Sat 3/23 @ 8PM
When Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes released their debut album in 1976, they earned a faithful if modest following around the country.
But they detonated in Cleveland: at their peak in the early ’80s, they headlined (and packed) Blossom Music Center. So there will always be a loyal audience here for this horn-driven, blues/R&B-based band, fronted by the uninhibited Southside Johnny Lyon. Cleveland fans will always devour Jukes classics like “The Fever,” “I Don’t Want to Go Home,” Hearts of Stone,” and my all-time favorite, “Trapped Again,” which I once listened to 19 times in succession on a road trip.
And since Lyon resembled and sounded like an old bluesman at 27, the year the band came out, he hasn’t changed that much now that he’s 64. He pours his heart and guts into a song, belting until his voice is a gargling rasp, and he sweats up a storm.
The band is at the House of Blues; tickets are $28 in advance, $30 day of show.