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| Big Mike portrait by Conrad Keely |
I didn't
even really fully realize just how much I used to rely on
Mike. He occupied a place in my working life that no-one else
could fulfill. He was somebody I could talk to about
things of which I could talk to no-one else. He was
someone who made me feel important and made me feel so special that
he called me his friend. I could always rely on him when it
came to the the buzz of the live music scene. I could learn things
from him because he had a sharp mind, an amazing history, a
large, diverse and loyal network of friends and a unique vantage
point on the rock & roll lifestyle that circled around him. A
Chinese-born, American citizen with a history in the Hell's Angels,
CBGB's, Max's
Kansas City and international financial dealings, he would spend
part of his time in New York City but always loved to return to his
rock & roll lifestyle in Cambodia. You can read more about the
Mike and the history of Sharky's (the bar of which he has been
principal owner for most of its existence) in our article written by one-time manager David Rabie back in March 2013. `
Big Mike had a huge
network of family, friends, colleagues and business associates that
stretched around the world. Family, friends, colleagues and business
associates in New York City, Los Angeles, Taiwan, Phnom Penh and
countless other locations have all been dealing with a huge loss this
week. Like Ted, the founder and editor of Leng
Pleng, you may
have found yourself sitting down to compose a tribute to
Mike on social media,
or were perhaps asked by someone who did not know him: 'who was Big
Mike?'.
Like
us, you may have found it hard or perhaps impossible to even begin to
describe the man with a few words or a short tribute post on
Facebook. You
may have found, like Ted, that the passing away of Mike has had a much
more profound effect on you than you could ever have expected. You
may have realised that here was a truly exceptional and unique human
being, who in his 68 years
seemed to have the life
experience of ten men.
I
was lucky enough on a number
of occasions to be sat next
to him at the bar, or across the table from him in a restaurant, as
Mike talked (and he loved to talk!) about his time as a Hell's Angel,
a television celebrity chef, a barman/music manager at CBGB's, an
investment banker... the list (and the stories!) went on and on. As
musician and artist Conrad Keely
said
this week, 'He was one of
the greatest story tellers I've ever met'.
Like
Conrad, and probably many others, I urged Mike to begin to write down
some of the fascinating stories of his life. If he was not inclined
to write them down himself, he could relate them to a writer, or
simply record everything to tape for someone to transcribe later on.
I gently suggested to Mike,
as recently as one month ago, that now was the time to do it: who
knows what the future would bring?
Mike responded with interest but did not share my sense of urgency.
Mike's
biography would make a fantastic story, worthy of a Hollywood movie –
but the scriptwriters might have to tone down some of his exploits –
so the audience would believe it actually happened! I truly hope that
someone succeeded where I failed and got some kind of a record of his
tales. Perhaps he even wrote some of it down himself.
The Leng
Pleng
Gig Guide
has been intertwined with Mike and Sharky
Bar
since Television Ted first put together his humble mailing list of
musicians and gig-goers seven years ago.
No tribute we could write could really begin to do the man justice,
and the story of his life is a story that will (hopefully) be fully
written at another time, in another place.
In
the meantime, below are a few key notes, pictures and memories of the
big man with the big heart. As usual, check
out the gig guide below to keep abreast of the many great gigs
that are happening around Cambodia over the next few days. The
managers of Sharky
Bar
are currently organising a three-day 'blowout' of live music to take
place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday the 20th,
21st
and 22nd
of May. The
event, entitled 'Mikestock', will be a huge party in honour of the
man – and
the fulfilment of his oft-expressed wish to stage 'the
party to end all parties' when
he finally came to the end of his time as principal owner, chief
operating officer, full-time
host, music manager and raconteur
extraordinnaire
at Sharky Bar,
Street
130, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
'He never walked back down those stairs...'
Current
Sharky Bar
manager and musician Ryan
Wright
wrote the following, devastatingly beautiful message on the bar's
Facebook Page,
immediately after the tragic loss
on Sunday
the 8th
May.
“I'm sorry to say that Sharky Bar won't be
open today (Monday 9th). All of us have had an extremely difficult 24
hours with a lot of grieving going on and bare minimum sleep. It's
been brutal, a truly large flame has been extinguished.
Heartbreaking, utterly heartbreaking. Big Mike walked up those steps
to Sharky Bar like he did everyday and in the end they had to carry
him out. He never walked back down those stairs. His spirit will live
in that bar until the end of time”
Creating the Document:
Photographer
Steve
Porte was a tireless
documenter of all the gigs
and events at Sharky Bar
over the last year or so. Steve's trademark black-and-white,
high-resolution shots now
seem especially poignant
and appropriate. The above
shot was taken after Steve and Mike enjoyed a long lunch together in
New York City.
Essence of Mike:
Phnom-Penh based
songwriter and poet Scott Bywater
published this simple and moving poem on
Wednesday the 11th
May. https://thesilverpepperofthestars.wordpress.com/.
The Good/Bad Old Days:
It is sometimes easy to
forget that
Sharky Bar started out as a very different place,
in a very different Phnom Penh back in the mid-nineties. On the
eighteenth anniversary of the bar, Mike told
Leng Pleng about
the craziness of those post-UNTAC days:
Sharky Bar usually opened for business during the Khmer New
Year national holiday each April. This year, Mike decided to give
everyone a few days off. His Facebook post from 14
th April 2016
is a beautiful message that says a lot about the man.
Demographic Shift:
Around the time of the
twentieth anniversary, Mike gave a lot of interviews and in general
talked a lot about the history of
Sharky Bar and the changing
landscape and nightlife culture of Phnom Penh. Click
here
to read what he had to say to
Leng Pleng on the 17
th
December 2015. After speaking to Mike at that time, it was clear that
he anticipated the end of
Sharky Bar – as we knew it – in
the not-so-distant future.
On Saturday the 7
th
May, I was in a coffee shop when I noticed Mike's portrait peering
out from the 'Weekend' section of the Phnom Penh Post. The photograph
was unusual: a rare 'business' shot of Big Mike dressed in pressed
white shirt and trousers, as opposed to the normal cut-off XXXL black
t-shirt, jeans and key-chain of 'rock'n'roll' Big Mike. The newspaper
piece was entitled '
Goodbye
to Phnom Penh's Sleaziest Bar', with reference to the closure of
the (in)famous Walkabout Hotel. Again, Mike was quoted discussing the
demographic shifts in Phnom Penh nightlife. I wondered to myself how
long
Sharky Bar would continue in it's present form.
Watching Closely:
Any time a band would
rehearse in the 'Shark-cage' rehearsal room, play a soundcheck, or
begin their performance on the Sharky Bar stage, Big Mike would sit
right down and check out what was going on. This was especially true
if the band was new or untested. Mike was very generous and inclusive
about inviting new bands or visiting bands to play at Sharky – he
would give anyone a shot – but he was not afraid to closely
observe, comment and criticise a band's performance. After the band
were done, he would go around the bar soliciting feedback from
customers about the set.
The Last Night
Scott Bywater's Phnom
Penh-based band Moi Tiet
were slated to play Sharky
Bar on Saturday night,
the 7th
May 2016. As usual, Mike was listening attentively and enjoying the
band. As usual, he was full of hearfelt praise and encouragement
during his typically long on-stage introduction. Mike must have
really enjoyed the show, because after the band finished he returned
to the stage to say a few more words. Big
Mike genuinely loved music and was boundlessly enthusiastic about any
and every band that he invited to play at Sharky
Bar. With
a most fortunate, but
heart-rending, twist of
fate, audience member Basil Riley was there to record the last words Mike spoke on the Sharky Bar stage:
JOE WRIGLEY
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