"If the rule you followed led you to this, of what use was
the rule?"
Welcome To My Home Page!!!
Follow the Quick
Links to the left to get info about some of the bands I am
currently performing with, or to download or buy some of the
music I am featured on.
To see where and
with whom I will be performing in the next few weeks, you can
jump to the
Calendar page. If you want to learn more about me
and/or my music, jump to my
FAQ page. And to see some of
the other web sites that feature me, as well as some of my
favorite sites, jump to my
Links page.
1/23/2012 What a great weekend
of music just ended! First a great Friday with the
Kim
Yarson Band at the Grace Baptist Church
One Year Celebration in Hamilton Square Friday
night.
This was my 2nd show with Kim and many
more are planned, so watch my Calendar page.
Then
Saturday night the
Parents Who Rock fundraiser in
downtown Montclair with
Zara
and 17 other great local and national acts,
including the great Christine Kelly whom we all
remember from the
Clearwater Festival. Some of you may
have seen a clip about this show on the WCBS Early
Morning. We performed Zara's version of "I Believe
In You", from her CD
You Me and Us, coincidentally
produced by former Dylan producer te Perlman.
I think
Andrew Cohen should be Zara's official
photog, he really gets her personality down!
Zara, Cook
Smith 1/21/2012 photo ctsy Andrew Cohen
Meg Beattie Patirck did a fantastic
version of "Make You Feel My Love". She is the host
of Montclair TV 34's
Arts Up Close, which featured
Zara a few weeks back, discussing her book
Mother Me and playing some of
her tunes with yours truly.
Earlier in the week somebody had a birthday! Happy
Birthday to the one and only Flour Grrrl, Carol
Barbieri, seen
here Wed. night 1/18 at McGillicuddy's/Lake House in
Loch Arbour:
Carol is currently embarkening
on a local and national speaking campaign about
adoption rights, which she is writing a book about
also, so it was great to catch up with her after
being out of the open mic biz for a while!
Speaking of birthdays, my old bud
Vini Lopez from my JP Gotrock/Disco Rejects days
turned 63 this weekend- happy birthday Vini! You can
catch him with
License To Chill at a venue near you.
BTW, this Tuesday Jan. 24 there's a double
whammy of fine local songwriters- On The Deck in
Atlantic Highlands is featuring Chelsea Yarrow Gould
at the Atlantic Highlands Arts Council's Monthly
Open Mic. And at the new
Green Planet in Ocean my dear
friend and Musicians On A Mission Prez
Jenny Woods
shows off her sumptious vocals and catchy songs as
the featured artist at Sheli Aarden Monacchio's
Weekly Open Mic.
This Saturday I am at the
Rum Runner in Rumson with Pam McCoy- have a great
week, cya there!
1/7/2012 Hi everyone- A plethora
of original performances is coming up and I just
wanted to tell you about them!
This weekend,
Saturday January 7 I will be performing with Cara
Smith at Espresso Jo's in Keyport. Cara gave a
magnificent performance at the Winter Solstice Show
at The Saint and this is gonna be even better, since
it will be a full set.
Later next week I will
be performing with Andrew James Hughes opening for
Colie Brice at Bar Anticipation in Lake Como on
Thursday January 12. See my
Reverb Nation site for some
samples of my work with Andrew, which is available
at Amazon, ITunes and other online sites.
Next Saturday January 14 I will be giving my debut
performance with one of the most renowned
songwriters from the Trenton area, the critically
acclaimed Kim Yarson, at Its A Grind in Plainsboro.
And finally, on Saturday January 21 I will be
performing at a special Bob Dylan tribute show
w/Zara for Parents Who Rock at Studio Kids
Art in Montclair. We will be performing Zara's
version of Dylan's "I Believe In You", which is on
her great CD "You Me And Us", and which happens to
have been produced by Bob Dylan's producer Ted
Perlman.
Speaking of Zara- the Montclair
area has been buzzing about her phenomenal
performance at Montclair's First Night! Special
thanks also to Cook Smith and Rock On! Radio's Danny
Coleman for holding down the rhythm, and Ben Karas
for his red-hot violin playing!
Watch for
many more shows with yours truly and Zara- we are
having a blast performing together, and we look
forward to many more shows in the future.
Finally this month, I will be appearing with the
great Pam McCoy and Familiar Faces at the Rum Runner
on Sea Bright on January 28.
Anyone familiar
with the Asbury Park music scene knows about the
Light Of Day series of shows
coming up this week. Several of my fave acts will be
appearing, including Jo Wymer, Dan Hall, the
Juneberries, Rob Dye and on and one. There will be a
special tribute to the fallen of Asbury Park's music
scene, such as my bandmates Kevin Kavanaugh, John
Luraschi, Bobby Alfano and Danny Gallagher, on
January 13. Try to make it out to support this great
organization- there'll be something for everyone for
sure!
In other news, I was honored to perform
with the great soul singer Dorothy Lee at Chico's
House Of Jazz in Asbury Park a few weeks back. Since
then she's been nominated for a Grammy, and will be
a featured performer in a series about the
Women Of Jazz, running all thru
January- check it out and check her out, she's about
the best there is!
Finally, a shout to three dear friends whose
birthdays are this month- Cook Smith just celebrated
his this week, Carol Barbieri's is just a few days
away, and later this month my dear friend and fellow
Gotrocker/Disco Reject (now with a great band called
License To Chill) Vini Lopez celebrates his.
With the year off to such a great start, it can only
get better - thanks for being a fan of Al-Vis, 2012
is gonna be the best year ever!
1/3/2012 Happy 2012 Everyone!!!
Two major developments in the career of Al-Vis
this past weekend:
-Unfortunately, I have had
to part ways with my high school-era band NFS. But
they will be carrying one without me, and with new
lead singer SondraH they will be awesome! I suggest
you check them out, here is their Facebook site.
and check out the cake they made for me on our last
gig together!
-It was a raucus, rambunctious and rockin'
New Years Eve as Zara gave her first performance in
her hometown of Montclair. Danny Coleman, Cook
Smith, and special guest violinist Ben Karas rocked
their socks off, and keep your eyes peeled for more
shows featuring this great lineup.
Al-Vis, Zara, Danny Coleman, Cook Smith (ph
by Yasmin Acosta)
Ben Karas, Al-Vis, Zara,
Danny Coleman, Coook Smith (ph by Meg
Beattie)
12/31/2012
Zara Rocks First Night In Montclair!
(click to view full size)
However you spent it I certainly hope
everyone had a great New Years Eve!
Later
this month you can see me at Its A Grind in
Plainsboro NJ w/Kim Yarson 1/14, at the Parents Who
Rock Dylan Fest in Montclair 1/21 and with Pam McCoy
and Familar Faces at the Rum Runner in Sea Bright
1/28. See my Calendar page for breaking details.
And don't forget to catch Zara's appearance on
TV 34's Arts Up Close, which you can view
here.
Also this month,
don't forget Light Of Day in Asbury Park, featuring
many of the Asbury Park area's finest. Runs from
January 12 to 15. Currently I'm not on the schedule
but you never know when I'll be pulled up onstage;
in any case try to make it to at least some of the
great events of that week if you're in the area.
12/23/2011 I would like to wish you all a Merry
Christmas from the bottom of my heart!!!
w/Carol Barbieri and Zara, Winter Solstice
Show @The Saint 12/21 pic by Artie Anderson
w/Fred Dorward, NFS'
SondraH and Bobby Strange, Winter Solstice
Show @The Saint 12/21 pic by Dale Lakata
I'll see you next week at McGillicuddy's
Lakeside Taphouse (FKA The Lake House) on Friday Dec
30 with NFS, and at
First Night In Montclair, NJ
with
Zara Sat Dec 31 6 PM sharp!
12/19/2011 The Home Stretch- g'bye 2011- 2012 Here
comes Al-Vis!
Please enjoy this edition of
Arts Up Close with your host Meg Beattie Patrick
interviewing Zara, before we rock out on some of
Zara's great originals. This show is airing up in
the Montclair area this week.
Coming up this week: Wed Dec 21 A Winter
Solstice show like no other-upwards of 40 or so acts
will be singing holiday songs. I will be performing
2000 Miles with Zara, show host Cook Smith and Rock
On! Radio's Danny Coleman, and my good friend Dale
Lakata will be doing Pretty Paper. Also on the bill:
Jo Wymer, Davina Azziz, the great Beanacht coming
off their very first CD release event, Me and Bobby
D and so many others! Show starts around 6 or so,
and runs until closing time so come out early for
the full show!
Then on Thursday Dec 22 Mike
and Al-Vis return to the great Sprengel's Garden Bar
in Neptune for a Christmas Re-union show- come on
out and have some drinks and fun with us.
Next week NFS returns to McGillicuddy's Tap House
(FKA The Lake House) on Friday December 30, with our
new singer SondraH.
And to top off this great
year in the career and life of Al-Vis:
First Night in Montclair With
Zara. Our lineup includes Danny Coleman, drums, Cook
Smith, bass, and we have just added a violin player
who will be sitting in. The show will be held at the
Unitarian Universalist Congregation on Valley Road,
2 sets starting at 6 PM.
As for 2012.... who
knows what the future brings, but here's hoping it
brings all of you lots of happiness, prosperity and
music!
12/14/2011 A winter Solstice show, Pam McCoy at the
Pier House this Friday, a special appearance on
Danny Coleman's Rock On! Radio Christmas
Extravaganza this Sunday, the return of Mike and
Al-Vis to Sprengels, NFS at McGillicuddy's Tap House
(FKA The Lake House) and then: New Years Eve at
Montclair's First Night with Zara!
Gonna be
the best December ever, my friends, hope it is for
you too!
Taylor Hope, Al-Vis, Zara @McGilliCuddy's, Loch
Arbour Oct. 2011
Click for a full-size
version of this great shot
12/4/2011 Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you
all! I have just posted my December schedule on my
Calendar page.
Here's a bit of a dose of
Christmases past to get you in the mood!
Bobby D., Kelley, Patty and Al-Vis from
Christmas 2010
11/24/2011 A few shots of this week's show at The
Saint in Asbury Park, which features six of the
area's most highly talented female performing
artists.
Songs For
An Autumn Evening At The Saint Nov 22 2011
Al-Vis and Carol
Barbieri
Zara and Carol Barbieri
Al-Vis
and Carol Barbieri
Carol Barbieri and Jim Sickles
Todd G., Carol, Al-Vis,
Kim Yarson, Mike Thompson, Danny Coleman
Cook Smith
and Kim Yarson
11/19/2011 This Tuesday November 22 I am honored to
be performing with the great Zara at "Songs For An
Autumn Night", at The Saint in Asbury Park. I will
also be performing with another towering figure in
the Asbury Park music scene- my dear friend Carol
Barbieri. The full lineup is:
Kim Yarson Zara Carol Barbieri Lo Kloza
Alexandra Inglis Aneesha Natarajan
Admission is a paltry $8.00 and the doors open at
6:30.
And don't forget to watch for the air
date of the TV show on Montclair's Channel 34 with
Zara, Focus On The Arts with Meg Beattie.
If
you're in the mood for some rock and roll on
Thanksgiving Eve (the next night, Wednesday November
23), I'll be performing with my ol' bud Mike Cusack
in the Mike And Al-Vis Duo at Sprengel's Garden
Sports Bar, located at Route 33 and Wayside Road in
Neptune. We start around 7:30-8:00 PM- and rock
until almost midnight!
Coming up - news of a
very special New Years Eve performance- this is
gonna be very big folks, so check back soon!
11/12/2011 What a great time
Zara and I had at
TV 34 in Montclair this week-
for a show on the arts that will be airing soon over
cable and also on the
internet. Watch this site for the air dates.
NFS rocked McGillicuddy's this past Friday- thanks
to all of our fans for coming out for the debut of
our new singer SondraH! We'll be back there December
3.
Also coming
up: a special show at The Saint in Asbury Park:
"Songs For An Autumn Night". This even will feature
several top artists, and I am honored to be
performing with Carol Barbieri during her set and
then with Zara. Save the date: Tuesday November 22,
it's sure to be a great evening of music!
And: the return of Mike And Al-Vis to Sprengels
Garden Bar in Neptune Wednesday November 23. We
haven't performed there in a while so we are looking
foward to being back at one of our all-time
fave venues. Admission is always free, show starts
around 7:30 so come on down!
And then NFS is
back at McGillicuddy's on December, and watch this
site for a special New Years Eve performance. See
you soon!
11/6/2011 Over a week has
gone by and I have not heard from YouTube, Spring
Lovelle or anyone else, and the videos remain on
YouTube. I'll continue to
monitor the situation, so pls check my Tribute page
here or my main Facebook site (friend me if you're
not already) for breaking news on this.
Speaking of breaking news, NFS has just added SondraH as our new lead singer, to share lead vocals
with yours truly. SondraH brings a hugely expressive
style and several years of experience with such
bands as Vynt Edge, so watch for her debut with us
this coming Friday November 11 at McGillicuddy's
Lakeside Tap House (FKA The Lake House and
Parkhills) in Loch Arbour. Cya there!
(click for
full size)
10/30/2011 I have breaking
news about the situation with Spring, Spring
Libutti, Spring Lovelle, etc. She (it had to be her,
though the complainent is not identified) has moved
to have the videos I posted of us removed from my
YouTube web site. See my
tribute page
here for the info. And remember, in the end its
about the music, which neither she nor anyone else
can ever take away.
You can email her
here (this is a public
page, I should point out) if you want her side of
the story or to voice your protest.
10/25/2011 Had a great time
w/Pam McCoy and Familiar Faces last Friday at MJs in
Middletown! Special thanks to Pam for having me
aboard- look for some more performances with this
living legend of the Asbury Park area rock scene
(Holiday Express, Norman Seldin, etc etc).
And on Sunday I had the honor of performing at the
Sudsy Mug in Neptune, a fundraiser for
Destination Jersey Hope with a stellar
lineup including Carol Barbieri, Dan Hall, Lo Kloza,
Dale Lakata, Danny Coleman and one of my current
fave projects, Zara. Together we helped raise $ for
the safe return of two children who have been
abducted to a foreign country. Keep an eye on the
local news such as the Asbury Park Press and News
Channel 12 for breaking developments in this matter.
Carol
Barbieri performs w/Al-Vis, Todd Goldin, Gary
Phillips and Fred Durword at the Sudsy Mug in
Neptune 10/23/2011. (click to see full-size)
November is just around the corner, and
it finds Al-Vis performing once again with Pam McCoy
and Familiar Faces at the Rum Runner in Rumson on
Saturday November 5. Then a reunited NFS takes its
all-70s show to McGillicuddy's Lakeside Tap House on
Saturday November 11- you don't want to miss this
one!
Speaking of re-unions, on Wednesday
November 23 Mike and Al-Vis will be returning to
Sprengel's Garden Sports Bar in Neptune- this is
Thanksgiving Eve so its sure to be packed!
Coming up further down the horizon- Zara Phillips is
in pre-production on a new video for her song 'Red
Boots' from her CD 'You And Me And Us'. And Andrew
James Hughes is currently working on a video for "7
Long Years", a single we recorded a while back that
is available on iTunes and other fine sites.
And don't forget Cook and Carol's open mic at
McGillicuddy's Lakeside Tap House every Wednesday,
where you can catch Al-Vis sitting in with such
great local performers as Dan Hall, Vini Lopez,
Carol Barbieri and many others.
10/15/2011 Had a blast at
the Pier House in Long Branch with Pam McCoy and
Familiar Faces last night! Pam and I have some other
shows coming up soon- including this Friday Oct 21
at MJs in Middletown. check my Calendar page for
updates.
Suzanne Feimster, who is a resident of
Jackson, NJ and Asbury Park Middle School teacher
left on August 1st with her family to visit
relatives in Tunisia. Her estranged husband, Walid
Bensayeh, abducted their two daughters during a
recent trip to visit family in his home country of
Tunisia.
On Sunday Oct 23, pls join Al-Vis
with some good friends and top-notch entertainers:
Carol Barbieri, Cook Smith, Dale Lakata, Dan Hall,
Zara Phillips, Lo Kloza and Danny Coleman as we
perform at a show at the Sudsy Mug in Neptune to
raise $ for this cause. Here's a run-down of the acts-
thanks to all of them for their enthuisiasm and
generosity!
Coming up in November:
the return of Mike And Al-Vis (well one gig
anyway!), and more NFS, Zara Phillips and Pam McCoy
performances.
10/10/2011 A few years back,
Spring and I showed up at a fundraiser, where she
was asked to make an appearance, at Red
Fusion/Harry's Roadhouse in Asbury Park. As we
walked thru the door we noted that the crowded club
was packed w/musicians and bands of all types.
When I asked her what she was going to sing she
said she had an idea. When her time came they called
her up to the stage, and broke into an a cappella
version of "Amazing Grace". As crowded as the place
was, every voice in the room became silent, and
every eye turned to the stage. Her voice filled the
club as I stood there listening in awe. Afterward
she got a deafening ovation, and we left.
That organization was 180 Turning Lives Around.
Yesterday, Sunday Oct 9
Musicians On A Mission
presented an event at Rosies Cafe from 5 to 8 PM,
full of some of the most talented people you will
ever hear. Spring Lovelle (as she now
calls herself) wasn't there (her career has long
since faded from the scene) but it was just as
memorable as that 2-3 minute performance of hers so
many year ago!
Also this past weekend
Chik-A-Boom performed at 2 great benefits, both at
the Headiner in Neptune. Saturday was Sluggofest,
for Mat Gannon, who has run up some medical bills
lately with a serious medical condition, and Sunday
was Christine's Hope For Kids FUNdRaiser, which also
featured Vini Lopez w/License To Chill, Outside The
Box and Bobby Bandiera.
Coming up this Friday
October 14 I am scheduled to be appearing w/ Pam
McCoy at the Pier House in Long Branch. Later on
this month I will be appearing w/Zara Phillips at a
benefit at the Sudsy Mug in Neptune for Destination
Jersey Hope, on October 23. See you soon!
10/3/2011 Great time at the
Headliner yesterday for the Stone Pony Reunion show
for the Wag On Inn! Got to jam w/ Rick Desarno,
Chk-A-Boom, Laura Crisci and my old pal and bandmate
Vini Lopez, who also did a fine set with his band
License To Chill.
Saturday
Chik-A-Boom returns to the Headliner for
Sluggofest, to help out a dear
friend with some crushing medical expenses.
And Sunday Oct 9 Chik-A-Boom will also be at the
Headliner, performing with Bobby Bandiera, Outside
The Box, and back w/ License To Chill. This is an
event to raise money for Christine's Hope For Kids,
and organization that travels to thrid world
countries to support missonary work. See my links on
the right for a great viddeo from last year's event
featuring Chik-A-Boom w/Bobby Bandiera, members of
Outside The Box and other great guest artists.
Later this month- 2 events featuring Al-Vis
with one of my favorite artists, the great
Zara
Phillips! We'll be opening for Jen
Chapin on October 15 in Asbury Park, and the next
week appearing at a special show for Destination
Jersey Hope in Neptune on October 23.
See below for more on these shows, and watch this
and my other sites for breaking news!
9/27/2011 Ready to RockTober
2011!!!
Its been an up-down-all-around kind
of summer for Al-Vis. Some doors closing, others
just starting to open, and still plenty of music
around each corner!
Had a blast at my Neptune
Senior High School class reunion last weekend and
want to thank Heidi, Patti, Nancy, Celia, Tom and
the entire reunion committee for their hard work,
and everyonea for a great time at the Oak Tree Lodge
in Neptune!
After a few weeks of relative quiet Al-Vis
schedule picks up steam mightily in October, with
newer projects taking the spotlight and some
existing ones going into high gear. Read on for a
rundown of the next few weeks.
This weekend I
will be premiering my 70s era band NFS at McGillicuddy's Lakeside
Tap House on Saturday night. Also consisting of Rick
Draper, drums; Cole Janus, bass and Mike Jones,
guitar we've been hard at work rehearsing songs by
the likes of The Yardbirds, Led Zep, Grand Funk,
Blue Oyster Cult, Mountain, Bowie, Cream and many
other classic rock acts we (and maybe you?) grew up
with. The show starts at 10 and there's no cover, so
come on over to McGillicuddy's Lakeside Tap House,
located on Main Street in Loch Arbour this Saturday
Oct 1.
On Oct 2 there will be the first
of a round of benefits that Chik-A-Boom will be
involved in at the Headliner in Neptune. This one
will also feature Harry and Joel, Al-Vis' good
friend and former bandmate Vini Lopez' band License
To Chill, Steve Barr of the B Street Band and famed
Asbury Park area guitarist Ricky Desarno. This will
be a benefit for the Wag On Inn, a local Cat
sanctuary. Show starts at 4 and runs through 9 PM
and tix are a mere $5.00.
The next weekend on
Friday October 7 I will be making my debut with a
highly revered singer Pam McCoy at Rooney's in Long
Branch. Pam and I have been getting very excited
about peforming together- her act Familar Faces has
featured some of the areas finest musicians so I am
highly honored to be performing with her!
On
Saturday October 8 Chik-A-Boom returns to the
Headliner for "Sluggofest", to help a friend with
his expenses after suffering a stroke. This show
starts at 3 PM and features a lavish buffet, gift
auction and 50-50.
On Sunday October 9 Chik-A-Boom's final
performance for the month will be a fundraiser for
Christine's Hope For Kids.
Christine was a young lady who was killed while
doing missionary work during the Haitian earthquake
a while back. This show features Outside The Box,
Bobby Bandiera and Vini Lopez and License To Chill.
10.00 at the door, and it runs from 2 to 6.
On Friday October 14 I return with Pam McCoy
and Familar Faces, this time at the Pier House in
Long Branch starting at 9 PM.
Saturday
October 15 will be a very special performance with
an act that has become very special to me. I will be
performing with the great
Zara
Phillips, opening for Jen Chapin, at
the VFW in Asbury Park, and this is another benefit,
this time for Back Home Again, which is billed as
"One History Night Helping With Artists Helping
Those Neighbors In Need". Performing with us will be
the famed violinist Taylor Hope, Rock On! Radio's
Danny Coleman on drums and other special guests. Our
great friend Carol Barbieri will also be leading a
songwriter's circle which at this time is to include
Bobby Strange, George Wirth, Cook Smith, Laura
Crisci and Kevin John Allen. Tix are 22.00 and
available by calling, 1-888-71-TICKETS. The ShowClix
call center is open Monday through Friday, 9:00AM -
9:00PM (EST). Show starts at 6 PM.
So far we have Cook Smith, Dan Hall,
Dale Lakata, Carol Barbieri, and more TBA. The event
will be held from 1 PM onwards at the Sudsy Mug in
Neptune.
And then comes November- stay tuned!
By the way, when I can I stop by Cook and
Carol's open mic at Mcgillicuddy's Lakeside Tap
House on Wed nights- I'm there nearly every
Wednesday if you're in the Asbury Park/Loch Arbour
area pls check it out!!!
9/5/2011
Join Al-Vis in a
special appearance with Jo Wymer this Friday
September 9 at D'arcy's in Bradley Beach!
I first heard Jo a couple of years back when we
were sharing producers and was immediately floored
by the power of her music and her live performances.
I was honored to perform some shows last year with
someone whose music and talent I admire so much, and
am thrilled to be performing again with one the
area's all-time great performers. We'll have a fun
night trading off favorites as we explore each
others styles and I know the audience will have a
blast!
From her web site: "In a musical
landscape often dominated by youngsters,
singer-songwriter and guitarist Wymer considers
herself a grownup. She has earned every one of the
open, raw, and unrefined feelings in her songs –
heartache, yearning,ex, lust, sin, romance, loss,
and joy –and her voice promises her audiences will
feel them too.
Her debut album, "Living With
Scars", released this summer to a packed house at
the Wonder Bar in Asbury Park, finds itself
comfortably beside the classics of late 1960’s and
1970’s rock, r&b, and soul. It is available on
CDBaby.com, itunes and several other online sites."
http://www.JoWymer.com
8/28/2011 Got to play a set with
the great Zara Phillips at the new McGillicuddy's
Lakeside Tap House (FKA The Lake House) this past
week- thanks to Danny Coleman (Of Rock On! Radio
fame), Carol Barbieri and the great renowned
violinist Taylor Hope for helping is out!
Zara returns to her native Britain for a few
days, then we plan on scheduling some more shows so
watch this space.
Also coming up this fall, a
round of benefits and fundraisers, including a major
reunion of some classic Asbury Park bands that
performed at the Stone Pony back in the day.
Next public performance is with the award
winning red hot Jo Wymer at D'arcy's in Bradley
Beach on Friday September 9 at 10 PM
I also
have some shows planned with Pam McCoy and Familiar
Faces- gonna be a great fall 2011 season so stay
tuned!
8/20/2011 In the 1980's Al-Vis
was embarking on a journey that would find him
performing with some of Asbury Park's greatest
rockers- from Don Erdman, Vinnie Roslin and Vini
Lopez in JP Gotrock to Steve Schraeger and
Stringbean in Big Danny's groups, and countless
others.
Across the pond in
London, Zara Phillips was also off on a journey that
found her performing regularly on Top Of The Pops
with artists such as David Essex, Nick Kamen and Bob
Geldof and many others.
All these
years later, Asbury Park meets London as Al-Vis
teams up with Zara at the
Sand Witch on the Asbury
Park boardwalk on Sunday August 28. Also due to
appear are some very special guests, mostly from
this side of the pond, but you never know who else
could cross that pond now, do you???
Zara's
latest CD is
You Me And Us, produced by
famed producer Ted Perlman (Bob Dylan), and
including the adoptee rights song "I'm Legit", with
Run-DMC's Darryl McDaniel. She also has a book
Mother Me, about her own
struggles incoming to terms with the emotional
overtones of growing up as an adoptee. Both are
available at several places online, including
Amazon.com.
Al-Vis has
been performing in the Asbury Park area for many
years, including 20+ years with Chik-A-Boom, a
popular cover band that has played nearly everywhere
at the shore. The CD Road Construction, released in
2010, is available on this web site and at his
performances.
The Sand Witch has been
showcasing the best of the Asbury Park music scene,
along with providing great food, for the past few
summers, and is located at the Boardwalk and 3rd
Ave, next to the miniature golf.
7/26/2011 Had a great time at
Wonder Bar this past Sunday July 24. Got to jam with
Lance Larson, Tom Labella, Mick Seeley and my
bandmates of 21 years in Chik-A-Boom!
Backstage
pass for Benefit For Tracy Story, 7/24/2011
Next public gig is with Dale Lakata and Eden
at The Wonder Bar again on Sunday August 7- see ya
there!
7/17/2011 Thanks to the Atlantic
Highlands FilmOneFest for having Zara, Carol and
Al-Vis yesterday, we had a blast!
7/12/2011 Breaking news!
Zara
Phillips will be making her debut at
the Atlantic Highlands
FilmOne Fest this Saturday July 16 at
5:15. Carol Barbieri and Al-Vis will
be joining Zara as she performs songs from her new
CD
You, Me And Us and her newest
single "Under The Big Sky"
Many other fine
acts, such as Jenny Woods and Mikey B will be
performing at the street festival that day, and
Jo Wymer
(hot off her packed-house CD release event at the
Wonder Bar in Asbury Park) will be playing between
screenings at the show that night.
7/9/2011 No public gigs over the
next couple of weeks so here are some great shots
from this past weeks performances. Click to view
full size.See you soon!
Al-Vis
w/Zara
Phillips 7/6/2011 Lake House Loch Arbour
NJ, showcasing her new single about adoptee
issues called "Under The Big Sky"at
Cook and Carols weekly open mic.
Todd Goldin
dancin' machine at The Lake House 7/8/2011
w/Chik-A-Boom
NFS w/open mic hostess Carol
Barbieri at the Lake House 7/8/2011. Al-Vis,
Carol, Cole Janus, Rick Draper and Mike
Jones.
7/6/2011 Hi everyone, thanks for
making it out the Beach bar in the Convention Hall
in Asbury Park for my show with
Patty Tracy!
And thanks to Celia for
this
great pic.
Chik-A-Boom makes a return to
the Lake House this Friday July 8!!! As a lot of you
know Chik-A-Boom has played this great little venue
(soon to be renamed McGillcuddy's Tap House) for
many years, one of our favorite places to play.
With a nice little patio overlooking Deal Lake
and Asbury Park, The Lake House is a great
restaurant too so come early if you can and bring
your appetite! We start some time after 9:30.
BTW, if you're in the area on Weds nights, my
friends Cook and Carol are now running a great
little open mic there, and I've been having a great
time at it- last week I got to jam with Patty Tracy
and Bobby D., and it has also featured some of the
areas best original talent. So stop by any Wednesday
for some great jammin'.
Also this week my
good friend
Artie Andersen is giving an
exhibit at Jamian's in Red Bank on Thursday July 7,
and the great Carol Barbieri will be
providing the music. Carol is also at Espresso Jo's
in Keyport this Sat. July 9, and that same night you
can catch
Patty Tracy at La Cantina in the
Neptune City Shopping Center performing with
One-eyed Jack. Bobby D. from Chik-A-Boom holds down
guitars with this great band, which also features
Don Tracy on drums andMe And Bobby D.'s
Kelley Dewkette Loizos on lead vocals.
CU
there!
6/21/2011 Now that its history,
I just want to thank everyone involved in the
NFS Reunion
last Sunday at the Wonder Bar- what a great time we
all had!
The Wonder Bar just happens to be
the best little rock club around, and its where
Al-Vis' first steady bar gig was back in 1973, so it
was only fitting that we pick this famed landmark
for the show. And
Musicians On A Mission is a
great organization- I strongly urge everyone to
attend their shows, which feature the best of the
best local talent for the best of the best causes!
This particular night raised a few hundred
dollars for the Trinity Soup Kitchen, where Patty
Tracy and I have performed several times, and which
has fed Asbury Park's neediest for over 20 years.
Rick Draper, Mike Jones, cole Janus and Mike
Kiraly and I had the time of our lives, playing all
those great songs from our youth: Mott The Hoople,
Grand Funk, Mountain, Cream, etc etc.
And a
special performance by
Christine Martucci, here, was a tribute
to Clarence Clemons:
To top it off, I
had a great time showing off a new larger band with
my fave singing partner
Patty Tracy, featuring also Don Tracy
and Frank Corbutt of One eyed Jack and Pat Killeen
of Chik-A-Boom.
Finally I want to especially
thank
The Coaster newspaper, for their great
write-up. They have been supporting live music in
the Asbury Park area for over 25 years, and I have
been blessed to have the Carroll family as friends.
Next up: this weekend Pat Killeen of Chik-A-Boom
will be sitting in with Patty Tracy and Al-Vis both
at D'arcy's in Bradley Beach starting Friday at 10,
and at the Beach Bar in Asbury Park on Sunday June
26, starting at 1.
And here's some big, big
news:
Zara Phillips has just returned from
London with a batch of great new songs- you can hear
samples of her stuff here:
And you
can hear Zara and Al-Vis coming soon to a venue near
you! See you soon.
6/12/2011 Its here!
After
months of planning and rehearsals Musicians On A
Mission Presents NFS is coming up this Sunday June
19! Click here
for details, and here's a downloadable flyer:
This will benefit the Trinity Soup Kitchen of
Asbury Park, and will also feature one of Asbury
Park's all-time favorite performers, Christine
Martucci. And also making an exclusive area debut
will be the brand new Patty Tracy Band, featuring
Al-Vis with fellow Chik-A-Boom band mate Pat
Killeen, and One-eyed Jack's Don Tracy on Drums,
along with Frank Corbett on Bass. And you can catch
a special sneak preview of NFS at Sprengels Bar in
Neptune on Wednesday June 15, a final public dress
rehearsal.
Speaking of Patty Tracy, we will
be doing some area performances later this month, at
Darcy's in Bradley Beach on Friday June 24 at 10 and
the Beach Bar in Asbury Park on Sunday June 26 at 7
PM.
And on Saturday June 18 Mike and Al-Vis
will be performing at Sprengels, so the schedule for
this summer is filling in rapidly- be sure to check
back often for breaking news!
6/6/2011 He was as unassuming as
anyone you'd ever meet- far more unassuming than
most musicians. A humble guy who loved music and
rock and roll. He was the keyboard player in
Chik-A-Boom, Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes,
The Bobby Bandiera Band and countless others, And a
great friend and person to have known. Kevin passed
away this past weekend, and he will be missed by the
dozens of musicians and tens of thousands who got to
see him perform. RIP Kevin Kavanaugh.
Kevin Kavanaugh(far left) performs with members of
Chik-A-Boom and Outside The Box 10/2011. Photo by
Rose Montana.
5/18/2011 Sorry if anyone showed
up at my show with
Zara
Phillips at the Sand Witch last Sunday
in Asbury Park- the rain threatened but never quite
came close enough, though it was very very close.
Our show at the
Presby Iris Gardens in Upper
Montclair was also rained out and it has been
rescheduled for this Saturday May 21 at 4 PM. I
haven't been this excited about an original act for
many years, since my work with
Spring,
so this is going to be a great show. And don't
forget Zara's music is online is several places
including iTunes and Amazon.
Then later
Saturday the other great singer in my lifetime
Patty Tracy will be joining me at
Sprengel's Garden Sports Bar in Neptune, starting at
8 PM and featuring some very special guests.
Lots going on this weekend, including Billy's
Fault at the Lake House, and Mickey B.'s CD release
party at the Church Of the Atonement in Asbury Park,
all on Saturday May 21. And dont forget, Mike and
Al-Vis every Friday at 5 PM for happy hour at Bar
Anticipation in Lake Como! Also on Friday, one of
the most dynamic and up-and-coming singers of 2011,
Miss Emily Grove takes her show to the Saint. What a
great weekend of music on its way!!!
Finally,
a dear friend and singing partner of mine,
Carol
Barbieri (that's her on the top right
of my home page), has been leading a battle for
adoptees rights for several years now, and its all
coming to a head this month. Please take the time to
read this and copy and past the letter to send to
the address listed:
We've declared FRIDAY, MAY 20th, WRITE TO
GOVERNOR CHRISTIE DAY!!!!
The clock is
ticking. If the Governor doesn't sign the Adoptees'
Birthright Bill within 45 days of passing in the
Assembly (May 9th), 30 years of hard work by New
Jersey Adoptees and Birthparents will go POOF! We're
asking everyone to write a HARD COPY letter to the
Governor and MAIL IT ON FRIDAY. The goal is to
deliver so many letters to Governor Christie's
office, he'll need a snow blower to get to his desk.
PLEASE SHARE THIS NOTE ON YOUR WALL!!! Tell
your Friends and Family! It doesn't matter what
state they live in. Only TEN states allow Adoptees
to obtain a copy of their birth certificate.
A sample letter is below.
THANK YOU
TO ALL OF MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY for all of your
SUPPORT, LOVE and ENCOURAGEMENT!!!
I am writing to you to tell you that
I support The Adoptees’ Birthright Bill (NJ #
S-799/A-1406). I believe that the bill is fair to
both adoptees and birthparents, since it will allow
a birthparent a full year to place a letter in their
child's file requesting "no contact" or to remove
his or her name from their child's birth
certificate.
Carol and I are currently in pre-planning to do
some recording, which will include our version of
Pete Seeger's "Where Have All The Flowers Gone", a
song I used to perform at the Clearwater Fest with
my dear friend Helyn, and which has been getting
quite a buzz on the local singer-songwriter and open
mic circuit.
Coming up in June: Chik-A-Boom
at the Dive! in Sea Bright, several performances
with Patty Tracy, and a special reunion of my high
school-era band you won't want to miss! Watch my
site for much more info- and please feel free to
visit
Facebook/AlvisRocksMusic for
breaking news and other goodies!
5/8/2011 Hi Everyone-
Very excited about two shows I have coming up with
Zara
Phillips: at thePresby Memorial Iris Gardens in
Upper Montclair, and the Sand Witch in Asbury Park,
both on Sunday May 15.
The
Presby Memorial Iris Gardens,
located at 474 Upper Mountain Ave in Upper
Montclair, offers stunning array of Iris flowers to
visitors from all over the world. Zara will be
performing there at 12 PM as part of its
Bloom concert series.
Then at 4 PM we head down to Asbury Park for a
special two hour, all-star show at the
Sand Witch. This little bistro is
located at 3rd and Ocean on Asbury Parks beautifully
renovated new boardwalk. Joining us will be Sean
Haberle and other special guests, and the show is
scheduled to run to 6 PM.
And so I've decided
to make some long-deserved changes to my online
world.
First, I've already announced this
new blog site at WordPress. I'll
continue to write about the music scene in general,
past and present (yes, including my involvment with
this former musical
associate). I'll also put in some stuff
about politics and anything else that comes to mind,
so please read my blog entry "Rules Of Engagement"
to get a feel for how any discussions will be posted
and/or moderated.
And I've disabled my
MySpace site for now, sorry as I am to see it go. It
was this site that set me off on a special journey
just a few short years ago, which has brought me
nearer to my dreams than I could have ever imagined,
and in touch with a whole new vista of career and
personal possibilities.
Much of the content
is available else online, and some of it is even
available here, such as my
Stone Pony
and JP
Gotrock pieces. And I will re-post as
needed also, but I do want to keep moving forwards
here and in my music career, so I will tell you that
I a lot of new material I will be working on,
including:
- A piece about my band NFS,
which will go into some reflections on the 1970s and
what it was like coming up during that era.
-
Some profiles of great acts I've discovered and
continue to discover in the great musical journey
that we are a part of
- A historical/personal
account of my years at the Clearwater Festival,
including the final events that ended in death and
the destruction of a
once-vital music career.
where I will be posting some great newly
discovered relics from the past as well as some
newer musical projects as they come to fruition. I
will also post some videos, and lots of info about
other great acts as I run into them along the way.
My next public performance is scheduled for the
Wonder Bar on May 1, a tribute-fundraiser for ailing
keyboard player Kevin Kavanaugh. I am tentatively
scheduled to perform a few songs with Chik-A-Boom, a
band Kevin performed with for many years (here's a
video of him with us and some other prominent local
figures from last fall).
Thanks to Rose Montana for this!
Just check
this site and my others for late-breaking news on
this- hope to see you all there.
Finally, I
wanted to share this slideshow from our great
friends at
Musicians On A Mission, which doesn't
have a soundtrack because it is meant to be shown at
their events while the artists perform, but does
have some great shots of some great people who could
be familiar to some of you. Enjoy!
4/10/2011 Had a great time
at Kelly
Carvin's Singer-songwriter Shakedown in
Trenton this weekend! I did a set with
Zara
Phillips and Sean Haberle, performing
in a round with Kelly and also the great
Palmer Jan Ward.
Besides
a new film and her CD "You Me And Us" Zara also has
a book
Mother Me available at
Amazon.com:
And it tells the story of her struggles
of an adoptee, conceived amongst the swinging London
music scene of the 60s, on thru to fame with Bob
Geldof and other great stars of the '80 Rock scene,
personal trials and on thru to her current life as a
mother and adoption rights advocate right here in
NJ. A fascinating read from so many angles,
especially for me the musical angle.
BTW,
Al-Vis is now officially a
blogger! My site is:
My first blogs are already posted, one, a tongue
in cheek look at how to become "important enough" in
the music scene, and another on Zara herself.
And here's a pic from this past Thursday's
Musicians On A Mission Benefit
for the Asbury Park Musical Heritage Fund at the
Asbury Blues Music Club:
Chik-A-Boom had a great time, with our good
friend Vini Lopez sitting in on drums for this one.
Special thanks to
Jenny
Woods and her mom Cathy for having us!
The next few weeks will be a bit quiet as I
continue to work on my duo with
Patty Tracy,
now also available as a full band, and continue
rehearsals for the NFS Reunion on June 19 at the
Wonder Bar. Speaking of which, the charity for this
event has just been announced, and it will be the
Trinity Soup Kitchen in Asbury Park, a great
organization that feeds and clothes the needy
throughout the year.
My next public
performance right now is scheduled for Sprengel's
Garden Bar on May 7 with Mike and Al-vis, their
annual Golf Outing, This is always a fun time, with
a free buffet and lots of great friends, Beyond
that- more dates with Zara- Patty Tracy, and the
summer of 2011 just beyond the horizon!
4/5/2011 Al-Vis playing for
the school kids at the the Smithsonian Institute's
Meet The Musicians series in Asbury Park this week,
thanks to Ronnie Brnadt!
Also had a great time at Harpin' Help at Bar
Anticipation in Lake Como Sunday, sharing the stage
with such great talents as Barbeque Bob, Me And
Bobbie D., Jenny Woods, Carol Barbieri, Matt Kay,
Michael Brett, Emily Grove, Christine Martucci and
on and on- and Glen Burtnick even showed up for a
fantabulous set with Rick Barry and George Wirth.
Thanks so much to Brenda Wirth and Sandy Mack for
fitting me in at the last minute, due to my Stone
Pony performance being cut just days before.
And I'll see you guys this Thursday at the Asbury
Blues Music Club performing a set with my old pal
Vini Lopez (fresh from his Wonder Bar performance
with Bruce Springsteen last weekend) as he sits in
on drums with Chik-A-Boom! This is a benefit for the
Asbury Musical Heritage Fund, only 10.00 at the door
for a great night of music, also featuring Pete
Prasa and Pam McCoy. Thanks to
Musicians On A Mission and the
Asbury Blues for having us.
And.... this
Saturday at Kelly Carvin's Singer-songwriter
Shakedown at the Cafe International, 241 Front
Street, Trenton, performing with
Zara
Phillips, whose CD You Me And Us is
burning up the charts at Amazon and other online
sites. The 2011 season is just getting started!
3/28/2011 I had a great gig
at the Bitter End in NYC last Sunday w/ Andrew James
Hughes- watch this site for some exciting news about
us coming up, including some local dates.
Also had a great time performing for the kids at the
Asbury Park Learning Annex on Friday March 18,
for the Smithsonian Institute's "Where Music Lives"
series. I'll be doing a few more of these for the
schoolkids, a great way for them to learn about our
area's vast musical heritage.
I will be
performing a short acoustic set at the Stone Pony on
April 3, a benefit for Butch Pielka also featuring
Max, Cats On A Smooth Surface and a host of other
classic acts from the Asbury's golden era. Also
looking forward to hearing the great
Laura Crisci do
some from her great CD "All Is Well' at this event,
which has been sold out for weeks but still has some
tix available from the scalpers.
Speaking of
CD's, Zara Phillips' CD
You Me and Us is now
available on Amazon.com! A fantastic collection of
great british-flavored folk and rock, a must have
for anyone who loves that type of music. And I will
be appearing with Zara at Kelly Carvin's Acoustic
Singer-songwriter shakedown on April 9 at the Cafe
International in Trenton.
Also coming up,
I'll be performing at the Asbury Blues on April 7
with Chik-A-Boom, which will actually be another
Musician's On A Mission benefit for Asbury Park's
Musical Heritage organization. And still booking
more dates with Patty Tracy- watch this and her site!
Thanks to Ronnie Brandt for this great footage
from the 1987 Clearwater Festival at Sandy Hook,
featuring my dear friend Helyn and some other cool
people (check out who made a surprize appearance
that year at the end of the clip!). Many more clips
of this and other Clearwater Festivals on my YouTube
site.
3/11/2011 More Zara- here she is
with Run-DMC (Darryl MacDaniels) performing her new
single "I'm Legit" at the Hard Rock Cafe in NYC this
week. Zara and I have some dates together coming up
in a few weeks.
From the archives (my online blogs), this is
a bio I wrote up last year for a series of shows for
my Road Construcion CD (see my Quick Links over on
the left of this):
===========
"I had
to cobble this together for an upcoming performance
so I just thought I'd post it for reference.
Also includes the text of a couple of recent
articles written about me.
If this is too
much for any of you, pls believe me- it's way out of
my comfort zone to write a bio on myself! So pls
take it just as a point of reference.
-----------------------
General Info:
Al-Vis
Singer-Guitarist-Songwriter-Writer/Blogger from
Neptune NJ (b. 1958), has performed in the Asbury
Park area for nearly 4 decades, including with the
following acts:
JP Gotrock, Big Danny,
The Hudson River Sloop Singers, Chik-A-Boom, Blue
Plate Special, Vini Lopez and The Disco Rejects,
Mike and Al-Vis, Patty Tracy, Spring Libutti, Gary
Cook, Andrew James Hughes, Cook Smith, Tim Cusack,
Mystery Date, Dave Mains, Carol Barbieri, Zara
Phillips, Jo Wymer and many others.
Notable
Venues: The Wonder Bar(Asbury Park),
Leggetts(Manasquan), Mrs Jays(Asbury Park), Quack
Quack(Asbury Park), The Brighton Bar(Long Branch),
The Deck House(Asbury Park), The Stone Pony(Asbury
Park), The Fast Lane(Asbury Park), The Boat House
(Belmar), Bar Anticipation(Lake Como), The
Porch(Spring Lake), The Clearwater Festival at Sandy
Hook, The Clearwater Festival at Asbury Park, Long
Branch Beachfest, The Saint(Asbury Park), The
T-Birds Cafe(Asbury Park), The Headliner(Neptune),
Kellys(Neptune), Clancy's(Neptune), Jenkinsons
(Point Pleasant Beach), The Columns(Avon), The
Norwood Inn(Avon), The Beachcomber(Seaside Heights),
Brewsters(Bradley Beach), Langosta Lounge(Asbury
Park), Belmar Fishing Club, The Paramount
Sessions(Asbury Park)
Notable recordings
(ReverbNation.com/AlvisRocks): "Transforming" by
Spring Libutti; "Don't Stop The Dreaming" by Big
Danny and also featuring E-Street drummer Vini
Lopez; Several studio cuts by Vini Lopez and The
Disco Rejects; Andrew James Hughes (several CDs and
singles including "Stir Fed And Spoon Fried", see
http://www.myspace.com/andrewjameshughes)
Current CD: Road Construction, available on my web
site.
Current bands: Patty Tracy (duo),
Chik-A-Boom (4 piece rock cover band), Mike and
Al-Vis, Andrew James Hughes
Producer: Cook
Smith, LA East Productions.
Other musical
activities: Board Member, Society Of Associated
Performers 1990-1994; Entertainment Coordinator and
Board Member, NJ Friends Of Clearwater (1988-2008);
Blogger and author of several works detailing life
as a musician in the Asbury Park area during the
1970s, 1980s, 1990s and beyond.
Neptune native Al-Vis has
played guitar and performed with seminal Jersey
Shore bands like JP Gotrock, Big Danny Gallagher,
Vini “Mad Dog” Lopez and the Disco Rejects and
Chik-a-Boom and has recorded with Spring Libutti,
Andrew James Hughes and Big Danny, among others.
But Vis has never released a collection of his
own music, that is, until now. On Sunday, Aug. 22,
Vis will celebrate the release of his first cd,
“Road Construction,” with a party at Sprengels
Sports Bar on Route 33 in Neptune, starting at 3
p.m.
Road Construction, recorded at LA East
studios in Loch Arbour, features original songs as
well as tunes recorded in a nod to some of Vis’
influences: Spring Libutti’s “If I Told You,” and
the late, great Big Danny Gallagher’s “Don’t Stop
the Dreamin’ ” are featured on the disc.
Al-Vis says the song cycle serves as a sort of
narrative of a real-life, mid-life crisis that he
experienced a couple of years ago that resulted in
the break-up of a long collaboration and friendship.
The cd was produced by Cook Smith.
“Sometimes
you have to move backwards to move foward again,”
Vis says. “In order to get past what was happening
to me at the time I decided to blog, write, catalog,
etc., do anything I could to look back over my long
music career and life — and use this to find my way
forward again.”
Sprengels is located at 2447
Route 33 in the Garden Plaza Shopping Center.
Admission is free. Joining Al-Vis will be some of
his favorite artists, including Jo Wymer, Bobby and
Kelley Duo, Patty Tracy Duo, Carol Barbieri, ATM and
Elaine and Jeff. For more on Al-Vis, click here.
It's been said that if
you know Asbury Park, NJ, then you must know AL-VIS!
Deemed a local legend, VIS has been an integral
part of the Asbury Park music scene for the better
part of four decades. It may be easier to mention
the Jersey shore-area musicians that this guitarist
hasn't played along side of rather then the ones
that he has.
One of the most likable
musicians that I've ever had the pleasure to share
several stages with, he has made many friends and
many more admirers. A very smooth player, AL-VIS has
been toiling his wares in bars, restaurants, and
coffee houses all over the shore music scene since
he was a young man.
Inspired by his cousin
who played the drums for a band called The Circle,
he originally started his musical career as a
drummer, abandoning them when his parents refused to
continue buying new drum heads due to his heavy
hitting technique. It was at this point that he
began to play the guitar. This, as it turns out, was
a very good move. Due to his personality and great
guitar skills, AL-VIS has been in bands with, or
played along side of, such Asbury Park luminaries as
Vinny "Mad Dog" Lopez, Danny Gallagher, Sonny Kenn,
and Bobby Bandiera, just to name a few.
Surprisingly enough, despite playing with anybody
and everybody, he has never made his own CD. That
is, until now. VIS brought along with him COOK
SMITH, another well-known talented musician, who
happens to also be the engineer/producer of the CD.
This disc, which is aptly titled (if you're a NJ
resident), "Road Construction," was recorded at
SMITH's open-air studio. A five-song EP, "Road
Construction," is a mixture of some Mississippi
Delta-style blues along with tributes to two of AL's
favorite songwriters, Danny Gallagher and Spring
Libutti.
Recently, I was fortunate enough to
be part of the "Road Construction" CD release party
in Neptune, NJ, at Sprengel's Sports Bar. The
turnout was more than just fellow musicians coming
to support a great player. It was an outpouring of
affection for a well-respected, well-liked and
much-appreciated friend and artist. To date, the
three-song set that I did with my amazingly-talented
band mate JO WYMER and AL-VIS was one of the
highlights of my musical career.
I
relayed the story to my listeners of how WYMER and I
were playing the old B.B. King tune "How Blue Can
You Get" when the time came for a lead guitar
interlude. WYMER, a VERY capable lead player
herself, deferred to AL-VIS. The riff that he
unleashed upon the room was one of several
jaw-dropping leads that he demonstrated throughout
the song. I literally got goose bumps when he
launched this bluesy tirade upon us. It was at this
moment that I realized exactly why they call him a
legend.
Look for AL-VIS anywhere there's
music in the Asbury Park radius! If you don't see
him there, you can find out all of your AL-VIS
information at www.alvisrocks.com." ===========
See everyone this weekend at the Jersey Acoustic
Music Awards in Asbury Park Saturday night, and a
new venue, the Dive! with Chik-A-Boom later on that
same evening!
3/6/2011 Here's a clip from the
show I did with British recording artist
Zara
Phillips a few weeks back. Thanks to Joe Powell
Photography for the pics and to Danny Coleman's
Rock
On! Radio for having us!
Just in! I
will be performing at the Sand Witch on the Asbury
Park boardwalk on Sunday May 22 with Zara- watch
this site for details.
This month I have
several great shows lined up. On Friday March 18 at
6 PM I will be peforming at
Give Peace A Chance: John and Yoko Ono's Bed
In for Peace at the Monmouth Museum in
Lincroft. And later that night, at 10 PM.
Patty
Tracy and I hit D'arcy's in Bradley Beach for a fun
night of jamming and carrying on.
On Sunday
March 20 I will be performing with Andrew James
Hughes (sample here) at the Bitter End in NYC,
starting around 10 PM.
Later on in the season
I'll be looking forward to a reunion with my high
school rock band NFS- currently in rehearsals. And
more shows with Patty Tracy, Zara, and Chik-A-Boom.
Looking forward to a great summer 2011!
Al-Vis rocks the
Asbury Blues with Sandy Mack 3/6/2011
2/22/2011 I had the best time on
Danny Coleman's Rock On!Radio show this past Sunday
with Zara! We jammed on several
numbers from her new CD, for those who missed it,
the show can be heard on the stations
listed here.
Thanks to Danny, Art, BC, Joe Powell, Zara and her
friend Eric Habaerle for having me!
Don't
forget about the Jersey Acoustic Music (JAM) awards,
March 12 at the Church Of The Atonement on Heck Ave
in Asbury Park. I have been honored to have been
asked to present the award for Best Female
Performer, and several dear friends of mine are on
the ballot. Please try to support these great
artists by coming out to this event!
And
April 3 is shaping up to be one of the biggest
events in Asbury Park's musical history, with
several great acts reuniting and performing at a
benefit for a very good cause at the Stone Pony.
Show starts at 2 PM, and if you get there early
enough you can catch me doing a short set in memory
of a couple of people who will represented in spirit
only.
So- this Sunday at the Wonder Bar I'm
with Chik-A-Boom at 5 PM, and next Saturday its a
day long St. Practice Day event at Sprengels in
Neptune. Check my schedule- stuff is coming in fast
and furious, see you soon!
2/17/2011 Weathers warming-
things are starting to buzz again in the local music
scene!
This weekend I will be at the
Stone Pony with Andrew James Hughes, starting around
9 PM on Friday Feb 18. You can find a link to
Andrew's site on my main site where you can buy some
of our songs.
Also Friday, at the
Atonement Lutheran Church,
308 1st Avenue Asbury Park, a group of local
musicians are presenting "A Show for Joe", dedicated
to the memory of Joe Chiappelli, whose daughter,
Angelia Pelay, is one of the rising stars of the
local scene. Join Sheli Aarden, Anjelia, myself and
several others as we pay tribute to Joe, who lost
his battle to cancer just a few weeks ago.
Sunday night Feb 20 I will be
appearing on Danny Coleman's Rock On! Radio show,
performing with the internationally acclaimed singer
Zara Phillips. Zara is promoting her new book,
"Mother Me", a new CD "You Me And Us" and a film,
"Roots: Unkown". The show airs at 10 on
www.wifi1460am.com, and all her info is here:
Next Sunday Feb 27 is
Chik-A-Boom's first gig in a while, at the Wonder
Bar in Asbury Park. we will be performing a special
show for the photographer Chris Spiegel's exhibit.
And on March 5 its time once
again for..... St Practice Day! at Sprengels Garden
Bar in Neptune, with Mike and Al-Vis and featuring
some very special guests.
Later on in March (March 12) I
will be attending the Jersey Acoustic Music awards,
where I have been honored to have been asked to
present an award. This show takes place at the
Atonement Lutheran Church,
Heck Ave in Asbury Park and is sponsored by Espresso
Jo's in Keyport. Several of my friends have been
nominated- support live music by stopping by!
And on March 18 Patty Tracy and
I return to D'arcy's in Bradley Beach.
On April 3 I will be performing just a few quick
numbers at a benefit for Butch Pielka, at the Stone
Pony. This star-studded event will feature several
of Asbury Park's all-time great acts: Cats On A
Smooth Surface, Cold Blast and Steel, Stir Crazy, JT
Bowen and others.
Lots of activity on my
YouTube site- I have just
uploaded several rare, previously unpublished clips
of Big Danny, Spring Libutti, and Asbury Park's own
Margaret Potter.
And don't forget my
Road Construction CD, which will
be going online very shortly.
As Danny Coleman says: Rock On!
2/5/2011 "Someday someone should name a street after
them..." from What Dreams Are Made Of, my online PDF
on my reflections of the Stone Pony, said about Butch and
Jack, the original owners of the club.
Exciting news
from Asbury Park's rock Mecca of all Meccas: On April 3,
dozens of musicians and "Pony People" from back in the day
(and from any day) will converge on this great venue to pay
tribute to Butch Pielka. Performances will included Cats On
a Smooth Surface, JT Bowen, Stir Crazy, Max, Cold Blast and
Steel and many others. This will be one of the largest
gatherings of performers in the past 25 years or so (see my
YouTube site for some clips of such a bash back in the 1980s
for the grand opening of the Asbury Rock and Roll Museum),
and it will be for a good cause as Butch has been ailing
lately. Details TBA- watch the news or this site!
And
I'll see you all this February 27 at the Wonder Bar in
Asbury Park, a special show with Chik-A-Boom featuring the
photography of Chris Spiegel.
1/27/2011 Gearing up for the Spring of 2011, when all this
snow and cold will long be history- got some stuff to share
with you!
Here's an audio-only clip from the 2000
Clearwater Festival at Sandy Hook featuring the great
Spring
Libutti in her prime, singing "Speed Of The
Sound Of Loneliness". This is a from a tape I had kicking
around of this great performance, some video clips of which
are here to the left, but I didn't realize these other gems
were on it. Only has the sound (and a recent picture) but I
think you'll agree it conveys the greatness of this
once-promising singer's career. Thats
Frank Patrouch (Rafferty) sharing vocal and yours truly
Al-Vis on lead.
And thanks to Rose Montana,
here is a clip from a performance at
the Headliner in Neptune, a "FUNdraiser For Christine's Hope
For Kids".
It features members of Chik-a-Boom, Outside The
Box, Tommy Labella and our own Bobby Bandiera doing Neil
Young's "Like A Hurricane". Thanks Rose for the video! Check
out her YouTube site for many other videos of
some of Asbury Park's best, including
this clip of you-know-who sitting in
with my friends in Timepiece at Woody's Tavern.
The
Smithsonian is coming to Asbury Park!
To commemorate this, a group of concerned Asbury Park area
artists and arts activists have banded together to form the
Asbury Park
Musical Heritage Society, and are planning a
year-long celebration called "Asbury Park: Where Music
Lives". During the exhibit (which runs from March 12 2011
onwards), the city will be hosting films, exhibits,
concerts, walking tours, workshops etc to celebrate not only
Asbury Park's storied past but also her promising future. I
am proud to be a part of this great event- watch this site
for some exciting news and developments!
Here's a
great find- renowned guitatrist Billy Hector recently posted
this great photo from my days in doing the "Maddog Jam" at
T-Birds in Asbury Park:
L-R: Billy Hectory, Bob
Alfano, Al-Vis, Vini Lopez, Paul Whistler, John Luraschi:
The Maddog Jam Band, AKA Disco Rejects 1989.
Finally, I wanted to wish my friend Vini a happy
birthday, here's a pic of him with the great Laura Crisci
from last week's show at The Saint. Laura's music has
touched so many people's lives over the years, as has
Vini's, and it was a treat to see them perform together at
this great show- thanks to Rose again for this great shot!
LR: PK Lavengood, Laura Crisci and
Vini Lopez at The Saint, Asbury Park Januayr 20 2011, pic by
Rose Montana
And music- yes the music! St
Practice Day is March 5 at Sprengels in Neptune (no snow in
the forecast...yet!) see ya there!
1/16/2011 Had a great weekend of music. On Thursday January
13 Al-Vis and three other fine songwriters packed the
Village Coffee in Neptune City as part of Sheli Aarden's
monthly Singer-songwriter series. My set, titled "Road
Reconstruction", was warmly received as I went into some
previously untold details of my involvement with the
Clearwater Festival all those years, as well as the events
that led up to writing the CD back in 2007.
On Friday
I got to do a set with my old pal Tim Cusack at the
Headliner in Neptune, then it was onto the Wonder Bar in
Asbury Park, where Cook Smith, Rob Dye and Carol Barbieri
were hosting a variety show of sorts for the 11th Annual
Light Of Day weekend. I did a short set with Danny, Coleman,
Dan Hall, Sandy Marino and Andy Russo, alongside several
other stellar performances by such acts as Me and Bobby D.,
Sandy Mack and Poppa John Bug.
Saturday Mike and Al-Vis had a great gig at the Belmar
Fishing Club, then Sunday it was over to the Watermark in
Asbury Park, where this great shot of me with one of my
idols, the phantasmic Christine Martucci, was taken:
The Great Christine Martucci with Al-Vis, 1/16/2011 at
Asbury Park's Light Of Day, thanks to Tim McGivney!
I'll have news about new Chik-A-Boom, Mike and
Al-Vis and Patty Tracy dates soon- watch this site!
1/6/2011 Coming up as 2011 unfolds:
Road Re-construction! I will be performing at some local
showcases to celebrate my CD Road Construction soon being
available at CD Baby and other great online sites. Watch this
site or my Facebook page if you're a member (don't forget to
Friend me if you are).
Patty Tracy Band! Patty and I will be putting together a brand
new act which we hope to have active by this Spring- will be at
least 4 pieces and maybe more. Watch this site and Patty's site
for info about that.
Chik-A-Boom! Last year we celebrated 20 years together. There
has been some speculation that the band may be folding soon. I
can tell you we have nothing so far booked in 2011 (though we
had a GREAT gig at the West Long Branch Firehouse last New Years
Day!). So again, watch this site!
What will 2011 bring? As this great photo from the Stone Pony
last fall shows: Al-Vis with the great Jo Wymer- there is lots
to look forward to- keep checking this site for late-breaking
news!
"You are an incredibly talented man! Just sayin..."
-Jenny Woods
"Is there a prize for the nicest, most supportive musician in
Asbury? I nominate you." -Emily Grove
"Thank You, Al-Vis for your Friendship and Talent and
for showing me that the Flowers never really go away... ♥"
-Carol Barbieri
"Al-Vis is so modest for his talent. He is an excellent
guitar player. He really loves my music and that passion rings
in every note he plays." -Spring Lovelle (FKA Libutti)
"there are few people whom I respect in this business - you
are one of them...thank you so much for saying such nice things
about me....few people say such nice things....You are an
awesome musician and writer and I would be honored anytime to
have you sit in with me!" -Jo Wymer
" Al, I just felt like writing this after I visited your web
page.....out of all the musicians I have played with over
the years, you, I enjoy playing with the most!!! You can
post the following on your web page if you like :-)
I met Al around 1978 at the infamous Quack-Quack Bar in
Asbury Park. He was doing a solo gig with his acoustic
guitar and doing a great job performing some good old rock n
roll. It was a few months later when Al asked me to bring my
guitar and sit in and play some songs with him!!! My first
live gig was in a duo with Al at the Port Hole..aka...Bar
A......it was the first time I sang to a live audience and
the song was "Lying Eyes" by the Eagles....geez...you think
he would have picked an easier song :-)....... Well, 28
years later-- and I am still playing with Al-vis in the band
Chik-a-boom, and we're sounding like two old vintage
musician/friends together. Al taught me a lot when it came
to music, especially when it came to the leads and styles by
musicians such as, Eric Clapton--Keith Richards--Jimi
Hendrix--John Fogerty--Chuck Berry and many others!! I
co-founded my first band "Nightwing" in 1979 and have played
in various bands since. Just wanted to write this to let Al
know how much I respect his musical talent, and most of all
his friendship!!! " -
Bobby D'onofrio
"Dear Al "Al-Vis:
On your timeline you forgot to add that your
greatest performance
was in June, 1991 in the backyard of 79 Church Street,
Manasquan, NJ.
You're a "Wild One." Great website. From your biggest fan,"
- Jim Girard
“Just back from the Bruce show in Buffalo, which words
can't describe. Now back to reality, and we ask
ourselves...what other "other" really good, fun and
meaningful music have we heard recently? The answer
appears as a miraculous vision...the excellent
performance of Chik-a-Boom at the park in front of the
Convention Center July 4th weekend!!
"Who knew that Al Schnitzer was actually Jimi Hendrix
revisited? Not just playing with his teeth, but playing
REALLY WELL with his teeth. And the voice! Who'd a thunk
it?! I still think it was some loop or something!! It
honestly was a real treat to hear you, John and Steve
together exploding on stage and a highlight for a quick
revisit to Asbury. Nothing like the Jersey Shore
Musicians and you guys are at the top! “ -Lip
Man and the Lips in Florida!
"I think you are one of the most
talented guitarists and base players I have ever had the
pleasure of listening to! Your mellow music is a
favorite of mine, especially when you play with Carol
and are at Cook's open mic on Fridays." -
Cathy M.
In Memoriam…..
Helyn Chrobocinski
David
Shearn
John
Parkhill
Danny
Gallagher
“When this you see, remember me and
bear me in your mind
Let all the world say what they may, speak of me as you
find”
-Brian Jones
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Carol
Barbieri w/Al-Vis
Val's Rumson 2010
this
great pic.
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