The Buckinghams in Concert

On this final day of 2022, we’d like to take a moment to address all of you who are here on our musical journey across the country and over the seas as we travel on cruises. Our world has been changing constantly this year, and as a result, we have seen what happens when we all join together in song, and in appreciation of the music that brings us together. The Buckinghams are now celebrating what will be our 58th year as a group. Thanks to quality songs by James Holvay, Gary Beisbier, Lloyd Price, Cannonball Adderly, and lyricists Johnny “Guitar” Watson, and Larry “Bad Boy” Williams, as well as the late Marty Grebb, our fellow bandmember, and talented producers including Dan Belloc, Carl Bonafede, James William Guercio, Jimmy “The Wiz” Wisner, as well as talented arrangers, label promo teams, and relentless devotion to our craft, The Buckinghams continue to be heard on terrestrial radio, we’re streaming on your favorite devices, and many times when you speak to Alexa, Siri, or Google...

To those in Chicago who look forward to attending the annual Columbus Day Parade, it is especially memorable for those of Italian heritage, thanks to Christopher Columbus for discovering America. The year 2021 Parade marked the 69th annual parade, held on State Street. [L to R: Carl Bonafede, Rocky Penn, Carl Giammarese, Carlo Isabelli, Nick Fortuna, Bruce Soboroff. Photo by Susan Rakis.] Pride in one’s family heritage runs strong, in Chicago and in every city across the country, but in the case of the Columbus Day annual celebration, one need only look to the JCCIA, which stands for the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans. [Photo courtesy of San Filippo Foundation, Facebook page.] When JCCIA current president Ron Onesti, CEO of Onesti Entertainment (The Arcada, Des Plaines Theatre, and several other venues), was planning for the 2021 Columbus Day Parade, he reached out to the Sanfilippo family (Jasper Sr.’s widow, Marian, and their five children continue to be inv...

Tuesday, August 31, marks the exciting long-awaited opening of musician Ron Romero’s dream: the Illinois Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . It’s located in the heart of Joliet, IL, at 9 W. Cass St. "On behalf of the entire Buckinghams band, original lead singer and founding member Dennis Tufano will be representing in the formal Hall of Fame induction ceremony," announced his friend and longtime fellow Buckingham, Carl Giammarese. "It’s poignant and so important that Dennis be there just as he was in the very beginning. The founding member we all considered the “heart” of The Buckinghams, John Poulos, and early founding member George LeGros as well as final founding member, Marty Grebb, are no longer with us. Dennis will share memories from his heart and will be wonderful in representing all of us from the beginning. He’ll also sing a few songs that evening," said Carl. Two early shots of The Pulsations turned The Buckinghams during the early days of WGN-TV...

From Chicago to LA and back again, There’s magic in the air tonight and it’s thanks to a story, some 50+ years in the making, of how a group of talented musicians, many of them undiscovered, would come together, in a story of reaching the top of the charts on Billboard , Cashbox , and Record World , fueled by determination to carve out each leg of a journey that would take his songs all over the world. One man would stay the course over 50 years in between paths that kept him far from the stage and spotlights in between each foray into music. But still the music kept calling his name. When it comes to The Buckinghams, it just so happened that the body of work he wrote solo or with Gary Beisbier made possible a #1 hit record for The Buckinghams and the devotion to their music that comes from being named by Billboard Magazine as "The Most Listened to Band in America." Am I talking of the music of The Buckinghams, the five-man band from Chicago who found fame and acclaim...

It's always a nice surprise when you have fellow musicians drop by backstage after the show to say hello and catch up for a few minutes. After the Happy Together concert at the Bergen Performing Arts Center in Englewood, New Jersey, multitalented musician Paul Shaffer came by to visit many of his friends. It's always great to see Paul. What an amazing collection of music he is responsible for! Of course you watched him for years every night on the "Late Show with David Letterman" as he conducted his "World's Most Dangerous Band." His book, "We'll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives," is, as he subtitled it, "A Swingin' Show-biz Saga Book." He talks about his years leading the Saturday Night Live Band, leading the Blues Brothers Band, and then the Late Show band and TV personality. Get the book here . Do you have a CD of their cover songs? (Find one here: https://theshaffershop.bigcartel.com/ ). Here's a photo of Nick...

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 ...

The Buckinghams looked like this in 1966, because of the influence of The British Invasion and, primarily, The Beatles. Rock and roll was never the same again! This week of February 2014 marks the 50th anniversary of when John, Paul, George, and Ringo, influenced by Elvis Presley and "Hound Dog" and a lot of American rock and roll, came over to America, for a date on the Ed Sullivan Show, and changed American music forever. NWI Times journalist Tom Lounges, who is also a popular radio host in the northern Indiana area, wrote a thoughtful column published Feb. 6, 2014 about The Beatles' influence. Carl Giammarese of The Buckinghams is one person Tom interviewed. Click on the link to read Tom's complete story: http://www.nwitimes.com/entertainment/music/beatlemanie-impacted-today-s-music-makers-near-and-far/article_679c9efa-62c4-526e-80e0-aee66eb60147.html

We’d like to take a minute to ask a favor of our Buckinghams’ friends and extended family to join us in prayers of healing for our dear friend John Opager, who is currently battling cancer and being such a trooper during the treatment process. As many of you know who have known us since the beginning, The Buckinghams owe our deepest gratitude and thanks to John. In essence, he gave us our name. We were first known as The Pulsations when we auditioned for and won the battle of the bands, and the right to perform for 13 weeks on the “All-Time Hits” TV show on WGN-TV back in 1965. The producers didn’t like our name and wanted us to change it and have it sound more like the British groups hitting the tops of the record charts at the time. During our first days of rehearsal, we’d made friends with John Opager, a young man about our age who was the security guard at the TV station. He gave us a list of names he’d thought up and we picked The Buckinghams from his listing. It made good se...

Paula Monaco shared these photos first on The Buckinghams' Facebook page. They're reposted here as a mini-concert album of a great evening. WLS-FM DJ Dick Biondi, a great friend of The Buckinghams, was on hand to introduce the entertainers. The evening's entertainment began with The Ides of March, Jim Peterik and the entire band offered a great show. Schaumburg's special event celebrated its 40th anniversary of Septemberfest. The fest was also a great opportunity to introduce several talented Schaumburg high school students, pageant finalists for college scholarships. As the young ladies were introduced, they announced their intention to study in colleges across the country in demanding, challenging academic majors. As the sun went down, the Schaumburg Township was in good voice and full force, as a crowd-18,000 strong-as Dick Biondi announced, had assembled. Time to celebrate Chicagoland and hear The Buckinghams as Mr. Biondi introduced Carl Bonafede, former Manager of...

According to the Billboard Magazine music charts, today marks the 43rd anniversary of the day when "Kind of a Drag" reached the number one spot. The Top Five Songs for the Week of Feb. 18, 1967 include: 1 Kind of a Drag, The Buckinghams 2 I'm a Believer, The Monkees 3 Ruby Tuesday, The Rolling Stones 4 Georgy Girl, The Seekers 5 (We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet, The Blues Magoos Released originally on the USA Records label, the song was coproduced by Carl Bonafede and Dan Belloc, recorded at Chess Studios at 2120 S. Michigan Ave. in Chicago. The office and studio was designated as a Chicago Landmark in May, 1990 and is home to timeless rock, blues, and jazz classics that, like the music of The Buckinghams, remain a commodity, even 43 years after their original release date. Columbia Records bought the masters for The Buckinghams' music after the band signed as Columbia recording artists, so you'll find Kind of a Drag as hits on both labels. Most recently, Carl G...

Ever heard of The Screaming Wildman of Chicago Radio? Carl Bonafede was one of the 'most heard' voices in Chicago on any 50,000 watt station broadcasting across the country. Fast-talking, quick-witted, one-of-a-kind DJ, Bonafede was more than just a DJ. Carl Bonafede was the manager of The Buckinghams in the 1960s, among several other popular groups of Chicagoland. He and Dan Belloc also co-produced several records on the USA label for The Buckinghams, including the #1 "Kind of a Drag". The latest issue of Keep Rockin ' Magazine has a feature story on Carl Bonafede by Dawn Lee Wakefield, as well as a cover story on never-before-seen photographs of The Beatles, and the story behind them, written by Ian Wright. Chicago teens will also appreciate a feature by Kenn Petzke "Bandstand Matinee with Jim Lounsbury," with great nostalgic event tickets, bandstand matinee club cards, and a "I am a Jim Lounsbury Fan" pin-on lapel button. It's a great tr...