The Smoking Creebars
Huffin' & Puffin' Live in Manville, NJ
The Creebars
Scott Nisula - Guitar
Jeff Alexander - Bass & Vocals
John Cermenaro - Drums
About
Who are the Smoking Creebars?
1998 is the 20 year reunion of the all original hard rock trio formed in Worcester, MA. The fraternities of Worcester Polytechnic Institute were the petri dish for this mixture of funk and fable. Masterpieces crafted by these misters of transistors include HandleBAR, SandBAR, CreeBAR-mitsvah and so on. They lavishly cover Hendrix's Purple Haze, Beck's Freeway Jam, and an unforgettable version of Evil Ways.
Studio efforts by the Smoking Creebars include a 1978 recording at MGM Studios in Worcester and a fine sophomore effort in 1981 recorded at the Fender R&D sound room in Fullerton, CA. Their 3rd recording at the Church of Knobs, Needles and Loud Round Things in 1983 was produced by Mike Peterson and released on CD in August 1996 (available from loudroundrecords.com). After a long siesta, they recorded again in 1996 at the Common Ground studio in Readington, NJ.
The SMOKING CREEBARS feature the vocal stylings and funk-ified bass of Jeff Alexander (now residing in the Boston area), the solid body electron bomb attack always delivered 3 under par by guitarist [and sometimes keyboardist] Scott Nisula (who's home address is a hilltop not far from San Francisco, CA) and the "honey, was that an earthquake" shake injected into innocent bystanders by the groove-meister his bad self, John Cermenaro (proud to be in New Jersey where there are now 61 species of mosquito, second only to Florida).
These three people rarely get the opportunity to work together. Prior to this live recording, they had not shared a stage for a live performance since the mid 1980's. They rocked the house then…and they did it again.
Band Slogan…
If you like it HOT and HARD, it's the SMOKING CREEBARS TM
October 3, 1998…
This recording took place at Perhach's Sports Bar in Manville, NJ on October 3, 1998. The event was produced by John Cermenaro as a celebration of his 40th birthday (actually October 21), and that of is contemporaries Jeff Alexander (in December '98) and Scott Nisula (in January '99).
The day featured three live bands. The first, dubbed "60 Cycle Hum" actually consisted of five different groups of musicians, each with John behind the drums. Following the Creebars was a "real band" called Common Ground from Readington, NJ. They performed songs from their CD entitled "Better Way." With six hours of fun and music, one audience member said it was "like Woodstock without the mud."
That it was.
Given the fact that the Creebars are scattered about the continent, getting together for a pre-gig rehearsal requires significant planning and perfect timing.
THE PLAN:
Jeff would drive to NJ and arrive the night before the show around 6:30 pm. Scott would fly into Newark, rent a car and be at John's by 7 pm. Rehearsal would go until 10 or 11 pm.
EXECUTION OF THE PLAN:
Jeff arrives at John's house at 6:30 pm. Scott's plane gets delayed in Denver. Scott arrives at 11 pm. A meager attempt is made at "acoustic" rehearsal. 9 am, day of the show (which starts at 2 pm): Jeff, Scott & John are in full volume rehearsal mode, pounding out ass kicking rock between sips of morning coffee. (Hell of a way to wake up.) Later, an audience member who was playing golf up to a half mile from John's house that morning said he could hear the music loud and clear on holes 9 and 10.
Special Thanx to Frank and the gang at Perhach's Sports Bar for letting us do the show and record it. Manager Mike, thanks for the Guiness. Thanks to Phil Godfrin for doing the sound, would have been a lot worse without you. Thanks to Jim Peters for jumping in now and then on keyboards to fatten things up a bit. You can never be too loud or too fat. Jay, you do a hell of an intro. You should run for Senator. Special thanks to all the other players who participated and very special thanks to everyone who came out to join us for a great day of fun and music (without the mud).
