By Debbie Gardner
debbieg@thereminder.com
Peter Newland knows the ups and downs of celebrity. Founding member and singer/songwriter for the local rock band FAT, he and his band mates tasted the star power of a nationally released album in the early 1970s that led to a gig touring as the opening act for the Allman Brothers.
But FAT’s rising star status stalled when a second album deal fizzled, and even though the band released two more locally produced albums and continued to open for rock luminaries such as Grand Funk Railroad and Johnny Winter, they never seemed able to break out of Western Mass legend status. The band officially disbanded in 1985, reformed to play a reunion concert in the mid 1990s and now plays only select gigs in the Pioneer Valley.
Yet FAT’s muted success didn’t completely derail Newland’s music dreams. He went on to craft a songwriting career in places such as Mississippi, New Orleans and Nashville. During that time he had some of his songs recorded by Country stars such as Hank Williams, Jr. and Alan Jackson.
Though that music career still didn’t reach the apex he had hoped for, Newland said his work in Nashville led him to discover another purpose – the power to change another person’s life. Working with a multi-faith community action group in that city, he saw how an investment of time and talent could create measurable change in a community.
“When I was in Nashville, we put a before and after-school program together that had remarkable effects in terms of raising the graduation rate, lowering gang participation and in turn lowering the rate of youth violence, in the city,” Newland said. “That program is still in place, and it has had remarkable effects.”
Bringing the passion home
When he returned to Springfield for good a few years back to “be where my roots were,” and near his family, Newland said he brought the desire to make a difference with him.
“I was raised by a woman who raised us with a sense of social justice,” Newland said, adding that FAT did a lot of benefit concerts in the beginning as a way to build an audience. Looking around he said he once again saw “an opportunity” to use his talent to help a city and its residents.
“The city had always been good to us, and supportive and treated us like the hometown heroes,” Newland said of the FAT years. “They were [also] very welcoming when everything came back to earth [for FAT].” He said when he came back home again for good it “dawned on me that here was a way to have the music make sense,” as in Springfield he was still “pretty well known, and the band was pretty well known” and he could trade on that cachet to “make [Springfield] a better place.”
He got involved with Evan Plotkin and the city’s Jazz and Roots Festival three years ago. Around the same time he started working with Mercy Hospital on some of their homeless outreach. Combining the two, Newland got Mercy to help advertise the Festival – they donated their billboard along I-91 – and he initiated a drive to collect socks for the homeless during the three-day music event.
“I really believe in trying to create a win-win situation, a situation where parties work together and all parties benefit,” he said.
The Jazz Festival has continued collecting socks for the homeless annually.
“Socks are extremely important [to homeless healthcare],” Newland said, explaining that many of the patients serviced by Mercy’s Healthcare for the Homeless have footwear that is too big or too small and they spend many hours in wet and cold conditions. Any and all of these can contribute to, or exacerbate foot health issues that are compounded by conditions such as diabetes. “It’s a simple and affordable donation and gesture that [provides] a little bit of comfort for folks on hard times and conveys the idea that someone out there cares,” he said.
Prior to his work with Jazz and Roots, Newland launched his own fundraising project, JAM4SPRINGFIELD.
“I thought it would be a good way to use my experience and my cachet and my influence – and my music – in whatever small way I could,” he said.
According to JAM4SPRINGFIELD’s mission statement, Newland developed the nonprofit to “produce and promote musical events for Springfield that will contribute to the ongoing renaissance of the city by:
Building a music-fueled revenue engine that will support initiatives that address critical inner city issues such as the school dropout rate, gang participation and youth violence, and
Promoting events that celebrate the history, culture and architecture of Springfield thereby raising the quality of the downtown experience, beginning to change some of the commonly held misperceptions of our city and working toward re-establishing us as the entertainment center of Western Massachusetts.”
The organization has hosted two events so far. In November of 2012, JAM4 SPRINGFIELD brought together FAT, the James Montgomery Band and the Spampinato Brothers (of NRBQ) in a concert at downtown Springfield’s Paramount Theater to raise money to support the Open Pantry.
In March of 2013, JAM4SPRINGFIELD partnered with the Springfield Museums to promote a Valley Guitar Showcase in conjunction with the museum’s exhibit “Guitar – The Instrument that Rocked the World.” This cross-cultural event was designed to showcase the breadth of talent in the Valley, and to draw both musicians and listeners from throughout the area. Once again Newland and FAT played a pivotal role in the production.
Planning for more
Though Newland said he’s enjoyed the things he’s involved with so far since his return to Springfield, he’s “most passionate about the youth of our city, because they are our future.
“I think the city has made some great strides in terms of keeping kids in school and providing alternatives, but I think there’s a lot of work to be done there,” he said.
When he began to make inquiries about local programs, he discovered the work of Gary Bernice and the band he leads at the High School of Science and Technology, and a program at the YMCA called Y-AIM – that provides both in-school mentoring and tutoring and after-school activities. Both are programs that he supports and advocates for. They reflect his belief that targeted and arts-based programming can give kids “something positive to hang on to” when facing some of the “high risk” choices that are part of growing up, especially in urban environments.
Newland said, “The wheel has been invented in Springfield, but what’s missing is the funding,” to keep kids engaged and moving in positive directions.
Newland said he is “extremely grateful” to the big donors such as Mass Mutual and Palmer Paving that support so much of the work with youth, but with so many programs, he sees the need for more support. JAM4SPRINGFIELD, he said, can be that revenue-generating engine.
Newland confided he’s got another fundraising concert in the works at the moment, but there aren’t enough details nailed down to make a formal announcement.
His goal is to have a major event on the books for 2017 that “will support the Sci-Tech band, the Y-AIM program and raise awareness” of the many good programs for the city’s youth that need support.
Still chasing the music
A workforce job may pay the bills now and supporting youth programs may be his passion, but that doesn’t mean Newland has completely left music behind. He mentors young musicians across the country, helping them navigate the ins and outs of the music business.
He also still performs.
In addition to acting as front man for FAT at area concerts – such as their appearance at the West Side Taste of the Valley in August – he’s found a home with two more local bands. RadioXile marries Newland’s talent with Mark Pappas on guitar, Chet Pasek on drums, Tom Petri on bass and Ralph Whittle on keyboards. He’s also discovered the cultural classics in the American Songbook – the “canon of the most important and influential American popular songs and jazz standards from the early 20th century” according to the Center for the Performing Arts. These he performs with another band, Armani Tuxedo.
“I love songs; to me it’s always been about the song. I think that’s why FAT is still very popular, we had unusually characteristic songs. It wasn’t just about jamming and playing, there was a lot of focus on the songwriting,” he said. “One of the great things about my post-FAT experiences is about being able to interpret, when I hear a great song, I want to sing it.
“I sing rock, I sing country, I sing blues, I sing the classics,” Newland said.
