ALLIANCE — Musician and television producer Harvey Gold will be a special guest when the Alliance Vinyl Club meets inside the Rodman Public Library Auditorium Nov. 1.
Gold, who says he was culturally altered by The Beatles and had his brain chemistry altered by the Velvet Underground, has had a career in the entertainment industry in one way or another since the mid 1970s and will share his experiences during his visit as well as some of his favorite records.
Although it is called a club, there is no formal membership and meetings are open to all music enthusiasts. Led by Byrun Reed, there is no registration required to attend meetings, which are held every first Wednesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. and offer the opportunity for patrons to hang out, listen to music and have good conversation. Those in attendance are invited to bring a favorite vinyl record to share a song or two with the others.
Gold, was one of the founding fathers of the “Art Rock for Laughs,” seminal “Akron Sound” New Wave band Tin Huey. Starting with independent label, Clone, in 1976, the group released one album, titled Contents Dislodged During Shipment, on Warner Brothers in 1979.
Gold’s time with Tin Huey came to a pause in 1982 when he left the band in suspended animation, and after an apprenticeship of sorts at Todd Rundgren’s Utopia Video in Bearsville, New York, Gold’s move to New York City signaled a full commitment to film and TV production. Founding Gold Teleproductions in 1986, notable accomplishments include serving as technical supervisor on the Oscar-nominated Adam Clayton Powell, Cable Ace award winning producer on A&E’s Caroline’s Comedy Hour, Comedy Central’s Two Drink Minimum (on which two fellow Hueys, Chris Butler and Ralph Carney, anchored the “house” band) and, certainly, a high point in producing Nickelodeon’s Weinerville Chanukah and Election specials.
Gold moved his residence back to Akron in 2000 and retired from his television producing career in 2014.
In the meantime, Tin Huey come out of retirement in 2003 and Gold rejoined for a reunion gig, headlining a concert at The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. A four-year period of intermittent appearances followed, during which Gold and Butler, a previous guest at Alliance Vinyl Club, also formed Half Cleveland, which lasted as a performing group until around 2016, releasing an early live semi-plugged album, and a YouTube channel with over 20 iPhone shot live performance clips.
In 2020, Smog Veil Records released It’s Messy, Vol.1, a Gold solo album which includes four studio tracks recorded with Half Cleveland and guest appearances by Dan Auerbach of the Black Key as well as Chris Hillman of The Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers.
Currently Gold is committed to two projects, playing keyboards with The HiFis, an Akron “super group” performing the songs of Chuck Keith, who co-wrote Sister Rose with Gold for Tin Huey; and, primarily, guitar with Golems of the Red Planet, a third-wave surf band expanding on passages from John Zorn’s Masada.
Gold says a few mystery projects, a couple of which may or may not involve some rare Tin Huey material, are also in the offing, along with a later life deep dive into competitive porch sitting.
For information about Alliance Vinyl Club, call 330-821-2665, ext. 216.