America is a great country where any Jay can make it — at least with Jay and the Americans.
The red-white-and-blue clad oldies quartet came to Savannah Center Wednesday with a history that stretches back to the early 1960s.
Jay and the Americans—featuring lead singer Jay Reincke – delivered a polished show, filled with tight harmony, recognizable songs and lots of nostalgia.
It was like turning on an old jukebox as they rekindled such Top 40 memories as “She Cried,” “Only in America,” and “Let’s Lock the Door.” Reincke proved more than able to hit the high notes on the operatic, “Cara Mia.”
The group still sports three original members: Howie Kane, Marty Sanders and Sandy Deanne.
And then there’s Reincke, not to be confused with the Americans’ original Jay –the late Jay Traynor. He left after a couple of hits in the mid ‘60s and was followed by Jay Black.
Black stayed with the group for about a decade and sang lead on such classics as “Cara Mia,” “Come A Little Bit Closer” and “This Magic Moment.”
Then, 12 years ago, Reincke joined the Americans and they have lived happily ever since.
“I’m the third Jay and it’s an honor to be with these guys whom I consider to be rock and roll royalty,” Reincke said. “And it’s also an honor to follow the other Jays.”
Reincke showed he belonged early on. The guys rocked on “Let’s Lock the Door (and throw away the key).” Then came Jay and the Americans’ glossy pop on “Some Enchanted Evening” and the more upbeat, “Only In America.”
That was enough to turn on the wayback machine for a packed audience at Savannah Center.
“This is good rock and roll and that’s why it has lasted for such a long time,” said Villager Jane Hartan, who attended the show with her husband, Joe.
Jane Hartan, like most the crowd, didn’t care that first two Jays were nowhere to be found.
“This Jay on stage sounds so good,” she said. “These are the kinds of songs that stick with you. I first heard them a long time ago, and they still sound great today.”
Brenda “Sassy” Moultrie, who comes from New York, agrees.
“Where I’m from, Jay and the Americans used to play all the time,” said Moultrie, a professional singer. “These guys can still sing and the songs and their voices still hold up. It doesn’t matter what Jay is up there.”
The group paid tribute Jay Traynor, its first lead singer.
“If it wasn’t for Jay Traynor, I don’t know if we would be here tonight,” Deanne said. “This is the song that gave us our first hit.”
He and the rest of the group performed the power ballad, “She Cried.”
Then, the guys celebrated Howie Kane’s birthday.
“Howie is celebrating the 30th anniversary of his 47th birthday,” Reincke cracked. Kane then celebrated by singing the old Louis Prima song, “Just a Gigolo.”
Reincke also paid tribute to Roy Orbison.
“He was my idol as a singer,” Reincke said. He then soared on Orbison’s classic, “Crying,” and the group supplied more punch to another Orbison number, “Only the Lonely.” They closed that portion of the concert with a pounding, “Pretty Woman.”
It was all part of an entertaining night of rock and roll history from Jay and the Americans.
