Dan Woog - Charlie Karp Rocks the Levitt, July 2019 When Charlie Karp died in March, his many friends were devastated. The Westport native left Staples High School early in his junior year, to play with Buddy Miles. Though he had an extraordinary musical career — playing at Jimi Hendrix’s funeral; writing, recording, teaching and, especially, performing with the world’s greats — he always came back to Fairfield County. So it was appropriate that last night’s tribute concert took place at the Levitt Pavilion. Charlie’s longtime friend and collaborator Brian Keane — himself a Grammy-winning artist, songwriter and producer — put together a remarkable event. From Germany, Nashville and plenty of other places, Charlie’s friends and admirers cancelled gigs and rearranged schedules. More than 70 vocalists, gospel singers, keyboardists, percussionists, horn players and (especially) guitarists flew and drove to Westport. Their list of credits is eye-popping. They’ve played and recorded with, or opened for, everyone from the Beatles, Doors, James Brown, Smokey Robinson and Roberta Flack to Wynton Marsalis, the New York Philharmonic, Boston Pops and London Symphony Orchestra. With just one rehearsal, the musicians — many of whom knew each other, but had never played together — delivered one of the Levitt’s most powerful, pulsating shows ever. It even included a tribute from Charlie’s friend Keith Richards. He was otherwise engaged, on tour with his band the Rolling Stones. The benefit raised funds for a scholarship in Charlie’s name. Every year it will help talented student musicians, by providing studio time at the Carriage House in Stamford and Horizon in West Haven. Midway through the concert, storm clouds rolled in. Thunderstorms — predicted, and ominous — never materialized. The clouds moved on, and the sky brightened. “Charlie’s angels,” someone said.

Dan Woog, August 2016 You may know Charlie Karp from his many local bands. You may have heard his his work as an Emmy-winning producer of music for sports networks, documentaries, and feature films. But you may not know his Staples-era back story. When he was 14 in 1967 — and still a student at Coleytown Junior High School — Charlie’s band opened for the Doors, at their legendary Staples concert. He was at Fillmore East the next year when it began, and stood on the side of the stage on New Year’s Eve 1969, for the fabled Band of Gypsies concert featuring Jimi Hendrix. Later that night, 16-year-old Charlie hosted a party at his parents’ Upper West Side apartment. His dad was away — but Hendrix was there. Not long after, Buddy Miles asked Charlie to play on what became the renowned “Them Changes” album. Charlie contributed an original song — “I Still Love You, Anyway” — and played acoustic guitar. In April 1970 — while his classmates trudged through junior year — Charlie played with the Buddy Miles Express. They opened for Hendrix at the Los Angeles Forum, in front of a capacity crowd of 18,000. In 1971, Buddy Miles — with Charlie — opened for Three Dog Night at the Cotton Bowl. That same year Miles recorded a live album with Joe Tex. Charlie joined bassist David Hull (part time Aerosmith player), and a tremendous horn section. After all these years — there is not enough room here to talk about his career from the 1970s till now — Charlie is still very much a working musician. He teaches guitar and songwriting at his Fairfield studio. He helps his students and other professional musicians produce their own music, too. His latest release — “Endless Home Movie” — is available on iTunes. It comes almost 50 years after his 1st single — “Welcome to the Circle” — with his Fun Band, on ABC Records. And 45 years after he left Staples, to follow — and reach — his musical dream. He did not graduate with his class. But he helped make this year’s reunion a very classy one.

Remembering Charlie Karp Dan Woog, March 2019 Charlie Karp — the Westport kid who left Staples High School at 16 to play guitar with Buddy Miles, then hung and played with Jimi Hendrix and Keith Richards and wrote songs for Joan Jett and Joe Perry, before returning home to earn a fanatic following with bands like Dirty Angels, White Chocolate, Slo Leak and the Namedroppers, while simultaneously earning Emmys as a producer of music for sports networks, documentaries and feature films, and becoming a guitar teaching mentor to generations of aspiring young stars — died last night, at 65. He was diagnosed just a few days ago with liver cancer. Charlie’s friends and families wanted him to know how much he was loved and admired. A Facebook posting when he went into hospice care on Friday drew hundreds of comments. Brian Keane — Charlie’s classmate in Staples’ Class of 1971, who has composed music for many films and TV shows, produced over 100 albums, and won Grammys, Emmys and Peabodys, realized Charlie’s talents during Coleytown Junior High’s 7th grade Battle of the Bands. Brian wrote: “Charlie had the ability to channel something magical and musical, to deliver a special sense of feeling that connected with people, and moved them to the core on a fundamental level. Charlie possessed a rare treasure that is impossible to teach, and nearly impossible to attain. Charlie Karp was a natural.” As he played in area venues with Charlie, Brian wrote, “the simplicity of his music made me concentrate on a deep level of honest human feeling.” Charlie played at any club he could (including, at the Georgetown Saloon, with Keith Richards), and for any charity that asked. He was particularly pleased to join ’71 classmates Brian, Michael Mugrage, Bonnie Housner Erickson, Dave Barton, Bill Sims, and Rob and Julie McClenathan in The Reunion Band. Their concert at the Levitt Pavilion was one of the greatest shows ever there. Charlie and Brian co-wrote “You Lift My Heart.” It was released on Marion Meadows’ album “Secrets” a few years ago. Brian finds it a fitting tune for Charlie lifted so many hearts. Brian’s tribute on Facebook elicited heartfelt comments, from a broad array of Charlie’s admirers. Some wrote as fans of his bands. Some were classmates. Some were his guitar students, or their parents. Joe Dochtermann called Charlie his “musical mentor. He taught me everything I know about the art of life as a musician and beyond.” They set up a studio in the Bahamas, and worked together in Easton for a time of “intense musical creation.” Charlie also connected him to “many other kind and talented souls.” Joe wrote, “I can’t fathom where my life would have headed without his compass.” Dennis Hrbek mixed Slo Leak’s first album. He had never heard anything like “Charlie’s vocal coming out of a big amp in the studio, making him sound bigger and badder than ever. That week completely changed the way I listen to music.” The first rock concert Bob Cummings ever saw was White Chocolate, at Fairfield University in 1973. They were “on fire,” Bob wrote, “with Charlie’s guitar screaming! God bless you, Charlie. Let’s have a cup of Hot White Chocolate!”

Written by Brian Keane, March 9, 2019, just hours before Charlie passed away. Ever since our battle of the bands in the seventh grade at Coleytown Junior High School in Westport, Connecticut, which I lost, I realized that Charlie Karp possessed naturally, what it would take me at least 15 years more of hard work to begin to develop: the ability to channel something magical and musical, and to deliver a special sense of feeling that connected with people, and moved them to the core on a fundamental level through music. Charlie possessed a rare treasure that is impossible to teach, and nearly impossible to attain. Charlie Karp was a natural. Early on, I marveled at his ability with the “Fun Band”, with being a young teenage star on tour with Buddy Miles, recording on the hit song “Them Changes”, and hanging with the greats of rock n’ roll, like Jimi Hendrix, Keith Richards, or Joe Perry. I rooted for his success with his major label recording bands “Dirty Angels”, “White Chocolate”, and with later efforts, too, like his project with legendary guitarist Danny Kortchmar in “Slo Leak”, and with his “Name Droppers” band. In the 1980s, I was thrilled to play blues with Charlie at a little club in Georgetown, and marveled at how much fun it was to be a part of musically. I loved that the simplicity of the music that Charlie played made me concentrate on a deep level of honest human feeling, and it was a welcome relief from the intellectual gymnastics I was being paid to perform as a world touring jazz fusion guitarist at the time. I enjoyed hanging out socially with Charlie, too. I enjoyed our occasional get togethers with the girls while that lasted, our cigars together, talking music and life, and sharing our somewhat unique and yet similar perspectives, living our Peter Pan lives as grown professional musicians. Later, when I hired Charlie to work on what would become Emmy and Peabody award-winning television scores, it was not because I needed a guitarist, though I, of course, appreciated his great talent. It was because I wanted that natural feel that he gave the music, and I wanted to show him my appreciation for the great emotional gift he gave to me and others through his music. I just loved writing music with Charlie, and wish we could have done more of that. Charlie Karp has been very generous with lending his enormous talent and expertise to many younger people, and even students with their recordings, too, and he was always involved with various charities. Charlie has lifted so many spirits through his music, and made such an impact, that he is a local legend without peer. When I was asked to put a band together for our Staples High School 40th reunion, Charlie Karp was the first person I asked. I thought it might be fun to play those old songs we grew up playing again, especially with another great guitarist we went to high school with, Michael Mugrage, joining us; but I had no idea of how much our musical interaction would lift that experience to another level. Everyone who experienced it seemed to feel that too, and I am glad that we had the chance to appear in Fred Cantor’s film “The High School That Rocked” together, and give some summer concerts at the Levitt Pavilion in our hometown, and elsewhere. Tonight, that Reunion Band played a private fundraising event for bereaved children without Charlie in the band. Though Tony Aiardo did an admirable job filling in, it wasn’t the same. It will never be the same. I’ve known that Charlie was very sick for a few weeks now, but until yesterday, Charlie had held out hope that the doctors would find a way to deal with his illness, and asked that the situation remain as private as possible in hopes of a full recovery. I am very sad to report that Charlie Karp was moved from Yale Hospital to hospice yesterday. His doctors don’t expect him to survive more than a few weeks. He is in excellent care, being kept comfortable, and surrounded by loving family. I had to tell the band after the show tonight. The family has requested that you respect Charlie’s, and their privacy in this difficult time. The hospital has been besieged by well wishers, and Charlie and the family are simply not able to accommodate them. However, the family has also asked me to let his many friends, fans, and fellow musicians know what is happening, and to encourage that if you wanted to share any of your own favorite Charlie Karp music or memorabilia, or how Charlie has lifted your spirits through music, or otherwise, that they would welcome that. I am very sad about this, of course. It is devastating for me personally, and I’m sure, for many others, too. However, in the scheme of things, we are all only a nano-second behind Charlie, and soon enough will be joining him in that great beyond, whatever it is. I am left mostly with gratitude. Gratitude for having known Charlie Karp, for having grown up together, for the music that he shared with us, the music that we shared together, and for his welcome company on this crazy and fascinating ride of life together. Charlie Karp has made my life far more enjoyable, and I can only thank him for that. I know that is true for many others too. As some pretty decent song writers once wrote: Charlie, “You lift my heart into heaven”. Love you.

I’m going to share a portion of what I wrote for Charlie’s memorial service: You know, it might sound strange to say that a high school dropout should be viewed as a role model for kids, but that’s exactly the way I feel in Charlie’s case: because he was able to do something he loved, had lots of friends as well as close family who felt a real affection for him, and because of something else too—he gave back to the community in a variety of ways through different charitable causes. Charlie hit the trifecta of life.