New Jersey Stage

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

State Theatre presents John Lennon – 70th Birthday Celebration

(New Brunswick, NJ) -— State Theatre presents John Lennon – 70th Birthday Celebration starring Glen Burtnik & Friends on Saturday, February 19 at 8pm. Glen Burtnik & Friends perform a special concert celebrating the life and music of John Lennon. Regular tickets range from $22-42. An affordable ticket price of $23 is available for this performance as part of the State Theatre's "MakeNoise" promotion. Just mention the promotional code "MakeNoise" when ordering tickets to receive the discount (not all seating sections apply). Customers can also receive a $5 OFF per ticket discount when mentioning promo code "LENNON5" (cannot be combined with "MakeNoise"). 

Performing alongside Burtnik is Earl Slick (Bowie, Double Fantasy), Pat Dinizio (Smithereens), Lisa Bouchelle, Kim Pulsive (The F Bombers), Bob Burger, Christine Martucci, a choir, strings, and horns. The concert will John Lennon classics such as "Imagine," "Come Together," "Strawberry Fields Forever," "In My Life," "Give Peace a Chance," and more.

Glen Burtnik
Known to many New Jersey music fans as only "Glen," Glen Burtnik is a musician whose history is filled with great musical talents. One of Burtnik's first gigs was touring on the West Coast with the show Beatlemania as Paul McCartney. After leaving the West Coast to return to New Brunswick, Burtnik regularly performed at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park. During this time, Jon Bon Jovi asked Burtnik to join his band, though Burtnik declined. Burtnik was rewarded with his own recording contract through A & M records.

In the early 1990s, Burtnik joined the multi-platinum rock group Styx, singing, writing, and playing lead guitar. His songs became sought after throughout the 1990s, as he wrote for various artists such as John Waite, Cyndi Lauper, Randy Travis, Phoebe Snow, Marshall Crenshaw, Katey Sagal, Beth Hart, Tom Scott, Patty Smyth, and Don Henley.  From 1999 through 2003, Burtnik re-joined multi-platinum rock band Styx—this time as bassist/vocalist—recording and touring with them throughout the U.S., Japan, and Europe. He's appeared on MTV, VH1, Late Night with David Letterman, The Tonight Show, Regis & Kelly, and at the 2001 and 2003 Super Bowls.


Earl Slick
After being mesmerized as a child watching the Beatles perform for the first time on The Ed Sullivan Show, Earl Slick took up guitar. Sixteen years later, his phone rang. It was John Lennon calling to say he liked Slick's style, asking if he was interested in playing guitar on Lennon's new album Double Fantasy.

Of course, by the time Lennon came calling, Slick had already made a name for himself by playing alongside another rock legend—David Bowie. First joining the Diamond Dogs tour, Slick stayed with Bowie for a number of very successful years, during which time he playing on three Top 10 albums: David Live (1974), Young Americans (1975) and Station To Station (1976), (including the hit singles "Fame" and "Golden Years"). "Earl is a legendary guitar star and a musician of great feeling," says Bowie. "His playing is earthy, timeless and never less than stellar."

Pat DiNizio
Pat Dinizio is best known as the front man and primary singer/songwriter for the power pop band, The Smithereens, with eight studio albums, three live albums, a rarities collection, and one best-of compilation to their name, The Smithereens also earned a solid reputation as an excellent live band. Their highly-influential and best-selling albums Smithereens Eleven and Especially For You are certified Platinum, and their second Capitol Records release, "Green Thoughts" was certified Gold.

On his own, he's released four solo albums and explored projects outside the musical realm. In 2000, DiNizio ran as the Reform Party candidate for the New Jersey seat in the U.S. Senate and chronicled the campaign in the documentary film Mr. Smithereen Goes To Washington. In 2001, he began hosting and program directing for XM Satellite Radio.


For tickets or more information, call the State Theatre ticket office at 732-246-SHOW (7469), or visit us online at www.StateTheatreNJ.org. The State Theatre ticket office, located at 15 Livingston Ave, New Brunswick NJ, is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 10am to 6pm; Wednesday 11am to 7pm; Saturday 1pm to 5pm; and at least one hour prior to curtain on performance dates. For information on group outings and discounts, call 732-247-7200, ext. 517.

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