Almost 9:30 p.m.
Marc looks anxious. He paces, he jokes, but really he is thinking about Ric. Ric, meanwhile, is on his way to a shady bar on the edge of a shopping center in Bensalem, PA, from Delaware. He's trying his hardest to make the show in time, but an accident on I95 has delayed him. There are only a few minutes left until Raised on Radio have to take the stage and, without a bass player, they won't sound right.
It's late Saturday night at Brady's Irish Pub. Jennifer has just arrived to see her boyfriend, Ambrose, and his band play. A $3 cover charge gets her in for the night and then it's straight to the bar for a pitcher of beer and on to greet Marc's wife Kelly, already seated in the stage area, watching the members of Raised on Radio get ready for the show.
Charlie
Age: older than 34, younger than 38
Instrument: keyboards
Occupation: odds and ends
In his CD collection: Journey; Asia; Emerson, Lake and Palmer; Rush; Foreigner; Styx; R.E.O. Speedwagon; Rick Springfield; '80s power stuff
In 1998, Charlie and his friend Brian saw Journey play at the Tower Theatre. Charlie noticed the theatre was packed and that the band was popular enough to draw people of all ages, and told Brian he thought a Journey tribute band could be popular. Later, Brian pitched the idea back to Charlie in the form of Raised on Radio, a Journey tribute named after the band's 1994 album. Brian was stuck with bass when Ambrose insisted he would do guitar and eventually Brian left the band altogether.
Charlie has a mullet, and he likes it. He doesn't care what anyone else has to say.
Three times a week Charlie sleeps through dialysis. He's been on the list for a kidney transplant for about five years.
Charlie loves having the opportunity to play with someone of Ambrose's caliber, but he wants to be in Raised on Radio because "A band is as close as four or five guys are ever going to get, whether they love each other or hate each other. When it comes to being in a band, you're nothing else but."
***
Marc
Age: 34
Instrument: lead vocals, occasional guitar
Occupation: technician (refrigeration)
In his CD collection: the Guess Who, Bob Seger, the Beatles, Boston, the Who, Van Halen, heavy rock ... no country.
Marc has been playing music since he was about 10. Brian brought him the idea of Raised on Radio and he was hesitant at first. He wasn't a big fan of Journey. Still, Brian wooed him for about a year until he finally showed up at Marc's door with Ambrose and Charlie. After that, Marc agreed to be the lead singer . Now he does about 90% of the work. If he calls someone to book a show, it's a challenge to get that person to call back and to get them interested. Sometimes he prints up flyers and has his youngest son hand them out because no one will turn down a flyer from a little boy. The band makes a few hundred dollars per show to be split up between the five of them.
Marc says he stays in the band because it's something to do other than play with his kids or work the refrigeration job he's been doing since he was 16. For him, the next step is to play bigger, better venues. They've considered doing original material, but really there is no money in it, and he wants to play as often as possible and get paid. He also stays, because, as he says, "How often do you get to wear leather pants?"
***
Irene is sitting at the foot of the stairs, already dreading the arrival of a child at her house as she sees Marc and Zander. Her son Ambrose's band has just begun to arrive for their usual Sunday rehearsals. She is hoping to get some work done, and she has no intention of playing babysitter tonight.
"Well, Zander looks like a well-behaved child," Irene says, half hoping she might be right.
"I'm an evil one," the five year old responds.
Zander follows his father downstairs to the basement. Eventually the rest of the band members arrive and head downstairs. Charlie is last.
This evening they have a few things to cover. In addition to their regular set list, the band is adding a couple of songs to its repertoire. This means business. They'll play them until they figure out how to play them and get them just right. Everyone needs to be in sync and the song needs to sound good.
Though Raised on Radio is essentially a Journey tribute band their set list includes old and new, pop and rock, things they all like and things they might all hate. Tonight it happens to be the Who.
The song starts off sounding rusty. No one is keeping correct time. How many counts are there in the part they're messing up? Is it eight? Is it 16? All the way around? Who is keeping time? Ric? Josh? Ambrose agrees with Ric. Josh says no. Marc is trying to explain where they need to come in with what. Charlie sits in the back and chews his gum.
"Before we all kill each other..." Ambrose starts.
"Let's go," Marc finishes.
They do it again. Marc counts off his vocal parts with his fingers so that the rest of the band knows when they need to come in. Ric insists they listen to the CD and figure it out. He wants to play it exactly like the original; the band likes to go for their own interpretation. Josh reminds him that putting their own spin on it is the whole point of the band. It still sounds wrong. They look at Marc, who is taking suggestions.
"Marc doesn't listen to the shit," Ambrose jokes.
"Oh I don't? You got balls," Marc retorts, laughing, a cigarette dangling from his mouth.
The room is smokey and hot. A couple of more tries of the song until finally they have to turn on the CD player. Josh sits impatiently behind his drums. He counts along loudly with the song playing on the CD. He was right.
They are going to start the song again, but Josh can't resist a stab at Ric. After all, he was right and Ric was wrong.
"We can look at the master counter," he says loudly with a smirk, just barely looking at Ric out of the corner of his eye.
There will be several takes of the song before they finally get it close enough to stop.
A cigarette still dangles from Marc's lips as he gets through the song one more time. Upstairs Ambrose's mom sits at her computer trying to get some work done. Ambrose's girlfriend hides in their room. Neither woman goes down during rehearsals.
"No, I hear quite enough," is his mom's general thought on the matter. From all the way upstairs you can hear Josh banging on his drums, Ambrose and his guitar solo, occasionally you get a little Charlie, Ric is always filling in the room with his bass and Marc sings loudly into the microphone. His mic stand is wrapped with an American flag print fabric. Zander stands in the back of the room with his hands over his ears, shaking his head. This time the song sounds good, and even down the street they can hear Marc half-yelling, half-singing "Who are you/ Who, who/ Who, who/ Who the FUCK are you?" The band's finally in time.
***
Ric
Age: 38
Instrument: Bass, back-up vocals
Occupation: musician
In his CD collection: progressive rock, Yes, Dream Theater, anything technically challenging, Peter Gabriel and old Genesis, the Bee Gees
Ric is the newest member of the band. In January he responded to an ad that Marc put out. A few months later, Ric auditioned and got the job. At his first rehearsal, he was impressed with Ambrose and Marc's musical ability and he knew he wanted to find a way for it to work. He now commutes from Delaware once a week for rehearsals, and on Fridays and Saturdays for shows.
Ric has been playing bass for 24 years. After his friends suggested he'd probably be good at it, he cleaned out his bank account and bought a cheap pawn shop bass.
Ric stays in the band because he loves to play music. "If they wanna go in another direction, I'm here" he says. "Whatever they wanna do, I'm here. I can play any style of music. Anything."
***
Josh
Age: 30
Instrument: Drums mostly, sometimes vocals, sometimes guitar
Occupation: Sales (Red Bull)
In his CD collection: Led Zeppelin, the Smashing Pumpkins, Pearl Jam, 10,000 Maniacs, the Allman Brothers, Beastie Boys, Tupac, Nas, Nirvana, REM, Metallica
Josh lives two houses down from Ambrose. They met during the bike race that happens in Manayunk ever year. Ambrose mentioned his band and Josh said he'd like to go watch them rehearse. After three rehearsals where their drummer didn't show up, they asked Josh to fill in. He's been in the band ever since.
Josh lives with his dog, Tala, in a house that was his grandmother's. He has an eagle tattoo on his left shoulder exactly like his father's. The entrance to his house leads to a recording studio where he has thousands of dollars worth of stuff. Sometimes Ambrose comes over and the two just jam.
Josh stays in the band because he likes the companionship. He says, "It's fun. Instead of going out and spending $60 at a bar getting drunk, somebody is giving me $60 to play music to people that wanna get drunk."
***
Ambrose's House
6:15 p.m.
Ambrose, Irene and Jennifer are sitting at the dinner table. Sunday evening. A casserole and salad sit in front of them. Ambrose is at one end and on the other is a small television; Irene to his left and Jennifer to his right. The TV is set to WHYY where they are showing a special on the Lewis and Clark expedition. Irene thinks what Lewis and Clark did is really amazing. No one today would be willing to take on that kind of challenge: to roam a bunch of unknown land without any help or any of our modern day amenities.
There is a knock on the door and Ambrose, having just barely touched his food, gets up to answer it. Marc and Charlie have arrived for rehearsals. They stand in the archway that separates the dining room from the living room. Irene's harp stands right behind them, closer to touching the roof of the house than they will ever get. "The little ones are here," Ambrose announces. Irene finishes her dinner and goes to the kitchen to put her plate and silverware away. "I hope Ambrose is going to finish his dinner" she worries from a few feet away. But Ambrose has no intention of finishing his meal. His bandmates have arrived and it's time to start working their way into band rehearsal mode.
***
Ambrose
Age: 25
Instrument: mostly guitar, occasional drums, occasional vocals
Occupation: Data entry
In his CD collection: Dave Matthews Band, Cream, Metallica, Mozart, Led Zeppelin, Rush, Frank Zappa
Ambrose lives at home with his mother and his girlfriend of four years, Jennifer. He started playing music when he was very young, after his mother bought him a little harp. Then he picked up the piano. In 1992 he took up the guitar and from there learned to play bass, drums and more.
He's gotten used to being the youngest guy in the band. There was a time when they played shows and he wasn't old enough to get a drink at the bar. Still, sometimes he is just the little kid in the background. It's up to him to open his mouth, which he doesn't do often.
The current line-up of the band is the fifth combination of members they've had since it was created. Generally they get along well.
Ambrose stays in the band because, he says, "At least right now, it's the closest thing I can get to being famous."
***
Ric rushes in from the side entrance. He's got his bass and his gear and sets it up quickly. A little after 9:30 p.m., the band takes the stage. Couples play pool, fight, make up, fight again and then leave as Raised on Radio plays the soundtrack.
Kelly and Jennifer sit where they can see and comment as the band plays. Jennifer laughs at Ambrose who has taken to fidgeting with his hair as he plays. It's finally started growing long again. "He's like a girl," she giggles. Kelly meanwhile watches her husband singing for a crowd that doesn't seem to notice. Charlie sits at his keyboard, occasionally walks over to the table and sits when he doesn't have to play and Marc -- whose long t-shirt truncates him -- puts his leg up on his amp and shows the leg of his leather pants. Kelly laughs. She tells Jennifer that they are his niece's pants. He tried them on and they fit him better so he kept them. Now he brings them out in the winter, because leather pants in the summer is a bad idea.
Some dancers make their way to the front section of the stage. Older than the pool players, the dancers don't seem to mind being the only ones dancing. They move together in pairs, sometimes a couple dancing to a slow song, sometimes a trio of friends. They shake their hips, laugh, and request songs.
When the first set is over, Josh goes to get some food, and when he returns, his search for condiments sends him to the other side of the stage area where he eats alone. Charlie leaves to chat with friends. The rest of them congregate around the girls until the second set starts.
More people gather to watch the band play. Josh disappears behind his drum kit, with a Tickle Me Elmo -- the tickle taken out -- buckled to the front. Ric continues to contort his face to such an extent that it sparks conversation between Kelly and Jennifer about the band's sex faces. Jennifer agrees that Ambrose makes his sex face when he plays, Kelly agrees that Marc makes his; both agree that Bunny has the most excessive sex face to deal with. After the set, the venue bookers walk over to Marc. It's not too long before they have already booked more shows at Brady's Irish Pub.
So it's one more break and then onto their third and final set.
