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Aug. 16, 2006

Rock ’n’ roll legends rose from North Jersey roots

Joey Dee & The Starliters bring their lively brand of Swinging Sixties dance music to the Mayor’s Summer Concert Series in Woodbridge Aug. 21.

The free concert takes place at 7:30 p.m. in the meadow behind Woodbridge High School. Audience members are urged to bring blankets and lawn chairs, and refreshments are available in the food court. Call (732) 596-4048 for information. Woodbridge Center and ShopRite are the prime series sponsors.

Festivities begin with a disc jockey at 6 p.m. and a 7:30 p.m. start for the concerts. Audience members are urged to bring blankets and lawn chairs, and refreshments are available in the food court.

Master showman and Passaic native Joey Dee is joined by David Brigati of the original Young Rascals and Bobby Valli, brother of Four Seasons star Frankie Valli.

“We are thrilled to have the Starliters return to our concert series,” says InterimMayor Joseph F. Vitale. “This is a group that introduced classic New Jersey sounds to the pop music world.”

The red-hot dance band from Lodi, New Jersey, kicked off a whirl of early ’60s dance crazes with top-selling hits like “Peppermint Twist”, “Hot Pastrami/Mashed Potatoes” and “Shout”.

Joey Dee formed The Thunder Trio while still in high school and in 1954 placed second on the famed Ted Mack Amateur Hour. Four years later, the group began issuing singles on the Little and Scepter labels with new member David Brigati, lead singer of The Hi-Fives, who Dee encountered at a gig at Garfield High School. Added to the mix was a tight instrumental combo of drummer Willie Davis and organist Carlton Lattimore and dancers Don Martin and Larry Vernieri.

In September, 1960, New York City talent agent Don Davis saw them perform at Oliveri’s nightclub in Lodi and booked them into an obscure Manhattan dance spot called the Peppermint Lounge. The group’s opening night show found Hollywood actress Merle Oberon and exiled Russian Prince Serge Obelensky in attendance, enthusiastically working out on the dance floor as syndicated gossip writers Earl Wilson and Cholly Knickerbocker duly reported in their morning columns. Overnight, the low-rent Peppermint Lounge became an upscale magnet for stars and star-watchers, and Joey Dee and The Starliters became a household musical name.

What started as a weekend stand escalated into a 13-month SRO run, several hit singles and LPs, two Hollywood movies and instant global fame immortalized by their “Peppermint Twist” single that reached #1 in the charts in January, 1962.

The notoriety associated with their early success overshadowed the fact that The Starliters were a musically strong ensemble with a hard-rocking, soul-based sound. Throughout the ’60s, numerous musical all-stars served in the group including Jimi Hendrix, Charles Neville, the Ronettes and three of the original Young Rascals. An aspiring singer/dancer from Newark named Joe Pesci appeared with the band in their first Paramount Pictures film, Hey, Let’s Twist. Their opening act for their second European tour in November 1963. . . a then-unknown quartet called The Beatles!

Joey Dee & The Starliters continue to excite audiences with the same deft brand of showmanship that has marked their concerts since the beginning doo-wop days. This is Jersey Soul at its best.

The Mayor’s Summer Concert Series not only nourishes musical appetites but helps sustain the coffers at the Woodbridge Food Bank. Concertgoers bringing non-perishable food items receive a chance to win special prizes, one chance for every item donated. “Summer months always put a strain on local food pantries,” says Mayor Vitale. “Each year, the generous people of Woodbridge donate an incredible amount of food during the series, and we hope this continues.”

2006 Mayor’s Summer Concert Series Schedule: August 28 – Brooklyn Reunion Show featuring Classics, Mystics & Passions. . . August 30 – The Party Dolls

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