The Friday Flash

Happy Holidays to each and every one of you ... 

Enjoy our last posting until after Christmas ... 

We'll have new postings on Monday, December 26th ...

Wednesday, December 28th ...

Our Final SWEET 16 of 2016 on Thursday, December 29th ...

And then get ready to flashback with us fifty years to 1967 ...

The 369 day series kicks off on Friday, December 30th, and runs DAILY until Monday, January 2nd, 2018!!!

Bookmark this page NOW ... and please make it a point to check it first thing every morning.

And, if you haven't already done so ... and you want to receive the bonus material via email ... drop me a line NOW and have us add you to the 1967 List.

Meanwhile ... 

Best In Show  
Thx Kent!!  
3 outa 10 ain't bad!! (I glommed onto 38 too. Lol!) 
Have a wonderful Christmas and a awesome new year, my friend! 
Warm regards,
Jimbo   

Hi Kent ... 
Man what a big surprise!
Thank you for voting our show at Ron Onesti’s Arcada Theatre the #8 Best of 2016.
I am really honored for the recognition given to Chris and me for our show.
We love what we do and it is much appreciated. 
Thank you, thank you, thank you ...
Tommy  
www.tommyroe.com  

Dear Kent,
As Chris Montez’ manager, I want to thank you for picking the show with Chris Montez and Tommy Roe as one of your tops in 2016!
Oscar Arslanian
Hollywood, CA  90028 

HI KENT! 
Fantastic list of top 10 shows ... 
Some unexpected, too!
Tommy and Chris are honored to be in this list ... and yep, its a killer show!!! 
Hope to see you again ... with the BOX TOPS or on Happy Together.
RICK LEVY

I think my favorite concert was Cat Stevens at NY's Beacon; second, Peter Gabriel / Sting at MSG. 
David Salidor  

Earlier this week we ran our list of TWENTY BEST CONCERTS of 2016 ...

And now we're giving away tickets to the first really big concert of 2017 ... 

A SALUTE TO THE '60's ...

Featuring Herman's Hermits Starring Peter Noone, The Grass Roots and The Buckinghams!!!

Why not start out the new year with a night filled with feel-good music!  ALL these guys put on a GREAT show.

Enter online now (at either forgottenhits@aol.com or kk@forgottenhits.com) ... and we'll pick the winners on January 10th.

Three lucky winners will each win a pair of tickets (donated by the artists themselves!) to see this great show!
We hope to see you there!

(Tickets also available thru The Star Plaza Online Box Office ... 
http://www.ticketmaster.com/salute-to-the-sixties-merrillville-indiana-01-21-2017/event/0700503BE2137240?artistid=821381&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=1#efeat4211) 

1967  

Hi Kent,
I was a deejay at a Florida top 40 station in 1967 before Uncle Sam sent me to Great Lakes and then to London, England.
A personal favorite forgotten hit from that great year is Georgia Pines by Roy Orbison's backing band, The Candymen, several of whom formed the more successful Atlanta Rhythm Section.
Please add me to your 1967 list. 
Love your site.
Mike G 
I was just reading all about The Atlanta Rhythm Section in the brand new Jeff March / Marti Smiley Childs book "Where Have All The Pop Stars Gone", a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at some of the most popular artists of our time.
If you're into the music of this era, you will enjoy ALL of the books that make up this series.
More details on their website: 
http://editpros.com/bookshelf/WHATPSG_Vol_3.html
Although they were highly regarded as both Roy Orbison's back-up band and on their own, "Georgia Pines" is about as close as The Candymen ever came to having a hit record of their own.  (This is another one of those chart mysteries that just doesn't make any sense ... it peaked at #44 in Record World, went to #54 in Cash Box ... but stalled out at #81 in Billboard ... so the typical statistical representation makes this look like a dud.  How can you have a chart discrepancy of nearly 40 places on the same record?!?!  All the more reason to enjoy our Super Charts when they kick off in just a few more days!)  kk

Mornin'!
I graduated from high school in 1967 ... Career Academy School of Famous Broadcasters in '68.
(I was never one of the "famous" graduates) and am stuck in the 1969 to 1972 era ... so please add me to the 1967 Mailing List.
Thanks - 
rlb


A few more "Forget-Me-Nots" I forgot about:

LET IT OUT (LET IT ALL HANG OUT) - Hombres

BEG BORROW AND STEAL - Ohio Express / Rare Breed

HEAVY MUSIC - Bob Seger & The Last Heard 

LOVE IS STRANGE - Peaches & Herb

IT MUST BE HIM - Vikki Carr

BLUES' THEME - Davie Allan & The Arrows

RESPECT - Rationales

I HAD TOO MUCH TO DREAM LAST NIGHT - Electric Prunes

COME ON DOWN TO MY BOAT - Every Mother's Son

SO YOU WANT TO BE A ROCK 'N' ROLL STAR - The Byrds

MR. DREAM MERCHANT - Jerry Butler

BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE - Kenny O'Dell

A BANDA - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass

KNIGHT IN RUSTY ARMOUR - Peter & Gordon

YOU KEEP RUNNING AWAY - Four Tops

BABY I LOVE YOU - Aretha Franklin

FAKIN' IT - Simon & Garfunkel

STAND BY ME - Spyder Turner

HELLO HELLO - Sopwith Camel

LIGHTNING'S GIRL - Nancy Sinatra

WILD THING - Senator Bobby

TOO MUCH OF NOTHING - Peter Paul & Mary

PUSHIN' TOO HARD - Seeds

IN THE CHAPEL IN THE MOONLIGHT - Dean Martin

THE LAST WALTZ - Engelbert Humperdinck

A LOVE THAT'S REAL - Intruders

GIRLS IN LOVE - Gary Lewis & The Playboys

"Forget-Me-Nots" are never to be overlooked.

Tal Hartsfeld

You won't hear 'em all ... but you'll hear DAMN NEAR 'em all ... when this series kicks off EXACTLY one week from today!!!  (kk)

This And That

Of course it's already old news by now but The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has announced their Class of 2017 Inductees. 

Joining the ranks next year are Journey, The Electric Light Orchestra, Yes, Tupac Shakur, Pearl Jam and Joan Baez ... plus a special nod to Nile Rodgers, who'll be inducted for his influence and musical excellence (since his band Chic STILL couldn't get in after eleven times on the ballot!!!)

Not a bad group of inductees as things go ... Journey was one of those that nobody thought would ever get in ... while Yes and The Electric Light Orchestra get LONG overdue acknowledgement for all that they did to advance this thing we call rock and roll.

And honestly, despite all the bitching (mine included), we have made some headway these past ten years.

I took a look at the very first "Deserving And Denied" list we made back in 2007 and see that a number of these acts from the original Top 40 (and honorable mention list) have now been recognized and inducted by The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

They include ABBA, Chicago, The Dave Clark Five, Alice Cooper, Deep Purple, Neil Diamond, The Electric Light Orchestra, Genesis, Daryl Hall and John Oates, Heart, The Hollies, Joan Jett, Journey, Little Anthony and the Imperials, Steve Miller, Linda Ronstadt, Leon Russell, The Ventures and Yes.  That's NINETEEN acts previously ignored or overlooked by The Hall.  (Now if they can just open their eyes and see it fit to induct The Guess Who and The Moody Blues, damn near everything else in the world will be right again!)

Congratulations to all of the new inductees from Forgotten Hits.  (kk)

John Kay of Steppenwolf posted a thank you letter on his Facebook thanking all the fans who voted for Steppenwolf for Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction ...

To The Wolfpack and all our supporters ...

As many of you know, Steppenwolf was nominated for induction into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. However, the final votes are now in and The Wolf did not make it. Well, so it goes, nothing to complain about. 
(As we know, there are millions around the world, and here at home, who do have many legitimate and often tragic reasons to complain and I am just grateful that I'm not one of them.)

I am told that The Wolf received around 110,000 votes from our fans. Many - and you may be one of them - went to the RRHF website and voted every day on our behalf. Well Steppenwolf and I owe you a great big THANK YOU for your loyalty, support and dedication to our band ... may the new year be good to all of you. I'd also like to express my appreciation to whoever at the RRHF was responsible for our nomination in the first place.

The Summer of 2017 will mark the 50th anniversary of the formation of Steppenwolf. During the Summer of 1967 five young Blues Rockers got their act together in the Garage at 7408 Fountain Ave in LA, a rather humble beginning. But from there The Wolf moved on and soon scaled the highs of the Rock n Roll pinnacle. During the following decades there were triumphs and failures, many highs and some lows, but our friends and fans stayed with us through up and downs and continue to support us to this day. While a RRHF induction would be nice, first and foremost in importance is The Wolfpack. Without the Pack Steppenwolf would have faded away years ago.

Hope to see you in 2017: JK

Me-TV-FM is up a couple more points in the latest ratings just released this week.  They've now pulled ahead of WLUP and WLS-AM.  Their holiday special, The 100 Greatest Christmas Songs Of All-Time, begins airing at 8 am on Christmas Eve. 

And, speaking of holiday radio specials ... 

A suburban Chicago tradition dating back to 1995 continues.
“A Hometown Holiday” airs Christmas Day, 7 am - 4 pm, on WLTL-FM 88.1 and streams at wltl.net.  Mike Baker And The Forgotten 45s hosts the annual Christmas special with favorites from the golden age of top-40. 
First heard on the Chicago AM dial, the holiday broadcasts also includes groups and artists whose only hit single is a Christmas song.  This list is available at https://mikebaker45s.wordpress.com/a-hometown-holiday/

One of MY favorite radio features is The Drive's A to Z, which kicks off again at 6 am the day after Christmas, Monday, December 26th.  This time around it'll run daily for over a week between 6 am and Midnight, giving listeners a chance to hear more of their favorites.

As always, they've revamped the list a little bit again ...

This is always a fun listen, partly because you never really know what song is coming up next (although it's just as much fun to try and guess what it might be, since they are, after all, played back-to-back alphabetically!)  Plus you'll hear a number of tracks that don't always necessarily get played together ... that's the great thing about this context ... a WHOLE lot of surprises along the way.

You can listen live here:  http://wdrv.com/

Hey, Kent! 

As one of your "Forgotten Hits" Sunday, you featured Jim Lowe's "Green Door."  Wow, another song that when I first heard on the radio, I had to run down to my local record store and buy it!  (I did a lot more running to record stores when I was a kid than I do running anywhere today!)

A real "Theater of the Mind" Song! Listening to it once again after all these years, I can still visualize in my mind the back of a gloomy building in a dimly-lit, shadowy alley with a worn, nondescript door whose very dark and dingy Green Color is hard to distinguish. I still can even imagine what must be going on "be-hind the Gre-e-e en Door!"  What a uniquely different and well written crazy fun song! Thanx for including it! 

You also featured "Baja" by the Astronauts, correctly stating it was barely even a minor hit in 1963, peaking at Number 93 in Billboard. Another unique "Forgotten Hit," this time an instrumental, with some great, twangy guitar work! Now then, while I don't know of its success in California, that you mentioned, I can attest for its "hit factor" here in Denver, Colorado! ("Surfin' Music as High as the Rockies?!")

The Astronauts were a Huge Local Group in Denver, originally forming while its members were attending Colorado State University in Boulder, Colorado, only about 30 miles away. As Denver University students, we used to spend many weekend nights driving up to a small club in Boulder called "Tulagi's" where they often presented their high energy and highly entertaining shows.

The Astronauts were so popular that when they released their first major label song (on RCA), we at KIMN in Denver immediately began playing it. Surprise! Surprise! It became a Number One song on the KIMN Hit Parade!"

At the time, I was one of the first "Dual City Air Personalities" during my early University years, hosting Afternoon Drive on KIMN Denver Colorado during the school year, and Afternoon Drive on KIMM Rapid City, South Dakota, during the Summers and Holidays (no connection between the two stations - just similar Call Letters!)

So in the Summer of 1964, a year after "Baja," I booked them into Rapid City for one night, billing their appearance as "The Biggest Show and Dance" to hit the Black Hills area! And it was! A huge, sell out night at the unusually large, hanger sized "Pancake House" that was closed down for the evening to allow me to stage the event, which was attended by some 2,000+ high school and college kids from all around the area!

Whew!  Big Fun for this College Guy!

As a closing tie-in note:  We've been talking a bit lately about one of the Original 7 U.S. Astronauts, John Glenn, and a spoken word rendition, the "Theme from Freedom 7," in particular. The Band, the Astronauts, named themselves that to pay tribute to yet another one of the Original 7 Astronauts, Scott Carpenter, who was born in and spent several of his early years in Boulder. ~~~

Chuck Buell

So I'm thinking that I'm a few years younger (and whole lot more perverted) than you are ... because when I think of "The Green Door", my theater of the mind conjures up images of Marilyn Chambers!  (lol)

As for the Colorado local scene, we used to hear from Wild Bill Cody quite a bit back in the day ... don't know if you two ever crossed paths along the way, but he was REALLY big on the local Colorado talent (much as I've been known to plug some of our big Chicago groups from the '60's!)

In fact, thanks to Bill (who passed away a few years ago), a couple of The Moonrakers are still on the Forgotten Hits list ... and I'm sure you've heard of THESE guys ... HUGE local talents who backed up virtually EVERYBODY who passed through town ... and scored a couple of #1 KIMN Records for themselves along the way, too!  Thank, Chuck!  (kk)

Here's a little something for you to share for Christmas ... I just think this is so cool!

The video of Elvis is from his “Comeback” special in 1968 (when Martina McBride was actually just around two years old!), combined with a special video she made 40 years later just for this collaboration!

This is my favorite Elvis Christmas song.

Merry Christmas to You!

I'll Have a Buell, Buell, Christmas without you . . .

CB  ( which stands for Christmas Boy!"  aka Chuck Buell )

After playing 50 different Monkees songs over the past seven months, across 66 concerts in four countries (covering 30 of the 50 United States, Canada, New Zealand and Australia); a top ten pop album (Good Times!) - their first in 20 years, which generated some positively stellar reviews, including Rolling Stone; being joined by Michael Nesmith in several of the shows (he elected to skip the tour); their tour ended last week in Australia.  

Now back in the U. S. Micky Dolenz already has a full slate of activities for 2017, including a return to NYC’s Feinstein’s / 54 Below in March - where he recorded his last solo album "A Little Bit Broadway; A Little Bit Rock & Roll". His sister Coco (who has appeared on the 50^th Anniversary tour as well) will also have her own show during his run. He'll also be a featured guest Bill Kurtis’ Decades program in January.

David Salidor

And he'll be appearing at The Arcada Theatre in February!!!  (kk)

http://www.arcadalive.com/events/micky-dolenz/

And here's an interview with Glenn Gretlund and Iain Lee regarding the new 7A Records CD Release of Micky Dolenz:  The MGM Years ...

http://www.monkees.net/interview-7a-records-glenn-gretlund-and-ian-lee-talk-about-working-with-micky-dolenz-on-the-mgm-singles-collection-new-music-and-more/

And, speaking of upcoming shows, FH Reader Mike DeMartino sent us this year's Elk Grove Village concert list ... 

Kent

Happy holidays.

Below is the summer schedule for the summer shows in Elk Grove.

KILLER LINEUP FOR THE 4TH!

MIKE DE MARTINO

July 4:  5:30 pm (Rotary Green) behind E. G. High School ... 4 on the 4th (begins at 5:30 pm):  Ambrosia, Orleans, Mitch Ryder and the Demon Wheels, and the Guess Who.  Fireworks at 9:30 pm  
The next three concerts are at the Village Green at 7:30 pm.
July 11 - Credence Clearwater Revisited
July 18 - Rodney Atkins (country singer)
July 25 - Kool & the Gang 
I'm a little surprised by this year's line-up ... normally Elk Grove pulls out all the stops and brings us some top notch acts ... but this year you can go see Ambrosia (without the guy who sang all their hits), Orleans (without the guy who sang all their hits), The Guess Who (without the guy who sang all their hits), Creedence Clearwater Revisited (without the guy who sang all their hits) and Kool and the Gang (without the guy who sang all their hits)!!!  I've gotta be honest with you, I'm finding it hard to work up much excitement for this list!  
Sure, you'll still get to hear the songs we all love and adore ... and you'll certainly get your money's worth (all of the shows are free!) ... but compared to most of the shows they've booked in the past, this group is pretty underwhelming.  (kk)

Friends:  
Can anybody explain how this works?  
http://radio.garden/live/southport/z1075/ 
Chris Astle  
It's actually pretty cool ... click on any section of the map and pick up a local radio station from wherever you're at.  (kk)

Very interesting. Once the system loads, you click the geographical area and the participating online stations are listed. Click one and it starts an instantaneous stream. 
-- Dale Parsons
Hana, Hawaii  

I think you have found something there, Chris!

Frank Dwyer 

Greetings Kent,  

Happy Holidays! Forgotten Hits is a Daily Read!

Also, I wanted to let you know that Geoffery Mortimer, Bass Player for the British Pop Group, The Hullaballoos, passed away on Saturday, December 17, 2016, after a long battle with cancer.

The Hullaballoos charted two singles in the U.S. (Buddy Holly’s “I’m Gonna Love You, Too” and “Beware”.) The group released two LP’s on Roulette.

He died in his hometown of Hull, UK.

Take Care.

John Eckert

U.S. Rep / The Hullaballoos 

Wow ... THIS had to come as a bit of an upset! ... 

Sirius XM can play ’60s hit ‘Happy Together’ royalty-free | New York Post

Kent ...

Howard and Mark are still "Together" ...
They're just no longer "Happy".

Frank B.

http://nypost.com/2016/12/20/sirius-xm-can-play-60s-hit-happy-together-royalty-free/

A Salute to The '60's ... And Another Great Forgotten Hits Tickets Giveaway!

What a great way to start the new year!!!

 

Thanks to tickets personally donated by Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits, Carl Giammarese of The Buckinghams and Mark Dawson of The Grass Roots, Forgotten Hits is giving away THREE PAIRS OF TICKETS to see this great show.  (Seriously ... how cool is it to have all three of these guys regular followers and participants of Forgotten Hits?!?!)

 

This is your chance to see three of the Top Acts of the '60's, live in concert, at Star Plaza in Merrillville, Indiana, on Saturday, January 21st.

 

We're talking about The Buckinghams, The Grass Roots and Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone ... it just doesn't get any better than this!!!

 

Between them, they had over FORTY TOP 40 HITS, including classics like "Kind Of A Drag", "Don't You Care", "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy", "Hey Baby, They're Playing Our Song", "Susan", "Let's Live For Today", "Midnight Confessions", "Two Divided By Love", "Sooner Or Later", "Temptation Eyes", "I'm Into Something Good", "Mrs. Brown, You've Got A Lovely Daughter", "Silhouettes", "I'm Henry The VIII, I Am" and "There's A Kind Of Hush".  

 

Get your entry in NOW!!!  

 

Drop me an email at either forgottenhits@aol.com or kk@forgottenhits.com and we'll throw your name in the hat!

 

We'll draw the winners on January 10th ... and see YOU there at this very special concert event.

 

Great seats are still available for purchase, too, by simply visiting The Star Plaza Online Box Office at:

http://www.ticketmaster.com/salute-to-the-sixties-merrillville-indiana-01-21-2017/event/0700503BE2137240?artistid=821381&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=1#efeat4211

 

*****

Of course by January 21st, we'll be deep into our brand new 1967 Series ... but all three of these acts played a major role on the charts that year.

 

Here's a recap of their personal Dozen Biggest Hits of 1967!  (And if you haven't signed up for the bonus extras that will go along with these daily web postings, please do so NOW so you don't miss a thing!  The series officially kicks off on Friday, December 30th ... and we're counting on all three of these artists to share some of their special memories with our readers.) 

 

 1 - Kind of a Drag - The Buckinghams

 2 - There's A Kind Of Hush - Herman's Hermits

 3 - Let's Live For Today - The Grass Roots

 4 - Mercy Mercy Mercy - The Buckinghams

 5 - Don't You Care - The Buckinghams

 6 - Hey Baby, They're Playing Our Song - The Buckinghams

 7 - East West - Herman's Hermits

 8 - Don't Go Out Into The Rain - Herman's Hermits

 9 - Museum - Herman's Hermits

10 - Things I Should Have Said - The Grass Roots

11 - No Milk Today - Herman's Hermits

12 - Laudy Miss Claudy - The Buckinghams

The Ten Best Concerts We Saw In 2016

We're back today with a countdown of The Top Ten Shows We Saw in 2016 ...

So let's get right to it!

#10 - Garfunkel and Oates - (Riki Lindhome, Kate Micucci) - The City Winery 
They had us in stitches the whole night long ... and they were cracking themselves up, too!  (It doesn't get more fun than this!) 
Raunchy humor set to song ... cool little video clips ... we've loved these gals for awhile now so seeing them live was a real treat.
Go to YouTube for a taste of what this was like.  We had a blast!
https://www.youtube.com/user/rikilind/videos 
I hope these two stick together ... because the idea of Kate doing a solo show ("Come See Micucci") is more than I can handle!  (lol)  

#9 - Jim Peterik - The Songs - The Raue Center For Performing Arts
I gave Jim's "The Songs" CD a less-than-favorable review when it first came out ... 
I felt some of these "reimaginings" could have been better thought out ...
But Jim challenged me to come see the show live and see if I still felt the same way afterwards.
And I've got to say, he convinced me ... the live show was outstanding ... a whole lotta fun ... and I've listened to his new CD with a much better appreciation ever since.
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/06/jim-peterik-songs-live-at-raue-center.html

 Me and Jim after the show

(I'm the one without the purple hair!)

#8 - Tommy Roe / Chris Montez - The Arcada Theatre
I had been looking forward to this show for awhile.  Tommy has been a good friend of Forgotten Hits for several years now so again, with a bit of persuading on my part, Ron Onesti booked him at The Arcada Theatre as a tribute / anniversary salute to the time he and Chris Montez headlined in Great Britain with The Beatles as their opening act!  (In fact, the anniversary was nearly to the DAY of the Arcada concert!)

More fun-time rock and roll by a couple of veterans who haven't seemed to age a day over the past fifty years!
Tommy's new book "From Cabbagetown to Tinsel Town" is available now ... and we had the chance to interview him before the show, too.  
You can find that interview here:
http://forgottenhits.com/forgotten_hits_interviews_tommy_roe
As well as our concert review:
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/03/tommy-roe-chris-montez-and-beatlerama.html

#7 - Peter Cetera - Lion's Park, Elk Grove Village
After all the bad press Peter Cetera received for his comments and behavior regarding Chicago's induction into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame (admittedly some of it directed by us), it was a joy to see him perform in concert on The 4th of July in Elk Grove this summer.
A stellar show from start to finish ... and one we would gladly see again.
Accept the parting of the ways ... we'll gladly go see Chicago again, too ... and enjoy the show(s)!

http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/07/peter-cetera-live-4th-of-july-concert.html

#6 - .38 Special - The Arcada Theatre
Another group we have always wanted to see, these guys rocked the house when they took the stage at The Arcada Theatre this year.
While I primarily only knew the hits, they played enough other material to capture my interest and curiosity and, as such, I dug a little deeper into their catalog and discovered quite a few "new" gems along the way ... a rockin' good show. 
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/09/38-special.html 

#5 - Paul Anka - The Arcada Theatre
Las Vegas came to St. Charles earlier this year when master showman Paul Anka took the stage for a sold out show at The Arcada Theatre.  
This guy is a pro's pro ... he's got this down to a science ... and he just bowls you over throughout his entire performance.  (Despite being backed by a full orchestra, it was  surprisingly a couple of the acoustic numbers that really stood out for me that night.)
But Anka (his voice stronger and richer than ever!) blew us away from start to finish.  A top notch show.
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/05/paul-anka.html 

#4 - The Alan Parson Project - The Arcada Theatre
These guys have made the list the last two years, typically ranking 1st or 2nd in the final standings.  I have never seen them put on anything less than a stellar show.
I've only downgraded them this year for two reasons ...
First of all, to give somebody else a chance to top the list for a change! (and we saw some REALLY good shows this year) ... and secondly because they have essentially performed the EXACT same show every time we've seen them.  (This was our fourth Alan Parsons show in three years.)
Now that doesn't mean that they haven't performed it to perfection ... they have ... but it may be time to "stretch" a little bit as they, too, sell out every time they come to town and a good percentage of their audience is "repeat business".
Probably the finest overall musicianship on this year's list (and yes, that means I'm ranking them ahead of Toto!), these guys can do it all ... so why not challenge yourselves a little bit more and do maybe another album medley of sorts next time around.
You'll find a short review here:
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-monday-comments.html
... but essentially it tells you the same thing we did in both 2015 and 2014, where they ranked at or near the top both years.
An absolute MUST SEE if you've never had the pleasure ... and I'm quite sure we'll go back and see them EVERY time they appear ... because these guys will truly blow you away.

#3 - The Stylistics - The Arcada Theatre
Another one that really surprised us.
We are both VERY big Russell Tompkins, Jr. fans ... 
So we were a bit apprehensive about what these guys would sound like without him onboard.
Well, let me tell you ... new lead vocalist (New?  He's been with them for 16 years now!!!) Eban Brown "out-Russell'd" Russell ... this concert was top notch from start to finish.   (I'm curious to see if Russell can put on as good a show as his replacement / competition!)
The surprise appearance by The New Kids On The Block at the end of the show was an unexpected bonus ... this isn't the kind of thing that typically happens in Chicago ... this is more of a New York or LA thing!!!
It was great ... and the audience loved it.
Definitely on our "let's see them again" list!
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/10/the-stylistics.html

#2 - Cornerstones Of Rock - (featuring Jimy Sohns and The Shadows of Knight, The Cryan' Shames, The New Colony Six, The Ides Of March and The Buckinghams) - The Arcada Theatre
Thanks to their PBS / WTTW Television Special, this show has sold out EVERY performance it's made at The Arcada Theatre in the past year.  (And they're booked again on Valentine's Day, February 14th, 2017)
Last year we called The Marty Grebb Benefit Concert the Second Best Show we saw in 2015.  While essentially this is much of the same line-up, this act is ready to hit the road now that "Cornerstones" is airing nationwide on PBS stations all over America.  The "Rock Of Chicago" is alive and well ... and being heard from coast to coast!
Technically, this gives Jim Peterik TWO Top Ten Placings this year ... one for his solo show at The Raue and this one where he and The Ides of March TOTALLY stole the show.  (They're such a tough act to follow they wisely chose to do the intermission right after their set!)
And, that means that Bruce Mattey and Ray Graffia, Jr., ALSO qualify for two Top Twenty nods, thanks to this show and their special appearance at the City Lights Orchestra show that ranked at #18!)

#1 - The Orchestra - The Arcada Theatre
Yes ... this was the BEST show we saw this year ... and nobody could be more surprised than me!
Being huge Jeff Lynne fans, we've been waiting for him to tour The States again with his latest version of ELO ... especially now that he's released a new album.
But until then, we decided to check these guys out ... all former members of Electric Light Orchestra at some point ... and they did an INCREDIBLE job of recreating the sound of this classic (and soon to be) Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inducted band.
Check out their touring schedule to see if they're heading out your way in 2017 ... DEFINITELY worth your time!
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2016/05/tuesday-this-and-that_17.html 
(You'll also find our review of #16-ranked Marilyn McCoo and Bill Davis, Jr. in this posting.)

So there you have it ... our Top 20 Concerts of 2016.

Already a lot of GREAT shows coming up next year ...

We're anxious to see The Lettermen, Foghat with Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad, Micky Dolenz, Cornerstones of Rock, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Burton Cummings (he ALWAYS makes our list!), Mary Wilson of The Supremes, Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone and Tommy James and the Shondells, all of whom are already booked for appearances at The Arcada Theatre next year.  (Set some seats aside for me, Ron!!!)

For a complete list of shows to date, please be sure to check out their website / online box office ...
http://www.arcadalive.com/event-list/ ...
But remember, he is booking new shows WEEKLY so be sure to check back often!