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...officially, though in the form of a Four Seasons box set taking advantage of the Jersey Boys success...


 
  Jersey Beat – The Music Of Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons boxset coming June 5

CELEBRATING THE 4 SEASONS

Comprehensive Boxed Set Features Three CDs and
a Bonus DVD Spotlighting the Group’s Influential Legacy,
Top Hits, B-Sides and More

Available June 5 from Rhino Records

LOS ANGELES – Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons have sold more than 100 million records worldwide. More than 40 years after lead singer Frankie Valli, guitarist Tommy DeVito, bassist Nick Massi and keyboardist Bob Gaudio first topped the charts with “Sherry”—the first of three consecutive #1 hits—the group is back in the spotlight. Thanks to Jersey Boys, a Tony®-winning musical based on the band’s story, the music and legend of Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons are both finally getting their due. The musical is currently playing to sold-out crowds regularly at the August Wilson Theater in Manhattan and the Curran Theater in San Francisco. Additional openings are scheduled for later this year at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles on May 25, and at the LaSalle Bank Theater in Chicago on October 6. By 2008, Jersey Boys will also have played in San Diego, Seattle, Houston, Tampa, Minneapolis, Cleveland and several other cities.

Rhino honors Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons with a spectacular boxed set featuring three CDs filled with 76 tracks of the band’s biggest hits along with terrific album tracks, top-notch B-sides, plus a DVD packed with rare live performances. An 84-page booklet accompanies the set and features rare photos and track-by-track commentary from such music and entertainment icons as Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Barry Manilow, Quincy Jones, Cher, Neil Diamond, Fats Domino, Steven Van Zandt, Barry Gibb, Johnny Marr, Billy Joel, Itzhak Perlman, Regis Philbin, Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban, and Joe Pesci, among others. JERSEY BEAT – THE MUSIC OF FRANKIE VALLI & THE 4 SEASONS will be available June 5 at retail and digital outlets and at www.rhino.com for a suggested retail price of $64.98. A digital version, including 76 tracks and two videos, will also be available at all digital retail outlets for a suggested retail price of $39.99.

Representing the most comprehensive Frankie Valli & 4 Seasons collection ever released, the bonus disc contains a long-awaited compilation of the group’s videos ranging from an early appearance on The Steve Allen Show to a rare live performance of “Rhapsody.”

The collection highlights the band’s early success—13 Top Ten hits between 1962 and 1967—including songs like “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Dawn (Go Away),” “Rag Doll,” and “Let's Hang On!” Arranged chronologically, the tracks follow the group through different lineups and continued success with “Working My Way Back To You,” “Opus 17 (Don’t You Worry ’Bout Me),” the #2 smash “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” and a cover of The Shirelles’ hit “Will You Love Me Tomorrow.”

The set also includes “My Eyes Adored You” and “Grease,” a pair of #1 hits Valli recorded solo in the ’70s; along with two #1 hits by The 4 Seasons, “Who Loves You” and the million-selling single “December, 1963 (Oh What A Night)” the first single without Valli’s lead vocals; plus the 1984 single “East Meets West,” a collaboration featuring Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons harmonizing with their West Coast musical brethren, The Beach Boys.

Writing for the boxed set’s liner notes, Dennis Diken, drummer for the Smithereens and music historian, summarizes The 4 Seasons’ “instantly recognizable” sound circa 1965: “Fans looked forward to an arresting drum kick-off or a sotto voce preamble that set up musical adventures, like the big-beat ‘Bye, Bye, Baby (Baby Goodbye),’ and ‘Let’s Hang On!,’ where Frankie’s lulling intro is assaulted by one of the badass, snarling riffs of all time, giving flight to a four-on-the-floor stomp with beefy horns, vibes, and prominent bass that spoke Motown, Seasons-style.”

Thanks to the success of Jersey Boys, millions of theatergoers have gained a new appreciation for the music and legend of Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons. The musical production based on the life story of the band was nominated for eight Tony Awards in 2006 and walked away with Tony’s for Best Musical, Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical, Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical and Best Lighting Design of a Musical. The rags-to-riches tale of four blue-collar kids working their way from the streets of Newark to the heights of stardom continues to resonate with sell-out Broadway crowds since its debut in 2004 at California’s La Jolla Playhouse.


Track Listing:

JERSEY BEAT – THE MUSIC OF FRANKIE VALLI & THE 4 SEASONS

Disc One
1. “Sherry”
2. “Big Girls Don’t Cry”
3. “Walk Like A Man”
4. “Ain’t That A Shame”
5. “Candy Girl”
6. “Marlena”
7. “Peanuts”
8. “Alone (Why Must I Be Alone)”
9. “Stay”
10. “Little Boy (In Grown Up Clothes)”
11. “Dawn (Go Away)”
12. “Big Man’s World”
13. “Marcie”
14. “Silence Is Golden”
15. “Huggin’ My Pillow”
16. “Ronnie”
17. “Rag Doll”
18. “Save It For Me”
19. “Big Man In Town”
20. “Bye, Bye, Baby (Baby, Goodbye)”
21. “Betrayed”
22. “Toy Soldier”
23. “Girl Come Running”
24. “Let’s Hang On!”
25. “Don’t Think Twice (It’s All Right)” – The Wonder Who?
26. “The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine (Anymore)” – Frankie Valli
27. “(You’re Gonna) Hurt Yourself” – Frankie Valli
28. “Pity”
29. “You’re Ready Now” – Frankie Valli
30. “Cousin Brucie Go Go”


Disc Two
1. “Working My Way Back To You”
2. “Can’t Get Enough Of You Baby”
3. “Everybody Knows My Name”
4. “Comin’ Up In The World”
5. “Beggars Parade”
6. “Opus 17 (Don’t You Worry ’Bout Me)”
7. “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”
8. “The Proud One” – Frankie Valli
9. “Tell It To The Rain”
10. “Beggin’”
11. “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” – Frankie Valli
12. “C’mon Marinne”
13. “Lonesome Road” – The Wonder Who?
14. “Around And Around (AndAroundAndAround)”
15. “I Make A Fool Of Myself” – Frankie Valli
16. “Watch The Flowers Grow”
17. “Raven”
18. “To Give (The Reason I Live)” – Frankie Valli
19. “Will You Love Me Tomorrow”
20. “Good-Bye Girl”
21. “Saturday’s Father”
22. “Electric Stories”
23. “Something’s On Her Mind”
24. “Idaho”
25. “Genuine Imitation Life”

Disc Three
1. “And That Reminds Me (My Heart Reminds Me)”
2. “The Girl I’ll Never Know (Angels Never Fly This Low)” – Frankie Valli
3. “She Gives Me Light”
4. “Patch Of Blue”
5. “Heartaches And Raindrops”
6. “Lay Me Down (Wake Me Up)”
7. “Where Are My Dreams”
8. “Sleeping Man”
9. “The Night”
10. “My Eyes Adored You” – Frankie Valli
11. “Swearin’ To God” – Frankie Valli
12. “Who Loves You”
13. “Our Day Will Come” – Frankie Valli
14. “December, 1963 (Oh, What A Night)”
15. “Silver Star”
16. “Fallen Angel” – Frankie Valli
17. “Rhapsody”
18. “Grease” – Frankie Valli
19. “East Meets West” – with The Beach Boys  
20. “Streetfighter”
21. “Hope And Glory”

DVD
1. “Big Girls Don’t Cry” (The Steve Allen Show, 1963)
2. 1964 Medley – “Sherry/Walk Like A Man/Big Girls Don’t Cry/Dawn (Go Away)/Rag Doll/Brotherhood of Man” (On Broadway Tonight, 1964)
3. “Working My Way Back To You” (Hullabaloo, 1966)
4. “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” – Frankie Valli (The Bitter End, 1968)
5. “Let’s Hang On!” (Top Of The Pops, 1971)
6. “Saturday’s Father” (The Kraft Music Hall, 1968)
7. “(You’re Gonna) Hurt Yourself” – Frankie Valli (The Joey Bishop Show, 1968)
8. “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” (Top of the Pops, 1971)
9. “Dawn (Go Away)” (Los Angeles Coliseum concert, 1972)
10. “Who Loves You” (Promo Film, 1974)
11. “Rhapsody” (Promo Film, 1976)
12. “December, 1963 (Oh, What A Night” (Promo Film, 1975)
 

As a long time fan of The Seasons, I was very excited when I saw your post, but then looked at the track list and noted that, very much like The Monkees, this is the 'third time around' for this collection (with a few notable exceptions) from Rhino, with the triple (25th ANNIVERSARY) and double disc (IN SEASON) releases and even the rarities (OUT OF SEASON) collection. The DVD might be fun, but I worry about lip-sync on the shows from the 60s. The Seasons WERE such an interesting parallel world to the BOYS (East meets West indeed). Frankie's ozone layer (and un-imitatable) falsetto, Buddy Saltzman (their Hal Blaine) and his powerful tom toms, Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio's wonderful sense of orchestrated drama (the modulations in Opus 17 and Save it for Me, the tags where Frankie would go over the top, the use of unison and then harmony in the background vocals, etc.), Is there any sense that any of this re-issue has been re-mixed and/or re-mastered? Doubt it. I don't think there is much left to mine with this group (Genuine Imitation Life Gazette is an interesting piece, but no Pepper or SMiLE by any stretch).

Now if only they would resurrect Howard Kaylan and Co. (one of my absolute favorite voices from pop history) for a re-mix, re-mastered and rarities plus DVD box set treatment of the Turtles and Flo/Eddie catalogue - including the infamous lost Rhythm Butcher tracks...BTW, Howard's recenly released solo album is so terribly disappointing...game over.

Who is the Wonder Who?

.

Here's my half-assed story of the Wonder Who, i may get some particulars wrong, if I do, somebody will correct I'm sure.

Frankie Valli is recording Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice" with the seasons, and on 1 take, he sings part of it in a Mickey Mouseish falsetto.  The engineers goad him into singing the whole song that way.  It sounds really funny, lol (If you listen close, you can hear his 'normal' lead in the background mixed down).

They cut a copy of it for Frankie to carry around for whatever reason, and Frankie plays it for a d.j. friend of his.  The D.J. insists that Frankie let him play it on the air, Frankie won't do it, eventually the guy says he'll play it and not tell anybody it's the 4 seasons.

So he starts playing it, and calling the band the "Wonder Who" band singing "Don't Think Twice" and they have a little contest to see if anybody can guess what band it is.  (Which I think I would have won that contest!)

It's really a pretty good song, and it will live on in Infamy as "The Wonder Who - Don't Think Twice".

So the story goes is that he also had a cold that day, and that was why he was singing the song that way in the first place.

What is "East Meets West"? 

An early 80s one off collaboration single between the Beach Boys and the Four Seasons, it's enjoyable but no great shakes.. :-D

It's cheese, like a lot of the late BB stuff, unfortunately.

I thought it might be related to the Andrew Loog Oldham project from the '60s, where he did remakes of his favorite BB & Four Seasons songs, with back-up vocals by Mick J. (allegedly).  I didn't realize the actual Beach Boys and Four Seasons, or what was left of them, did a collaboration later.  Was Brian involved?

All surviving Beach Boys (sans Bruce Johnston) took turns singing lead vocals with Frankie Valli.  This must have been recorded after Dennis had died.  Not exactly an "amazing" tune, but it is rather interesting hearing these guys sing together. 

This is I guess the best place to ask: Somebody explain the rivalry and what started it in the 60's.... I know "Surfers Rule" was a four seasons 'diss' but did the Seasons bring that on in an interview or something?  Or did Brian just feel like talking smack?  Also, was "Don't Back Down" supposed to be another 4 seasons diss? 

If that's the case (and it must be, the single having been released in September of '84), some of the lyrics are a bit awkward: "Two different drummers playing side by side / You know the best of them will survive"  :(

The BB vocal session for "EMW" happened when Dennis was still alive, but he wasn't there.

The poor guy couldn't sing to save his life anymore

"East Meets West" took a while to grow on me. I listened to the B-side "Rhapsody" (Four Seasons - no BB) more.

RE: The mutual jiving between The Seasons and The Boys:

The flip side of DAWN (the first single I ever bought) was a haunting tune called NO SURFING TODAY - a kind of TEEN ANGEL/LAST KISS set in a surfing milieu:

She was my surfer girl
she surfed in the sun
where are you surfer girl
now our fun is done
now our fun is done

Angry sea, took my love from me
no surfin' today
no surfin'

Way out beyond the reef
they said don't go (don't go! don't go!)
the undertow so deep
dragged her down below
dragged her down below

Angry sea, took my love from me
no surfin' today
no surfin

Just yesterday
We felt the ocean spray
While we were surfing side by side
I'll never hold her hand, she's too far away
I'll never understand, what else can I say
What else can I say

Angry sea, took my love from me
no surfin' today
no surfin'