What do songs Seasons In The Sun, Indiana Wants Me, and Hooked on a Feeling all have in common? They were all one-hit wonders for the original artists who recorded them.
And now they are part of a show by Kelowna entertainer Rann Berry, which is coming to the Vernon Performing Arts Centre on Saturday.
“The One Hit Wonders pays tribute to those big hits from the ‘60s and ‘70s that you forgot you love,” said Berry.
“The songs in this show are all considered to be one-hit wonders, which means they were the single big hit for each band or artist, or the song they are primarily known for. Due to the popularity of these hits back then, many of these songs were subsequently covered by major artists such as Glenn Campbell, Tom Jones, and even Elvis.”
Berry listened to these songs growing up and says he was influenced by each and every one chosen for the show.
“For so many of us this music is the soundtrack of our youth,” he said. “This music is what made me want to become a musician.”
The idea for the show began to emerge years ago after Berry made a number of trips to Las Vegas to see shows such as Jersey Boys and a tribute called The Beatles Show.
“I was looking for an original idea for a show that would feature music from the era I grew up in, and I wanted the show to offer lots of variety,” he said. “The music from The One Hit Wonders has been faithfully reproduced in its original form and we’re all having such a great time working on this. They just don’t write songs like these anymore.”
The show is even more of a spectacle as it is presented as a Vegas-style musical tribute featuring dancers and a full eight-piece show band that includes a four-piece horn section.
The One Hit Wonders has also proven to be a hit in the Okanagan.
The show premiered to a sold-out audience at the Kelowna Community Theatre, with two stranding ovations, in August 2012 and was brought for an encore sold-out performance on Sept. 21.
Earlier this month, The One Hit Wonders performed at the Cleland Theatre in Penticton, once again to a sold-out theatre.
Opening for Berry and The One Hit Wonders will be Kelowna comedian Jamie Charest.
The show happens at the Vernon Performing Arts Centre Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets are at the Ticket Seller box office. Phone 250-549-7469 or order online at www.ticketseller.ca.
— The Morning Star also has three pairs of tickets for The One Hit Wonders to give away to the first three people who come into The Morning Star’s office at 4407 – 25th Ave. (No sooner than 8:30 a.m. please.) Ask for sales representative Sheryll Bissell.
