The Rascals have imploded...again...thanks to Felix.

So glad I caught the first reunion shows in Portchester whilst on vacay over in Brooklyn a couple of years ago! Was a great evening - doubt you'd better that from a Rascals POV.

 

Jones Beach attendance was probably adversely impacted by proximity to NYC. Most people on LI with more than a passing interest would have already seen the show on Broadway, at which point there was every indication they were not going to be playing anywhere else.

Would have gone to see them in Philly if I could find anyone to accompany me, but was not interested enough to go solo. Have seen Felix a couple times, but will not go again based on his actions here

 

I was at the Garden State Arts Center.......and it was well attended. The seating area at least was sold out....didn't look up at the lawn.

 

Having listened to a CD of the 1990s touring band, I second that motion. The stretching of that note at the end of Undun, done so well by Burton, sounded like an exorcism by the touring band's singer, who was so desperate for applause that he pleaded with the audience, "pretend we're Garth Brooks." I don't know if the current touring band is different or better.

 

that was why I made sure to catch the Broadway show! Although there is not much difference between the distance to Broadway from Jones Beach and Holmdel NJ.

 

True, I was just imagining they had more fans on LI being from there

 

To me, the REAL crime of whatever became of The Rascals members, is that the great "voice" of Felix could only come up with ONE song since, that is barely as worthy as anything that The Rascals ever released and I'm not even that sure about this one, to be honest, so talk about a waste of talent.

 

Regarding the spotty attendance of some shows, I do think that they or Steven Van Zandt overestimated the demand a bit. However, I also think that history overlooks them somewhat and that the reunion was a step toward reminding people of what a great band they were (still). Stuff like this recent drama (and again, I'm not going to bash Felix as I'm sure he has a side that is not being presented) only reverses that and sends this great catalog of songs back to oldies hell. And that's unfortunate.

 

Imagine this also means there will be no agreement reached on an audio or video release based on the reunion tour.

 

The two Bearsville albums (the first prod. by Todd) are wonderful. As noted above, taking sides on this one is a fool's errand-- There is a long history of animosity in this band, going back at least to the '80s reunion tour without Eddie. If Little Steven was willing to pout the amount of effort he was into them, and they still couldn't be in a room together long enough to play out their agreed dates, something was/is seriously wrong.

 

I hear you, but in all honesty, there really are no "sides" to choose to be on, as there is no Rascals without Felix and that is pretty plain and simple to any fan, no matter how much one loves the other members and their contributions.

 

I don't think these guys can even agree on any form of archival release, as there are several documented studio outtakes and live recordings from the '60's. It's frustrating to be a Rascals fan.

 

Shame. I'd love to hear some of these things.

 

I was pining for some archival releases for a while, but I ain't gonna eat my heart out anymore

 

This makes me very sad on so many levels.

 

Flow? I guess they must have interviewed him at the wrong time of the month.

 

I've tried and tried, but just about everything about The Rascals just rubs me the wrong way. I'm a huge fan of The Raspberries, which I find Fotomaker much closer to than The Rascals.

 

Gene Cornish played with my friend Lee Shapiro's band, The Hit Men recently.

 

You explained it. The Rascals are a white soul band. Fotomaker was more of a power pop band. What make me sad is that the songwriting by Felix and Eddie is nowhere to be found, not to mention on a different level, than what Fotomaker produced. I will also bet I am at least 10 years older than you which might explain the rest of the story. I understand what you mean because I tried and tried with Fotomaker, not to mention Bulldog, and the songs just weren't there for me.

 

Neat! That's the band which also contains Gerry Polci. They should call the band "The 2 Seasons."

 

I'm really glad that one audio recording of the radio broadcast is floating around. Too bad they couldn't keep it going.

 

Until recently, Don Ciccone was with them, so they were the 3 Seasons for a while.

 

Eddie was ask to do the reunion tour in the 80's but apparently still had issues with Felix and decline.When the Rascals was signing up to go to Columbia after their contract with Atlantic was up.Eddie quit the band and walk out.So these issues have their since 1970.

 

At this point, The Rascals' music will live on in their recorded works. As a great starting point, we need for the Rhino Handmade box set to be re-released.

 

I see Felix has announced he is reuniting with himself for a 50th anniversary tour. I'll pass. What a tool.