Verda Mae Pugh
December 26, 2012
Three silent films, with live music
January 2, 2013
Combine four blue-collar friends, one big-time gangster and 175 million records sold worldwide and you’ve got the makings of a musical – “Jersey Boys,” to be exact.
The Four Seasons – aka Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi – came into fame in 1962 with a little tune about a girl named “Sherry.” More hits would follow: “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” “Oh, What a Night,” “My Eyes Adored You” and more. And the landscape of boy band harmonies was forever changed.
The rags-to-rock-to-riches story of four blue-collar teens working their way from the streets of Newark to the heights of stardom really happened. And with the help of Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, who collaborated on the book, and Four Seasons’ member Gaudio and lyricist Bob Crewe, director Des McAnuff and the cast of “Jersey Boys” it retells the tale to a backbeat of show-stopping hit songs. The touring production is onstage Jan. 8-27 at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts in New Orleans.
“Most of us baby boomers grew up loving the band but never knowing the story behind The Four Seasons,” McAnuff says. “At the end of the day, this is a great story about four guys coming out of Belleville, N.J., and making it big despite the odds. It will grab people emotionally. And it doesn’t hurt that the band had such an impressive body of work.”
The “Behind the Music” story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons includes ties to Angelo “Gyp” DeCarlo, a member of the New York Genovese crime family; several scrapes with the law that land DeVito in and out of prison, and the entire band in jail at one point; broken relationships; bad debts; and the band’s ultimate breakup.
With each season, a different member of the band offers his take on history.
Audiences may be surprised to learn of Joe Pesci’s connection to the band. Or that The Four Seasons’ earliest days were relegated to singing backup to other groups. Or that Gaudio penned “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)” after losing his virginity. Or that “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” almost never saw the light of day. Or even that The Angels, the girl band responsible for “My Boyfriend’s Back” were discovered by The Four Seasons.
In all, Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons tallied 71 chart hits – 40 in the Top 40, 19 in the Top 10 and eight No. 1 hits. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. It was the last time the band would reunite. … Until now.
“The Four Seasons came at a time when the music scene was pretty bland,” McAnuff says. “Buddy Holly was gone. Chuck Berry’s out-of-this-world hits were no longer on the charts. And Elvis (Presley) was off in the Army.
“And then come The Four Seasons with these complex harmonies and these seemingly innocent songs – ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’ and ‘Walk Like a Man.’ They had much more pain and complexity behind them.”
The Four Seasons and the Beach Boys broke at about the same time, McAnuff is quick to note, at a time when music needed jarring.
“These four guys from the wrong side of the tracks would serve as appetizers to the whole British invasion that followed,” he says.
The rise-and-fall story sheds light on the music industry, the public’s obsession with and the seduction of celebrity and the sacrifices artists make in pursuit of their dreams.
“It’s more than just a boy meets girl show,” McAnuff says. “There’s no question that people who grew up knowing the band have a kind of affinity, but it is a very contemporary story and the songs have had such a tremendous influence throughout the generations. The great thing is it is a high-velocity story. People don’t have to know the music to find it riveting, but they’ll walk away with a real appetite for the songs.”
“Jersey Boys” runs from Jan. 8-27 at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts, 1419 Basin St., New Orleans. Tickets range from $22-$72. For more information, visit www.mahaliajacksontheater.com or call (800) 745-3000.
“Jersey Boys,” which details the rags-to-riches journey of the band The Four Seasons, opens Jan. 8 at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts.
