North Coast singer-songwriter/entertainer Pat Dailey dies at 83

        Great Lakes troubadour Pat Dailey, who made an indelible mark on the Ohio music and tourist scene, passed away peacefully Wednesday, July 3, in his Bay Village home, surrounded by his family. He was 83 years old.
        Dailey, who had many monikers bestowed on him by his loyal fans (the Legend of the Lake, the Coolest S.O.B. in the World, etc.), had become a storied successful, long running one-man barroom entertainer – but, “barroom” may be a deceiving word, because some of the venues that he regularly packed held over 3,000 people.
         He was most popular with audiences at Put-in-Bay and Key West, Florida, although, he also sold out theaters throughout the Midwest. He had numerous songwriting credits and album releases that included collaborations with Shel Silverstein, Waylon Jennings and others. He was a regular guest on nations radio programs, such as Bob & Tom and others.
        After touring around the country and a period of success in the club scene in Cleveland in the 1970s, where he was a main attraction at the Harry Buffalo and Bobby McGees, friends told Dailey about a popular summer resort on South Bass Island in Lake Erie, a tourist village named Put-in-Bay. Although he had never heard of the place it would change his life dramatically.
        Dailey first played the popular Beer Barrel Saloon in the summer of 1978 and shortly became the hottest act in the biggest showroom on the island. The Beer Barrel burned to the ground in 1988 and was rebuilt in 1989. It went into the Guinness Book of Records as “The World’s Longest Bar.” Now with crowd capacity at 3,500 people, Dailey was still filling the place and continued to do so until the 2007 season, when he decided to move his show to a more fan-friendly venue, intimate club, The Boathouse Bar and Grill.
        Also, in the winter of 1984, Dailey began to appear at the famed old Hemingway hangout, Sloppy Joe's Bar in Key West. The enormous nightly crowds of college students and tourists from around the world took to him immediately. He continued to pack the place, until his retirement in 2018.
        It was in the first season in Key West that he met the world-famous poet, songwriter and playwright Shel Silverstein. Silverstein, a Key West winter resident, caught Dailey’s act, introducing himself and suggested a songwriting collaboration that continued for 15 years until Silverstein’s untimely death in May 1999.
        The body of work resulting from Dailey’s collaboration with Silverstein, as well as compositions written on his own includes humorous songs, love songs, songs about the Lakes, outright anthems and more.
        Dailey was arguably one of the most significant folk songwriters from the Great Lakes region. Even though he retired in 2018, his songs continue to be performed throughout the world by other artists.
        Put-in-Bay and Key West singer-songwriter Ray Fogg said, “Pat influenced me to change the focus of my music and stage performance many years ago. I realized from watching Pat that there were other things to write about beside the typical love song.
        “And I learned from observing him that stage presence was essential if you want to get, and keep, people’s attention in a tough business,” he said. “But, most importantly, you need to be an artist and offer something original to distinguish yourself uniquely from others. And, boy, did he ever do that! He will be greatly missed.”
        Dailey’s time tour manager, Tony Bocho said, “While his family is his greatest achievement, and the musical legacy he left to Lake Erie and Key West regions goes without saying, to me his greatest legacy will always be the friendships that occurred due to him. We were all strangers walking into the show and came out with some of the closest friendships.”
        North Coast folk legend Alex Beavan, who produced some of Dailey’s albums, said, “Back in the day, there was a vibrant and creative groundswell of songwriting performers who made their bones in the bars and solo act concerts of what would be known as Americana. Into this mix an amazing talent made his mark in this region of Northern Ohio. He created a template for many to follow by singing melodies carefully crafted in local lore and then delivered with the strong punch of a world class boxer. This was Pat Dailey.
        “Pat Dailey not only opened up Put-in-Bay as a destination for music, but also defined a kind of songwriting that wove all the best traditions of folk music with the visceral popular anthems of the times. Each performance from Key West to the shores of Lake Erie wove an inclusive tapestry that wrapped around the audience and made them feel that special love that only a master communicator can weave. Every performance...every time,” Beavan said.