NEO Music and More

Neil Giraldo was born on December 29, 1955, in Cleveland, Ohio, graduating from Parma Senior High School in Parma, Ohio.
In the spring of 1979, Mike Chapman introduced Giraldo to a singer named Pat Benatar. Benatar’s 1979 debut album, In the Heat of the Night, was her breakthrough in North America, especially in Canada where it reached No. 3 on the album chart. Two hit singles from the album were released: “Heartbreaker” and “We Live for Love”, the latter written by her lead guitarist and future husband, Neil Giraldo (they married in 1982).

Precious Time‘s second single, the rapid guitar-driven “Promises in the Dark”, written by her husband Neil Giraldo reached number 38 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 16 on the US Mainstream Rock chart.

Over the years Giraldo has produced some of Benatar’s biggest hits including “Love Is a Battlefield” and “We Belong”. Giraldo has performed on every Benatar album and produced all but two.

Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. YouTube – Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo perform at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

🎸 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2022

Generators launched out of Cleveland, Ohio‘s 80’s punk/underground music scene picked by in-the-know music insiders as THE band to break out nationally. The “band that time forgot” left some really great music behind as their legacy.

In July of 2014 the band reunited for a show at the Beachland Ballroom. The band’s singer/guitarist (and main songwriter) Mark Addison went on to play with Hungry Young Men and A Nation of One before leaving Cleveland. He has run a recording studio in Austin. Bassist Glenn Tozser aka “Stutz Bearcat” played with the Armstrong-Bearcat Band for years. And vocalist Eva Dilcue (Euclid Ave spelled backward) and guitarist “Neon Don” Buchanan remained in the Cleveland area for years.

The movie Light of Day written and directed by Paul Schrader was shot on location in Chicago, Illinois; Maywood, Illinois; Berwyn, Illinois; Blue Island, Illinois; Lincolnwood, Illinois; Streamwood Illinois; Hammond, Indiana; and Cleveland, Ohio. Schrader actually wrote the film with Bruce Springsteen in mind, but Bruce declined. That’s why he had a copy of the script, with Schrader’s original working title, Born in the USA. Schrader had taken his title from a line (“I can’t help that I was born in the USA”) in a song by Cleveland band the Generators, whom he used as inspiration for the band he called the Barbusters in the movie.

The Dazz Band, originally known as Kinsman Dazz,  and stemming from the band Telefunk formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1976. Dazz comes from combining the words Danceable Jazz. 

The group was originally named Kinsman Dazz at the suggestion of Ray Calabrese, who later became its manager along with Sonny Jones, owner of The Kinsman Grill (12805 Kinsman Rd, Cleveland, OH 44120), located near the street Harris grew up on, and where the band worked as a house band. 

In 1980, the Kinsman Dazz changed its name to the Dazz Band, after being signed to Motown Records. 

The Dazz Band’s breakthrough came with the hit “Let It Whip“, written and produced by Reggie Andrews, from their Keep It Live (1982) album. “Let It Whip” reached No. 1 on the US Billboard R&B chart and won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. Members of the Grammy Award winning Dazz Band included: Sennie “Skip” Martin, Pierre DeMudd, Bobby Harris, Eric Fearman, Kenny Pettus, Steve Cox, Keith Harrison, Michael Wiley and Isaac Wiley.

The Waitresses was a new wave band from Akron, Ohio, best known for its singles “I Know What Boys Like” and “Christmas Wrapping.” The band released two albums, Wasn’t Tomorrow Wonderful? and Bruiseology, and one EP, I Could Rule the World If I Could Only Get the Parts. The group was led by guitarist-songwriter Chris Butler with lead vocals performed by Patty Donahue.

The Waitresses were formed by Butler (formerly of the Numbers Band) in 1978 as a side project while he was still a member of Tin Huey. He wrote and recorded “I Know What Boys Like” that year, with guest vocals by friend Donahue (as “Patty Darling”).

Butler moved to New York City and shopped “I Know What Boys Like”. The song landed him a deal with ZE Records, which released the single in 1980. “I Know What Boys Like”, which was re-released as a single later in 1982 and peaked at No. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 23 on Billboard’s Top Tracks chart, No. 14 on the Australian Singles Chart (Kent Music Report), and also charted in the UK.

The Waitresses recorded the theme song of the television program Square Pegs, starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Amy Linker, which aired during the 1982–1983 season, and the band appeared as themselves in the pilot episode.

A little different here. This is included because the song is from a movie that is set in Cleveland, Ohio.

Light of Day is a 1987 American musical drama film starring Michael J. Fox, Gena Rowlands and Joan Jett in her film debut. It was written and directed by Paul Schrader. In the movie Joan Jett and Michael J. Fox play siblings Patti and Joe Rasnick that perform in a rock band, The Barbusters, based in Cleveland, Ohio. 

The ending scene is of them playing at The Euclid Tavern in Cleveland. 

From https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/34: 

The Euclid Tavern was also a filming location for the 1987 film “Light of Day” starring Michael J. Fox and Joan Jett.  The director of the film, Paul Schrader, came to listen to the Generators and decided to include the Euc in the film because he liked its atmosphere. The Euclid Tavern was the venue for Fox and Jett’s fictional band The Barbusters to perform at the end of the film. 

The Euclid Tavern former location: 11625 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44106

LeVert was an American R&B vocal group from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 1983, LeVert was composed of Sean and Gerald Levert (sons of Eddie Levert, founder and lead singer of R&B/Soul vocal group O’Jays) and Marc Gordon. Gerald and Sean grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland.

1987’s The Big Throwdown became a big success, on the strength of the Number One R&B hit “Casanova“, which gave them a crossover hit on the pop chart (number 5) and also a UK Top 10.

The band’s success continued with their 1988 follow-up album Just Coolin’, which was nominated for Best R&B/Urban Contemporary Album for the 1989 Soul Train Music Awards. Both The Big Throwdown and Just Coolin’ received gold certification.

Four of LeVert’s seven albums went gold.

Gerald Levert died in November 2006. Sean Levert died in March 2008.

Beau Coup began in 1983 as a recording project and performed under the name Pop Opera. They changed their name to Beau Coup at the end of 1984. 

After much struggle with Scotti Brothers Records and after being released by the label, the Beau Coup “Born & Raised on Rock & Roll” album, CD, and cassette were finally released on the Amherst Record label in the USA and on A&M Records of Canada and Europe in 1987.

The song “Sweet Rachel” written by Dennis Lewin, reached #80 on the “Billboard Hot 100” singles chart and received much radio and video play internationally. Other Lewin songs including “Still in my Heart”, “Somewhere Out in the Night” and “Born & Raised on Rock & Roll” were all picked by Billboard as “Hot Picks” along with a video which was played on video shows in the US and abroad, including MTV and USA Video Hits. 

Main members included: Tommy Amato, Frank Amato, Dennis Lewin, Bill March, and Donald Krueger.

Some other members over time included: Danny Powers, Paul Sidoti, Paul Wolf Christensen, Jennifer Lee, and Rodney Psyka.