By Bruce Klauber
If the vibrations are right and the stars are in correct alignment, Jersey Shore audiences, particularly Atlantic City audiences, can be among the most enthusiastic anywhere. More often than not, the vibes and the stars are perfect, and given that Atlantic City was one of the country’s entertainment centers long before the legalization of gambling, it’s a wonder that more artists through the years didn’t record live shows here.
For whatever reason, only a handful of authorized recordings, both audio and video, were recorded “live from Atlantic City” through the years. That’s unfortunate because the results of what has been released have been uniformly terrific. No, nothing rivals the experience of having been there in person, but several of these come close to putting you right there: up close and personal.
Rock/Pop
The most controversial of these projects focused on quite a discovery. As the story goes, the Atlantic City-based KOOL Radio, 98.3 on the FM dial, actually recorded the Aug. 30, 1964 Beatles concert at Convention Hall. For whatever reason, the concert was never broadcast until August of 2014, when the radio station’s staff discovered the tapes in KOOL’s vaults.
Despite the less-than-perfect fidelity, the station aired the show, and that’s when the controversy began. Some Beatles fans claimed that what aired was actually a 1970s bootleg concert called, “Live Concert at Whiskey Flats.” Others maintain the concert was actually recorded at the Hollywood Bowl on Aug. 23, 1964, not Convention Hall in Atlantic City. KOOL responded stuck to a story: “We believe this to be the recording from Atlantic City.”
In 1989, the Rolling Stones “Steel Wheels” tour came to Atlantic City’s Convention Hall, and the results – the Stones’ last with bassist Bill Wyman – was recorded and released on audio and video. It was a fine show, complete with appearances by guest stars Axl Rose, Izzy Stradlin, Eric Clapton and John Lee Hooker.
The indefatigable Lynyrd Skynyrd had a relatively strong lineup in 2006, when “Live From Atlantic City” was recorded at the Taj Mahal’s Decades Arena. Joining the veteran rockers were guest stars 3 Doors Down, Hank Williams, Jr., and singer/songwriter Bo Bice.
Also recorded live at the Taj in 2006 was Heart, part of VH1’s “Decades Rock Live!” series. The guest list was impressive and included appearances by Alice In Chains, Gretchen Wilson, Rufus Wainwright, Carrie Underwood, Dave Navarro, Phil Anselmo and Duff McKagan.
The Dave Matthews Band rocked Bader Field on the weekend of June 24, 2011, as part of its Caravan Tour. It was a memorable weekend, complete with other mini-concerts presented on several smaller stages throughout the grounds with the headliners taking the main stage at the end of the day. The resulting two-CD set features the Matthews Band recorded on the evening of Sunday, June 26.
Probably the most ambitious of the “live from Atlantic City” pop/rock projects was a 2013 video release by Beyonce, her eighth video album. Recorded live over a four-night span at what was then called the Revel Hotel and Casino – now Ocean Casino Resort. The film was part of Beyonce’s autobiographical television film, “Life is But a Dream.” There are 21 tracks on the project, which made it to the top of the video charts. The “Life is But a Dream” audio recording became Beyonce’s fourth No. 1 album.
Jazz
The 1966 meeting of Duke Ellington, saxophonist Johnny Hodges and jazz organist Wild Bill Davis may have been the first live Atlantic City recording project released commercially. RCA distributed this swinging little opus, recorded live at the famed Grace’s Little Belmont club, giving listeners a glimpse of what it may have been like at Grace’s back in the day.
Three years later, Club Harlem hosted another jazz organist, Dr. Lonnie Smith. The live recordings of Smith titled, “Move Your Hand,” were released on the Blue Note record label. “Move Your Hand,” which featured all-original, funk-focused Smith tunes, received four stars from the All Music Guide. “The group never lets their momentum sag through the session,” said the Guide.
Philadelphia’s favorite son, saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr., visited Atlantic City often and the audiences loved him. Washington appeared at the Trump Regency Cabaret Theatre in 1990. The show, featuring many of his greatest hits, was issued some years later on the relatively small Jazz Hour label, and on video via the SRO/Standing Room Only label.
Also recorded at the Regency in 1990 and issued on SRO was a show starring “the king of the blues,” B.B. King. The miniscule SRO label had high hopes of becoming a force in the marketplace by recording live shows in Atlantic City and Philadelphia, but the company only managed to release a few projects, including one by Mel Torme.
Kultur Video has long specialized in releasing live concerts and television shows featuring classical artists, but Kultur occasionally has taken on a jazz-oriented project. On Jan. 25, 1995, the company recorded iconic vocalist Peggy Lee live in the lounge of what was then called Resorts International. It’s superb and captures a warm and welcoming Lee (warm and welcoming were relatively rare for her) singing her hits, taking requests and charming the audience.
Tony Bennett first appeared in Atlantic City in the 1950s at the Steel Pier, and later at the 500 Club. With the advent of hotel/casino showrooms, he appeared in AC annually until his death in 2023. For a time, Bennett was affiliated with Caesars. In April and August of 1996, he appeared at Caesars Circus Maximus for two, four-day stands. “Tony Bennett’s New York” is the title of this Eagle Rock DVD, which features film footage of Bennett in and around New York City, comments from his celebrity friends and more than 30 songs from the master himself.
Given that thousands of musical performers have appeared in the Atlantic City area since the 1930s, it’s no surprise that music fans have smuggled in recording devices through the decades to capture their favorites live. In some cases, these dedicated fans and collectors have released them on bootleg labels. For obvious reasons, some of these LPs and CDs came and went quickly, but if collectors really want them, they’re out there for the buying.
Gene Krupa Live at the Steel Pier, 1956 and 1962: Two of the ace drummer man’s greatest small groups, one with saxophonist Eddie Shu and the other with star reedman Charlie Ventura, are included on the Sunbeam LP, “World’s Greatest Drummer.” It was never issued on CD.
Buddy Rich Quintet at the Mardi Gras Club in Wildwood: The master himself was a regular at the shore in the 1950s, and he dropped in to Wildwood’s Mardi Gras Club with his swinging small group for a week’s stand in July of 1958. Though never released commercially in this country, it’s easily available on YouTube.
At one time, there were dozens of Frank Sinatra audio and video bootlegs out there. Most have disappeared given the rise of YouTube. Two that still circulate are the Sinatra/Sammy Davis, Jr./Dean Martin session recorded live at 4 a.m. at Atlantic City’s 500 Club. Originally an LP that was given away as a souvenir at Philadelphia’s Sinatrama Room nightclub, as the years went by it seemed that every Sinatra fan had it. It’s not art and it’s not great singing, but it is “the boys” as you’ve never heard them before.
When Resorts was the only game in town, that venue was able to attract the biggest stars anywhere, including Sinatra. “Frank Sinatra Live at Resorts International 1979” was issued briefly as an audio LP on the bootleg “It’s Showtime” label. The one-hour show can be heard in its entirety on YouTube. Mr. S is pretty loose throughout; it was as much a Jersey homecoming as a concert.
In the end, there was nothing like seeing Mr. Sinatra live in Atlantic City, and the 1979 shows at Resorts, performed just a year after gaming was legalized in Atlantic City, carry an additional, singular energy. I know. I was there.
Bruce Klauber is the author of four books, an award-winning music journalist, concert and record producer and publicist, producer of the Warner Brothers and Hudson Music “Jazz Legends” film series, and performs both as a drummer and vocalist.
