John B. Cleveland
John B. Cleveland (March 10, 1943-October 7, 2018)
On October 7, 2018, John B. Cleveland of Toms River, New Jersey, passed away from cancer at age 75.
Born in Gadsden, Alabama on March 10, 1943, he moved to Michigan City, Indiana in 1951 with his parents Dr. John Benjamin Cleveland, MD and Muriel Rogers Cleveland and sister Dorothy A. Cleveland. While in Michigan City he enjoyed Sea Scouts and Boy Scouts and graduated from Elston High School, class of 1961.
During high school he launched his music career by playing upright bass in several bands including The Polish Underground, the Highlighters Folk Group, and the Elston High jazz band and orchestra. He later attended Wabash College – where he was proud to have survived pledge year as a Phi Delta Theta – and eventually enrolled at Valparaiso University.
Because his true passion was music, one of his favorite life accomplishments was in August 1963 when he opened “The Other Side,” Michigan City’s first teen music club with live music. There he played with several bands including Johnny and the Trendells, Nomads, the Danny Garbacik Quartet, and The Hitchhikers.
In 1966 he enlisted in the Indiana National Guard where he served as a combat engineer and attended officer candidate school, graduating as a second lieutenant. While living in Michigan City, John became a graphics designer and opened The Type Studio where he specialized in metal graphics and continued his music career with the Village Trio and became a charter member of the LaPorte, Indiana Symphony Orchestra.
To continue his graphics design and music career, John moved to Brooklyn, New York in 1979. An avid reader, John also dabbled in publishing and worked as a freelance editor for several years. To round out his career, John was able to fulfill another passion – enjoying the great outdoors – by joining the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation in 1995. During his time in New York, John grew his music career with several bands including Tenbrooks Molly and The Ulterior Motives.
After retiring from forestry in 2013, John moved to Toms River where he lived his lifelong dream of playing his upright bass full time. With Albert Hall in Waretown, New Jersey as his home base, he played with bands including Warm Hearted Country, Kentucky Red, J&E Company, the Singing Conquerors, and the O’Neill Martin Band.
John was blessed with the ability to live in the moment and will be remembered for his generous spirit, gentle kindness, and encyclopedic mind. He was also a damn good bass player.
John was preceded in death by his parents, Ben and Muriel. When he passed away peacefully in homecare hospice, he was with loving friends and family. Surviving family members include his daughter, Miriam Cleveland (Tyler Snouffer), granddaughters Kate and Becca, and sister Dorothy Cleveland.
In lieu of flowers, donations in John’s memory may go to Friendship Botanical Gardens (P.O. Box 8834, Michigan City, IN 46361). A memorial service will be held in Michigan City at 1:00 pm on October 28 at Friendship Botanical Gardens. A special show dedicated to John’s memory will be held at a later date at Albert Music Hall (www.alberthall.org) in New Jersey.
At the special request from the family who is collecting stories about John for his grandchildren, please contact Miriam Cleveland on Facebook to share your memories.
Such a great man to know and spend time with. He was to show me great adventures, much laughter, and the life of music… I will miss him for the rest of my days.
I had the great joy of playing with John for several years with Laurie and Alice Dorisio, brother Bruce Bunning and Cliff Bloodgood in the Warm Hearted County band. John was dedicated to music, I remember so many gigs with him bent over his bass as if becoming a part of it…his signature hat on his head.
So many of us will miss this friendly guy…
Joe Wills, RCBC Radio, Host, Burlington County Bluegrass; banjo/Dobro player the BAD DOGZ
I had the great joy of playing with John in the Warm Hearted Country band with Laurie and Alice Dorisio, brother Bruce Bunning and Cliff Bloodgood. John was a dedicated musician and I’ll always remember him bent over his bass as if becoming a part of it,,,with his signature hat on his head.
John had so many good friends…we’ll all miss him.
Joe Wills, Host, Burlington County Bluegrass, RCBC Radio, banjo/Dobro for the BAD DOGZ
John was a good friend and very talented bass player, I will miss him as will many many of his fans and fellow musicians.
—Dale Lakata singer,songwriter
John and I were best buddies in Michigan City from Boy Scouts through High School, until I was drafted in 1965. I was involved in The Other Side and several of his other projects and activities of our social group.. His dad was our family doctor. I covered for him on bass with the HitchHikers. We shared an apartment for a couple years before Sam called.
I lost touch with him for many years, only re-establishing contact by chance days before his final illness diagnosis, and weeks before his death. It all happened so quickly!
I am pleased to help Miriam in settling his affairs and with the Memorial.