The future of Holyoke’s Waterfront Tavern seemed murky at best a few months ago. Just when it appeared the historic venue would be pulling the plug altogether, rumors of a strategic alliance began to swirl. Last week, however, Donald Robert of Maximum Capacity notoriety opened the proverbial informational floodgates for the Crawler. Here’s his official statement on the matter.
“Okay, what I can tell you is that obviously the Waterfront has been having its problems, and (owner) Mike Rigali contacted me recently about promoting there again with my promotions partner,” Robert revealed. “We then discussed running the bar for him all together since it was in tough shape. So, I’m transforming it back to its glory days.”
As a means of fulfilling his mission statement, Robert has already contracted the services of Damn Yankees BBQ for food service seven days a week. “We’ll be hosting outdoor barbecues, pig roasts, big game dinners, and clam bakes,” he says. “Bringing back outdoor summer concerts, Bike Nite on Thursdays, live bands on Saturdays.”
A Waterfront grand re-opening has been schedule for Friday, March 4. Popular party band Scott On Top will take its rightful place atop the bill. Robert also promises a free buffet so patrons can give the new grub a test taste.
What was once thought of as a winter primer for the annual August Rock the Boot festival has snowballed into a stand-alone event of its own: Rock the Boot Winter fest. “It’s really grown in popularity, and that’s a good thing for so many reasons,” says organizer Dan Mckenney of the event slated for Friday, Feb. 26, at Gremio Lusitano Club in Ludlow. “The more funds we raise with the winter show, the bigger the acts we will be able to bring in this summer.”
Considering the fact that one of the region’s biggest draws — Trailer Trash — signed on for this weekend, the August entertainment committee certainly has its work cut out for them.
Tickets for Rock the Boot Winter are $10, sold at the door. All proceeds for Rock the Boot Summer are donated to families affected by muscular dystrophy.
For more information on the concerts or the cause, visit rockthebootludlow.com.
T he Bay State hardcore punksters of Vanna are crowdfunding to replace a bunch of their stolen stuff so they can advance to the next stop on their tour.
“During a day off in Atlanta, Georgia, the band stopped to have dinner with family and friends,” says manager Leah Urbano. “They parked for a couple hours on a well-lit main road in the business and restaurant district. They came out to discover the van had been broken into and all personal affects stolen.”
Urbano swiftly launched a Gofundme campaign to offset the damage. Within 48 hours, the goal of $10,000 was surpassed. The freshly re-stocked Vanna will perform at Providence, Rhode Island’s Firehouse 13 on March 5.
Meanwhile, at the tender age of 18, Connecticut singer/six-stringer Sage King has amassed some highly coveted music credentials. In addition to the dozens of clubs he has performed at in the area on the weekends while attending Somers High School, he has played at Mohegan Sun and opened for Mike Tramp of White Lion and Ed Kowalczyk of Live. Like most musicians, though, King has always had a dream to play and record his own original music.
Thanks to a recently completed Kickstarter campaign wherein $1,390 was raised, he was finally able to capture those sonic sugarplums that had been dancing in his head.
“Your generosity and patience will soon be rewarded,” he wrote to his backers on Feb. 8.
This Friday, Feb. 26, King will officially celebrate the release of his debut CD, The Acoustic Sessions, at Basil’s Restaurant in Stafford Springs, Connecticut.•
Catch the Nightcrawler on Wednesday mornings with Leslie at 6:20 a.m. and 9:20 a.m. on Lazer 99.3 FM.
Gary Carra can be contacted at garycarra@aol.com.
