The F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts is seen in a file photo. Joe Nardone’s Rock ‘N’ Roll and Doo Wop performance scheduled for Nov. 6 at the center has been rescheduled to Sept. 24, 2022.
                                 Times Leader file photo

The F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts is seen in a file photo. Joe Nardone’s Rock ‘N’ Roll and Doo Wop performance scheduled for Nov. 6 at the center has been rescheduled to Sept. 24, 2022.

Times Leader file photo

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WILKES-BARRE — Joe Nardone’s Rock ‘N’ Roll and Doo Wop performance scheduled for Nov. 6 at the F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts, has been rescheduled to Sept. 24, 2022.

A news release stated that due to a scheduling conflict, Chubby Checker will no longer be performing at the Sept. 2022, show. Gary Puckett and the Union Gap will be headlining, with The Brooklyn Bridge, The Happenings, 1910 Fruitgum Company and Shades of Blue.

Current tickets will remain valid for the new show date. Refunds are available at point of purchase.

On Sept. 24, 2022, Joe Nardone will present “A Night of Solid Gold,” an incredible five act concert that will transport the F.M. Kirby Center audience back to the wonderful era of the 1960s, reliving those amazing days through their timeless music and its connection with the audience. The show stars the legendary Gary Puckett and the Union Gap.

Gary Puckett enjoyed six top 10 hits (including two #1s) in the late 1960s. His band, the Union Gap (Gary grew up near Union Gap, Idaho), still wears the Union Army outfits from the Civil War era. In 1968, they had six consecutive gold records and sold more records than any other group, including The Beatles.

Hits included “Woman, Woman” (#3 on the cashbox charts), “Young Girl” (#1 on cashbox and #1 in the UK), “Lady Willpower” (#1), “Over You” (#5) and “This Girl is a Woman Now”(#9). They played a command performance at the White House for Prince Charles and Princess Anne.

Co-headlining the show are The Brooklyn Bridge. Kirby Center concert goers have been asking to see them again since they brought down the house a few years ago. The Bridge was formed by combining the Crests’ lead singer, Johnny Maestro, with the Del-Satins (Dion’s backup singers) and the horn players from the Rhythm Method.

Maestro had several hits in the late 1950s with the Crests, including “16 Candles,” “The Angels Listened In” and “Step by Step,” and the Bridge still perform those songs in concert. Other Brooklyn Bridge hits include, “Welcome Me Love,” “Blessed is the Rain,” “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and “Your Husband, My Wife.”

They sold more than 10 million records and appeared on shows such as Ed Sullivan. The Bridge were Fame in 2005. The incomparable Johnny Maestro died in 2010, and Joe Esposito is the Bridge’s lead singer.

Bob Miranda, incredible lead singer and face of The Happenings, continues to wow audiences. Their 1966 and 1967 chart-topping hits “See You in September” (international #1 as well) and “I Got Rhythm” were both gold records, as was “Go Away little Girl” and “My Mammy.”

Also performing will be the 1910 Fruitgum Company. They defined “bubble gum pop” in the 60s. Their hits included “Simon Says” (#4 US, #2 UK charts), “1,2,3 Red Light” (#5) and “Indian Giver” (#5).

Opening the show is Shades of Blue. Formed in a suburban Detroit high school, they sang doo wop songs on street corners. They sang backup vocals on songs recorded at Golden World studio where they collaborated with Edwin Starr (“War, What is it Good For” and “Twenty Five Miles from Home”), writing their smash hit “Oh How Happy.”

Get your tickets now at the Sundance Vacations Box office at the F.M. Kirby Center, or by phone at 570-826-1100.

Reach Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.