the lovers, the dreamers, & zee
Posted: April 30th, 2009
Two Lives Left, Alotta Livin’ to Do Peculiar Virtuoso, a Hit among Uticans by Thomas J. Armitage April 2009
"REVOLUTION," he shouts, walking past the bouncer who does not bother to check his ID. "Revolution," the bar hoppers respond in unison. Obviously they have done this before. This rebel is a regular at the Electric Company in West Utica. "How are you tonight, Rainbow?" Kate asks. She is cute; short with dark hair and caramel-colored skin. She looks up at Rainbow after pouring a Saranac into one of the cold, frosted mugs that sits on the moist bar table. "I'm fine, I’m fine," he responds aloud. He announces everything with a thunderous tone, but yet, the words are not so clear. Rainbow is Korean-American. His English is broken but no one seems to mind, especially when he is on stage. Easily recognizable when passing down Varick Street in Utica, Rainbow is usually outside one of the bars playing one of his seven instruments. Tonight, he is wearing his usual apparel. His boots are old and decrepit. The black and faded wind-pants fall over the tongues of his filthy Timberland-wannabes, which are unlaced. One can only hope that he has long-johns underneath so he does not get frost-bite walking the streets after last call. He carries an ‘80s-metal, V-neck guitar and looks like a member of Van Halen with that long, blue electric unit slung around his shoulders. His beard is black. It grows around his awkward smile and comes to a point like a Zen master’s. A stale smell of cigarette smoke reeks from his tattered coat. It is a grey overcoat; open in the front and ripped in several places. On the back is a large piece of red duct tape slapped over a few tears, holding it together. His hair is long and wild, like bamboo growing freely in the jungle. He removes his Chinese farmer hat when he enters the building and his black, dirty strands fling all which way. And then there is his face. It appears tired and worn but he has more energy than everyone else in the room combined. His teeth are broken, crooked and stained but his smile spreads ear to ear. His eyes are thin with heavy bags but he takes notice and greets nearly every individual at the bar. Most Uticans appear to know him, but they could never image what is on the other side of the Rainbow… Born on Oct. 5, 1957, he came to America in 1979, after serving in the Korean Army. While enlisted, he never fought in a war and never even fired a gun. His mother emigrated to Frankfort, N.Y. after marrying an American GI and Rainbow soon followed. After staying in the small town for a year, he decided to move to nearby Utica, since he had no intentions of becoming a farmer. When he finally became an American citizen, he legally changed his name to Rainbow Young Gilbert. He was tired of people pronouncing his Korean name wrong - which one cannot interpret when he rolls it off his tongue – and he also wanted to adopt the last name of his step-father. Rainbow has loved music all his life. “I play drums, accordion, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, trombone, keyboard…and I sing,” Rainbow explains. Some instruments he purchased, others were donated by friends. But what is most impressive is that this virtuoso taught himself how to play each instrument. Being a Korean-American, Rainbow has faced his share of racism over the years. Although he would never create a scene in public over discrimination, he has never found the practice acceptable. “[It’s] humiliating,” Rainbow explains, reminiscing about times that he’s been treated harshly due to his ethnicity. “If someone discriminates against you because of your color…That’s f*cking bullsh*t. God loves all, not just one [group of] people; we’re all brothers and sisters.” Sometimes Rainbow carries a walking stick. However, it is multifunctional because it also wards off devils, he says. Rainbow, a Christian who will soon be baptized, believes that demons can lurk nearby. For spiritual support, he carries the staff donned with flowers, beads, fruit, ribbons, and leaves. It protects him. “There is only one…only one God; Jesus Christ…that’s it!” Rainbow exclaims, staff in hand. “I must be baptized for [him] to take me into His Kingdom.” Although a free-spirit, Rainbow has one dream - he would like to be a father. “I need to make one baby, so that that baby can sing to [all of you],” Rainbow says. Although he isn’t sure about anything in the future, he would like a child to carry on his legacy. “Wanna make Chinese babies?” Rainbow asks beautiful girls as a pickup line. “It only takes seven seconds,” he adds, when the female gives him “the look,” threatening to walk away. He repeatedly uses this line throughout the evenings. So what is the problem? Is it the line? Is it the delivery? Does he lack the charm? According to Rainbow, women just won’t give him a chance. “Stupid American lady bum-b*tches,” Rainbow shouts. “They’re looking for the rich man. I have a beautiful heart. They don’t see the heart; they’re looking for the money. I need a lady who will take a chance on the Rainbow!” Rainbow has had a number of jobs throughout his working life, including an extensive period as a Chinese cook in Syracuse. He still has the abilities of a chef to prepare Italian, Chinese and American dishes, but he does not cook much today. Instead, he resides at an assisted living facility in Utica and obtains help from non-profit organizations in the area. Rainbow receives Supplemental Security Income (SSI), through Social Security. The SSI gives him money to live and pays for the six different medications that he takes each day for his illnesses. “Rainbow, you’re crazy, you stay home,” Rainbow reiterates on the government’s behalf. He gladly takes the money since it gives him more time to do what he loves: play music. No one knows Rainbow quite like Anthony “Zee” Donaldson, owner and operator of the Electric Company. Rainbow considers Zee his manager and best friend. “Did you take you’re meds today,” Zee asks, interrupting Rainbow to make sure he is keeping healthy. “Yes, yes,” Rainbow responds and continues talking. Zee recalled the first time that he saw Rainbow perform; it was about 10 years ago at the Devereux. The musical man was performing at open mic night and, at the time, he enjoyed covering the grunge classic “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana. On this night, Rainbow announced that he had a guest star. Zee watched attentively. All of a sudden, Rainbow pulled out a hamster from his pocket, put the rodent up to the microphone, and began stroking it from head to tail. Zee wasn’t sure what was going on; he began to watch closer. As Rainbow stroked, the hamster, or “Rainbow Bright” as he called him, would “purr” into the microphone. They had a duet that night as Rainbow sung bass at the top of his lungs alongside his guest star’s soprano skills. “I nearly p*ssed myself I was laughing so hard,” admits Zee. From then on Rainbow and Zee were friends. This past summer Zee decided to help Rainbow run for mayor of moe.ville at the annual summer moe.down festival in Turin. Being announced mayor is really just a status symbol, but most fans have a blast rooting or jeering the candidates. The title is awarded to whoever receives the loudest cheer at the time of the voting. Zee and some other friends decided that they needed to promote Rainbow if he was going to win the election. So on the second night, at 3 a.m., they woke Rainbow and convinced him to play his trombone…very loudly. Some moe. fans were enthused while others were not too happy that they were being awakened in the wee hours of the morning to an echoing brass. There are debates on Sunday afternoon, and moe.’s DJs mention the election on their radio station. Later, fans finally voted. Rainbow sang “God Bless America” for the crowd and, although he received a loud applause from the audience, his deafening mayoral campaign may have cost him some votes. In the end, Rainbow was required to concede in the close race and finished in second place. moe. sometimes plays at the Electric Company and allows Rainbow to take the stage with them. Al Schnier, guitarist and Utica native, really enjoys Rainbow’s company when he visits the EC, Zee admits. Both Rainbow and Zee agree that they will be returning to moe.down this summer and will attempt to run him for mayor once again. Okay, so really, what makes Rainbow’s clock tick? What makes him sing and dance and be carefree? And why is he so darn unique and peculiar? Well if Rainbow was allotted nine lives like a cat, then he only has two more chances left. Throughout his 51 years, this character has managed to get himself into seven near-death predicaments and those mishaps have done a number on him. The end result is the Rainbow that we know now, a musically lovable, free-spirited Utican. Rainbow explained how he lost seven lives… In 1978, Rainbow was in the Korean Army. As a parachuter, he was practicing his routine in the plane. Upon jumping out of the aircraft, he suddenly realized that the emergency chute did not release properly. Uh oh! “It was the parachute; it only opened halfway,” Rainbow says. By the time it opened, Rainbow suffered a hard-hit to the ground. “BANG” is how he describes it. A few years later, in 1983, he was working as a stump picker, helping to remove tree stumps. It was a hard and laborious task. After trying to lift one of the stumps too high, the heavy wood fell upon him, pinning him against the ground. After finally removing the stump from his body, he escaped with a number of painful injuries and was laid up for several weeks. In 1994, Rainbow was working in Syracuse as a delivery man for Domino’s Pizza. On a normal delivery, he was jumped by seven or eight teenage punks. They struck him across the left side of his head with a 40-ounce beer bottle. It knocked him out as it impacted his sensitive temple. “Then they hit me with a second one, right in my *ss; so I woke up,” Rainbow recalls. They did not steal his money, but did take the food. “They were just after the pizza,” Rainbow concludes, as he remembered lying on the ground, devastated. In 1996, he was walking in East Utica. He suddenly noticed a “friend” driving in a car. The man changed his direction and began heading towards Rainbow. Rainbow luckily dodged the moving vehicle, as he was almost rammed to death. After raising hell at the acquaintance behind the wheel, the man explained that he was “just joking.” “He’s crazy,” Rainbow states, naturally still upset about the incident. He also noted that he is no longer friends with that fellow. Although Rainbow usually walks everywhere now, there was a time when he utilized his bicycle. In 1999, he was riding his bike along Route 12, the Arterial, not worrying about the weather. Then, CRACK! Rainbow, hands wrapped around the metal handlebars, was struck by lightning, or “Thunder Light,” as he calls it. After feeling the electric shock throughout his body, he sought cover under the Burrstone Road bridge. Ever since that accident, his arms are no longer as strong, he says. In 2001, Rainbow got into another accident while riding his bicycle on the streets of Utica. As he was riding near Bleecker Street, a school bus suddenly committed an illegal “U” turn. The extra large motor vehicle slammed into Rainbow, knocking him off his bike. He does not remember anything that happened that afternoon, but trusts the stories from witnesses. This injury may have been the worst of all as it led to spinal cord problems, faulty kidneys, high blood pressure, brain damage, and he now has a harder time concentrating, he says. “But I forgive [the bus driver], because he was not intentionally trying to kill me.” Rainbow’s final near-death experience came in 2002. He failed to pay his rent over the course of many months, so his landlord was fed up. “Rainbow you no pay the rent, you son of a b*tch!” Rainbow yells, recalling the shouts from his former landlord. Then, Rainbow was overcome with sadness. “I’m so depressed, I’m in so much pain, I don’t give a sh*t what somebody’s [sic] telling me,” he says. He thought he had had enough; so he strung his necktie up to a sturdy overhead beam to hang himself. He gave one final glance towards the sky, and saw a beautiful unblemished bright light emitting from the sun. It was at that moment that he changed his mind and realized that he still had more living to do; instead, he took a nap. It’s now been seven years and Rainbow has managed to steer clear of any more real danger, with the exception of being near bar fights every now and again. But he does seem happy. Rainbow likes to visit Varick Street and entertain all of the visitors, according to an intoxicated patron at the EC, who is wobbling on his stool. "He loves Utica and America,” thinking for the most fitting way to describe Rainbow. “He’s just the…the perfect Utican." Wherever, whenever he is spotted on the city streets, he always has that same, contagious smile. “Lovable would be [the] best word to describe [Rainbow],” a friend, Mare Clarey says. “I don't think I have ever seen him when he wasn't smiling and singing. He is a true Utica icon!”