The band will present the biggest hits of the British Invasion era from 1964-1969 in a format similar to the stage style of the Ed Sullivan Show. The playlist will feature tunes by Superstar groups such as the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Kinks, Dave Clark 5, Herman’s Hermits, as well as hits by the Hollies, Yardbirds, Gerry and the Pacemakers and Zombies.
UnionJack will perform at the Gill-Montague Education Fund annual gala at Turners Falls High School in Montague.
Though many Americans still remember where they were on that momentous February night in 1964, many of today’s Beatles fans had not yet been born.
Beatles fans of all ages can attend a really big shew (that’s Sullivan’s pronunciation for show) featuring UnionJack, a band with the look and sounds of the 1960’s British Invasion era.
They will perform on Saturday, April 27, at 7:30 p.m. in the Turners Falls High School Theater. Sponsored by the Gill Montague Education Fund, the gala will feature he British Invasion Band performing a “History of the 1960’s British Invasion, Sullivan Show Style.”
The band will present the biggest hits of the British Invasion era from 1964-1969 in a format similar to the stage style of the Ed Sullivan Show. The playlist will feature tunes by Superstar groups such as the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Kinks, Dave Clark 5, Herman’s Hermits, as well as hits by the Hollies, Yardbirds, Gerry and the Pacemakers and Zombies.
The band also will recreate the Beatles’ original playlist from their February 1964 groundbreaking performances on the Ed Sullivan Show.
The UnionJack show features five Western Massachusetts-based musicians performing in period costume using vintage instruments: Gary Wilkinson, guitar and vocals; Dave Lempke, drums and vocals; Phil Berube, bass and vocals; Jim Brown, lead guitar and vocals; and Jim O’Connor, keyboards and vocals.
It’s the music that keeps the audiences coming, Lempke says. “In 2012 the largest selling group on iTunes was the Beatles,” he said; 50 years after the Beatles’ initial popularity they are still popular.
“Obvious something with the music rings true with (people) one generation removed from the Beatles,” he said, noting people at UnionJack concerts range from teens to those in their sixties.
Lempke said the five band members like to support educational endeavors like the education fund, and they like to play in school settings because they began playing at high school dances in the late 1970s.
They enjoy playing concerts, Lempke said. “We’re big fans of the music, huge fans of that era of music” so “it’s not a chore but more like a labor of love.”
UnionJack has been featured at Foxwoods annually since 2005. They are scheduled to perform at the “Abbey Road on the River Fest”, the world’s largest Beatles-themed festivals, in Louisville during the Memorial Day Weekend and Cleveland on Labor Day weekend. They have also appeared locally at The Big E, The Peach Festival, Belchertown Fair, Summit View, Celebrate Holyoke and 3 County Fair.
The Gill-Montague Education Fund is a non-profit organization established in 1996 by parents and citizens of the towns of Gill and Montague to support district schools. Its goals are to provide programs and resources for the schools that would enrich the educational opportunities available to students and to encourage advocacy for public education.
It has awarded $84,540 in enrichment grants.
Now in its ninth year, the gala encourages community support of the efforts of the education fund with advertising, tier-giving and in-kind contributions.
“As a member of the Gill-Montague Educational Fund Board of Directors, I have discovered an opportunity to invest in the future, make a difference in the lives of children, choose positive actions and take on a responsibility that has given me the privilege of serving our youth,” said Joyce A. Phillips, executive producer of the annual gala.
Beginning this year, the education fund will present three scholarship awards in memory of Sandra L. Miner, a former president of the education fund, to students who demonstrate how they will enrich their lives beyond high school graduation. “Sandy believed in life-long learning, community service and the value of enriching students' education,” Phillips said. Miner, who died last year, “was committed to supporting excellence and innovation in our schools through her service on the GMEF as well as her volunteering efforts through the years as a parent and grandparent.”
Tier-givers—those who give at specified levels--will be invited to join the education fund Board of Directors for a pre-show reception. For details, go to www.thegmef.org, click on Our Annual Gala -- Pre-Show Reception and download a tier-giving form.
Tickets for the gala are available at Scotty’s Convenience Store in Turners Fall and World Eye Bookshop in Greenfield, by calling call Sandy at (413) 863-7296 and at the education fund website, www.thegmef.org.
Advance tickets are $10; $15 at the door.