Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes
Encyclopedia
Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes are a Jersey Shore
musical group led by Southside Johnny
. They have been recording albums since 1976
and are closely associated with Bruce Springsteen
& The E Street Band. They have recorded and/or performed several Springsteen songs, including "The Fever
" and "Fade Away". Springsteen has also performed with the band on numerous occasions and in 1991 guested on their Better Days album. During the bands formative years Miami Steve Van Zandt acted as the bands co-leader, guitarist, songwriter, arranger and producer while other E Streeters including Clarence Clemons
, Max Weinberg
, Garry Tallent
, Ernest Carter, Patti Scialfa
and Soozie Tyrell
have all performed, toured and/or recorded with the Jukes. The bands horn section
– The Miami Horns
– has also toured and recorded with Springsteen. More than one hundred musicians can claim to have been members of The Asbury Jukes, including Jon Bon Jovi
who toured with the band as a special guest during 1990. Bon Jovi has also cited the band as an influence and Jukes' Bobby Bandiera
and Jeff Kazee
have also toured with Bon Jovi
. Other notable band members include Mark Pender
and Richie "La Bamba" Rosenberg who have played regularly with The Max Weinberg 7 on both Late Night with Conan O'Brien
and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien
.
and Steve Van Zandt, the two prime movers behind the formation of the Jukes, began playing together in various bands during the early 1970s. These bands, initially based out of the Upstage Club at 702 Cookman Avenue in Asbury Park, New Jersey
, were usually short lived and often included Bruce Springsteen
and various future members of The E Street Band. Amongst the earliest of these bands was Funky Dusty & The Soul Broom, a short-lived 1970 band which also featured Garry Tallent
and Bobby Williams (drums). The same quartet also acted as backing band for a local folksinger Jeannie Clark. At the time Van Zandt was also a member of Steel Mill
while Southside has just left one of his formative bands, Maelstrom. Next came Steve Van Zandt & Friends, a January 1971 band that also included Springsteen, Tallent, Williams and Danny Federici
. By February 1971 Van Zandt and Southside, together with Tallent and David Sancious
, were playing as Steve Van Zandt & The Big Bad Bobby Williams Band. In March 1971 Van Zandt and Southside also featured in a short lived Springsteen band, The Friendly Enemies. The highlight of their brief existence was opening for The Allman Brothers. Other members of this band included Tallent, Sancious, Williams and Vini Lopez
. In April 1971 Van Zandt and Southside also began co-leading The Sundance Blues Band, a group whose line-up would also feature Springsteen, Lopez, Tallent and Sancious. In May 1971 Springsteen also recruited all the members of The Sundance Blues Band to play in his very short lived band, Dr. Zoom & The Sonic Boom. Among the many musicians to play with this group was Kevin Kavanagh, a future Juke. Kavanagh grew up in Middletown, New Jersey and was a childhood friend of Van Zandt. They had also played together in a band called The Shadows. From July 1971 Van Zandt, Lopez, Tallent and Sancious also began backing Springsteen as The Bruce Springsteen Band and they would eventually evolve into The E Street Band. Southside would also occasionally play with this band. 1972 would prove to be another active year for Van Zandt and Southside. As well as playing with The Sundance Blues Band, backing Springsteen and performing as a duo, Southside Johnny & The Kid, together with Kavanagh, they also played in bands such as Albee & The Hired Hands and the Bank Street Blues Band.
backing band and Southside Johnny
began to play with the Blackberry Booze Band. It was this band that eventually evolved into The Asbury Jukes. The original BBB had been playing together since 1968 and by 1974 featured a line-up of Paul Green (harmonica, vocals), Paul Dickler (guitar), David Meyers (bass) and Kenny Pentifallo (drums). They had established themselves as the house band at a new club, The Stone Pony
. Green was the bands lead singer but he preferred to play harmonica. Meanwhile Southside was playing harmonica with the Bank Street Blues Band but had few opportunities to sing lead. Green and Southside effectively swapped bands and Southside soon emerged as the leader of BBB, firing Dickler and Meyers. He subsequently recruited Kevin Kavanagh and Van Zandt, who in turn recruited Al Berger, and in June 1975, inspired by Little Walter & The Jukes they changed their name to The Asbury Jukes. The original Jukes line-up was then completed with the addition of Mexican American
Carlo Novi (tenor sax) and Billy Rush (guitar)
’s E Street Band
and subsequently accompanied him on the Born to Run tour
. Meanwhile back in Asbury Park, the Jukes became Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes and continued to play as the house band at The Stone Pony
. However Van Zandt maintained his association with the Jukes and produced a four-song demo at the Record Plant Studios
that attracted the attention of Steve Popovich
of Epic Records
. This then led to Van Zandt producing their debut album, I Don't Want To Go Home, at the same studio. Van Zandt also wrote three songs for the album including "How Come You Treat Me So Bad", which featured guest vocals from Lee Dorsey
and the title track which effectively became the bands theme tune. Other highlights on the album two songs donated by Springsteen – "The Fever
" and "You Mean So Much To Me". Clarence Clemons
provided bass vocal on the former but is credited under the pseudonym Selmon T. Sachs while the latter was performed as a duet by Southside Johnny
and Ronnie Spector
.
During the 1970s Van Zandt went onto produce two further albums with the Jukes. This Time It's For Real, released in 1977, saw Van Zandt write eight of the albums ten songs, including three co-written by Springsteen. It also featured guest appearances from The Drifters
, The Coasters
and The Five Satins
. Their third album, Hearts Of Stone
, released in 1978 was recorded without guest appearances and featured entirely original material. Van Zandt wrote seven of the nine songs including "Trapped Again", co-written with Southside and Springsteen. Springsteen also donated two further songs, the title track and "Talk to Me".
The band was also featured in the 1977 film "Between The Lines" which starred then unknown actors Jeff Goldblum, John Heard, Lindsay Crouse, Jill Eikenberry, and Stephen Collins. The band is shown performing 'Sweeter Than Honey" and "Having A Party."
. His increasing commitments to Bruce Springsteen
also saw Miami Steve Van Zandt end his working relationship with the Jukes and this led to Billy Rush taking over as the band's co-leader and principal songwriter. The next three Jukes albums were all released on Mercury Records
. The Jukes was recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
and produced by Barry Beckett
. This was then followed by Love Is A Sacrifice and a double live album Reach Up and Touch the Sky
. The latter two both saw Stephan Galfas
help out with engineering and production and also featured a trio a backing singers – Patti Scialfa
, Soozie Kirschner and Lisa Lowell. 1983's Trash It Up was released by Mirage Records and produced by Nile Rodgers
while 1984's In the Heat saw Asbury dropped from the bands name. It also marked the end of Billy Rush’s association with the Jukes. After leaving the band Rush went on produce for Taka Boom
, Serge Gainsbourg
and Kacy Crowley
.
replaced Rush in 1985. The band released At Least We Got Shoes 1986 as Southside Johnny & The Jukes before becoming Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes again. In 1991 they released Better Days
which yielded minor hits with "It's Been a Long Time" and "I've Been Workin' Too Hard" and included vocal contributions from Bruce Springsteen
and Jon Bon Jovi
. Bon Jovi even joined the band as a special guest on their 1990 tour.
The band released several more albums in the 1990s and 2000s and they changed membership several times. Their current lineup includes keyboardist Jeff Kazee
and bassist John Conte.
Ex-member Kevin Kavanaugh, born November 27, 1951, died June 4, 2011.
In 2011, looking to expand his artistic opportunities, Southside Johnny and The Poor Fools were formed. Composed of musicians Jeff Kazee
, John Conte, Tommy Brynes and Soozie Tyrell, this acoustic-ish ensemble plays a wide range of music from Dylan, Mose Allison, Muddy Waters, NRBQ, Richard Thompson, Emmylou Harris, The Band, George Jones and more, as well as some of the legendary Asbury Jukes material in a stripped down format.
Jersey Shore sound
The Jersey Shore sound is a genre of rock and roll popularized at the Jersey Shore on the Atlantic Ocean coast of New Jersey, United States, that goes by a variety of names or, more often, is defined by its artists...
musical group led by Southside Johnny
Southside Johnny
Southside Johnny is an American singer-songwriter, who usually fronts his band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes.-Early days:...
. They have been recording albums since 1976
1976 in music
-January–February:*January 5 – Former Beatles road manager Mal Evans is shot dead by Los Angeles police after refusing to drop what police only later determine is an air rifle....
and are closely associated with Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
& The E Street Band. They have recorded and/or performed several Springsteen songs, including "The Fever
The Fever (Bruce Springsteen song)
"The Fever" is an early Bruce Springsteen song, perhaps first written in 1971 under the title " Fever For the Girl". It was performed by Springsteen in concert beginning in March 1973...
" and "Fade Away". Springsteen has also performed with the band on numerous occasions and in 1991 guested on their Better Days album. During the bands formative years Miami Steve Van Zandt acted as the bands co-leader, guitarist, songwriter, arranger and producer while other E Streeters including Clarence Clemons
Clarence Clemons
Clarence Anicholas Clemons, Jr. , also known as The Big Man, was an American musician and actor. From 1972 until his death, he was a prominent member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, playing the tenor saxophone. He released several solo albums and in 1985, had a hit single with "You're a...
, Max Weinberg
Max Weinberg
Max Weinberg is an American drummer and television personality, most widely known as the longtime drummer for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and as the bandleader for Conan O'Brien on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien.Weinberg grew up in suburban New Jersey...
, Garry Tallent
Garry Tallent
Garry Wayne Tallent , sometimes billed as Garry W. Tallent, is an American musician and record producer, best known for being the longtime bass player in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band....
, Ernest Carter, Patti Scialfa
Patti Scialfa
Vivienne Patricia "Patti" Scialfa is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She is married to Bruce Springsteen and they have three children.- Early life :...
and Soozie Tyrell
Soozie Tyrell
Soozie Tyrell, , formerly known as Soozie Kirschner, is an American violinist and vocalist, most known for her work with Bruce Springsteen in the E Street Band.-Biography:...
have all performed, toured and/or recorded with the Jukes. The bands horn section
Horn section
In music, a horn section can refer to several groups of musicians. It can refer to the musicians in a symphony orchestra who play the horn . In a British-style brass band it refers to the tenor horn players. In popular music, it can also refer to a small group of wind instrumentalists who augment a...
– The Miami Horns
The Miami Horns
The Miami Horns are a horn section best known for touring and/or recording with Southside Johnny, Bruce Springsteen, Little Steven and The Max Weinberg 7. They have also toured, performed and/or recorded with, among others, Diana Ross, Gary U.S...
– has also toured and recorded with Springsteen. More than one hundred musicians can claim to have been members of The Asbury Jukes, including Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the founder, occasional rhythm guitarist, and lead singer of rock band Bon Jovi, which was named after him...
who toured with the band as a special guest during 1990. Bon Jovi has also cited the band as an influence and Jukes' Bobby Bandiera
Bobby Bandiera
Bobby Bandiera is an American rock guitarist and singer known in the Jersey Shore sound world.- Biography :Bandiera was originally in a band called Holme from Orange, New Jersey...
and Jeff Kazee
Jeff Kazee
Longtime pianist/vocalist/songwriter and Hammond B3 organist for the legendary Rock/Soul band "Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes", Jeff Kazee has also worked extensively with "Bon Jovi" and "Jon Bon Jovi" ....
have also toured with Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi is an American rock band from Sayreville, New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi , guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald...
. Other notable band members include Mark Pender
Mark Pender
Mark "The Loveman" Pender is a trumpet player and vocalist who has played with Southside Johnny, Little Steven and Bruce Springsteen. Since 1993 he has performed on Late Night With Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien as a member of The Max Weinberg 7 and The Tonight Show Band...
and Richie "La Bamba" Rosenberg who have played regularly with The Max Weinberg 7 on both Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...
and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien
The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien
The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show that featured Conan O'Brien as host from June 1, 2009 to January 22, 2010 as part of NBC's long-running Tonight Show franchise...
.
Early years
Southside JohnnySouthside Johnny
Southside Johnny is an American singer-songwriter, who usually fronts his band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes.-Early days:...
and Steve Van Zandt, the two prime movers behind the formation of the Jukes, began playing together in various bands during the early 1970s. These bands, initially based out of the Upstage Club at 702 Cookman Avenue in Asbury Park, New Jersey
Asbury Park, New Jersey
Asbury Park is a city in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, located on the Jersey Shore and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 16,116. The city is known for its rich musical history, including its association with...
, were usually short lived and often included Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
and various future members of The E Street Band. Amongst the earliest of these bands was Funky Dusty & The Soul Broom, a short-lived 1970 band which also featured Garry Tallent
Garry Tallent
Garry Wayne Tallent , sometimes billed as Garry W. Tallent, is an American musician and record producer, best known for being the longtime bass player in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band....
and Bobby Williams (drums). The same quartet also acted as backing band for a local folksinger Jeannie Clark. At the time Van Zandt was also a member of Steel Mill
Steel Mill
Steel Mill was an early Bruce Springsteen band. Other members of the band included three future members of the E Street Band - Vini Lopez, Danny Federici and Steve Van Zandt. As well as playing on the Jersey Shore, Steel Mill also played regularly in Richmond, Virginia and played gigs in California...
while Southside has just left one of his formative bands, Maelstrom. Next came Steve Van Zandt & Friends, a January 1971 band that also included Springsteen, Tallent, Williams and Danny Federici
Danny Federici
Daniel Paul "Danny" Federici was an American musician, best known as the longtime organ, glockenspiel, and accordion player for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.- Career :...
. By February 1971 Van Zandt and Southside, together with Tallent and David Sancious
David Sancious
David Sancious is an American musician. He was an early member of Bruce Springsteen's backing group, the E Street Band, and contributed to the first three Springsteen albums, and again on the 1992 album Human Touch. Sancious is a multi-instrumentalist but is best known as a keyboard player and...
, were playing as Steve Van Zandt & The Big Bad Bobby Williams Band. In March 1971 Van Zandt and Southside also featured in a short lived Springsteen band, The Friendly Enemies. The highlight of their brief existence was opening for The Allman Brothers. Other members of this band included Tallent, Sancious, Williams and Vini Lopez
Vini Lopez
Vini "Mad Dog" Lopez is an American drummer. Between 1968 and 1974 Lopez backed Bruce Springsteen in several bands, including Steel Mill and the E Street Band. He also played on Springsteen’s first two albums, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. and The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle...
. In April 1971 Van Zandt and Southside also began co-leading The Sundance Blues Band, a group whose line-up would also feature Springsteen, Lopez, Tallent and Sancious. In May 1971 Springsteen also recruited all the members of The Sundance Blues Band to play in his very short lived band, Dr. Zoom & The Sonic Boom. Among the many musicians to play with this group was Kevin Kavanagh, a future Juke. Kavanagh grew up in Middletown, New Jersey and was a childhood friend of Van Zandt. They had also played together in a band called The Shadows. From July 1971 Van Zandt, Lopez, Tallent and Sancious also began backing Springsteen as The Bruce Springsteen Band and they would eventually evolve into The E Street Band. Southside would also occasionally play with this band. 1972 would prove to be another active year for Van Zandt and Southside. As well as playing with The Sundance Blues Band, backing Springsteen and performing as a duo, Southside Johnny & The Kid, together with Kavanagh, they also played in bands such as Albee & The Hired Hands and the Bank Street Blues Band.
Blackberry Booze Band
By 1974 Miami Steve Van Zandt was playing with Al Berger in The DovellsThe Dovells
The Dovells were an American music group, formed at Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1957, under the name 'The Brooktones'. The members were Arnie Silver, Mark Gordesky, Len Borisoff , Jerry Gross, Mike Freda and Jim Mealey...
backing band and Southside Johnny
Southside Johnny
Southside Johnny is an American singer-songwriter, who usually fronts his band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes.-Early days:...
began to play with the Blackberry Booze Band. It was this band that eventually evolved into The Asbury Jukes. The original BBB had been playing together since 1968 and by 1974 featured a line-up of Paul Green (harmonica, vocals), Paul Dickler (guitar), David Meyers (bass) and Kenny Pentifallo (drums). They had established themselves as the house band at a new club, The Stone Pony
The Stone Pony
The Stone Pony, located in Asbury Park, New Jersey, is one of the world's best known music venues. It is known as a starting point for many musicians, first and foremost for Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, who were the house-band for much of the mid-seventies, but also for New Jersey natives...
. Green was the bands lead singer but he preferred to play harmonica. Meanwhile Southside was playing harmonica with the Bank Street Blues Band but had few opportunities to sing lead. Green and Southside effectively swapped bands and Southside soon emerged as the leader of BBB, firing Dickler and Meyers. He subsequently recruited Kevin Kavanagh and Van Zandt, who in turn recruited Al Berger, and in June 1975, inspired by Little Walter & The Jukes they changed their name to The Asbury Jukes. The original Jukes line-up was then completed with the addition of Mexican American
Mexican American
Mexican Americans are Americans of Mexican descent. As of July 2009, Mexican Americans make up 10.3% of the United States' population with over 31,689,000 Americans listed as of Mexican ancestry. Mexican Americans comprise 66% of all Hispanics and Latinos in the United States...
Carlo Novi (tenor sax) and Billy Rush (guitar)
The Miami Steve era
In July 1975 Miami Steve Van Zandt joined Bruce SpringsteenBruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
’s E Street Band
E Street Band
The E Street Band has been rock musician Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972.The band has also recorded with a wide range of other artists including Bob Dylan, Meat Loaf, Bonnie Tyler, Air Supply, Dire Straits, David Bowie, Peter Gabriel, Stevie Nicks, Tom Morello, Sting, Ian...
and subsequently accompanied him on the Born to Run tour
Born to Run tours
Born to Run was Bruce Springsteen's last, best hope for fortune and fame. As such it became a torturous recording process, and to make ends meet Springsteen and the E Street Band toured constantly during the first set of recording sessions for it, performing his new songs as he developed them...
. Meanwhile back in Asbury Park, the Jukes became Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes and continued to play as the house band at The Stone Pony
The Stone Pony
The Stone Pony, located in Asbury Park, New Jersey, is one of the world's best known music venues. It is known as a starting point for many musicians, first and foremost for Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, who were the house-band for much of the mid-seventies, but also for New Jersey natives...
. However Van Zandt maintained his association with the Jukes and produced a four-song demo at the Record Plant Studios
Record Plant Studios
The Record Plant was a series of three famous recording studios which were founded by Gary Kellgren and Chris Stone, beginning in New York City in 1968. The next year, Kellgren and Stone opened a second studio in Los Angeles. In 1972, the company expanded again with a third location in Sausalito,...
that attracted the attention of Steve Popovich
Steve Popovich
Steve Popovich , was an American record company executive.Popovich was born in Nemacolin, Pennsylvania, and in 1962 started in the warehouse at Columbia Records Cleveland...
of Epic Records
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
. This then led to Van Zandt producing their debut album, I Don't Want To Go Home, at the same studio. Van Zandt also wrote three songs for the album including "How Come You Treat Me So Bad", which featured guest vocals from Lee Dorsey
Lee Dorsey
Lee Dorsey was an African American pop/R&B singer during the 1960s. Much of his work was produced by Allen Toussaint with instrumental backing provided by the Meters.-Career:...
and the title track which effectively became the bands theme tune. Other highlights on the album two songs donated by Springsteen – "The Fever
The Fever (Bruce Springsteen song)
"The Fever" is an early Bruce Springsteen song, perhaps first written in 1971 under the title " Fever For the Girl". It was performed by Springsteen in concert beginning in March 1973...
" and "You Mean So Much To Me". Clarence Clemons
Clarence Clemons
Clarence Anicholas Clemons, Jr. , also known as The Big Man, was an American musician and actor. From 1972 until his death, he was a prominent member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, playing the tenor saxophone. He released several solo albums and in 1985, had a hit single with "You're a...
provided bass vocal on the former but is credited under the pseudonym Selmon T. Sachs while the latter was performed as a duet by Southside Johnny
Southside Johnny
Southside Johnny is an American singer-songwriter, who usually fronts his band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes.-Early days:...
and Ronnie Spector
Ronnie Spector
Veronica Yvette "Ronnie" Spector is an American rock and roll and popular music vocalist, and was the lead singer of the 1960s hit-making girl group, The Ronettes, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. She is known as the "original bad girl of rock and roll."-Personal...
.
During the 1970s Van Zandt went onto produce two further albums with the Jukes. This Time It's For Real, released in 1977, saw Van Zandt write eight of the albums ten songs, including three co-written by Springsteen. It also featured guest appearances from The Drifters
The Drifters
The Drifters are a long-lived American doo-wop and R&B/soul vocal group with a peak in popularity from 1953 to 1963, though several splinter Drifters continue to perform today. They were originally formed to serve as Clyde McPhatter's backing group in 1953...
, The Coasters
The Coasters
The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group that had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with "Searchin'" and "Young Blood", their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producing team of Leiber and Stoller...
and The Five Satins
The Five Satins
The Five Satins are an American doo-wop group, best known for their 1956 million-selling song, "In the Still of the Night."-Career:The group, formed in New Haven, Connecticut, consisted of leader Fred Parris, Lou Peebles, Stanley Dortch, Ed Martin and Jim Freeman in 1954. With little success, the...
. Their third album, Hearts Of Stone
Hearts of Stone (Asbury Jukes)
Hearts of Stone is the third album by New Jersey rock–R&B band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, released in 1978.-History:Hearts of Stone has been called "the best album Bruce Springsteen never recorded", which is not quite accurate...
, released in 1978 was recorded without guest appearances and featured entirely original material. Van Zandt wrote seven of the nine songs including "Trapped Again", co-written with Southside and Springsteen. Springsteen also donated two further songs, the title track and "Talk to Me".
The band was also featured in the 1977 film "Between The Lines" which starred then unknown actors Jeff Goldblum, John Heard, Lindsay Crouse, Jill Eikenberry, and Stephen Collins. The band is shown performing 'Sweeter Than Honey" and "Having A Party."
The Billy Rush era
1979 saw Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes undergo several important changes. Their first three studio albums had only been moderate commercial successes and they were subsequently dropped by Epic RecordsEpic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
. His increasing commitments to Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
also saw Miami Steve Van Zandt end his working relationship with the Jukes and this led to Billy Rush taking over as the band's co-leader and principal songwriter. The next three Jukes albums were all released on Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
. The Jukes was recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
The Muscle Shoals Sound Studio was formed in Muscle Shoals, Alabama,in 1969 when musicians Barry Beckett , Roger Hawkins , Jimmy Johnson and David Hood left FAME Studios to create their own studio...
and produced by Barry Beckett
Barry Beckett
Barry Edward Beckett was a keyboardist who worked as a session musician with several notable artists on their studio albums...
. This was then followed by Love Is A Sacrifice and a double live album Reach Up and Touch the Sky
Reach Up and Touch the Sky
Reach Up and Touch the Sky, sometimes called Reach Out and Touch the Sky, is a 1981 double live album by Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes. Released on Mercury Records in 1981 to satisfy the contract of the band, which had recently broken up, it was a moderate commercial success, charting in the...
. The latter two both saw Stephan Galfas
Stephan Galfas
Stephan Galfas is a music producer, currently CEO of International Talent Organization, Inc. and Miss Molly Records.-Biography:Galfas is a producer, manager, promoter, mixer and recording engineer who has worked with many acts including Cher, The Allman Brothers Band, Meat Loaf, Stryper, Saxon, Dr...
help out with engineering and production and also featured a trio a backing singers – Patti Scialfa
Patti Scialfa
Vivienne Patricia "Patti" Scialfa is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She is married to Bruce Springsteen and they have three children.- Early life :...
, Soozie Kirschner and Lisa Lowell. 1983's Trash It Up was released by Mirage Records and produced by Nile Rodgers
Nile Rodgers
Nile Gregory Rodgers is an American musician, producer, composer, arranger, and guitarist.-Biography:...
while 1984's In the Heat saw Asbury dropped from the bands name. It also marked the end of Billy Rush’s association with the Jukes. After leaving the band Rush went on produce for Taka Boom
Taka Boom
Taka Boom is a female R&B and dance music singer and is the younger sister of Chaka Khan and Mark Stevens of Aurra. She sang background vocals for several Parliament albums in the 1970s...
, Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
and Kacy Crowley
Kacy Crowley
Kacy Crowley is an American musician and singer-songwriter. A New England native, she currently resides in Austin, Texas.-Early life:Born in Northampton, Massachusetts, her mother was a piano teacher and her father was a construction worker. Her family soon relocated to Connecticut, where Kacy...
.
The Bobby Bandiera Era
Guitarist Bobby BandieraBobby Bandiera
Bobby Bandiera is an American rock guitarist and singer known in the Jersey Shore sound world.- Biography :Bandiera was originally in a band called Holme from Orange, New Jersey...
replaced Rush in 1985. The band released At Least We Got Shoes 1986 as Southside Johnny & The Jukes before becoming Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes again. In 1991 they released Better Days
Better Days (Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes album)
Better Days is an album by Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, released in 1991. It yielded minor hits "It's Been a Long Time" and "I've Been Workin' Too Hard". The song "It's Been a Long Time" features shared lead vocals by Southside Johnny, Steve Van Zandt, and Bruce Springsteen and is a...
which yielded minor hits with "It's Been a Long Time" and "I've Been Workin' Too Hard" and included vocal contributions from Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
and Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the founder, occasional rhythm guitarist, and lead singer of rock band Bon Jovi, which was named after him...
. Bon Jovi even joined the band as a special guest on their 1990 tour.
The band released several more albums in the 1990s and 2000s and they changed membership several times. Their current lineup includes keyboardist Jeff Kazee
Jeff Kazee
Longtime pianist/vocalist/songwriter and Hammond B3 organist for the legendary Rock/Soul band "Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes", Jeff Kazee has also worked extensively with "Bon Jovi" and "Jon Bon Jovi" ....
and bassist John Conte.
Ex-member Kevin Kavanaugh, born November 27, 1951, died June 4, 2011.
Currently
In 2010, the band released "Pills and Ammo" with songs written by (Southside) John Lyon and Jeff Kazee. The album received critical acclaim internationally. The Jukes continue to perform extensively throughout the Northeast United States and annually in the UK and Europe.In 2011, looking to expand his artistic opportunities, Southside Johnny and The Poor Fools were formed. Composed of musicians Jeff Kazee
Jeff Kazee
Longtime pianist/vocalist/songwriter and Hammond B3 organist for the legendary Rock/Soul band "Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes", Jeff Kazee has also worked extensively with "Bon Jovi" and "Jon Bon Jovi" ....
, John Conte, Tommy Brynes and Soozie Tyrell, this acoustic-ish ensemble plays a wide range of music from Dylan, Mose Allison, Muddy Waters, NRBQ, Richard Thompson, Emmylou Harris, The Band, George Jones and more, as well as some of the legendary Asbury Jukes material in a stripped down format.
Studio albums
- Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes
- I Don't Want To Go HomeI Don't Want To Go HomeI Don't Want to Go Home was the first album by seminal New Jersey rock/R&B band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes. The work helped establish the basis of the Jersey Shore sound....
(1976) - This Time It's for RealThis Time It's for Real (album)This Time It's for Real was the second album by seminal New Jersey Rock/R&B band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes. Like their first album I Don't Want To Go Home this album features a number of guest artists and duets, a trend that would be dropped for their next album Hearts of Stone. "Check Mr...
(1977) - Hearts of StoneHearts of Stone (Asbury Jukes)Hearts of Stone is the third album by New Jersey rock–R&B band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, released in 1978.-History:Hearts of Stone has been called "the best album Bruce Springsteen never recorded", which is not quite accurate...
(1978) - Havin' a Party (1979)
- The Jukes (1979)
- Love Is a Sacrifice (1980)
- Trash It Up (1983)
- Better DaysBetter Days (Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes album)Better Days is an album by Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, released in 1991. It yielded minor hits "It's Been a Long Time" and "I've Been Workin' Too Hard". The song "It's Been a Long Time" features shared lead vocals by Southside Johnny, Steve Van Zandt, and Bruce Springsteen and is a...
(1991) - Messin' With the Blues (2000)
- Going To Jukesville (2002)
- Into the Harbour (2005)
- Pills and Ammo (2010)
- I Don't Want To Go Home
- Southside Johnny & The Jukes
- In the Heat (1984)
- At Least We Got Shoes (1986)
- Southside Johnny
- Slow Dance (1988)
- Southside Johnny with La Bamba's Big Band
- Grapefruit Moon: The Songs of Tom Waits (2008)
Live Recordings
- Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes
- Live At the Bottom Line (1976)
- Live: Reach Up and Touch the SkyReach Up and Touch the SkyReach Up and Touch the Sky, sometimes called Reach Out and Touch the Sky, is a 1981 double live album by Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes. Released on Mercury Records in 1981 to satisfy the contract of the band, which had recently broken up, it was a moderate commercial success, charting in the...
(1981) - Live at the Paradise Theater (2000)
- From Southside To Tyneside (2008)
- 1978: Live In Boston (2008)
- Hearts of Stone LIVE (2009)
- Men Without Women LIVE (forthcoming)
- Southside Johnny
- Spittin' Fire (1997)
Compilations
- Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes
- Havin' a Party With Southside Johnny (1979)
- The Best of Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes (1992)
- All I Want Is Everything – The Best of 1979 – 1991 (1993)
- Ruff Stuff (EP) (1995)
- Rockin’ With the Jukes (1998)
- Restless Heart (1998)
- More Ruff Stuff (EP) (2000)
- Superhits (2001)
- Found In a Closet (EP) (2003)
- Missing Pieces (2004)
- Collections (2006)
- Jukebox (2007)
- Fever! The Anthology 1976–1991 (2008)
- Ruff Stuff 3 (EP) (2008)
- Acoustic Ammo (EP) (2011)