Had a great time last night at Asbury Park's The Showroom where I was part of a panel discussion about Frankie Lymon, R&B, teenagers and Asbury Park. The topic was loose, but everybody seemed to hit on the same points, centering around the social changes that were happening in the 1960s and how we -- as kids and as a city -- and the music we listened to, all seemed bound up with them.
Tony Pellegrosi and Lorraine Stone were on hand and contributed very interesting stuff. Lorraine's long list of girl groups was very funny and eye-opening at the same time. My role was to generalize (it's what I do best) about the power of music to focus the social needs of the era and its younger generation. And of course to represent the Black Box as a producer of its Music of Invention series.
We also heard some great young, local talent, including singer Kimberly Puryear, guitarist/songwriter Mikey Butler and rapper Little Pop (a devout and cool young man whose "Pop" stands for "Prince of Peace"). Helen Chantal Pike organized the event and acted as a moderator, keeping the whole discussion focused. A wonderful evening.
--C.
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