The Josh Gottheil Collection contains material related to the life and career of Josh Gottheil from the period 1974 to 2009 and includes some undated material, with the bulk of the material falling between the years 1983 and 1989. The collection materials are focused primarily on the Champaign-Urbana alternative and punk music scenes, in which Josh was an active figure from an early age, performing in and promoting local bands and, later, bringing headlining acts to perform in the area. The majority of the collection consists of promotional materials for bands, benefit concerts, and local venues--some that Gottheil promoted or followed personally, and others in which he performed. The types of materials found in the collection include advertisements; calendars; clippings; correspondence; documents, including venue applications, bank statements, contracts, forms, guidelines, and letterhead; printed ephemera such as brochures, flyers, and tickets; fanzines; friends' memories of Josh; graphic materials in the form of a cartoon, photographs, postcards, posters, and publicity mockups; mailing and guest lists; newspapers; press kits; printouts of blog postings and online articles; a yearbook; and audiocassette recordings, some with CD copies. Artists of note in the collection include ¡Ack-Ack!, Jello Biafra, Bowery Boys, Billy Bragg, the Breeders, Camper Van Beethoven, the Didjits, Tanya Donelly (Belly, Breeders, Throwing Muses), Farmboys, Flaming Lips, Hüsker Dü, the Pixies, R.E.M., the Replacements, Jonathan Richman, and Gottheil's two bands, the Dangerous Acquaintances and the Dead Relatives. A number of items in the collection relate to the Better Youth Organization, a University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana student group to promote alternative music; the Leukemia Society of America; the No More Censorship Defense Fund; Record Swap and Record Service, two area record stores; Champaign-Urbana music venues, including the Channing-Murray Foundation, Mabel's, the Thornburn Center, Trito's Uptown, and the Urbana Civic Center; and Gottheil's two concert promotion companies, Subversive Sounds and Concert One Productions. His impact on the Champaign-Urbana scene can be traced through the wealth of ephemera and other documentation available on his various activities, while his impact upon individuals within that scene is palpable through the articles, memoirs, and correspondence written during his illness and after his untimely death. The collection as a whole provides a glimpse into the management and promotion of local bands, specifically in the Midwest, as well as the career of a very unique musician-turned-promoter.
The Josh Gottheil Collection is organized chronologically, into the different periods of Gottheil's life and career, usually determined by the band in which he was performing or the production company he was running at the time. The only exception to the chronological organization is the accrual that was added to the collection at a later date, which is first arranged by format and the chronologically. The majority of the collection is arranged and described at the item-level, as this was how the materials were described upon receipt. For those materials not inventoried at the item-level, original order was maintained. Oversize materials are stored out of sequence due to size and condition.
Timeline
1974: Gottheil begins studying violin at age 5 with Frances Reedy.
circa 1979: Begins studying percussion with Dennis Wiziecki.
1981 Fall: Enters Urbana Junior High School.
1981 Fall: Continues lessons in violin and percussion.
1981 Fall: Joins percussion section of the school band and orchestra.
1982 August 28: Performs on the drums at his bar mitzvah.
1982-1983: Forms the Dangerous Acquaintances (DAs) with school friends Baltie DeLey on bass, Ammar Bazzaz on guitar, David Teitlebaum on guitar and vocals, and Gottheil on drums.
1982-1983: Becomes the self-appointed "manager" of the DAs, pushing for practices, booking gigs, making flyers, etc.
1983 August 26: DAs perform at Urbana Park District Crystal Lake Pool (Urbana, Ill.).
1983 October 15: DAs perform at a private party in Urbana, Ill.
1983 November 11: DAs and The Edge perform at Junior High Night at the Eagles Club (Urbana, Ill.).
1983 December 9: DAs perform at the Urbana Junior High School Dance.
1984 February 23: Breeders and DAs perform at Channing-Murray Foundation.
1984 May 25: DAs and Breeders perform at the Urbana Civic Center.
1984 August 7: DAs perform for Teen Night at Mabel's.
1984 August 10: DAs perform at the Thornburn Center.
1984 August 14: DAs perform for Teen Night at Mabel's.
1984 August 23: Breeders perform with the DAs at the Urbana Civic Center.
1984 Fall: Gottheil enters Urbana High School.
1984 October 19: DAs peform with The Signs and Case Closed at the Urbana Civic Center.
1984 October 26: DAs play a Halloween party.
1984 October 27: DAs perform at the Channing-Murray Foundation.
1984 November 9: DAs perform with Case Closed at the Thornburn Center.
circa 1984 December: Gottheil joins new band, The Dead Relatives, formed by lead singer Dave Holtgrave, a graduate student in psychology at the University of Illinois, and including Lorie Buczkiewicz on bass and Bob Droege on guitar.
1985 January 21: Toxic Reasons performs with Dead Relatives for a punk dance at University High Gym (Urbana, Ill.).
1985 February 3: Rock Against Hunger: A Benefit for Ethiopia featuring Fun & Anguish, Reaction Formation, Club Crack, Fake Boys, Breeders, ¡Ack-Ack!, Farm Boys, Dead Relatives, and Krazy Eddies at Illini Union, Room C, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
1985 March 9: Blatant Dissent performs with 1096, the Charming Deviants, and the Dead Relatives at University High Gym (Urbana, Ill.).
1985 May 24: Mortal Micronotz perform with Dead Relatives at 805 West California (Urbana, Ill.).
1985 July 15: Rebels and Infidels perform with the Asexuals and Dead Relatives at Illini Union.
1985 September 10: Tex and the Horseheads perform with special guests Dead Relatives at Trito's Uptown.
1985 September 25: Capitol Punishment performs with Dead Relatives and H.S.R. at Trito's Uptown.
1985 November 26: The Detonators perform with Life Sentence and the Dead Relatives at Ilini Union, Room C.
1985 December 8: Jam for Life featuring The Outnumbered, Nitelife, The Models, Weird Summer, Farmboys, ¡Ack-Ack!, Otis and the Elevators, Dead Relatives, and Electrics at Mabel's.
1985 December 14: Penguin Dust, The Didjits, Dead Relatives, Red Pajamas, and Just Plain Macarthur perform at Illini Union Room C.
1986 February 10: Descendants perform with Dead Relatives at Illini Union Room C.
1986 March 31: Farm Boys perform with Dead Relatives at Mabel's.
1986 April 5: Toxic Reasons perform with Dead Relatives at the Thornburn Center.
1986 April 15: Glorious Din performs with Dead Relatives at Trito's Uptown.
1986 May 10: Band Jam on the Quad featuring Generic Error, Illinoize, McWilson Mowo, Cries and Whispers, H.S.R., Blood Brain Barrier, Freeloader, and Dead Relatives at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Quad.
1986 Spring: Gottheil forms Subversive Sounds Productions out of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign branch of the Better Youth Organization.
circa 1986: Gottheil begins working at Record Swap.
circa 1986: Begins to promote concerts with Record Swap, WEFT, and That's Rentertainment.
1986-1987: Subversive Sounds Productions begins promoting bands to perform in the Urbana-Champaign area, including 7Seconds, 1096, Adolescents, Beefeater, Big Black, Bowery Boys, Buckethead, Capitol Punishment, Charming Deviants, Cheetahchrome Motherfuckers, Club Crack, Cries and Whispers, Das Damen, Dayglow Abortions, Dead KCIS, Defoliants, Didjits, Doggy Style, Dough Boys, Flaming Lips, Grey March, H.S.R., IlliNoize, die kreuzen, Life Sentence, Lonely Trailer, McWillson, Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper, Outbreaks, Outnumbered, Pixies, Problem Children, Random Noise, Raw Power, Rhythm Pigs, Royal Crescent Mob, Scab, Scratch Acid, Shakes, Shudder to Think, Sloppy Seconds, SNFU, Th'Inbred, Titanic Love Affair, Toxic Reasons, Transgression, Tugrik Dhugugrik, Urge Overkill, Verbal Assault, and WaTTSBaLDHEaD.
1987 January: Gottheil completes the requirements for early graduation from high school and begins taking courses at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaian and Parkland College.
1987 February 8: Likely the last time Gottheil performs.
1987 February 8: Subversize Sounds with Jon Ginoli present a benefit for No More Censorship Defense Fund featuring the Didjits with the Outnumbered and Buckethead at Channing-Murray Foundation.
1987 Summer: Gottheil travels to Israel and Europe.
1987 Fall: Subversive Sounds begins collaborating with Anthony Poulos, a promoter from the Chicago area, who had brought bands to the Champaign-Urbana area.
1988 August: Gottheil moves to Chicago.
1987-1988: Anthony Poulos and Subversive Sounds Productions begin promoting concerts in the Urbana-Champaign area, including 10,000 Maniacs, Alice Donut, Balancing Act, Billy Bragg, The Connells, Dash Rip Rock, dB's, Didjits, Farmers, Fetchin' Bones, Flaming Lips, Hüsker Dü, Living Colour, Meat Puppets, Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper, Nix 86, Pixies, Schoolyard Truce, Shakes, Michelle Shocked, Soul Asylum, Souled American, They Might Be Giants, Throwing Muses, Titanic Love Affair, and Camper Van Beethoven.
1987 November-1988 June: Gottheil is diagnosed with lymphoma and undergoes chemotherapy.
1988 November: Gottheil enters Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Mo. for a bone marrow transplant.
1988 October: Gottheil, Poulos, and R.J. Abrams create Concert One Productions to promote concerts in the Champaign, Chicago, and St. Louis areas, including 16 Tons, American Music Club, Jane's Addiction, Let's Active, Ministry, Jonathan Richman, Royal Crescent Mob, Semi-Twang, They Might Be Giants, Timbuk3, Titanic Love Affair, and Velvet Elvis. - Gottheil is diagnosed with a recurrence of lymphoma.
1989 March 5: Poulos and Abrams organize Concert for a Cure to benefit the Leukemia Society of America and support Gottheil's hospitalization and cancer treatment; Peter Holsapple, Peter Buck, and Robyn Hitchcock perform with Spies Who Surf and Joan Baby at The Cubby Bear (Chicago, Ill.).
1989 April 4: Gottheil dies.
1989 May 14: Throwing Muses perform with Titanic Love Affair, Hot Glue Gun, and The Bowery Boys at Mabel's to benefit the Leukemia Society of America.
1989 September 28: Flaming Lips perform with Titanic Love Affair and Little Engine at Trito's Uptown to benefit the Leukemia Society of America.
1989 November 12: Pixies perform with The Zulus at Foellinger Auditorium, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to benefit the Josh Gottheil Memorial Fund for Lymphoma Research / Leukemia Society of America.
1990 April: Record Service 20th Birthday CD release with 20 years of music from Champaign-Urbana, including All-Star Frogs, Appaloosa, Captain Rat and the Blind Rivets, Champaign, Coalkitchen, Elvis Brothers, George Faber and Stronghold, Dan Fogelberg, GAGA, Erin Isaac, Last Gentlemen, Mudhens, Nix 66, One-Eyed Jacks, Otis and the Elevators, Outnumbered, Rave, Screams, and Vertebrats; "Dedicated to Josh Gottheil who would have been 20 also."
1994 September 23: Localpalooza featuring The Bludgers, Charming Beggars, Cover Band, Jambu River, Moon Seven Times, Soulstice, and Ten Year Old Nirvana at Foellinger Auditorium to benefit the Josh Gottheil Memorial Fund for Lymphoma Research.
1996 October 5: The Bludgers and Room 13 perform at Phi Kappa Theta fraternity house to benefit the Josh Gottheil Memorial Fund for Lymphoma Research.
1998 September 21: Josh's Jam featuring Luna with Hum, Sarge, and Menthol at Foellinger Auditorium to benefit the Josh Gottheil Memorial Fund for Lymphoma Research.
1997 October 22: Tanya Donelly performs with Lanterna and Space-Age Polymers at Mabel's to benefit The Josh Gottheil Memorial Fund for Lymphoma Research.
2009 May 24: Play or Pose: The Poster Children perform with The Outnumbered, Lonely Trailer, and Cowboy X at The Highdive (Champaign, Ill.) to benefit the Josh Gottheil Memorial Fund for Lymphoma Research.
Accruals
An accrual, including contracts and audio recordings, is located at the end of the collection.
Notes
Acquisition Note: The Josh Gottheil Collection was received by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum, Inc. as gifts from Fred and Diane Gottheil on August 10, 2011 and August 7, 2012.
Citation: [Identification of Item], Josh Gottheil Collection, Library and Archives, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.
Processing Information: Processed by Jennie Thomas, Head Archivist, and James A. Kohler, Project Archivist. Completed January 20, 2012. Revised December 10, 2012. Descriptive sources and standards used to create this finding aid: DACS and local processing manual.
Separated Materials: Commercial audio recordings have been transferred to the library collection. Please search for the "Josh Gottheil Collection" in the library catalog for a list of donated titles. If you are unable to find what you are looking for, consult the Library and Archives staff to ensure these materials are available.
Access
Collection is open for research. Patrons must sign the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights statement on the Researcher Registration form before using this collection. Band contact information and mailing lists are confidential and, therefore, RESTRICTED. Consult the Library and Archives staff in advance of your visit to ensure access to these materials is available.
Use
The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc. For more information, please consult the staff of the Library and Archives.
