E Street Band Member Vini “Mad Dog” Lopez on Blimp [AUDIO]

It was so great to have Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and E Street Band Member Vini "Mad Dog" Lopez on the Blimp Morning Show today. Vini is here to remember our old friend and Maine and Jersey music legend Bill Chinnock and raise money to fight Lyme disease in Maine. Get ready for Midcoast Lyme Aide!

Vini was on the first two Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band albums (Greetings from Asbury Park and Wild, Innocent....) and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an E Streeter in 2014. Even though he's not in the band now, Bruce still calls from time to time to ask Vini to come play! We talked to him about that and about the magic that happened in Jersey that changed Rock and Roll forever...

According to the Midcoast Lyme Aide Facebook page:

1st Annual Midcoast Lyme Aide Benefit Ride & Concert to Raise Funds and Awareness for Lyme Disease and Honor Music Legend Bill Chinnock. This event will feature some of the greatest legendary talent ever to hit Midcoast Maine all gathered under one roof for a star struck evening of entertainment and fundraising.

On Saturday, May 6, 2017, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame legend and original drummer of the E Street Band Vini “Mad Dog” Lopez will headline the event, along with his powerhouse band featuring legendary guitarist Jon Sebastian Brice, NJ Blues Hall of Fame legends Paul Whistler and Gary Cavico will gather. The concert, emceed by WCSH6’s own Sharon Rose Vaznis, will also feature Maine’s own Mallett Brothers Band and Travis James Humphrey.

These artists are all coming together along with Ridin’ Steel and Taste of Maine to joined forces with Midcoast Lyme Disease Support & Education (MLDSE) and Ticked Off Music Fest to combat Lyme Disease in Midcoast Maine, a disease that took the life of music legend, Bill Chinnock in 2007. Tributes were held in 2010 at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ and Portland, Maine to celebrate a man and his music who was taken too soon by a disease that knows no mercy.

The Taste of Maine has generously offered up their support and venue for this event. Stephen Marois of Ridin Steel, will kick off the day’s events at noon with a 3-hour Midcoast Loop ride. Followed by an evening of legendary talent promising to deliver entertainment of epic proportions. A night Midcoast Maine will never forget as they gather to pay tribute to fallen musician and raise funds for the Midcoast Lyme Aide, a fund established to provide financial assistance to those in need for testing of Lyme and tick-borne diseases in Maine.

For more info contact: Midcoast Lyme Aide Benefit Ride and Concert.