SPENCER GATES MEMORIAL Options

[hobot]

From Joyce Linehan:

The memorial service for Spencer Gates will be held on Wednesday, July 9 at
11 a.m. at the Charles Hotel in Harvard Square (Bennett St.). The event will consist of a service at which any of Spencer¹s friends are invited to speak (play, dance, read!) followed by a reception with many of Spencer¹s favorite passed hors douvres (deviled eggs will flow). Joanie Lindstrom will DJ, and there will be a table for photos, so bring them if you have them!


If you would like to speak, let me know and I will get you on the set list.
If any of you can¹t make it but would like to send something to be read, I can take care of that too.


It¹s going to be a marvelous party, even if Spencer won¹t be there. In lieu of flowers, we¹re asking for donations. Tom Johnston and I wrote the obituary below to submit to the papers, and the donation info is at the bottom.


Hope to see a lot of friendly old faces on Wednesday.


Joyce



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Ann Spencer Gates, of Cambridge, known to her friends as Spencer, died peacefully at home on July 6, 2008, after a courageous two-year battle with breast cancer.


Spencer moved to Boston in 1978 from her hometown of Buffalo, to attend Boston University. She quickly fell in love with the Boston music scene, introduced by her brother Peter Gates, already established as a DJ at MIT¹s WMBR. In 1981, she and her best friend Sheena (Lisa Buchholz) became hosts of the beloved show "The Mystery Girls" on WMBR, which ran Friday afternoons for 5 years, and was, by Spencer's own admission, "the most unprofessional thing ever on the radio." The show featured many of the bands of the city's burgeoning punk rock scene, including Mission of Burma, Lemonheads, Nervous Eaters, Sorry, and Moving Targets, and was an irreverent Friday afternoon cocktail party on the air, signaling the start of the weekend. Every week they would assume different personas. They were the Mystery Girls, and had the power at will to become the characters they chose. It didn't matter if they couldn't quite agree on who they should be or remember who they decided to be. Said Mission of Burma¹s Clint Conley, As a person Spencer was such
a gas--so funny, and sassy and tuned in. I was a dedicated listener of
her show in the 80s--total irreverence, anarchic fun, such a psych hearing them getting all jacked up over the music they'd be checking out that
weekend. Thinking of Spencer, I am more convinced than ever that the most
inspired part of any cool music scene usually has less to do with the musicians than the musicians would like to think.²


Unlike shows of the time playing only the punk rock canon, the Mystery Girls played country, blues, and even the odd show tune, as long as it was American and fit their thread. It would not have been unusual to hear Patsy Cline with Flipper, Fear or X. And if they changed their mind, it was equally likely that they'd change tracks mid-song. If someone dared to play a British band or anything else not to their liking, it wasn't unusual to hear the sound of a needle scratching across a record. They were hostile to structure of any kind. If a guest was perceived as whiny during an interview, Spencer would cut him or her off unceremoniously. It was perhaps the most memorable punk rock radio show of the era.


They recruited as their “official” phone answerer Michael Patrick MacDonald, a traumatized Southie punk-kid they'd taken under their wing, who partly recounts his time with them in his book Easter Rising. Said MacDonald, "It didn't pay but it was the first time I ever felt proud of something I had to show up for. And Spencer and Sheena were immediately my adopted big sisters, introducing me to books, films at the Brattle, and music that expanded the definition of 'punk.' On most nights, Spencer and Sheena could be found, dressed to kill in cocktail garb, at a club like the late lamented Rat or Chet's Last Call hosting a party for a touring band who would soon be famous. The Mystery Girls loft in downtown Boston, hosted many legendary after-hours happenings of the time. According to former Lemonheads manager Joyce Linehan, The paradox of the Mystery Girls was that they were finishing school girls who brought comic civility and good manners to punk rock by being unbelievably uncivil and ill-mannered. Yet it was never mean-spirited, and even the most outcast of the outcasts were a welcome part of the fun.
After leaving Boston, Spencer lived in the apartment above the legendary Hoboken club Maxwell's, and also spent time in Minneapolis and Los Angeles.
She moved to New York in 1988, and later took a job as a publicist at Matador Records, where she worked with Liz Phair, Pavement, Cat Power, Bettie Serveert, The Fall, Mark Eitzel, and Yo La Tengo. After leaving Matador, she was a publicist at Atlantic Records. Eventually disillusioned by an increasingly corporate and less creative music business, Spencer moved to Rhinebeck in 2000, where she worked in retail. In 2005, she moved back to Boston, to the delight of many of her friends, and took a job in Harvard University's Division of Continuing Education, where she enjoyed working with new students to introduce them to her beloved adopted hometown. When she became too sick to work full time, she took a part time volunteer position in the marketing department at the Huntington Theatre Company in Boston.


According to Tom Johnston, manager of Buffalo Tom and Bettie Serveert, ³Spencer was one of the greatest, most dazzling people I ever had privilege to get to know. She had great taste, a wicked sense of humor, and was so extroverted that many of the friends I have today, I credit directly to her and her charm and gift of gab.²


Since her breast cancer diagnosis in April of 2006 until the final week of her life, Spencer took every opportunity presented to spend time with family and friends, and to go to plays, concerts, movies and other events. In addition to being a fan of music, photography and theater, she was an environmental activist and an animal lover.


She was the daughter of the late H. Hamilton Gates. She leaves her mother Mrs. H. Hamilton Gates of Buffalo, brother Peter of Boston, David of Buffalo and P. Bradford of Ithaca and many cousins and close friends. Donation in Spencer¹s memory can be made to Zumix, 202 Maverick St., E. Boston, MA 02128 or Future Chefs, c/o Third Sector New England, 89 South St., Suite 700, Boston, MA 02111-2680.

[ZiggyBoofa]

Very sad news, indeed. Great person.

If anyone has Sheena's email address, PM me.

[MrAl]

terrible news... I didn't know her that well but met her when we were in the same economics class at BU. My condolences to her friends and family

[christocon]

thoughts and good vibes to her family and friends that weathered the struggles in her final days.

the "mystery girls" show exposed me to an immeasurable level of bands, musics, and viewpoints, and still stands as my favorite radio show to grace our local airwaves.

a true original that will be missed by many.

[JohnnyBlack]

I loved Spencer, she was a bright light on the Boston scene, a pleasure to talk to, and a joy to see out and about.

Truly sad to see this.

[coughlin]

one of the truly great characters from this (or any) area / era.
this sucks so fucking hard.
peace & love to friends & family.

[Orbitron]

Oh, this is awful. Heartfelt condolences to her freinds and family.

I loved Spencer (and Sheena too). The Mystery Girls was one of the best radio shows eva! even if I always called it the Misery Girls. I recall quite a few drunken afternoons at MBR when I'd show up to plug a show, good times had by all. Spencer was one of the funnest folks around, and it was impossible to not have a good time when she was around.

I'm bumming.

[duncanwilder]

I didn't know her, but after reading this I WISH THAT I DID! I remember reading about her in Mike's book. Damn...

On a positive note, it sounds like she had a great time and kicked a lot of ass in her life and I respect that beyond words.

[Jack]

I had no idea who she was, but that radio show was the best thing I have ever heard on the radio. I listed to it every time it was on.

[JohnnyBlack]

Wish we'd had more notice on her service, I would have liked to have been there.

[albodj]

Wish we'd had more notice on her service, I would have liked to have been there.

-from one who was there...EXTREMELY sad but EXTREMELY celabratory as well...RIP Spence, we love you...

[coughlin]

'MBR just aired a short tribute on the Troubador show, stream here
http://wmbr.org/www/sched-thu#troubadour
about 1:03 into the show (july 10)
shows are archived for two weeks

This post has been edited by coughlin: Jul 10 2008, 03:07 PM

[Castaway Carm]

I was devastated when I first heard that Spencer had left the world as we know it. 'The Mystery Girls' wasn't just an awesome show, it was, hands down, the best radio ever. If anyone ever tried what these girls did today, it would be offed within the first five minutes. Sad. Kudo's to two girls who breathed life and laughter through the airwaves. It was almost overkill, in that the music was beyond awesome, yet, we all sat on the edge of our seats waiting for the girls to turn those mics back on. Even when they both got so crazy wild, we couldn't understand a word they said... LOL.

I saw Spencer after a long time at my 20th anniversary at the Abbey last year. Though she was already battling the breast cancer, she looked beautiful with that forever sparkle that was so uniquely hers. If I were to ever pick an absolute angel with the perfect blend of grace and mischievous, it would be Spencer. She was magnificent and magic.

Her memorial is still swimming around in my head. It was beautiful and deeply moving. Not surprising that she planned it. I can't imagine there was ever a living soul who ever met her, not being moved in some way. She was unforgettable. Damned, what a loss.

R.I.P. Spencer Gates.

Here is a bit of Spencer on BGN Boston Groupie News, Spencer Gates

This post has been edited by Castaway Carm: Jul 11 2008, 11:30 AM

[terrydactyl]

I was devastated when I first heard that Spencer had left the world as we know it. 'The Mystery Girls' wasn't just an awesome show, it was, hands down, the best radio ever. If anyone ever tried what these girls did today, it would be offed within the first five minutes. Sad. Kudo's to two girls who breathed life and laughter through the airwaves. It was almost overkill, in that the music was beyond awesome, yet, we all sat on the edge of our seats waiting for the girls to turn those mics back on. Even when they both got so crazy wild, we couldn't understand a word they said... LOL.

I saw Spencer after a long time at my 20th anniversary at the Abbey last year. Though she was already battling the breast cancer, she looked beautiful with that forever sparkle that was so uniquely hers. If I were to ever pick an absolute angel with the perfect blend of grace and mischievous, it would be Spencer. She was magnificent and magic.

Her memorial is still swimming around in my head. It was beautiful and deeply moving. Not surprising that she planned it. I can't imagine there was ever a living soul who ever met her, not being moved in some way. She was unforgettable. Damned, what a loss.

R.I.P. Spencer Gates.

Here is a bit of Spencer on BGN Boston Groupie News, Spencer Gates

it was an awesome awesome show
i listened to it alot and called in too
my friend kathy duff (RIP) was on it a coupla times and i taped several shows
my boston radio show collection and magazine collection is precious to me and i am grateful to spencer gates and others for them
may you rest in peace, spencer

[sberger]

I remember meeting Spencer for the first time when she and I were working part time at Rebop Records on Newbury. Must have been around '81. I think she had the show by then. We didn't hit it off very well at first. We were both loud and brash, and we both wanted more hours at the store. Bill, the owner(my dear friend, RIP), would laugh at the two of us snipping at each other. Anyway, as time went on we started to get on better, and though we were never close friends, I ended up really respecting her for the show, and the way she handled herself. She was an individual, unique, and not just part of the crowd. And she had damn good taste in music.