The facility located at 12 R Atlantic Ave. is a hidden gem for music in Marblehead. Tucked behind Shubie’s Marketplace, it is the practice headquarters for some of the town’s most passionate musicians.
Owned by Marblehead Hardware’s Fred Ferris and Karl Smith, the pair recently began renting the space to local bands. Lifelong residents Paul Haggett, Sam Bennett, Johnny Reardon, and Brad Treadwell make up Acme, a cover band that has been a presence in Marblehead for more than 60 years. The group has taken up a more-or-less permanent residence in the building’s back room, which is decorated with a poster of them from the past.
Haggett learned about the practice location through Smith, who he knew beforehand.
“It’s a dream for us. We got all of our equipment in here and we just come in, turn everything on, and start playing,” Haggett said. “We don’t have to lift or schlep anything… We have like the Cadillac of setups.”
Bennett recounted the band’s origins, which date all the way back to when he and Treadwell sang “I Saw Her Standing There” by the Beatles in front of their third-grade class in 1963. Haggett joined the group later in life when he approached the band after a performance at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church.
“Paul came up to the stage and said, ‘You need a bass player,’” Bennett said.
Haggett quickly added that he did not even know how to play bass, but wanted to learn.
The group was rehearsing especially hard on Wednesday, Aug. 21 for an event on the following Saturday. Brian Ware was filling in for Reardon. They emphasized how the facility has made it easier for them to play together consistently.
“It’s so hard to find a place where you can actually play and play loud,” Treadwell said.
Better Than Nothing’s six members occupy the facility Tuesday nights, however lead vocalist and guitarist Craig Smith would argue his band’s name does not reflect how they feel about the practice facility. Along with Smith, Forrest Rodts, Kim Hutchinson, Bill Quigley, Michael Smerka, and Tom Eskrine make up the group that has now been together for 18 years.
“Just a bunch of folks who started getting together on a Tuesday night. We just started playing and things started to sound good,” Craig Smith said.
Craig Smith explained that Ferris and Karl Smith’s opportunity to play at their location came at a near-perfect time, as their previous spot was no longer an option.
“We were the first band in there,” Craig Smith said. “All of a sudden there was another storage unit with guitar and drums and stuff in there, and then another one, and another one. It’s really kind of neat that it’s turned into this little local band rehearsal space.”
