RETROKIMMER: NEW YEAR'S EVE 2011 ROCKED!!!

Kimmer with the Boss Mustangs Band

Happy New Year!!!

I'd like to take a moment to stop and thank all the fine people (around the globe) that have pitched in this year to help me keep Retro: Kimmer on track! I appreciate you all much more than I can say.... much love...xoRK

Question Mark

Question Mark and the Mysterians are one of my very very favorite bands. I have had the pleasure of seeing them perform several times in recent years. We first saw them play at the Flint Art Institute in 2009. Of course I watched them on TV shows like... Swingin Time, Where the Action Is, and other dance tv shows too.

Question Mark

We first saw Question Mark and the Mysterians play live in Flint.. The Madhatter had two VIP wrist bands and he wrapped one around my arm and off we ran to see their show... Click the link below for that story...

My daughter, artist Lesley Maki and I were invited to the Rock Poster Exhibit by Detroit Artist Carl Lundgren.

At the show Carl Lundgren introduced me to Stanley T. Madhatter... My dear friend who sadly passed away one year ago. I'll be posting a story for Stan tomorrow...

The Mysterians

Bobby Balderama - guitar
Frank Rodriguez - keyboards
Frank Lugo - bass
Robert Martinez Drums

Question Mark and the Mysterians (rendered ? and the Mysterians on the record label) are an American rock and roll band formed in Bay City, Michigan, in 1962.

Guitarist Bobby Balderama

The group is best known for its song "96 Tears", a garage rock classic recorded in 1966 that reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and would go on to sell over one million copies and receive a BMI award for over three million airplays.

Robert Martinez

? and the Mysterians were perhaps the first band to be described as punk rock, and also may be the first Latino rock group to have a mainstream hit record in the United States.

The group named itself after the 1957 Japanese science fiction film The Mysterians, in which aliens from the destroyed planet Mysteroid arrive to conquer Earth.

Question Mark

The stage is very small at Goodnight Gracie's and I wondered how ? would dance on that stage...he had no trouble at all..

Kimmer with Gale and Luvern

Q's long time friend and manager Luvern Thompson was at the gig and he gave a mighty fine introduction for the band and it reminded me so much of the Madhatter...Check the first video above to see it from last night...

Hey! want to see Luvern's business card he gave me in 2009...?

I felt the Madhatter's energy with me last night so strongly and I had such a fantastic time just as Stan and I used to do..! (Retrokimmer meets the Madhatter) This year I have plans to get back into shooting bands I love and Detroit Jack is coming back to the states in 2012 so I'll have a crazy pal who loves to go see bands...

I met nearly everyone in that club! There was no other place I would have rather been then at Good Night Gracies..

Many thanks to Claudia Veronica Leo for the invitation and I was completely amazed at the fabulous job she did...The show went off without a hitch, the 3 bands were incredible, and the crowd had a crazy fantastic place to party for the 2012 New Year. WE loved the entire night... Whoo hoo!

The Boss Mustangs Band!

Wow what a band! I was sitting with Jim and Joey Dancer the parents of guitarist Mickey Catalina. Joey is a very proud Mom and she gave me the history of the band and tried to describe how great they were. Of course all the parents I meet are very proud... but Joey was correct on every level. This band blew the doors off Gracies. After their set we wanted to hear more...

The Boss Mustangs:
Dan Cadillac Vocals
Dave Jimenez Guitar
Mickey Catalina Guitar
Henry Jay Bass
J. Edsel Hoover Drums

Dan Cadillac the vocalist of the Boss Mustangs completely caught me by surprise. Off stage Dan appeared to be a mild mannered quiet sort of young guy. But when Dan took off the glasses and jumped onstage he was such an electric performer. The crowd went crazy for Dan... We all just loved their set...

Dan Cadillac

Guest Bass Johnny Hiwatt

Don't you just love their jackets!

Mickey Catalina

The Fuzzrites

Fuzzrites – led by Dick Chiclet on guitar and vocals, Matt Mason on lead vocals, Johnny HiWatt on bass and Derek Lancioni on drums – cranked up their vintage retro-rock instruments and amps to unfurl New Millennium-style vintage strains recalling the Sonics, early Who, even The Faces (with a young Rod Stewart at the mic. Really tight and so high energy!

Our party favors!

Greg Upshur

My pal Greg Upshur the fabulous hunky lead singer of The Seatbelts snuck in late for the show. I was busy filming and some guy's hand comes out of nowhere and about yanked me by the arm across the room... I couldn't see who the man was... You can hear me on the Stand by Me video saying, "HEY I'M TRYIN TO WORK HERE!" LOL!

When I finished filming, I realized it was Greg! We partied a bit and I then at almost 2am I dashed off to my office to work on the story. Handsome, crazy fun guy is Greg...

Lelia and Marlayna

Had the retro-fab fortune to meet Lelia and Marlayna last night. These were two of the most fun gals to party with I have ever had the pleasure to hang with. Lelia helped out shooting photos for me while I shot video.

Lelia has a vintage clothing biz on Ebay...email me if you'd like the store address.

Thanks so much to Lelia and Jim Dancer for helping shoot photos for this story..



All photos (without Kimmer in them) are by Retro: Kimmer