Dennis Chandler aka Piano Man / Guitar Man… Cleveland's Musical Chameleon

2000 Video … Thank you, Willie Bailey for this Dub.

For your Movie Break … get some Moon Cakes.

In Celebration of 2024 Mid-Autumn Festival aka Moon Festival & In Honor of Web 

https://www.facebook.com/dennis.chandler.566/videos/1384494495841144

Dennis and Another Asian Fusion Friend … Found … Via Tag and Web …

What a Wonderful World  

The above 2000 Jam at our home … was after those three threaded the boards … the night before. Where did they share the stage … doing their respective acts … then doing time together, (so to speak). At the … annual … always-sold-out-early … CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION … (today called LUNAR NEW YEAR). The 2000 one was held in CLEVELAND’S HISTORIC CHINATOWN … (today called ASIANTOWN). 

The 2000 MILLEMMIUM CELEBRATION … brought in the famed Asian Media Star Lanny Shum. He came to Web’s hometown … from his home in TORONTO. He said, “I came to Cleveland … for the SHEER PLEASURE of PLAYING … for and with MY MENTOR … HAK SAN!”  As you will witness … it was … as Lanny said, …”… pure pleasure …”

A Heavenly Thank You … goes up to  ASIAN ACTIVIST … FAMED  RESTAURATEUR … OWNER of KING WAH, HO WAH and LI WAH … DONNA HOM, of Blessed memory.

A SPECIAL  ANNIVERSARY  TO CELEBRATE …

May you have time to spare … to allow me to share … about the wonderful world of Web. I believe its a tale meant to be told. May you feel the Blessings unfold. 

30+ years ago … back into our Life … came our PRETEND BRO aka BILL TAGGART.

First, let me tell you about how he came back into our respective lives … in July ’93. Then, farther down … the detailed account … of that August meeting with Web.    

So … In July of ’93 … Bill Taggart was having a rare night off from doing duty. What kind of duty? The Show Biz kind. (Bill was … and still is … here in 2024 … a much-in-demand Stagehand … Projectionist … Soundman. He’s an all-round man’s man … an IATSE man. I can say that … ’twas Teamsters who trained me)  

Bill told us he was having a rare night off from doing duty. What kind? Show Biz kind. (He was and still is an exceptional IATSE devotee … more about that way below).

Bill Taggart was “toolin’ around” … traveling from his ‘hood in Cleveland … to suburban Mentor. Tag came cruisin’ to a classic car cruise … held at a classic place. Why do I call it classic?

To hubby-Dennis … it was classic … for it was the very same Diner … that a youthful-Dennis used to cruise to … from his ‘hood. The nearby post-world-war-two housing projects called “Euclid Homes” … was where the Chandler Family lived. So going for ice cream … meant their Uncle Martin’s Freeze Ice Cream Stand … which was right next to that Kenny King Diner. Is it any wonder Dennis loves all things, Diner.  

1993 … Here he was in Mentor … as musician-Dennis … entertaining on the back side … of the same Diner. That’s where and when Tag came back into our lives, as I alluded above, at  Annabelle’s.

What’s-in-a-Name-Department …    

About that renamed Kenny King Diner … It was bought by Annabelle Lucas … who had it moved to Mentor, Ohio … where she renamed it “Annabelle’s”. BTW: CRUISER EMERITUS JOE ARTALE … shared that he has the whole saga of the move … journaled and filmed. Who is Joe? Founder of Rock’n’Roll Capitol Street Machines but before RNRCSM … he was head of the Nifty Fifties / Sixties Car Clubs. Historian Artale and Annabelle … would make cool presenters of cruising memories.Then Dennis can do some cool cruisin’ music. Oh, wait!  Make it in parking lot somewhere … and …  I know the perfect projectionist to run the film.   

Back to about Dennis’ love of all things, Diner. Annabelle Lucas … being the Diner’s first owner … got him hooked on GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES. Getting Dennis to do music? Easy, peasey. Just bait him with Diner food. Then when Annabelle married Michael Neshkin … things really took a turn … onto the nearest highway ramp. What do I mean? Those-two-lovers-of-diner-stuff … graciously invited us to travel with them. We joined them for many-a-mystery-road-trip. To see what else … DINERS. We went on trips to Chicago, Pittsburgh, etc. It was especially entertaining … for Patient-Dennis to take after he took … those cancer treaments called, “Consolidated Chemo”. About Dennis beating AML Leukemia … go to this website’s page …  https://dennischandler.com/index.php/the-journey/

Timeless too was when … later that Summer of ’93 … in  August … Bill brought out to the Diner … and into our hearts … dear Web Fleming. 

On January 15, 2023 … Baritone Web Fleming passed …

Click on the Link to learn about the INCREDIBLE LIFE he had … Web’s obituary is at …
https://www.secorfuneralhomes.com/obituary/webster-fleming/

Psalms, book of the Old Testament is composed of “SACRED SONGS … SACRED POEMS … MEANT TO BE SUNG”. Psalm 30:5 … says, “WEEPING MAY LAST THROUGH THE NIGHT, BUT JOY COMES IN THE MORNING”.

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Web was honored with that name decades ago. It was conferred on him while he was living in Asia and touring the Far East. For that time and place … Web was unique, to say the least. He became famous as … an AFRICAN AMERICAN … SINGING CHINESE OPERA … and in a dozen dialects, too. Web Fleming also became known for his interpretation of JUSTICE BAO of the SUNG DYNASTY (999-1062).

East Meets West … North & South … World Class Musicians Meet … then Jam

To learn about the lady from Shanghai, as I call her … go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ma_Xiaohui

Links below are for (3) MP3 RECORDINGS we did way back in 1998. The back-story of these newfound files follows. When Web returned from his Far East tour … he wanted to meet famed ERHUIST MA XIAO-HUI. Who? Headliner at the LUNAR NEW YEAR CELEBRATION (held earlier in the month at Li Wah Restaurant in Cleveland’s Asia Town). That gig was prior to this night of jammin’ (at our home here in Solon … hence my title of “A Musical Salon in Solon”). The jam was IMPROMPTU … STUNNING. The session made WEB want to sing for her … and he did. It made me want to record them … and I did, (thank God). Enjoy “Spirituals”. You will hear Web’s BIG Baritone voice. (BTW decades ago he had the honorific title “Hak San” conferred on him. Loosely translated it means “Black Mountain”!) Web is accompanied by Ma on her Erhu … an ancient 2-stringed instrument … and Dennis on his piano.

Here are those 3 LINKS:

Spirituals  ©  Baritone Web Fleming accompanied by famed ERHUIST Ma Xiao-Hui and Pianist Dennis Chandler. Amazingly they were sitting back to back … “speaking” … in the Universal language of Music. 

Orient Express  ©  An original impromptu instrumental … performed by famed ERHUIST Ma Xiao-Hui and Pianist Dennis Chandler. Amazingly they were sitting back to back … “speaking” … in the Universal language of Music.

Cityscape  ©  Another original impromptu instrumental … performed by famed ERHUIST Ma Xiao-Hui and Pianist Dennis Chandler. Again amazingly done as they were sitting back to back … “speaking” … in the Universal language of Music.

Why Web loved running the rails … big and little … he was from Willard, Ohio. Learn more are the historic town … go to  https://www.willardohio.us/history-of-willard.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willard,_Ohio

HOW … PIANIST DENNIS … MET … ERHUIST MA

In the above mentioned year … 1998 … Dennis was looking forward to doing it again … albeit solo. Web Fleming was in the Far East … far … overseas. That meant he wouldn’t make it in time to Chinatown … (aka  Asiantown today).   

So, filling in was to be … another dear mutual friend. The popular broadcaster BILL GORDON aka BILL “SMOOCHIE” GORDON. (Who was B.G.? Go to the page with his name and learn more about this media and talk show pioneer).   

1998 … Musical-Director-Chandler was to accompany popular Media Pioneer Bill Gordon. Then after … Pianist-Dennis was to reprise his role as “The Ed-U-Tainer” … playing his own Set. Well, you remember what they say, “the best laid plans”, etc.  A dilemma happened. What’s that?

Defined in one dictionary (this Excerpt … “A dilemma is a difficult situation where a person must choose between two or more options that are equally unsatisfactory. For example, someone might face a dilemma when deciding whether to continue driving in a dangerous storm or stop searching for a lost dog. The term comes from the Greek word for “double proposition”. It was originally a technical term in logic, but is now used more generally to describe any problem without a satisfactory solution”. End of Excerpt)

Yes, it was a dilemma. The dropping of his piano … definitely put … Dennis-the-Neurodivergent … in a-stressed-state-of-mind. (No NY state-of-mind … this time!)  

Thank goodness Dennis is … a Neurodivergent. What do I mean? The term is defined in this EXCERPT … “Neurodivergence is not a disorder, but rather a natural variation in human brains. It’s similar to the concept of biodiversity, which describes the natural variation of life forms in a given habitat. The term “neurodiversity” is used to describe the idea that all people have a unique way of processing information, and that this is a normal human experience. The neurodiversity movement encourages people to tap into their unique strengths to help them adapt to their environment.” (End of Excerpt). 

Sooo … Thank goodness … Dennis is ambidextrous. He is able to use the right and left hands… equally well. (Well, almost … with equal ease … if he is NOT stressed!)

His split-dominate-brain … often can be doubly concerning. He questioned if the keyboard was damaged … the electronics jarred. He quickly jumped from one side of his brain to the other, so to speak. Pianist-Dennis busied himself checking the settings … with his right hand. Then … with his left hand … he started to “run” the bass keys … in a boogie-woogie style. FYI … a style of timing that gospel singers routinely call for … “a left-hand like God”. Definition? Meaning the perfect-timing of a stride-style of accompaniment.

Dennis’ hands …  caught the eye and ear of… “THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI”. Ma, again impressed with his playing … spoke to her “handlers”. They hastily put together his piano bench, placing it under him. Dennis was so distracted that he didn’t even notice them holding the piano up, in midair!

From its case, Ma proceeded to pull her instrument, the ERHU. Oh, the sounds she coaxed from that ancient 2-stringed instrument! She entreated Dennis to continue … the boogie-woogie beat and piano stride-style … that he started with. Then she begged him to play BLUES. Later, they jammed with some JAZZ, too. What a sight. These two master musicians, who never spoke to one another before … were now communicating … in the Universal Language of Music … right there in the lobby at Asian Town Plaza.

Thanks need to go out to a couple of other characters … First off … # 1.) Li Wah owner Donna Hom. Secondly … # 2.) Bill Taggart. Who? He was the one who played stagehand, literally. To explain … in the past … “Tag” always offered to act as a roadie. This time around … he did end up as such … holding up … Dennis’ keyboard. Thirdly … # 3.) Our dear friend Billy Evans. Who? He was a former-security-guard for many media-types (and politicians, too). Well … what he did do for Den … was “hold up” his other end … (of his piano). Billy also kept DC from exiting … before the headline artist … Erhuist Ma … could get her instrument out … (to jam with DC).

Sadly, our friend Billy Evans has passed. He was also known to many as … “Bodyguard Billy from The Front Row”. I’m sure he is Above, serving as Super Security Guard. He’s probably been pressed into duty … watching over writer William F. Miller … aka … Pal Bill, his wife “Mareeanna” … and now Webby. What Lights.  

WE GO BACK … TO LEARN HOW WE MET SOME OF OUR ASIAN FRIENDS

We go waayy back in time … to before the above shots were taken … to talk about the theme of Asian Fusion. (Sooo get a BIG cup of coffee or tea … and toast Webby!) The late Journalist WILLIAM F. MILLER and his wife MARIANNA aka MARIA MILLER … loved to hear good melodic music. They and Bill’s brother, “Petey” aka Pete Miller (award-winning photojournalist) … would come to hear musician-Dennis wherever he was playing … whatever genre music he was making … and with whomever he was making it with, so to speak.

Plain Dealer Columnist Mary Strassmeyer … oftentimes joined in on the fun … sitting on Pianist-Dennis’ piano bench. She was used to sitting next to him … as a fellow theatre seatmate. To explain … we shared great seats … third-row-on-aisle-seats. First at the Hanna Theatre … then at other theatres located in Playhouse Square. Her seat was courtesy of her job at the newspaper (read: free). Our seats were paid for with hard-earned dollars from our sales subscription jobs at Theatre League of Cleveland. What was that? A satellite office of the Impresario Sam L’Hommedieu. He toured Broadway shows under the auspices of his Theatre League of ____ chain. Coincidentally he was the veteran concert promoter who would book BB into venues that he managed. In the small-world-department … the Warner theatre was part of the RKO / Stanley Warner Theatre chain … for whom I worked back in the mid-’60s … with Taggart, too. 

Back to about the location of Mary, Mary’s seat. Recall I wrote she worked for a newspaper. Her seat was considered that of a critic. So she acted like one. She would share with DC … some searing comments … whenever she did NOT like what she saw … or what she heard. To explain further …

DC and M,M often had the same perceptions. Let’s just say … that both were old school and liked only the musicals that had melody in the tunes. The kind that a theatre-goer could hum going up the aisle after the play was over. Goodness knows … because our seats were so far down front … there were no memorable melodies to share. What they did share was some very searing … but … funny notes (pardon the pun).

Mary, Mary is missed by many. Especially by Pianist-Dennis. He sorely misses her on the bench beside him … asking for their mutually favored tunes. The ones that can be found in his library of Great American Songbooks. But, we have the memories … and … we have extra theatre programs from Seatmate-Strassy. Her memory is a Blessing.  

Learn more about the iconic columnist …  

https://case.edu/ech/articles/s/strassmeyer-mary

https://clevelandmagazine.com/in-the-cle/the-read/articles/hear-no-evil-see-no-evil-speak-no-evil

 

“Who is that character?” Journalist William F. Miller answered, “Oh, wait. I wrote articles about that  ‘Asian’  actor”. That’s Web on the left … portraying the mystical Pao Kong aka Justice Bao Gong aka Bao Zheng. Who? The ancient character considered by many to be … the origin of the tale titled, “Here come the Judge“. In the photo on the right is our “Pal Bill” joined by Baritone Web Fleming and a harmonizing poser.

About Journalist William F. Miller and how his ink helped this city …
https://archive.triblive.com/…/new-kensington-native…/
http://pdalumni.blogspot.com/…/william-f-miller-dies.html
http://www.clevelandpeople.com/other/william-miller.htm
http://obitsohio.blogspot.com/…/william-f-miller-73…
https://www.wplucey.com/…/memories-of-plain-dealer…
http://clevelandinternationalhalloffame.com/…/bill-miller/
https://www.playhousesquare.org/…/playhousesquare…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZWvOzuZGVIo

So since Bill Miller worked at the Cleveland Plain Dealer he got to meet and know many … in the nearby ASIAN community. Plus the award-winning journalist found people more open to being interviewed … over Dim Sum. The Millers, along with mutual friend CONGRESSMAN DENNIS KUCINICH, arranged for musician-Dennis to become part of many various entertainment events around town … including AsianTown. There accompanist-Dennis found himself playing … then backing Baritone Web singing … (and sometimes dancing, too).

Plus Web as Hak San performed in character … as Pao Kong aka Justice Bao Gong aka Boa Zheng. What fun fellowships at those Lunar New Year Celebrations. Donna Hom’s Li Wah Restaurant … a home away from home. A good place to practice our “House Rule … First you play … then you eat!”  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asiatown,_Cleveland

 

About Pao Kong aka Justice Bao Gong aka Bao Zheng … go to …

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bao_Zheng

Whenever Dennis entertained at Li Wah … he would do a variety act of various piano styles during his set. Then he would act as accompanist for Baritone Web Fleming for his. They both enjoyed immensely … playing to this diverse and most appreciative audience.

 

Yes … back in the day … those two guys named Bill … really did serve us well.

Still with us down here … is “Pal Dennis” aka Dennis Kucinich. He deserves credit for many “acts” of kindness. For example … as mutual friends … he helped us get BB King … a Key to the City of Cleveland (when DK was mayor). He arranged along with another aficionado of the Blues … Councilman Jay Westbrook … for proclamations, too. Then years later … recognition in the Congressional Record for BB (when DK served as Congressman Kucinich).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Kucinich

Soo … you see it was particularly pleasant to catch up with these peeps whenever we crossed paths. Oftentimes it was DK speaking … DC playing … and Journalist Bill Miller taking notes, (pardon the pun). It was for me a sort of … News-Over-Dim-Sum-Date. DK deserves kudos for the devoted public servant he is … and has always been. I credit him as a good sport, too. The photo below shows how much so … this night of Lunar New Year Celebration … in Asian Town … in our hometown.

Speaking of some “Satchmo singing” … the photo shows then Congressman Dennis Kucinich getting serenaded. DK serves all in the community … which this night included those in attendance (at Li Wah’s Lunar New Year Celebration). Baritone Web sang ala Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong style. The song? “What a Wonderful World” … and it was.

Speaking of spirituals … it was years ago that a very young Web Fleming sang baritone … as a member of the world renowned choir from Cleveland, Ohio. It was called, “Wings Over Jordan”. The storied history of that great choir’s effect worldwide can be found on Wikipedia. There is a link I listed further down below. In the meanwhile here is a page from Web’s copy of his “Wings Songbook” …

Here is an excerpt from Wikipedia …

“Wings Over Jordan broke the color barrier as the first radio program produced and hosted by African-Americans to be nationally broadcast over a network. The program was the first of its kind which was easily accessible to audiences in the Deep South, featuring distinguished black church and civic leaders, scholars and artists as guest speakers. One of the highest-rated religious radio programs in the United States, it also had an international shortwave audience on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the Voice of America (VOA), and Armed Forces Radio. 
Youngins can learn about “Wings”, as they were affectionately called … go to …

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wings_Over_Jordan_Choir

It was during the days prior to the turbulent civil rights movements. A very young Web Fleming saw the struggles and … for the first time … he also saw what fame can do. Web said, with his robe on and in good voice (read: BIG voice) … he was seen and heard … in a more (shall we say) … favorable light. Why? The choir was graciously received … for they were world renown. How so? Those early radio broadcasts of NEGRO SPIRITUALS were heard all around the world … as explained above. BTW where did those airwaves originate from? Right near where Web later lived … in his adopted hometown … Cleveland, Ohio. (I can NOT imagine what it meant to Web … to be asked to be a soloist with that Choir … and at that time!)

Back to the year ’98 and another jam that followed the one where Dennis and Ma met (at  Asian Plaza). The next subsequent night of inspired-playing? It was down home, literally. We hosted them here at home  … with a musicale … I called, “A Salon in Solon”. That’s where musician Dennis introduced BARITONE WEB FLEMING to Ma. Web had just returned home to Cleveland from that above-mentioned tour … to the Far East. (Recall that is why Web was not able to do the booking in Asian Town).

Ma met Web … who was introduced to her by his honorary Asian name … “HAK SAN”. That name loosely translated means “BLACK MOUNTAIN”.  It was the name given to him decades ago … when he was a big star … in the FAR EAST. They began speaking to one another … then singing to one another … in Cantonese and Mandarin! 

Talk about … an Asian fusion … an Eastern feel … a Southern sway. What happened next was quite a sight to behold. Just ask Web’s nephew STAN DAVIS. (Who, by the way is a fine baritone singer himself). The sight to behold? It was pianist-Dennis and Erhuist-Ma … sitting back to back … performing spontaneously … some original music. They were impromptu but I promptly recorded it. It was stunning, as I wrote above.

What happened after Ma and Dennis did their two instrumentals? Learning that Baritone Web was a member of that famed NEGRO CHOIR, “WINGS OVER JORDAN” … made Ma want to hear Web sing. This time she wanted songs from his and Dennis’ repertoire of “Gospel & Negro Spirituals”. Then, after that set … the three of them … Ma, Dennis and Web started to do … a set of Blues. It was Souful, to say the least. 

After the Musicale held at home in her honor, Ma shared with Dennis that she’s “considered a BIG star” and “perhaps their collaboration-of-creativity might bring official sponsorship for the two of them to tour overseas?” Ma further reasoned that because of her role as a Shanghai Traditional Orchestra Principal and as the Artistic Advisor of the Hong Kong Youth Music Society, she felt she could help co-ordinate a “BLUES IN THE SCHOOL” concert series overseas, too. (Dennis had done such in his hometown state of Ohio). Ma expressed that they could tour, record together again. She paid him a high compliment, “Dennis Chandler, you are a world class musician and I think I know one when I see one!”

Well, hearing her say that of him was … gracious. Learning how to tour there … turned out to be pragmatic. Why? Sadly, at that time … grants from our government’s NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) … got cut. That was then. This is now. So if not now … when? Where’s a MacArthur grant writer … when you need one. I’m still waitin’ on one … while I’m writing … all this.

Bill’s personality has been a perennial one. In the the past his popularity earned him some cool accolades. A consummate professional … he always knew how to act. Even in what I would call difficult roles. One role comes to mind here … when he was elected PRESIDENT of IATSE LOCAL 160. He also did duty at IATSE Local 27. So, any song requests from “Tag”. No problem. No “double dog dare” needed. Why? A fellow Union-Bro … never says, ‘No'”. Why do I put it like that? Dennis is a LIFETIME MEMBER of Cleveland Local 4 of AFM … American Federation of Musicians … a former Vice President of the Board of Directors named Emeritus upon retirement. Thus Tag gets to name … any tunes he’d like to hear. 

Thank you, Dr. Nianfa Tang for hosting … in your home … a salon in Solon, as I like to call … musical getogethers. Yours made that Mid-Autumn Moon Festival night … special. It was appreciated.

Also appreciated is your involvement with all things, Asian. That Lunar New Year Celebration of ’98 … of 2000, etc. What seemingly serendipitous meeting of minds … and music. Priceless are my memories of Dennis playing with … Ma, Web and Lanny. Thank you.    

Bears repeating … BILL, I know Hilltop Productions has you working the gigs like the SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL. But… ‘tween changeovers … pause and reflect. So we can send out GOOD VIBES to you. Please know we will be FOREVER GRATEFUL to YOU … for INTRODUCING US to WEBBY! Stay Healthy. Stay Safe. We love you, Dennis & Liz.

We will never forget you, dear Webby!

Liz Chandler
Website Writer