NEPA Scene Staff

Legendary Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons return to Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre on Oct. 14

Legendary Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons return to Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre on Oct. 14
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From a press release:

After selling out the venue last year, it was announced today that Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons will return to the F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre on Sunday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. as part of the Wells Fargo Concerts and Comedy series.

Tickets, which are $69, $89, and $125, plus fees, go on sale next Friday, July 20 at noon and will be available at the Kirby Center box office (71 Public Square, Wilkes-Barre), online at kirbycenter.org, and by phone at 570-826-1100. A special Kirby Member pre-sale begins on Wednesday, July 18 at 10 a.m.

Oh, what a story. Frankie Valli, who came to fame in 1962 as the lead singer of the Four Seasons, is hotter than ever in the 21st century. Thanks to the volcanic success of the Tony-winning musical “Jersey Boys,” which chronicles the life and times of Frankie and his legendary group, such classic songs as “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Rag Doll,” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” are all the rage all over again.

With the musical continuing on Broadway and other casts performing “Jersey Boys” nightly from Las Vegas to London, the real Frankie Valli is also packing venues around the world.

Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons had 71 chart hits, including 40 in the Top 40, 19 in the Top 10, and eight No. 1s. Even amid the disco era, the Seasons hit it big as “Who Loves You” which reached No. 3 in 1975, and “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)” became a No. 1 record in 1976.

From 1962 to 1978, Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons sold more than 100 million records, even before the invention of the compact disc prompted Seasons collectors to buy the hits all over again. For decades after their heyday, Valli and the Seasons continued to be a top concert draw and radio constantly played their classics, not to mention the new remixes that kept popping up on the charts.

Their songs have been omnipresent in such movies as “The Deer Hunter,” “Dirty Dancing,” “Mrs. Doubtfire,” “Conspiracy Theory,” and “The Wanderers.” As many as 200 artists have done cover versions of Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” from Nancy Wilson’s jazz treatment to Lauryn Hill’s hip-hop makeover.

In 1990, Frankie and the other original Seasons were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, only five years after the Hall opened for business.