BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Back in 2016, Geno Baron was putting on one of the annual Beatles Showcase shows he presented at Musikfest Cafe at ArtsQuest Center when DJ A.J. Fritz called him.
Fritz told Baron his mother-in-law was ill, and he didn't think he would be able to be master of ceremonies at the show.
“I said, ‘Hey, AJ, don’t worry, take care of family — that’s it,'" Baron said. "And next thing I know, I turned around, he had shown up. And he did it anyway.
“I said, ‘AJ, what are you doing here? Go home, go back.’ He goes, ‘No, I wanted to be here.’ I mean, that was pretty powerful.”
A celebration of A.J. Fritz's life will be held from 4-7 p.m. Sunday, March 29, at Fearless Fire Company No. 14, 1224 N. Front St., Allentown. Admission is a $10 suggested donation at the door, with proceeds going to the Lehigh University student radio station.Event information
That, Baron said, show the dedication that Fritz had for music in the Lehigh Valley, where for decades he was a disc jockey on
then was on the air at WGPA-AM 1100, and WZZO-FM 96.5 in the 1990s.
Fritz, whose given name was Alfred Fritzinger, died unexpectedly Dec. 31 at 67.
To recognize that dedication and contribution to music in the Lehigh Valley, a celebration of his life will be held from 4-7 p.m. Sunday, March 29, at Fearless Fire Company No. 14, 1224 N. Front St., Allentown.
Admission is a $10 suggested donation at the door, with proceeds going to the Lehigh University student radio station, with whom Fritz also worked.
A full cash bar and kitchen will be available.
Master of ceremonies will be Glenn "Mitch" Mitchell, a DJ at radio station WODE-FM 99.9 The Hawk in Whitehall Township and a longtime friend of Fritz.
The show will feature performances and tributes from the band Poker Face, Jim Carolyn, Todd Wolfe Band, Steve Brosky and Jimmy Meyer and Lou Franco Project.
Supported young people
Baron said he met Fritz when he was at a benefit in 2010, and Fritz was the master of ceremonies.
"And that’s around the time I started getting involved in the" Lehigh Valley Music Awards, for whose board Baron once was chairman.
"And I had wanted to do The Beatles show and I talked to him about that and he just loved the idea. And then we clicked — I became good friends with him.”
“He loved the idea we got young people up on stage."Geno Baron
Not only did Fritz become master of ceremonies for Baron's Beatles Showcase for seven years — "and helped us out promoting a lot on the radio," Baron said — but also "through all my years at the Lehigh Valley Music Awards, he supported it so much."
One of Fritz's attractions to the Lehigh Valley Music Awards was that it gave scholarships for young people involved in music.
“He loved the idea we got young people up on stage," Baron said. "He had us on the radio all the time.”
Fritz also for 22 years was manager of Lehigh University's radio station WLVR-HD-2 — a digital subchannel the NPR station that features a college radio station programmed by students.
He also volunteered at WLVR-FM at Lehigh, where he established his communication and broadcasting career as manager and chief operator since 2000.
Fritz was also the host of the well-known radio show "FritzRocks," an award-winning free form rock radio program that has been running since 1996.
He formally began his work in music in the 1980s, when he had a DJ business.
'Respected by a lot of famous people''
Over those years, Fritz made multiple connections in the music world.
“As I was really learning, I realized he’s really highly respected in the Lehigh Valley and the music world," Baron said.
"And then I found out he was respected by a lot of famous people, as well."
“He was really one of the best at what he does."Geno Baron
Publicity for the event celebrating his life says the night will include video tributes by guitarist/singer Les Dudek, who worked with the Allman Brothers, Steve Miller Band and more.
Also, Carmine Appice, drummer for Vanilla Fudge and Ros Stewart; Mark Farner, the original singer and guitarist for Grand Funk Railroad, and others.
There also will be live spoken tributes from various colleagues.
“Every one of them said yes immediately," Baron said. "And they were kind of chosen based on what I know and his family suggested."
Wolfe, who was guitarist for Sheryl Crow and has had his songs covered by Stevie Nicks and Faith Hill, is flying in from California to perform, Baron said.
"The choices we made, it was hard — we could have had 100 people," he said.
“He was really one of the best at what he does."
