Singer Pat Dailey, popular in Put-in-Bay, Key West, dies at home
Daily songs will continue to be played
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Great Lakes troubadour Pat Dailey, who left a lasting mark on Ohio’s music and tourism scene, died Wednesday, July 3, at his home in Bay Village surrounded by family. He was 83.
Dailey, who earned many nicknames from his loyal fans (the legend of the lake, the coolest bastard in the world, etc.), had become one of the most successful, long-lasting one-man bar entertainers in the country. But “bar” may be a misnomer, since some of the venues he regularly filled held over 3,000 people.
He was most popular with audiences in Put-in-Bay and Key West, Florida – although he also played sold-out theaters throughout the Midwest. He was a songwriter and released too many albums to mention, including collaborations with Shel Silverstein, Waylon Jennings and others. He was a regular guest on radio shows such as Bob and Tom and others.
Put-in-Bay would change his life
After touring the country and enjoying a successful stint on the Cleveland club scene in the 1970s, where he was a major attraction with Harry Buffalo and Bobby McGee’s, friends told Dailey about a summer resort on South Bass Island in Lake Erie, a tourist village called Put-in-Bay. Although he had never heard of the place, it was about to change his life dramatically.
Dailey first played the popular Beer Barrel Saloon in the summer of 1978 and quickly became the hottest act in the island’s largest showroom. The Beer Barrel burned to the ground in 1988 and was rebuilt in 1989, making it into the Guinness Book of World Records as the “Longest Bar in the World.” By now, Pat had a crowd capacity of 3,500 people and was still packing the place, and he did so until the 2007 season when he decided to move his show to a more fan-friendly venue, the intimate club The Boathouse Bar and Grill.
Additionally, in the winter of 1984, Dailey began performing at Sloppy Joe’s Bar, the famous old Hemingway hangout in Key West, Florida. He immediately took a liking to the huge nightly crowds of college students and tourists from all over the world, and filled the place until his retirement in 2018.
In Key West he met Shel Silverstein
During his first season in Key West, Dailey met world-renowned poet, songwriter and playwright Shel Silverstein. Shel, who lived in Key West during the winter, attended Dailey’s performance, introduced himself and proposed a songwriting collaboration that lasted for 15 years until Silverstein’s death in May 1999.
The body of work that has come out of Dailey’s collaborations with Silverstein as well as his own compositions – from humorous songs to love songs and songs about the lakes to outright anthems – is nothing short of astonishing. Dailey was one of the most significant folk songwriters to come out of the Great Lakes region. Although he retired in 2018, his songs continue to be performed by other artists around the world.
Dailey’s longtime tour manager Tony Bocho said, “While his family is his greatest asset and the musical legacy he left behind for the Lake Erie and Key West regions is a given, for me the friendships he created will always be his greatest legacy. We were all strangers when we came to the show and left with some of the closest friendships. …”
North Coast folk legend Alex Beavan, who produced several of Dailey’s albums, said, “At that time, there was a vibrant and creative wave of songwriters making their mark in the bars and solo concerts of the music that would later become known as Americana. Into this mix came an amazing talent in this region of Northern Ohio… He created a role model for many by singing tunes carefully compiled from local lore and then delivered with the powerful punch of a world-class boxer.”
“That was Pat Dailey. Pat Dailey not only opened up Put-in-Bay as a music destination, but also shaped a style of songwriting that wove the best traditions of folk music with the haunting folk anthems of the day. Every performance, from Key West to the shores of Lake Erie, was a comprehensive tapestry that enveloped the audience and made them feel that special love that only a master communicator can weave. Every performance… every time!”
The News Messenger/News Herald
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