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Sha Na Na
November 13 - 15 • 7:30pm
Tickets are $35/$30/$25
Get Tickets Now
SHA NA NA brings their 40th Anniversary Show to The SOUTH POINT CASINO, Las Vegas, November 13-15th in conjunction with the release of their latest CD, “SHA NA NA 40TH ANNIVERSARY COLLECTOR’S EDITION” on the Gold Label. Songs in the show and the collection celebrate the highlights of their four decade journey from WOODSTOCK, the movie GREASE, THE SHA NA NA TV SHOW and their world wide concert touring. Sha Na Na has just completed five shows with the Seattle Symphony with Maestro Marvin Hamlisch conducting and are now ready to rock Las Vegas.
Sha Na Na bio…
Sha Na Na may not have invented rock nostalgia, but the group has successfully – very successfully – celebrated the music and the memories for the past four decades… in concert, in the movies and on TV, and on record.
Sha Na Na’s story is an all-encompassing one: they were in the original Woodstock Festival lineup, starred in “Grease” (the most successful movie musical), hosted the “Sha Na Na” TV series for four years, and still play more than 50 concerts a year, from state fairs, performing art centers, casino showrooms to mega corporate functions world wide.
And through it all – flower power, hard rock, metal music, disco, hip hop, rap and more – Sha Na Na remains true to the original concept: rock ’n’ roll is here to stay!
The Sha Na Na story begins oddly for a group that, in appearance, runs the gamut from greaser to gold lame. Attired in turtleneck and blue blazers, the nucleus of Sha Na Na were undergraduate members of The Kingsmen, a glee club ensemble at New York’s Columbia University that used to perform a cappella versions of 50s rock songs as part of the performances.
These proved very popular and eventually rock ’n’ roll took over, instruments were added and Sha Na Na – the name comes from the 50s Silhouettes’ hit, “Get A Job” – was born.
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Heard of Woodstock?
If the original 1969 Woodstock Festival was a defining moment in rock history, it was also a defining moment in the history of Sha Na Na. The group’s appearance – only the seventh in Sha Na Na’s career, followed by the Woodstock album and movie, cemented their reputation and style. “We went on second to last, at sunrise on the final day, but, importantly, just before Jimi Hendrix,” recalls co-founder, drummer Jocko Marcellino. “We did 40 minutes and were paid $300…and the check bounced!”
Sha Na Na was the only group at Woodstock without a record deal. Immediately afterwards, they had one and today the group has released more than 25 albums in total, with worldwide sales of more than 20 million.
TV was another important step for the group…
The group taped 97 episodes of the Sha Na Na music variety shows from 1977 to 1981 that were seen – and still can be – in worldwide syndication. The shows, which featured Sha Na Na’s music, plus the group in comedy skits with special guests, further established the group’s credentials as a part of the landscape of rock ’n’ roll America.
“Grease: The Movie” became another significant building block in the Sha Na Na story. The group appeared in the 1979 musical, as Johnny Casino and the Gamblers, and contributed to the original music score with six Sha Na Na versions of rock classics and one original song, “Sandy,” co-written by Screamin’ Scott Simon for John Travolta to sing. (Between takes, Travolta also sang a little doo-wop with the group.)
The accompanying “Grease” soundtrack album was a major hit, Grammy-nominated and certified eight times platinum.
GREASE still makes an impact for Sha Na Na…
Recalls Marcellino: “Whole new generations get swept up in the nostalgia craze, effectively becoming our potential audience.”
“For example, Sha Na Na played the immense Los Angeles County Fair in front of a special audience – 20,000 girl scouts! They were too young to have seen our TV show, but they had seen ‘Grease’ on video. We played a 90-minute set and they knew the words to every song from the movie.”
Working for the past three decades throughout the world – from Carnegie Hall to the Grand Ole Opry, in Asia and in Africa, Paris to London to Tokyo – Sha Na Na has had some interesting unknown performers opening for their show, such as: Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Billy Crystal, Steve Martin and Jay Leno!
Live performances remain at the heart of Sha Na Na. Whether it is those girl scouts or their baby boomer parents, the reaction to the group is the same – the discovery of a common joy in the music from a time when part of the world was “greased and ready to
rock.”
Sha Na Na Rocks with Symphony Orchestras…
As well as the stint with Marvin Hamlisch and the Seattle Symphony, Sha Na Na, has also performed with the symphony orchestras of Columbus OH, Louisville KY, Phoenix AZ, Roanoke, VA., Peter Nero and the Philly Pops and the National Symphony and Choir at the Capital Fourth Celebration in Washington, D.C.
The arrangements for up to a seventy- six piece orchestra range from the staccato strings of RHYTHM OF THE RAIN, a lush rhythm and blues “wall of sound” for SOUL AND INSPIRATION and a swinging arrangement of ROCK’N’ROLL IS HERE TO STAY.
Of course Sha Na Na invites the orchestra to lose their tuxedos, open their collars and roll up their sleeves. That, that is, to get greased and ready to Rock ‘n’ Roll.
Sha Na Na recordings…
SHA NA NA 40TH ANNIVERSARY COLLECTOR’S EDITION joins the Sha Na Na catalogue which includes ROCK ‘N’ ROLL DANCE PARTY, a collection of the greatest dance themes of the era (with THE TWIST, THE STROLL, THE HAND JIVE), Sha Na Na’s first Holiday c.d. of their career, ROCKIN’ CHRISTMAS (with SANTA’S ON A DIET, YOU’RE ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS, BLUE CHRISTMAS and THE ROCKIN’ DREIDEL SONG ) and Sha Na Na’s first completely original Rock “N’ Roll and doowop c.d., ONE MORE SATURDAY NIGHT (including SANDY from Grease co-written by Screamin’ Scott, THE CAT IN THE P.T. CRUISER co-written by Jocko and ROCK ‘N’ ROLL HALL OF FAME by Donny). Sha Na Na CDs are on Pat Boone’s Gold Label and available though the Sha Na Na website, www.shanana.com.
Meet the Greasers
Jocko
Jocko, now in his fourth decade with Sha Na Na, was the first to walk onstage “greased and ready to rock ‘n’ roll” in 1969. That same year, at age nineteen he appeared with the group at The Woodstock Festival. He holds the distinction along with fellow Sha Donny of performing in both the most successful music documentary ever (Woodstock) and the most successful rock & roll film musical ever (Grease).
Juggling his schedule around his touring, Jocko earned both a B.A. from Columbia and a Masters in Drama from New York University.
When not with Sha Na Na, Jocko is an actor, producer and a songwriter. His acting credits include TV’s “Veronica Mars”, “NYPD Blue”, “Alley McBeal,” “The Tiger Woods Story”,” “Herman’s Head,” “Good Advice,”,”18 Wheels of Justice”, “The Invisible Man”, “Amazing Stories,” and the “Gary Shandling Show,” and the motion pictures RAINMAN, NATIONAL SECURITY and HOT TO TROT. He has written and performed songs for the films RAINMAN, THAT’S LIFE and THE NIGHT OF THE COMET. He most recently performed and produced an arrangement of “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” for the motion picture BENCHWARMERS.
Jocko’s original rock & roll, children’s collection: KIDSVILLE, as well as his original holiday music can be sampled and down loaded on iTunes.
Jocko also has a rock ‘n’ roll/ rhythm and blues band: Jocko and the Rockets who are always at the ready to rock you in the So Cal area. For more information, go to www.jockoandtherockets.com.
Jocko was born in Quincy, Mass. and toured New England with his high school band, The Pilgrims. He now lives with his family in San Diego, California.
Screamin’ Scott
Screamin’ Scott Simon has been an integral part of Sha Na Na’s popularity since 1970 as a charismatic performer, multi-instrumentalist musician (from keyboards to guitar and bass) and prolific songwriter. His best-known composition, “Sandy” was sung by John Travolta in the hit movie Grease....... Two other songs of his have made the billboard Hot 100, “Top Forty” and “Only One Song” both on the group’s “ Sha Na Na” (Gold Boots) album. Scott also wrote “Wrestling Tonight” performed by Sha Na Na for the 1985 film Grunt, and recorded a solo album on Rolling Rock Records, “Transmissions from Space.”
Raised in Kansas City, Missouri, Scott lives in Los Angeles, and can be seen performing at blues clubs throughout the L.A. area as his alter ego Eddie “Hong Kong” Tailor. “Boomer Humor” is the CD produced by Hong Kong Tailor and the Prom Kings, available online at www.eddiehongkongtailor.com
He is married and has two daughters, who are young adults in their own right.
Donny
Donny York is a native of Idaho and a 1971 graduate of Columbia, where he co-founded Sha Na Na. Donny penned a song on an early road tour, urging establishment of a “Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.” He later performed the song on Sha Na Na’s hit TV series. Finally, his prophecy came true with the opening of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland in 1995.
These days, Donny lives an hour north of Los Angles with his wife, kids, dogs, and horses and often provides animals for film and video productions. He’s also on the faculty of the Vocal Power Institute, teaching singers from around Los Angeles, and he sometimes substitute teaches in his local school system. His students aren’t dazzled with who he is or where this square grown-up has been until he tells them he performed at Woodstock. Says Donny, “Rock ‘n’ Roll has nothing to do with a generation gap anymore. Nowadays, it’s really a generation bridge.”
Reggie
A native Chicagoan, Reggie Battise started out in the fine arts, attending the school of the Art Institute of Chicago, before including the performing arts in his repertoire. At age 20, he was a local TV celebrity, hosting “Dancing with Robyn and Reggie.” Later, he toured as a member of the rock band, “The Bus Boys.” He also sang in “Porgy and Bess” with the Houston Grand Opera in Paris and on “Fantastico,” the #1 TV variety show in Rome, singing R&B in three languages.
Reggie choreographed Billy Crystal’s “You Look Mahvelous” video; sang on the soundtrack to the Civil War film Glory; appeared in “Moonlighting” with Bruce Willis and in commercials for Coca Cola, Pepsi and McDonald’s; and worked with Kid Creole and the Coconuts. Reggie was a principal dancer in Stayin’ Alive with John Travolta, and was both actor and script consultant for, White Men Can’t Jump. These days, between gigs with Sha Na Na, Reggie designs and builds avant-garde furniture.
Jim
Jim “Billy” Waldbilllig is Sha Na Na’s “Rockabilly Romeo.” Though Jim is a man of few words, he’s always ready to rock. Jim, originally a guitarist, is primarily the authentic bass guitar player on stage and, on most nights, is very proud of his hair. He is also a skilled carpenter and building contractor. Jim recently built his own vacation dream home on the shores of Bass Lake in Sandstone, Minnesota.
Paulie
Originally from the Bronx, New York, drummer Paul Kimbarow now lives in San Diego where he is one of the most sought-after musicians in the area. With his diverse musical background he has performed with a myriad of artists including A.J. Croce, the Ventures, Angela Bofill, Willie Colon, Robin Henkel, Chuck Berry, Ashford and Simpson, the Platters and now Sha Na Na . His television appearances include “The Tonight Show”,
“The Today Show” and “Rock Concert”.
Michael
“Downtown” Michael Brown originally from Newport Beach in Orange County Ca. now hails from Pahrump Nevada. The son of renowned jazz Pianist, Ronnie Brown, Michael has played the saxophone since the age of nine. He started out on a clarinet but quickly moved to saxophone because: 1. Clarinet players were not allowed in the school jazz band at Hienze Kaiser Middle School, and 2. His big brother said, “girls dug saxophone players a lot more than clarinet players”.
A regular on the Las Vegas and national touring scene he has performed with the likes of, Buckwheat Zydeco, The Platters, Lil’ Elmo and the Cosmos, Shake Rattle and Roll, Launi Kristopher, Mitch Woods and His Rocket 88’s, the house band at Ivan Kane’s Forty Deuce Club inside Mandalay Bay Las Vegas, and now Sha Na Na.
When not rocking, he is a racecar driver and the Executive director for the Melanoma Education Foundation of Nevada.
Michael has a new solo cd: WITH ALL MY HEART, an original eclectic blend of music from Pop-rock to Jazz-funk, punctuated by a ballad dedicated to melanoma awareness and the memory of his wife Amanda. It is available on CD Baby. (http://cdbaby.com/cd/downtownmichael) |
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