“The Concert for Mickey” to Benefit American Cancer Society at Mulcahy’s – Saturday June 26 at 5pm.

(Wantagh, N.Y.) On Saturday June 26 from 5pm-9pm, rock for a cause at Mulcahy’s Pub and Concert Hall in Wantagh as The BelAirs and the NYPD hold a benefit concert for the American Cancer Society. The band will celebrate its twentieth anniversary as Long Island’s best rock band by performing all your favorite hits of the 50s, 60s, and 70s. 

The genesis for this event began in October of this year when the band lost a beloved friend, Michael Gallagher, to cancer. Michael was a retired NYPD sergeant who dedicated his life to the safety and security of others. The last concert he attended was The BelAirs’ show at Jones Beach last summer.

In the wake of his loss Michael Gallagher’s daughter Jacqueline contacted the band regarding a benefit in his memory, and the idea for “The Concert for Mickey” was born. The band would celebrate Michael’s life through a concert coinciding with its own twentieth anniversary. They would invite all of the former members back to join them in commemorating Michael and all the others we have lost, donating all of the proceeds to the American Cancer Society on behalf of the Sergeants Benevolent Association of the NYPD.  
 
Founding member Sean Llewellyn remarked “It is the band’s hope that, in addition to Michael’s family and friends and his brothers and sisters of the NYPD, many others will join us for this great event.”

The Concert for Mickey will be held on Saturday, June 26, 2010 at Mulcahy’s Pub and Music Hall in Wantagh (3232 Railroad Avenue, (516) 783-1712) from 5-9pm. Tickets are $50, and can be purchased through the event website at http://www.theconcertformickey.com. Included in the ticket price is an open bar and buffet dinner; additionally, they will be having many exciting raffles!

Mr. Llewellyn continued “We are hoping for a very successful event, and a nice big check for the American Cancer Society. Let’s all make Michael Gallagher proud!”

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For more on this event check out:
http://www.theconcertformickey.com

For more on the band check out:
http://www.thebelairsny.com

For more on Mulchay’s
http://www.muls.com

ABOUT THE BEL AIRS:
The BelAirs were formed in 1989 in Lynbrook, Long Island by high school friends Joe Licato, Sean Llewellyn, and Frank Maiello. Since much of the current popular music didn’t speak to them, they looked back to the songs and style of an earlier generation, specifically doo-wop and fifties rock and roll. Playing for audiences of nostalgic baby boomers and intrigued potential teenyboppers alike, The BelAirs progressed from house parties and backyard barbeques to performances at colleges and on television and radio.  Key to their aesthetic was a commitment to be true to this music while bringing it forward into the present, rather than trying to recreate the magic of a lost age. As the nineties progressed and the three moved through college and into careers, the band adapted into a professional and successful club and restaurant band, establishing an impeccable reputation throughout the New York area. They also began to add elements of sixties rock, blues, and folk to their sound, morphing into a more urban, New York cousin to Springsteen’s E-Street Band. This sensibility and identity as keepers of a uniquely New York musical flame came to define the band’s choices as they progressed through their three albums to date: Streetmusic (1997), A Portrait of the Artists (1999), and Family Album (2007).  Now also featuring Chris Bisciello, Fred Waxenberg, and Frank Saladino, the band continues to evolve and seek new challenges, with an original screenplay and accompanying soundtrack album in the works.  Over their now twenty year stretch The BelAirs have been through over thirty band mates, many hundreds of songs, and countless gigs, but they seek to remain true to their original goal: to provide audiences with a visceral, passionate, and cathartic experience; a freedom from the mundane and the grind of life; and first hand contact with the Rock and Roll heartbeat inside us all.