Ledge member - wetcamelfood - (John)

greenfire · #1 06-10-2016, 07:28 PM

Today I learned that wetcamelfood had passed away. I'm sorry I'm late in knowing about this and if there was a previous thread I apologize for not renewing it. I learned he passed away on September 24, 2015. Yes, I know it's been months already. I never would have expected this. John was still young but he died unexpectedly. I don't know really what happened. I just know he is gone now and I can't believe it. I hadn't logged into this site since Oct of 2010 but I was in touch with John outside of here. When I first joined this site it was wetcamelfood who sent me an email to welcome me. I had known John ever since and sometimes it was years between times I would email him but John always welcomed my emails. I enjoyed his knowledge and insights. He responded to my emails even if it was about some band he probably wasn't particulary interested in. I used to write to him about some of the more obscure FM stuff and about FM members like Brunning, Mason, Weston, Welch, and Burnette. I would ask him about solo appearances these guys would have appeared on. He actually owned the stuff. He was definitely a goto guy to know about things like that.

John was a serious collector of FM related recordings. I'm sure there are many completist collectors on this site but John was the one I knew and he befriended me. I remember seeing some of the questions he would ask in the Q&A section of this site. I remember one in particular where John was asking Bob Brunning about his "London 22nd cub scout pack" album.

Here was a question John had posed to Bob Brunning about it:

"As a collector of your records, I, like may others are trying to get our hands on the infamous "London 22nd cub scout pack" album. As only 500 copies were pressed, it's highly unlikely we will get our hands on an original. I was wondering, since you have more connections to the people involved in that project than any of us, would it be possible for you to get a hold of the original tapes from the school archives and have a limited amount pressed on CD and maybe sold through The Penguin website or something? I realize there's legal issues to consider but many of us would like very much to get this and other rare recordings you have played on. Any ideas on this would be greatly appreciated." (John, Peabody, Massachusetts, USA)

Bob Brunning's response:

Hi, John
There are no legal issues to be resolved, but does anybody really want to hear a hastily recorded album of campfire songs? I did it for a favour to a teacher colleague who wanted to raise funds for a cub pack. You don't want to hear it. --Bob Brunning

Believe me, John really did want this album even if Bob Brunning didn't think it was worthwhile. I would have asked John if he ever found a copy but I think he told me once he doubted he would ever find one. He was a true FM collector and completist.
There were lots of rare recordings and many I never asked John about but he always liked to talk about things like this. It was his passion.

The last I had corresponded with John was in June of 2014 and I recently sent him a message and I thought it was strange he never wrote back. It wasn't like him at all. At first I thought maybe he was away on a trip. I was looking for his posts and any activity only to see there hadn't been much as of late. I started looking further on the outside and to my dismay I learned he had passed away. I know John cared deeply about this site and he contributed album reviews and other information to the discography. I just wanted everyone to know of the valuable member who won't be posting or contributing any more.

louielouie2000 · #2 06-10-2016, 07:40 PM

Thank you so much for the update. I often wonder what becomes of long term members when they stop posting. I hate to hear this was the case with John.

I remember he was one of the first members I interacted with here on the Ledge when I finally joined up 15 years ago. He was definitely a wealth of knowledge. And a fun tidbit for some of our newer members: wetcamelfood is an anagram for Fleetwood Mac.

GypsySorcerer · #3 06-10-2016, 07:48 PM

I'm sorry to hear this. John was a knowledgeable and respected member of the Ledge/FM community. RIP, John.

~*BellaDonna*~ · #4 06-10-2016, 07:52 PM

I never met him, as I'm new here, but I'm saddened to hear that he's passed away, especially at a young age. Rest in peace, John.

jenniferuk · #5 06-10-2016, 08:18 PM

I'm sorry to read of this yet appreciate the update. John's knowledge and recall impressed and his work on the site discography is something I turn to repeatedly. RIP, with thanks for all you shared with us.

becca · #6 06-10-2016, 08:47 PM

I was sorry to hear about John. We were both the same age and used to trade stuff by mail (Idle Race, Peter Green, The Syn, The Ventures) back when sharing through the internet was a bit more arcane. I've lost a few such long-distance music friends.

I hope it's okay to post his obit here...

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/bos...?pid=175958019

desertangel · #7 06-11-2016, 08:30 PM

Very sorry to drop by lurking and see this news. May John RIP and his family find comfort. He was such a wealth of knowledge. Always enjoyed his posts and Q&A questions. He will be missed.

elle · #8 06-11-2016, 09:49 PM

oh wow, very sad to see this. end of an era, almost. always loved to see him swooping in unexpectedly and explaining stuff that nobody knew about, or providing extra and much more authoritative knowledge on topics we'd discuss. respect, he was a class.

BombaySapphire3 · #9 06-11-2016, 10:00 PM

Very sorry to learn of this ..God rest his soul.

chriskisn · #10 06-12-2016, 08:17 AM

Wow I'm in shock. John and I spent many hours conversing via email regarding Fleetwood Mac rarities, searching for the elusive Seven Souls album, Brunning's scout album, etc. My collection of FM stuff wouldn't be half of what it is today without John.

We first got talking 8 years ago when he sent me Weston's solo albums because I couldn't afford the $255 it was going for on eBay. It kind of went from there.

He was a great source of FM knowledge, but more than that he was a passionate FM collector and didn't mind sharing his knowledge or out of print stuff with others. Together for a while we ran a blogspot page (fleetwoodmacmusic.blogspot.com I think) where I would upload stuff that John had sent me that was rare or out of print and I know that hundreds of people have stuff in their collection now that they wouldn't have without that site.

More that though, although I never met him in person, he seemed a great guy.

Sadly, perhaps, I hadn't conversed with him over the past year or two, as life got in the way, and though I often thought of dropping him a line to see how he was doing, I never did, and I guess I'll regret that now.

He was married to Bonnie if I recall correctly.

RIP my friend.

vivfox · #11 06-12-2016, 10:35 PM

My condolences to all who knew and loved him.

wondergirl9847 · #12 06-18-2016, 11:34 PM

John was a super sweet, kind guy who I conversed with first online here at the Ledge regarding Danny Kirwan and my desire to hear his solo material. John sent me audio tapes of all Danny's songs so that I could see if I was interested in purchasing some albums on ebay. Thanks to John, I fell in love with Danny's solo music and ended up buying the albums.

He was VERY knowledgeable, as has been said and I miss his posts here.

I helped some with the FM discography after he asked me to help with it.

RIP my friend.

mybrotherjohn · #13 08-03-2016, 08:14 AM

Thank you all so much for your kind words about my brother John. They mean a lot to me and my family. He was one in a million, for sure. If anyone knows of any other Fleetwood Mac sites he may of been a member of, please let me know so I can pass along this sad news.

Thank you.

Bonnie

**SisterNightroad** · #14 08-03-2016, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mybrotherjohn

Thank you all so much for your kind words about my brother John. They mean a lot to me and my family. He was one in a million, for sure. If anyone knows of any other Fleetwood Mac sites he may of been a member of, please let me know so I can pass along this sad news.

Thank you.

Bonnie

I'm happy that you dig up this old thread Bonnie, your brother deserved every word.

michelej1 · #15 08-03-2016, 04:41 PM

By the time I bought this site i 2007, John had already been working with Marty on the Discography for years and he built it into something incredibly expansive.

You know that with 16 members in the band, it would be hard enough just to keep up with FM and the members' solo projects, but the Discography branches out so far beyond that. It includes FM guest appearances numbering in the hundreds of thousands. John would make entries to the database during his downtime at work.

John would buy albums from outside artists just so he could upload the liner information to the Discography.

He was so meticulous and detailed. He put more effort into the Discography than most workers do into their jobs. When I had a question he was so responsive and, if he had a question, he always gave me his research and trouble shooting ideas and a wealth of information to bring me up to speed. I just never got over his thoroughness.

He was so polite and friendly and never participated in any of the debates that flared up on the boards over the years. He was interested in the music only.

Awhile back he told me he could not work on the Discography any longer. He did not indicate why and I assumed it was job related. I didn't know it was something more serious. Before leaving, he gave me tons of notes so that someone could take up where he left off. Of course, it would be hard for anyone to fill such a void.

My condolences to you and your family Bonnie.

Michele