1989 HOW TO ROCK THE F#@& OUT AND STILL MANAGE...

The 80's were magic..Metal was rock solid, growing under the highways, strolling down the sidewalks across the cities, peering out at night through the smoky doorways of discreet clubs. Fans waited in line overnight, outside record stores, to be the first to rush in and grab the latest assaults. The bins were filling with new band's product from the evolution as more bands were being birthed in every garage and bedroom.

I finished my elementary education at the Bootleggers and began my university studies on the road beginning in 1988. Sacred Reich was my baby and times were good! One of the friendships I made during that time was with Debbie Abono, one of the few other woman managers at the time.

Sacred Reich

Possesed

I think Debbie was like 50 years old or something when she saw her first Metal concert. It was a Motörhead show that she got baptized at. We met in a funny way. I was such a newbie when I started with Sacred! I found an old Metal Maniacs Magazine article about people important to bands..a lawyer, a manager, etc. There was Debbie, manager of The Possessed. I wrote her a pretty naive letter asking if Sacred could tour with her band. Yes, I was a dork and didn't even know about booking agents. She called me and we met when The Possessed played Celebrity Theater in Phoenix. Ahhh, the good ole days of Metal..the birth of thrash taking hold...

Forbidden

Debbie, and Christina (my daughter/merch seller)

We bonded by laughter and a zillion espressos and soon we were traveling on a bus with Sacred and Forbidden, crossing Europe and eventually the US. Damn, it was wild, I admit. And yes,..the stories are true...believe even the ones you don't want to...We shopped till we dropped in the daytime and moshed the nights away in one exotic location to the next. We drank a bit, smoked a bit and even touched our toes in the Reeperbahn...

Bookwork was a big job with no computers, wifi, fax machines or even the thought of a cell phone! I always cracked up when Debbie threw all her receipts in a cardboard box and shipped them home! What a web to untangle later! Through the years of our friendship, I saw Debbie successfully do something most managers can't and won't do...take garage bands and develop them. This is much harder than doing what most managers do..... wait and prey on bands that someone else put their sweat into. She took the helm of The Possessed, Forbidden, Vio-lence and many others. She fearlessly crafted them and fought their way into the history books, And we laughed our asses off the whole way through...it may have been the wine...

Myself, and Debbie

Class dismissed...