No
bands ever made any money on the Cleveland punk circuit, of
course. Backdoor Men, who probably played out as much or more
than anyone, kept financial records, and $1,000 was a good year,
much less a good gig. But one summer night in 1980, they really
hit gold.
Joe Charboneau was busy burning up the American League, soon
to be rookie of the year. Dan Cook, the boys' resident promotional
genius, got the brilliant idea to call Super Joe's agent and
see if HE WOULD APPEAR WITH THE BAND. Unbelievably, the answer
was YES. And the fee? A grand total of $100!
The lads got a nice picture of Joe made up by an artist, holding
a guitar instead of a bat. Charboneau winds up hitting a home
run to beat the yankees, and damn if he doesn't show up half
an hour later with his wife at Fitzpatrick's. The line is out
the door and around the block. Backdoor Men, playing with Heironymous
Bosch, rake in a grand. Charboneau clowns around on stage with
the boys, signs a few autographs, and splits. Might've even
drank some beer through his nose; can't remember.
Of course the windfall was not used to get some decent equipment;
instead, it was quickly spent on the finest alcohol money could
buy, of course.
Paul Nickels |
