Our Christmas Wishes for You

Dear Friends, During this season as we celebrate with our family and friends, we consider you a very special gift in our music career lives. For those who join us in celebrating Christmas, we send our best wishes for a feeling of joy. Amidst the celebrations and festivities, we remember that many of us find holidays poignant, minus one or more special loved ones who made Christmas ‘complete’ simply by their presence, their faith, and their leadership of generations before us. Our thoughts and prayers are with each of you, and we extend special thanks for the blessings of your attendance at concerts, orders of our music, and continued postings on Facebook to let us know you appreciate our music. Bruce Soboroff, Dave Zane, and Rocky Penn join us in wishing you a very Merry Christmas and may your hearts be always filled with joy. Carl Giammarese and Nick Fortuna

[Photo courtesy of freedigitalimage.net] Cross-posted on Facebook here.

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Remembering Frank Tesinsky, Beloved Chicago Musician, Key to The Buckinghams' Characteristic Sound

Each time the opening notes to “Kind of a Drag” come on the air, whether it’s your car radio, your phone, or choice of streaming media, the first 23 notes you hear inform you immediately that not only are you hearing “Kind of a Drag,” but you are hearing The Buckinghams. That instant recognition, in turn, is thanks to the talent of musician Frank Tesinsky, who arranged the iconic tune for producers Dan Belloc and Carl Bonafede in a 1966 recording session in Chicago’s Chess Studios. The Buckinghams family was greatly saddened to learn of Frank’s passing on November 9. Catherine Johns, his wife of 32 years, was a beloved part of his life and part of Chicago radio as well. In February 1967 "Kind of a Drag" was #1 on the Billboard charts for two weeks, and it forever defined the sound of five young men from the northside of Chicago. Just 27 notes, right? And yet, it defined the magic of what would become known as “the horn sound” that The Buckinghams are b...

What Celebrating 50 Years Since Reaching #1 on Billboard Means in the World of The Buckinghams

Everyone who is a fan of the band The Buckinghams can easily name all the songs that were Top 10 hits, Top 20 hits, and Billboard Top 100 chartmakers. You have several songs that have personal, special meaning for you. But the song that took the native Chicagoans out of the basements of the band members' homes was the one USA Records released last, almost as an afterthought. "Kind of a Drag" has the distinction of being the song that took this band to the national level. Many wonderful bands are part of Chicago history, and they are as beloved today as they were in their time. But this one song, "Kind of a Drag" took flight and went to #1 on Billboard 50 years ago today, February 18, 1967. Imagine what it was like for five young men to hold a copy of "Billboard" in their hands. For a few years, Carl and Jon-Jon had gone to the newsstand each week, buying a single copy of "Billboard" and reading it cover to cover. These days you hear about ...

In Memory of John Poulos, March 31, 1947 - March 26, 1980

Five days before his 33rd birthday, we lost John Poulos, a dear friend who was like a brother to us, as well as The Buckinghams’ drummer. Often described as the heartbeat of our band, he was known to most Buckinghams’ fans of the 60s simply as Jon-Jon. To know John was to love him. With his outgoing personality, he never met a stranger. His talent is remembered best in the style he displayed on drum fills and riffs on our hits, including “Don’t You Care,” “Hey Baby, They’re Playing Our Song,” and “Kind of a Drag.” It’s not surprising that Jon-Jon was included as one of the Top 10 drummers in Modern Drummer Magazine. Contemporary MySpace profiles of aspiring amateur and professional musicians today include the name John Poulos among their musical influences. That’s an honor both fitting and accurate for a musician who was truly one of a kind. Nick and I recall that one of John’s own musical influences was Bobby Elliot, drummer for The Hollies, whose signature beret and tossing of his he...

The Buckinghams in Concert

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