All You Need Is Love
Part Three:
And A Happy Valentine's Day Was Had By All...
Feb. 23, 2003
By The Mighty Afrodite
Ah, it's taken me a little more
than a week to recover, but here I am, Darlings, to share my Valentine's
Day adventure with you.
So where, and how else could I, The Mighty Afrodite, spend V-Day, but
at the Tenth Annual Valentine's Day Benefit for God's Love We Deliver,
putting my money where my mouth is?
It was a grand old time, at
Rare, (Formerly the Cooler) with hosts Lisa Ludwig and Frank
Wood, who really knocked themselves out to pull together a memorable
evening and come through for their fellow human beings. There were bleeding
heart donuts from the Cupcake Café, a chance to make a heart-felt
valentine for house-bound AIDS patients, a raffle of many great and fun
things by Mr. Wood (who would if he could) himself, amazing giveaways,
and of course, the Music!
So how does the NYC Rock Scene love us? Let me count the ways:
1) The show got of to a funky, fun start with a show of groove
and energy by the boys of Red Sky Morning; coming up fast behind
them was the
2) Anti-folk rock stylings of Joe Bendik, who always
manages to 'do it with feeling' and with out over-sentimentalizing.
3) The spicy-licious, mouth-watering, tex/mex rock of Mama
Gütay warmed up the crowd nicely for
4) the lush, Tijuana elegance of Mad Juana, joined on
stage by Tony on the bongos laying down that primal beat, and
Amalia, stroking our nerve endings as she stroked her viola, the vibe
and sound that never fails to fill you and feel you, from the inside
out, that moves mountains, and excites the gods and goddesses to sweetness
and lust.
5) But first, the talented members of Black Flamingo
took to the stage, with their energetic, simple, child-like approach
to truth, rock and sweetness with a touching and happy tribute to adorable
lead singer Lisa Ludwig's Brother, the late Richard "Dicky"
Keston.
6) It was good thing Queen V took the stage acoustic,
with a little help from Chris on guitar, because we needed a
little wind-down, and Queen V roars and electrifies as it is.
So who has the soul and the edge to follow?
7) Mother Goddess certainly did. The sound, the fury, the superfly...
Lead guitarist/Vocalist Maya would have made Shaft go limp, she
was so fine. Not even drummer Jay's display of boney white ass could
have taken away from the excellent guitar playing and backing vocal
rhythm, and his own heart-thumping beat, especially when they kicked
with a cover of one of my all time favorite punk rock songs, "Sonic
Reducer" by The Dead Boys, a cover that would have raised the Late
Stiv Bators.
8) Up next was a band that needs no assistance in rising and
surpassing their former level of glory as one of the late 70s' best
and most underrated rock bands, The Tuff Darts. These guys proved
that some things really do improve with age... but they don't always
mellow.
9) Next, we got a little tough luv, with the Grrrrowl rock of
the She-Wolves, tearin' it up for us, letting us know where the
future of music really lies.
10) And since the crowd was already a bit rowdy and riled, next around
was Temptress, always lovely, sleaze-rocking us and giving it
to us hard and nasty, they even brought their own toys!
10) Oh, Yeah, Baby! Following up the foreplay was the real thing,
Porn Rock, who's newest guitarist Justin and guest drummer
Jay, of Mother Goddess, stepped up and kept up the standard
of great music these guys are known for! One again, during audience
participation time, since newbie Justin asked me sooo nicely, I found
myself introducing myself to him properly, joining the floor show with
the most fabulous Miss Kitty Porn', and the incredible,
groan worthy Pink Snow, resplendent in catholic school girl plaid!
My apologies to the other lovely ladies onstage, we were not properly
introduced!
11) Well all good things eventually come to an end, but not
until Plastic Heroes takes the stage, all the way from England,
to show us much love and a good time!
That "Man About Town" Bobby Lund kept us shiny and
warm, spinning between sets, while Host and MC Frank Wood, with
the help of Yours Truly, called some numbers and doled out the
goodies to all the generous people who bought raffle tickets to help
out a good cause. Of course, since I was dancing all evening, some of
those tickets ended up in some interesting places!
Kenn Rowell of the Baghdaddios and "The Most
Photographed Woman in NYC" Jana Peri came by to celebrate the
evening, and NYC's own Bead Queen, asplash in red, bestowed her
heart-shaped goodies to all who caught her fancy. I got to party with
my favorite admirer, and Frank Wood's loyal, hard-working assistant,
Ryota, and best of all, people surprised themselves with their
generosity to their fellow human beings in need.
We all had such a great time, it was easy to forget that we were there
to help the people who help other people live a more comfortable and
dignified and hopefully, happier lives.
I just want to give a special salute to all the people who gave, in
one way or another, freely, from the goodness of their own hearts to
show a little love this Valentine's Day, to a group of people who really
need it. You all know who you are.
Until next year, With All My Heart, Darlings.
The Mighty Afrodite
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