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ROCK ON! This Week's Sound Bites...10/9/14

By Danny Coleman

originally published: 10/09/2014 "Telling stories is like fishing, you don't just throw a line out and reel in immediately, sometimes you have to work at it and go about it in a round about way; then when it hits you know you've got'em."

Those are the words of Smithereens guitarist and songwriter Pat DiNizio as he discussed his upcoming "Confessions of a Rock Star" series at Asbury Park's Langosta Lounge beginning October 9.

Fresh off of a year long engagement in Las Vegas, DiNizio is bringing this popular production home to New Jersey and will feature local performers alongside him during the show's seven week run. "This is a chance for several things," he started. "This is a showcase for not only myself and my solo material but to also showcase the local musicians and some of the Smithereens. We are working on a new album and I'll use this as a vehicle to rehearse some of that new material."

"Confessions of a Rock Star" took DiNizio away from his Jersey home but not from his Jersey roots. Taking up residence in Las Vegas's Riviera Hotel, Pat brought his music and that of the Smithereens to life via stories, song and requests from the audience; never losing sight of the journey itself. "I was at the old Riviera where Dean Martin and people like Englebert Humperdinck once performed. The first month or so was great but then I became the Howard Hughes of rock 'n' roll; I never really left my suite at the hotel. That was really what was best for me to stay normal. The casino, after a while starts to sound like a pinball machine with all of the bells and dings. So to stay normal I preferred to stay in my room and watch movies or read; I read a lot. The show itself was like telling the story of my life six days a week for a year. It was like my story or anyone's story when they get their lucky break . I thought I was destined to be a life long garbage man and then, well, it happened. I remember seeing Elvis as a kid in "King Creole" while in Wildwood in a theater on the boardwalk. I sat through that film four times and must've eaten a hundred lollipops, once out I demanded that my dad buy me a guitar; that film changed my life."

 

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Perhaps a more accurate statement has never been uttered as DiNizio parlayed that demand for a guitar into a career in one of the most successful acts to come out of New Jersey. The Smithereens formed in and around the Carteret, NJ area in the late 1970's. Performing their first gig at a venue in Hillside, NJ, the band tinkered with their original line up a bit, adding and eventually subtracting a piece; finally settling on the cohesive four piece unit that their fans have come to adore.

With twenty three official releases in the EP, full length, live, greatest hits and various other varieties; the group has amassed a catalog of material which is still fresh in the minds of their fan base. "There's more than thirty five years of Smithereens here," says DiNizio. "Sometimes when we get together and practice we are just very taken with the fact that we are able to still do this. A Smithereens show could easily be three hours long; and why not? Our fans deserve to hear everything so we are going to do our best to give it to them."

DiNizio came up with the idea for his Asbury Park continuation of the Vegas show, "Through a simple conversation" with Jersey shore area promoter Sammy Boyd of Sammy Boyd Productions. "I had returned from Las Vegas and went to see The Fixx at Jenk's (Jenkinson's Pavilion in Point Pleasant, NJ), I ran into Sammy, we started talking and I told him that I wanted to stay sharp; keep playing. We talked about it and Sammy Hooked me up with Langosta Lounge and the local talent and it evolved from there."

Not one to shy away from bucking trends, or setting them for that matter; DiNizio has broken new ground before. "House concerts," he explained, "I was ridiculed by my contemporaries, when during some down time, I started doing house concerts; now they are a standard thing. I mean, Bob Dylan even does them, of course he gets $250,000 a concert but you get the point. I started a thing called P.A.T which stands for Patrons Artists Together where I went to fans with unique content and/or limited editions; today they call it, "Kickstarter." I've got another project in the works using Skype. There are people using Skype to teach guitar, drums and what not but nobody out there teaching them songwriting. I'm working on that, stay tuned for that after the first of the year."

"Confessions of a Rock Star," the Asbury Park version kicks off with local artist Arlan Feiles in tow and beginning with the October 16 show, will be broadcast live via internet radio from Langosta Lounge via 40 Foot Hole Studios (www.40footholestudio.com). This in itself, invokes a bit of excitement from DiNizio who hosted his own syndicated radio program from 1992-1999. "Hey if we can bring music to the people and reach them all around the world; who wouldn't want that? Knowing that this will be heard all over the globe is a good thing; right? That's the goal, let's get it out there."

When asked what he hopes to accomplish with this series, DiNizio is rather vague; preferring to stay low key rather than going overboard. "I don't know really. I hope to develop an audience and continue to expose new Smithereens music, local artists and my solo material to the people and I think the potential is there to do so." I look forward to this; it should be a lot of fun."

 

Advertise with New Jersey Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info

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To discover more about "Confessions of a Rock Star" or Pat DiNizio, please go to www.patdinizio.net .

To read up on The Smithereens, please visit www.officialsmithereens.com.

That's it for this week! Please continue to support live and original music and until next week....ROCK ON!

THIS WEEKS CALENDAR LISTINGS

Alchemist & Barrister

28 Witherspoon Street Princeton
(609) 924-5555

Thurs. 10 p.m. Chris Nickey

Sun. 9 p.m. Ed Wilson

Wed. 10 p.m. Open mic. night

All shows 21+

Amarones Windsor Inn

29 Church St. Windsor

(609) 448-7144

Thurs. 6:30 p.m. Scott Gager & Debbie

Fri. 8 p.m. Gyrl Band

Sat. 8 p.m. Blue Moon

Tues. 7:30 p.m. Texas Hold'em

Wed. 7 p.m. FREE Salsa Lessons

Big Shots Bar and Grill/Hebe Music Lounge

835 E Rte. 130 South, Burlington

(609) 267-1200

Fri. 7 p.m. The Killtones, BlackRue

Sat. 6 p.m. "The Witches Ball" feat. Solus Rex, Midnight Mosaic, BlackRue, Clashing Plaid, Steve Oakley Band, Foley McKenna Band, Road Dogs, Absinthe Drinkers

Wed. 7 p.m. Open Mic.

 

Advertise with New Jersey Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info

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Blend Bar & Bistro

911 Highway 33, Hamilton

(609) 245-8887

Fri. 6 p.m. Rich Schneider w/ Tom Schneider and Jim Paraino

Tues. 8 p.m. Triviajam

Candlelight Lounge
24 Passaic St. Trenton
(609) 695-9612

Sat. 3 p.m. Joe Ford Sax Quartet. (No cover-$10 minimum)

Chambers Walk Cafe
2667 Main St. Lawrenceville
(609) 896-5995

Fri./Sat. 6 p.m. Dick Gratton

The Backstage at Championship Bar
931 Chambers St. Trenton

Fri. 7 p.m. Ashes of Our Sins, O.N.E, My Silent Winter, Unholy Dispute, Vajra. All ages, $10

Sat. 5 p.m. The Artwork Of, Dead Wings, The Eastern Condition, My Private War, (TBA). All ages, $10

Sun. 5 p.m. Origin, Cognitive, We...Our War, Burn The Empire, Mortalysis, Mindless Flesh. All ages, $12/$14

Wed. 4 p.m. All ages, $10/$12

Chickie's & Pete's

183 US Highway 130 North Bordentown

(609) 298-9182

Tues. 8 p.m. Acoustic Music Night feat. The Dawgs

Dubh Linn Square
167 Rte. 130 North Bordentown
(609) 298-7100

Sun. 4 p.m.Billy O'neal

Tues. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Night hosted by Shaun Ruymen

Wed. 9 p.m. Trivia Night

Fran's Pub

116 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.

(215)862-5539

Fri. 8 p.m. (TBA)

Sat. 8 p.m. (TBA)

Sun. 3 p.m. James Supra Band

Mon. 8 p.m. Open Mic Blues Jam hosted by Jimmy Pritchard

All shows 21+

Havana New Hope
105 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-9897

Thurs. Beat the Clock College Night DJ Dance Party

Fri. 8 p.m. Citizens Band Radio / John Byrne Band. Doors at 6 p.m., $15

Sat. 8:30 p.m. The Loop

Sun. 6 p.m. Lauren Marsh CD Release Party

Mon. 10 p.m. Karaoke in the Bar w/ DJ Ron Sherr and Bridget

Wed. 8 p.m. Pat Foran and Friends

All shows 21+

Ivy Tavern
3108 S. Broad Street, Hamilton
(609) 888-1435

Fri. 10 p.m. Blind Lemmon Pie

Sat. 10 p.m. The Dawgs
All shows 21+

John & Peter's
96 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-5981

Thurs. 9 p.m. Mike DiAlto Comedy Night feat. Rob Shapiro

Fri. 9 p.m. Tony DiSimone

Sat. (3 p.m.) Frank Porter (9 p.m.) The Fermenters w/ Fellaheen and Our Bodies Themselves.

Sun. (3 p.m.) Jamie Salvatore (7 p.m.) Hot Dose

Mon. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Night w/ Chris

Wed. The Invitational (Featuring John & Peter's House Band)
All shows 21+

JoJo's Tavern

2677 Nottingham Way Hamilton

(609) 586-2678

Wed. 10 p.m. Karaoke

Palermo's Of Hamilton
310 Klockner Rd. Hamilton
(609) 838-7979

Thurs. 9 p.m. Karaoke

All shows 21+

Pete's Steak House
523 Whitehorse Ave. Hamilton
(609) 585-8008

Fri. 9:30 p.m. Radio Fiction

Sat. 9:30 p.m. Musicology

RHO Waterfront

50 Riverview Plaza Trenton

(609) 393-7300

Thurs. 9 p.m. College Night "Welcome Back Rider and TCNJ w/ DJ Paul Desisto

Fri. (4:30 p.m.) Happy Hour w/ DJ Davey Gold (9 p.m.) The Sensational Soul Cruisers

All Shows 21+

Sunsets at Cream Ridge

181 Rte. 539 Cream Ridge

(609) 208-2500

Fri. 9:30 p.m. Stand & Dave

Sat. 9:30 p.m. Something Shiny

Tavern On The Lake

101 Main St. Hightstown
(609) 426-9345

Wed. 8 p.m. Karaoke Night

The Ivy Inn

248 Nassau St. Princeton

(609) 921-8555

Thurs. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ Ron Sherr

Fri. 10 p.m. DJ Darius

Sat. 10 p.m. Sharks on Bicycles

Tues. 8 p.m. Quizzo w/ Bob E Luv

Wed. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ Ron Sherr

The HOB Tavern

146 Second Street

(609) 291-7020

Wed. 9 p.m. Jay Keller

The Record Collector

358 Farnsworth Ave. Bordentown

(609) 324-0880

Fri. 8 p.m. Mystic Bowie / Annie Minogue Band. All ages, doors at 7:30 p.m., $15 (advance)

Sat 8 p.m. Joe Zook & Blues Deluxe w/ Blues Harp Master Steve Guyger. All ages, doors at 7:30 p.m., $12 (advance)

The Sticky Wicket
2465 South Broad St. Hamilton
(609) 439-0007

Fri. 9 p.m. Never Enough

Sat. 9 p.m. (TBA)

All shows 21+

The Sun National Bank Center
81 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 656-3200

Check web site for upcoming events

Tir Na Nog
1324 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 392-2554

Fri. (5 p.m.) Tommy Glover (9 p.m.) Mike Barniskas

Sat. 9 p.m. Paul Plumeri & Jerry Monk

Tues. 9 p.m. Taylor Reed

Wed. 9 p.m. Ed Wilson

All shows 21+

Trenton Social

449 South Broad Street Trenton

(609) 989-7777

Thurs. 8 p.m. Cinema Thursdays Presents: "7th Day"

Fri. 10 p.m. Friday night w/ Jay Kountree & Jaxx

Mon. 10 p.m. Service Industry Night w/ DJ-Jay Kountree

Triumph Brewing Company (New Hope, Pa. Location)
400 Union Square New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-8300

Fri. 10 p.m. (TBA)

Sat. 10 p.m. Ellis Ashbrook. $5 (cover charge)

Tues. 9 p.m. Acoustic Grateful Dead feat. members of Splintered Sunlight

All shows 21+

Wildflowers Inn

2572 Pennington Rd. Pennington

Sat. 9 p.m. Live Acoustic Rock
Mon. 9 p.m. Karaoke

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Danny Coleman is a veteran musician and writer from central New Jersey. He hosts a weekly radio program entitled “Rock On Radio” airing Sunday evenings at 7:000pm EST on multiple internet radio outlets where he features indie/original bands and solo artists.

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