Nostalgia trip musical Jersey Boys tells the stormy history of the Four Seasons. The band members originated from industrial New Jersey rather than the sunny golden beaches of California, trash chic Manhattan or hippie San Francisco.
Talented but troubled, some of the group members spent time in prison before the band came together. But jailhouse rock certainly wasn’t in the offing.
The show takes a while to warm up as it gives you detail about The Four Season’s early days rather than just launch into a musical romp down memory lanes. But the pace does pick up later in the first half when the cast start to take you though their hits.
Their breakthrough song was ‘Sherry’ and others quickly followed including ‘Walk Like a Man’ and ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry.’ You will know much of the music, even if you weren’t around in the sixties, although many of us may not associate the songs with the Four Seasons. Who knew ‘Cant take my eyes off you’ was originally a hit for Frankie Valli and not Andy Williams?
Interestingly the group’s success owed much to Joe Pesci. The “Raging Bull’ actor was childhood friends with lead singer Frankie Valli and Tommy DeVito. In 1959, at age 16, he helped introduce them to singer and songwriter Bob Gaudio, which led to the formation of the band.
During the show each of the group takes it in turn to give you their perspective as they narrate the story. Through this mechanism we are told that the four musicians had different motivations and this is given as the reason they grew apart. However, the main cause of the problems that brought to a head these underlying divisions was the huge debts racked up by Tommy DeVito, who was first to leave the original line up. One by one all the original members left, leaving Frankie to front the group which evolved into Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.
Since it began on Broadway ten years ago Jersey Boys has been performed around the world and achieved international success, collecting both Tony and Olivier awards. It is a slick production, deserving of its critical success. Maybe such is its own pedigree the musical is its own nostalgia trip irrespective of any audience members’ memories of that famous band and those oh so catchy tunes.
Main photo: Lewis Griffith, Tim Driesen, Sam-Ferriday and Stephen Webb
Wales Millennium Centre until August 1.