New Math at Orange Monkey in 1977. Gary Trainer on rhythm guitar, Robert Marsalla on bass, Paul Dodd on drums, Kevin Patrick on vocals and Dale Mincey on lead guitar.
Don Scorgie is obviously the key figure in this whole story but probably not in the way you might think. I don’t think he was much of a music fan at least not like I am or most of you are. When I first met him he was behind the bar at street level on Andrews Street. And that fact that he was on that side of the bar had nothing to do with who was doing the drinking.
I was playing drums with New Math at the time and we rehearsed around the corner in the Cox Building on Saint Paul. I think our rent was 100 bucks a month. Geoff Wilson from the Bowery Boys was the elevator operator in this building in later years but it was pretty much deserted when we moved in. We got in the habit of stopping in Don’s place after practice for beer. I tried not to drink too many because I had to ride my bike back home.
Don was sort of an old salt like Popeye the Sailor man. He had nautical theme going with rope railings and he had a fish net hanging from the ceiling that was just beginning to collect the Spanish moss style dust clusters that became such a fixture here. The guy who rented him the juke box when he opened this place was probably the one who picked out the 45s. It was just generic mid seventies crap. I think Kevin Patrick, who was working as record promo guy at the time, talked Don into stocking the juke box with the good stuff. In later years, it seems Danny Deutsch, who now runs Abilene, was in charge of the tunes and at some point it seemed like every time you walked into that place you heard Bobby Darin’s “Mack The Knife”. But it wasn’t Don calling the musical shots.
One night after rehearsal Don took us down to the basement at Scorgies where he had just installed the first section of green indoor outdoor carpeting on the step up section next to the bar. It was the first time we had set foot in what people think of as Scorgies. He had a few picnic benches down there and he told us he was planning on setting up an indoor putting green. This was going to get people down in the basement of a century old building? We laughed at the idea.
I remember us, and it was probably Kevin doing most of the talking, trying to convince Don that what he had here, an empty room with no chairs or tables, was the perfect rock and roll club. All he needed was a stage and a sound system. So Don built the plywood stage and he eventually rented a sound system from Mark Theobald. Mark mixed the bands if they didn’t have their own guy. New Math was the first band to play here but I had already left the band at that point and was playing with the Hi-Techs.
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Slight edit; Mark’s last name is spelled “Theobald.” When I first met Mark his nick name was “Newj” mainly because of his long hair (reference to Ted Nugent). His partner also had long hair and at one time his sound company was called Newj Brothers.
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The first band I saw was King Juke. However, after that I was a regular both upstairs and down stairs. Thru the years i saw The Hi-Techs (Personal Effects), New Math, The Cliches, Hummer and The Machine (very funny), Meat Cleaver and the New Toys, B-Girls, Romeo Void,I can go on all night…….
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As far as Don being a music fan I think he once told me he loved ABBA. That, and I think he really enjoyed Reggae.
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First band I ever saw @ Scorgies (in the Weekends By Scorgies era) was the Invisible Party.
While enjoying such classics as “Waking World,” I recall thinking that the chubby singer and skinny guitarist reminded me of Laurel and Hardy.
A guy with feathered hair, wearing a shark’s tooth and a Members-Only jacket, complained to me with an incredulous look on his face that the band sucked. I asked what kind of bands he liked; he told me he frequented the Penny Arcade.]
That was a laugh.
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Looking back, I think the first band I saw at Scorgies was Delroy Rebop… There was some commonality with Del’s circle and my sisters’ (the twins) group of friends. I was really impressed with Del’s showmanship.
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Man…who DIDN’T I see at Scorgies? I want to say the first band I saw at Scorgies was New Math but it might have been King Juke.
The downstairs was such a PERFECT room to see and hear bands in. I loved it from the first time I set foot down in the basement.
I liked hanging out at Scorgies so much that I asked Don for a job bartending in 1979 (I had never mixed a drink in my life- I was a beer and Bushmills guy at the time) – and he said “Yes”! So I left my job at Record Theater downtown and started bartending at Scorgies.
I do know that after that first time seeing New Math – and seeing them at other venues (The Orange Monkey shows were outstanding), I knew that I wanted to start a band, too.
Spoke with Kevin Patrick numerous times on HOW to form a band…and he was helpful and encouraging. So, we went and did it.
And of course, the first gig we played in the fall/winter of 79 was opening for New Math.
A few years later, we covered “Die Trying” one night at Scorgies as an encore!
Those were the days…Good times, all the time.
And I still have in my possession probably 100 flyers from Scorgies shows…You can check out some of them here http://www.thecliches.com/photoindex.htm – all from shows between 1979 and 1983.
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J Laben is right, New Math were our heroes back then and we went to a couple of other places to see ’em. Kevin Patrick of course, was the singer but we called him ‘Pink Hat;. Can’t remember why we did that. New Math undoubtedly set the precedent for all who came after.
Don Scorgie ruled outsiders with an iron fist. We loved when it came around to last call and he’d be screaming for everyone to get the hell out. We’d ask, ” Scorgie, does that mean us too??” (Us being loyal regulars who were there Thursday thru Saturday) And he’d just wave us off and we knew that we could stay as long as we wanted. So we’d sit and finish our pitchers and watch with amusement as the interlopers were
herded out on their ears into the cold Rochester night.
The Cliches were my favorites and I still think that the Presstones were and always will be overrated. -
Delroy Rebop had the guy with the ‘fro and blood-shot eyes from Fantasy Records, right?
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First band we went to see at Scorgies was New Math – but we ended up seeing Bat Magrath instead by mistake. Didn’t realize our mistake until we were already downstairs and it was too late…
Whats up Rich? – drop me an email…
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I must have been either blind or drunk, but I don’t EVER remember seeing Personal Effects or Hi-Techs at Scorgies. Since I was a die-hard Cliches and New Math fan, I probably stayed upstairs when I saw their names on the marquee. Heh heh. How ironic, C. Laben is now a HUGE Bat McGrath devotee.
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Probably both.
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Don showed me and Scott, my ex drummer the basement just before it was finished.
We (The Bowery Boys) ended up being one of the first bands to play there, along with King Juke, New Math and one or two others I can’t remember the names of (country music me thinks) before it got trendy.
I was more of an underground artist and didn’t fit into the cliques very well.
(and it got very clicky)
No one really knew me very well but it seems everyone knew my name.
I knew Scott and Lukewarm (Andy) from childhood, the rest I met during the scene man.
I am very grateful to Don Scorgie for his generosity,
( he even gave me a job flipping burgers for bit)
he had a lions heart when you were in his favor,
(and if you were’nt, well, let’s not go there) and to Richard Kaza the former doorman for getting us gigs outside of Scorgies.
I think with Danny Duetch and Richard Kaza’s efforts the scene really picked up.
Please don’t anyone forget the beautiful enchantress, Natashia who designed soo many kool posters for a lot of bands, as well as supplying food and beer money, love and support, whenever she could.
Her devil may care laugh always picked me up when I was down.
The rest is local history.
cheers all,
jOff (still rocking) wilsOn -
I’d only been back in Rochester for a few months after spending two years in California. Paul Fehse and i had just started Second Division. We had been going to the same old haunts until our new drummer Tim Roberts told us of Scorgies. Tim booked a show for us opening for New Math but before we could do that show Don called us and asked us if we’d do an unannounced gig opening for the Chesterfield Kings.
The night was one i’ll never forget. The Kings fans were real cool to us even though my amp blew up in the middle of our set. Andy glided up to us and said he dug our stuff. Tom Kohn also came up to us that night and offered to put us on his “Out of Print” record label. So after seeing the KIngs play i was hooked. We caught every local band that played there. If there was any question to where i might be on any given night-it was at Scorgies. I was there 4 nights a week either listening to all the local talent, listening to Luke Warm spin some great music or just upstairs drinking.
In all i think i played Scorgies about 40 times between 2nd Div.-Y-The Guinea Pigs-Blast Paris-Felt Up-The Mistakes-My Lovely Suicide and Half Chicken(not to mention a half dozen other little side projects). I kept changing my name and look so Don wouldn’t know it was me. I don’t know if i’d fooled him but that was how i played there so many times. I was a Hi-Techs(Personal Effects) & Presstones fan but i went out and gave every local band a listen.
Yeah Scorgies was very clicky and i wasn’t but i guess with a place as cool as Scorgies, if it wasn’t clicky then something would have been wrong. Too bad more bands couldn’t do the reunion show-it was all the bands and the different styles they played that made Scorgies the place to be. Love the man or hate the man,his bar rocked to a new beat and i’m glad and honored to have been part of it. You can’t relive the past but you sure can remember how cool it was.
Peace & Love from Wisconsin
Paj -
Geoff!
You mentioned Natashia!
I remember she invited me to a party after the Rockats played Scorgies
and they were there!
I have photos of 2 Scorgies Rockats shows!also above someone mentioned Delroy Rebop
They were U of R guys and Delpedro worked with my dad!
hey got my band the Sonic Reducers a gig opening for them at the U of R.
When we got there the staff found out that every one in my band but me was under age. Someone in Delroy said “if they don’t play we don’t play!”
The show went on! I’ll never forget that!!!I didn’t get to play Scorgies until a year later with my band The Twisted Hearts (It was The Sonic Reducers with Jimmy Freeze on vocals, Mike Abrams on bass and Charlie Abbott (I still think he was under age when we played there! Brian Goodman on drums) We opened for STIFF recording artists John Otway & Wild Willie Barrett
anyone have a poster for that show?
cheers
Cousin Brian -
Hey Brian,
That was me, fomer drummer from Delroy Rebop. I guess back then I had some pull. Like the reunion idea. Do you know whre I can get any Delroy Rebop video?
Barry Kuda
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