Happy Together 2015

The Happy Together Tour returns to the Chicagoland area tonight with a show at The Paramount Theatre in Aurora.

The show kicks off at 8 pm and, as we go to press this morning, there are less than 20 scattered seats available.  (This show sells out virtually every time it comes to town!)

Scroll back to Tuesday, August 18th, to catch our review of Sunday's show in Bolingbrook.

It's a fun-filled night of music and memories ... but if you want to see it in Chicago this year, you'd better act fast!

https://tickets.paramountaurora.com/public/hall.asp?event=1204 

REMAINING DATES: 

Friday, August 21st - Paramount Theatre - Aurora, IL

Saturday, August 22nd - Casino Rama Entertainment Centre - Rama, ON

Sunday, August 23rd - Foelinger Theatre - Fort Wayne, IN

Wednesday, August 26th - Effingham Performance Center - Effingham, IL

Thursday, August 27th - Kentucky State Fairgrounds - Louisville, KY

Friday, August 28th - Oaklawn Racetrack - Hot Springs, AR

Saturday, August 29th - Riverside Casino and Gold Resort - Riverside, IA

Sunday, August 30th - Bluestem Center For The Arts - Moorhead,MN

Monday, August 31st - Minnesota State Fairgrounds - Saint Paul, MN

Wednesday, September 2nd - Mahoning County Fairgrounds - Canfield, OH

 

I have to disagree with the comments about The Turtles' performance in Bolingbrook the other night.  As far as I'm concerned, they put together an excellent set ... just the right mixture of music and madness (which is exactly what they're known for ... and what one would expect at a Turtles concert.)  They were in fine voice and very entertaining.

Frank

No dispute there, Frank ... I think everyone agrees that The Turtles ALWAYS put on an excellent show.  The point of contention this time, however, was the LENGTH of that show ... FOUR SONGS from the headlining act?  It just doesn't seem right ... especially when other artists managed to squeeze in five or six into their set.

One reader suggested fewer acts so that the audience could enjoy more music by each performer.  Not a bad idea, really ... heck if each artist did a 30-minute set, you'd still come in at just under three hours with the intermission and big finish finale.

But which four acts?  Obviously The Turtles have to be one of them.  Recent "co-headliners" include Mark Lindsay, Chuck Negron (formerly of Three Dog Night) and Micky Dolenz.  Add a couple of decent warm-up acts to Set One (The Cowsills, The Buckinghams, and your choice of several others who have graced the stage recently) and you've still got a power-packed line-up.

Might be something worth thinking about (before they announce the 2016 line-up!)  Plus perhaps a little bit bigger piece of the pie for each of the artists on the bill in the long run financially, too.  (kk)

 

>>>The Turtles introduced the band who backed up all of the acts that took the stage that night for The Happy Together Show:  Greg Smith on bass, Bruce Something (from right here in Evanston) on keyboards (they said they couldn't remember his last night because they always paid him in cash), Steve Murphy on drums and Godfrey Townsend on guitar.  (kk)

Kent,

I'm going to give an educated guess that Bruce Soboroff, The Buckinghams' keyboard player, played in The Bolingbrook show.

Shelley

I asked Carl if this was the case and you are correct ... but listen to the circumstances that caused and allowed this to happen.  (kk)

Yes, Bruce was playing keyboards for three nights including Bolingbrook. The regular keyboard player Manny Focarazzo's mom passed away suddenly and he had to rush back to NY. Bruce was good enough to fill in and did a great job with no rehearsal and over thirty songs to learn with all the transitions. Thank you Bruce. 

All our thoughts and prayers go out to Manny and his family.

Carl

And ours as well ... but kudos to Bruce for stepping in and just nailing it under what had to be some enormous pressure.  Baptism by fire as they used to say!  WTG, Bruce!  A tip of the hat to his fine musicianship for sure!  (kk)

A Double Dose Of Shelley

Frequent Forgotten Hits contributor Shelley Sweet-Tufano sent us TWO reviews recently.

We pretty much expected at least ONE of them to feature a Peter Noone / Herman's Hermits concert ...

But this time around, BOTH cover Noone ... as well as a show he did with The Beach Boys!

Read on ...

There were 54 kids on my cul-de-sac.  My best friend and I were toward the top of the food / age chain, and, well ... in control. (bossy?) 

So each of my three summers there were spent designing and directing musicals for our street.  Her sisters, and my brothers, plus EVERY child who could walk had a part to play.  One production included a musical interpretation of Ancient Egypt, featuring Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, and Mark Antony. (This makes perfect sense when you are 12 and 13)  Three songs featured were 'I'm Into Something Good', 'Silhouettes' and 'Do Wah Diddy Diddy'.  When Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone do solo performances, 'Do Wah Diddy Diddy' is usually included as one of their 60's tributes.  

I manage composure during the first two mentioned songs, but 'Do Wah Diddy Diddy' invokes visions of me snapping my gum, dancing up to Mark Antony and popping bubbles on his nose.  The fact that I (as Cleo) am weighted down with all the gold jewelry of both our mothers' jewelry boxes, and still dancing gives praise to my dance instructors.  (How many others were told, "You do not stop dancing for ANYTHING!  If your costume falls off, you keep going.")  I am a giggly mess listening to this song and picturing this scene.  Tell me ... WHAT song brings fun or embarrassing memories into your frontal lobe?

I am in Cape May.  I am taking a week off from all work.  Writing is NOT work.  The East Coast is one big happy beach, but Cape May's Victorian houses painted in "three part harmony" are stunning.  The newly built Convention Hall is stunning.  Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone are stunning.  'I'm Into Something Good', 'Wonderful World', 'Love Potion #9' ... and then the crack about being told to sell 8-tracks here in Cape May.  My 8-track player works, my cassette player works, ALL my cd and dvd players work, and I have a new stereo vinyl record system that I am enjoying to the fullest.  So, I don't care what you sell ... I can play it!  I needed all this equipment to effectively teach my musical decades courses.  Now, I just need them because I want them. 

Stopping to ask directions at the local WaWa, "Where am I now?" ... "You're in WaWa, sir!" may get you nowhere, BUT listening to 'A Must to Avoid', 'Dandy', 'Leanin' on a Lamp Post', 'Do Wah Diddy Diddy', and 'Ferry 'Cross New Jersey' can get you in an excellent mood and put you in a time-warp place of mind.  Billy Sullivan twerks through 'I'm Telling You Now'.  Rich Spina wails the keyboards during 'Sea Cruise'.  Vance Brescia high kicks and still maintains guitar playing, which makes him 'Just a Little Bit Better', and Peter hits all the high notes in 'Listen People'.  Ace Drummer, Dave Ferrara, even gives him a thumbs up for THAT one.  We all agree, enthusiastically, that "This has been the best 50 years ever!"  On the other hand, I don't have another 50 years to compare to ... but I am sure there is no comparison as I look through history, and what is ahead of us will be based on these 50 wonderful years, so let's enjoy the NOW. 

I wrote down all the songs, but I will stop here so you can be surprised when you go to your own concert.  OK, I lied again.  I simply must mention 'Jezebel'.  Frankie Laine made it a #1 song the year I was born.  I disavow all similarity between Jezebel and myself, because ...  I want to.  The comparison between Peter Noone and the Hermits' version to Frankie Laine's is HHSPN just continues to improve with age, like fine wine.

Let me end by recapping Peter's explanation of Herman's Hermits history in the genre of rhythm and blues ...

"OK, that's over."

Shelley J Sweet-Tufano

***

I do not for a minute think that any of The Beach Boys read my review last year from the ball park in Pomona, NY.  But, for me, something wonderful happened at this year's Pomona concert.  During the last segment of their show, they again paid tribute to Carl Wilson with a video allowing him to sing lead on 'God Only Knows'. Last year I had stated that I thought a tribute to Dennis Wilson was also in order.  The third song after Carl's was 'Do You Wanna Dance', and Mike Love introduced it with "It took a lot of searching, but we found some vintage video of Dennis playing on 'Do You Wanna Dance?'  It was just as special as Carl's.  Yes, it was older, but there was Dennis drumming away, dressed in the signature short-sleeve striped shirts, hair flying around wildly.  Thank you.  It is fitting.

So now, to tackle the question of why the weather has been stormy two years running ... I say it is to demonstrate reverse superlatives.  Last year the weather was 'worst'.  This year it was 'worse'.  Next year it will only be 'bad'.  HOWEVER, both years the rains stopped in time to hold the concerts.  Some delay, yes, but concerts were enjoyed.  Both years rainbows appeared just as I was entering the gates. Serendipity in action.  They have put chairs on the field this year and instead of paying for SRO, you buy a seat ticket.  Good improvement Provident Bank Park!  The base lines are sticky gooey mud, and my seat is in the third row on the first base line.  My shoes are soon "One With the Earth".  Security comes around with their new welcome speech:  DON'T MOVE YOUR CHAIR!  DON'T GET OUT OF YOUR SEATS!  DON'T STAND UP!"  I will not even try to pass GO.  It's for sure, no one will give me $200.00.  Of course ... standing begins early, with "out of your seats" following soon after.  By 7:10 pm the sound check is still going on, the squeegee is still being used to push water off the stage, and Peter Noone has been sighted standing next to the stage.  The row in front of me starts!  "HELLO PETER! HI PETER!  IT'S PETER NOONE"  Time to wave and go hide again.  On stage Vance Brescia is leading sound check to its fruition.  "From the back he looks like Howard Stern." says the woman behind me.  Hmm, never thought of that.  And then, in what seems like less than a minute, all musicians leave the stage, reappear in suits, are introduced, and 'Vindaloo' begins.  Whew!!!  The lighting is still not ready.  It is all over the place.  Everywhere but on Peter and the Banned.  OK, even though it is still light out, we notice. Eventually, it is all worked out.

The pairing of Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone and The Beach Boys is both brilliant and strange.  British Invasion and Surf music!  Diverse and yet both exemplifying the '60's.  A dichotomy that IS the 60's.  We were open to listening to all genres and accepted a song on its merit alone.  Yes, this also allowed for one-hit wonders, as well as a myriad of fan clubs for groups who continued to capture our affections.  I love the fact that HHSPN opens with 'Vindaloo', a reminder of English sports enthusiasm.  The Beach Boys open with the radio playing Dion's 'Runaround Sue'.  A reminder of the 50's influence for BOTH groups, "The Day the Music Died", and the realization that, thankfully, the music did NOT die. We sing along.  We remember.  We introduce it to our children.

As The Beach Boys begin, I am thinking of my friends' comment that they perform pre-recorded and are not live.  If this is so here, they take more time than needed to set up instruments.  I can assure everyone that THIS performance was NOT pre-recorded, but live!  I heard the clinkers, I felt the heartbreak of the guitar that quit halfway through, the removing of the black shield over the speakers to drain the rain and remedy the guitar issue, (MY side of the audience instantly felt a jolt in sound intensity) and was close enough to see the mouths matching the sound, and changing lyrics a couple of times.  John Cowsill starts out with his hair in a neat ponytail at the nape of his neck.  By the fourth song, his hair is flying!!  It's ok, folks.  No scrunchies were harmed in this stunt.  Mike Love and Bruce Johnston still have a vocal range that amazes.  Mike still flirts with the front row of girls, which is not only fun for him and the girls, but allows the band to find "dancers" for the 'Barbara Ann' sequence.  I wrote down the names of 55 songs from this entire show!  I missed a few.  I leave on such a high note (love these idioms) that removing my muddy shoes and dancing across the stone pavement into the hotel doesn't hurt ... much. 

Fans yelling out requests to HHSPN!  A man "surfing" on the chairs in front of me!  From 'I'm Into Something Good' right up to 'Fun, Fun, Fun' I was experiencing joy, freedom and love through music ... while stuck in the mud.  Not nearly as bad as Woodstock, I warrant.  These two bands travel separately, meet up for one concert and then go on their merry ways again.  Brilliant!

Shelley J Sweet-Tufano

Back-To-Back Reviews by Jack Mongan

Freelance Photographer Jack Mongan went to a couple of shows this past week ...

And decided to share his photos and commentary with our readers ...

First up ...

Dennis Tufano at The River Raisin Center for the Arts in Monroe, Michigan on August 12th ...    

TUFANO MONROE CONCERT   

To say the fans of Dennis Tufano are loyal is an understatement ! They filled the first two rows of a packed house at the River Raisin Center for the Arts in Monroe, Michigan on August 12^th. Some of them traveled from other states and, given their reactions as well as the rest of the audience, it was a trip they would gladly make again!  

Those who know and still love 60’s music will first recognize Tufano as the voice that led the Chicago band The Buckinghams to national recognition with a worldwide following. In truth, he is much more. Dennis Tufano is a “performers’ performer”.  

Yes, he still sings the hits he helped make famous, but his talent and presence as a solo performer put him in a class well beyond “60s rock star”.  

One only has to hear him singing the songs of Bobby Darin ... from the classic Mack the Knife to the heart felt romance of My Funny Valentine ... to know this man has the range and class of the singers who were once the royalty of Vegas stages.  

This show was a mix of the Buckinghams’ hits as well as songs from Tufano’s one-man show, “I Remember Darin”, which has received rave reviews every time he has performed it, as well as an array of other sixties classics like the Eddie Brigati / Felix Cavaliere / Rascals' tune, How Can I Be Sure and Sonny Geraci’s / Outsiders’ iconic Time Won’t Let Me. Oh, and if you want to hear some mean Blues harp, just listen to Dennis wail on the Bobby Darin tune Funny What Love Can Do!   

It’s easy to see why Dennis Tufano has had such a  dedicated following over the years. His stage demeanor is at once engaging and warm while also being so energetic and electric that you feel a little exhausted once the show is over! Like the Eveready Bunny, the man keeps going and going!  

The t-shirts that Tufano’s fans wore said, “Tufano Rocks!”  I doubt there was one person in that audience who wouldn’t agree. If they had been selling them in the foyer after the show, there would have been a whole lot more people wearing them the next day.    

Indeed, ladies and gentlemen, Dennis Tufano does rock!  And he just keeps rockin’!

-- Jack Mongan

 

  

  

 
http://www.dtsings.com/

*****

THE CHICAGO EXPERIENCE at The Bolingbrook Performing Arts Center

The clouds (along with thunder and lightning!) opened up during The Chicago Experience’s show in Bolingbrook last Friday, but that didn’t deter the avid fans this group has developed from sticking around! 

The group rewarded their followers with one of the stongest, most powerful and electric performances I have witnessed to date.  

Adam Briel and Brian Hemstock couldn’t have been tighter or more commanding in their singing, once again proving that this group is beyond compare when discussing Chicago tribute bands!  

Ron Brandt’s guitar work (as well as his vocals on the Robert Lamm songs) and Tim Rutter’s bass must have been affected by the electric storm because they killed every number, leaving the audience to forget the rain and dance in front of the pavilion. Each and every number that this band plays from the Chicago songbook recreates the sounds that we have loved over the years but, and this is important, each time the group performs one of Chicago’s songs, they don’t just play      it … they infuse it with a new soul! 

The professionalism of each of these musicians is beyond reproach. Each performance verifies the fact that from the incredible brass section, with Steve Frost, Terry Viano and, filling in for Tim Falls this week, Jim Massoth to the striking rhythm section led by Adam Cowger and augmented by percussionist extraordinaire, Ruben Alverez, and Paul Wood on keyboards, this band is more than a tribute group. They are a Rock Band … with a capital R&B!  (By the way, on top of great keyboarding, Paul Woods also plays a mean guitar during a free style head to head with Ron Brandt!)   '

The stage at Bolingbrook is huge, with a platform unit that goes up about 10 or 12 feet and incredible lighting and lasers plus, get this, rockers, a smoke machine!! All of this added to the spectacle that night but, as large as the stage was, The Chicago Experience filled it to the breaking point with their performance and musical talents.  

The real smoke that evening came and continues to roar from this beast of a Rock Band called The Chicago Experience!! 

-- Jack Mongan 

      

(All photos courtesy of Jack Mongan Photography)

We were at that Friday Night Bolingbrook Show ... what a shame the rain didn't hold out until after the concert. (Drove over an hour to get there ... then got about 45 minutes of music before the sky opened up ... all of a sudden it was all about the wind, lightning show and the downpour as most of the patrons made their way toward the exits.)

We've yet to catch their full act ... but we will ... these guys are just as impressive as can be ... so keep watching their website for upcoming dates ... they're not to be missed.  (kk)  

http://www.chicagoexperience.net/The_Chicago_Experience/The_Chicago_Experience.html

The Happy Together Tour 2015 - Including A Concert Review From Their Show in Bolingboork, Illinois, on Sunday, August 16h

Hey Kent, 

A short while back I went to see the “Happy Together tour” at the Orange County Fair just outside Los Angeles.  It’s quite a nice venue being an outdoor amphitheater with great facilities, stage, lighting, etc.  It holds around 6 or 7 thousand and was full.  We had 4^th row seats which was great except for the one lady in front of us who insisted on standing through the whole show and jumping up and down.    

The only negative comment I have about the show is the same one we get with our shows.  We do a medley of our hits and there is always someone who says "great show but I wanted to hear the full length version of 'Hurt So Bad'", or one of our other hits.    

Now people just don’t understand that a live, in-person show is more than just doing your hits.  It needs to be a  carefully constructed piece of entertainment, and especially for us because the lion's share of our hits are ballads, and a whole show of just ballads does not constitute a very exciting show.    

Anyway, getting back to the Happy Together Tour, they have the same problem with all the acts ... each act only get to do about four songs each because of time constraints, so they do their four biggest hits and people want to hear the others hits, too.  Outside of the limited time and songs, the show was great.  

I was really impressed with the a cappella vocals of the Grass Roots on their opening number with the help of the four piece backup band that played behind all the acts.  I don’t know if these guys were with any particular members of the show or not but they were outstanding.  I suspect they were put together by Flo and Eddie.   

Since the Association are basically out of LA, we were graced by the whole compliment of five Associates instead of just the usual three including Jim Yester who, by the way, a while back for a short time was with the Four Preps replacing my brother (Letterman) Jim Pike when he left to devote full time with The Reunion.   

I would highly recommend the show but there was not enough of it.  I don’t think it would hurt to let each one of the acts add one more song. 

Gary Pike,
formerly of the Lettermen and now of The Reunion     

I think most fans would agree that we would LOVE to see more of each of the individual performers ... but within the context of a show like this, that's almost impossible.  (In fact, it's even harder this year ... normally The Happy Together Tour goes out with five acts ... but this year it's a full SIX headline performers:  The Turtles, The Association, The Cowsills, The Buckinghams, The Grass Roots and Mark Lindsay, former lead singer of Paul Revere and the Raiders.)  

As pointed out in Forgotten Hits several times before, between them these artists have accumulated over SEVENTY Top 40 Hits ... an absolutely INCREDIBLE accomplishment.  (Scroll back to June 28th for a list of the Top 50 combined hits list)  In fact, google "Happy Together" on the Forgotten Hits website and you'll find DOZENS and DOZENS of postings over the past several years.  We have been big supporters of this tour, which is celebrating the 30th Anniversary of their first tour back in 1985!  (That one included The Turtles, The Grass Roots, The Buckinghams and Gary Lewis and the Playboys!)  Incredible to think that THREE of these acts are still out on the road together this year (and Gary Lewis was part of the line-up last year!)  

Even within the context of a three hour show, you can only squeeze in so many hits (along with an intermission for all us old folks who may need to use the bathroom!)  However, I HIGHLY recommend seeing any and all of these acts in the various solo shows they put on throughout the year ... you'll typically get at least 90 minutes from each artist with a much more fan-friendly, full-expanded hit list.  Every one of these acts can still pack the house ... as we saw Sunday Night when we attended the 2015 Bolingbrook 50th Anniversary Jubilee.  

There was very little time wasted ... just a hit after hit assault of great music.  The Grass Roots opened the show in Bolingbrook and played five of their biggest hits:  "I'd Wait A Million Years", "Sooner Or Later", a medley of "Find The Cost Of Freedom" (that's the a cappella number Gary referred to above, performed as a tribute to our troops that segued into a slowed down version of "Let's Live For Today", "Temptation Eyes" and "Midnight Confessions".  That's five MONSTER-sized hits that left no room for other fan favorites like "Two Divided By Love", "Where Were You When I Needed You", "Baby Hold On", "Bella Linda", "Things I Should Have Said", "Lovin' Things", "Heaven Knows" and more.  (Of those 70+ collective Top 40 Hits assembled by this year's line-up, The Grass Roots were responsible for 18 of them.  Even as a medley, you can't cover that may songs in their allotted time slot!  

Next out came The Cowsills, who have been blowing audiences away ever since they went back out on the road.  A great blend of music, humor and story telling made their set fly by ...but not before they squeezed in their five biggest hits:  "The Rain, The Park And Other Things", "We Can Fly", "Indian Lake", "Love American Style" and "Hair".  The audience loved them and didn't want them to leave.  

The Buckinghams closed out the first half of the show with five hits of their own: "Don't You Care", "Mercy Mercy Mercy" (where Carl and Nick did a really nice job of throwing the vocals back and forth ... probably the strongest song of their set),"Hey Baby, They're Playing Our Song", "Susan" (which DIDN'T feature Susan Cowsill coming back out on stage as it has in many of the other shows across the USA) and their chart-topper "Kind Of A Drag".  

After a brief intermission,The Association kicked off Act Two with their four biggest hits:  "Windy", "Never My Love", "Cherish" and "Along Comes Mary".  This time Susan Cowsill DID come out to contribute some backing vocals to these last two tracks.  

And then it was all about Mark Lindsay, who thrilled the audience with his hits barrage of "Where The Action Is", "Just Like Me", "Hungry", "Good Thing", "Indian Reservation" and "Kicks". Mark was in fine voice throughout his segment of the show and the audience definitely wanted more.  No "Arizona" this time ... and his incredibly high leg kicks were held to a minimum ... but there was no question that many of his original fans were in the audience that night.  

And finally, the headliners ... Flo and Eddie ... Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan ... The Turtles ... for whom's hit the tour is named.  

Every year they come up with a new, clever, pop culture inspired opening ... so this time Mark Volman came out dressed as Olaf, the snowman from the hit Disney film "Frozen".  (Makes sense I guess ... you pretty much can't go ANYWHERE without running into these characters these days!)  

The hit attack began with "She'd Rather Be Me With", followed by "It Ain't Me Babe", an introduction to the band:  Greg Smith on bass, Bruce Something (from right here in Evanston) on keyboards (they said they couldn't remember his last night because they always paid him in cash), Steve Murphy on drums and Godfrey Townsend on guitar.  These guys backed up ALL of the acts that took the stage that night.  

After a false start on a Zappa tune (quickly aborted) The Turtles went into "Elenore" and then closed the show with their show-stopper, "Happy Together" ... four songs and that was it!   (By far the shortest performance I've ever seen them give ... and it felt very rushed, too.  Major hits like "You Baby", "You Showed Me" and "She's My Girl" were all missing in action.  You'd think the headliners might have gotten a little more time and, quite honestly, judging by the audience's shocked reaction, I think many of the fans felt cheated in this respect!  Nearly EVERYONE played longer than The Turtles ... and this was THEIR show!!!)  

Then, as they do every year, they brought every act back out for a brief encore performance of one of their hits before doing an ensemble reprise performance of "Happy Together" ... and then it was over.  Three hours pretty much to the minute ... but a GREAT way to close Bolingbrook's 2015 Jubilee.  

If you missed the show ... or simply want to see it again ... you can catch this same line-up at The Paramount Theatre in Aurora Friday Night, August 21st.  I'm told a limited number of seats are still available (and hopefully it won't feel like 110 degrees inside!!!)  

Great show ... great line-up ... great time hanging out with friends and fans of this music.  It looked to me like the lion's share of the crowd was older than The Village of Bolingbrook celebrating its 50th Anniversary this past weekend ... but as Mark Lindsay told us that night ... rock and roll music keeps you young ... and these guys certainly transported up back in time with their great show Sunday Night.  (kk) 

I live less than ten minutes away from Bolingbrook yet, were it not for Forgotten Hits, I would have had absolutely NO idea that The Happy Together Show was going to be appearing there.
I saw nothing advertised on their website or anywhere else for that matter.  SO glad you told us about it so we didn't have to miss this great, great show.
Having Dick Biondi on before the bands was another special surprise ... who hasn't grown up listening to Dick on the radio here in Chicago.
As for the artists themselves, I've ALWAYS been partial to Mark Lindsay ... ever since I was a little girl, he was always my favorite ... and he still looks and sounds great today.
As you have mentioned before on your website, The Cowsills were a very nice surprise ... they put on an excellent show.
All of the artists sounded great ... but I was surprised The Turtles played such a short set, especially since they were the headliners.  I understand that each artist can only perform so many tunes .. but I definitely expected more from the headliners.
Still, a great concert start to finish ... and a great way to spend a beautiful Sunday afternoon.
Carol   

Kent, 
I, of course, was there to watch the great musical groups last night. Here is my feedback.  
They all were on stage for about 20 minutes. The set-up between each group was very fast and they were able to get the next group on right away.  That was nice. It was a very nice evening with the weather.  
So many people were proclaiming they knew very little in advance of this night of 60's groups. I can only imagine that there was some level of gag order because they are playing again in Aurora in the coming week, and wanted to have the chance of getting PAID fans before going to the free night of music.  

The Grass Roots started the evening off. They did just fine.

Then the Cowsills came out and again they sounded quite energetic.

Then The Buckinghams came out and they, too, sounded just fine.

Then Mark Lindsay came out and he sounded pretty darn good for being 73 years young. Most liked that he sang Indian Reservation.

Then the Association came out and tho I knew it might be a struggle to get close to achieving that sound that they were so good at, I thought they had the hardest time hitting those notes and the harmony was tough. So tough, that they invited Susan Cowsill out to sing some harmony with them.

It ended with Flo and Eddie of the Turtles. I will say this ... I understand the reasons for goofing around and wanting all to have fun, but I wish they would work on singing their songs a bit more seriously since they were such a great band with so many good songs. They really just laughed and pranced around while attempting to do their songs. I hope for those paying a decent price to see them on stage coming up, that they work on being more of a musical group than a comedy act.

Bob from Bolingbrook

There was a bit of a "gag order" due to the Aurora show at The Paramount Theatre ... contractually, Bolingbrook couldn't announce or advertise the show ... which is where we stepped in to get the word out to the fans.

It sounds like many of the folks there had already purchased tickets to the Auora show anyway so I don't think anybody really lost on this deal.  (The Paramount Theatre show sells out every August.)  It was just a REALLY nice way for Bolingbrook to celebrate their 50th year.  Kudos to Bolingbrook Mayor Roger Claar and to Entertainment Director Dale McClannahan, both of whom busted their respective butts to bring this show to The Bolingbrook Performing Arts Center as a way to thank and reward the citizens of Bolingbrook ... our hat is off to you guys!  And I'm glad we could help ... I'd say we had a GREAT turn-out of fans who REALLY enjoyed this show!  (kk)

I was very happy to be able to attend the Happy Together concert performance at Bolingbrook's 50th Anniversary Celebration this past Sunday night.

It was good being able to talk to Forgotten Hits boss man Kent Kotal during intermission.

I'll be looking forward to Kent's concert review but wanted to send along some quick impressions of what I experienced.

The show was preceded by a live interview with radio legend, Dick Biondi. He was interviewed by Bolingbrook's mayor and three guys who were somewhere on the edge of the music business. Biondi is 83 and, considering that, handled himself pretty well. He talked about being the first deejay in America to spin a Beatles record. I wish he would have thrown Kent Kotal a shoutout for being the one to definitively prove that fact. 

The Grass Roots - They sounded okay but neither of the two members were in the original band. I don't like cover bands and they don't belong on the Happy Together roster.

The Cowsills - They sounded absolutely incredible. They are great performers and have a definite stage presence. I was surprised at how enjoyable they were.

The Buckinghams - Their Chicago sound played extremely well. Carl Giammerese's voice is incredible and he hasn't lost any of it over the past 50 years. Excellent performance.

The Association - Oh my God! This was almost unbearable. They sounded so bad, I couldn't believe it. The mix was awful. The organ player was turned up way too high compared to the other musicians. The vocals were horrendous. The three guys missed notes, broke notes and did other travesties to notes that are hard to explain. God, they were bad.

Mark Lindsay - The only criticism here is that Mark's set was too short. I'd gladly pay to see him do a full show by himself. His voice was spot-on and he moved pretty darned well for an old man. I wish he would have taken a couple of seconds to give a little tribute to Paul Revere, who recently passed away. I've never seen Lindsay perform before and am kicking myself for having missed him. This was a five star out of five stars performance.

The Turtles - What can I say? They were exactly what I had expected. A great combination of great singing and wacky showmanship. The set was far too short for a group that has a catalog like they possess. I wonder if the crowd understood the meaning of the little Frank Zappa song snippet that they played. These guys appear to be having a ball on stage.

Howard Kaylan's voice is tremendous and he is quite a showman.

Happy Together - Overall, I give it a solid four out of five. I wish they could have deleted the Grass Roots and the Association and have let the Buckinghams, Cowsills, Mark Lindsay and The Turtles each play an extra tune or two.

Thank you

Steve Sarley 

As someone who grew up with pictures and posters of Mark Lindsay all over my walls, it was fantastic to FINALLY see him perform live.  Why this was my first time to do so is beyond me.  For me, he stole the show ... and hasn't lost ANY of the magic that captured my heart fifty years ago.  He's still got the moves AND the voice.  I'm making it a point to catch his complete solo show so that I can hear all of the other Paul Revere and the Raiders hits he had a hand it singing.  (It would have been nice to hear Arizona, too!)

Second best - The Cowsills - phenomenal ... I can't believe how youthful they still sound ... and the genuinely seemed to be having a ball up there.

I found all of the other acts to be quite entertaining as well but was surprised to see that The Turtles only played four songs ... not at all what I would have expected from the guys the tour is named after!

C'mon guys ... the fans are here to hear ALL of your hits!

Donna

The general consensus here seems to be "MORE TURTLES!!!"  As mentioned in my own review, I did feel a little bit "cheated" by such a short performance, especially knowing any many more great hits COULD have been included.  The headliners should have done more than just four hits ... so take that back to the dressing room (or the drawing board!) and give it some thought.  There's still quite a few tour dates left ... give the fans what they want to hear!!!  (kk) 

REMAINING DATES: 

Wednesday, August 19th - Fraze Pavilion For The Perfroming Arts - Kettering, OH

Thursday, August 20th - Hard Rock Live - Northfield, OH

Friday, August 21st - Paramount Theatre - Aurora, IL

Saturday, August 22nd - Casino Rama Entertainment Centre - Rama, ON

Sunday, August 23rd - Foelinger Theatre - Fort Wayne, IN

Wednesday, August 26th - Effingham Performance Center - Effingham, IL

Thursday, August 27th - Kentucky State Fairgrounds - Louisville, KY

Friday, August 28th - Oaklawn Racetrack - Hot Springs, AR

Saturday, August 29th - Riverside Casino and Gold Resort - Riverside, IA

Sunday, August 30th - Bluestem Center For The Arts - Moorhead,MN

Monday, August 31st - Minnesota State Fairgrounds - Saint Paul, MN

Wednesday, September 2nd - Mahoning County Fairgrounds - Canfield, OH