An
award-winning songwriter and recording artist with multi platinum
albums, John Cafferty could simply be known as "The Man Who
Made Eddie Cruise". Indeed, after playing together for more
than 25 years, from the beachside haunts of their native Rhode
Island to concert venues nationwide, John Cafferty and the Beaver
Brown Band bring both passion and hard-won perspective to their
musical careers. And those years have given Cafferty a story to
tell which, like the best rock songwriting, is both personal and
universal.
Cafferty and Beaver Brown saxophonist Michael Antunes (who
actually appeared as the saxophonist in the Eddie and the Cruisers
movie) know much about winning and losing. By 1982, despite their
status as one of the strongest club bands in the Northeast, they
still had not won a recording contract. So, they took the risk of
writing and performing the music for a yet to be released movie.
Of course, the film Eddie and the Cruisers became a
blockbuster hit and Cafferty's rendition of "Tender
Years" (which had been a poignant gem in the band's
repertoire for years) and "On the Dark
Side" flew to the top of the Billboard Charts.
As both of those tracks became hits, the soundtrack of Eddie
and the Cruisers was released by Scotti Bros/CBS in May 1983
and, bolstered by cable play of the film, sold more than three
million copies earning triple platinum status.
The
risk paid off and Cafferty and Beaver Brown got their own record
deal. The resulting album, Tough All Over, was released by
Scotti Bros./CBS in May 1985. With its varied styles and realistic
themes, it was the first chance for Cafferty and the band to
display the scope and depth of their music. The album yielded two
more Top 20 hits, the title track,
"Tough All Over" and "C.I.T.Y."
It also included pointed vignettes like "Dixieland",
a gospel-flavored rave about Frost Belt refugees in the South; "Small
Town Girl", a doo-wop-tinged love tune; "Crystal
Blue", a heartbreak ballad with a Tex-Mex feel; and
the powerful rocker "Voices of
America's Sons", Cafferty's declaration of rock
music's role for his generation, which also appeared on the Rocky
IV soundtrack.
"I wanted to have a sense of continuity," says Cafferty.
"We're still trying to write songs that ring true to life --
that's what's important."
An
award-winning songwriter and recording artist with multi platinum
albums, John Cafferty could simply be known as "The Man Who
Made Eddie Cruise". Indeed, after playing together for more
than 25 years, from the beachside haunts of their native Rhode
Island to concert venues nationwide, John Cafferty and the Beaver
Brown Band bring both passion and hard-won perspective to their
musical careers. And those years have given Cafferty a story to
tell which, like the best rock songwriting, is both personal and
universal.
The
risk paid off and Cafferty and Beaver Brown got their own record
deal. The resulting album, Tough All Over, was released by
Scotti Bros./CBS in May 1985. With its varied styles and realistic
themes, it was the first chance for Cafferty and the band to
display the scope and depth of their music. The album yielded two
more Top 20 hits, the title track,
"Tough All Over" and "C.I.T.Y."
It also included pointed vignettes like "Dixieland",
a gospel-flavored rave about Frost Belt refugees in the South; "Small
Town Girl", a doo-wop-tinged love tune; "Crystal
Blue", a heartbreak ballad with a Tex-Mex feel; and
the powerful rocker "Voices of
America's Sons", Cafferty's declaration of rock
music's role for his generation, which also appeared on the Rocky
IV soundtrack.
