The Blame Game

Ironically, there are two anniversaries this month that involve BSRR - one being the fact that the blog began a year ago and the other that five years have passed since Rhode Island's Station nightclub fire.


I was heartened by last week's story in the Providence Journal announcing that WHJY FM's parent company - Clear Channel - is going to donate a substantial chunk of money to the Station survivors' fund. Mike Gonsalves was mentioned in the story as well, since he represented HJY at the event, introducing Great White onstage just minutes before fire swept through the crowded room, taking his life and the hopes and dreams of 99 others as well. If you read my post a year ago, then you'd remember that I first "hired" - maybe "exploited" is a better word - Mike as an intern back in the mid 80s, and was always impressed by his enthusiasm and good nature. If you read between the lines of the article, the implication is that WHJY and Mike were partially responsible for what happened. Unfortunately, despite the goodwill, the fire survivors have received almost nothing. With the exception of the acts set to do a benefit concert next week, the music industry has turned its collective back on the tragedy. I wonder if this has to do not only with the fact that people instinctively shy away from bad news, but also that so many bands and MCs - for that matter - can recall a time in their careers when they were trapped in a club in a situation that could have turned out the same way.


I remember at least two instances at clubs in Plainville, Mass and Providence in which the crowds were so massive - and messed up - that I never would have made it out alive without clawing my way through a drunken mob. The attendance at these venues certainly demonstrates the power of radio promotion. In that respect, I can see Clear Channel's rationale for tacitly acknowledging that WHJY was responsible for creating a successful event. Yet I got the impression that somehow Gonzo was responsible for not stopping the show when, in fact, he was just doing what we got paid to do - hype and introduce the band. It's a little like the Nuremburg defense - Mike Gonsalves was just following orders. The blame for what happened lies between the band and the club's owners, who admitted that they felt guilty but seemed to have avoided any real accountability for overcrowding the club and allowing pyrotechnics in a confined - and flammable - space.


I hope that justice really is served one of these years, but first and foremost, leave Mike Gonsalves out of the blame game and focus on taking care of the survivors. Their lives have been on hold for five torturous years with very little light at the end of the tunnel.