Pushin' Up The Daisies Fest Benefit Brings Historic Jersey
City Cemetery To Life
by Jim Testa
The Historic Jersey City & Harsimus Cemetery came alive
for Pushin’ Up The Daisies, an all-day benefit on Saturday,
May 12 that transformed the solemn memorial park into a joyous
festival with music, food, and dancing, as multi-generational
crowd of hundreds enjoyed a picture perfect Spring day. Eileen
Markenstein, who’s led the volunteer crusade to restore
and preserve the grounds, said it best: “This is the
way this place should feel,” she proclaimed to the multi-generational
crowd. “Cemeteries are for living!”
Organizer Dancing Tony Susco announced that the benefit had
raised $3,500, which will go to much-needed repairs as well
as routine maintenance of the centuries old cemetery, which
receives no private or government funding and is entirely
dependent on contributions.
Gully Hubbards
The day started under bright sun and good spirits in the early
afternoon, featuring ten local bands who volunteered their
time to perform for the crowd. As children scampered around
the grounds and older patrons explored the historic monuments
– some of which date back to soldiers of the Revolutionary
and Civil Wars - the crowd enjoyed a mixed bag of folk, country,
soul, Latin, and rock ‘n ‘ roll.
New York City’s Scott Wolfson & the Other Heroes
kicked off the day with folk-influenced pop. Jersey City’s
Ace Case, usually the king of sarcastic country swing with
his own group, displayed a more earnest side with his new
project the Gully Hubbards, with James Dower and Amy Elise.
Another Jersey City-based group, Leaf Pile, delivered a set
of pretty indie-pop, highlighted by violin and lovely male/female
vocals. Brooklyn’s Bob Parins and his trio entertained
the crowd with sophisticated set of tunes that combined the
best of 60’s pop and Great American Songbook classics.
Awkward Girls
The Awkward Girls revved up the energy level with their
old-school punk rock attack, recalling the era of Black
Flag and the Descendents with a no-nonsense delivery heavy
on attitude and tattoos. Jersey City mainstay MrBlackman
JuneStar mixed hip hop and soul in a project called Winner
Takes All Collective, while local folksinger Deivis “Deivito”
Garcia and friends brought a funky Latin flavor with their
group, the United States of Bugaloo. The Nico Blues and
Cicada Radio followed with strong sets of original indie
rock.
After the sun had set, Jersey City punk rockers
Wyldlife finished the night with a fiery set of rock tunes
that culminated with a tribute to the recently deceased
Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys, as the entire crowd rocked
out and sang along to “(You Gotta) Fight For Your
Right (To Party).”
Wyldlife
During the day, the crowd enjoyed barbecue
from Lucky 7’s Tavern and baked goods from Made With
Love; between live sets, DJ's William McCamie and ScottFREE
entertained the crowd with mixes of classic new wave and
punk. Brennan’s Flower Shop donated dozens of potted
mums, which were sold as Mother’s Day gifts to also
benefit the cemetery.
Anyone interested in volunteering or contributing to the
Historic Jersey City & Harsimus Cemetery can contact
Eileen Markenstein at www.jerseycitycemetery.org.
Cicada Radio
Dancing Tony and Eileen Markenstein
Leaf Pile
The Nico Blues
United States of Bugaloo
Winner Takes All Collective
Wyldlife
JerseyBeat.com
is an independently published music fanzine
covering punk, alternative, ska, techno and garage
music, focusing on New Jersey and the Tri-State
area. For the past 25 years, the Jersey Beat music
fanzine has been the authority on the latest upcoming
bands and a resource for all those interested in
rock and roll.
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