For several years, locals have noticed that the band Tycoon Dog has offered periodic, free concerts in Maplewood Memorial Park.
Many wondered (okay, I wondered) what was the angle? Why the largesse? And what was the local tie?
Turns out that band member Scott Bailey is a 9-year Maplewood resident and proud Clinton School dad. Before he settled into life in Maplewood, Bailey and his bandmates toured “fairly seriously in the late 1990s and early 2000s in the Midwest, Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions.” Besides Bailey (vocals & guitar), the band includes Deb Craft and Alisa B. Anderson (vocals & percussion), Joe Piteo (drums), Nate Stevens (bass), Ken Sidotti (keyboards), Tanya Holt (backing vocalist & percussionist) and Sean Harkness (lead guitar).
Tycoon Dog even got some radio play back in the day (see the attached one-sheet) with the songs Hold On and Every Love Song (from the album Ruff Cuts) getting the most airplay. “One or more” Tycoon Dogs songs have also been used in indie films, said Bailey.
Now Tycoon Dog plays pretty much exclusively in the New Jersey/New York City area.
“Since about 2007 or so we’ve been doing 15-25 free, outdoor, family-friendly concerts between April and October in parks, amphitheaters, etc – places where folks can gather in a safe, pleasant environment and enjoy music and celebrating together,” said Bailey.
Why?
“It’s fun; it gives kids and families a chance to do something enjoyable together for free; it shows folks that anyone can organize and put on a cool event; it reminds folks that music starts off being made by humans even if it ends up coming from your phone; and it is a great way to ‘give back’ some of the joy I have gotten from music over the years. In short, playing or listening to music in a beautiful outdoor place, with lots of happy kids of all ages smiling and enjoying themselves all around you, is just about the most celebratory thing I know of. So we do it as often as we can.”
Well geez. And it gets better:
“I really, really love the community. I especially enjoy giving a little something back in my hometown…. Aside from my family and friends, doing what Tycoon Dog does is the thing that matters most to me.”
Thanks, Scott and bandmates!
Check out Tycoon Dog this Sunday, September 20, 2015, from 3-5 p.m. in Maplewood Memorial Park.
Enjoy this video of Tycoon Dog playing in NYC’s Washington Square Park in 2013:
TYCOON DOG 2015 SCHEDULE
| Sun 4/12 | Turtle Back Zoo, West Orange, NJ* | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 4/26 | Memorial Park, Maplewood, NJ | 3 – 5 pm |
| Sun 5/10 | Washington Square Park, NY, NY | 1 – 3 pm |
| Sun 5/17 | The Gazebo, Maplewood, NJ | 3 – 5 pm |
| Fri 5/22 | Central Park, NY, NY | 4 – 6 pm |
| Sun 5/31 | Tompkins Square Park, NY, NY | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 6/7 | Turtle Back Zoo, West Orange, NJ* | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 6/14 | Tompkins Square Park, NY, NY | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 6/21 | Memorial Park, Maplewood, NJ | 3 – 5 pm |
| Sun 6/28 | Washington Square Park, NY, NY | 1 – 3 pm |
| Sun 7/26 | Washington Square Park, NY, NY | 1 – 3 pm |
| Sun 9/6 | Turtle Back Zoo, West Orange, NJ* | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 9/20 | Memorial Park, Maplewood, NJ | 3 – 5 pm |
| Sun 9/27 | Tompkins Square Park, NY, NY | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 10/4 | Turtle Back Zoo, West Orange, NJ* | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 10/11 | Tompkins Square Park, NY, NY | 1 – 4 pm |
| Sun 10/18 | Memorial Park, Maplewood, NJ | 3 – 5 pm |
All shows FREE except * = free with paid zoo admission
Correction to the one-sheet: Radio 98.6 is/was located in Wuppertal, Germany — not Berlin.
