorium in Maine with KISS, and Stephen King was sitting on the side of the stage with his two kids. After our show, before I could ask him for his autograph, he asked me for mine.
Snapshot #4 – Remembering life before cell phones. We once sang our song “Hello Hello Hello” live on WBCN from a pay phone outside of a Stop & Shop.
Snapshot #5 – Going back to the bars was a very cool thing for bands to do, which may have started for us in September 1981 when The Rolling Stones played Sir Morgan’s Cove in Worcester (known as “Whistah” in Jamaica Plain, where I grew up). At the height of our popularity, we wanted to feel that barroom blood running through our veins again and played to a shoehorned, standing-room-only crowd at The Rathskeller. That grungy, funky, beer-perfumed palace in a cellar in Kenmore Square rocked!
Snapshot #6 – My favorite venue was the Paradise Rock Club on Commonwealth Avenue. We would play there on an off-night from major tours and always sell out two shows. In those days, the place had tables and chairs and the crowd felt like they were on stage with you. I loved that! I remember my parents sitting in the front row with cotton balls in their ears. They were from the Glenn Miller era, trying to protect themselves from my Marshall stacks, God bless them. They had a blast!
Final thoughts – New England had some historic venues in those days and I am honored to have played many of them. Gone are Uncle Sam’s, which used to be The Surf at Nantasket Beach, the Cape Cod Coliseum, Mr. C’s in Lowell and Music Inn in Lenox. But some are still standing, like the Orpheum Theatre in Boston, the Providence Civic Center, the Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom, the Cumberland Civic Center in Portland and so many, many more…amen!
(by John Fannon)
Guitarist-singer-songwriter John Fannon co-founded the rock quartet New England in 1976.
