WASHINGTON — When guitarist Abaad Behram first climbed on stage as an 18-year-old with The Razz in 1973, all he wanted to do was rock.
“We played all the venues around here, like The Keg, Desperados, The PsycheDelly, and Cellar Door,” says Behram. “We were prepunk, we didn’t know any better.”
With a raucous stage show, The Razz became one of the most popular bands in the Washington area, with Behram as one of the scene’s shining stars.
More than 40 years later, at 61, Behram is a rock and roll survivor. Literally.
Behram, whose band Johnny Bombay and The Reactions plays Friday night at Villain and Saint, in Bethesda, is savoring the chance to perform after throat cancer.
The special education teacher for Fairfax County Public Schools learned of his cancer in 2013.
“I kept thinking there was something in my throat, but I just thought it was some kind of allergies,” says Behram.
After a series of tests, he got the phone call from his doctor, confirming the diagnosis.
“Which was a crazy moment. It’s everything you think it’s gonna be,” he acknowledges.
Before that phone call, Behram and his partner had planned a European vacation.
“I said to the doctor, ‘listen, man — I need two weeks,’ Behram says. “I took my cancer on vacation, had the greatest time, because I knew when we got back it was going to be serious business.”
Behram underwent seven weeks of radiation and chemotherapy.
As part of the five-times-a-week radiation treatment at Inova Fairfax Hospital, Behram, who is known for his flashy stagewear, had to wear a protective mask.
“The mask is a mesh mask that they mold to your face,” he says. “When they put you down on the table where the radiation’s going to take place, you have to be immobilized; you can’t be moving around.”
Behram and partner Barbara King Mingo told close friends about his cancer fight, but didn’t publicly announce what he was going through.
He says it was important for him to channel his resources and focus on getting well.
After finishing the treatment, Behram is now talking openly about his cancer.
“If I can be of support to somebody else, that’s the gift of what I’ve been through,” he says.
Is he cancer-free?
“You can take a car to a shop and they’ll tell you your car is fixed — with cancer there’s no such thing,” Behram says. “Mentally, I rode away from Cancer Island — every day is like getting away from Alcatraz.”
After the radiation, Behram’s partner turned his protective mask into a work of art, covering it with beads and sequins, to symbolize pain and healing.
Behram says the treatment has taken some toll on his throat.
“When they radiate your throat, it really kills your salivary glands, so that is a constant dry spot,” he says. “I’m drinking tons of water; I’m more hydrated than ever.”
Overall, Behram says he’s in good health and ready to rock.
“I’m at my fighting weight again — I wouldn’t recommend radiation as a weight-loss program, but I’ll tell you, it works for me,” he jokes.
Behram’s first Reactions show after treatment was in October.
“This is the most meaningful time; you realize how special everything is,” he says. “Just being able to play rock and roll, have a nice moment on stage, deliver the goods, enjoy the process, connecting with the audience — all those lovely things — I’m really enjoying that much more now than I ever did.”
