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I really liked my 5th grade teacher Miss Rosado and I think that helped me adjust as much as I could to my new situation at Floyd. Most of the work was pretty easy except math. In the early weeks of school I did have one major distraction in class and that was when the freshman went to lunch. I'll let this little excerpt from "If The Devil Danced" my music biography book tell the story ......

In the fifth grade, my class room was on the 2nd floor, just across the alley from the single story cafeteria. It was a new school and they built on to it in stages. The highest grade that year was 9th, but they added on each year till it was K-12. The highschoolers were playing records during lunch and the sound just drifted right up. The windows were open most of the time, as there was no air-conditioning back then. Well somewhere between The Great Pretender and Day O , I heard one that really sucked me in. It was probably during math too, as math would dog me in the years ahead. The song was "Don't Be Cruel" and man I had to have it! I had heard it already many times on the radio, but it took on new resonance as it poured out of the cafeteria and climbed up the bricks to where I was tuned in. So much so, that when I got home my mom had to drive me to the closest town, Center Moriches, about twelve miles, to spend 59 cents of my 50 cent allowance on it. But what a bargain it was cause there on the other side was another great record, "Hound Dog", with two count 'em , TWO, RED HOT guitar breaks.

Who would've guessed that thirty five years later I'd be working with the Jordanaires in Nashville on a soundtrack for the ABC -TV Show ELVIS. Gordon Stoker and Neal Matthews reminisced with me about the Hound Dog recording session in New York. Gordon: "We were there to do the Ed Sullivan Show and we used the RCA Studio In New York. They had to work in Elvis' recording schedule around his exploding appearances. Well we must of done close to thirty takes of "Hound Dog" and we were worn out. Neal: "That AHHH in the middle of the instrumental we did was awful. Apparently Elvis knew what he was looking for, as he just kept on going take after take, Scotty Moore thought we had it about take number 12. " Gordon: "I believe it was take 17 or 18 that Elvis used. Now "Don't Be Cruel" went down much easier. We got the arrangement together and the whole thing was recorded in about 20 minutes." Whew 20 minutes I thought, to create one of the greatest records ever. To my way of thinking everything is in perfect balance on that production. I know they sampled Elvis' tapping time on his guitar to add to the sound track for the TV show .

Funny thing is as the Jordanaire's told me that story in 1988, my mind drifted back to the 5th grade. In 1994 when I showed my son Erik around the outside of the locked school building, I pointed up to that window and told him the tale of Don't Be Cruel.

My brother Butch entered 7th grade in 1956 and it may of been my just wanting to do everything that he did that led to this next deal. The new wing had something in the hallways, that the old wing didn't and that was lockers. The 7th graders (junior high kids) got to change classes just like the high schoolers did and I was easily reminded of this with bells ringing every 45 minutes and seeing and hearing a flurry of activity just outside my classroom door. Couple that in with my wanting to emulate the high school kids and it was time to act. I took two weeks of my allowance and marched over to the old building and into the office. The girl working there at the front desk looked at me kind of funny when I told her what I wanted. When I confidently handed her my dollar though, I walked out with a shiny new combination Master lock. I found an empty locker and staked my claim .....right 15, left past zero to 23, right 36 and click I was in the club! But just having a locker out in the hall doing nothing wasn't enough, I now found my self raising my hand to go to the boys room just before almost every bell and I'm sure Miss Rosado must of thought I had a medical problem, though incontinence in a 9 year old I would think was quite rare.

Out in the hallways with all those older kids, I felt like one of them if only for three minutes at a time. Being out there I got to see a lot of hallway highjinks and hear gossip from the two girls next to my locker as I played with the lock trying to blend in. This went on for about a week, when one mid morning, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and I saw the light and truth of the bow tie of Mr. Coles who had a very concerned look in his eyes. He said something like "Son what are you doing? " ..........not knowing what he wanted to hear I just told him the TRUTH... "I'm going to my locker" He then asked "What grade are you in?".... 5th.... He said "Take the lock off now!" He then turned his attention to the hallway traffic which was thinning out quickly as the second bell had rung. It was just me and him in the hallway when he said... " "Hand me the lock and follow me". Oh man walking to the office in silence and wondering what was going to happen was no picnic. In the office he opened the closet door, put my lock away in the cardboard box it came from, told the girl to give me a dollar and then marched me to my classroom still in silence. He spoke briefly with Miss Rosado and that was that. I still wonder what he told her....perhaps something like ..."keep your eye on this guy, he could be trouble" I always had a good relationship with Miss Rosado though, who took a brief sabbatical that year to become Mrs. Packewitcz (sp). I spoke with her on the phone a few years back and when I told her this story she just laughed. She also gave me the Cole's phone number. I spoke with Mrs. Coles but Jim seemed reluctant to come to the phone.

Another lock caper that Mr. Coles was involved with I believe happened the second year of High School. That was the sudden locking of the boys rooms. It probably was his way of trying to deal with the smoking problem, but it only caused more trouble for all. My 6th grade class was located upstairs in the "old building" so our contact with high schoolers was very limited. However the "grapevine" knew no boundaries plus I had a brother in 8th grade over there who gladly told me everything. I think he was about as interested in the high school kids as I was. In retrospect we had both grown up close to high school life through our sister and her friends especially her high school boyfriend who she was now engaged to. They graduated in June of 56 and he had joined the Coast Guard after high school. We were probably both looking for older male role models to take his place I guess.

Getting back to the boys room lock down incident, a kid in my class had a sophomore brother who probably caused Mr. Coles to rethink his decision. He relieved himself on Coles' desk. He wasn't ever seen in school again after that. For those who were not there or have forgot the incident, or the name..... save your e mail. I'm not here to name names, just recall the event as part of everday life at Floyd in the '50's.

Some think the '50's were quite staid in comparison to '60's. I really think they are just one long continuation of social changes. My sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Mildred Raynor was the epitome of the stereo typical school marm or so many thought back then. On my trip back to my 40th High School Reunion, I got talking with several other kids that were in her class with me. My previous writings about my troubled family life during that time may of led others to come forth with their own stories, many which made mine look like a walk in the park. In looking at our class alone about 1/3 of the kids were having trouble at home. Knowing that now I think Mrs. Raynor handled what she had to deal with on a daily basis fairly even handed and I'm sure she was facing problems she never had to deal with before. One truth we might not of even realized back then was that the influx of new students from the city and just having high school on the premises was effecting all. And if you think the only troubled kids were just in one little 6th grade class multiply 12 x 24 and you'll find a figure that was probably average for the entire school grades 5 - 10.

But returning to happy days, one small effect was the 6th grade kids asking to have dance parties after lunch like the high schoolers had been doing for two years. As much as many teachers probably didn't want to admit it...Rock & Roll was here to stay. I think the 6th grade teachers all confabed (Mr. Rosenblad, Mr. McFarland, Mr. Magman? and Mrs. Raynor ) and agreed to let us rotate a recess dance party on Fridays at each class when the weather didn't allow us to go outside. I can still recall Ginny Bjorndstad teaching kids to do " The Chicken" to the tune of At The Hop ..... that girl could really dance!!! I told her so too this past August. In the 1970's I worked with Danny & The Juniors and when we played their signature song, I flashed back to Mrs. Raynor's class in December of 1957. Once a week on Fridays for 30 minutes in bad weather we were on par with the sophomores and I for one loved it.

Thinking back further, it almost seems like music, hot rods and teen culture in general were the only things that resonated with me back then. Perhaps because things at home weren't going so well that these memories have stayed at the forefront. My brother and I did not return to Floyd after Christmas break. My parents had seperated right after Christmas and we moved into the city. We both went to different schools with mine stopping at 6th grade. I missed having older kids around. It was one of those real old city PS 1____ something buildings that felt forboding. The one highlight of stay in the city and its school system happened out of it when a classmate talked me into going to an Alan Freed Rock & Roll show with him. He really didn't need to do much talking, just supply the money and the street smarts to get us there. It was all worth it when Buddy Holly and the Crickets took the stage. Talking that over with the Crickets some 35 years later I learned that those Freed shows in NY were some of the best they felt they ever did.

By February of 1958 we were back at Floyd. I sometimes wonder how things would of turned out had we stayed in the city, but I really have no regrets. That February was the start of an annual Floyd ritual that may be still going on, (it was when I left in '64). It was The Sweetheart Ball and I believe it was started by several of the newer teachers like Mr. Collins, Mrs. Nelson, Mr. Dionisio etc. who were reaching out to the kids, to give them some social activities that might help prevent some of the problems many schools were facing then. Although it was just for the high schools highest grade, the rest of us all paid attention to it. Mr. Dionisio who left Floyd the following year,was able through his Brooklyn connections to get a nationally known singing group The Shields to perform. Though primarily a one hit wonder group (actually they were a studio group artificially put together by a record producer) it so happened at the time they played at Floyd, they were rising up the charts with their signature song ...."You Cheated" . They missed their train back to New York and Mr. D wound up driving them (how did they all fit in his English Ford ?) back to the city. Their surprise appearance at our school was the talk of the town for weeks and every time I hear it I think of the first Floyd Sweetheart Ball.

With all this music stuff going on that year, you would think it was a High School for the Performing Arts. That spring they added an extension on to the cafeteria, cleared away several acres of woods behind the school (thereby ending the high school lunchtime parties back there) built a running track, and generally tried to cope with an ever expanding student body.

The sophomores put on a variety show that spring of mostly music. I wanted to participate with my guitar and "auditioned" for our music teacher, Mr. Fred Bockian during his lunch break. I could barely play and as soon as I started to, I experienced my first case of stage fright. Although he sat impassively with another music teacher whose name totaly escapes me now (she wasn't there long) through two Everly Brothers minus one songs, Fred wisely and tactfully decided not to include me in the program. I probably would of thrown up or fainted on stage. I must of redeemed myself along the way though, because four years later when I was a sophomore, he wanted to book my first band "The Islanders" for an entire summer with him in the Catskills. I did get to particpate in the variety show with the 6th grade chorus. We did selections from Oklahoma, but it was nowhere near the fun I think Ralph Perra had, as he lip synched to an Elvis record and pretended he could play guitar. He may of been the very first Elvis impersonator. I also recall Ida May Ennesser doing a pretty wild dance number and taking a bad spill right in front of our chorus ..... that's our show folks.....