‘Ain’t Nothing but A Houseparty’ For J. Geils Band

Founded in the late 1960s, Boston’s J. Geils Band was the preeminent party group during the ’70s.  The band’s first concert album, Live Full House, captured the essence of Peter Wolf & Co. blowing the roof off of Detroit’s Cinderella Ballroom with high-energy renditions of “First I Look At The Purse,” “Looking For A love” and “Homework,” along with Magic Dick’s still-electrifying “Whammer Jammer” harmonica solo.

But it was the 1981 Freeze-Frame LP that shot the group into the commercial stratosphere.  Suddenly The J. Geils Band was all over Top-40 radio with songs such as “Centerfold,” “Angel In Blue” and the title track.  Meanwhile, the band was getting exposure via a then-new outlet called MTV and appeared on that year’s Rolling Stones tour.

Featuring original members Wolf along with keyboardist Seth Justman, bassist Danny Klein and Magic Dick on harmonica, today’s J. Geils Band lineup also includes drummer Tom Arey and guitarists Duke Levine and Kevin Barry.

However, you won’t find founder John “J” Geils in the band.  The guitarist sued Wolf, Justman, Klein and Richard “Magic Dick” Salwitz, claiming they had “planned and conspired” to exclude him from the group’s touring plans, according to Rolling Stone.

But The J. Geils Band rocks on.  Here’s the schedule:

Nov. 14 – Detroit, Mich., The Fillmore Detroit
Nov. 15 – Detroit, Mich., The Fillmore Detroit
Nov. 19 – Bethlehem, Pa., Sands Bethlehem Event Center
Nov. 20 – Hampton Beach, N.H., Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom 
Nov. 22 – Bangor, Maine, Cross Insurance Center
Nov. 29 – Boston, Mass., TD Garden
Dec. 2 – Albany, N.Y., Times Union Center
Dec. 4 – Cleveland, Ohio, Quicken Loans Arena
Dec. 6 – Uncasville, Conn., Mohegan Sun Arena
Dec. 9 – Grand Rapids, Mich., Van Andel Arena
Dec. 11 – Chicago, Ill., United Center
Dec. 13 – St. Louis, Mo., Scottrade Center
Dec. 16 – Westbury, N.Y., NYCB Theatre At Westbury
Dec. 17 – Buffalo, N.Y., First Niagara Center
Dec. 19 – New York, N.Y., Madison Square Garden Arena
Jan. 20 – Toledo, Ohio, The Huntington Center
Jan. 22 – Pittsburgh, Pa., Consol Energy Center
Jan. 24 – Toronto, Ontario, Air Canada Centre
Jan. 27 – Charleston, W.Va., Charleston Civic Center Coliseum
Jan. 29 – Columbus, Ohio, Nationwide Arena
Jan. 31 – Duluth, Ga., The Arena At Gwinnett Center

Appearing with Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band Nov. 22-Dec. 13 and Dec. 17-Jan. 31.  Visit The J. Geils Band’s Facebook page for more information.