Sellout crowd hits the dance floor to celebrate N.L. rock and roll roots

They say you're never too old to rock and roll, and ahuge crowd of mostly seniors proved it on Sundayat the NL Rock and Roll Pioneers Tribute Jam.

Some came dressed in poodle skirts and two-tone shoes, and kept the dance floor packed all day long.

The concert featured rock bands from the 1950s, '60s and '70s, including Reg and Rebels, Borealisand Fourth Agreement. Wayne Sturge is an organizer and member of Borealis, who released Newfoundland and Labrador's first all-original rock album. He says the concert is a rare chance to relive this province's rock and roll golden years.

"The people that come out to see this are of the generation that remember the groups." said Sturge. "So when we get up and play ... it'slike, 'I remember the guys and that's what they used to do. I remember dancing to that song.'"

The concert was held at the Old Mill in St. John's, a cornerstone club of the rock and roll era. The show was at full capacity before the first band took the stage, with a lineup of people waiting outside to get in. Clara Miller was on the dance floor right away, and spent the afternoon jiving and bopping to the music.

"It's a rocking, baby!" she said. "This is bringing me right back to when I was a little girl."

Rock and roll might be dead for some, but you'd never know it from Sunday's show:

Tribute to a forgotten era

This was the third concert in a series that began in 2017, but the seed of the idea was planted 10years earlierin 2007.

Organizers Wayne Sturge and Gregg Dodd (along with Mack Barfoot) had collaborated on a book, called Rock and Roll Comes to Newfoundland.It featured archival photos and stories of bands from the rock and roll era, and was such a success that they decided to throw a reunion concert.

"Rock and roll is the soundtrack of the biggest demographic of this province, the baby boom generation," said Dodd. "And we believe thatmaybe rock and roll has been forgotten by the music culture of Newfoundland."

Though some rock bands like the Ducats and the Ravens remain well known, Dodd says the rock era isn't celebrated in the same way as the province's folk music history. But the rock music scene was just as big and rich in its day.

"Back in the '50s and '60s and '70s, there was hundreds of night clubs." said Dodd. "There was sock hops, dinner and dances, hotels had bands seven days a week. Rock and roll bands even played in department stores down on Water Street. They played in bowling alleys. There's even bands from the '60swho played on the roof of the A&W drive-in."

Sunday's concert featured many bands from that era, including some who haven't performed together in nearly 50years. Organizer Bill Sharpe said it's important to celebrate these musicians while we still can.

"Since we've been doing this, we've lost a lot of our friends." said Sharpe. "In planning for this, three of the guys that we were hoping to play here today, and we started planning for this in December, and three of them have since passed away. So we've got to be on this now. If we want to do this, if we want to spark this to life again, it has to be now."

Proceeds going to provincial rock and roll hall of fame

June Handrigan and Agnes Murphy were among the first to arrive, and came dressed in 1950s-inspired poodle skirts. They said they ordered the outfits online, but they used to wear the real thing back when they attended rock concerts as girls.

"We grew up with these bands." said Handrigan. "Our children will never have the same music that we grew up listening to. Or our grandchildren. Young people should really, really get to know it. And it's places like this and venues like this that brings it back."

"They will never live like we lived." agreed Murphy. "We were going to see how many boys were around. And the ones who could jive the best. We made sure we got them!"

To preserve the legacy of the rock era, organizers are hoping to use proceeds from the concert to establish a provincial rock and roll hall of fame.

"We started thinking, with the guys passing on as they are, we should really get this going. And you can't do anything unless you got a few dollars." said Sturge. "Our goal was to try and raise a few dollars so we can get some seed money, to possibly get a few plaques done, and have a few things ready so we can present to somebody who might be interested in backing us.

"Either a hall of fame, wall of fame or walk of fame. We don't care as long as it's something."

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