JOHN SURETTE'S RECOVERY FUND
Donation protected
John Surette is a Boston rock legend.
At age 17, he formed and fronted his punk band Boys’ Life, famously announcing their arrival at the Rock and Roll Rumble with, “We are Boys’ Life, and we are here to make you feel old.” Before long they were rocking the local punk rock clubs like The Rat and Cantones, quickly becoming headliners including a sold out record release party at The Channel. Along the way, they opened for favorite bands like The Jam, Echo and the Bunnymen, Joan Jett, and The Ramones. They played a lot shows in New York City, regularly at CBGB’s and The Ritz, and performed at every rock club from Portland ME to Miami, Florida. Their recordings include two singles, a six song EP and songs on two Modern Method compilations, their song From A to Z the year’s top local song on WBCN.
After Boys’ Life ran its course, John formed The Deniros and release an EP and two excellent albums, gigging around Boston for a decade.
Approached to participate in the Boston Rock Opera’s presentation of The Kinks’ Preservation, John brooded as one of the Spivs, earning a thumbs up from Ray Davies for his performance of Second Hand Car Spiv. John earned singing roles in many of BRO’s presentations including Jesus Christ Superstar and Harry Nilsson’s The Point.
John’s last big musical accomplishment was conceiving, writing, and arranging his punk rock opera, Tomorrow the World. Dave Minehan produced and a great collection of local musicians chipped in. A reformed Boys Life recorded three new songs for the project including the saxophone of the Dap-Kings very own Neal Sugarman. It culminated with a sold out performance at The Middle East on the night of the winter’s biggest snowstorm. Wille Alexander narrated.
Through all of this, John managed Jacques Underground, proud to give fledgling bands their first gig. He remembers how great those first gigs are and loved to encourage a new generation.
John had begun the writing and recording tracks for the sequel to Tomorrow the World when he fell ill.
John hadn’t felt well for a year even though he continued to work on the new record. Three months ago he took a turn for the worst. He suffered from blackouts he would have no memory of. The blackouts always led to an ambulance ride and a stay in the hospital. Five in total. They would release him and he would have another blackout and wind up back in the hospital. They kept him in the hospital for two months. They finally diagnosed the problem; his body was not getting rid of toxins, building up, causing the blackouts. He had also developed diabetes. They prescribed and balanced the necessary medications and John is on the mend. He is home, following his treatment plan, gaining strength, reunited with his beloved dog Amanda, hoping to get back in the studio someday soon.
John lost his job because of his illness. He has been out of work for a while now and his doctors tell him he can’t go back to work yet, so John needs help. He can’t pay his past rent due or his future rent. He has a stack of bills he can’t pay: food, medicine and hospital bills that are not covered. John is still sick and needs some financial help just to survive until he can stand on his own.
So please give what you can. A little from a lot will help. We need John back in the studio and playing shows. He needs to get better.
"I've known John for over 37 years! We have shared some memorable rock experiences: producing the Boys Life vs. The Outlets EP, hanging out with and playing on stage with Paul Weller at a Future Dads' gig when John brought 2/3 of The Jam to The Underground to see us play, and we all played together! The Jam guys liked our 60's white leather guitar straps. I played street hockey with John too and still have a black ‘n gold Malden hockey jersey in my closet. John is an honest guy too. If likes something you do, he tells you; if he isn't thrilled, he tells you. I think our friendship is special because we never bullshit each other, but we have ALWAYS supported each other. A lot of people know John and know me in this Social Media World ! A lot of you have supported our music, for years. I love John Surette and so do a lot of you. John has had some remarkable medical problems recently. He is on the road to recovery, but he is also in serious financial trouble. I hope you can help him out."
Richie Parsons (Unnatural Axe, Future Dads)
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Thank You
At age 17, he formed and fronted his punk band Boys’ Life, famously announcing their arrival at the Rock and Roll Rumble with, “We are Boys’ Life, and we are here to make you feel old.” Before long they were rocking the local punk rock clubs like The Rat and Cantones, quickly becoming headliners including a sold out record release party at The Channel. Along the way, they opened for favorite bands like The Jam, Echo and the Bunnymen, Joan Jett, and The Ramones. They played a lot shows in New York City, regularly at CBGB’s and The Ritz, and performed at every rock club from Portland ME to Miami, Florida. Their recordings include two singles, a six song EP and songs on two Modern Method compilations, their song From A to Z the year’s top local song on WBCN.
After Boys’ Life ran its course, John formed The Deniros and release an EP and two excellent albums, gigging around Boston for a decade.
Approached to participate in the Boston Rock Opera’s presentation of The Kinks’ Preservation, John brooded as one of the Spivs, earning a thumbs up from Ray Davies for his performance of Second Hand Car Spiv. John earned singing roles in many of BRO’s presentations including Jesus Christ Superstar and Harry Nilsson’s The Point.
John’s last big musical accomplishment was conceiving, writing, and arranging his punk rock opera, Tomorrow the World. Dave Minehan produced and a great collection of local musicians chipped in. A reformed Boys Life recorded three new songs for the project including the saxophone of the Dap-Kings very own Neal Sugarman. It culminated with a sold out performance at The Middle East on the night of the winter’s biggest snowstorm. Wille Alexander narrated.
Through all of this, John managed Jacques Underground, proud to give fledgling bands their first gig. He remembers how great those first gigs are and loved to encourage a new generation.
John had begun the writing and recording tracks for the sequel to Tomorrow the World when he fell ill.
John hadn’t felt well for a year even though he continued to work on the new record. Three months ago he took a turn for the worst. He suffered from blackouts he would have no memory of. The blackouts always led to an ambulance ride and a stay in the hospital. Five in total. They would release him and he would have another blackout and wind up back in the hospital. They kept him in the hospital for two months. They finally diagnosed the problem; his body was not getting rid of toxins, building up, causing the blackouts. He had also developed diabetes. They prescribed and balanced the necessary medications and John is on the mend. He is home, following his treatment plan, gaining strength, reunited with his beloved dog Amanda, hoping to get back in the studio someday soon.
John lost his job because of his illness. He has been out of work for a while now and his doctors tell him he can’t go back to work yet, so John needs help. He can’t pay his past rent due or his future rent. He has a stack of bills he can’t pay: food, medicine and hospital bills that are not covered. John is still sick and needs some financial help just to survive until he can stand on his own.
So please give what you can. A little from a lot will help. We need John back in the studio and playing shows. He needs to get better.
"I've known John for over 37 years! We have shared some memorable rock experiences: producing the Boys Life vs. The Outlets EP, hanging out with and playing on stage with Paul Weller at a Future Dads' gig when John brought 2/3 of The Jam to The Underground to see us play, and we all played together! The Jam guys liked our 60's white leather guitar straps. I played street hockey with John too and still have a black ‘n gold Malden hockey jersey in my closet. John is an honest guy too. If likes something you do, he tells you; if he isn't thrilled, he tells you. I think our friendship is special because we never bullshit each other, but we have ALWAYS supported each other. A lot of people know John and know me in this Social Media World ! A lot of you have supported our music, for years. I love John Surette and so do a lot of you. John has had some remarkable medical problems recently. He is on the road to recovery, but he is also in serious financial trouble. I hope you can help him out."
Richie Parsons (Unnatural Axe, Future Dads)
PLEASE SHARE, LIKE and REPOST
Thank You
Organizer and beneficiary
John Surette
Organizer
Boston, MA
David Surette
Beneficiary
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