JOE TERRY WEEK POST #3

Yep all week its, Joe Terry Week, for post #3 we have our dear Devin Frank shareing some Joe terry Memories.. take it away Dev...

I'm sure many will look back fondly (and equally many will look back frustratingly!) at Joe Terry's god-knows-how-long vow of silence. I know I my memories fall into the 'fond' camp as I recall some truly amazing moments which it brought about. Some which come to mind (I hope I haven't accidentally blurred any silent-Joe memories with talking-Joe, we will see...):

- Walking over to Joe's house one day with Don...must have been the day after a show before Don drove back to Iowa City. I think this was at the stage that Joe had unplugged his refrigerator because it was too noisy. Anyway, somehow Joe communicated to Don that he could take (and keep!) any of the cd's out of his extensive collection for free. Don shrugged his shoulders and proceeded to box up probably 20 or more of Joe's best cd's while Joe and I just watched in complete silence. Joe had a tender-looking smile on his face, my face was filled with puzzlement. Despite my discomfort with the situation, I decided to take a Serge Gainsbourg cd anyway and to this day still feel bad about having taken it. I've been meaning to give it back to him.

- Seeing Joe at a loud Practice Space show. I recall not having seen him in a week or two. Excited to see him, I walked up to him to say hello and see what was new. "Joe! How have you been? Good to see you!" He just smiled at me. I had to guess a lot of the answers to my questions that night.

- Perhaps my favorite of the silent-period moments were the shows that Joe Terry's Wango Z Tango played. Normally a rocking band with Joe singing lead, we were all a bit unsure what to do now that Joe had taken a vow of silence. I believe we played two shows where everyone just improvised the entire time. When a song would finish, Joe would nod in approval. Then I would look around awkwardly at him and Adam and Don and whoever was playing (I believe Andy as well at that time?), waiting for someone to quickly make up a new riff for us all to improvise based on. I think the songs were hit-or-miss but they definitely stand out in my memory as good experiences.

Not sure how to conclude except to say that I love that Joe Terry. No one else like him! Happy 30th, my friend!

Devin