On a cold, windy Wednesday night in April, inside Portland, Maine’s historic State Theatre, a packed house celebrated the life of the late Dave Noyes, trombonist of the legendary Maine band Rustic Overtones. Noyes passed away suddenly in his sleep in March at the age of 45, much to the shock and grief of his bandmates, fans, and the Maine music community as a whole.

Portland Music Scene Comes Together To Benefit The Family Of Late Musician Dave Noyes

In addition to the ongoing fundraising campaign, members of the Portland music scene put together a special memorial event to honor Noyes and raise additional money to help support his family. GOOD GRIEF: A Celebration of the Life and Music of Dave Noyes included heavyweights of the Maine music scene including Rustic Overtones, The Fogcutters, Royal Hammer, The Ghost of Paul Revere, Jaw Gems, Micromassé, Kenya Hall, Spencer Albee, Tony McNaboe, Lyle Divinsky, (The Motet), The Red Eye Flight Crew, RJ Miller.

Throughout the course of the night, dozens of Maine’s best musicians arrived on stage to perform and also offer memories and anecdotes about Noyes. The audience, it seemed, was equally star-studded including just about every other Maine artist not on the bill, many restaurant owners, mix engineers, radio personalities, and other notable Mainers, a testament Dave Noyes’ revered place in the tight knit community. ”

Halfway through their headlining set of rarely played deep cuts, Rustic Overtones frontman Dave Gutter addressed the crowd, explaining the unique song choices: “Songs like ‘Check’. Those were not Dave Noyes. ‘Simple Song’ was not Dave Noyes,” said Gutter, referencing some the Overtones’ more popular hits from their heyday in the late 90s. “These songs are Dave Noyes,” he said, before launching into a few more songs from the Overtones 2007 comeback album Light at the End, much of which was arranged laboriously by Noyes.

The legendary Maine band, accompanied by former members Spencer Albee, Tony McNaboe, an expanded brass section, and a string section (including Dave Noyes’ wife Anna Maria on viola), appeared jubilant as they celebrated their lost friend and bandmate.

When the show ended, many headed over to Portland House of Music for the after party. Raging Brass, Gina and The Red Eye Flight Crew, and Model Airplane all played sets. Jaw Gems, Lyle and Phil Divinsky, members of The Ghost of Paul Revere, and others who played earlier at the State Theatre all sat in throughout the night–ending with a super jam of Joe Cocker’s “With a Little Help From My Friends”. RIP Dave Noyes.