The final honoree to be recognized that evening was Jimmy Van Heusen, a Syracuse native and one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. Van Heusen died in 1990, so his nephew Brook Babcock accepted the award on his behalf and aptly captured the importance and beauty of the Sammys.
"There is a lot of passion in this room," he said as he scanned the crowd. "I was asked by Chris Baker {of The Post Standard} how this award will rank among the Oscars, Emmys and others {Van Heusen won}. I can tell you, it's going to go right next to all of them."
The night recognized the 2013 inductees in a more intimate setting than the raucous awards ceremony held the next night at the Palace Theatre. A crowd of 140 people streamed into the Dino's upstairs hall, buzzing with excitement for the year's honorees. Friends, family, students, teachers, band mates and supporters all gathered to recognize the contributions of this influential group.
Although the crowd gathered well before 7 p.m., the presentations didn't start until closer to 9 p.m. Attendees milled around the room, reconnecting with individuals in a group that is rarely able to gather in the same place at the same time thanks to the nature of the music business. After all, many of the attendees are always playing gigs where others gather, not sitting back enjoying the company of one another.
Dave Frisina, program director and afternoon deejay of WXTL-FM 105.9 (The Rebel), emceed the event, giving heartfelt introductions for each presenter, an ability that has accumulated thanks to more than three decades invested in the Syracuse music scene. His depth and breadth of knowledge came through in the details he shared about each presenter and in his reverence for the music community.
"The Sammys are a time where we can sit down, appreciate and reflect on the great music scene in Syracuse," he opened.
He first introduced Joe Riposo, winner of multiple Sammys, who presented the first honoree, one of his former students and greatest successes.
"I can't think of anyone more deserving," he said. "He's intelligent, great personality, good looking. . . I can't read your writing, Jim," he joked as he welcomed to the stage Jim Spadafore, music educator of the year.
Spadafore had Riposo as a teacher from elementary school through college, as he made his way through the Liverpool School District and on to Onondaga Community College. Riposo recognized his talent and work ethic as a fourth-grader, something that carried through and continues to today. The two emphasized the importance of not settling for less than a best effort from students, a point that defined their teaching styles.
"Some people say I'm tough," Spadafore said. "But you need to be to be great."
He taught his students to strive for their best and thanked the parents who believed in his teaching method and understood the importance of that push. He also recognized some of his former students in the audience, including Spencer Murphy, fellow honoree Skip Murphy's son, who is a professional bassist in New York City.
"If I could teach anything over again," Spadafore said, "it would still be music, because you meet the greatest people."
Frisina then introduced a fantastic guitar player, singer, songwriter and, apparently, kickball player: Colin Aberdeen of Los Blancos. Aberdeen graciously introduced Willie "Taters" Mavins, a longstanding and influential musician in the Syracuse scene.
Aberdeen met Mavins 30 years ago at an open mike night at the Orange Grove on the Syracuse University hill. "He was enthusiastic for everyone who played," Aberdeen recalled. "He was very much my senior, but still treated me as an equal."
Aberdeen explained how Mavins helped him realize he could write his own songs and that music written by real people with something to say can be just greater than that played by professional musicians. It's the feeling, the story behind it, that carries the message and the importance.
"We all need mentors who challenge us," Aberdeen said. Mavins did that for him.
Mavins, who performs with the Quickchange Band, made his way to the stage and kept it short, but powerful. "It's hard for me to stand up here with these tears," he said as he pointed to his eyes. "Thank you."
Well-known local musician Dave Novak introduced someone who rarely finds himself in the center stage's spotlight. Novak, who has been friends for 50 years with honoree John Dancks, was clearly moved and proud of the musician most know as JD.
"He is one of the unsung heroes," Novak said. "Like the Funk Brothers of Motown or The Swampers of Muscle Shoals, one of the musicians who backs up the singers and soloists. Syracuse has a group of musicians of this caliber."
Dancks had a long list of names to thank, but at the top remained his first bandmates; Tony Trischka, Tom Hos-mer and Lou Martin; and his wife of 42 years, Georgia. He thanked the Sammys for recognizing "the incredible depth of talent and diversity" in Syracuse, something that became more apparent as the night continued, and recognized his friend Tom Walker, who died recently.
"Tell the people in your life how loved and appreciated they are," he said, touching on another theme through the night.
The next presenter, Ron Wray, has been collecting artifacts of the Syracuse music scene for more than 40 years. He has a book of more than 4,000 pages in the works, making him a perfect choice to introduce The Seven to accept its award. The band; Nick Russo (vocals, percussion), Chuck Mellone (keyboards, B3), Chuck Wheeler (guitar), Al Ruscito (trombone), Frank Sgroi (sax), Chuck Sgroi (bass) and drummer Tony Licamele; was one of the most influential in Syracuse music history, a group that rightfully gained recognition considering their incredible work ethic, as they practiced eight hours a day, six days a week, in a little shack on Seventh North Street.
The next acceptance of the night was easily the longest, but also the most comedic. Jeff Jones, from the band Pale Green Stars and the sound engineer at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, introduced Scott Sterling with a story about their first meeting. Jones, whose real name is Jeff Beck, had trouble getting Sterling on the phone in 1990 because every message he left, saying, "This is Jeff Beck," had Sterling skeptical.
"Look, I'm a busy guy," Sterling tried to tell Jones on the phone.
"No! That's really my name," Jones said, finally convincing Sterling.
When the two finally met, Sterling immediately picked up Jones' 1972 gold top Gibson Les Paul, just for it to fall and drop to the floor.
"I almost threw up," Jones said. Now, 23 years later, the two continue to work together at the Dinosaur, and the sincere friendship is apparent.
Sterling mounted the stage and immediately began drawing continued laughs from the crowd. "When I was 8 years old, monsters made me play the guitar," he opened.
He dove into a stream-of-consciousness spoken autobiography detailing some of the many wild situations in his life as a musician, sound engineer, road manager, booking agent and ultimate "keeper of the vibe."
He talked about how moving 17 times before he turned 16 could make or break a person, and how it made him. He constantly had to reinvent himself, looking for his fellow "freaks" (musicians and music followers/lovers) in every city he moved to. He talked about how seeing Kiss changed his life; how he came up with the name of his band B.S. Boulder (they took it from a name on a mailbox); how his daughter, Jessica, changed his life; and how wild it's been to meet bands and people such as Bon Jovi, Guns N' Roses, Anthrax, Black Flag, Gwar, the Black Crowes and more; and it was all in a day's work.
By the end of the acceptance, Sterling hit a few tender notes, sincerely thanking those closest to him every day, co-workers at the Dinosaur, friends and family. And he wrapped the acceptance perfectly:
"When I was 8 years old, monsters made me play the guitar," he said. "They still do."
Michael Davis, photographer at the Syracuse New Times for more than 30 years, was next up to introduce Skip Murphy. Davis was humorous yet heartfelt in his introduction and demonstrated his depth of musical knowledge as he described Murphy's unique harmonica-playing approach, more like a horn and less in the Little Walter-style of playing. He also shared a few words from Mike Greenstein, former New Times music editor, who called Murphy "the best and most versatile front man." (Murphy would go on to demonstrate those natural abilities on Friday night as an emcee and performer at the Sammy Awards.)
Also
keeping consistent with the evening's humor, Murphy joked that he had
left his 14 pages of notes on the kitchen table before thanking and
recognizing
a long list of people who have come to impact and change his life. Among them, he made special note of his best friend and wife of 27 years, Carolin, and recognized the sacrifices made by the spouses of musicians.
"They have to deal with a lot of work, whining and late nights," he said. "There's so much to this whole thing."
The final introduction of the night was made by Bill Brod, publisher of the Syracuse New Times, who recognized not only Jimmy Van Heusen but Sammys President Liz Nowak, emcee of the night, Dave Frisina and Michael Davis, who Brod discovered recently has shot more than a million photos for The New Times throughout his career there.
Brod noted Van Heusen's impact all over the world and how fun it was to research the man and his life. But the most important fact about Van Heusen was the reason he was being honored in that upstairs room at the Dinosaur: Although he's been recognized and awarded some of the greatest honors on the planet, it's his hometown, Syracuse, which brought him to this crowd's attention on a snowy Thursday night.
When Van Heusen's nephew, Brook Babcock, came up to accept the award and noted the passion of community in the room where he was speaking, the importance of the Sammys became clear once again. Syracuse has an incredible music scene. It's one worth celebrating and recognizing, and the people within it are some of the most passionate anywhere. It may not be an Oscar, but the weight of the Sammy Award is no less when it comes to sincerity or heartfelt meaning.
And all of this would be confirmed the next night.
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