More photos in b&w here  and then an article about the whole event : film, Q&A and concert: http://jati.photoshelter.com/gallery/Selections-From-Everyday-Sunshine-The-Story-of-Fishbone-Lincoln-Theater-WDC-11-11-11/G0000_Zq4BRqol8o/

http://ghettopunkrocker.com/blog/2011/11/14/distant-family-reunion-when-fishbone-played-lincoln-theater-by-john-m-ellison-iv/ 

Distant Family Reunion: When Fishbone Played Lincoln Theater by John M. Ellison IV

Distant Family Reunion: When Fishbone Played Lincoln by John M. Ellison IV

On Friday 11, 2011 (or 11/11/11) Fishbone played the historical Lincoln Theater. In some ways, this wasn’t just a concert; this was like an extended family reunion.

On November 3rd, 2011 I checked my Facebook page and saw that I was tagged in a message from a fairly new member of the Afropunk site named CaliforniaAfrican. With that, I was made aware of a screening of the Fishbone documentary “Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone.” I was tagged in along with some O.G. Afropunk comrades. One of them includes a longtime friend of mine that we’ll refer to as Nadira. Nadira is somebody I’ve corresponded with since 2004 and actually it was a surprise because she lived in the area. But due to circumstances on my end, it wasn’t like we could just meet up at any time. But we did meet back in ‘05 and again back in ‘06 in New York at CBGB’s. Needless to say, she’s somebody that I’ve always kept tabs on and is a very dear friend of mine. W.M. helped me realize that even though this was a free event I needed tickets for entry. They gave out two tickets per person for free…Kind of like WCW (World Championship Wrestling) did back in the day. Needless to say, I bolted over to the Lincoln Theater like the Bad Brains song…you know “With the Quickness.”

Although a dreary drizzly day, my mom, sister, my sister’s godson that I call “lil’ dude” and I zipped over to the Lincoln Theater. Mom and sis helped out by picking up some tickets. Since I had extra tickets I thought that it would be cool to invite my other friends. Since most of my other friends are female than male (kind of a 3/2 ratio) I would’ve looked like I had an all girl kung fu army. I said “Babe! Get me a kufi and a loud African print shirt! Dolemite’s back!” The missus and I decided that we wanted to get to know D.C. better and hang around people more akin to our interests. Even though the missus and Nadira knew of each other very well, they hadn’t met each other yet. Originally we were to meet at Ben’s Chili Bowl. Because…well it’s a D.C. institution. Not to eat though, because the food’s kind of greasy. The missus and I walked up and saw Nadira, it was a quick introduction between the two. The missus was a little nervous at first but after some quick banter over the difficulty to cross the street we warmed up to each other. Afterwards, we shuffled into the Lincoln Theater with our tickets in hand. Since I wanted to talk to both of them and I’m used to sitting in the middle of my mom and sister I was next to both of them. The audience was a cross section of young fans who were here to witness the legend that is Fishbone, to the neo-soul crowd who appreciates the eclectic nature of the band and middle age fans who were probably there when Fishbone first appeared at Lollapalooza.

After every one settled in around 7:05 the program started. The curator for Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture was hosting it. After a quick rap to the audience, she mentioned that some project is going to start December 2012. I leaned over to the right and said to the missus “To really fuck with their heads, they should make the start date December 22nd 2012.” She laughed. I told the same joke to Nadira and the same reaction. The movie started…we cheered and some dude in the back kept yelling “Fishbone!” The movie itself was very bittersweet. It was reminiscent of The Wrestler (starring Mickey Rourke) and music documentary “Electric Purgatory: Fate of the Black Rocker.”

If you know the Fishbone story, then you know how in 1979 they were assembled by brothers John Norwood Fisher and Phillip “Fish” Fisher on bass and drums respectively and how everyone met and how the band formed. Honestly, they kind of reminded me and others of Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. They also touch on why Kendall Jones (their original guitar player) left the band. Unfortunately, his story isn’t uncommon. It also covered the struggles of the band and how to market them, with a combination of amusing moments to heart wrenching scenes how they inspired a ton of other bands and just an all around token to perseverance and never giving up. After the movie was over, it was a brief Q&A with Directors Chris Metzler and Lev Anderson, Angelo Moore and John Norwood Fisher. The band mentioned how it was an honor to be in D.C. and cited Bad Brains as an inspiration to the band and John Norwood Fisher’s first bass guitar is now in the Smithsonian.

“Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone” – documentary trailer from Tilapia Film on Vimeo.

Then a brief intermission, I saw another Afropunk OG, W.M. Dekooning walking to the back and he noticed us. Dekooning and I met a few times but usually talk online. He was there with his girlfriend. We talked. After intermission was over, the concert started…

A strong set of hits and new material that included “Everyday Sunshine”, “Bonin’ in the Boneyard”, “Party at Ground Zero”, “Lemon Meringue”, “Sunless Saturday”, “DUI Friday”, a Go-Go influenced version of “Cholly” and many more. Angelo Moore is an energetic front man with Stevie Wonder influenced vocals that’s reminiscent of a punk rock Sonny Rollins if he was drawn by Tex Avery brought to life. Rocky George of Suicidal Tendencies fame is the current guitar player and brings that punk/metal edge that he had in Suicidal Tendencies to the current Fishbone lineup. George was rocking an Ibanez guitar and a gigantic afro. Aside from playing metal-influenced solos he can play great clean funky guitar as well. John Steward was fantastic on drums; Jay Armant and Dre Gipson provided great brass work as well. Overall, the closest thing to describe their live act is “P-Funk All Stars on speed.”

Some of the most notable moments during the show included an overzealous middle aged fan jumping up onstage and sang with Angelo for half a bar and stage dived off.

The encore included a surprise performance with H.R. of Bad Brains and the band doing “Jah Calling Dub.” H.R. is a lot more subdued now than he was 30 years ago…because it’s 30 years later. I actually ended up behind H.R.’s old bodyguard. I overheard him having a conversation with another fan. He said “Y’know, I’ve known him for 30 years and I still don’t know what he’s saying *laughs*.” The band also went into an “Institutionalized” vamp as Angelo Moore stage dived again.

After the show was over Nadira, the missus and I chilled in the lobby we talked, caught up and Nadira learned the purpose of wearing sensible shoes. I ran into W.M. again he mentioned that I lost some weight…which was the second time I heard this from another AP’er by the name Polari. Apparently, I was fatter than I thought I was the last time they saw me. In fact just recently Ron White sent me “peaches and a light salad.” We also noticed a lot of Rastafarians there. Nadira and the missus noted that they both smelled incense. I off the cuff replied “…yeah and some other smell that I can’t figure out…anybody hungry all of the sudden?”

I walked over to the merchandise table and spoke with John Norwood Fisher. I told him “Dude, the legends are true. You guys are the best live band I’ve seen.” He was gracious but he’s probably heard that fact a billion times. I mentioned that his band, Bad Brains, 24-7 Spyz and Living Colour are all a huge inspiration to my music. Technically, Fishbone was the first band I got into thanks to the movie “Back to the Beach” and “The Mask” soundtrack. I said “Hey, I’m talking to some peeps but I’ll be right back to pick up a CD.” Five or ten minutes later after talking more with Nadira and the missus, I bought a CD and Fisher signed it. I gave him my card and mentioned that I want to do an interview for my site. By this time he seemed more impressed. I said “I was serious *laughs* you guys paved the way for the kind of music that I do!” I got a picture with him.

Then I noticed Angelo Moore sitting next to him wearing a poncho and signing an autograph. I asked him “Two questions: Are you a fan of Frank Zappa?” He replied “Yes” “Okay 2nd question, ‘is that a real poncho or is that a Sears’s poncho?’ He replied with a smile “I got it in Cancun!” I got some contact information on Angelo Moore. I regret not getting a picture with him though.

We headed back out, my mom and sis picked us up due to public transportation being shut down. We shared some laughs on the way to drop Nadira off back at home. Mom, sis, the missus and I went to McDonald’s and went back home settled in. That was truly a perfect ending for a great night.

In closing, if you’re a musician and you feel like you’re in a rut and get a chance to see Fishbone with some longtime friends of yours…take it. You more than likely wouldn’t regret it.

Fishbone Documentary website

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