Clay Wells

I traveled to Gainesville, Florida on June 4th, 2026, for Brian Doherty's Celebration of Life that took place at Depot Village. The event brought together friends and family who played music, shared stories, and reminisced about days before. Brian’s Celebration of Life was both moving and inspiring. Brian ran a record label called Cherry Smash Records. The band I played drums in, Meringue, was on Cherry Smash Records along with many other. I joined Meringue in 1994 and that’s when I started meeting, playing with, and becoming friends with many people in the Gainesville music scene. I was originally scheduled to fly back home to Philly on Monday, June 8th but ended up extending my trip until June 22. I extended my trip for a few reasons; I wanted time to process and reflect on the passing of my mother a few weeks prior who had Alzheimer's Disease, and I wanted time to reset and think about what I want to do next in life. I came up with an idea to film a documentary on the music scene in Gainesville, Florida from the 1980's to today. This is an ambitious project that will require lots of research, conversations, and digging through online resources that I hope will capture the bands, the venues, the record labels, the studios, the fans, and the ethos created by the community. Filming has already begun with footage of Pop Canon and Squeaky’s reunion show that took place at Loosey’s on Friday, June 19th. I reached out to both bands and both bands were interested in participating. I had the fortunate opportunity to swing by a Pop Canon rehearsal to capture the first footage for this documentary series. Due to the long timeframe, large number of photos, footage, and interviews this project will be released as a docuseries. I plan on starting with the 1980’s, 1990’s, and early 2000’s and going from there. I am fundraising to help cover costs for travel and other expenses related to filming interviews, live shows, etc. for the first 2-3 episodes. Any funds donated above and beyond the initial goal will be invested in the project to help cover expenses for future episodes. Expenses for three trips and 5-8 weeks in Gainesville: All prices are approximations. Actual prices could be higher or lower. Air travel ($400 x 3 = $1,200) Car rental ($350 x 3 = 1,050) Gas ($125 x 3 = $375) Food (5-8 weeks of groceries plus eating out a handful of times. $800) Incidentals ($250) Buffer ($325) These expenses total $4,000. I will track expenses and post updates here or on a website for this project for transparency and accountability. The initial financial goal will be for a smaller amount. The small amount can be used to get the ball rolling and allow progress to be made before reaching the $4,000 goal.