BIG CITY BLUES May 2002 Issue Ace;s Alley by Johnny Ace Edited by Cathy Lemons Danny “Cadillac” Sperdudo (1949—2002) Tyrone “Crusher” Green (1949-2002) Two very fine blues and soul drummers have gone on to the other side. And they‘re from that spot on the planet that has been touched or blessed with so much talent that it’s mind blowing. I’m talking about that place where they’re still mad for The Dodgers leaving—Brooklyn, U.S.A.! DANNY Danny “Cadillac” Sperdudo was from the “Burrough Park” section of Brooklyn. He started playing drums at thirteen. His first drumming idol was neighborhood king of the skins, Carmine Appice, who at the time (1963) was playing drums with the world famous twist king of New York City’s famous Peppermint Lounge—Joey Dee and the Starlights. Carmine went on to fame with Vanilla Fudge, Rod Stewart, Jeff Beck and many more. Danny was in early soul bands with Jr. High school pal, guitarist/vocalist, Howard T. Levine. They, together, worked all over Brooklyn—any time, any place, even Gypsy weddings on Kosciosco Street. In 1971, Danny and Paul Oscher (Muddy Waters harp blower from 1967-1971) put together The Brooklyn Blues Busters. I met Danny in 1970 when I was playing in New York City at The East Village Inn on East 7th St.. Paul and Danny came by to check me out and wanted me to join up with them. I didn’t at that time. I first played with Danny back in Brooklyn at the Monday night jams at The Night Cap, The Brooklyn Blues Busters home base on Flatbush Avenue and Midwood Street in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn—just a breath away from the old demolished Ebbites Field. I joined up in 1971 with The Brooklyn Blues Busters when Paul Oscher left and Howard T. Levine took over the guitar slot and singing, along with Fred Palmer on harp and vocals. Later, Palmer was replaced by John Nuzzo. Danny and me got along immediately. Then, Danny was learning from all the blues drummers; he was listening to Freddy Below and all the other great Chicago blues drummers of the ‘50’s and ‘60’s: S. P. Leary, Francis Clay, Sam Lay, etc. Danny left The Brooklyn Blues Busters in 1972, and through the rest of the ‘70’s into the ‘80’s worked with a lot of soul bands. For money he worked a lot of oldies acts, too. He did a lot of road work with Carl Gardner and The Coasters, who also had Speedo of The Cadillacs with them. Danny also did many soul gigs with his brother-in-law bass player who used to work with James Brown in the ‘60’s. In 1986, Danny worked with me and my cousin, Brian Bassessi in a band called The Full House, an r&b/ soul band, which also featured Danny’s pal “Satch” as our M.C. This lasted about 10 months. We played all over New York City and had a ball. Into the ‘90’s, Danny worked with guitarist/vocalist Bill Perry and also guitarist Pete Kanaris, who backed up Hubert Sumlin (Howlin’ Wolf’s guitarist) and Pine Top Perkins. Danny loved life and the blues—and lived it. I remember back in 1971, Danny and me were driving out of Brooklyn in his 1964 white Cadillac convertible. I nicknamed him Danny “Cadillac” when I first met him because none of my neighborhood friends had cars. A"caddy" was a big deal, a sign of prestige. One early evening after a rehearsal with The Blues Busters we were driving in Danny’s caddy from Brooklyn over the Manhattan Bridge into the city. The Brooklyn Blues Busters had already backed up John Lee Hooker and had a three-night gig with him at New York City’s famous Café Au Go Go. The pay was only $12.00 or $16.00 a night. I was very stubborn then and didn’t like being taken advantage of—I am still that way. It was summer—four or five o’clock in the day. We were on the West Side and I told Danny to pull over. I ran into a deli and got us some baloney, Italian bread and beer (not great beer now but at that time, for us, premium) to take our minds off of New York City’s blistering heat and humidity. Danny then drove over on 19th Street as far west as you could go—all the way to the Hudson River Bank Docks. New Jersey and the Hudson River looked like they were worlds away. We talked about what we wanted to do in life—and our dreams. The baloney heroes tasted like filet minion, and the beer, though it was panther piss, tasted like Dom Perignon. I remember Danny saying to me, “Johnny, you drink good bear!” Danny asked me why I didn’t want to play with John Lee Hooker, and I told him the reason. Danny said he understood and added that John Lee was the most recorded bluesman in the world, and that it would be an honor to play with him. “Don’t you wanna play blues with the best? You may regret this if you don’t do it. And if John Lee and his agency likes us, they’ll use us again.” Well, Danny made sense, and I told him I’d do the jobs. As the sun was going down over the Hudson River and New Jersey, it became a tapestry of orange, red, yellow, light blue and purple—a real bouquet—made from New York City’s great pollution! Ride! That day with Danny, sitting out there on the peer, loading up on boloney heroes and beer, we connected; and we were hoping our dreams could come true—that we could get out of Brooklyn, New York and play with our heroes. John Lee liked us and we did get out and do our dreams. We never became famous, but we both played all over America with our heroes and that was great! It wasn’t about selling and making millions of dollars. Danny and me loved the nightclubs and we were nightclub blues players. We both walked the walk and talked the talk. Three and one half weeks before Danny passed, I sent him a video of an oldies show in 1979 when he was with The Coasters. Danny collected old rock & roll and blues videos and was really happy to get it. He was talking about the world conditions as they are now. He told me to do what “Queenie” (Victoria Spivey) said—“Load up on perishables and canned goods. The end is coming!” At the time he was playing in a Louis Prima Tribute band—for the buzz. I told him if he ever played in Brooklyn, I’d love to fly out and see the show. Wow! Danny passed on quietly in his sleep in his Brooklyn pad. Any time I hear the old Junior Wells L.P. “It’s My Life Baby” on Vanguard, “Blues in My Sleep” by James Cotton on Verve or “Juke” by Little Walter on Chess, my mind goes right back to 1971 to our old home base, The Night Cap. Like it was yesterday, I think of Danny and the old Brooklyn Blues Busters wailing away. Like it was yesterday, I smell the dump. Smell its hot stinking, stale air. It was more than stale. It smelled like death—Mercy! I hear those blues and I hear and see Danny smiling behind the drums putting down that strong double shuffle or that laid back beat on the slow ones. I can see all the characters, many who are gone now: “Smilin’ Pretty Eddie,” our M.C. and vocalist, “Li’l Debby,’ our Go-Go girl, “Stymie,” “Queenie” (Victoria Spivey) and Lenny, hustling their L.P’s and arguing, the owner, Al “Sausage Face” De Cico—woh!—fighting with his girlfriend, Ruthie—woh!, “Devil!” –the one-eyed, killer watchdog! The Mule!—Duke Ellington’s one time great but burned out slide trombonist! Mathew Gee!—Blowing “Satin Doll” for free drinks! Jamaican Billy Stewart!—kicking the shit out of someone (“I don’t need ya Waman!) Billy! (“Where’s your dog now!”—kicking the shit out of someone). Willie “The Beer!” Harp master, Bob Chatkin and the “harp clinic!” Eugene “Help Me Mama” Platnick from the Bronx! Paul Oscher, John Nuzzo and Fred Palmer, all blowing harps at once in the back of that filthy, rat infested kitchen with pounds and pounds of grease on the walls from 1942—grease that does not want to leave—grease and grime in the pans and dishes where even the flies won’t come to commit suicide—and all the harps wailing at once and sounding like an orchestra! IT WAS HEAVEN! And Danny, I hope that’s where you are now. Rest on my blues brother! From all your blues buddies and friends! CRUSHER Tyrone “Crusher” Green was from the Fort Green section of Brooklyn. Anyone who played drums for 35 years off and on with Wilson Pickett is bad—very bad! I met Crusher through a blues guitarist, Danny Dreyer at the original Tramps on East 15th Street in New York City. Like Danny “Cadillac,” Crusher was a great New York character. He carried himself with great pride and great, great Brooklyn attitude. I don’t think that can be bought in any mall or store. I did jobs along with Crusher and Danny Dreyer (he was the band's leader--and Crusher’s real pal) with Otis Rush in New York City. We went to Europe with Otis in 1984. Crusher and me got pretty tight before we almost killed each other—but that’s road stuff and left on the road. Crusher in the years after that—when not with the Wicked Pickett—was working with my old friends the Uptown Horns, a great soul and blues horn section who also backed up Albert Collins, Solomon Burke and Peter Wolf (lead singer for the J. Geils Band). I saw Crusher out here in Eureka at The Redwood Coast’s Blues By The Bay blues festival. I was with Cathy Lemons—we were gigging at that festival. Crusher was with Pickett and after 35 years, was now the bandleader. What a great sight to see Pickett’s whole band—all ten of them—marching in the back stage area in line formation—like West Point cadet’s—more like gladiators, all with perfect marching posture—bodies held stiff, eyes glued straight ahead and ready for battle--and Crusher, leading them on as a general. And they played so great behind Pickett! Crusher was fantastic! He could do very complicated drum fills. That day he did a drum fill with his bass foot on the bass drum that was at the end of a song, and it was as good as it ever gets. Mind blowing! He also played licks so simple on the ballads—he brought real meaning to the term “less is more!” Drummers take heed! Mercy! After the gig, I was talking with Crusher, and complimented him on his amazing playing. He smiled and said, “Johnny, that took me 35 years of hard work to get that down.” We laughed and took some pictures. The next day, I heard Crusher had fined one of the guys $50.00 for being late for the bus to the airport for the next gig. There was only one Crusher! He will be greatly missed by all who were lucky enough to play with him and know him! Ride Crusher, Ride! By Johnny Ace Johnny Ace can be reached at acernoj@prodigy.net or his website http://www.lemonsace.com: (johnny@lemonsace.com) Photo Information: Sending Jpegs via email: 1) Danny1.jpeg: Danny Sperdudo and James Cotton, 1971 at The Night Cap, Brooklyn, NYC, photo; Willie Strandberg 2) Danny3.jpeg: Danny Sperdudo, 2002, photo was used on the program for his funeral service, photographer: unknown 3) Crusher.jpeg: Tyrone”Crusher” Green, summer of 2000, at Blues By the Bay in Eureka, CA, photo: Johnny Ace 4) Hayward Russel City Blues Festival Poster for 2002