Steve Griggs: A life well lived

(Tony Suarez offers photos and memories of another San Diego stalwart gone too soon.)

We lost another good guy recently in San Diego. Stephen Griggs passed away on May 17, 2011.

Steve didn’t play in a band. He was the guy that got all of us to go see the bands, and got people up front and dancing. If it weren’t for guys like Steve, most of us playing music would not have had an audience. He was a ringleader, and got people together to go to shows. His involvement with the Secret Society Scooter club led to many shows at Club Zu, Rock Palace and most of the New Sounds of the 6ts, and many of the early SD scooter rallies (I got Dogged, the rallies to Bad Manners, the Who show, et al.).

I hope these photos attest to his far-reaching love and friendship … not only in the mod and scooter communities, but to his love of Little League (he was an umpire for many years) and the the SD rockabilly scene through most of the late ’90s. I look at his Facebook, and Steve had more friends than most bands and celebrities!

Read moreSteve Griggs: A life well lived

Bandmates/other friends 1982-1990 (+1)

(Bart Mendoza of Manual Scan and the Shambles — San Diego music historian extraordinaire — shares some highlights from his stacks.)

Detail: Dean Curtis at Club Zu (collection Bart Mendoza)Some call it being a pack rat; I prefer the tag “archivist”! The dream is to put together a DVD/book with the rooms full of stuff I’ve accumulated in 30 years of collecting San Diego music memorabilia.

But in the meantime, in honor of the recent Che Underground reunion shows, here are 20 relevant vintage photos from my archive. For this fifth picture post, I’ve included a little bit of everything: random photos from 1982-1990 (+1), including bandmates and other friends.

1) Dean Curtis at Club Zu. You know it’s a good show if Dean is in attendance.

Detail: Dimitri Callian at New Sounds 1989 (collection Bart Mendoza)Detail: Patrick Works and Peter Miesner at Club Zu (collection Bart Mendoza)Detail: The Roosters at New Sounds 1985 / JP’s (collection Bart Mendoza)Detail: Mick (London) Hale at Club Zu (collection Bart Mendoza)

Read moreBandmates/other friends 1982-1990 (+1)

The Che Underground