Tag Archives: Frankie Valli

2008 in Review

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As the end of the year draws near, I find myself saying, “wow, this year went fast!” And I guess it did. They always do. When I was a kid, a year was like, forever and a half. Wait a whole year till Christmas?? A year until my next birthday?? A three month Summer vacation was an eternity and you wonder if you’ll recognize your friends on the first day of class.

I often think about the differences in the passing of time. It goes slow when we’re kids and fast when we’re adults. Is it simply about having a basis of reference? An hour is only 60 small minutes and each one of those is 60 small seconds. I guess knowing how long it takes to do something, takes the fun out of it. When you’re a kid, you have no concept of time beyond being home before sunset. You also don’t care about time. You don’t wear a watch until you get your first one in 10th grade and even then, you often forget to wind it. When the battery dies, you stop wearing it. Or at least, I did. I still have the watch my Dad gave me in 10th grade.

This year hasn’t passed any faster than all those that came before it. So why does it feel that way? Once Christmas is over it’s on to New Year’s Eve and the whole thing starts all over again. Except this time, you’re a year older and perhaps a little wiser.

2008 was the year I started my freelancing career. In January I was liberated from Hot Topic the same day my Grandpa Ernie died.

In February we had a lunar eclipse and I took a really great photo of it. We also fired our gardeners and I took on the yard. I’ve regretted it ever since. Poloroid announced they were ceasing production of their iconic instant film.

In March, I turned 33. I didn’t talk about my birthday and can’t remember what I did. A full year passed since my Dad died. March was hard. I did an amazing photo session with an old boyfriend. I got into an accident on the 5-FWY in which my car was damaged and the squirrel died. My baby brother announced that his (hated) girlfriend was pregnant – this would cause a devastating family rift that is still unresolved.

In April, I went to Japan. A life’s dream come to fruition. April was a good month. I also learned why you shouldn’t get wasted on a long flight home.

In May, a friend I’ve known since first grade got married. I went to the wedding by myself. Gas prices were the highest in my lifetime.

In June, Wall-E came out. It remains one of the most beautiful movies I’ve ever seen. I saw Peter Murphy at the House of Blues. The Apricots on our tree came in. I had this wild idea of making jam, but the fruit went bad very quickly and I missed the boat.

In July, AJB and I went to Chicago to see his mom. The cicada were in full force. That month, we attended Comic-Con in San Diego and even though I wrote about it, I never published the post. I just did. I embraced Twitter and got into more trouble with the law – expired tags and mysteriously missing insurance information.

In August, we had what might have been an attempted break-in or maybe ghosts. My sister visited for a weekend. I made a YouTube video to take part in an online piano teaching experiment. I still haven’t started because the book is expensive.

By September, the heat was getting to me. I didn’t write much and didn’t get a whole lot done over Summer in general. I did some photo shoots here and there. I started up with a cool vintage clothing store that offers self satisfaction over heaps of cash.

In October, Obama-fever was setting in. AJB and I celebrated our 4 year anniversary by getting engaged. I voted early in Norwalk and waited 4 hours. My sister came into town and helped me pick out my engagement ring. On Halloween, we drove out to Vegas to canvass for Obama.

November, Obama won the election and all was right with the world. Mostly. We stayed in Nevada until the 5th. AJB bought my ring and presented it to me on the Haunted Mansion ride at Disneyland. A week or so later, we traveled to Florida for a theme park convention. I had a headache for three days, but got to meet lots of people and saw Universal Orlando and Islands of Adventure. Starbucks unleashed their Gingerbread Lattes as “Ginger Snap Lattes”. My brother’s baby was born. Welcome Micheal Joseph Simental.

In December, we traveled to Chicago and New York. I saw Jersey Boys in Chi-Town and Liza in Manhattan. My brother, my Mom, and I saw Frankie Valli in San Bernardino. Bettie Page and Majel Barrett died. Christmas came and went. I was unprepared but it all came together in the end. I announced to my family that AJB and I were getting married – they all knew something was up, but thought I might be pregnant. LOL.

And now, here we are. The end of 2008. Is it just me or do years get more and more momentous as you get older? A long time friend got married, my grandpa died, I started my career, I went to Japan, Chicago (twice), New York, and Florida. I traveled more in 2008 than any other year. My brother had a baby and I got engaged. 2008 was filled with excitement and many life changing events. 2009 brings new promise, but I am hesitant to say it’s going to be great because I just don’t know. I do know that in 2009 I will be planning my wedding, turning 34, and getting married. The uncertainty of this economic crisis is casting a dark cloud over the new year. Who knows what the future will bring? *We are all interested in the future because that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives.

See what happened in 2007

*Crisswell, Ed Wood

Oh What a Night

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I woke up yesterday in such a good mood. I was going to see THE Frankie Valli with my Mom and JCS. A storm was brewing, but it wasn’t just the rain. I guess most families fall into the category of irrational and dramatic, so I can take comfort in knowing I’m not alone. Eh, I won’t go into it.

We arrived at The California Theater in San Bernardino, which is oddly beautiful considering it’s unfortunate geographical location. It was a brisk evening and we arrived a little early. I was in a bad mood due to earlier events and figured a Jack and Coke would fix me right quick. I went outside for a quick pre-show smoke, J&C in hand, I chatted with a true Frankie Valli fan who had seen Valli perform over 40 times and had actually met him.

The show started right on time. When Valli came out, he immediately charged into a 60 second rendition of “Dawn” and I couldn’t believe my eyes, was Frankie lip-synching? Was he? No. Couldn’t be. I kept watching and eventually determined he wasn’t. Dawn was over quicker than I would have liked. It’s my favorite Four Seasons song and I was a little bummed. It took me a while to get back into the groove, but I never fully recovered.

Throughout the show, Frankie was kind enough to oblige the half filled theater with fan favorites and several covers from a new album. Overall (and let me just get this out of the way) Frankie has a golden voice. He’s a living legend and seems like a stand-up guy. I grew up listening to the Four Seasons because my Dad loved them so. It’s really easy for kids to get into 60′s bubble-gum pop, except, I look back fondly at complaining that all my Dad listened to was old music. Of course, because it was hammered into my head, as I grew older and realized that “old” music is WHY we have new music, I grew to love and appreciate it. I especially love The Four Seasons because it reminds me of my Dad. It’s not just that. It’s really great music. Bob Gaudio, the mastermind behind all their songs, is a musical genius. I also recently saw Jersey Boys in Chicago and actually liked it.

I guess I expected more from the show. I mean, Frankie’s 74 years old, so I don’t know what I expected, actually. Have you ever been up late at night flipping channels and you stumble upon KCET public television pledge drive? They broadcast their concert series which are generally older bands from the 60′s or 70′s that take place in towns like San Bernardino. The hosts reminisce and tell you about the importance of supporting public television and that if you pledge a hundred dollars, you’ll get a tote bag and a CD. Back to the concert, KC and the Sunshine band or some other sad band that has nothing better going on. The cameras scan the audience and it’s filled with centenarians sitting there like lumps on logs, occasionally smiling and clapping their hands. Never standing and occasionally nodding off.

You get the picture? That was last night. Talk about the oldest crowd I’ve ever been amongst. Old, old, old. Old as shit. It was like the old age home had a field trip. Frankie Valli, because he himself is old, now has a foursome of young lads that sing and dance behind him. They’re freakin’ nuts. They were all over the place, bouncing, jumping, high fiving each other, doing moves that were obviously inspired by the 60′s, but looked more like a cheap theater production of a 60′s dance routine. A group of good looking, local boys, who looked like jocks that hurt themselves in highs school, had to leave the team, and got into theater as lark, and ended up touring with Franki Valli. Did I actually see chest bumping? I feel like I did. Their big moment came when each Dude got a turn in singing “December, 1963 (Oh What a Night)”. I guess Frankie can’t justify singing it himself because it was originally done by Gerry Polci and Don Ciccone. The Dudes, I swear to God, were doing (holy shit) hip-hop dance moves and kind of rapping out the song a bit. None of them could sing and it was awful, awful, awful. Fuck. And get this, the audience flipped! They loved it. As far as I was concerned, it was the worst part of the show.

Fine. I regrouped. I was pretty stoked when Frankie sang Grease, Sherry, and Big Girls Don’t Cry. Still, the audience just sat there. There were also various medleys thrown into the mix. I hate medleys. When Frankie asked the audience to clap, it was like pulling teeth. I figure their Metamucil kicked in during “Oh What a Night”, but wore off soon after. At one point, one lady stood up to dance, but looked around, saw she was the only one and sat back down. Good for you lady. I heard a “Fuck Yeah” from the back when “Walk Like a Man” came on, but otherwise, this was the most comatose audience I’ve ever been in. Comatose! I don’t care if you’re a hundred years old, this is a concert, and Frankie Valli is a fucking rock star! How do you forget what it’s like to be young? How often do you get to see a living legend? Stand up! Clap! Yell! I did and the lady in front of me kept getting annoyed. At one point, her husband had to comfort her. OMG.

Granted, the musical arrangements for these songs have metamorphosed into cheesy Las Vegas lounge versions and there are few reminders that you’re actually watching a Frankie Valli concert. It could have been a cover band, for all I knew.

Frankie was phoning it in. I hate to say it, but he was. JCS and my Mom will disagree, they loved it, but they’re both old ladies. I mean, when you’ve been singing the same songs for 40 years, I guess you lose some of that old enthusiasm. The problem is, it really looked like The Four Dudes were there to replace that lost vigor. That’s sad. Even though Frankie can’t dance and shake like he once did, he still has a beautiful voice. I guess it doesn’t help that the audience was snoring through more than half the show. That’s gotta be a bummer for any performer.

Everyone stood up after the first finale because they thought it was over and were giving their show-end standing ovation. Psyche! The band came back out and did 3 more songs. Naturally, now that you’re up, you can’t just sit back down, can you? That would be embarrassing. You stood, now you gotta hold your ground. Standing or not, the level of excitement was still low. Lights on, show over. The audience erupted in applause. Finally.

Was it the worst show I’ve ever seen? No. Like I said, despite all the bad, Frankie still sings like a king. The audience’s lack of enthusiasm was disheartening and I was confused. The modern musical arrangements ala Las Vegas isn’t my cup of tea, but the band was skilled. I can say that much. Will I ever see Frankie Valli play again? Probably not. I hated The Four Dudes. They killed it for me. I’d go see Jersey Boys again, because at least they sing the songs as they were intended and you get to see a reasonable facsimile of the band in their hey day.

I’m grateful for the opportunity to be disappointed by a Frankie Valli show and I don’t blame Frankie at all. He’s old and these ancient songs are his bread and butter. I’ll continue to listen to The Four Seasons because I love them and they deserve to be remembered as they were.