page in major progress- IF ANYBODY has old skool, posters, pictures of the Fox or crew please let me know

The following story is full of plain humor, sarcastic humor and silly humor. The stories are as true as my recollection is. I am dedicating these pages to Dicke, Gully and the rest of the Fox staff...

the FOX THEATRE opened it's doors on march 6th to the public. the year was 1992. the place, as you know, was the hill. this was my home away from home and it still is. i was there so much i counted the threads in the carpet 3 times (backwards).i frequent the fox still, but not nearly as much as i did in previous years. between 1993 and 1996, i estimate i saw over 900 shows. if my math is correct that means i missed around 195 shows. can you say live music. if you can't spell it out.

some of the shows were good, some bad and a few were just ugly. i have been thrown into the pit when guttermouth played (believe it smudge), i have cleaned up puke (not mine) and i have seen the BEST SHOWS around. everyone has played this venue from radiohead in 1993 to the dave matthews band to ice cube, coolio, lyle lovett and john mellencamp. need i mention phish, widespread panic, 311, the freddy jones band, melissa etheridge, counting crows, joan osborne. coldplay has even played the club.

the fox has been an unbelievable place to see live music and people walking around. i met johnny lang, for the first time, upstairs in the offices. i also met ben orr (the cars). i met ric ocasek (the cars) on a different occasion outside of the club, on an august night. i was very privileged to meet the band (the actual band). ) to meet joe jackson and hunter s thompson was also a treat. (stories about these three to be written) there have been groups who would not go on stage until they got paid, like funkdoobiest and bands who show up one minute before show time because of gettin' stoned or because of faulty or bad transmissions, tires and/or brakes.

in the next chapters i am going to dive into stories like the bootsy collins or the barenaked ladies. i am going to tell you (if interested) how it all begun. i am a slow writer and a very procrastinative (word?)person so go grab a coffee, muffin or tylenol and come back in three to twenty-three days. keep rockin' and brush your hair like a flock of seagull.



before i start with how it all began i have to give credit to dicke sidman for creating and inspiring my second home, the fox theatre. he was a great man. did i say great man?

how it all began: preface

it all started out when i met johnny pfarr, shawn craig and jamie on 17th street. i was always at their apartment having fun which included... well having fun! johnny was the brilliant engineer for acoustic junction and a great guy. johnny remember the yucca. anyway there i met aj, a band that had hits, catchy tunes and good music. the drummer was an animal, the keyboardist a quality musician, the guitarist a great spitter (singer) and the bassist a character from jupiter/mars... he was also a terrific slapper (bass player). aj was my band. they played everywhere and i was there: the fox theatre, the wetlands (nyc), the middle east (boston), maine, san fran. i even went on a short road trip with them back east. the crew was awesome too.

mrs. shawn craig was the general manager for the fox. she couldn't have been nicer to me. shawn remember new mexico/ alburqerque/ elpaso... i now know were elpaso is, but we did have fun renting a car, driving behind the truck and getting the windshield rocked and who could forgot the bachelor party for james at the lake... not i. and who could forget the 2 am call telling you my car was stolen at chautauqua and finding out the next day it wasn't... not i. thanks for everything. talk to you soon.

jamie is a gentleman, but he is not that gentle (just kidding). he went to school with johnny and how i came to meet him and the others is i went to boarding school in massachusetts with his brother, punky. punky and i have some stories. anyway he introduced me to his brother and i was hanging over at 1717 17th all the time. (jalino's pizza late night as well as dumpster diving for accidental, thrown- away, lost money at 4am... punky you rock).
i love music and live music at that. after boarding school i went to menlo college in northern cali, 5 minutes away from stanford. every time i came back to boulder i was at 1717, hanging with the boys and the girl. the fox was the place for live music (as you might know).

early years at the fox- chapter 0

gully: a big, black, man, with a pipe, or in a dress on halloween 1998 ... used to play football on a professional level. he was intimidating, yet so gentle and nice. when you saw him you gave him no guff, but there were a few night-goers who did and they heard from big man. i remember when i had to give him my id and he would smell my breath before and after the night. after 5 times he quit this breath smell thing and trusted me. i wasn't going to fuck this privalage up and i didn't. actually i was a big help (i really was), stamping people at the door upon entry, covering backstage security when employees had to take a piss break and most of all loading out band equipment... i.e. guitars, amps, keyboards, drumkits, drummers when they get too hammered (mom, thanks for the good times and the bar tabs) mom usually does not dress like a cow, but 1998 was the year of the cow. i must also add the fact that i used to run the lightboard when conrad or someone would have to climb up and focus. i loved to help out and do my part. i always complained, but it was more in humor and fun and they knew it. props to the production.

i remember helping with load in and load out for babes in toyland. lift with your knees, not with your back i was always told. it was fun. the fox crew was a blast to hang with and i was well treated by all. that night, mom, gave me a 50 dollar bar tab and i bought drinks for all. if i remember correctly someone made me by them two drinks... mcgyver could that have been you? (picture 1998)

southern culture on the skids rocked the place out. after the show someone pushed someone off the stage right banister onto the stage, but he missed. it was a bad scene. i ran out the back door to get an ambulance and there was a metal chain at the top of the alley, blocking a driveway. i ran into and my glasses (at the time) flew off and i couldn't find them. still, i ran around the corner and directed the sirens to pull in back. i went back into the fox. with a red line on my stomach, i asked a cop to borrow his flashlight to look for my lost glasses. he said no. i went outside and paid some passer-by 1 dollar to find them for me. he did. i love the fox theatre. 1995

i was not even 20 years old when i saw the muffs. the show was full of raw energy and i was in the crowd (i was really watching from the bar where i was sipping on a coke). after the show i was able to go backstage into the green room. kimi (lead singer) was sitting in a chair, drink in hand. she was so nice to me as she signed the autograph- to tony, who is not even 20 yet... 1992

when pauly shore performed his brand of comedy at the club, 1993, it was a great change. he was funny and got a lot of audience participation and laughter. i remember him well, as he exited the club i was there. sharpie in one hand and a photo in the other. he stopped, talked, signed and then was walked to the saab, he and his friend were driving. they were off to aspen to perform. 1993

when you have acts in your hometown, at one of the best clubs, you get spoiled. going to other places to see shows was fun, but you could tell the difference in sound and for me, the staff. i saw an outfit that was so different it was like seeing a glacier in the dead of summer (whatever this means). i am talking about d'cuckoo. this 4 piece girl group made their own instruments and the sounds were so unique. it was tribal rock with a twist of ginger. soft mellow beats with a lot of steel drumming. i actually requested a press kit from this group after seeing them. later i saw them at a concert in golden gate park (san fran).1992

i can not write about the fox without saying thank you to the security, production, management and all it's staff. radiohead, a little band from the uk. still a little band from the uk. barely leaves the uk to tour anymore. plays small venues to this day. well they played the fox in 1993 for very little money and the show, to me, was a great treat. the band was different and not your typical rock and roll joint. i was at the soundcheck armed with the poster promoting the show. i had no idea what they looked like so i asked. i was talking to thom yorke. i said i had never sold an autograph and i collected for fun. at that time i had about 200-300 graphs. he signed away, in big block letters which he went over 3 times to make the black real dark. anyway he was real nice, talking and looking at one of my autograph books i brought with me.

six days after my birthday in 1993 barenaked ladies played the venue. opening the show was free beer. besides bnl putting on a memorable show, complete with macoroni and cheese, i remember the fox gettin' calls about the line up that night. people would call and ask questions like how much is the cover for barenaked ladies and free beer or is there really going to be barenaked ladies with free beer or...

chris duarte played the fox and this poster has seen better days. i remember i snagged it off of a telephone pole, near 12th street back in 1992. you can't tell cause it is frame, but it was rainsoaked and the back is all blue. chris puts on a show. his band rocked. together you get good ol' blues, rock n' roll.

one of the first bartenders i met was a man who was only kind to me. he was always willing to give me free drinks and i was always willing to take them off his hands. (soda... i'm talking about soda). remember i was 19 and i was not going to fuck this up. marko you rock like a shot (Kamakazee). anyway cheers!!!

i didn't drink at the club for about 3 years. don strasburg, who does appreciate the look of a good dress, (1998) bought me my first shot there on a night when i was showing an "autograph man" documentary, hosted by matt need, on a big screen. i think it was a shot of rumplemintz. anyway that night was a freakin' tornado warning in longmont/boulder so a lot of people who said they were coming didn't,but the people who did thought it was great. i showed over 300 graphs on screen and had many stories like: the one about trying to get a graph from the lady who lives in a plane in mississippi- didn't accomplish this, but did accomplish the signature from the archbishop of manila. remember i don't sell autographs so i collect them all. the more obscure the better.

and i can't forget about the picture of beavis my brother drew for me, when he was 13. i had it signed by kirk douglas when he speak on cu campus. back to the fox and the autograph of mary stuart masterson, from a favorite movie i own benny and joon. in the late 90's they shot a few scenes of a movie at the fox. i snagged a few made-up posters for the music club scene. i had them graphed. mary was cool as she was getting her make-up done.

sheryl crow was a brilliant, young talent. i met her before the show. she was sitting in the room changing her guitar strings. i had a purple folder and i tore off the corner of it. i said hi sheryl, my name is tony and i collect autographs for fun: not for re-sale. i love your music... you get the point...

when prong played i remember a large mosh pit on the floor. i also remember the bass player and the bass as he smashed his bass on the ground. i was given that bass and have it on my wall signed by ted.

of coarse i have to mention the music of 311. they always put on a terrific show. full of energy. may i add that they were so nice to me.

i have had poems written about me from bands like spearhead and the ass ponys. moe wrote one to the jingle of particle man from they might be giants. at the sink, down the street from the fox, i am actually characterized on the wall next to the bathroom. (that's appropriate) that was so much fun to see lloyd the artist portray me on the wall. check it out. the drawing has a big nose and i am saying... why the heck does anyone want an autograph anyway?

not to brag, but john wesley harding read about my hobby on the shitter. i mean it. he was taking a crap before his show and instead of using my article as toilet paper (which would be a good use if in the woods, but the papercuts are a bitch) he read it. when on stage he relayed to the audience what he had read on the shitter. i was sitting by the back bar and my ears were stunned. i hadn't met john, but was going to. he told the audience i was trying to get on letterman and that i had over 900 autographs. also he said i had met cypress hill and almost had my eye poked out with a pen in cali by an un-named band. and so on... after the show i was escorted backstage and i said hey, thanks for taking a shit. he replied hey, autograph man. he was a very chill guy. i showed him some of my collection and he signed a piece of paper for me. i then found a cool picture and taped it to the paper. rob wasserman was the bassist for that show, who i also met.