Smoot reunion show planned at Wilder's outdoor venue

Jun. 11—John Moss and Smoot with guest musicians will play a special show on Saturday at the Wilder's outdoor patio.

Moss, a veteran Joplin guitarist, vocalist and song writer who has long led the Smoot Mahuti band, will perform with staple keyboardist Annie Walser along with Marc Marcono, John Seaburg, and Miles Jacobs.

The musicians have ties to the late Steve and Cassie Gaines, Miami, Oklahoma.

Moss, Marcono and Seaburg all played music in early bands with Steve Gaines and his sister, Cassie. They were known locally for their musical abilities and they hit it big when they were asked to join Southern rock powerhouse Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Gaines had barely gotten started in the Skynyrd business of arena rock when he, his sister, and Skynyrd front man Ronnie Van Zant were killed in a plane crash Oct. 22, 1977.

Gaines was 28 when he died, only about 18 months after joining Skynyrd and three days after the band's first studio album containing Gaines' work, ironically called "Street Survivors," was released. That album eventually went double platinum. Cassie was 29 and had been with the band about two years.

Moss, the longtime anchor of regional band favorite Smoot Mahuti, is one of the area musicians who knew Steve and Cassie Gaines well. He and Gaines met when they were in high school. In those days, they played in rival bands.

Moss's band then was the Pink Peach Mob, regarded as the top regional band of its day.

He and Marcano later played together in another band from that era, Man Alive, with both Steve and Cassie Gaines.

They traveled and played together for several years during which Moss and Gaines wrote several songs together including "I Know a Little." Gaines performed that song with Skynyrd and it was was ranked amid the top 25 songs of the band, though Moss was never credited for his contribution to the song.

The Joplin show has been scheduled at the Wilder's patio, 1216 Main St., formerly the Kitchen Pass patio, by owner Mike Pawlus and organizer Ed Minton as a way to restart more live music in Joplin since the COVID-19 pandemic has eased.

It also is a way to celebrate the Gaineses and the regional musicians with whom they were associated.

The Gaineses have been inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in recent years.

Reserved seats for the show are available at a cost of 2 for $25. They are $15 each at the door. There is limited seating. They can be purchased by calling 417-529-1491.