Full Moon Fever - The Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Experience

A group of British and Irish recording artists, including Sting and Bono, came together in 1984 under the name Band Aid and raised money and awareness for the famine in Ethiopia with the song, "Do They Know It’s Christmas?"

On Oct. 16 in Denville, a different form of band aid will fill Broadway with music as it raises money for merchants affected by the flood from Hurricane Irene.

As the advertisement for Band+Aid on Broadway states, it will be a time to "Rock Out for Relief!" From 10:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m., 12 local bands will play, including Deleasa, Blue Soul, Bobby Lynch Band, Edge of Seventeen, Full Moon Fever, Naked Twister, Trippin Carla, and Toxin.

The earlier Band Aid was the inspiration behind Michael Gavin’s musical extravaganza. The Denville resident wanted an event to get people to Broadway, right where Hurricane Irene’s damage was done, essentially bringing customers to the very shops that have been closed since the end of August.

The event coincides with the Denville Up and Running 5K run/walk and street festival for which Denville merchants and restaurants will be open or will have booths to sell their goods.

Gavin is hopeful that the day will bring in enough money to help the merchants still closed "over the hump" so they can get their shops in shape and reopened. "We can’t get this to happen quick enough," he said.

The idea of bringing Denville alive with the sound of music was not Gavin’s alone. Several others also thought a concert would make a good fundraiser. There was Harmonies for Healing, a classical music concert on Oct. 8 and Dan Lefsky, the organizer for the 5K run/walk, had always envisioned music as part of the day. As for the other musically minded residents, Councilman Tom Andes put them in touch with one another and the committee for Band+Aid on Broadway was born.

Finding bands willing to play for free was not a problem. In fact, Gavin said they had to turn bands down for it all to fit within the allocated time.

There will be two stages to ensure continuous music throughout the eight hours. Gavin noted that special thanks goes to East Hanover Township Mayor Joseph Pannullo and his Public Works Department for loaning Denville a "state-of-the-art Showmobile stage."

Gavin said, "We couldn’t pull this event off without them and for that we are very thankful."

As for the music, committee member Alan Tecchio said, "We have a great mix of talent for this day. There are a few very popular cover bands that play the club circuit like Naked Twister, The Bobby Lynch Band and Trippin Carla, plus some good tribute acts like Full Moon Fever (Tom Petty) and Edge of Seventeen (Stevie Nicks/Fleetwood Mac.) A band I cobbled together with current and former Hades band mates will be doing some hard rock and metal. We are calling ourselves The MetalMen. There are a few younger groups from town who got their start in the ‘Denville Rocks’ Rec Program like All Four Years, Goodbye Friday and a band that has actually played with Bret Michaels and Twisted Sister called Toxin."

He added, "I personally was not affected by Irene but I have neighbors who own homes and even businesses in town who lost everything so to be able to help them in some small way is priceless. Hopefully we will all be able to do some good for those affected and have some fun onstage in the process."

Since Hurricane Irene, residents of Denville and neighboring towns have expressed interest in lending a hand to the 300 homes and 70 businesses affected. A fundraising volunteer meeting drew 180 attendees. To date, more than $125,000 has been donated to he Denville Hurricane Relief Fund.

Garage sales, car washes, spaghetti dinners, and can shakes have taken place, but it is the Denville Up and Running and Band+Aid on Broadway that is the largest fundraising event. Besides the music and 5K race, which begins at 11 a.m., the day will include a Zumbathon at 9:30 a.m. and throughout the day, local businesses will offer food and merchandise.

Andes said, "We all had friends and favorite businesses that suffered losses. The people of Denville have always been there to help those in need. The outpouring of kindness and generosity has been unbelievable. I am extremely proud to be a part of this fine community." - NewJersey.com