The Buckinghams in Concert

On August 31, Illinois music fans can be part of an exciting first in classic music history. At 7pm the Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet will be the site of the inaugural Annual Hall of Fame Awards Ceremony sponsored by the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Route 66. Twelve inaugural inductees include bands The Buckinghams, the band Chicago, Cheap Trick, The Ides of March, and REO Speedwagon, plus bluesmen Buddy Guy and Muddy Waters. Also to be honored are radio station WLS-AM, popular deejay Larry Lujack and the iconic Dick Biondi (Lifetime Achievement Award) legendary Chess Records, and venue The Thirsty Whale. This is the group originally identified as the Class of 2020, but COVID delayed the opening of the museum and Hall of Fame inauguration. A concert on August 31 will feature live performances by REO Speedwagon, Ides of March, Jimy Sohns (Shadows of Knight), Muddy Waters’ son, Mud Morganfield, New Colony 6, and the Millenials. The band Chicago and The Buckinghams ar

/> In 1966, what are the chances that Carl Giammarese, Nick Fortuna, Dennis Tufano, Marty Grebb, and John Poulos would have ever thought that their names, faces, mementos, and music would be part of an historic exhibit housed in the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, Illinois? Known as “The State of Sound: A World of Music From Illinois,” it’s most prestigious for The Buckinghams to be included in this collective. It’s fair to say that no one saw this coming. Sadly, two of the five band members are no longer with us, but both John and Marty have daughters who can see and feel the adulation of their fathers’ respective musical legacies. From 1966–1967, in the course of a year’s time, several young men from Chicago’s north side and one from the south side came together to form two bands; ultimately three members of The Centuries would come and go into The Pulsations, whose first membership also experienced comings and goings in their band. Ultimately

UPDATE TO ARTICLE: Answers to Questions at the end of the article. Scroll down to see! Many of you who collect nostalgia and save souvenirs through the years from days when you went to hear your favorite groups in concert often have a file, a box, or a folder with old concert ticket stubs, a few photographs and autographs, and maybe even some sheet music from songs you used to play in bands while you were a teen. Going through some files today, two distinct copies of sheet music jumped out for “Kind of a Drag,” which went to No. 1 on the Billboard charts. They are different in at least three different ways. How quickly can you spot them? Photo #1 Photo #2 Take your time and study both pictures. If you think you have all the answers as to how they’re different, feel free to post them on Facebook. Waiting to see how fast they jump out at you. Answers will be posted tonight here at facebook.com/TheBuckinghams. Good luck! ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS FOLL

There are many truly knowledgeable Buckinghams fans to be sure, and many are from Chicago, so it seems right to ask a few questions to check your trivia knowledge while we wait for more music and concert dates. Three questions to start: 1) How many week(s) was “Kind of a Drag” at the #1 Spot on Billboard? 2) Which exact one or more week(s) was it at the #1 spot in 1967? 3) What song was previously in the #1 spot that “Kind of a Drag” replaced? If you’re a longtime Buckinghams fan, you likely know the answers but just in case, scroll down and check your answers. Question 1, it was at the #1 spot for 2 weeks. Question 2, they were at the top the week of Feb. 18 and the week of Feb. 25, 1967, according to the Billboard Top 100 charts. Now, for Question 3…if you’ve been to a Buckinghams’ concert in person, you just might have heard lead singer Carl Giammarese tell how The Buckinghams knocked The Monkees out of the top spot. And he does it with great flourish and satisfaction.

With everyone ready to return to entertainment as part of their "normal" lives each weekend in Chicago, the Genesee Street Cabaret offered trial programming to gauge the popularity of a safe, new way to enjoy live music. On May 1, 2021, they'd planned for a 6pm show for audiences to enjoy an acoustic evening with two classic rock favorites, Jim Peterik and Carl Giammarese, who are multifaceted professionals. Peterik, of course, is a founding member of The Ides of March, a talented songwriter, as well as a jingle composer. His 1970 song, “Vehicle” found its way up to #2 on the Billboard charts as just one example. Jim continues to be the pride of Berwyn, where he grew up. Beyond their legendary band of guys (The Ides) who’ve been as close as brothers through the years, Jim has also achieved national distinction and acclaim. He cowrote songs such as “Eye of the Tiger” and “High on You” with Frankie Sullivan for the band Survivor and “Hold on Loosely” with Don Barnes

Are you ready for the brand new video to the Buckinghams' classic hit, "Don't You Care"? Thanks to writer Kent Kotal for his premiere of the video early this morning in his Forgotten Hits blog , subscribers saw this video of Carl Giammarese and Lisa McClowry performing a new take on the 1967 hit song. The single, written by James Holvay and Gary Beisbier, was released across all digital streaming services last week. Initial response has been very enthusiastic. If you like what you see and hear, please consider clicking Like , directly on the YouTube video itself , and if you'd like to add a comment with your opinion, please leave that comment directly on the YouTube video as well so Carl and Lisa can see them. For more on Lisa McClowry, please visit her official website or follow her on Facebook here . Special thanks to the following individuals, involved in production across the miles: Carl Giammarese & Lisa McClowry perform

Since the 2020 Happy Together Tour had to be put on hold for COVID-19 safety precautions, audiences are doubly ready for the popular concert tour to once again return to many of the towns where they were in 2019. The Buckinghams were slated to join the tour on four concerts in 2020, so they are slated to appear on those same four concerts in 2021. The primary artists this year are The Turtles (Mark Volman and Ron Dante), The Cowsills, Gary Puckett & The Union Gap, The Vogues, The Association, The Classics IV, and on all the concerts except the ones The Buckinghams are on, the great Chuck Negron is appearing. Mark Volman (The Turtles) and Ron Dante. Gary Puckett & the Union Gap The Association The Classics IV Chuck Negron Mark Lindsay announced earlier this Spring that he is taking the summer of 2021 off to rest, as touring schedules can be pretty rough. One of the best resources you can find fo