MONACO – Jacob “Jake” Raggio, who had already earned some measure of fame for going the extra mile backstage and was starting to get better known as a performer of freestyle music on both sides of the Atlantic, died recently in Europe. The loss hit PLSN editor Nook Schoenfeld hard – he knew Raggio well, and penned the following tribute to his protégé and friend.
Nook Schoenfeld’s tribute follows:
This one is a little tough to write as I worked with Jake over the course of many summers and helped mold him into the professional he became. He would have undoubtedly made it in the live event business regardless of my help, but it was certainly my pleasure to gig with such a fine man. The only way for me to stop the tears this morning is to write about my experiences with him.
Over my career I’ve gotten involved in quite a few festival tours and as it goes with these type tours you meet some interesting cats, new folks that just want to get their foot in the door of our business. Jacob Raggio was one such man, but he stood out from all the others over the years as I watched him grow into a man, a quality stage manager and so much more.
Sometime in the mid 2000’s I’m on stage loading out when I get a tap on the shoulder.
“Hey man, My name’s Jacob. Can I give you a hand?”
“Um sure, are you out on this tour with us?”
“Yup, but I work on the B stage and we finished load out so I thought you could use a hand.”
“Great. See this pyro truss on two motors here? Can you strike it for us?”
“Sure man. I got this, you’ll never have to touch it again.”
That was really nice of him. But Jacob didn’t stop there. He showed up the next morning after dumping trucks and built and flew the same truss. The next loadout, I look upstage and Jacob’s brought over another friend. Kenny Leath, another hardcore stage manager who had been loading out the B stage was gigging with him. Without asking, Kenny became his partner and they now struck the pyro and the midstage rag truss.
What Jacob started got contagious. The next thing I know, John Firpo our stage manager, is striking the upstage Kabuki truss while Jacob shows him how it’s done. Meanwhile, the three of these guys are all loading trucks at the same time they’re striking trusses. All for one and one for all springs to mind. That’s how Jacob rolled.
We all noticed the gleam in the eye of a young man who just wanted someone to give him a chance. The next year, he became the assistant stage manager on another festival tour. I don’t think Ray Picard asked him to take on the job, he just helped his buddy Firpo out. And he continued to take down my trusses. But now he and his crew all resorted to removing the moving lights as well. Ten truck tours with monster light rigs were loaded out in under two hours. By the next year, Jacob ran the main stage, and he did it really well for a young man. We did hundreds of gigs over the years and he knew every member of every band that played the stage. He was just that type of friendly interactive human.
Recent years found Jacob on the other side of the mic, making what he referred to as “freestyle music.” He hosted concerts from his apartment balcony, among other venues.
The thing is, whatever Jacob did, he did so with determination, a smile on his face and the gusto of a pirate. He loved life, music, friends and gigging. He had the world at his fingertips, it seems. Jacob exited for the great gig in the sky last weekend. No doubt he’s already gathering the forklifts and coffee for the crew before we load in with a smile. I will miss you pal.
Much love, your buddy Nook
Jacob’s remains will be returned to his native Tennessee for a service and burial. We will post details of the funeral and any other arrangements as they come in.
