The Midtown Men - Sixties Hits

To contact us Click HERE
The Midtown Men –Sixties Hits
2011, The Midtown MenBroadway musical casts are forever changing.  Principal actors move on to other projects,or come to disagreements with the powers that be over the value of theirperformances to the show.  Whatever thereason, the Great White Way is a revolving door.  The Jersey Boys was one of the most wildlysuccessful rock and roll inspired shows of the last decade.  The original cast of that show has moved on,but they haven’t stopped performing together. Working now under the name The Midtown Men,  Christian Hoff, Michael Longoria, DanielReichard and J. Robert Spencer continue to deliver their brilliant early rockand roll sound as they tour the U.S.  TheMidtown Men’s debut album, Sixties Hits, finds The Midtown Men picking right up where they left off atthe final curtain call of The Jersey Boys. Kicking things off with a medley of “Let’s Hang On/WorkingMy Way Back To You/Breaking Up Is Hard To Do”, The Midtown Men sound like theyhave been transported forward forty years without missing a beat.  The sound is wonderfully clean andprofessional, and the vocal harmonies are as right as a wire.  There is a hint of Broadway/Vegas flair tothe entire affair, but the sound is very faithful to the early 1960’s soundthey are trying to capture.  “Can’t BuyMe Love” brings a bit of surf influence into the classic Beatles tune, subtlychanging the character of the song without breaking its musical heritage.  This is one of the sharpest interpretationsof the album, one you will likely have on repeat.The Midtown Men then launch into “Happy Together” as if theywrote it themselves.  This time out thesound, perhaps, a bit too polished, but it’s a minor complaint.  They sound absolutely brilliant.  “Ain’t That Peculiar” is solid space filler,but leads into the aural gold of “Dawn”. The vocal harmonies here are beyond sublime, tightly wound and perfectlyexecuted.  “Dawn” is truly a thing ofbeauty.  “Candy Girl” plays in a similarsonic playground, although the Midtown Men are a bit looser with their sonicaffections this time around.  This onewill have you wanting to dance a bit.“Up On The Roof” gets a modernized, slick treatment thatsounds likely to get the Midtown Men some airplay, but doesn’t necessarily goas well on the song.    It’s the sonicequivalent of trying to paint antique furniture with modern acrylic paint.  It might look nice but it just doesn’tfit.  The Midtown Men hit a homerun on“California Dreamin’” however finding the perfect mix of rough and smooth inthe sound.  The lead vocalist is on the edgeof nirvana throughout this performance, nailing not only every note but thefeel of the song as well.  “Time Of The Season” underlines the group’s vocal prowess asthey work their way through some interesting modal harmonies in thearrangement.  The performance isabsolutely gorgeous and worth waiting for. “Big Girls Don’t Cry” is an almost perfectly bubblegum replica of theoriginal, and promises to be a great deal of fun live.  The Midtown Men wind things up with awonderfully buoyant take on “Bye Bye Baby”, the perfect curtain call for the album.The Midtown Men might not be able to trade under the nameThe Jersey Boys anymore, but if you loved the original Broadway production thenyou won’t be able to resist Sixties Hits.  In spite of a couple of mall side trips, thealbum flows brilliantly from song to song, with a level of sonic perfectionthat’s difficult to attain with even the most stringent electronic reworking ofvocals.  There’s none of that here.  The Midtown Men are just solid gold.Rating: 4.5 Stars(Out of 5)Learn more at www.themidtownmen.comor www.facebook.com/themidtownmen.