Volume 15, No. 6June 16th - June 28th 2011FREE PUBLICATION

201-349-4336

Pg. 2 On the Cover

Pg. 5

Pg. 7 65th Tony Awards

Relay for Life

At TheMoviesPg. 9

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W hen I think of girl groups that influenced my teen years, my mind goes straight to The Shangri-Las, four big-haired girls from Queens and their 1964 hit “Leader of the Pack.” That rocking tune about an ill-fated crush on a biker boy became the song for 60s teen-girl angst, inspiring us to iron our hair, slather our lips in Yardley pinks and Frug in white go-go boots. Before the Shangri-Las and girl groups of the 60s, 70s, 80s, and beyond, there were girl doo-wop groups and one fondly remembered was The Carmelettes, a Jersey City trio of teen girls christened their girl-group name by their parish priest at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. In 1959, the girls Angela LaPrete, Vicky Cevetello and Virginia Verga recorded two songs, “My Foolish Heart” and “Promise Me a Rose,” and in 1960 “Aching for You” and “Something Tells Me I’m in Love.” They

sang backup for Neil Sedaka’s hit “Oh Carol,” and Carole King’s hit “Oh Neil.” And when the group regrouped under the name “The Kittens,” (after Verga left for a solo career,) the LaPrete and Cevetello sang backup on several songs including the Top 40 hit “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” – which bombarded the airwaves during the summer of 1960. When the group disbanded in the 1961, the girls went on to start other careers and raise families. LaPrete married James Murphy (folks just know him as “Murphy”) and the couple raised their daughter Susan, who went on to earn a BFA in Drama at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and become a singer in clubs and cabarets while performing in Off-Off Broadway plays. A drama teacher at Snyder High School, Susan Murphy continues to reinvent herself and her latest career turn is her new play, con’t pg. 2

New Play at LaMama in New York based on The Carmelettes, the 1950s All-Girl

Doo-Wop Group from Jersey City

SuSan Murphy

502 Washington Blvd. Jersey City, New Jersey 07310

at the Newport Marina Pier

(201) 798-1798 for information and

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River View Observer – Page 2

on the cover . . .By Sally Deering

“Girl/Group: A Daughter’s Tale” a personal piece about her mother’s life as a doo-whop singer and the affect it has had on Murphy’s life. (“Girl/Group: A Daughter’s Tale” features Murphy along with Tom Cappadona, Drew Citron, Alison Scaramella, and Jenna Smith and is directed by Mario Giacalone. It opens at LaMama’s The Club in New York City on June 17 and runs through June 26.) Murphy describes the piece as “a performance memoir about doo-wop and dreams deferred. It’s a play with music about mothers and daughters, uncelebrated lives and the extraordinary talents that lie hidden within them.” The main character played by Murphy is a singer who goes back 50 years to her mother’s life as a member of a successful girl group. Murphy calls the piece an “Alice-through-the-looking-glass” adventure where the

singer reclaims her mother’s legacy and, in doing so, creates one of her own. “When I was 15, I started writing my own material,” Murphy says, “and somehow I knew I was going to come to this story at some point in my life.” Murphy’s full-length play about her mother’s experience as a doo-wop singer began 20 years ago, she says, when she was invited to perform a 10-minute monologue on her story of choice and she chose to talk about her mother’s singing career. Ten years later, she started thinking of that monologue and the play began to take shape. “I always had my mother’s records and they were always fascinating to me,” Murphy says. “It was family history and even more, it was my voice that I heard on those records. When I would research songs for the kind of

music that I perform, I always came back around to my mother’s music and that’s when I decided that I needed to tell this story. And the more I worked on this play, the more I began to think about all the other uncelebrated people in this world. We live in an ‘American Idol’ society and there are people sitting behind desks, teaching school, who have amazing gifts and you just don’t know about them. That’s become very interesting to me.” Growing up, Murphy wanted to be a rock star, she says. And because of her experience as an undergrad in the experimental theater division of NYU’S Tisch School of the Arts, Murphy’s career path turned into a search for belonging that included singing in New York’s cabaret rooms like the Eighty Eights and doing theater and music gigs that didn’t fit one particular genre. “I was never a cabaret

con’t pg. 3

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Page 3 – River View Observer

con’t from pg. 2performer, per se,” Murphy says. “I would sing in cabarets and end up doing a U2 song. Then I would sing Standards in rock clubs. My tastes were eclectic.” During all that time, Murphy says, the stories of her mother’s life as a doo-wop singer would always come back to her. Even though the play is called “Girl/Group...” her mother’s trio, The Carmelettes was really a pre-girl group. pre-Supremes, pre-Shirelles and pre-Shangri-Las. In the mid-1950s, The Carmelettes received their name from their parish priest at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel church where they sang in the choir. They signed with Alpine, a subsidiary of Epic Records and recorded their first songs. That’s when Neil Sedaka chose them to sing back up for his song “Oh Carol,” a tune he wrote about singer/songwriter Carole King. Although not much is written about The Carmelettes, according to Angela LaPrete Murphy, “We sang backup on ‘Oh Carol’ and then were asked to duplicate the sound on ‘Oh, Neil.’ At that time, Virginia had already left the group. Vicky and I did a great deal of backup with Carole King for other artists.”Beatrice Verdi, Virginia Verga’s sister wrote songs for them, arranged the vocals, and went on to become a successful songwriter, Susan Murphy says: “She was unbelievable. She was writing four-chord doo-wop stuff, the harmonies were insane and these little girls did them. One of their records is now up on eBay for 50 bucks.” The Carmelettes continued to do back up and record their own songs. When they recorded “Promise Me a Rose” at Columbia Studios in New York, singer Anita Bryant recorded the same song and the DJ pulled The Carmelettes version off the air. Similar to most girl groups like the Shangri-Las, The Carmelettes/Kittens disbanded and moved on with their lives. “It’s because of The Carmelettes that I discovered a personal love for all types of music,” Murphy says, “and a deep respect for the path my mother paved all those years ago so that other girl groups could follow.” And although her career as a doo-wop singer became a treasure trove of memories in a box of 45s, Angela LaPrete Murphy made sure the music never stopped playing in the Murphy household. “I always knew doo-wop because it was always playing in our house,” Murphy says. “And my mother always sang. In fact, everybody always sang in my house. Even though we weren’t music professionals – except for my mom – we would bust out in songs.”

Girl/Group: A Daughter’s TaleJune 17-26,

Fri & Sat 10 pm; Sun 5:30 pmTickets $18

LaMama’s The Club74A East 4th Street

(Btw Bowery & 2nd Ave)New York City212-475-7710

Tickets can be purchased online at www.lamama.org/theclub

To view a short video about the show on YouTube, go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJfqW2Toh9A

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Page 4 -River View Observer

Bayonne Laces Up for Relay for LifeLocal Residents Raise Thousands of Dollars for the American Cancer SocietyThe American Cancer Society Relay for Life is a 24-hour event that gives people across the globe the chance to celebrate the lives of those who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against the disease. Each year, more than 3.5 million people in 5,000 communities in the U.S., along with communities in 20 other countries, take part in Relay for Life to raise funds and awareness to save lives from cancer.

On Friday, June 17, beginning at 6 pm 84 Relay teams will gather at the Don Ahern Veterans Stadium on the Bay-onne High School campus for the American Cancer Soci-ety’s annual fundraising event that will continue overnight and into Saturday. Throughout the event, teams – which have raised more than $84,000 so far, will be walking and/or running the stadium’s track in support of friends and loved ones affected by cancer. Sponsors for the Bayonne Relay for Life are McCabe Ambulance Service, ShopRite of Bayonne, Provident Bank and the City of Bayonne.Celebrate – The Survivors LapRelay for Life starts with a Survivors Lap – an inspirational time when survivors are invited to circle the track together and help everyone celebrate the victories achieved fighting cancer. The Survivors Lap is an emotional example of how Relay for Life participants are ensuring that more lives are saved each year – like those of each individual on the track. Relay for Life also recognizes and celebrates caregivers, in-dividuals who give their time, love, and support to friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers affected by cancer.Remember – The Luminaria CeremonyAfter dark, Relay for Life will honor people who have been touched by cancer and remember loved ones lost to the disease during the Luminaria Ceremony. Candles are lit inside bags filled with sand, each one bearing the name of a person touched by cancer, and participants often walk a lap in silence. Fight Back – The Fight Back CeremonyFor the finale, there’s the Fight Back Ceremony, where Re-layers make a personal commitment to save lives by taking up the fight against cancer. That personal commitment may be to do something as simple as getting a cancer screening,

Cont’d on page 5

River View Observer- Page 5

Cont’d from page 4 Bayonne Laces Up for Relay for Lifequitting smoking or talking to elected officials about cancer issues.At Relay for Life, every step you take helps the American Cancer Society save lives.

American Cancer Society’s Relay for LifeFri, June 17, starting at 6 pm – Sat, June 18, ending at 7 pmDon Ahern Veterans StadiumOn the Campus of Bayonne High School667 Avenue “A”Bayonne, NJ

River View Observer- Page

180 Broadway | Bayonne, NJ | 201.455.5090

River View Observer Goes to the 65th Tony Awards

June 12, 2011

The following photo’s were taken by

River View Observer photographer Steve Mack

To see more photos by Steve Mack visit

www.steveamack.com

Hudson County’s own Tammy Blanchard posses

for photographers on the Red Carpet at the

2011 Tony AwardsSee who else attended

To see more photo’s visit www.

riverviewobserver.com

Page 8-River View Observer

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Style and function: Key Elements of Today’s Kitchen

(ARA)When your family comes home at the end of the day - from school, work, a play date or extracur-ricular activities - it’s very likely the first thing they do is dump whatever they’re carrying on the kitchen table or counter and grab a glass for a drink. The kitchen is also where you prepare meals, entertain guests, help your children with homework and even stay up late to pay bills. Because the kitchen is the hub of the home, homeown-ers are always looking for ways to do more in this vital space, all while keeping it stylish. One of today’s most popular trends in new and remodeled kitchens is the use of multiple kitchen faucets, which add extra functionality to the room. “Pot fillers, island fau-cets and even bar or con-venience faucets all help to maximize the room,” says Kevin McJoynt of Danze, a manufacturer of decorative plumbing faucets and fix-tures. “But convenience and functionality aren’t the only two items homeowners are looking at while upgrading their kitchens. Ambiance, decor and style are also top priorities.” If you’re reconsidering your kitchen’s function and style, consider adding these options into your remodel-ing plan:

Pot fillers These faucets are located near your stove to provide you with a convenient way to fill a pot without hav-ing to carry it to the nearest sink.

This saves plenty of back-breaking work and minimiz-es the likelihood of spills. Pot fillers are commonly found in the restaurant industry and have quickly made their way into private kitchens across the country. They are available as a wall mount or deck mount. Find a style that matches your ap-pliances and other faucets in the room.

Island faucets Help avoid congestion at the main sink and are a great way to increase a kitchen’s workflow. Because island sinks are frequently used for preparation, they are sometimes referred to as prep sinks.

Bar Faucets Also referred to as a convenience sink or a beverage center, bar faucets are typically used for en-tertaining purposes and are often located on a secondary counter space in the kitchenor adjacent room.

To find kitchen faucets in Hudson County please visitBayonne Plumbing 250 Avenue E • Bayonne, NJ Tel: (201) 339-8000 • call: 1-800-713-7473

River View Observer- Page 9

Read Sally Deering’s Restaurant Views@ www.riverviewobserver.com

Page10- River View Observer

MADE IN JERSEY CITY Featuring Artists of the Jersey City etsy team

Presented by Art House Productions and Cosi CafeFeaturing the Artists of the Jersey City Etsy TeamNow to August 31,2011

Cosi Gallery 535 Washington Blvd.Jersey City, NJ 07302

201.963.0533 Directly across from Newport PATH Station

ART CLASSES AT JCCThe Jewish Community Cen-ter, 1050 Kennedy Blvd.is holding adult art classes on Thursday mornings and form 10a.m to 12:30pmFirst class is free Join at any timeTen classes $150. membersnon members $175.call Edie Horn 201-437-4978

River View Observer- Page 11

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