By JOHN NORTH

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GREENEVILLE, Tenn. — The vocal quartet Under the Streetlamp wooed an adoring crowd with the romantic vocals of the doo-wop era during an April 8 concert at the Niswonger Performing Arts Center.

About 1,000 people attended the show that featured songs before, during and after the doo-wop era in the 1,200-seat auditorium.

The concert, which comprised one 100-minute set and a 10-minute encore, showcased the four-man vocal quartet out front, wearing matching burgundy silk suits and ties, pink shirts and shiny black shoes.

The high-energy, fancy-stepping foursome featured terrific vocals (especially with their four-part harmony), mesmerizing choreography that often mimicked that of the bygone groups of the doo-wop era.

They also had a genuine ability to build rapport with the audience — and to joke with one another during the show, while imparting bits of trivia about the songs and their original singers — and an obvious love of the music.

The show’s biggest flaw — from this critic’s perspective — was its failure to include more songs by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons songs. A medley — or maybe full renditions of “Sherry” and a few others —  would have been a joy to hear, given that the group got its start after its original members left the Broadway musical “Jersey Boys”  — in a quest to find fame and fortune on their own.

To their credit, they did perform “Who Loves You” by Valli.

Still, that oversight did not seriously impair a concert that clicked on all cylinders — and delighted the audience. 

Under the Streetlamp’s talented seven-piece band, included a guitarist, bassist, percussionist and keyboardist — and a blazing horn section, with a trumpter, saxophonist and trombonist. All of the instrumentalists hailed from Chicago.

The show began with “Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay,” followed by “Blue Moon” and “Dancing in the Street.”

At that point, group member Shonn Wiley asked the crowd, “Is there anybody in in the mood to hear some of the classic hits of rock ‘n’ roll from the American Radio Songbook?” The audience  cheered in reply. 

The group then unleashed one of its big guns — in the opening salvo of songs — with its dramatic rendition of Del Shannon’s “My Little Runaway.”

For the first and only time during the show, a vocalist not only sang, but played the guitar. For “Runaway,” Wiley pulled out a beautiful Carolina blue hollow-body electric guitar, noting that it was from his musician father’s extensive collection of guitars.

As the sad song ended about the excrutiating pain of losing a much-loved girlfriend, the crowd erupted into applause.

With a note of pride, Wiley then asked, “How many of you have seen us on PBS?” Some in the audience applauded in response.

Next, the hard-working foursome sat on a row of side-by-side stools and sang a gorgeous medley of songs, “What a Wonderful World,” “Up on the Roof,” “This Magic Moment” and “Stand By Me,” which especially accentuated their harmonic capabilities.

 

After major applause, one of the singers told the crowd, “Because of our relationship with public television, the boys and I have had the pleasure of cruising the country” in the group’s crusade to bring about a rebirth of old-time rock ‘n’ roll.

He added that “we began (on Broadway) with ‘Jersey Boys,’” which was “where we met,” as performers in the show that depicts the rise, fall and resurrection into heaven of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.

“People used to make music (singing) under the humblest of spotlights — the corner streetlamp” in urban areas of the United States, he noted. With a smile, he added, “It was a time when you could understand the words.”

The group then got the audience clapping along, as it fired into a rousing rendition of Dion and the Belmonts’ “Runaround Sue” — and later had the audience singing along.

The group’s version of Bobby Darin’s “Dream Lover” also proved to be a crowd-pleaser.

A vocalist noted that “we sing a lot of songs about love” because “the best songs were written about love.” Waxing philosophical, he added, “To experience that ‘mountaintop’ of love, you have to go through a few ‘valleys,’” — the heartache of relationships that completely fail — or ones that falter before they work.

He said that is what The Skyliners had in mind when they sang, “Since I Don’t  Have You,” which Streetlamp then performed

The song ended with the refrain:

“I don’t have anything, 

Since I don’t have ... you----!”

The final “you” was sung in a falsetto that seemed to be fueled by jet propulsion  — much to the audience’s obvious delight.

The quartet then gathered into a formation resembling a huddle in football — and started snapping their fingers in unison, as they broke into an ethereal version of the Beach Boys’ “Surfer Girl,” with some lyric fragments from “God Only Knows” teased into the chorus.

“Surfer Girl” turned out to be the start of a 15-minute medley of Beach Boys’ hits, as the group segued into “California Girls,” “Don’t Worry, Baby” and concluding with the group’s magnum opus, “Good Vibrations.” Interestingly, even though the songs were woven together in medley form — at least two of them were performed at length.

As the audience gave some of its loudest applause of the night for the Beach Boys medley, the group launched into the Beatles’ “Got to Get You Into My Life,” with one bit of the refrain from “She Loves You” woven cleverly into the chorus, giving an playful and interesting new twist on a classic hit.

Next, the group delighted the crowd with its salute to Elvis Presley — with a red-hot rendition of “Burning Love.” The singer of Elvis’ part, who is from Memphis , said he was an Elvis impersonator at one time in his career — and his previous practice showed.

When the applause for the Elvis hit died down, a group member said, “We honor these great stars” of early rock ‘n’ roll, “but there were greats out there before Elvis and the Beatles. Johnny Ray was Elvis — before Elvis was Elvis.” He added that Ray still has not been honored with an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame — “and I think it’s a shame.”

A mesmerizing performance of Ray’s biggest hit, “Cry,” followed. As the song progressed, the singer ripped off his coat and tossed it onto the stage behind him, yanked his tie askew and dropped to his knees, emphasizing the emotion he was expressing. The crowd was enthralled — and cheered heartily.

Next, the group performed Tom Jones’ “She’s a Lady,” emphasizing sexy, disco-era choreography (especially hip gyrations) that seemed to delight the women in the audience.

When one of the group members teased the singer of “Cry” that his performance was akin to that of a Chippendale male stripper, the latter shot back (with a smile), “If I’m like a Chippendale, you’re like ‘the thunder from down under,’” referring to his Tom Jones-style hip movement. The crowd laughed.

The group also sang the lively “Jump Jive an’ Wail.” As the group closed out the show, the crowd cheered for an encore — and was rewarded with several songs, including Jackie Wilson’s “(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher.”