After nearly a 3 year wait the UK shows finally went ahead and we would like to thank everyone who made this possible. We are so glad that Frankie and the gang were able to make it especially bearing in mind that Frankie is now 88 and had been very poorly at the end of last year with pneumonia but now fighting fit and still going strong and putting on fantastic shows - Back In Action! Special thanks to Robby for pulling all the shows together, especially with the orchestra in London, Danny and Dean for arranging front arena seats for the UK fan club and to all the UK fans who have supported Frankie as it says in the tour brochure "since bell bottoms were in fashion"!
After arriving in the UK on Thursday 23 June the shows kicked off in Scarborough on Saturday 25 June at the beautiful sea-side venue Scarborough Open Air Theatre. Nothing, not even the British weather, could dampen the crowds enthusiasm - they were on their feet for most of the show dancing the night away! As you will see here:
Getting The Party Started In Scarborough
In pictures "Oh What A Night" from the Scarborough News:https://www.thescarboroughnews.co.uk/whats-on/arts-and-entertainment/in-pictures-oh-what-a-night-frankie-valli-and-the-four-seasons-wow-at-the-open-air-theatre-3745686
Welcome back to the UK!
Hello Birmingham!
The following night the band were in Birmingham and rocked the place again! Songs were the same as at Scarborough: Working My Way Back To You; Save It For Me; Beggin; My Eyes Adored You; Dawn; Silence Is Golden; Tell It To The Rain; I've Got You Under My Skin; The Night; Opus 17; Fallen Angel; Swearin' To God; Stay - intermission - Grease; My Girl; Groovin'; Who Loves You; December '63; Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You; Sherry/Big Girls Don't Cry/Walk Like A Man/Bye Bye Baby/ Rag Doll and Let's Hang On.
We had a fan club get together with Robby, the singers and the band after the show at the Hilton Metropole Hotel and we all had a really wonderful time. Fans from the UK, Brazil, Michigan, Spain and Holland were arriving for various shows in the UK. Robby filmed some of our get together for his Jam 'n Java programme (to be broadcast live from Liverpool the next night) and as he says "it was quite wild"! He also filmed the breakfast they served at the hotel although he did not attempt the black pudding (blood pudding)!
Frankie Goes To Liverpool!
Liverpool was the next show at the M&S Bank Arena on Tuesday 28 June. The last time Frankie was in Liverpool was on 12 May 1963 and I note Kennedy Street Enterprises were involved in the promotion back then - so they have been around for longer than Robby and me! This show was just so fantastic as I guess everyone was now over any jet-lag they might have had! Robbie and some of the crew, singers and band took the Beatles Magical Mystery tour and later paid a visit to the Cavern Club - a must do when you are in Liverpool! Robbie talks about this in his Jam 'n Java show "Live From Liverpool":
Live from Liverpool!
There was also a fan club get together after the show at the Pullman Hotel in Liverpool. Thank you to Robby, all the singers, crew and band for making this such a special evening for all the fans, especially our younger fans.
The next night the show went to Nottingham. Another fantastic show - where Suzie Quatro was in the audience - see for yourself here:
Royal Albert Hall, London
Probably one if not the best place to perform in the world and certainly a favourite of Frankie and Robby. Frankie and the guys did two shows one on the Friday evening and the last show of the UK tour on Saturday 2 July. These shows were made even more special as they were playing with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra. Frankie added one song "Let It Be Me" sung so beautifully at both shows. Ian Crockett from Snapper Records was also at the show on the Saturday night with his wife and guests who said it was the best show they had ever seen! I agree!
Oh What A Night At The Royal Albert Hall!
Check out this great video of Oh What A Night and watch the bass player, Alfredo Lopez, at the end - such a passionate bass player! Amazing show!
Oh What A Night At The Royal Albert Hall
Thank you again to everyone who made this tour possible - Frankie, Robby, Aaron, Ronen, Craig, Noah, Basil, Carmen, Rick, Alfredo, Andy, Dean, Allan, Redford, Mike, Rob and all the crew and, of course, Danny Betesh, Flick, and everyone at Kennedy Street. Thank you so much we are all so very grateful to you for all that you do.
Highlights of the UK Tour by Robby Robinson:
More UK Memories from Robby Robinson:
Robby's dressing room a the Royal Albert Hall!!
For lots more photos and videos of the UK shows please check out Royal Albert Hall July 2022 Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons:
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and on our Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/frankievallifans
Merchandise available here: https://frankievallifourseasons.com/shop/
Snapper 44 Disk Box Set
Just days before the tour we were advised by Ian Crockett of the release date for "Working Our Way Back To you" the long awaited Snapper Box Set - 9th December 2022. L'Eredita! Banners advertising the release date and details of how to pre-order were at all the shows. This legacy box set includes Motown unreleased material from the early 1970's - my favourite is "My Heart Cries Out To You" and also the lost Disco Album including the wonderful unreleased "Back In Action" from 1979. Full details are on our Blog. Many thanks to Ian Crockett, Ken Charmer, John Pingree, George Ingram, Ray Nichol and the late Bob Fisher for your hard work and dedication and finally getting some of the Motown unreleased material out there. More on the Motown Unreleased Campaign here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1049892628364291/?ref=bookmarks
Frankie and the gang are, of course, still touring in the USA and Canada and the tour dates for the remainder of this year are here:
Finally, On A Sad Note
I am so sorry to end this blog on a very sad note but thought you would wish to know that Dave Quick – known to many on Facebook as Francis Castellucio – passed away recently. We lost touch with Dave just prior to the UK tour and so guessed something was not right. Dave ran the UK fan club with Malcolm Grace and Adrian Rondeau in the early 1970’s after Stu Miller left in Summer of 1973. As a teenager I was a member of Dave’s fan club and corresponded with him on a regular basis. Dave's first Newsletter was February 1974 and his last one was June 1976. After the 1976 tour, our group took over from Dave and our first Newsletter was June, 1976 just after the UK tour. Dave was passionate about Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, had a wealth of knowledge about them and was an avid collector of anything to do with the group. He was such a fun guy and will be very much missed by everyone who knew him and we send our sincere condolences to all his family and friends.
Adrian Rondeau said "I spent many a memorable evening with Dave in the early 70s helping him assemble the fan club's magazine. I subscribed to Billboard at the time so we would trawl through it for news of the Seasons to add to the newsletter. I enjoyed helping him and admired his vast knowledge of the subject".
Malcolm Grace sent me this which just about sums Dave up:
I had a phone call one evening and the caller said "yeah Dave Quick here you don't know me but I'm taking over running the 4 Seasons Fan Club and as your address is the nearest to me I'd like you to help me".
I had 4 or 5 years of helping Dave and it was a lot of fun from spending hours in his bedroom getting to grips with an ancient Gestetner printing machine to get the newsletter printed often helped with supplies of sausage sandwiches made by his then girlfriend and mum to some of our ambitious excursions.
He decided to arrange a club meeting at Geoff Sheards House in Birmingham. In the days before sat nav we had to stop three or four times to ask for directions but unfortunately he couldn't grasp the Brummie Accent. Eventually we found a Police Station and he went in to ask directions only to come out despondent saying "blimey they talk like that in there too"!
Another time we used the car to meet our third partner Adrian Rondeau. I didn't know Central London other than by bus routes so Dave navigated and I soon realised he was doing it by tube stations because that's all he knew.
Finally we went to a number of the Southern concerts on the Who Loves You Tour in 1976. Heading back to London from Bristol rather late and with the prospect of an early work start the next day I had wound up my Cortina to well over 90mph on the M4 when two Daimler Limos passed us as if I was on a Sunday drive. A few miles on they were on the hard shoulder and we pulled over. Dave knew one of the drivers who explained Frankie was making a phone call to the States. A little while later they passed us again and as they did so Don Ciconne gave us the "Royal Wave". I'm not sure how Dave thought I was going to fit them in the car because that's what he offered.
Like many others I lost touch with Dave until very recently on Facebook when I realised he was Francis Castellucio when he made a comment on those car journeys. When I told him I still had the car he said he would put it in the 4 Seasons Museum when he set it up.
Sadly we had just got around to arranging a get together when he stopped posting on fb."
Written by Lynn E Boleyn MBE
UK Four Seasons Appreciation Society
www.seasonally.co.uk
16 July 2022
Thank you Lynn for this mammoth effort in support of the fan group and Frankie and The Band. The standard of shows was superb. Ken
Posted by: Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society | 07/18/2022 at 02:19 PM