Joseph Bogdan Basine Jr., the renowned Provincetown whale watch captain and musician known as “Joe Bones,” died suddenly at his home in Haiti on May 19, 2021 due to complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 77.
Joe was born in New Britain, Conn. to the late Joseph and Regina Basine and grew up in Avon, Conn. He attended Avon Old Farms prep school and then Ohio Wesleyan University and Stetson University. In 1967, he moved to Provincetown.
Papa Joe (as he was affectionately known in Haiti) was a free spirit who lived life on his own terms. His exploits were the stuff of legend, from windsurfing an iceberg in Provincetown Harbor to traveling down the Amazon in a dugout canoe. His good looks and easygoing charm appealed to many people (and sometimes drew him into conflict, as when a former girlfriend got hold of his birth certificate and wrote “REVOKED” on it).
Jimmy Buffett, a friend from Joe’s time in Key West, mentioned Bones in his song “My Head Hurts, My Feet Stink, and I Don’t Love Jesus”: “All of a sudden I wad’n alone/ Pickin’ country music with ol’ Joe Bones/ Duval Street was rockin’/ My eyes they starting poppin’.”
Joe had a love for the sea. He worked as a whale watch captain in Provincetown for over 30 years, and he could otherwise be found windsurfing, sailing, swimming, and bodysurfing with his daughters. The ocean inspired many of the songs he wrote, including “I’ve Got an Ocean” and “Back to the Sea,” describing a life by the water and “what it means to be free.”
Joe devoted his life to music. He picked up guitar as a child and later grew into a rock ’n’ roll meets country and western musician. In 1967, he joined the Provincetown Jug and Marching Band. Bones especially loved playing with the band at the Surf Club, because he could windsurf all day and play music all night. Later acts included Willy and the Po’ Boys and the Broke Brothers, both fixtures at the Old Colony and the Governor Bradford.
Later in life, Joe fell in love with the country of Haiti. Just 25 days after the 2010 earthquake, he traveled there by himself to help. He had no medical or disaster relief training, but he didn’t want to just donate money — he wanted to be an active part of relief efforts. He started working at the U.N. compound, then joined up with an NGO, Sustainable Aid Supporting Haiti (SASH), where he spent years building schools, relocating Haitian citizens out of tent camps, and providing other humanitarian aid.
In 2013, Joe fulfilled a lifelong dream by sailing his catamaran, The Dove, to Haiti. There, by a very Joe Bones twist of fate, he met his best friend, Richard Boyer. From then on, he stayed at Richard’s home in Grand Goave every winter for the rest of his life.
While Joe loved Provincetown and Haiti, his biggest loves were his family and friends. He relished his Saturday nights at the Beachcombers’ Club and bragged about the accomplishments of his three daughters to everyone he knew. His warmth will be missed by many people, near and far.
He leaves his daughters: Dakota Shepard and fiancé Mile Katusa of Lake Grove, N.Y.; Zephyr Cabral and husband Tavis Cabral of Braintree; and Tabitha Basine and husband Ross Gionfriddo of South Windsor, Conn.; his grandson, Harrison Cabral; his brother, Robert Basine of Rotunda, Fla.; his sister Vaughn Judson of Marlinton, W.V.; many nieces and nephews; and not one but two Saab 900 convertibles.
Joe was predeceased by his sister Diane Damore.
A celebration of Joe’s life will be held at 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 20 at the Beachcombers’ Club, 465A Commercial St. in Provincetown.
