Cleveland DJ icon Rob Sherwood suffered a heart attack and passed away on February 18. He was 54 and had recently battled prostate cancer. To celebrate Sherwood’s legacy, a party called Jane (Sherwood was known as Jane to his friends) has been organized at Sachsenheim Hall on March 31 by The Disco Mafia. The night will feature drag performances and DJ sets by Sherwood’s Color Blind production partner Mike Filly, Lady Miss Kier, and Kenny Summit.
Sherwood was a beloved fixture in the city’s club music community. He spun at numerous gay and straight venues — as well as one-off raves — including Nine of Clubs, Alterhouse, Aquilon, Lift, U4ia, Trilogy, Metropolis, the Church, and Freak. From the mid-80s on he navigated himself through countless musical trends, DJing around the US and living for a stint in NYC.
“I went to New York and lived every single DJ dream I ever had,” he once said. “All of my heroes were coming out of the studio at night saying, ‘I just cut a disc, I want you to play it’ – my heroes. Not just some guys, my DJ and producer heroes. Every club I ever dreamed of wanting to work at, I worked at.”
Sherwood, who contributed music reviews to Cleveland-based publications Underground News and Buzz, was an in-demand remixer in the ’90s and ’00s.
“He produced floor-filling remixes for Deee-Lite, Sparks, My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult, The Lightning Seeds, and Sagat,” says NYC-based dance-music label veteran Joe Berinato.
“Nightlife luminaries are rare breeds these days and none were like Rob Sherwood. The extent of immeasurable devotion, unwitting impact and ultimate legacy he left on DJs and club culture alike, not only in Cleveland but in many other cities across the country, will be honored and celebrated here on this night.” Continue Reading