Larry and Lance will tell you all that I have WAY too much stuff in the files, so I’ll try to throw in just a few obscure fond memories of the whole deal……

First off, and one that even might surprise Larry is that I remember a short lived band in Ithaca called “Hummingbird” ( I think )…man this little outfit was kickin’ A Salty Dog’s ass on a regular basis,and then came that fateful night when I stood in front of the stage as they announced that it was their final gig as a band. When I leaned over to Larry and expressed my dismay he replied with something like “Hey Man, wait till you see what’s coming”. Of course I was not willing to accept that possibly an even BETTER band was on the horizon. I think now 37 years later I can “Give In To It” ( Thanks for that one too Larry !!!)

… and I too have ALL those aforementioned memories of the Dog, The Haunt ,The 40, and Jabberwacky (sp?) in Syracuse and all the other fine moments from “back in the day” in all those bars…….BUT…here’s a few for ya…and some of you will recall these as I mention them…

How about the time I stood in front of the stage somewhere in upstate N.Y and watched the audience chanting for Orleans as the headliner…Z Z Top… had followed them onto the stage and was doomed already ……

and how about when I stood backstage underneath Wells as he played the set and the guy next to me was gesticulating and nudging me and getting all excited with comments like “look at him man..he’s just phenomenal…nobody plays like that”. Shortly after that I stood in the same spot and watched HIM playing drums up there and realizing it was Russell Kunkel , playing drums with Jackson Browne……

and speaking of Wells…everyone has a book full of “Wells Tales”. I have MANY, but one that I recall often is when he was in mid drum solo at A Salty Dog and a mug of beer fell from Lance’s bass amp, landing as if targeted and planned ,on top of Wells’ floor tom. The result was nothing short of genius as he incorporated the pool of beer into the drum solo as a part of it, now only striking that drum as accent and punctuation and with different intensity, so the beer bobbed up and down, looking like one of those adjustable fountains you see in the classy shopping malls….and all of us drummers again stood with jaws open……

and Hey Larry…do you remember when you handed your trumpet to Wells…again, during his drum solo?…same result…

Several years later ,having relocated to Florida ,I was spoiled by the band (by now including Bob L ,and R. A. Martin) as their guest when they played on the deck at The Magic Kingdom at Disney World…and magic it was… Most people aren’t aware that there is an entire “city” underground there, and all the staff etc.is down there dining and wardrobing and all. And then you come up the elevator onto the deck of the Magic Kingdom and the band takes the stage under the stars in that fantasy land environment…another PHENOMENAL Orleans moment……

and on and on and on…but I will leave you with this one…..

Around 1974 or so, after the band “officially” left Ithaca to go on tour, having signed whatever agreement with the powers that be ,and then was apparently confined to playing only the gigs designated by those powers ,there would occasionally be a listing in the entertainment calendar in the Ithaca Journal such as : “The Rongovian Embassy proudly presents “Burt De Cocteaux and his Dreams of Hell Orchestra”. Well, any of us who “knew” smelled that rat a mile away, knowing that “The boys” were sending out the coded signal that they were passing through town and couldn’t announce it too loud…but upon arrival at The Rongo…yes indeed, there was Burt himself ( Wells, of course… who else would come up with that kind of moniker?) and the rest of the gang, playing an evening of everything BUT Orleans stuff….nothing was more inspiring and memorable !!!…

and on one of those “Rongo Nights” Wells called me to the stage out of the crowd ,so he could play that old piano that rested against the front wall behind the stage…and I sat in on the kit for awhile, wallowing in my glee…

Thanks, Orleans, that glee will NEVER diminish, as long as the work “stays in progress”….

What I had planned to be a memorable family event with my wife & 4 kids watching Orleans perform with stage-level seats at the Turning-Stone Casino began, unfortunately, as just another weekend spent in University Hospital in Syracuse ….. as a few months earlier, our youngest son was diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia. Thankfully, Eric was tolerating his chemotherapy well, & after spending that Saturday visiting him, I left my wife with Eric to drive an older teenage son & daughter back to our Adirondack home. BUT, with tickets still in hand, I surprised them along the way home & stopped to see Orleans that night at Turning-Stone!!!

It was Trey & Nikki’s first live concert ….. and those next two hours were surreal, as the music of Orleans seemed to have medicinal effects on our emotions from earlier that day. For those 120 minutes, we forgot about Eric’s ongoing battle, and time seemed to stand still!! And at the end of their last song, I can still vividly recall John Hall’s pick flipping through the air, bouncing on our table, and landing at my daughter’s feet. I got it for her and two days later, when Eric returned home from the hospital, Nikki gave it to him!

Since that time, both Eric & his eldest brother have both become self-taught, accomplished guitarists, with Tyler performing at numerous open-mic nights on his University of Rochester campus & Eric at high school events. Just a couple of years ago at their school’s karaoke fundraiser for its Relay For Life team, Ty & Nikki “volunteered” me to sing a song with them, and the song THEY picked was ….. “Dance With Me”!!!

Orleans has set an example of how brothers from a Long Island town can join friends from New York state, and succeed by havin’ fun doin’ what they love to do, and in the process, reach international acclaim. Success, however, should not be measured by one’s OWN accomplishments in life, but is better measured by the significant effects one’s accomplishments have on OTHERS’ lives. Based on the accounts written in this blog to date, as well as those affected in my own family, Orleans should be extremely proud!!! (And John - Congrats on taking it to a higher level in Congress!)

We are all subject to the effects of time - but the music of Orleans has stood the test of time!!! Thank God for Orleans, and ….. “Let There Be (more) Music” ….. “Forever”!!!!!

My own personal favorite memory of Orleans is from a New Years Eve gig they did in ‘73 (I think) at a club called The Warehouse, out in Varna where Rt. 13 meets Rt. 366. I was there with my best friend Chris Shearer (and everyone else in Ithaca) and I remember standing right up front as John announced they were going to perform a new song. That song was “Dance With Me” and I remember joking with Chris that the only thing that could have made the moment better would have been if we had actually been with some girls we could have danced with. Oh well. Part of the deal at the bar that night was free champagne at midnight so I found myself standing at the edge of the stage as the band yelled Happy New Year with a bottle of cheap champagne in my hand. John was still at the mic by himself smiling out at the crowd when I thought to offer him a hit from my bottle. He smiled, took a sip and thanked me as he handed back the bottle. I was only 17 and I felt like I was “with the band”. Orleans shows were always loose, funky and friendly, just like the guys. Thanks for ALL the memories.

PS: Wish we could hear Wells playing lead on “I’m a Bum” one more time…

It make me feel good to still have contact with ORLEANS by email….I’m very proud. In Groningen I was there with my brother John, his wife Dana and my younger sister Martha. Oooohhhh…..it was a beautiful and super performance, I’d enjoyed of the songs and music from all of you. Do I have to tell a story about myself or what….because I have one on your Blog. (Your Profile and Personal Options) If you click on michael (above) than you can see my story, I think. (if you like of course) I am Marie Matitaputty, born in Semarang (Indonesia) but my roots is the Moluccan. Age, 57 years young (joking) and I have one sun named Michael, he’s 25 years old. I’ll tell you what……Tamara is my nice and when she was 6 or 7 years old, she sung STILL THE ONE with the mike in her hand and my father had the recordplayer on with this song, ooohhh my god, that was really FUN! My sister and me, my brothers on guitar, we’d almost sung in the kitchen (after diner) with songs of the Eagles, Alessi Brothers, Flying Burrito’s and of course……..ORLEANS with Dance with me… that was/is still the best band of our generation. In every Moluccan family they have records of ORLEANS….yezzzzzz…..

Me, my sister San and brother John have a band too for about 30 years. I’m a singer (backingvocal) John is a singer too and my sister San is leadsinger/backingvocal. We have performance too in Holland, and it’s nice to make people happy with our songs that they like etc. Take a look on our website http://www.focomusic.nl

Hey friends, it’s late here in Holland (two o’clock in the morning) hope you like my short story and we’ll keep ‘n touch!

ORLEANS, me and my family love you all and I do hope to see you soon in Holland again….GO 4 IT ORLEANS, YOU’RE THE BEST AND STILL THE ONE!!!!

GOD BLESS YOU ALL AND YOUR FAMILY!

Thank you so much.

Love, Marie

Barbara Lerner

By then, you had left Boffalongo behind and became Orleans. Still a big part of my memories but now with a new sound that had the unmistakable harmony, guitar and percussion that I could feel in my blood and lyrics that seemed to speak to my soul. I can’t tell you how many nights I spent listening to you, dancing the night away at the Salty Dog, the North 40 or the Haunt . Or how many nights I cut out early from a crew call for a show I was supposed to be working to catch your last set. And finishing the evening off at the Ichabod or the Rosebud Diner for a very early breakfast. The memories are still very sweet and come back every time I hear you play.

But there was one night in particular that I will always remember. It was one of those perfect Indian Summer days and we were cruising back to the inlet after a day on the lake when we heard you warming up. Instead of going back to the marina, we pulled up to the back of the Dog and tied up. It was warm but there was a breeze off the lake. We laughed and listened and danced the rest of the night on the dock, on the water, with a million stars above.

About 30 years later while visiting Ithaca, I bumped into my old friend. We took a ride out to the falls in Ludlowville, climbed through the fence down the path and waded into the icy cold water. And laughed and talked about so many of the things we used to do, including that evening, on the dock, on the lake, under the stars. And for just a minute, I was 19 again.

Reading the other blogs makes all the memories even more sweet and that place and time seem somewhat surreal. Remembering where we were then and all the things in between that happened to make us who we are now. And especially, to the people who I haven’t seen in years. I hope I see you all there.

Barbara

Next stop, Laredo Texas, Christmas 1976. I’m still in a cover band, traveling full time. We’re working at Shearton Hotel, we start “Still The One”, and a fight breaks out. Not really unusual, except one of the fighters has a cast on his leg and uses his crutch as a weapon. Pretty funny, but we go into “Feliz Navidad” and peace is restored. Somewhere across the country are 4 other people who every time they hear the opening chunka chunka to “Still The One” picture the flying crutch.

Next stop the airport at Rochester New York, Easter 2000. I’m returing to MN. from a job interview, and there’s a little jazz band from Ithaca setting up in the concourse to entertain the weary travelers. The leader of the group runs the jazz program at the college, and of course as we chat, Larry Hoppen’s name comes up, and the stories start. Nice memories for the Professor.

Our son Andrew (BTW Fly, another lefty guitarist), and his lovely wife Alex were married in PA. last September. The ceremony was outside, the weather, food etc was all perfect. Two of the songs that evening at the reception were “Dance With Me” and “Dancing In the Moonlight”. Another perfect memory, thanks in part to Orleans. (They can make the cruise on the 22nd, they live in CT. now).

We also missed you down in St.Thomas last year by two days, but saw the poster for the concert when we stopped in a coffee shop to check email. It’s a small world, and I feel like we’re like old friends whose paths thankfully continue to cross.