October 3, 2024 • 29 mins
The Sonny Pugar Memorial, Inc. strengthens the region's cultural workforce and economy by ensuring a vibrant contemporary music scene. To further our mission, we underwrite local professional musicians’ live performances in area health facilities, sponsor showcases to spotlight original music and creative interpretation, and pursue opportunities that encourage a sense of community among local musicians.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
And welcome man. This is a public affairs program shedding
the light on the interest, issues and concerns of the
greater Pittsburgh Aaria. Good morning. My name is Johnny Hartwell,
I'm your host, and in studio we have a couple
of guests. My old friend Andy Pugar of the Sonny
Poogar Memorial Charity.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Good morning are you. I'm doing well? Thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
I'm so happy that we're talking about the the Rhythms
of Life concert that is coming up on the twenty third,
So we'll talk about that. But let's say hello to
our other guest, Alicia Sooley, a music therapist at McKeesport Hospital.
Nice to meet you. How are you to meet you?
Speaker 3 (00:33):
I'm well, thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
All right, So there's a lot of different things we're
talking about the Sonny Poogar Memorial. We're going to be
talking about Rhythms of Life. We're going to talk about music, smiles,
the all time tie tie in with each other.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Yes, they do.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
So let's start with.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
The organization.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
Yeah, let's talk about Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Well, we started it a little bit after he passed
away in two thousand and four, and we became actually
a charity about two or three years.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Later, Now, Sonny was a he was a in the area,
and what was more than just a drummer, because he
you know, he made his way to the West Coast
and was Yes, he.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
Worked in the studios on the West Coast. He was
in a band on the West Coast, and he had
done some touring with the Skyliners in his earlier years, and.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
And a beloved musician here in Pittsburgh.
Speaker 4 (01:25):
I thought, so, yeah, well, I know you love them,
So we to.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
A lot of people. I'm still meeting people that he
knew that I never met.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
And then and when did he pass away?
Speaker 2 (01:35):
Two thousand and four?
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Okay, August? And then when did you start the Rhythm
of Life concert? How did that well?
Speaker 2 (01:42):
It actually started with Tony Janflon Junior and Hermi Grenadi
who decided they wanted to give a memorial concert for him,
and we had it in September of two thousand and four,
and it went very well and the musicians had a
great time. It was a multi act stage. And I
(02:02):
said to Tony, I said, well, if you guys want
to do this next year, I'll be able to help you.
We had given the money to Children's Hospital Music Therapy program,
which was new at the time, and so we did
that again for a couple of years, giving the money
to Children's Hospital Music Therapy, and then I started to
feel uncomfortable taking the money in under my name, so
we created the charity. So now it's five oh one
(02:26):
c three and then we expanded with programs.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
And how many years have you done the Rhythm of
Living My Life concert?
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Since two thousand and four, So this is our twenty
first year. And by the way, we are ending the
annual series this year after twenty one years. We're we'll
do more shows, but just not annually. Rhythms of Life.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Well, this one is Wednesday, October twenty third and Lyndon
Grove Nightclub in Castle Shennow, yes, yes, and you've got
a number of notable bands that are participating, but in
fact MC my old friend Bunny Diver is going to
be there as well. The door's open at six o'clock
and you can get more information at the website which.
Speaker 2 (03:05):
Is Honeypougar dot org.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
All right, now, the money kind of filters in for
a couple of projects.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Yes, yes, well until this year, all the money went
to our program Music Smiles, which Alicia can also talk about.
But that's bringing live music into hospitals and other healthcare facilities.
We do hospice work as well, and we have added
a program this year which I think you're a little
bit familiar with, the Code of podcast Code of Podcasts.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Where we talk to a lot of notable musicians here
in town. We've been doing it for about a year
and a half and you can check it out on
the iHeartRadio app. It's the Code of Podcast COODA and
then but Music Smiles. This is something that Alicia can
help us out well, absolutely all right, so kind of
give us an overview of what music's of the program.
(03:55):
When it's all about.
Speaker 2 (03:56):
The program brings professional musicians into the health care facilities
and we pay them affair, you know.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
St it's a paying gig.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Yeah, so that the program ends up benefiting both the
music community and the healthcare community. So we have a
dual purpose there, a dual beneficiary, so to speak. The
idea came about because when Sonny was ill and in
the hospital a lot for both him and for me,
there was nothing to do except listen to the beeps
(04:31):
and listen to the footsteps of the medical facility of
personnel in the hallways and hospital smells, and even for
me as someone who was visiting him, there was the
gift shop and there was the chapel, and that was it.
And when you're there all day, it starts to get
(04:54):
to you. So being that he was a musician, my
son actually who's on the board, Nathan Trick, we had
done work with children's and he said, you know, I
think we need to expand this. So that's how Music
Smiles was born. It grew organically. It wasn't really what
(05:16):
we had planned on doing from the start, but it
happened and it took off, and we weren't sure it would,
but it did, and the musicians love it.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
And I'm sure the patients do. And that Yes, let's
let's bring in Alicia, who's a music therapist at McKeesport Hospital.
So tell me a little bit about your background.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
Oh can I comment on what Annie said?
Speaker 4 (05:38):
First?
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Sure, I just wanted to echo what she said. It's
a this is a beautiful, fabulous, homegrown, unique program where she,
like she already said, it benefits not only the local musicians,
but of course our patients and our staff, and it
brings a little bit of normalization to a medical environment.
If you think about it, this is a time when
(05:59):
people know need to have their dignity and their humanity reaffirmed,
that they most need to be comforted, that they most
need to have an experience that's just an everyday experience,
and that's most often what's denied, right, And so it's
a fabulous program to be able to bring in a
normalizing just just so people can feel like they're just
(06:19):
a regular person and join a concert. And for some
of our patients, this is the first concert they've ever seen. Really,
we serve I work in behavioral health and addictions medicine,
and we serve people that come often from underprivileged backgrounds
or folks that have had a really tough life, who
have often survived circumstances they're unimaginable to most people, and
(06:43):
so they might not have ever had the opportunity to
see a concert. And they still love music, and so
they'll say, oh, this was my first concert ever, and
it's amazing to see and to share in that experience
with them, the joy that they have.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
So what do you do on a daily basis? I mean,
you know, you have music smiles, but you do this
on a daily basis?
Speaker 4 (07:03):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (07:03):
So I'm a Board certified music therapist. I have a
bachelor's and a master's degree in music therapy, and on
a daily basis, I will do things with patients that well,
the technical definition of music therapy goes something like use
the use of music and music activities to help patients
achieve therapeutic or functional goals. Using I already said using music,
(07:28):
and so we will be engaging in whatever is going
to make achieving their therapeutic goals easy for them. And
that's often how I introduce my say itself as I'll say,
I'm Alicia and the music therapist, and I'm here to
make something easier for you. And so if feeling a
little bit less depressed is what they need, we can
(07:48):
make that a little bit easier with music. If feeling
more motivated is what they need, we can do that
with music. And if even touching on difficult emotions is
something that they need to do, a lot of times
I'll have patients that they just needed a safe space
to cry. And the beautiful thing about music is two things.
(08:08):
One it can hold simultaneously several different emotions that often
seem conflicting, and two that music can be a container.
So we have our song or our music experience where
they have that emotion and then we can return to
a regulated state and I can help them return and
support them and return into a regulated state using music.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
So usually I'll use live.
Speaker 3 (08:34):
Music experiences, but sometimes we do use recorded music, and
we might write songs. I might a.
Speaker 4 (08:41):
Musician, of course, yes.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
Okay, I just want to be yes and do you
do what do you play? Well?
Speaker 3 (08:49):
In my work as a music therapist, I use most
often my voice, acoustic guitar, sometimes keyboard, and hand percussion
because these, uh, these instruments allow me to still facilitate
and to best facilitate the session. But secretly I'm a
flute player.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
You know what can I add a story? When my
mother was in the hospital, she was suffering from Alzheimer's,
and there was something about music that just connects individuals
who have dementia. You know, they have, you know, very
difficult time with short term memory, but the long term
memory is not a problem. And it seems like music
(09:28):
seems to lock.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
In and that's because it's part of our identity. A
lot of people think there's a misconception that goes around
that music is sort of an extra icing on the
cake sort of thing. But it's a vital part of
our experience as humans, and it can connect us with
our deepest sense of self. It can connect us with ourselves,
(09:50):
with others around us, engaging in the music experience, with
a higher power, with a larger community, and even just
with the music itself. Music's a connector. And so not
only with the identity aspect, but with music also touches
the part of the brain that's involved in memory and
emotion very deeply. So music can create a safe space
(10:13):
very easily and very effectively, and more so than a
lot of other options. Right, So if somebody, I've also
worked in dementia. So one time I had a patient
who had started to enter the more advanced stages of Alzheimer's,
and during our session, she became very paranoid and very upset,
(10:36):
and I paused, and I gave it a moment of silence,
and the intuitively, I chose to play some music that
might have been popular when she was maybe seven or
eight years old, and instantly she began to calm down.
It started just with the tap of the toe and
(10:58):
then a more vigorous of the toe, and then her
face kind of relaxed, and within one or two songs,
she was back and we were back in the session,
and she was regulated because it instilled a sense of safety.
Because music that is familiar to us gives us the
(11:19):
subconscious message that we're safe. Music that's predictable and regular
is even giving your body the message not just your brain,
but both simultaneously that you're safe and this is a
safe place and we're okay right now.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
You know. With music smiles, it also kind of gives
you a break of you know, doing something every single day.
This is something different, right.
Speaker 4 (11:41):
It is.
Speaker 3 (11:41):
I look at it more of like just adding to
the full spectrum of music experiences, because it's nice for
patients to just sit back and enjoy a concert and
not have to be doing something. Even when I guide
patients and I use music to support like a meditation experience,
there's still sort of an ask of them. I'm asking
(12:02):
for your attention, I'm asking for you to engage in
this experience with me, right, And so when they just
have a performance, it's like I'm just a normal person,
Like I'm not a person who needs a service, and
that's a lovely experience.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Well, you want to we don't want to get too
far away from publicizing The Rhythms of Life concert coming
up on Wednesday, October twenty third, Lyndon Grove. It's been
there for quite a few years. Yes, And talking to
Annie Pugar, who's part of the Sunny Pugar Memorial Charity,
can you talk about some of the bands that are
going to be performing.
Speaker 4 (12:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
In fact, I have a list in front of me.
We have our house band, which we have most every year,
and that's that consists of Bob Banerjee, Matt Baranti, David Grenadi,
Bob Insco, Ron Soltis and Ben Trick.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
You need a big stage for these guys.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
They got big talent. And then the guests that we'll
be playing with the house band are Eda Cox, Tina Daniels,
the Evan Dean Band, Pe Towlett, Scott Anderson, Hermi Grenadi,
Joel Lindsay, Sherry Richards, John Sarcus and Stevie Wellins and
Cheryl Ronovado who are Soulful Femme. We also have a
(13:16):
band I'm Sorry, franchise band, Hot Ticket in Town and
Wonderful Dance Band. They are great guys and we will
end the night as we usually do with the bastard
beer Irishman, very good.
Speaker 1 (13:30):
Twenty five dollars. It's Wednesday, October twenty third, Linden Grove.
You can get more information at your website.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
Yeah, Sonny Poogar s O n n y pugr dot org.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
All right, let me we kind of talked about music therapy,
but when you started music smiles, what was the evolution?
How did it start?
Speaker 2 (13:50):
We started at Children's Hospital January twenty ten, and Scott
Anderson was our first musician. Yes, he was played the
piano in the atrium, and little by little it grew
there and then we reached out to Mercy Hospital and
gradually just added hospitals. Now COVID really did nias, so
(14:15):
we're not you.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
Know, changed everybody.
Speaker 2 (14:19):
In fact, it humbled us because I used to say, well,
hospitals are the only places that won't cancel gigs, So
that sure humbled us.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
And what has been the feedback of the musicians.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
The musicians love it. They love the idea of sharing
their gift, even you know, if it's just one person,
there's an impact that they can see and that they
can feel that. Even though they enjoy playing clubs and
private gigs and whatnot. There's something about reaching a person
(14:52):
who was so vulnerable and so desperately needs that experience. You.
I've had musicians come close to tears. I have a
story about what Alicia said. One time we were at
Mercy Hospital with a group of music, group of patients,
(15:13):
and the musician played that John Denver, West Virginia's song
Country Roads, Country Yeah, and this one guy in a
wheelchair just started to cry. And I thought, oh my god,
oh my god, you know what did what emotion did
we hit here? And one of the nurses said, no, no,
he needed to do that. He just got here today.
He's from West Virginia and he needed to have that cry.
(15:39):
And so they were good tears.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
You know, it just it occurred to me. I have
a story too. Okay. I've been a wedding DJ for
a long long time and you get the brides must
play list and one of the songs was Tom Sawyer
from Rush. A good song, but it's you know, it's
a five and a half minute song. It's in a
weird I think it's six six and it's really hard
(16:03):
to dance too. So as a DJ, you're like, how
do I play this? How do I play this. Well.
It was the end of the night and I had
not played it because I really couldn't figure out when
to play it. So as people were kind of winding
down and leaving, I decided to play it. The father
of the bride came out onto the dance floor. Now
the bride and the father were estrange was He was
(16:27):
invited to the wedding, but didn't didn't walk her down
or anything. She the bride came out and they hugged
for the entire song. I hadn't known that that was
his song to her. And she was raised by her
mother and grandmother. The mother had just passed away. The
(16:48):
grandmother passed away soon after that. The father decided to
be a bigger part of her life in a small
and then she had a child, came the daily caregiver
of that child, and not too long ago he passed away.
She reached out to me and said that one song
(17:10):
made a huge difference in all our lives. It bridged
the gap. It was able to heal a lot of wounds.
So music, really, it's music.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Belongs everywhere, including and especially in healthcare settings.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
Okay, tell me more, because I don't think people know
about what music therapy does in the hospitals. So why
do you need it or what's the cause and effect
of music?
Speaker 3 (17:34):
Well, that's a really big question. And there's even an
international organization dedicated to It's called the International Association for
Music and Medicine. And there are music therapists, there are musicians,
there are physicians, and there are arts and medicine projects
as well as music therapy projects that are researched and
(17:56):
academically shared. If you give me a more specific question, okay,
we'll give you an answer.
Speaker 1 (18:03):
But I'm sure you see, I'm sure you have an
example of how a patient has been affected by music.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
I have too many of the people.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
We have a million.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
I just need one or two.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
Okay, gotcha, And.
Speaker 2 (18:17):
I can think of when if you I some time,
I have too.
Speaker 3 (18:20):
I'm gonna tell you one of my favorite things ever,
project that I was involved in was another philanthropically sort
of funded, a grant funded program through the Hospital Association
of Pennsylvania, and I was able to provide music for
(18:40):
the targeted for the healthcare workers, but for everybody, environmental
music therapy in an emergency department in a small hospital.
And what I was able to do was listen for
the environmental sounds and then create music that would cradle
the experience, that would cradle the sounds. So I said, well,
(19:03):
what key is this? What are the rhythms? And then
I sort of integrated them into improvised live music so
that it normalized the sound environment. And I wish I
could have taken blood pressure ratings readings before and after,
because I bet you we would have seen some good results,
because most people said that they felt more relaxed. Even
(19:23):
if they didn't notice the music at first, because they're
busy working and treating their patients, everybody noticed when the
music stopped. And so after a few months, and there's
a lot of skepticism at the start, but after a
few months, people would be so excited, Oh do we
get music therapy today. Another thing that I do a
lot in my work, one of my patient's favorite things
is to do a music supported guided meditation because a
(19:46):
lot of the patients will say a lot of people
in general say, I can't quiet my mind, I can't meditate,
I can't sit still, I can't attend to one thing
only for any extended amount of time. Right in the
cell phone age. So I'll say don't worry. The music
is going to help your body attend, and that's going
to make it so much easier for your mind. So
(20:08):
I will play music that live, music that's very boring, stable, predictable, consistent,
and once their body is attuned while I'm leading this
verbal guided meditation, once their body's are tuned, then I
can slow the music down a bit, and so now
they're heart rate and they're breathing are also slowing down.
(20:29):
And so most of the time people will report, oh,
I feel so relaxed, or I feel like I almost
fell asleep, but I didn't quite fall asleep, and I'm like,
that's perfect. And the best thing is that once you've
done it one time, it's easier to do it the
next time, and the next time and the next time.
So music we often refer to it as a scaffold,
and we'll say, well, we use the music just to
(20:50):
make it easier, and then you don't need the music eventually,
because you've practiced whatever that functional skill or action was,
functional behavior, and you've practiced it enough now you can
do it without the music.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
Hry nanny, what's your story?
Speaker 2 (21:05):
Oh, okay, I have a story, But first I do
want to mention the Mckeysport Hospital Foundation is incremental to
the program at Keysport Hospital. They helped with the funding tremendously.
So okay, the story is, there was a brain injury
patient in one of our group settings and he came
(21:28):
in in a wheelchair. His chin was in his chest.
He had not been able to raise his head, or
he wasn't showing that he was raising his head while
he was on the floor. As soon as the music started,
I saw him kind of like jerk a little bit,
his head jerk a little bit, and by the time
(21:50):
maybe two or three songs were done, his head was
raised and he was listening to the music. That's the
kind of thing that music will do. And I don't
know that they were able to use that later on
in his therapy, his physical therapy, but for that moment,
he was better quote unquote, he was better because he
(22:14):
was raising his head when he wasn't doing it before
music did it.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
One year, I played Christmas music at a nursing home
and there was a gentleman who was nonverbal, yet he
could sing, Yes, what is it about me?
Speaker 3 (22:31):
Different part of the brain, right, Alicia, exactly, Yep, it's
a different it's a different action because it's automatic.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
You know. It's funny that you know, we're talking about music,
and all three of us are very passionate about music,
and I think that a lot of people who listen
are passionate about music and they may not be aware
of the concert that is coming up. So you've done this.
This is your twenty first year.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Twenty first year, Yes, and we always have some great
area musicians. We concentrate on local musicians for this concert,
legacy musicians as well as newer people newer to the scene.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
All right, Rhythms of Life twenty first annual Showcase concert.
It's coming up on October twenty third, Wednesday night, Lynden Grove.
It's been there for quite a few years. Yeah, it
didn't start there.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Oh gosh. Well, we started at the Rhythmhouse in Bridgeville.
That was our first job and we were there for
a few years and went to another club for a
little bit, and we were at the Meadows for a
long time. But here at Linden Grove it's been what
maybe four four years something like that.
Speaker 1 (23:42):
Tickets are twenty five dollars, but it benefits a couple
of programs that the Sunny Pugar Memorial Charities go to.
We talked a little bit about music Smiles, but let's
talk about.
Speaker 4 (23:52):
It's talk about Coda, our little.
Speaker 1 (23:54):
Passion project called Coda. Yes, now, this is a podcast.
You know. I was interested in developing, you know, kind
of a historical podcast, just you know, kind of showcasing
some of the people here in Pittsburgh. And then I've
known Annie for quite quite some time and she's she
came to me and said, hey, would you like to
(24:16):
do kind of a podcast that kind of captures the
history of the music scene here in Pittsburgh.
Speaker 2 (24:22):
And I'm like, oh, yeah, we were on the same page.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
All right. Who are some of the people that we
have talked to?
Speaker 2 (24:29):
Geez, I should have brought the list with me. Kenny Blake,
Eda Cox, Stevie Wellings, Bill Tom's Tom writing.
Speaker 3 (24:40):
And Anna Cox was just at the hospital. Yes, yes,
justin Julian. She was fantastic.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
Mark Yeah, Mark Mattio. I'm trying. Oh my gosh, we've
done like over thirty people. Yeah, we've had well over
thirty interviewees.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
Oh, I have the list here. John Vento, you the
Squirrel Hill Billies. That was a fun one. Bill Toms
Barbara Blue, Mark Millivatz, Oh, Frank, Yes, he was a
fascinating and this is kind of the reason why we
kind of came up with the code of podcast because
he's well into his nineties. Yes, and sharp as a task.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (25:19):
And he actually performed on the Tonight Show. He did
in the early sixties.
Speaker 2 (25:23):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (25:23):
And he's here, and he's like a legendary musician. Yes.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
Jeff Goldblum's piano teacher.
Speaker 4 (25:28):
All right, so.
Speaker 1 (25:31):
We only have a couple of minutes left. Let's let's
finish with Alicia. So tell us some of the advantages
of what music Life does for you and your organization.
Speaker 3 (25:43):
Music Life.
Speaker 1 (25:44):
I'm sorry, Music Smiles, I'm sorry.
Speaker 3 (25:47):
Yes, I wanted to say that. Thank you for asking.
You must have read my mind. So we have concerts.
Music Smiles comes and provides concerts once a month, basically
both in our cafeteria and then also just for our
since medicine unit and in the cafeteria a couple times.
Our rec therapist, Christine, she is very good at thinking ahead.
(26:09):
I'm very good at being in the moment, so we
make a great team. But she has taken a tally
a head count during the concerts and she said. Even
though we're just a small hospital at Mckee'sport, we've had
one hundred to one hundred and fifty people passing through
and a lot of times the nurses and doctors and
hospital workers, you know, of course, environmental services, cafeteria workers,
(26:30):
everybody and patient families that are there to visit will
be able to stop in and enjoy the concert. And
it's unexpected and it's beautiful. It's beautiful to bring it
to the setting where usually it's not. People aren't there
for a joyful reason, and then these musicians come in
and bring us a joyful reason to be there.
Speaker 1 (26:50):
All right, we only have a couple of minutes left,
so let's finish about talking about the rhythms of life concert.
So tell us everything we need to know, Annie.
Speaker 2 (26:58):
What you need to know. Doors, it's music at seven.
You can get advanced tickets on our website for twenty
twenty five dollars. At the door we have raffles and
a fifty to fifty and a drawing or two door prizes.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Now, if somebody wants to contribute to some of the
door prizes, they can reach out and help out.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
So if they like, although we're pretty well set right now.
I'm such a planner. I try to get everything wrapped
up early.
Speaker 1 (27:26):
I know that.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Well, yes, I know you, all right.
Speaker 1 (27:29):
Some of the bands that are going to be feast, Yes.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Well, we'll go through. The bands are the Franchise Band
and Bastard Beard Irishman. And we also have our house
band playing with some featured guests. Do you have time
for me to run through those names again?
Speaker 1 (27:44):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (27:44):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
The house band is Bob Banerjee, Matt Baronti, David Grenadi,
Bob Insco, Ron Soltis and Ben Trick on drums.
Speaker 1 (27:52):
And who's he?
Speaker 2 (27:53):
He's my son.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
I was waiting for you to get.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
He's a good drummer, Sonny him. And then the featured
guests are Eda Cox, Tina Daniels, Evan Dean Band, Pete Jolis,
Scott Anderson, Hermie Grenadi, Joel Lindsay, Sherry Richards, John Sarcus,
Stevie Wellens, Cheryl Renovado.
Speaker 1 (28:16):
All right, so if you want more information, you can
go to the website.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
Which is Sonny Pugar s O n n Y pug
r dot org.
Speaker 1 (28:25):
If you want more information or if you want to
listen to some of the podcasts, the Code of Podcasts
that's available on the iHeartRadio app once again. Rhythms of
Life Concert Wednesday, October twenty third, Lindingrove Nightclub and it's
all hosted by my old friend Bonnie Diver, So that's
going to be fabulous time. Annie. It's always good to
see you. Thank you so Andy Pugar, the Sonny Pugar
(28:46):
Memorial Charity, and Alicia Souley, music therapist at mcke's port Hospital.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Thank you all right.
Speaker 1 (28:52):
If you have any comments, concerns, or an idea for
a future program, please email us from this radio station's website.
IM Johnny Hartwell, thank you so much for stay
And welcome man. This is a public affairs program shedding
the light on the interest, issues and concerns of the
greater Pittsburgh Aaria. Good morning. My name is Johnny Hartwell,
I'm your host, and in studio we have a couple
of guests. My old friend Andy Pugar of the Sonny
Poogar Memorial Charity.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Good morning are you. I'm doing well? Thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
I'm so happy that we're talking about the the Rhythms
of Life concert that is coming up on the twenty third,
So we'll talk about that. But let's say hello to
our other guest, Alicia Sooley, a music therapist at McKeesport Hospital.
Nice to meet you. How are you to meet you?
Speaker 3 (00:33):
I'm well, thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
All right, So there's a lot of different things we're
talking about the Sonny Poogar Memorial. We're going to be
talking about Rhythms of Life. We're going to talk about music, smiles,
the all time tie tie in with each other.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Yes, they do.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
So let's start with.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
The organization.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
Yeah, let's talk about Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Well, we started it a little bit after he passed
away in two thousand and four, and we became actually
a charity about two or three years.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Later, Now, Sonny was a he was a in the area,
and what was more than just a drummer, because he
you know, he made his way to the West Coast
and was Yes, he.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
Worked in the studios on the West Coast. He was
in a band on the West Coast, and he had
done some touring with the Skyliners in his earlier years, and.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
And a beloved musician here in Pittsburgh.
Speaker 4 (01:25):
I thought, so, yeah, well, I know you love them,
So we to.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
A lot of people. I'm still meeting people that he
knew that I never met.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
And then and when did he pass away?
Speaker 2 (01:35):
Two thousand and four?
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Okay, August? And then when did you start the Rhythm
of Life concert? How did that well?
Speaker 2 (01:42):
It actually started with Tony Janflon Junior and Hermi Grenadi
who decided they wanted to give a memorial concert for him,
and we had it in September of two thousand and four,
and it went very well and the musicians had a
great time. It was a multi act stage. And I
(02:02):
said to Tony, I said, well, if you guys want
to do this next year, I'll be able to help you.
We had given the money to Children's Hospital Music Therapy program,
which was new at the time, and so we did
that again for a couple of years, giving the money
to Children's Hospital Music Therapy, and then I started to
feel uncomfortable taking the money in under my name, so
we created the charity. So now it's five oh one
(02:26):
c three and then we expanded with programs.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
And how many years have you done the Rhythm of
Living My Life concert?
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Since two thousand and four, So this is our twenty
first year. And by the way, we are ending the
annual series this year after twenty one years. We're we'll
do more shows, but just not annually. Rhythms of Life.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Well, this one is Wednesday, October twenty third and Lyndon
Grove Nightclub in Castle Shennow, yes, yes, and you've got
a number of notable bands that are participating, but in
fact MC my old friend Bunny Diver is going to
be there as well. The door's open at six o'clock
and you can get more information at the website which.
Speaker 2 (03:05):
Is Honeypougar dot org.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
All right, now, the money kind of filters in for
a couple of projects.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Yes, yes, well until this year, all the money went
to our program Music Smiles, which Alicia can also talk about.
But that's bringing live music into hospitals and other healthcare facilities.
We do hospice work as well, and we have added
a program this year which I think you're a little
bit familiar with, the Code of podcast Code of Podcasts.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Where we talk to a lot of notable musicians here
in town. We've been doing it for about a year
and a half and you can check it out on
the iHeartRadio app. It's the Code of Podcast COODA and
then but Music Smiles. This is something that Alicia can
help us out well, absolutely all right, so kind of
give us an overview of what music's of the program.
(03:55):
When it's all about.
Speaker 2 (03:56):
The program brings professional musicians into the health care facilities
and we pay them affair, you know.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
St it's a paying gig.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Yeah, so that the program ends up benefiting both the
music community and the healthcare community. So we have a
dual purpose there, a dual beneficiary, so to speak. The
idea came about because when Sonny was ill and in
the hospital a lot for both him and for me,
there was nothing to do except listen to the beeps
(04:31):
and listen to the footsteps of the medical facility of
personnel in the hallways and hospital smells, and even for
me as someone who was visiting him, there was the
gift shop and there was the chapel, and that was it.
And when you're there all day, it starts to get
(04:54):
to you. So being that he was a musician, my
son actually who's on the board, Nathan Trick, we had
done work with children's and he said, you know, I
think we need to expand this. So that's how Music
Smiles was born. It grew organically. It wasn't really what
(05:16):
we had planned on doing from the start, but it
happened and it took off, and we weren't sure it would,
but it did, and the musicians love it.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
And I'm sure the patients do. And that Yes, let's
let's bring in Alicia, who's a music therapist at McKeesport Hospital.
So tell me a little bit about your background.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
Oh can I comment on what Annie said?
Speaker 4 (05:38):
First?
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Sure, I just wanted to echo what she said. It's
a this is a beautiful, fabulous, homegrown, unique program where she,
like she already said, it benefits not only the local musicians,
but of course our patients and our staff, and it
brings a little bit of normalization to a medical environment.
If you think about it, this is a time when
(05:59):
people know need to have their dignity and their humanity reaffirmed,
that they most need to be comforted, that they most
need to have an experience that's just an everyday experience,
and that's most often what's denied, right, And so it's
a fabulous program to be able to bring in a
normalizing just just so people can feel like they're just
(06:19):
a regular person and join a concert. And for some
of our patients, this is the first concert they've ever seen. Really,
we serve I work in behavioral health and addictions medicine,
and we serve people that come often from underprivileged backgrounds
or folks that have had a really tough life, who
have often survived circumstances they're unimaginable to most people, and
(06:43):
so they might not have ever had the opportunity to
see a concert. And they still love music, and so
they'll say, oh, this was my first concert ever, and
it's amazing to see and to share in that experience
with them, the joy that they have.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
So what do you do on a daily basis? I mean,
you know, you have music smiles, but you do this
on a daily basis?
Speaker 4 (07:03):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (07:03):
So I'm a Board certified music therapist. I have a
bachelor's and a master's degree in music therapy, and on
a daily basis, I will do things with patients that well,
the technical definition of music therapy goes something like use
the use of music and music activities to help patients
achieve therapeutic or functional goals. Using I already said using music,
(07:28):
and so we will be engaging in whatever is going
to make achieving their therapeutic goals easy for them. And
that's often how I introduce my say itself as I'll say,
I'm Alicia and the music therapist, and I'm here to
make something easier for you. And so if feeling a
little bit less depressed is what they need, we can
(07:48):
make that a little bit easier with music. If feeling
more motivated is what they need, we can do that
with music. And if even touching on difficult emotions is
something that they need to do, a lot of times
I'll have patients that they just needed a safe space
to cry. And the beautiful thing about music is two things.
(08:08):
One it can hold simultaneously several different emotions that often
seem conflicting, and two that music can be a container.
So we have our song or our music experience where
they have that emotion and then we can return to
a regulated state and I can help them return and
support them and return into a regulated state using music.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
So usually I'll use live.
Speaker 3 (08:34):
Music experiences, but sometimes we do use recorded music, and
we might write songs. I might a.
Speaker 4 (08:41):
Musician, of course, yes.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
Okay, I just want to be yes and do you
do what do you play? Well?
Speaker 3 (08:49):
In my work as a music therapist, I use most
often my voice, acoustic guitar, sometimes keyboard, and hand percussion
because these, uh, these instruments allow me to still facilitate
and to best facilitate the session. But secretly I'm a
flute player.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
You know what can I add a story? When my
mother was in the hospital, she was suffering from Alzheimer's,
and there was something about music that just connects individuals
who have dementia. You know, they have, you know, very
difficult time with short term memory, but the long term
memory is not a problem. And it seems like music
(09:28):
seems to lock.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
In and that's because it's part of our identity. A
lot of people think there's a misconception that goes around
that music is sort of an extra icing on the
cake sort of thing. But it's a vital part of
our experience as humans, and it can connect us with
our deepest sense of self. It can connect us with ourselves,
(09:50):
with others around us, engaging in the music experience, with
a higher power, with a larger community, and even just
with the music itself. Music's a connector. And so not
only with the identity aspect, but with music also touches
the part of the brain that's involved in memory and
emotion very deeply. So music can create a safe space
(10:13):
very easily and very effectively, and more so than a
lot of other options. Right, So if somebody, I've also
worked in dementia. So one time I had a patient
who had started to enter the more advanced stages of Alzheimer's,
and during our session, she became very paranoid and very upset,
(10:36):
and I paused, and I gave it a moment of silence,
and the intuitively, I chose to play some music that
might have been popular when she was maybe seven or
eight years old, and instantly she began to calm down.
It started just with the tap of the toe and
(10:58):
then a more vigorous of the toe, and then her
face kind of relaxed, and within one or two songs,
she was back and we were back in the session,
and she was regulated because it instilled a sense of safety.
Because music that is familiar to us gives us the
(11:19):
subconscious message that we're safe. Music that's predictable and regular
is even giving your body the message not just your brain,
but both simultaneously that you're safe and this is a
safe place and we're okay right now.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
You know. With music smiles, it also kind of gives
you a break of you know, doing something every single day.
This is something different, right.
Speaker 4 (11:41):
It is.
Speaker 3 (11:41):
I look at it more of like just adding to
the full spectrum of music experiences, because it's nice for
patients to just sit back and enjoy a concert and
not have to be doing something. Even when I guide
patients and I use music to support like a meditation experience,
there's still sort of an ask of them. I'm asking
(12:02):
for your attention, I'm asking for you to engage in
this experience with me, right, And so when they just
have a performance, it's like I'm just a normal person,
Like I'm not a person who needs a service, and
that's a lovely experience.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Well, you want to we don't want to get too
far away from publicizing The Rhythms of Life concert coming
up on Wednesday, October twenty third, Lyndon Grove. It's been
there for quite a few years. Yes, And talking to
Annie Pugar, who's part of the Sunny Pugar Memorial Charity,
can you talk about some of the bands that are
going to be performing.
Speaker 4 (12:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
In fact, I have a list in front of me.
We have our house band, which we have most every year,
and that's that consists of Bob Banerjee, Matt Baranti, David Grenadi,
Bob Insco, Ron Soltis and Ben Trick.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
You need a big stage for these guys.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
They got big talent. And then the guests that we'll
be playing with the house band are Eda Cox, Tina Daniels,
the Evan Dean Band, Pe Towlett, Scott Anderson, Hermi Grenadi,
Joel Lindsay, Sherry Richards, John Sarcus and Stevie Wellins and
Cheryl Ronovado who are Soulful Femme. We also have a
(13:16):
band I'm Sorry, franchise band, Hot Ticket in Town and
Wonderful Dance Band. They are great guys and we will
end the night as we usually do with the bastard
beer Irishman, very good.
Speaker 1 (13:30):
Twenty five dollars. It's Wednesday, October twenty third, Linden Grove.
You can get more information at your website.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
Yeah, Sonny Poogar s O n n y pugr dot org.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
All right, let me we kind of talked about music therapy,
but when you started music smiles, what was the evolution?
How did it start?
Speaker 2 (13:50):
We started at Children's Hospital January twenty ten, and Scott
Anderson was our first musician. Yes, he was played the
piano in the atrium, and little by little it grew
there and then we reached out to Mercy Hospital and
gradually just added hospitals. Now COVID really did nias, so
(14:15):
we're not you.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
Know, changed everybody.
Speaker 2 (14:19):
In fact, it humbled us because I used to say, well,
hospitals are the only places that won't cancel gigs, So
that sure humbled us.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
And what has been the feedback of the musicians.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
The musicians love it. They love the idea of sharing
their gift, even you know, if it's just one person,
there's an impact that they can see and that they
can feel that. Even though they enjoy playing clubs and
private gigs and whatnot. There's something about reaching a person
(14:52):
who was so vulnerable and so desperately needs that experience. You.
I've had musicians come close to tears. I have a
story about what Alicia said. One time we were at
Mercy Hospital with a group of music, group of patients,
(15:13):
and the musician played that John Denver, West Virginia's song
Country Roads, Country Yeah, and this one guy in a
wheelchair just started to cry. And I thought, oh my god,
oh my god, you know what did what emotion did
we hit here? And one of the nurses said, no, no,
he needed to do that. He just got here today.
He's from West Virginia and he needed to have that cry.
(15:39):
And so they were good tears.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
You know, it just it occurred to me. I have
a story too. Okay. I've been a wedding DJ for
a long long time and you get the brides must
play list and one of the songs was Tom Sawyer
from Rush. A good song, but it's you know, it's
a five and a half minute song. It's in a
weird I think it's six six and it's really hard
(16:03):
to dance too. So as a DJ, you're like, how
do I play this? How do I play this. Well.
It was the end of the night and I had
not played it because I really couldn't figure out when
to play it. So as people were kind of winding
down and leaving, I decided to play it. The father
of the bride came out onto the dance floor. Now
the bride and the father were estrange was He was
(16:27):
invited to the wedding, but didn't didn't walk her down
or anything. She the bride came out and they hugged
for the entire song. I hadn't known that that was
his song to her. And she was raised by her
mother and grandmother. The mother had just passed away. The
(16:48):
grandmother passed away soon after that. The father decided to
be a bigger part of her life in a small
and then she had a child, came the daily caregiver
of that child, and not too long ago he passed away.
She reached out to me and said that one song
(17:10):
made a huge difference in all our lives. It bridged
the gap. It was able to heal a lot of wounds.
So music, really, it's music.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Belongs everywhere, including and especially in healthcare settings.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
Okay, tell me more, because I don't think people know
about what music therapy does in the hospitals. So why
do you need it or what's the cause and effect
of music?
Speaker 3 (17:34):
Well, that's a really big question. And there's even an
international organization dedicated to It's called the International Association for
Music and Medicine. And there are music therapists, there are musicians,
there are physicians, and there are arts and medicine projects
as well as music therapy projects that are researched and
(17:56):
academically shared. If you give me a more specific question, okay,
we'll give you an answer.
Speaker 1 (18:03):
But I'm sure you see, I'm sure you have an
example of how a patient has been affected by music.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
I have too many of the people.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
We have a million.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
I just need one or two.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
Okay, gotcha, And.
Speaker 2 (18:17):
I can think of when if you I some time,
I have too.
Speaker 3 (18:20):
I'm gonna tell you one of my favorite things ever,
project that I was involved in was another philanthropically sort
of funded, a grant funded program through the Hospital Association
of Pennsylvania, and I was able to provide music for
(18:40):
the targeted for the healthcare workers, but for everybody, environmental
music therapy in an emergency department in a small hospital.
And what I was able to do was listen for
the environmental sounds and then create music that would cradle
the experience, that would cradle the sounds. So I said, well,
(19:03):
what key is this? What are the rhythms? And then
I sort of integrated them into improvised live music so
that it normalized the sound environment. And I wish I
could have taken blood pressure ratings readings before and after,
because I bet you we would have seen some good results,
because most people said that they felt more relaxed. Even
(19:23):
if they didn't notice the music at first, because they're
busy working and treating their patients, everybody noticed when the
music stopped. And so after a few months, and there's
a lot of skepticism at the start, but after a
few months, people would be so excited, Oh do we
get music therapy today. Another thing that I do a
lot in my work, one of my patient's favorite things
is to do a music supported guided meditation because a
(19:46):
lot of the patients will say a lot of people
in general say, I can't quiet my mind, I can't meditate,
I can't sit still, I can't attend to one thing
only for any extended amount of time. Right in the
cell phone age. So I'll say don't worry. The music
is going to help your body attend, and that's going
to make it so much easier for your mind. So
(20:08):
I will play music that live, music that's very boring, stable, predictable, consistent,
and once their body is attuned while I'm leading this
verbal guided meditation, once their body's are tuned, then I
can slow the music down a bit, and so now
they're heart rate and they're breathing are also slowing down.
(20:29):
And so most of the time people will report, oh,
I feel so relaxed, or I feel like I almost
fell asleep, but I didn't quite fall asleep, and I'm like,
that's perfect. And the best thing is that once you've
done it one time, it's easier to do it the
next time, and the next time and the next time.
So music we often refer to it as a scaffold,
and we'll say, well, we use the music just to
(20:50):
make it easier, and then you don't need the music eventually,
because you've practiced whatever that functional skill or action was,
functional behavior, and you've practiced it enough now you can
do it without the music.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
Hry nanny, what's your story?
Speaker 2 (21:05):
Oh, okay, I have a story, But first I do
want to mention the Mckeysport Hospital Foundation is incremental to
the program at Keysport Hospital. They helped with the funding tremendously.
So okay, the story is, there was a brain injury
patient in one of our group settings and he came
(21:28):
in in a wheelchair. His chin was in his chest.
He had not been able to raise his head, or
he wasn't showing that he was raising his head while
he was on the floor. As soon as the music started,
I saw him kind of like jerk a little bit,
his head jerk a little bit, and by the time
(21:50):
maybe two or three songs were done, his head was
raised and he was listening to the music. That's the
kind of thing that music will do. And I don't
know that they were able to use that later on
in his therapy, his physical therapy, but for that moment,
he was better quote unquote, he was better because he
(22:14):
was raising his head when he wasn't doing it before
music did it.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
One year, I played Christmas music at a nursing home
and there was a gentleman who was nonverbal, yet he
could sing, Yes, what is it about me?
Speaker 3 (22:31):
Different part of the brain, right, Alicia, exactly, Yep, it's
a different it's a different action because it's automatic.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
You know. It's funny that you know, we're talking about music,
and all three of us are very passionate about music,
and I think that a lot of people who listen
are passionate about music and they may not be aware
of the concert that is coming up. So you've done this.
This is your twenty first year.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Twenty first year, Yes, and we always have some great
area musicians. We concentrate on local musicians for this concert,
legacy musicians as well as newer people newer to the scene.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
All right, Rhythms of Life twenty first annual Showcase concert.
It's coming up on October twenty third, Wednesday night, Lynden Grove.
It's been there for quite a few years. Yeah, it
didn't start there.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Oh gosh. Well, we started at the Rhythmhouse in Bridgeville.
That was our first job and we were there for
a few years and went to another club for a
little bit, and we were at the Meadows for a
long time. But here at Linden Grove it's been what
maybe four four years something like that.
Speaker 1 (23:42):
Tickets are twenty five dollars, but it benefits a couple
of programs that the Sunny Pugar Memorial Charities go to.
We talked a little bit about music Smiles, but let's
talk about.
Speaker 4 (23:52):
It's talk about Coda, our little.
Speaker 1 (23:54):
Passion project called Coda. Yes, now, this is a podcast.
You know. I was interested in developing, you know, kind
of a historical podcast, just you know, kind of showcasing
some of the people here in Pittsburgh. And then I've
known Annie for quite quite some time and she's she
came to me and said, hey, would you like to
(24:16):
do kind of a podcast that kind of captures the
history of the music scene here in Pittsburgh.
Speaker 2 (24:22):
And I'm like, oh, yeah, we were on the same page.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
All right. Who are some of the people that we
have talked to?
Speaker 2 (24:29):
Geez, I should have brought the list with me. Kenny Blake,
Eda Cox, Stevie Wellings, Bill Tom's Tom writing.
Speaker 3 (24:40):
And Anna Cox was just at the hospital. Yes, yes,
justin Julian. She was fantastic.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
Mark Yeah, Mark Mattio. I'm trying. Oh my gosh, we've
done like over thirty people. Yeah, we've had well over
thirty interviewees.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
Oh, I have the list here. John Vento, you the
Squirrel Hill Billies. That was a fun one. Bill Toms
Barbara Blue, Mark Millivatz, Oh, Frank, Yes, he was a
fascinating and this is kind of the reason why we
kind of came up with the code of podcast because
he's well into his nineties. Yes, and sharp as a task.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (25:19):
And he actually performed on the Tonight Show. He did
in the early sixties.
Speaker 2 (25:23):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (25:23):
And he's here, and he's like a legendary musician. Yes.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
Jeff Goldblum's piano teacher.
Speaker 4 (25:28):
All right, so.
Speaker 1 (25:31):
We only have a couple of minutes left. Let's let's
finish with Alicia. So tell us some of the advantages
of what music Life does for you and your organization.
Speaker 3 (25:43):
Music Life.
Speaker 1 (25:44):
I'm sorry, Music Smiles, I'm sorry.
Speaker 3 (25:47):
Yes, I wanted to say that. Thank you for asking.
You must have read my mind. So we have concerts.
Music Smiles comes and provides concerts once a month, basically
both in our cafeteria and then also just for our
since medicine unit and in the cafeteria a couple times.
Our rec therapist, Christine, she is very good at thinking ahead.
(26:09):
I'm very good at being in the moment, so we
make a great team. But she has taken a tally
a head count during the concerts and she said. Even
though we're just a small hospital at Mckee'sport, we've had
one hundred to one hundred and fifty people passing through
and a lot of times the nurses and doctors and
hospital workers, you know, of course, environmental services, cafeteria workers,
(26:30):
everybody and patient families that are there to visit will
be able to stop in and enjoy the concert. And
it's unexpected and it's beautiful. It's beautiful to bring it
to the setting where usually it's not. People aren't there
for a joyful reason, and then these musicians come in
and bring us a joyful reason to be there.
Speaker 1 (26:50):
All right, we only have a couple of minutes left,
so let's finish about talking about the rhythms of life concert.
So tell us everything we need to know, Annie.
Speaker 2 (26:58):
What you need to know. Doors, it's music at seven.
You can get advanced tickets on our website for twenty
twenty five dollars. At the door we have raffles and
a fifty to fifty and a drawing or two door prizes.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Now, if somebody wants to contribute to some of the
door prizes, they can reach out and help out.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
So if they like, although we're pretty well set right now.
I'm such a planner. I try to get everything wrapped
up early.
Speaker 1 (27:26):
I know that.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Well, yes, I know you, all right.
Speaker 1 (27:29):
Some of the bands that are going to be feast, Yes.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Well, we'll go through. The bands are the Franchise Band
and Bastard Beard Irishman. And we also have our house
band playing with some featured guests. Do you have time
for me to run through those names again?
Speaker 1 (27:44):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (27:44):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
The house band is Bob Banerjee, Matt Baronti, David Grenadi,
Bob Insco, Ron Soltis and Ben Trick on drums.
Speaker 1 (27:52):
And who's he?
Speaker 2 (27:53):
He's my son.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
I was waiting for you to get.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
He's a good drummer, Sonny him. And then the featured
guests are Eda Cox, Tina Daniels, Evan Dean Band, Pete Jolis,
Scott Anderson, Hermie Grenadi, Joel Lindsay, Sherry Richards, John Sarcus,
Stevie Wellens, Cheryl Renovado.
Speaker 1 (28:16):
All right, so if you want more information, you can
go to the website.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
Which is Sonny Pugar s O n n Y pug
r dot org.
Speaker 1 (28:25):
If you want more information or if you want to
listen to some of the podcasts, the Code of Podcasts
that's available on the iHeartRadio app once again. Rhythms of
Life Concert Wednesday, October twenty third, Lindingrove Nightclub and it's
all hosted by my old friend Bonnie Diver, So that's
going to be fabulous time. Annie. It's always good to
see you. Thank you so Andy Pugar, the Sonny Pugar
(28:46):
Memorial Charity, and Alicia Souley, music therapist at mcke's port Hospital.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Thank you all right.
Speaker 1 (28:52):
If you have any comments, concerns, or an idea for
a future program, please email us from this radio station's website.
IM Johnny Hartwell, thank you so much for stay
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