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And then there were three.
After the sad passing of friend and bandmate Jeff Avery it leaves only three members of DC Star still in the hunt. Vocalist Kenny Taylor left us in 2011 and Patrick McGowan, the drummer on the first singles “Blue Sparks” & “Keeper of the Keys” died around the same time. Pat was a good drummer and person. But Glenn was a better fit for DC Star and became the 5th man in the band that moved to Baltimore and assaulted New York and the entire Northeast.
As I begun writing this article; out of the blue our lovely friend Lauren Foley texted me a photograph of her autographed copy of DC Star's first 45 record. Pretty ironic huh?
Henry and his wife Donna along with the boys Dillon and Eric (yes, our Eric Dalton) have been vacationing in Ocean City Maryland on the week of his birthday August 20th for years. And when Henry told me they were going this year I made plans to get there on Wednesday night to see them all. I planned to stay a night or two but then, something popped up ...
Monday of the week while I was making scatter calls, I texted Glenn Jones to say “YOTUS” and he texted right back “Yak Da Hey” … which meant something was up. So I called and lo and behold Glenn was in Annapolis Maryland! I was stunned because Glenn has lived in South Carolina for almost 3 years now. When I reminded Glenn that Henry’s birthday was the day before he said “it was the only time he had forgotten in the last 20 years”. So I had him.
Glenn and his wife Dee Dee were going on a cruise to Bermuda that left out of the Port of Baltimore on that Saturday. So Glenn drove up early to attend the funeral of an elderly friend, have dinner with his daughter Jessica, drive up to Pennsylvania to see his older brother David, and then drive back to Baltimore to hook up his with his wife for the cruise.
So, since Glenn just didn’t have enough to do … and forgot Henry’s birthday … I said “New plan, I’m swinging by and kidnapping you on the way to OC to see Henry ... “ Ha?
I spent time in NY working on projects with Eric from 2014 to 2020 and saw Henry and Donna all the time. And before moving south Glenn lived in Waldorf MD so I saw him a few times and now we hook up when he comes back to visit his daughter. But Glenn and Henry had not seen each other since a 2011 benefit show for Kenny Taylor. The two backbone boys of DC Star, and roommates for DC Star’s entire run: had not seen each other in over 12 years.
In all seriousness; we had to pull it off, and I understood Glenn’s busy plans. Staying in OC was a dealbreaker so on Wednesday I snagged Glenn in Annapolis and sped for OC. When I was sure Glenn was going be able to go, I confirmed with Eric and Donna so they could film as I burst into the hotel room with the big surprise. And here is the movie to prove it!
* Disclaimer to the video. While bustin' butt on other projects my media gal Susan got this NEWS post up as fast as I could feed it to her. After watching the video (that was cleverly weaved together from the 2 camera angles by Eric) and being the classy person she is; Susan texted "Do you think the chick in the bikini in the beginning of the video will care if you post her picture?" ... So I emailed her back "Hahaha! That's Henry's hot wife Donna the camera girl!" Then Eric tagged his last message with "Wassup! I can't wait for you to post the video on Facebook! I just want to state for the record: *The actors in the video are real people who did not receive any compensation for their appearances, actions, testimonies, gifts, or bods.
Needless to say it was a blessed visit. A lot of hugs and so much emotion in such a short amount of time. After we yucked it up a bit we had dinner on the water. Unfortunately, Dillon got to OC late and missed it. As the sun was setting and time was short, I coaxed Punk and Funk to line up with our backs to the sunset so Eric could snap a few pictures. Thank God.
Then, back to the hotel to have 1 drink by the pool, round up our stuff, and stroll together to the parking lot. As we said goodbye a tear ran down Henry’s cheek as we all fought back our emotions. Henry told me later that aside from the fact we couldn’t stay; His only regret was “If he knew Glenn was coming he would have showered and shaved …” Ha! Ha!
Then Ciao … over the bridge and into the night, headed for Annapolis, cruise control on 80. That was an action packed 2 ½ hours with Dr. Dave and Reverend Gonzo Jones trapped in the same cockpit and what an awesome experience it was ... a day and night to remember.
I’m sorry for the long read but it is heavy stuff and writing that last couple paragraphs got to me again. I gotta to wrap it up but just in case you’re wondering: here’s a few fast-foot notes on my buddies. The big 2 are not big on Social Media so if you have messages for Glenn or Henry you can send them right here on the site and I’ll make sure they get ‘em.
After wrapping up a long run at USPS three years ago, Henry has been keeping himself busy driving a custom bus for special needs children. He played bass on a new project inspired by his licks that is being produced by Eric and I but is yet unfinished.
When Glenn moved to SC he jumped into a pickup band and became a substitute teacher. The school was so impressed: this year they called and ask him if he would like to teach full time. When he said he didn’t have a degree they said “We heard you were in a famous band and we are looking for a music teacher”. Glenn said “I played drums.” And they said “You’re hired!” And on top of that he just got his 8th degree black belt in Korean Martial Arts. The Jones’s had fun on their cruise except the way back when they encountered the outer bands of Hurricane Franklin that took a turn and hit Bermuda as they barely made their escape.
Eric Dalton is playing his last show at the iconic Chance Theatre in Poughkeepsie NY on October 27th. The building has been sold and like so many other famous rock venues it won’t be long before the lights go out for the last time. We’ll post about it on Facebook as the date approaches.
I’ll be reaching out again soon. Hope you had a summer to remember. – David Simmons
