brent johnson introduces a new series to pop-break: Hidden Stages, about unusual, sometimes unknown, venues to see live music …
Walk through downtown Woodbridge, N.J., on a Wednesday night in the spring, and you might find something unexpected.
As usual, patrons gather in the smoke shop, mini-marts and restaurants that dot Main Street in this busy suburb. The train station buzzes next door to city hall.
But tucked inside the United Methodist Church of all places, standing where a preacher normally would, could be a Grammy winner or Rock And Rock Hall Of Famer.
In an age when ticket prices are painful and a lack of sales causes platinum artists to cancel shows, there are plenty of surprising, sometimes strange places to see live music — often by big-name artists. Not just churches. But record stores in strip malls. Small pubs in small towns. That’s why Pop-Break welcomes you to Hidden Stages, a new series about these often unheralded venues.
We start with Music On Main Street. For the last few springs, Woodbridge — a sprawling township in central New Jersey — has turned the United Methodist into an cozy, 250-seat concert venue, mostly hosting pop, rock and folk stars from previous eras. Instead of stadium seating and jumbotrons, it’s wooden pews and reverent lighting.
“There’s a time and a place for a huge arena show with fireworks, and then there’s a time where you just really want to get intimate with that artist and their music,” says Larry McCullough, who organizes the shows for the township.
Woodbridge touts it as part of Mayor John McCormac’s plan to boost the community with the arts, attracting concertgoers who might visit the township’s shops and restaurants.
The series has also been a chance to see a Rock Hall inductee like John Sebastian of The Lovin’ Spoonful or a new-wave icon like Graham Parker — close up and crisp in sound. Other guests have included folk star Janis Ian, cult hero Marshall Crenshaw and alt-rocker Jeffrey Gaines. Tickets are about $20.
To teenagers and twentysomething, the names may mean nothing. But the series has often featured rich music that’s been lost in time. Take Al Stewart. He charted two major hit singles in the 1970s: the sublime ‘Year Of The Cat’ and the lovely ‘Time Passages’ — both of which are regulated these days to only oldies and lite-rock radio. Last year, he played both on the church stage, and signed autographs afterwards.
The series returns tomorrow night with Jill Sobule and John Doe. Fans of ’90s guitar rock may remember Sobule for a pair of songs: ‘Supermodel,’ featured in the movie Clueless, and ‘I Kissed A Girl’ — not the Katy Perry hit, but a quirkier, less racy track with a similar idea that predated the pop princess by 15 years.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QaeojQLGQ8
Doe, meanwhile, was the singer, bassist and founding member of the iconic Los Angeles punk band X.
This year’s series also features a pair of Rock Hall members: Roger McGuinn of The Byrds (May 4) and Dave Mason of Traffic (sometime in June, date to be announced). McGuinn’s show drew so much interest that the township moved it to the more spacious Woodbridge Middle School.
The rest of the series: The Nu-Utopians, singing the songs of John Lennon (May 11); ’60s folk stars Chad & Jeremy (May 18); Raul Malo, former lead singer of country stars The Mavericks (May 25).
For more information, visit Music On Main Street’s website at www.lemccullough.com/MusicOnMain/Home.html. You can also watch clips from past shows at www.hoppersmusic.com/MusicOnMain.html.
