Other Tributes to Blondie Calderon

A Tribute To Blondie Calderon from Junior Brown

"I am deeply saddened by the death
of Blondie Calderon. He was a wonderful man and
a great musician; I respected him tremendously.
His sense of humor was always welcome and he had an
outlook on life that led him to help many people.
He was always a joy to be around. He touched my life
and the lives of everyone around him in many ways.
I miss him and will always remember him."

"Tanya and I send our personal condolences to his family
and everyone who worked with him."
Junior Brown


Photo: Blondie Calderon in 1999




Reprinted with the permission of DEL RIO LIVE
The Music Lives On...
My Memories today of Blondie.

By

October 31, 2000

While Blondie is gone, very suddenly, without warning, his music lives in people's memories and on tape and CDs.

After the Flood of 1998 Blondie pondered about what he should do with the restaurant. He finally decided to reopen it. The Val Verde Friends of the Arts sponsored a benefit concert at the Paul Poag Theatre where he played, mostly solo, to a near capacity crowd. The
money was used to purchase a Steinway piano to replace the instrument he lost during the flood.

They were enthusiastic, as they should have been. For Blondie it was a first. Accustomed to playing at Memo's or with Price, this was his first solo concert. It would not have been his last. He was scheduled to do a Valentine's Day concert next February.

He commented after the concert that he thought something was missing. That, of course, was the clatter of dishes in the kitchen and the hum of conversation and people enjoying themselves.

I could probably go on for another couple of thousand words, but everything has to come to an end. So this final memory: I made my first trip to Memo's sometime in late 1966 at the behest of Paul Venema. Venema was program director at KDLK/KDLK-FM at the time.

On that first trip, Blondie was on the road with Price. On a subsequent visit, I actually got to know Blondie. During one of those times, he told me he would play the piano eveytime I came over. To the best on my knowledge, he lived up to that promise, even
if it was only a note or two.

In an obituary that ran in the San Antonio Express-News last week, Price paid tribute to Blondie when he said,"He was my main man. Blondie was the fault of all that happened in that last 31 years.

The above story is © 2000 Charles R. Dent


NEWS STORY FROM DEL RIO LIVE:
(Oct. 28) The Fiesta Amistad Grand International Parade, held today in Del Rio, Texas, was dedicated to the memory of the late Blondie Calderon. Blondie was to have been Grand Marshall of the parade, set orignially for Oct. 15th, but canceled because of bad weather. For the complete story, see Del Rio Live.

"Rock on Blondie" was reprinted with permission from the Del Rio Live
issue of Oct. 30, 2000

Rock on Blondie

Blondie, with the present situation the world is in, I think the BIG GUY was getting a little sad and just wants you to cheer him up with your music. Now you will be playing for your #1 fan and I'm sure the Angels will be rocking and rolling. Next time it rains and we hear the thunder, we'll know it's you letting us know that everything is cool and you're still hitting them keys. So long, buddy.


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