Glenn Alexander, third from left, and his band Shadowland will perform in Asbury Park, July 29.
Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes will cap the summer concert season with a show at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park, Sept. 2 (the Saturday of Labor Day Weekend). But a bunch of Jukes will be in the city this weekend, when Glenn Alexander & Shadowland — who play a similar raw and driving mix of blues, rock and R&B — will perform at the Wonder Bar, July 29.
GLENN ALEXANDER
Alexander, of course, is the Jukes’ longtime guitarist, and Shadowland also includes the Jukes’ complete current horn section: John Isley on saxophone, Chris Anderson on trumpet and Neal Pawley on trombone. Alexander and the horn players are joined in Shadowland by Alexander’s daughter Oria on vocals, Dave Anthony on drums and Greg Novick on bass, though Van Romaine and Steve Count will sub for Anthony and Novick, respectively, at this show, and Linda Grace will do some of the singing.
Glenn Alexander & Shadowland released a self-titled debut album in 2016, and a followup, Knockin’ on the Door, in 2019. Another album is on the way. “It’s all recorded; I’m just starting to mix them all and master them,” Alexander says, adding that it’s hard to find time to work on it. In addition to performing with the Jukes and teaching at Sarah Lawrence University in Bronxville, New York, he performs frequently with Oria as a duo or with a rhythm section, as Blue Americana; and with Romaine and bassist Dave LaRue in the group LaRue/Alexander — L.A.X. And, oh yeah, he also occasionally takes on other gigs as a sideman.
He is also working on an upcoming Oria album, for which they recently released a single, “Playground” (listen below, under the video of Shadowland performing “Knockin’ on the Door”).
“I think we’ve got eight or 10 of those (Oria songs) finished,” says Alexander, who lives in Scotch Plains. “We were trying to land some kind of (record) deal, but the deals that we could get were just so worthless that I just decided it wasn’t worth it. So we’re going to start releasing one every month or six weeks and just create our own thing.”‘
He, Oria and Romaine recorded “Playground” together, but Shadowland probably won’t perform it at the Wonder Bar, Alexander says, because of its light and jazzy feel. “The nature of Shadowland is generally a lot more powerful, and blues,” he says.
It has been a particularly busy summer for Alexander, since The Jukes recently played some dates in Europe. “The energy level was ridiculous,” he said. “We haven’t been over there since before COVID. We toured a lot, prior to that, over there, so there were a lot of familiar faces.
“But yeah, the London show … wow. Sold out, packed, and the energy … and, you know, we’re a party band, so that (energy) makes a difference for us, and it makes a huge difference for Johnny. So I would say the London show was extraordinary, and the Paradiso (in Amsterdam) was one of the best shows. The band was firing and Johnny was on, and the crowd was just ridiculous. Again, it was sold out, packed. That show was absolutely one of the best shows since I’ve been in the band, which is 15 years.
The cover of Glenn Alexander & Shadowland’s 2019 album, “Knockin’ on the Door.”
“I don’t want to diminish … We have some great crowds here (in the United States). And, of course, when we do the Summer Stage at the Stone Pony, that’s off the hook. I mean, last year we had well over 4,000 people. And generally we have really good crowds. But the Europe thing has always been extraordinary and, after our absence, it was really something.”
Glenn Alexander & Shadowland performs at the Wonder Bar in Asbury Park, July 29 at 8 p.m. Visit ticketmaster.com.
The group also will perform at the Sweet Sounds Downtown Music Festival in Westfield, Aug. 8 at 7 p.m.
For more on Shadowland, visit glennalexandershadowland.com.
Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes will perform at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park, Sept. 2 at 5:30 p.m.
Also, this year’s edition of Alexander’s annual “Pig Gig” to benefit the Fibrolamellar Cancer Foundation in honor of his nephew, the late Jay Alexander, will take place at the Italian American Hall in Scotch Plains, Oct. 22, with Shadowland, The Lonesome Pines and others to be announced.
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