In this episode, Charles sits down with Mike Bernard, a Boston-area author, screenwriter, and playwright who came to writing later in life and hasn’t slowed down since. Mike has published eight novels, written a stage musical, and optioned multiple screenplays through prestigious competitions including the Academy Nicholl Fellowship, the Page International Screenwriting Awards, ScreenCraft, and the Nantucket Film Festival. The conversation weaves together music, memory, friendship, and the creative life \u2014 all anchored in the gritty, soulful sounds of the 1970s and early ’80s.<\/p>\n
Mike’s live music journey begins with a memorable \u2014 if reluctant \u2014 first show: escorting his grandmother to see Liberace at the Cape Cod Melody Tent. His real musical awakening came when he saw the J. Geils Band at the old Boston Garden as a teenager, an experience he still counts among his best. The blues-driven energy of “House Party” and “Musta Got Lost” made a lifelong impression, and he draws a sharp distinction between that era of J. Geils and the MTV-era band that followed. Other standout shows include Elvis Costello at the Cape Cod Coliseum \u2014 where the opening silhouettes under blue light during “Watching the Detectives” hit him like a gut punch \u2014 and an extraordinary 1990 benefit concert at Worcester’s Clark University featuring Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Timothy B. Schmit, Bob Seger, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, and Jimmy Buffett all on the same bill. And for pure comedic gold, Mike recounts the moment a Little River Band guitar pick landed \u2014 and stuck \u2014 to his bare thigh at the Melody Tent, with zero competition from the crowd for the souvenir.<\/p>\n
Charles and Mike then discuss Mike’s book Concert Dates<\/i>; a fictional story told in interview form \u2014 inspired by Daisy Jones & The Six<\/i> \u2014 that follows six friends who meet at a concert at age 15 and are reunited decades later through a video diary. The backdrop is the Cape Cod Coliseum, a converted hockey rink that hosted an extraordinary run of classic rock shows from 1972 to 1983, including Van Halen, The Clash, Talking Heads, Peter Frampton, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and J. Geils (twelve times). Mike also shares the remarkable story of connecting with photographer Rudy Childs \u2014 a previous Seeing Them Live<\/i> guest \u2014 through a Facebook group dedicated to the Coliseum, only to discover that Rudy’s candid parking lot photos included a picture of Mike and his own friends from a Clash show. Listeners who enjoy music, nostalgia, and deeply human storytelling will find Concert Dates<\/i> \u2014 and Mike’s wider catalog, including Crossing the Sagamore<\/i> \u2014 well worth picking up on Amazon.<\/p>\n
BANDS:<\/strong> Aerosmith, Black Sabbath, Billy Joel, Bob Seger, Bon Iver, Bonnie Raitt, Don Henley, Eagles (Glenn Frey, Timothy B. Schmit), Elvis Costello, Engelbert Humperdinck, Frankie Avalon, Huey Lewis and the News, J. Geils Band, Jackson Browne, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Buffett, Liberace, Little River Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Marshall Tucker Band, Neil Young, Ozzy Osbourne, Peter Frampton, R.E.M., Ray Charles, Seals and Crofts, Sly & the Family Stone, Talking Heads, The Clash, The Four Tops, Tom Petty, Van Halen.<\/p>\n VENUES:\u00a0<\/strong> Boston Garden, Cape Cod Coliseum, Cape Cod Melody Tent, United Center (Chicago), University of Illinois lecture hall (Champaign).<\/p>\n PATREON:<\/strong> Please help us defer the cost of producing this podcast by making a donation on Patreon.<\/p>\n WEBSITE – BECOME A GUEST:<\/strong> Visit the Seeing Them Live website and click on the link to fill out a form so we can consider you as a guest on the show.<\/p>\n INSTAGRAM:<\/strong> FACEBOOK:<\/strong> Boston-based author and screenwriter Mike Bernard joins host Charles to talk live music, nostalgia, and Mike\u2019s novel Concert Dates \u2014 a fictional story following six friends whose lives intertwine through the legendary Cape Cod Coliseum, a converted hockey rink that hosted the who’s who of classic rock from 1972 to 1983. Mike shares his own concert memories, from taking his grandmother to see Liberace to witnessing the J. Geils Band blow the roof off the old Boston Garden, and reveals how a Facebook group, a parking lot photographer, and an unexpected photo led to one of the book’s most remarkable real-life connections. Whether you’re a die-hard live music fan or just love a great story about friendship and growing up, this episode is for you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_regular_price":[],"currency_symbol":[],"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/cdn.simplecast.com\/media\/audio\/transcoded\/a17b18b8-1140-472d-bc9d-8b7d74cad39a\/6fba452e-d913-428f-890c-05100e781825\/episodes\/audio\/group\/65dd92e0-3bf4-43c1-ab41-ec68c9a54624\/group-item\/18628699-af10-449a-94a6-5aa58f3776f9\/128_default_tc.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:33:31","filesize":"30.69M","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":""},"tags":[],"series":[69],"class_list":["post-4110","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","series-seeing-them-live"],"post_slider_layout_featured_media_urls":{"thumbnail":"","post_slider_layout_landscape_large":"","post_slider_layout_portrait_large":"","post_slider_layout_square_large":"","post_slider_layout_landscape":"","post_slider_layout_portrait":"","post_slider_layout_square":"","full":""},"episode_featured_image":false,"episode_player_image":"https:\/\/seeingthemlive.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/seriously-simple-podcasting\/assets\/images\/no-album-art.png","download_link":"https:\/\/seeingthemlive.com\/podcast-download\/4110\/s04-e09-from-page-to-stage-mike-bernard-discusses-his-book-concert-dates","player_link":"https:\/\/seeingthemlive.com\/podcast-player\/4110\/s04-e09-from-page-to-stage-mike-bernard-discusses-his-book-concert-dates","audio_player":"https:\/\/seeingthemlive.com\/podcast-player\/4110\/s04-e09-from-page-to-stage-mike-bernard-discusses-his-book-concert-dates<\/a>","episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/seeing-them-live\/id1666439746","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.google.com\/feed\/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS9FcDlfN2pGVQ","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/episode\/0N5twIpQAhq7Zg4VTNUHly","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/seeingthemlive.com\/feed\/podcast\/seeing-them-live","embedCode":"
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https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=61550090670708<\/a><\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"S04.E09 – From Page to Stage: Mike Bernard Discusses His Book ‘Concert Dates’<\/a><\/blockquote>