Warning: ridiculously long post, lol...
Yep, as Tango posted, the 11th Annual Melody Reunion is Saturday, 2/25 at the Elks Club in NB. Have been to all 10, so far - it's our favorite night of the year. If you used to go to the Melody back in the 80s/early 90s, you need to just go to the Reunion - it's that much fun. Matt Pinfield says he's going to be there, but that depends on if he's out of rehab by then (he just want back in about 3 weeks ago - it's a tough lifestyle for someone with substance abuse problems).
He's been to about half of them, but to be honest, with so many other Melody DJs there and a big chunk of the original crowd of regulars from the 80s and early 90s there, his attendance is just a bonus. However, it is the "Pinfield Era" Reunion, meaning one has to have been 18 as of 1992 (43 now; 92 is the last year he regularly DJ-ed the Mel - when he left to become MTV's 120 minutes VJ and became the celebrity that he now is) in order to get in, as it is a private event.
It's actually a pretty extraordinary event if you think about it. How many defunct bars have reunions that attract 300-400 people every year? And from talking to people I've met at these reunions (and reading all the FB posts) this is clearly the biggest event on many attendees' calendars. It's hard to pin down exactly what it is, but somehow, we all shared a time and place that was truly special, between the music, the bar, the rotating murals, the dancing, and the complete acceptance of everyone from queers to jocks to lawyers to punks. Matt does a nice job trying to explain the appeal in the first link below.
And while the re-creation of it isn't exactly the same, it's still pretty damn cool for a bunch of middle-aged folks. The dancing is a little (not a lot) slower and most of us need more breaks, but that huge dancefloor (about 3-4X the size of the downstairs dancefloor at the Melody) is seriously packed almost from the start at 7 pm until closing around 1 am.
Since I used to be one of Matt's "roadies" back in the day, I'm part of the setup and breakdown crew before and after. The guy who supplies the DJ equipment and who also DJs a set every year, Ed Wong (who also has, IMO, the best radio show on the planet every Saturday from 10 am to 2 pm on 88.7 RM, WRSU - he plays everything from Elvis to Dylan to The Clash to Joy Division to P-Funk to the Stone Roses to Nirvana to plenty of newer stuff, too), has one of the most amazing setups you could imagine, but it takes 2-3 hours to assemble. Our crew is usually there the whole night and I'd guess that most of us are on the dancefloor 75% of the time. See the links - I'm in the 2nd one, lol.
Anyway, if anyone has read this far and is interested in a little more NB history and personal history, read on. Below is the post I made the day after the Melody closed in March of 2001 - yes, I saved it. Maybe tomorrow, I'll post about the Court Tavern, NB shows and bands, and today's basement scene, which my son is part of, now...
Post #4007 OT: The Melody, RIP - a very sad day for New Brunswick...(long) Edit | Reply ..the Melody Bar was knocked down this week, ending all hope that somehow Cal and Steve would reconcile their differences and reopen the only bar that mattered. I've posted a few times over the years about my memories of that place and for those of you who remember the Mel, it's truly a sad day. It was, quite simply, the coolest punk/atlernative bar on the planet and that's not just me talking. I met a bunch of folks over the years who would come there from NYC, because it blew away any bars of that type in the City and there were several writeups over the years in regional/national entertainment mags/papers. See the link below for a decent history from the HNT.
I started going there once in awhile in 1981, although back then I used to go to Patrix and the Court Tavern more, as I was more interested in seeing bands and the Melody was only on the first floor until about 1985 or so. Being slightly on the older side, I started going to the Melody around 1982, back when there was only the downstairs (I even go back to Matt's days at Tod's on Georges Rd, I think). After adding on the second floor to the Melody, they had enough room upstairs for bands, although the main attraction for the Melody was always the DJ music and dancing, not bands. By the mid-80s, I used to go there 3-4 nights a week - usually at least on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, the nights Matt Pinfield used to DJ. He was and still is the most knowledgable person I've ever met regarding music (and not just punk, but all kinds - I was at his apartment a few times back in those days and he had about 5000 albums/CDs and that was just his "heavy rotation stuff" as he had 2-3 times that number at his parents' house in East Brunswick) and was the best club DJ I've ever seen - he just had a way of knowing the crowd and making the music flow all night.
In fact, I was one of those "roadies" who helped Matt bring his records in and pack them up at the end of the night. I also helped Matt DJ some, especially during his occasional 10-15 minute "absences" (let's just say he was indulgent). I had three big reasons for being there: 1) chicks; 2) the music; 3) chicks. Seriously, of the 10 or so women I ever dated semi-seriously in my life, I probably met 75% of them at the Mel, by asking them to dance and taking it from there.
And, of course, I met my wife there. On March 12, 1987, while standing by the dance floor, I felt someone tugging gently on my way-cool, fluorescent Jetsons T-shirt. I turned around and asked the cute girl who was pointing my T-shirt out to her friend, if I could help her. She sheepishly said she thought it was "really neat" and was just pointing it out to her sister. I then asked her if she liked Big Audio Dynamite. She said no. I then asked her if she liked the song that was playing. She said yes. I told her it was E=mc2 (squared) by Big Audio Dynamite and asked her if she wanted to dance. She sheepishly said yes. We moved in together several months later and got married in 1991.
Some more personal trivia. A few dates into our relationship, I surprised her by arranging with Matt, who was now DJ-ing at WHTG, FM106.3 (the greatest alternative radio station ever, may it rest in peace - it's "replacement" G106.3 pales in comparison), to play (I'll Stop the World and) Melt With You, by Modern English, followed by Tenderness, by General Public, including a personal dedication to her. Needless to say, I did not wake up alone the next day :>)
Fast forward to September 22, 1990. My cohabitatohead (a term we coined as we were now living together) had given me the challenge of making sure I was serious about it when I decided to pop the question. So we went to see the Wonder Stuff at the Fastlane in Asbury Park - they were our favorite band since they came out in 1987 (buy their first album, Eight Legged Groove Machine if you want 15 brilliant songs of pure pop heaven with an edge; they were huge [numerous top ten singles/albums] in the UK until they broke up in 1994). They never made it big here, other than on WHTG and MTV's 120 minutes, but had a rabid local following due to the Matt-WHTG connection.
The place was sold out and, unknown to my girlfriend, I had arranged with Matt P., who was very good friends with the band, to have them do my proposal to my wife on-stage during the show. I figured that was pretty serious. I had also let the 10 or so friends we came with in on the secret, so there was much anticipation and plenty of chance for public embarrassment for both of us - me for being rejected, her for being asked.
So about 2/3 of the way through the show, Miles Hunt, the lead singer, called Matt up on stage to do a song (Matt used to be in a local band called Opium Valla) and Matt handed him a note, which I had written. Miles looked oddly at Matt and said to the audience, "I'd like to do a song with Mr. Matt Pinfield, but first I have an announcement to make. There's a guy out there named Erik, who'd like to know if Judy will marry him - why the **** he'd want an ugly mug like me to ask for him, I'll never know." They then launched into "Unbearable," one of our favorite songs, at which time Judy smacked me and said "you jerk," but happily agreed to be married, much to the joy and relief of our gathered friends. We then partied with Matt and the band all night. A night to remember.
Now fast forward again to 9/1/91, our wedding day. The esteemed Mr. Pinfield DJ-ed our outdoor wedding at the Forest Lodge in Warren on a beautiful, clear, pleasantly warm (70 F) day. Everyone was dressed casually, except my wife, who was in a big fluffy white wedding dress. The mayor of Highland Park performed the ceremony and then we partied for hours - it was essentially a punk rock picnic, with occasional slam dancing to the musical stylings of Mr. P. Our three wedding songs were E=mc2, as expected, Just Like Heaven (the Cure) and Unbearable, also as expected if you've read this far (if you have, seek help now).
So, as you can see, music has been a huge part of my life and the life of my wife and me since we met. Not surprisingly, though, our trips to the Melody and live shows dwindled (but didn't stop completely) once we had our son in 1994 - we probably only made it out to the Melody every few months in the mid/late 90s, although I went solo or with friends more frequently, just to hear the music. Obviously, if you've come this far you know a lot more about me than you probably need to. Maybe it's the finality of losing something that has been such a huge part of my heart and soul for so long (colored, of course, by the nostalgia that comes with age). Anyway, there you have it.
