Author Archives for Herb Weiss

Longtime Fans Looking Forward to RIMHOF Induction Ceremonies

Published in Woonsocket Call on April 23, 2017

With extreme regularity, Pawtucket West High School student Steve Cohen arrived every Monday and Tuesday night at Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel in Providence just like clockwork to listen to his two favorite Rhode Island bands, Rizzz and the Wild Turkey Band. Next Sunday, Cohen and hundreds of other people will gather at the Hope Artiste Village mill complex to see Rizzz, Wild Turkey and Hometown Rockers and eight other inductees be brought into the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame’s Class of 2017.

The Pawtucket-based RIMHOF, formed in 2011, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to celebrating, honoring, and preserving the musical legacy of Rhode Island
musicians, educators and industry professionals who have made significant contributions to both the national and Ocean State music scene.

Looking Back at Over Forty Years of Musical Memories

Cohen, 63, who considers himself a music aficionado, remembers going to long gone Rhode Island music hangouts like The Act, January’s, The Edge and Gulliver’s to catch a set or two of Rizzz and the The Wild Turkey Band/Hometown Rockers. The native Pawtucket resident says that his love for music began at age 16 and continues to this day.

“I know every original song played by Rizzz and Wild Turkey Band by heart,” claims Cohen.

Rick Bellaire, 62, Vice Chair of RIMHOF, has memories of how Rizzz helped change the course of his musical career. “When I was in my freshman year at Rhode Island College, I was playing in a hard rock cover band to pay my way through school. It was very successful, but I didn’t like the music,” says Bellaire. After watching the original 6 piece lineup of Rizzz play a song by The Band followed by an original to a packed house at Gulliver’s in Smithfield, he said to himself, “Now that’s what I want to do.”

Bellaire gave notice to his hard rock band the next day and never looked back. “You’ll find dozens of musicians in southern New England whose experiences with Rizzz, Wild Turkey and Hometown Rockers were similar,” he says.

After the Rizzz and The Wild Turkey Band/Hometown Rockers officially broke up, over the years Cohen and Bellaire regularly attended these band’s reunions. Being by the stage at these reunion shows brought a flood of memories from over 40 years earlier to Cohen from the days he followed the two local bands as a high school and later a college student.

Cohen is adamant that Rizzz and The Wild Turkey Band/Hometown Rockers were great bands in the ‘70s and ‘80s. After attending their recent reunions he says these bands have not lost their “mojo.”

Reunions are always special occasions, like anniversaries, fund raisers, and they are never disappointing to Bellaire. “As good as they ever were. So not ‘better,’ but just as great. Rizzz still has all 10 members from the various lineups – how could it not be great!

It’s the same with Wild Turkey/Hometown Rockers. Although they’ve lost some important original members – Pat Davis, Paul Gaudette, Kevin Falvey – they always have top notch players who are also fans sitting in for those guys and they feature the principal frontmen from each configuration, John Baldaia and Tom Keegan. When they get together, it’s always incredible,” Bellaire says.

With the establishment of the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame six years ago, through the efforts of Bellaire and others, Rizzz and The Wild Turkey Band/Hometown Rockers and eight other inductees – Artie Cabral, Phil Greene, Dan Moretti, Neutral Nation, Billy Osborne, Plan 9, Frank Potenza and Throwing Muses – will be inducted in 2017.

Musicians Get Long-Awaited Recognition

“The Music Hall of Fame initiative,” says Rick Bellaire, “provides a great opportunity to not only acknowledge Rhode Island’s musical greats and celebrate their achievements, but to finally have an organization whose primary goal is to promote and preserve their music and stories. We have in place the tools to curate and showcase the best of Rhode Island’s musical artistry.”

Adds, Robert Billington, Chair of RIMHOF, “The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and concerts have become the place to be and be seen at as we continue to showcase the fascinating history of Rhode Island’s musical heroes. The events are a virtual ‘who’s who’ of Rhode Island music history.”

With ten inductees in RIMHOF’s Class of 2017, organizers split this year’s celebration into three separate events with the Jazz and R&B inductions taking place last Sunday at the Greenwich Odeum. There will be two more induction concerts held at The Met next weekend. On Saturday, April 29, at 8:00 p.m., the 2017 RIMHOF Rock Induction Concert – Part I will feature performances by Plan 9, Neutral Nation, and Kristin Hersh, David Narcizo, and Fred Abong of Throwing Muses.

On Sunday, April 30, the unveiling of all ten RIMHOF Class of 2017 inductee exhibits will take place at 2:00 p.m. at the Pawtucket-based Hope Artiste Village, 999 Main St., followed by the 2017 RIMHOF Rock Induction Concert – Part 2 featuring Rizzz, Phil Greene, and the Wild Turkey Band/Hometown Rockers, beginning at 3:00 p.m.

Since its initial induction six years ago, a total of 53 inductee exhibits were produced. Eventually, the Pawtucket museum will hold more than 100 displays as well as assorted Rhode Island musical history memorabilia and interactive components for the visitors to enjoy.

Tickets for the April 29 and April 30 events at The Met are $20.00 in advance and $25.00 at the door. While the Unveiling Ceremony is free, a ticket will be required for entrance to Sunday’s 3:00 p.m. concert in The Met. Tickets for the April 29 and April 30 concerts can be purchased at themetri.com.

All proceeds from RIMHOF’s annual induction events go toward creating the museum displays, acquiring recordings and memorabilia, and digitizing that collection for permanent online access for future generations. All organizational work has been donated by RIMHOF’s Board of Directors and volunteers.
For profiles of the inductees, visit http://www.rhodeislandmusichalloffame.com.\

 

GOP Trial Balloon Called “Trojan Horse”

Published in Woonsocket Call on April 16, 2017

In previous years, the GOP leadership, now controlling both chambers of Congress, pushed legislative proposals to eliminate Social Security and Medicare by privatizing these programs. These attempts were clearly visible for all to see. But, we are in new political times with a GOP White House seeking the destruction of these programs, too, but as some say through the back door.

According to an Associated Press story, published on April 10, 2017, as the Trump Administration begins to learn from its failed attempt to repeal Obamacare, tax code reform is now on its agenda. One trial balloon, being floated by a GOP lobbyist with close ties to the Trump Administration, would eliminate the mandated payroll tax that all American workers pay to fund Social Security and Medicare.

“This approach would give a worker earning $60,000 a year an additional $3,720 in take-home pay, a possible win that lawmakers could highlight back in their districts even though it would involve changing the funding mechanism for Social Security, according to a lobbyist, who asked for anonymity to discuss the proposal without disrupting early negotiations,” says Writers Josh Boak and Stephen Ohlemacher in their Associated Press story.

Currently, about 163 million American workers pay Social Security taxes and 59 million retired and/or disabled persons collect monthly benefits. About one family in four receive income from Social Security. The nation’s social insurance and welfare program is a “pay-as-you-go-program.” Today’s workers support the program by paying their taxes into the program and the money flows back out to the program’s current beneficiaries.

GOP Stealth Attack on Social Security

Responding to the GOP trial balloon, in her blog post published last Tuesday on the Huffington Post, a politically liberal American online news web site, Contributor Nancy Altman, President of Social Security Works called the GOP trial balloon “a Trojan horse”, noting that “It appears to be a gift, in the form of middle class tax relief, but would, if enacted, lead to the destruction of working Americans’ fundamental economic security.”

If President Trump proposes “the Trojan horse, it would be the newest shot in the ongoing Republican war against Social Security. That war has failed so far. The American people overwhelmingly support Social Security because they appreciate that it provides working families with basic economic security when wages are lost as the result of death, disability, or old age. And it does so extremely efficiently, securely, fairly, and universally,” says Altman in her April 11, 2017 blog post.

According to Altman’s blog posting, after Trump and GOP lawmaker have suffered legislative defeats in their “frontal attacks” against Social Security to eliminate the programs “it appears they are contemplating a “stealth attack instead.” She noted, “In the 1980s, Republicans, who had long tried but failed to cut government programs directly, discovered a new tactic. They realized that they could undermine government and eventually force cuts to spending by cutting taxes and, in their words, starve the beast. Now, Trump is making plans to use that same tactic against Social Security.”

“Not only would the Trump proposal starve Social Security of dedicated revenue, it would ultimately destroy it. Social Security is not a government handout. It is wage insurance that the American people earn, as part of their compensation, and, indeed, pay for with deductions from their pay,” observed Altman.

Altman warns that GOP lobbyist’s proposal to eliminate the payroll tax to fund Social Security is consistent with Trump’s previous actions. “No one should be fooled by Trump’s campaign promise not to cut Social Security. Before he became a candidate, he called it a Ponzi scheme and advocated privatizing it. He chose, as his vice president, Mike Pence, who complained that the Bush privatization proposal didn’t go far enough, fast enough. As President, he has chosen a staunch opponent of Social Security, Mick Muvaney, as his budget director, and another staunch opponent, Tom Price, as Secretary of Health and Human Services (one of Social Security’s trustees.), she said.

In an email urging recipients to sign a petition to protect Social Security’s funding [the payroll tax], Michael Phelan, Deputy Director of Social Security Works noted, “For decades, Republicans in Washington and Wall Street bankers have told us that Social Security is going broke―even though Social Security has a $2.8 trillion surplus and can pay out 100% of benefits for the next 17 years and over 75% of benefits owed after that.” He warns the “Republican’s tax plans might be a self-fulfilling prophecy. By starving Social Security of funding, they could finally receive their wish―replacing Social Security’s guaranteed benefit with unstable Wall Street retirement plans.”

The “Great Wisdom” of a Payroll Contribution Tax

Max Richtman, President & CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, says, “It’s no surprise that the GOP lobbyist who suggested this dangerous idea and remained anonymous. After all, who would want to own up to an idea that would trigger the collapse of the most successful government program in U.S. history?”

Richtman adds, “Peddling this kind of scheme reminds me of President George W. Bush’s 2005 privatization proposal. Only in this case, the risk factor shifts from the uncertainty of Wall Street to benefit cuts that will almost certainly occur when Social Security is forced to compete for government funding with other discretionary programs. There was great wisdom in President Roosevelt’s plan for funding Social Security through a dedicated payroll tax. As President Roosevelt said, ‘We put those payroll contributions there to give the contributors a legal, moral and political right to collect their pensions…No damn politician can ever scrap my social security program.”

Darrell West, Vice President and Director of Governance Studies at the Washington, D.C.-based the Brookings Institution, sees an uphill battle to formalize the tax policy to eliminate the payroll contribution to fund Social Security. “I don’t think Trump will be able to eliminate or reduce the Social Security tax because of its dire consequences for the program itself. The program is very popular with the general public and many recipients count it as their sole support. Republicans will get killed if they try to do this. It is not a viable option now or anytime in the near future.”

When Trump releases his tax code reform proposal, aging advocates must remember that the devil is in the details. Read the proposal thoroughly with a fine-tooth comb

Carvelli: Making Lemonade Out of Life’s Lemons

Published in Woonsocket Call on April 9, 2017

Author and life coach Linda Carvelli believes that everything in life has a purpose and that resilience will get you through any obstacle in your path. She succinctly illustrates this philosophy in her 340 page memoir, “Perfectly Negative: How I Learned to Embrace Life’s Lemons Lessons.” The self-published book details how she faced personal and family tragedy over a decade of deep emotional pain only to realize that each devastating life experience gave her more courage and strength to face the next one.

Carvelli a Warren resident, dedicated over twenty years of her professional career to computer technology and project management before writing her first full-length memoir, published in 2016, that reveals how she ultimately came to terms with her life’s mission. That is helping people overcome and learn from the challenges in their daily lives. As a board certified life coach, she brings lessons from her book to people to help them regain control of their lives, discover new perspectives, create more options, and move forward with confidence and courage.

Facing Your Own Life Lemons Lessons

Perfectly Negative introduces a cast of real, relatable characters who will have you crying, laughing, and ultimately rejoicing in Carvelli’s triumph and determination to make sense of the overwhelming heartbreak she endured. This insightful memoir reveals nuggets of wisdom to reassure you as you face your own life lemons lessons.

The inspirational tome follows Carvelli’s forty-six years, through her idyllic childhood growing up in a close-knit Italian household into her later years where she faced a decade’s worth of personal and professional losses. It begins when the native Cranston resident was focused on planning her first marriage in 1996 and received the news of her mother being re-diagnosed with breast cancer, ultimately leading to her death two years later.. Six months later, the memoir details her sister’s diagnosis of breast cancer and how she lived with this devastating disease for seven years. Like her mother and sister, Carvelli was also diagnosed with breast cancer, although she ultimately made a decision to have a double mastectomy. She also experienced a divorce, left a long-term relationship shortly before her father died, and finally was laid off her job.

This book is for all ages and anyone who is overcoming obstacles. Carvellli’s first full length book detailing her overcoming life challenges, is getting rave reviews, too.

Here’s a review from a judge at the 24th Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards: “It’s unputdownable! From the first paragraph, author Linda Carvelli draws in the reader with tightly focused, well-written scenes and immediately identifiable characters. Even though this family is well-to-do with all the material trappings, they have heartbreak galore with “four cancer diagnoses, three deaths, two divorces and a significant other turned not-so-significant” not to mention job and friendship upheavals and a medium who helps provide some much-needed spiritual anchoring. These can be anyone’s friends, family and significant others, regardless of race, creed or socioeconomic status.”

The judge adds, “By interweaving several plot lines and balancing suspense – and using plain but power language with a much needed dollop of objectivity – this book avoids the mawkish self-pity and excessive detail that can be the undoing of similar attempts. It’s like sitting down with a best friend and catching up on the latest news–before one knows it two hours have passed and there’s still more to discuss.”
Another reviewer said, “I thought this was going to be depressing but boy was I wrong.”

A Decade Worth of Learning

Looking back, “my life was a mess,” said Carvelli. What surprised the 14-year cancer survivor the most was that when she eventually reflected on that most painful decade of her life, she realized that each tragic event gave her more courage and strength to successfully face the next one, she says.

Carvelli remembers that after ending a seven year relationship she took a solo-vacation to Jamaica to just refocus and stabilize her life. She rediscovered journaling, a healing activity that she took up earlier in her life to detail the decade of upheavals. An audio book, “The Shack,” an inspirational story where the protagonist overcomes personal tragedy and finds faith again, gave Carvelli food for thought and insight on her life’s journey.

“I realized that when I was in the midst of each tragedy I just did what I had to do to get through it,” says Carvelli, noting that “I lived in the present moment.” But, looking back she found herself surprised with the realization that she survived some tough events.
“Only then did I realize “the intensity” of the experiences.

Carvelli’s personal life stabilized a bit when she got engaged in 2011. Although she had found her true love, a lump in her breast discovered a week before being let go from her job in brought back anxiety and fear she remembered when being initially diagnosed with cancer. It was losing her job and the result of the medical test that inspired her to write the book.

“At first I was angry about losing my job because I was really good at what I did,” said Carvelli, who quickly acknowledged the job loss and accepted it when she realized, “It gave me time to begin writing the book I always wanted to,” she said.

With a supportive fiancé and all the free time Carvelli began the writing process. With the help of a writing coach, using old journals of the tragic decade and recent writings, a book slowly took shape. Over four years, four completed drafts combined with a final edit would lead to her self-published memoir released last year.

The Power of Resilience

“When I finished writing the last chapter of my memoir, the reason for my existence stared me in the eyes and ignited a fire in my heart. My life’s purpose is to serve as an example of resilience,” says Carvellli.

Author Carvelli has added certified life coach to her professional skillset to bring the insights and tips from her book to people, helping them move forward in the midst of life’s tragedies. Carvelli, 51, says that her life journey has given her clarity about her purpose on earth. “Coaching and managing people through business and personal changes is why I was put here, it is my life’s purpose,” she says.

Lemons can be a great teacher in your life. Carvelli shares these lessons in her memoir and also on her blog (http://www.lindacarvelli.com/blog/).

The Rhode Island author has also published a short story, “I Miss My Breasts” in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Hope and Healing for Your Breast Cancer Journey. She co-facilitates an informal support group, Sisters in Survival, for cancer survivors and their caregivers. Originally from Cranston, RI, she currently lives in Warren with her husband, two step-teens and Enzo Vino, the family dog who follows Carvelli everywhere..

“Perfectly Negative” is available online at Amazon.com. To arrange an interview or schedule a book signing or inspirational talk, visit http://www.lindacarvelli.com or email linda@lindacarvelli.com.