Sixties Nostalgia Takes the Stage THE HITZ WING OF THE MUSEUM OF ROCK & ROLL HISTORY
1984 - 1986 TRIBUTES TO
The Most Popular Rock Groups of the 60's
Four other rock & roll bands that impacted the music and culture of the 60's along with the hearts and minds of the baby boomer generation included the Beach Boys, the Young Rascals, the Monkees, and, of course, the Beatles. There were several touring regional and national bands along with an occasional live theater show that reproduced the sights and sounds of John, Paul, George and Ringo, so Hitz focused their tribute to the Fab Four on their Sgt. Pepper costumes and the animated Yellow Submarine movie, featuring multiple projection screens, 16mm films, slides and live music.
Along with Paul Revere & the Raiders, the "Beach Boys" captured the heart and soul of American rock during the 60's, and Hitz had
the perfect blend of vocals to capture that Beach
Boys surfin' sound. The Beach Boys were officially declared "America's Rock & Roll" band during the Reagan administration and along with a great variety of music spanning several decades, the Beach Boys show always brought a whole lotta beach party summertime fun to every event and it quickly became a Hitz favorite. With medleys that featured Bob and
Kent on lead vocals performing the best
of the Beach Boys, Rick singing the Grass Roots
and the American Breed, Daryl rockin' out with
Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels, and Brad
featured on "More Today Than Yesterday" along
with a special costumed presentation of the "Itsy Bitsy Teeny
Weeny Yellow Polka-Dot Bikini", it was a show that
brought the best beach party music and fun of the
60's to the stage as it had never been done before. The Rascals and the Monkees each had a smaller library of popular music and media imagery to work with, but Hitz used costumes, choreography, and a high energy musical presentation to recreate the fun and excitement of these legendary groups of the sixties. While the Tijuana Brass may have seemed like a strange choice for a Hitz tribute show, they were nevertheless one of the most successful groups of the 60's, and it was a great opportunity to feature Brad, Daryl and Bob on trumpets with a medley of Tijuana Brass #1 hits that everybody loved (even if they were ashamed to admit it).
The Beach Boys
The Young Rascals
The Monkees
The Tijuana Brass
Growing popularity and demand for Hitz meant more and more travel as bookings came in for shows in Wichita, Nashville, Los Angeles, and other faraway locales, involving extended road trips away from their Twin Cities homes. It was also indicative of a changing and evolving Midwest entertainment market that was aging and losing interest in attending dances and seeing the type of rock & roll stage shows that Hitz had specialized in over the past several years. What those people WERE doing on a regular basis was attending one or more of the nineteen Native American casinos built in the state of Minnesota alone over the past twenty years. This was a major paradigm change for the entertainment industry - and a time of change and evolution in the lives of the musicians and entertainers who had chosen a career in this field. So when Bob's son Shawn was born on May 13, 1986, Bob began making plans to leave Hitz to form the group "Bob & the Beachcombers", with a goal of less travel and more time at home with his wife and son. And Minnesota and the Midwest would never be the same.
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