RL Thomas High School

September 16, 2011August 20, 2019

Goodbye Whitney

Whitney Schutt in RL Thomas yearbook Webster, NY

I feel lucky that I am still in touch with friends from high school. Jeff Munson, Frank Paolo and John Gilmore were all at the Wednesday night Margaret Explosion show at the Little Theatre Café. Even Marty Schutt, owner of Schutt’s Apple Mill, was there but he didn’t realize it was me in the band until he was on the way out. Later that night Colin Pinkney emailed me that Whitney Schutt (no relation to Marty) had passed away.

Whitney was so cool they gave her a full page in the yearbook (click on the photo above). Frank sent me her newspaper death notice and it is fittingly poetic.

Update: Hwy. 20 crash victim identified
Ukiah Daily Journal Staff
Updated: 09/15/2011 11:59:36 PM PDT

The Hopland woman who died in a solo-vehicle crash on Highway 20 Tuesday night was identified Thursday as Whitney Schutt, 61.
Schutt was pronounced dead at the scene where her silver 1999 BMW convertible rolled over on the dirt shoulder of the highway, according to the California Highway Patrol.
She was driving west on Highway 20 just east of Potter Valley Road at about 8:20 p.m. when she allowed the car to leave the road for reasons still under investigation, according to the CHP. The car slid out of control on the dirt north of the road and overturned. Schutt wasn’t wearing a seatbelt, according to the CHP.
Drugs or alcohol are not believed to have been factors in the crash, which remains under investigation.

Love For Sale

Three Musicians at Wednesday night Open Jam at Clarissa's in Rochester, NY — Three Musicians at Wednesday night Open Jam at Clarissa’s in Rochester, NY

I was thinking of that Picasso painting, “Three Musicians“.

The Clarisa Room is no more but the old Shep’s Paradise is open as “Clarissa’s” and it is still a great sounding room for jazz. We were there last night for the open jam hosted by 1968 RL Thomas graduate, Mike Allen, aka “A King Of Soul”. These three horn players, probably Eastman School of Music students, were waiting to play “Love For Sale”. This is one comfortable bar and it was midnight before we knew it.

We were talking about Gap Mangione last night because the bass player from his big band was sitting in. Conversation turned to the Buffalo plane crash and the Chuck Mangione players that died there. We hadn’t heard from Gap in a while but he called today to request some changes to his web site. We did another quote today for a web site. We have a few out there. We could be busy again if all goes well

Winter Vacation

Mike Allen at the Mez in Rochester, New York

You know how when you’re on vacation somewhere and there is a band playing and they aren’t anybody famous or anything but they sound so damn good that you really dig the music even if it’s Neil Diamond or Van Morrison? The songs are all covers but they are chosen so tastefully from the world’s giant fake book that you get to just sit back and enjoy the music. Mike Allen at the Mez last night went south of the border and down to Brazil even. He channeled Ray Charles and Ertha Kitt. He and his four octave keyboard are a one man band with really cool arrangements. I felt like we were on vacation.

Peggi and I were talking to Mike after the show and he told us he has a cd of his band playing “The Dictionary” teen center in Webster in 1965. I went to high school with Mike Allen and he was in a working band back then. I’m dying to hear this.

Detention For Skipping Detention

They really knew how to torture you in high school. Sitting in a room after school with nothing to do was about as bad as it got. Looks like I tried skipping detention and got another slip for cutting detention. I found a few of the pink slips in my old yearbook along with this entry from Melinda Lasher.

“Paul, Next year you’ll probably major in Math right? Or maybe English. (I must have been in those two classes with her) Course it wasn’t too bad for you ’cause you never even came. I never saw someone get away with skipping as much as you.”

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