Eddie and the Cruisers Chronology (LONG,SPOILERS)
Hallett German
The Eddie and the Crusiers Companion
as told to hal "harp" german
(hh...@gte.com)
Groups:
Eddie and the Cruisers (1962-1964)
Eddie Wilson (lead singer) --> Moves to Montreal
introduces band after
first song. Originally
drove a 57 Chevy with a
license plate of P4C295.
Wendell Newton(sax,piano)"Bruiser" --> Die from o.d. Eddie's best
friend. RIP 9/63
Joanne Carlino(backup vocal,
tambourine) --> Becomes choreoragpher in Vegas
"Your favorite and mine" Eddie's and in Atlantic City. Lives in
ex-girlfriend Wildwood, NJ. Graduated HS.
Frank Ridgeway(piano & songwriter) --> Becomes English H.S. teacher in
"Wordman" "Toby Tyler" Vineland, NJ. Graduate of
Benton College where Keith
Levingston was his roommate.
Keith's female friend is Lois
Wilkes.
Never wrote "that book."
Sal Amato (backup vocal,bass) --> Forms Sal and the Cruisers in NJ
"Long Tall" Knew Eddie the longest.
Has a son.
Kenny Hopkins (drums,backup vocal) --> Becomes Black jack dealer in
Atlantic City.
Doc Robbins (manager) --> Becomes DJ in NJ and local cult
celebrity.
Rock Solid (1984-?)
Eddie Wilson (lead singer & guitar)
Rick Diesel (lead guitar & backup vocal) VERY anxious to make it
to the top.
Hilton Overstreet (sax & tambourine). Experienced roadman that wants
a break. Played with Ike & Tina Turner a little
drunk in late 60s/early 70s.
"sexy" Charly Chansey (drums)
Quinn Quinley (Bass & lead backup vocals)
Stewart Fairbanks (piano and 5 other instruments) Plays classical
piano too.
Records:
- Tender Years (1963. Reissued 1984 as Eddie and the Cruisers)
Reissue goes platium in 4 weeks.
It is a pink and green cover with photos of Eddie, his car, and
the Cruisers on it.
* Dark Side -- Goes #1 during Summer of 1963.
* Wild Summer Nights
* Tender Years
* Betty Lou got a New Pair of Shoes (written by Sal Amato)
* Down on my Knees (??)
* Rock and Roll Shoes (??)
* 3 others
- A Season in Hell (1963-1964 rediscovered in 1981 released 1984)
* lead cut "Love is a Fire" (??)
- 3 "mystery record cuts"
* Emotional Storm
* Unknown
* Something about "a man from New Orleans"
Songs:
In Eddie and the Cruisers 1
Betty Lou got a New Pair of Shoes (written by Sal Amato)
Dark Side
Down on my Knees (??)
Intro
Oldies but Goodies (Sal & the Cruisers)
Rock and Roll Shoes (??)
Runaround Sue
Tender Years
Wild Summer Nights
In Eddie Lives: Eddie and the Cruisers 2
Crime of Passion
Dream Pass you by
Emotional Storm (mystery record single #1)
Hey little girl (done in 1960s but probably not on tender years?)
Its the same old story
Jam with Rick
Man from New Orleans (mystery record single #2)
Matter of time
Moon Rider
Running through the fire (written fall 1984)
Sax Solo
Some like it hot.
Gigs:
- Summer 1962 -- Jersey Coast at Tony Mart's
Songs:
Runaround Sue (Practice)
Betty Lou got a new pair of shoes (Practice)
Wild Summer Nights
Tender Years
- Summer 1962 (?) -- Outside on the beach
On the Darkside (Practice)
- Various Dates. One at a college in Delaware and the other in
Madison, New Jersey.
- Spring 1963 -- Benton College Spring Madness
Songs:
Intro by Eddie
Down on my knees
Rock and roll shoes
On the dark side
- July 1963 -- Lakehurst New Jersey, Mystery Tape Made.
- August 1963 Some Bar. -- Eddie walks out being depressed about
Wendell's death.
Song: Tender Years (Sung by Joanne Carlino)
- Spring 1981 Sal and the Cruisers(Markov Room at some New
Jersey Holiday Inn):
Songs:
Betty Lou had a new pair of shoes
Wild Summer Nights
On the Dark Side
Oldies But Goodies
- Fall 1984 -- Montreal. Eddie jams with Rick Diesel and Hilton
Overstreet at Eddie's favorite bar.
Song: Same Old Story. Chords F-C-G-C
-- A one song jam with Rick.
-- 1st concert at Ohara's Bar (??)
Running through the fire.
A Matter of time.
- Spr 1984 -- 2nd concert at Mount Richmond College Spring Break
Blow Out:
Songs: Some like it hot.
Instrumental break.
-- Practice in the woods
Song: Dream Pass you by(?)
Sax Instrumental
-- Audition for Montreal Spring Music Festival in Auditorium
Song: Moon Rider
-- Montreal Spring Music Festival
Songs: Running through the fire.
Crime of Passion.
Chronology:
Eddie's early life -- Hangs around this junk yard with the old man
who creates a castle out of junk. Meets Sal.
Summer 1962 Eddie & the Cruisers show up at Tony Mart's on the
the Jersey Coast. Meet Frank. Joanne talk to Frank
about Rambeau (really Rimbeau). Tells Eddie that he
composes music. Composes on the Dark Side?
Perform Tender Years and Wild Summer Nights for
probably the first time at Tony Mart's.
Argument over how to perform Betty Lou
Spring 1963 Eddie and the Cruisers perform at Benton College.
Eddie is kind of awed by the place -- "we never played
in no finishing school like this before"
Frank kisses Joanne. Eddie sees it and humilates him at the
concert. Next day Frank wants to leave
but Eddie talks him out of it. "We need each other
-- words and music." And crossed his fingers.
Summer 1963 Conversation between Eddie & Wordman. Wants to create
songs that "hold themselves up." This date from II
seems inconsistent that "On the Dark Side" was #1
during the Summer of 1963. This should be summer 1962
to be consistent with the first flic.
July 1963 Lakehurst, NJ (A small town near Newark.) Wendell and
Eddie visits a studio run by friends of Wendell. Plays
with Bo Diddley & King Curtis and others. Three cuts are
later released in 1984..
Eddie -- "It was just an experiment. To them it was another
night of jamming. It got me thinking..I wasn't good enough."
(Eddie & the Cruisers II)
August 1963 Wendell dies in room 27 of the Ebb Tide Motel of drugs.
Kenny gets rid of the evidence and the official verdict
is heart attack. Eddie walks out of a performance the
day after Wendell is buried.
1963-1964 "I spent the whole year working on A Season in Hell. When
I was done I was proud of it." -- Eddie. The group was
to receive $50,000 for it with $ 10,000 in advance.
Sal's reaction -- "I nearly broke my fingers trying to
play that stuff."
March 14 1964 Season of Hell is finished. Lou Eisen of Satin Records
thinks it is very bad. Eddie vows if he can't record
something great, he doesn't want to do music at all.
Leaves with Joanne to the junk where he proclaims he
is a dinosaur.
March 15 1964 Eddie "dies" on March 15, 1964 shortly after 5 am by
having his car go off the Raritan bridge.
Eddie -- "I still don't remember what happened. I was driving
..the car hit the guard rail on the bridge and I lost
control. I remember swimming..I was thinking of Wendell
Newton the sax player..from the Cruisers but he was dead.
He got out. I just split. I left everyone and everything
behind and I hurt a lot of people. For twenty years, it been
tearing me apart. Everyone thinks I'm dead."
March 16 1964 Joanne goes to Satin records and borrows the tapes for
17 years. Was the mystery tape one of the two tapes?
(never explained).
1964 Sal goes "crazy" with grief and anger about Eddie's
"death." Doc sells the rights to the Tender Years
alblum to Lou Eisen of Satin Records.
Late 60s/Early 70s Sees Ike and Tina Turner and sees Hilton play.
Unknown Goes into the desert
1980-1 Maggie Wilson of Media Magazine tries to find out the
circumstances behind A Season in Hell and the location
of the tape.
She interviews in order Frank, Doc and Sal.Later,
Doc looks for the missing tape in Franks's and Joanne's
place.
Frank talks to Doc, Sal, Kenny, and Joanne (in that
order) and reviews various aspects of the band's
history. This includes:
* Seeing Sal and the Cruisers (about 12:30 am)
and some Holiday Inn's Markov Room.
* Seeing Doc as a DJ and a local cult figure at
WRHE in Asbury Park, New Jersey)
* Seeing Joanne's place and pictures of Eddie.
* Hearing from Kenny how Wendell really died.
* Joanne and Frank going to the same junkyard
to retrieve the tapes. Here are my questions
from that scene:
- Is that really doc following them at the junk yard
- why such a big box to hold two tapes?
- Is one of the tapes the mystery tape?
Joanne is terrorized by someone playing Tender Years and
showing up in a 57 Chevy similar to Eddie's. She thinks
it is Eddie because they give the signal with lights
of high-low-high and then calling twice. But it is really
greedy Doc. Joanne and Frank give him the tapes and he
promises to land a large record deal. Frank and Joanne
go back into Joanne's place.
Maggie plays the cut of Season in Hell on the tv.
Eddie (in beard) sees on a store tv the tape was
found. Appears to smile. City unknown.
Says Eddie has been dead nearly 18 years making it
1981ish.
Fall 1984(?) Now in Montreal. Eddie (in mustache) is now Joe West
Construction Worker (foreman/architect?). Has his own
apartment.
Appears at Eddie Wilson look-alike contest in Atlantic
City. Listens to the last of six finalists play on the
dark side. Sal gets the platnium platter for the reissue
of Eddie and the Cruisers (from Satin records). Announce
release of A Season in Hell.
Sal goes to Satin Records (23rd floor) and hears mystery
tape. Knows it is not Eddie. Satin decides to issue
it anyway single by single playing up the Eddie Lives
angle.
Eddie composes Running Through the Fire in his apartment.
Goes off to see Montreal play Minnesota in the Forum
(I think this is a play off game which throws off
the chronology.) Meets Diane.
Goes to favorite bar and hears Rick and Hilton play.
Buys Hilton a drink and does a short audition until
Hilton's playing reminds him of Wendell.
1st date with Diane. Goes to her place and sees her
paintings.
Has conversation with Rick on top of a building. Agrees
to jam. Has a one song jam. Mystery record single #1
released about this time
2nd date with Diane at Diane's show at the Forecastle
Gallery (her first showing.) Only 3 paintings are sold.
(Including one Eddie buys of himself.) Go roller skating
at Bobby's Rink. Rick follows and gets the brunt of
Eddie's anger on hearing Mystery record single #1.
Goes back to his place with Diane and makes love. Tells
her the next morning who he really is. Diane urges
him to join Rick's band.
Eddie, Hilton and Rick join forces looking for band
members. Recruits Charly, Quinn, and Stewart. A practice
session is held. Eddie has the first of many arguments
with Rick over playing a few gigs. Hilton convinces
Eddie and they "go on the road to practice." (Diane
comes along.)
1st Road show at Ohara's Bar(??). Lindsay Caputo says
there is a potential opening for a local act in the
Montreal Spring Music Festival. Says give a call when
the kinks are worked out.
2nd Road Show at Mount Richmond College. A Spring
Break Blowout. This leads to the only argument shown
with Diane because she dances with another guy. They
kiss and make up.
Practice in the woods and have another argument about
being ready for an audition for the festival. MTV's
Merlyn Linder identifies Bo Diddley as the guitarist
on the mystery tape. Bo's interview indicates that
Wendell is also on the tape so it is no proof that
Eddie lives.
Still another argument on auditioning. Eddie breaks a guitar
and starts burning his songs from his notebook. (He
has then memorized anyway.) Hilton tells him he knows
who he is.
The audition finally takes place. Lindsay says "you guys are
too good for an opening act. But I'm going to do it anyway."
Eddie needs someone to talk to so goes down to New Jersey
and sees Sal. After Sal calms down, they go to the Lakehurst
studio. Sal tells Eddie just play don't strive for perfection.
Surprisingly, asks Sal to join band but SAl has his own life
(A 8-9 year old boy is shown.)
The Spring Festival takes place. Unknown to Eddie, Rick
had sent to Satin records a copy of their session. Satin
Records, knowing who it was, shoots up. A confrontation
between Satin Records staff and Eddie leaves to Eddie
heading out. (And thus threaten to expose who he is)
He gets in the car with Diane and seems ready to really kill
himself but she says "this is one more chance to prove the music
is there for you." He performs to an adoring audience.
Mentions who he is during the introductions and seems
at peace with himself.