“Donnie” playing his famous 1963 Fender Telecaster

The younger Troiano enthusiastically recalls being so proud of upcoming star and brother “Donnie” and even happier that he’d been allowed into this historic moment — eleven years later in 1977, the Stones returned to Toronto to infamously play at the El Mocambo Club, secretly billed as “The Cockroaches.”

Anyway, Frank brings us right back into that summer night in ’66:

“One of the swooning fans seated behind the stage let herself down from above and rushed towards Jagger, but she was restrained. Encouraged, many more jumped on the stage. It was pandemonium, even more so when the Stones performed their new hit ‘Satisfaction.’ After doing some frenzied encores, the band rushed off stage. But I took my cue to head onto the stage and saw that the fans had thrown all kinds of trinkets, bracelets, and film containers with phone numbers. I waved at the fans as if I was meant to be there. My brother Donnie had gone back into the dressing room after the Stones’ set, and then came out. He was startled to see me onstage, but smiling at my boldness, he told me to get off, as it was time to go home. So I did my only duty that night by carrying his special ’63 Telecaster into the car. It was the beginning of my future career of being a roadie and road manager for Donnie’s later bands.”

This is where this writer comes in.

Ten year later in 1976, I was a cub reporter, still in school, when I sought out the Domenic Troiano Band at the famous Colonial club on Toronto’s Yonge Street. After ten glorious years, playing with the Mandala, the James Gang, the Guess Who and others, while working with the crème de la crème of musicians from New York to Chicago and Los Angeles, Domenic had set out on his solo career. In another ten years, his multi-channeled music path had led him to scoring music for network TV and movies.

But that night at the Colonial, Donnie befriended this reporter, and he became my first music legend interview. In that time period from ‘76-‘80, this young reporter also interviewed the likes of Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Pete Townsend, YES, the lovely young Wilson sisters of Heart, the dynamic trio of RUSH, among others on the burgeoning Canadian music scene — many have gone onto the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

But the “Almost Famous” start to my own writing career began with interviewing Donnie, who later introduced me to the world of television and movies through the French Connection detective turned producer, Sonny Grosso. Indeed, Domenic Troiano was at the heart of that exciting time period for not only me but hundreds of musicians.

Here’s just a sampling of some amazing stories on Troiano’s influence on others’ musical lives.