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The Lovin' Spoonful to Perform in Newton

originally published: 03/19/2026

(NEWTON, NJ) -- The Lovin' Spoonful will perform at The Newton Theatre on Friday, May 8, 2026 at 8:00pm. They were America's answer to the Beatles! The band, led by John Sebastian, Steve Boone, Joe Butler and Zal Yanovsky, exploded onto the charts sending their first 7 singles soaring onto Billboard's top-10 charts virtually overnight.

Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000, the band was formed in New York’s Greenwich Village in 1965 at the Night Owl Café and signed to Kama Sutra Records. They appeared on every major TV show of the era: The Ed Sullivan Show, Hullabaloo and Shindig!

Their first single, “Do You Believe in Magic,” flew to the top of the charts and was followed by an unprecedented string of hits including: “Daydream,” “Younger Girl,” “Summer in the City,” “You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice,” “Darling Be Home Soon,” “Jug band Music,” “Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind,” “Lovin’ You,” “Didn’t Want to Have to Do it,” “Rain on the Roof,” “Six O’clock,” “Nashville Cats,” “Coconut Grove,” and “She’s Still a Mystery (to Me).”

The band was so influential that such music legends as Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson cited them as forces of inspiration as did so many others. John Lennon call them “tunesmiths!” Today the Lovin’ Spoonful tours with founding member,  Steve Boone, and Jeff Alan Ross, Bill Cinque, Rob Bonfiglio and Mike Auturi. Together they faithfully celebrate the rich, good-time catalog of hits that made them one of the world’s most beloved groups of the ‘60s.

Tickets start at $52.50 and are available for purchase online. The Newton Theatre is located at 234 Spring Street in Newton, New Jersey.




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