At 11:40pm the “band” who had assembled onstage stopped and announced to the crowd that there would be a short break and that at midnight a new band would take the stage with this very amazing special guest.Īt the witching hour the band walked onto the stage. For this particular night I advertised that we were going to have “a very special guest at the stroke of midnight – someone too hot to advertise” I dropped some hints to the right people that this very special guest was going to be Trey Anastasio of Phish and the rumor mill was one fire.
We used to do something at Wetlands called the “Powerjam” where we would rent a bunch of backline and invite the best and brightest musicians of the jam band scene to come down and just improvise all night long.
Then I had yet another one of my million dollar ideas. I knew we had to get him on stage but wasn’t sure how. Anybody who has met Rodney knows that he has always been a rock star, but for some strange reason he had never had his own band. 12 years of service to the beast of Rock N Roll. Rodney was a Wetlands original – one of the few who worked from opening day to closing night. R odney and I met when I started working at Wetlands in 1994. Szufnarowski also shared an account of Speed’s Wetlands performance debut, which first appeared on Jake’s blog. I mean, just look at this guy…the man was a true New York City rock&roll legend, and I’ll miss him.” Jake‘s commitment to making sure Rodney’s life was as awesome as he was has never been less than inspiring, and I feel privileged to have been present for so many of the moments when Rodney’s normally taciturn demeanor melted away and the pure, childlike excitement and joy underneath came through. I’m proud to have stood next to him as he lived out his dreams in front of packed houses at the clubs that loved him as family – Wetlands, CBGB, BB King’s – and so many others, for crowds that were often unsuspecting but never unappreciative. The tributes to Rodney now flowing in, include one from the band Cheap Trick via Twitter, who also posted a photo:īill Stites added via Facebook, “I’m realizing that, as the sole constant member (other than the man himself) of the Rodney Speed Experience over the last damn-near-15 years, Rodney was actually the person I’ve been in a band with the longest in my life. The world of Rock N Roll lost our most loving and lively patron saint and its most spirited motivator and cheerleader… And the universe lost our biggest dreamer and its brightest soul. The Rodney Speed Experience lost our leader. Today I lost my best friend, my big brother, my little brother, my soul mate and my inspiration all at once. I can hardly breathe, much less talk or type. His close friend, co-worker and bandmate Jake Szufnarowski reflects, “I’m speechless. Along with his positive spirit, Speed represented everything that one could hope for in a music fan and a member of the music community. Throughout his life, Rodney Speed maintained a deep appreciation and encyclopedic knowledge of music. He also became a performer in his own right as a member of the Rodney Speed Experience, which gigged across New York City.
Following the closing of Wetlands, Speed would find work in other area venues as a staffer and a DJ including CBGB’s, B.B. A welcoming, familiar face at Wetlands Preserve, Speed worked at the club throughout its history from 1989 through 2001, filling a number of roles, while living his dream by remaining in such close proximity to music. We’re saddened to report on the passing of Rodney Speed.
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