THE HISTORY OF THE SHAGS TM
The Best Rock & Roll Classics from the Classic Rock & Roll Band!
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Before long hair was popular, pointed-toe boots were worn, or 3-part harmonies
were routinely sung, The Shags had adapted them to their own style while singing
at clubs, dances, and concerts throughout the Northeast. The quartet played American
Rock & Roll, British Rock, American Rockabilly, Doo-wop, and original songs.
The Shags' founder, Tom Violante (singer/songwriter/rhythm guitar/keyboard), learned
to play accordion at the age of 5. In 1961, he bought his first guitar, and in
1963, he and Carl Augusto (singer/songwriter/lead guitar, from The Deltons) formed
the Hollywood High Dropouts, forerunner of The Shags. They recruited John Tangredi
(drummer) and Mike Goodwin (bass guitar/vocals). Their first job together, at
Dante's Inferno in East Haven, was a sensation and led to bigger and better venues,
and growing popularity unequalled by any other group in Connecticut at the time.
The Shags were regulars for many years at The House of Zodiac on Derby Avenue,
a top nightclub.
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In 1965, Billy Hall (d. 1993) took over bass guitar and John "Aaron"
Perkins (d. 1989) played tambourine and harmonica. The Shags recorded "Wait
and See," their first disc to reach No. 1, "It Hurts Me Bad," and
"Cause of You" on the Nutta record label, under the watchful eye of
Sam Goldman, their first manager, and the Five Satins' manager. Then came "Hey
Little Girl," "I Call Your Name," "As Long As I Have You,"
and "Breathe In My Ear" with new manager, Thomas "Doc" Cavalier,
who guided them through these years and a few personnel changes. Orrin Bolton,
Michael's older brother, was their road manager, and young Michael was a Shags
follower back then.
Their
first record promotion appearance at Cutler's Record Shop on Broadway had them
playing inside the store, something never done again by any other group! They
appeared at New Haven Arena, Woolsey Hall, Yale University, Dartmouth College,
UCONN, UNH, SCSU, University of Philadelphia, Bushnell Auditorium, JFK Stadium,
Oakdale Theater, The Big "E," Mount Holyoke, and every night club, high
school dance, block dance, and outdoor concert in the Northeast. They even shot
a 30-minute TV pilot for Channel 8 called "The Show with a Very Long Title,"
which has become a collector's item.
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The Shags opened for many top artists: Dion, Gene Pitney, Ben E. King, The Coasters,
The Rascals, Peter and Gordon, The Beau Brummels, Paul Revere and the Raiders,
Chad and Jeremy, The Byrds, Eric Burdon and The Animals, Leslie Gore, Chubby Checker,
Jerry & The Passengers, The Lovin' Spoonful, Simon and Garfunkel, The Tokens,
Gary Lewis and The Playboys, The Demensions, The Sensations, The Five Satins,
and The Critters. In the "The New Haven Sound" musical history book,
The Shags list the most hit single records played on the air by any area group.
Their songs were performed and recorded by other groups.
Today, The Shags play their original songs and cover hits from The Golden Age
of Rock & Roll. Tom (keyboards, bass guitar/lead vocals) called upon some friends
to recreate The Shags' famous harmonies and tight arrangements: Ed Gerosa (guitar/vocals),
formerly of The Road Runners; Joe Salvati (lead guitar/vocals), formerly of Nothing
But Trouble; and Joe Zukowski (drums) the band's drummer during 1982-84. Through
the magic of computers and sequencing, The Shags bring horns, strings, and other
instruments to each performance, adding excitement and depth well beyond any other
quartet.
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The Shags recent performances include both the Hartford and Branford Chowder Pots,
Wallingford Lions' Club 50's and 60's dance, The Oldies Show at Lyman Auditorium
opening for Gary Lewis and The Playboys, Fair Haven Riverfest, St. Bernadette's
Festival, East Shore Festival, New Haven Summertime Street Festival, and the 4th
of July Harborfest.
They
opened for Dion and Gene Pitney at Oakdale Theater and appeared at the Jerry Lewis
Labor Day Telethon for Muscular Dystrophy, the 1995 Special Olympics World Games
fundraiser , and "Sights in the Sound" Main Stage. They recently taped
a special live concert for Cox Cable's "Cable Jam" hosted by Paul Heriot,
and a year-end performance on CTV with Paul Johnston. The Church of St. Bernadette
Music Hall of Fame honored The Shags by dedicating a plaque to them in 1996 for
their contributions to music since 1964 (over 32 years!), only the second group
to receive the honor (along with The Five Satins in 1995).
Come see and hear The Shags perform original hit songs including Wait and See,
By My Side, Hey Little Girl, I Call Your Name, Don't Press Your Luck, As Long
As I Have You, and Breathe In My Ear. Listen to The Shags recreate the authentic
sound of The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Buddy Holly, Little Richard, Chuck Berry,
The Everly Brothers, Del Shannon, The Five Satins, Roy Orbison, Neil Sedaka, Jan
and Dean, Jimmy Buffett, James Taylor, Paul Anka, and other famous artists with
their own fabulous arrangements. Baby Boomers and younger generations can now
share in The Shags' encore performances.
Once again, The Shags' hard work creates a spectacular show you will really enjoy,
one that will be an experience you'll always remember. But most important, you'll
have lots of fun and hear music like it's never been played before by the guys
who were part of it _ The Shags!
THE SHAGS AND DOC CAVALIER - A LIFETIME ASSOCIATION
The Shags' drummer, Johnny Tangredi, worked at the Jewish Community Center's Health Club on Chapel Street (now the Yale Art School building) where Thomas "Doc" Cavalier was a daily member. At one point, Doc asked Johnny why he wore his hair so long and Johnny told him he was in a local band called "The Shags" and that we had a regional hit record out. Johnny asked Doc if he wanted to come see the band play sometime and Doc said OK.
At about the same time, we had parted ways with our first manager, Sam Goldman, over the direction our music should take and also our band image. So we were looking for someone to do the booking and personal management. Carl Augusto (lead guitar and vocals) and I had already decided on our musical direction, which included originals as well as plenty of British and American rock and roll, rockabilly, blues and soul. So "Doc" miraculously walked in at precisely the right time to take the helm as business manager for a rock band, something with which he had zero experience but plenty of enthusiasm.
When he first came to one of our gigs (I think it was a high school dance in New Haven), he was dressed in a gray sharkskin suit, tie, wore his black hair closely-cropped, sported shiny black leather shoes smoking a cigarette and wearing - what else? - shades. What he saw were five teenagers dressed in 3-piece pinstripe suits playing Beatles and Rolling Stones covers in a room packed with screaming teenaged girls. I remember watching him smile at what he saw so I had to assume that either he was either pleased with what he observed in the room or he thought we were a joke.
History proved the former was what Doc felt - and after a brief introduction by Johnny, we sat and huddled with Doc. He said he'd be happy to manage us if we would teach him about the music and recording business, and in return, he would apply his business acumen - and that other intangible thing he possessed, called "charm" - to make us successful. Throughout the entire meeting, he smiled, he laughed with us, he was genuine, warm and sincere, and we were convinced we'd made a great selection in Doc. Thus began The Shags' association with Doc, and all that followed: Dee Dean, Aries Productions Ltd., Linesider Publishing (named after his beloved Bertram yacht), Taurus Records (his first label named after his astrological sign), Syncron Sound Studios (later renamed "Trod Nossel Studios" after a character created by Lance Gardner, The Shags' third bass player), Tom-Tom Productions (his first production company in association with me), Cameo-Parkway Recording Studios in Philadelphia (where The Shags recorded "When I Get Home" and "It's In His Kiss/The Shoop-Shoop Song"), Kayden Records, ATCO Records, General Artists Corporation (the booking agency that also booked The Beatles: Doc convinced them to also book The Shags!!) Walter Hofer Associates (the law firm for The Beatles and, because Doc asked them, for The Shags also!) and many recording sessions and gigs throughout the Northeast.
The Shags watched the Cavalier family grow. When we began our association with Doc, Robbie wasn't yet born. Cheryl Ann used to come to gigs with Doc and was our #1 fan. Tommy used to bang on Johnny's drums at rehearsals. Darlene would sit on his lap while we played "Hey Little Girl." And we watched the Cavalier kids grow up into fine young men and women who now have a special place in Connecticut's music business as the brains behind Trod Nossel Studios.
Doc was a generous man with a heart of gold and he took out a loan for the money to purchase a pair of Vox AC-100 amps and a Vox bass "coffin" amp, the first ones ever used in Connecticut. He set up financing for a 1956 Cadillac hearse that we used to haul equipment, followed by a 1958 Cadillac limousine and, later, a 1964 Ford Econoline extended van to haul even MORE equipment (at one time, we hauled around a Hammond B3 with a full-size Leslie cabinet, 2 AC-100s, 1 Vox "coffin" bass amp, a complete theater-sized PA, drums, guitars and accessories). Doc made contacts in the entertainment business like no one else could at that time and booked us in places we never thought we'd ever play in: The Oakdale Theater (4 shows as opening acts for the biggest bands of the day - Paul Revere and The Raiders, Chad and Jeremy, and The Byrds -- as well as our own show as headliners with The Bluebeats); The Bushnell (with Danny Thomas, Simon and Garfunkel, The Critters, The Lovin' Spoonful, The Five Satins and more); Kennedy Stadium in Bridgeport (we opened for the Righteous Brothers); Yale's Woolsey Hall (we opened for Leslie Gore and Chubby Checker); and the New Haven Arena (we opened for The Young Rascals and Peter & Gordon).
Doc saw the value of owning his own recording studio and so he bought Syncron and renamed it Trod Nossell to begin a new career in music and recording but also to provide The Shags with a private rehearsal space and our own recording studio, not unlike George Martin and Brian Epstein did for The Beatles, because Doc also saw in us the potential to be as big as The Beatles in the U.S. and he told us that many times. "Reach higher, go longer, do the very best that you can" were his watchwords. He was never satisfied with the first take or the first mix - we worked on songs until they were polished. Together, Doc and I produced all of The Shags' sessions and that partnership lasted for almost 5 years.
At some point in time, Carl and I felt that The Shags had become stale, had exhausted their potential and needed to cease performing. We went and talked to Doc about it and he agreed with us, but only if that was joint our decision, but suggested we talk to Bennett Segal, the Bram Rigg Set's drummer, who was feeling the same thing about his group. Doc was guiding us as a mentor, showing us the way to make decisions, but he wanted us to be fair to one another. Segal agreed with Carl and I and we formed the nucleus of a band that came to be known as Pulse: the original lineup was me, Carl, Bennett, Peter Neri, Rich Bednarczyk, Paul Rosanno and Lance Gardner. And we wanted Doc to be our manager for this venture as well, as he had also taken the Bram Rigg Set under his wing. The original name was "The Pulse of Burritt Bradley," which appears as the name of the band that sang the bubble-gum pop song we released on ATCO - Can Can Girl - with Wildweeds' Al Anderson's mother's voice scolding us in the bridge ("You should have told me before!"). I remained in Pulse for about a year, and we recorded a series of songs that varied in style from Cream-like tomes to country and blues. I left in 1969 to pursue other interests, later reforming The Shags and then creating Key West Trio to perform covers of music by Jimmy Buffett and The Beach Boys.
But I stayed in touch with Doc, and whenever I had a question about copyrights or publishing, I'd call him and we'd talk about the good old days. And they were - good old days that I'll treasure and remember forever, days that I'll call upon whenever I need to recall the experiences we shared with Doc. There were times we disagreed and times we got mad at each other, but in the end, he was a special guy, a character all his own, and one that I won't ever forget. God bless him, his family and his achievements in life and in business.
Tommy Violante
Co-founder, The Shags
Co-founder,
Pulse
Founder, Key West Trio
WHAT THE CRITICS SAY ...
"The Shags, who were dead-on at Oakdale opening for Gene Pitney and Dion,
have taken advantage of their renewed popularity to release a comprehensive cassette
... you'll end up wearing out the tape." - Fran Fried, New Haven Register
"The Shags ... were once known back in the 1960s as 'the Beatles of Connecticut.'
They reunited to show today's classic pop-rock bands how to do it right."
- Christopher Arnott, New Haven Advocate
"Everywhere The Shags would play, it would be madness. They had real fans.
It was as close to Beatlemania as I saw outside the Beatles. It's only natural
I would lionize the guys." - Beau Segal, Oakdale Theater
"What the remaining less-shaggy Shags want now is simply to play the music
they still love -- classic 60s tunes by The Beatles, Sam Cooke, Buddy Holly, and
Chuck Berry, and the handful of original tunes the band wrote ... the band hopes
to recreate, and even surpass, the sound for which it's known: heavy on harmonies."
- Orla Swift, Record-Journal.
Dion, Gene Pitney,
Gary Lewis and The Playboys, The Byrds, The Rascals, Paul Revere & The Raiders,
Simon & Garfunkel, The Beau Brummels, The Brooklyn Bridge, Peter & Gordon,
The Lovin' Spoonful, The Coasters, The Shirelles, Leslie Gore, The Tokens, The
Demensions, The Sensations, Pearline Gray, Jerry & The Passengers, Chubby
Checker, The Five Satins, Chad & Jeremy, Eric Burdon & The Animals, The
Crystals, Ben E. King, The Critters, Danny Thomas, The Righteous Brothers.
The Shags are available for your next event with a show to fit your budget --
cruises, festivals, nightclubs, private parties, classic car rallies, neighborhood
pubs, corporate functions, picnics, concerts, fundraisers, college dances, nostalgia
nights, golden oldies dances, rock & roll weddings -- all your musical entertainment
needs!
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