I sent Rob the link to this blog and since he won’t be able to make it [from Portland, OR] here were his comments:

“Andrij!
Cool story. I don’t know if you remember, the very last club the Squirrels played in Rochester was Scorgies in summer 1993. We played a wedding and Manhattan Square Park after that, but Scorgies was it. In fact, I may be wrong, but I think we were the last band, or one of the last bands, to pretty much play there at all. After that, it became Token Joe’s.
I still remember because we decided to toss out the set list and just go for it. We wound up improvising a lot and playing better than we probably ever did. I still remember making up some poetry rant about a Vietnam vet during “Heroine.”
When the gig was over, I remember we all looked at each other and said, “why didn’t we always play that way?” However, by then it was too late, and we had lost Jim and Brian, and Tony and Pete were on their way to Buddhahood world. It’s weird, we never reunited, which may be cool because they’re always sort of a letdown when they do happen. We’re one of those “you had to be there” bands.
Ah, the old days.
It was a great ride.
Rock on and have a pint on me!
rob”

Press Tones - Not Any Older

The Press Tones played Scorgies 11,652 times. I think. It may have been more. The Pistoleros played Scorgies twice. Not sure, I can’t remember. The Crypt Kids didn’t play at Scorgies but we sure hung out there alot. I know ‘Open Season on Jim Freeze’ didn’t play Scorgies, I think Jim was banned from the bar at that point. The Folk Explosion may have played Scorgies, don’t remember. The Chinchillas played at Scorgies a few times when it reopened later on. We played downstairs in 1992 or 1993 and we had our CD release party for “Retro” upstairs in the bar. It 1999 or 2000 and they may have changed the name to ‘Token Joes’.

I don’t have any pictures from the early days. I was studying photography at school and I didn’t even carry around a camera. Oh well.

I met Richard Kaza at Scorgies. He managed The Press Tones and also brought in many national acts to the club. He opened and managed Idols and Freakazoid later on. It was great to see him when The Press Tones played at Abilene this past August.

At the Scorgies reunion show tomorrow I know I will see many people I haven’t seen in a long time, and I probably won’t remember them, but it should be an interesting evening.

Loving this blog. I really wish I could be at the show 11/21, but … can’t. It all started so innocently. My friend Rick Birch intro’d me to Scorgies and New Math back in the day, I don’t know, 1978 maybe? Big Daddy’s? Got to meet some of these music people in Roch. Old friend Danny Deutsch was a part of it. I remember a party where Kevin Patrick was promising to buy a new stylus for the host if he would just play “Volunteers of America” one time.

But then in late 79 or 80, I came back from Calif. and met Paul and Peggi and reconnected with Martin — whom I’d known since before he got his first Nehru jacket — and we started talking about songs and ideas. Next thing you know, we’re down in that basement six or seven days a week for most of the next two years. It was such a rich and rewarding time. We’d come up with ideas, work ’em out together, add ’em to a set list  and blast them out there. And people liked it! Eclectic, eccentric, Hi-Techs was a weird little rock n roll band, but the kids would dance, usually. We were together so much, it felt like family. And there were so many great friends in that crowd, in bands and the clubs and all the people around the whole “scene.” I’m tempted to name all these names, but that would be pointless. You’re mostly here.

So you look back 25 or 30 years to a little stretch you did between things — after college and California, before grad school, marriage and kids (and divorce) — and you think, that was special. That was a highlight. That was truly fine.

Around the last year Scorgies was open I joined the “Beers of the World” club.  I believe if you drank 100 different beers from around the world in 100 days or less, you got a case of different beers from breweries around the planet. You also got your name on a plaque which was put up with all the other people who became members and drank the 100 beers. I remember being very bummed when someone pried my name plaque off the board. I never found out why it was taken or whoever took it. Now’s your chance to come clean!

I also remember one of my birthdays on New Year’s Eve (not sure what year) when the Chesterfield Kings were playing in the basement.  Lead singer Greg Prevost somehow ended up on my shoulders and while carrying him all over the place he was pulling down the ceiling tiles (Scorgie loved this.) It was one of the most fun Birthdays I ever had.  It was a great bar and I miss it.

Fred Armstrong

Editor’s note, check out this GREAT article on the Chesterfield Kings (circa mid-nineties).

MUSIC TO REUNIONIZE BY:

New Math: Hot Sounds
Swing Set: You That I Want
The Insiders: Leave Me Alone
The BBBs: Tired Of Waiting (live at Penny Arcade, ’82)
The Fadeaways: Trust
The Young Idea: My Baby’s In Love
The Fugitives: Last Time (live)
The Ferrets: Play With Fire
Cousin Al & the New Generation: Zombie Twist
Invisible Party: Can’t Seem To Make You Mine (live at Scorgies, ’84)
The Essentials: Wild Romance
Colorblind James Experience: First Day Of Spring (live at Jazzberry’s ’85)
Hi-Techs: A Woman’s Revenge
The Rumbles: Hourglass Reunion
New Math: Older Women

[audio:http://earcandyarchive.podbean.com/medias/web/aHR0cDovL21lZGlhMi5wb2RiZWFuLmNvbS80MzUwNy91L0VwaXNvZGUxZ2FyYmFnZXBsYXRlLm1wMw/Episode1garbageplate.mp3]

46:51 length

You can also listen to Episode 1 of the Flower City Jukebox here:

Weekends by Scorgies

I see that on some of the posters (even a few I made) But I can’t remember why it was Weekends By Scorgies!

Anyone remember?