Northport Natives Create Village-Inspired Music Video: Listen

Northport NY

03 February, 2021

4:34 PM

Description

NORTHPORT, NY — A pair of lifelong friends who grew up in Northport recently put together a music video — with help from family and friends — hearkening back to their memories of the community and its harbor. "On the Dock" celebrates the Northport childhood memories of Rick Meissner and Michael Sean McDonald, who have since moved from the village. The song was originally spurred by a road trip the two took in August 1995 for their 20-year Northport High School reunion. The road trip inspired McDonald to write a song, "On the Dock." Meissner wrote a melody and arranged the below version, which he shared to the "Northport High School ~ That 70s Group" on Facebook in January. The music video can be watched here. McDonald, who has moved to Cleveland, has been playing his version of "On the Dock" to local audiences for years now, according to Meissner. "I'm super happy that this song and video has touched so many people that hold Northport dear in their hearts," Meissner told Patch. Meissner's family roots in Northport extend back to the 1940s and '50s, when his grandparents built a country home on Woodycrest Drive off of Rinaldo Road, which were dirt roads at the time. Meissner's parents settled in the area in the mid-1950s and gave birth to their son in 1957. Meissner's childhood memories of Northport include weekend gatherings of extended family at his grandparents' home; the large open space between Norwood Road and the Mackamah woods and beach; building forts; catching frogs and turtles; riding horses; long walks; exploring homesites from early settlers dating back to the 1600s; fishing for flounders on Northport Dock; playing Frisbee; making music; and partaking in fine arts events. Meissner eventually moved to the San Francisco Bay area, where he lives in Fairfax. "The town is similar to the Northport I grew up in, as it is close to an amazing urban center yet tucked away in a beautiful rural/suburban area," Meissner said. "The town population is about 7,500 people. There is a vital downtown and community raising children and populated with many creative people." In 1995, Meissner voyaged to Cleveland to reconnect with McDonald. The two had been planning to visit Northport together and finally did so thanks to their high school reunion. Together, they enjoyed exploring the same back roads they grew up around. "Road trips are seldom without magical moments," reads an excerpt from Super High Right Now, a band formed by Meissner and vocalist Claire Foster-Thuesen. "They are often found in the most unexpected places and times. Bonds lasting a lifetime time can be cemented or broken in the intimate and long hours of traveling side by side. In this story, the journey through time and across miles brings old friends even closer together." The memories, old and new, brought on by Meissner and McDonald's trip to Northport led McDonald to write a new song. Once each man had returned home, McDonald sent Meissner the lyrics to "On the Dock." Fast-forwarding to 2019, Meissner wanted to record "On the Dock" along with 10 other songs he had written. In February 2020, Rick's daughter Ivy Meissner and her partner, Julian Cubillos, who are both musicians, flew from their home in Queens to San Francisco and spent a week in Fairfax, where Rick raised Ivy. The basic tracks were completed before the coronavirus pandemic shutdowns hit in March. Over 2020, they were able to work on the project with the addition of other players recorded remotely. Miguel Weissman, another Northport friend of Meissner and McDonald, added his harmonica to the mix. The harmonica reminds Meissner of the wailing of Weissman's mouth harp drifting through the trees of Northport Park. Now back in Queens, Ivy and Julian mixed and produced the album of songs titled "Dreaming in Color" by Super High Right Now. Rick's daughter Maya Meissner and her partner, Lorenzo Fanton, who live in Brooklyn, created the colorful artwork and design for the album, which is available on Band Camp, Spotify and iTunes. Tom Langton, another old friend of Rick Meissner's from Northport High School, contributed his deep well of Northport photos to the "On the Dock" video. McDonald, tapping yet another family member, asked his son, Kyle McDonald, to choose and sync the images to the music. Meissner finally posted the finished video to the Facebook group created for the 1970s batch of Northport High School alumni. "There has been a very positive response from many people, showing just how big a place in their hearts they hold for their beautiful hometown," Meissner said.