originally published: 05/07/2025
(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- The Bongos will celebrate the release of The Shroud of Touring: Live in 1985 at The Wonder Bar in Asbury Park on Saturday, May 31, 2025. Showtime is 8:00pm. The CD will be released by JEM Records on May 23rd.
Originally recorded for RCA on the steamy Memorial Day weekend of 1985 on the Jersey Shore, The Bongos' only official live album, The Shroud of Touring: Live in 1985 has remained unreleased until now - The 40th Anniversary of the performance.
The album captures the band's legendary energy at the peak of its power, joined by percussionist Steve Scales, fresh from the Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense Tour and movie. Restored from the original 24-track analog tapes, newly mixed and sounding as electrifying as ever, The Shroud of Touring: Live in 1985 brings the Bongos' highly percussive sound to a new generation of fans.
The Bongos famously were the founding fathers of the Hoboken pop scene of the 1980s. Fronted by Richard Barone with Rob Norris and Frank Giannini, the group recorded its debut album, Drums Along the Hudson (PVC Records/1982), a critical hit on both sides of the Atlantic and a college radio staple.
Adding guitarist James Mastro, the group toured relentlessly, signed with RCA Records, and released their major label debut, Numbers with Wings in 1983. The sweeping title song became an MTV favorite. Songs like "Barbarella" and "Tiger Nights" fared well on the fledgling alternative radio format and further raised the group's profile. They released Beat Hotel (RCA/1985) , a year that saw them perform over 300 concerts across the U.S.
It was during that whirlwind tour that The Shroud of Touring: Live in 1985 was recorded at the jam-packed Tradewinds in Sea Bright, NJ on May 24th, 1985.
The Bongos upcoming performance at The Wonder Bar in Asbury Park, NJ, brings all four original members back to the Jersey Shore forty years later to celebrate the release of a nearly-lost relic of a particularly wild night. Tickets are available for purchase online. The Wonder Bar is located at 1213 Ocean Avenue in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
The four original members include Richard Barone (vocals, lead guitar), James Mastro (guitar, vocals, lead vocals on "Splinters"), Rob Norris (bass, backing vocals), and Frank Giannini (drums, backing vocals).
Here’s the track list for The Shroud of Touring: Live in 1985:
1. In the Congo
2. Apache Dancing
3. I've Got A Secret
4. Mambo Sun
5. A Story (Written in the Sky)
6. Telephoto Lens
7. Zebra Club
8. Splinters
9. Glow in the Dark
10. Blow Up
11. Come Back to Me
12. Brave New World
13. Totem Pole
14. Numbers With Wings
15. The Beat Hotel
16. Barbarella
17. Space Jungle
Produced by The Bongos and Steve Addabbo, the audio is remarkable. Tape restoration and digital transfer credits go to Steve Rosenthal.
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