The Death of Disco - 60's Nostalgia Reigns! THE HITZ WING OF THE MUSEUM OF ROCK & ROLL HISTORY 1981-1986 A Decade of Hitz The fun of performing rip-offs of popular television comedy skits, and inspired by a show at the former Carlton Celebrity Room featuring the original "Paul Revere & the Raiders", Bob and Kent decided to leave Gangbusters to form a new show group, called "Hitz". Hitz brought together the talents of Kent Appeldoorn on guitar, Rick Chermak on drums, Daryl Eastburg on bass, sax, and trombone, Brad Olson on keyboards and trumpet, Bob Burtis on keyboards, trumpet, and sax. They played the greatest rock & roll hits of all time, and featured unique costumed and choreographed shows that would shamelessly rip-off any and all artists of the 60's, in a desperate and yet sincere effort to entertain an audience. Hitz brought to the stage a multimedia show that included a sophisticated first class light show, pyrotechnics, a 144 square foot projection screen, slides, and even movies. And, of course, their first show highlighted the music, costumes, comedy, choreography, fun, and the rock & roll excitement of "Paul Revere & the Raiders"! 1982 Hitz Presents Tribute To Paul Revere & the Raiders! One of the super groups of the 60's was the band known as "Paul Revere & the Raiders". Their dynamic rock beat, high-steppin' choreography, and patriotic Revolutionary style outfits - complete with riding boots, three corner hats, laced cuffs, and ruffled shirts - made the Raiders one of the biggest groups of the decade. Regular appearances on the Dick Clark television show, "Where The Action Is", kept them at the forefront of popular American music for many years. Lead singer Mark Lindsay eventually left the group for a solo career, but the original "Paul Revere" rides on even today, and shows in Vegas and the Twin Cities inspired Hitz to produce their own tribute to the world's greatest rock & roll good-timin' party band! Featuring the greatest music of Paul Revere & the Raiders, energetic choreography, and four different outfits, Hitz gave Spandex pants the ultimate challenge, and brought the music and excitement of Paul Revere & the Raiders to audiences throughout the Midwest. The band wore their Raiders outfits to the Carlton Celebrity Room the next time Paul Revere came to town, and got a chance to meet with the living legend backstage after the show. Paul Revere & the Raiders The Living Legend Paul Revere at the Carlton Celebrity Theater The Beach Boys 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. 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, and made this tribute a real crowd-pleaser and a much requested audience favorite! Nothin' But #1 Hits! What a concept - playing the most popular music and the greatest rock & roll hits of all time. And it made Hitz one of the most popular bands in the Midwest. The Tijuana Brass What 80's rock & roll band would ever be caught dead performing "Zorba the Greek" by the Tijuana Brass? Only one - and that group was Hitz. And audiences loved it! 1984 The Girls of the 60's Revue Although it was rumored that one or two members of "Hitz" had a fondness for wearing women's clothing right from the start, it wasn't until Bob suggested a tribute to the "Girls of the 60's" that on-stage crossdressing made this the band's most popular and most entertaining show. The original "Girls of the 60's" revue featured Rick Chermak as Millie "My Boy Lollipop" Small, Kent Appeldoorn as Lesley "It's My Party" Gore, Bob Burtis as the Dixie Cups in "Chapel of Love", Daryl Eastburg as Tina "Proud Mary" Turner, and Brad Olson as Tammy "Stand By Your Man" Wynette. The impersonations were less than perfect (Daryl was the only band member willing to shave his legs), but presented with great enthusiasm and flair. Special props such as Millie Small's king-sized lollipop, Lesley Gore's handkerchief, Tina Turner's teddy, Tammy Wynette's Valentine shorts and the style and special "delivery" of the Dixie Cups, added to the fun. Later versions of the show featured Brad as "Cher" with "The Beat Goes On", Bob as Dusty "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me" Springfield, complete with bath robe, face cream, and rollers, a respectful presentation of "Dominique" and the Singing Nun, and the ultimate tribute to the girl groups of the 60's featuring Daryl, Brad, and Kent, as "Darly & the Darlettes"! The Young Rascals 1985 - 1986 Three New Shows The Beatles and "Yellow Submarine" The Monkees Three other rock & roll bands that impacted the music and culture of the 60's and the hearts and minds of the baby boomer generation included 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. 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 these legendary groups of the sixties decade. 1987 The End of an Era - and a New Beginning Continued growth and success for Hitz meant more and more travel as bookings came in for shows in Wichita, Nashville, Los Angeles, and other far-away locales, with extended road trips away from their Twin Cities home. 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 Indian casinos built in the state of Minnesota alone over the past twenty years. A paradigm change for the entertainment industry - and a time of change in the lives of the musicians and entertainers who had chosen a career in this field. Bob's son Shawn was born on May 13, 1986. He left Hitz soon thereafter to form the group "Bob & the Beachcombers". Minnesota and the Midwest would never be the same. Let the Beach Party Summertime Fun Begin! Part I HOME | MUSEUM OF R&R HISTORY | THE 50's | THE 60's | THE 70's | THE 80's | THE 90's | 2000+ | 2006