Flower girls and guys are ready to let their hair down this Sunday, November 2, 2025 evening at Avenel, NJ’s Avenel PAC for an “acoustic trio concert” starring the world-famous ‘60s family band, The Cowsills.
Concert producer Bill Brandenburg welcomes tonight’s crowd announcing, “We all grew up with this band so it’s really a thrill to have them here. Please give a warm welcome to The Cowsills!”
An on-screen video plays depicting The Cowsills’ early years with family members including Susan, Paul, and Bob Cowsill and their mom, Barbara, performing with artists including Johnny Cash, Buddy Ebsen, and Dean Martin. At the conclusion, the audience cheers as siblings Susan, Paul, and Bob take the stage.
Paul exclaims, “This is for all the flower girls out there!” as the trio launches into a bouncy rendition of The Cowsills’ 1967 hit, “The Rain, The Park, and Other Things.” Music lovers happily sing along with Susan as she and her brothers croon the tune’s catchy “I love the flower girl/Oh, I don’t know just why/She simply caught my eye” refrain together in perfect harmony.
Bob reveals, “We started our show off with one of our biggest hits,” prior to joking, “Now, we’re going to play some of the ‘flops!’” Here, he and his siblings skip into the early Cowsills’ folk-rocker “All I Really Wanta Be is Me” before Bob sings lead on an easy version of the swinging “Most of All.”
Bob introduces a Cowsills song that “was recorded by Lawrence Welk and Al Hirt” — the group’s 1967 Top 40 recording, “We Can Fly,” where Paul and the trio crescendo as they sing,“Baby, it’s funny/How I can feel so sunny/When you’re beside me/We can fly.”
Concertgoers cheer and Bob exclaims, “We do other people’s songs, too!” as the trio presents a dynamic version of Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Boxer” and Bob plays guitar for Susan and Paul as they sing Ian and Sylvia’s “You Were On My Mind.”
After acknowledging that Susan once sang the group’s next number live for its original artist, her sweet voice calls out with feeling on a cover version of Lulu’s “To Sir with Love” which has the audience reacting with animated cheers, whistles, and applause.
Lush vocal harmonies characterize The Beatles’ “This Boy,” and the trio follows up with an upbeat version of The Cowsills’ 1967 Top Ten hit, “Indian Lake,” where Paul happily harmonizes with his siblings.
The house lights rise as The Cowsills conduct an impromptu Q&A session with audience members. When asked how their mom felt about being part of the band, they respond, “Mom didn’t want to be in the band!” “She didn’t enjoy it, but she did it for everyone else.”
Likewise, when a concertgoer wonders about influences on their vocal harmonies, the trio responds by naming artists such as “The Monkees,” “The Lennon Sisters,” “The Osmond Family,” “Peter, Paul and Mary,” “The Mamas and the Papas,” “The Byrds,” and “The Hollies,” in addition to the genre of “folk music.”
Bob announces, “Here’s some folk music!” as he and his siblings perform two Peter, Paul and Mary tunes — “Puff the Magic Dragon” and “If I Had a Hammer” — with the latter concluding with a live fade-out ending.
Then, Bob accompanies the trio on guitar as they sing, “Love is the opening door/Love is what we came here for,” on an enchanting arrangement of Elton John’s “Love Song.”
Bob talks about several of The Cowsills’ recent albums including Cocaine Drain, which was recorded in the 1970s but only recently released. Here, Bob plays guitar as Susan sings lead on the album’s country-like ballad,“Thinking of You.” Then, the group follows up with a song from their 2022 Rhythm of the World album where Paul and Susan back Bob’s lead vocal on “Lend a Hand,” a tune with a timely message about helping those in need.
Fans cheer and the trio responds with a song they refer to as “one of our favorite flops” — “Poor Baby” — an upbeat folk-rock tune which features intricate interweaving vocal lines. The siblings follow up with a high-energy rendition of the 1969 theme they recorded for the television show, Love, American Style.
After thanking the audience for coming tonight, The Cowsills end their performance with a dynamic rendition of their 1969 smash, “Hair,” which has music lovers singing and clapping along with gusto and rewarding the trio with an enthusiastic standing ovation.
As concertgoers make their way out of the auditorium, several share their opinions of tonight’s performance by The Cowsills. Declares Nancy from Carteret, “I loved them! The music, the harmonies — everything — was great! The clarity of the singing was so crisp and clear and the Q&A was fun, too!” Mary from Carteret agrees, adding, “I really enjoyed the show — it exceeded my expectations! Susan’s voice on ‘To Sir With Love’ was so pretty, and I loved ‘The Rain, The Park, and Other Things’ — you can’t listen to that song without it putting a smile on your face!”
Jane from Sayreville contends, “The Cowsills were awesome tonight! With their acoustic set you can hear the purity of the sibling harmonies so well.” Insists her husband, Nick, “They’re not just performers; they’re all around great entertainers. They give you the stories behind the songs and keep you interested. It was just amazing to see them here tonight!”
Recalls John from Long Beach Island, “I became a Cowsills fan back in 1967. I still love the group and this was my first time seeing them in person. When I told my daughters they were going to be here, all three of them came to join me.” Whereas daughter Melissa from The Bronx, NY, declares, “They were awesome!” her sister, Emily from Avalon, remarks, “I especially enjoyed it when they did ‘The Flower Girl’ live — it was amazing! Plus, this performance space is really cool, too; it’s very intimate and helped make this such a special night.” Lastly, daughter Ally from The Bronx asserts, “I loved The Cowsills tonight! It was nice seeing how they interacted with the audience and I especially liked their new song, ‘Lend a Hand,’ which has a very nice meaning behind it.”
Comments Dennis Diken from the band, The Smithereens, “I’ve seen The Cowsills quite a few times and they hit a high standard so many years ago that they still stick to. They’re always on the money, uplifting, positive, entertaining, and informative — which is what entertainment should be all about — and besides that, they’re just all-around good people.”
Lastly Barbara from Sayreville insists, “The Cowsills were excellent this evening! They’re always fun and entertaining and they’re so talented — their harmonies are always on point, and they sounded great tonight!” and Lucille from Manalapan concurs, revealing, “When I was growing up, I wasn’t able to see them in person, but I’m so happy to be able to see them now as an adult because whenever The Cowsills are in town, it’s a party!”
To learn more about The Cowsills, please go to cowsill.com. For info on upcoming concerts at Avenel PAC — including Sonny Landreth with Cindy Cashdollar on November 13; The Joni Project on March 7, 2026; Ellen Jewell on April 2; and Steve Forbert on April 4, 2026 — please click on avenelarts.com.
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