Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes at The Newton Theatre

NEWTON — The party continues as Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes return to The Newton Theatre on Friday, Nov. 6 at 8 p.m.

“There's one thing I've always wanted to do,” Southside Johnny confesses, “and that is to sing.”

And he has been doing just that for over a third of a century.

Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes first achieved prominence in the mid-1970s, emerging from the same New Jersey shore music scene as his now legendary contemporary and friend Bruce Springsteen. Southside’s first three albums "I Don’t Want to Go Home," "This Time It’s For Real," and "Hearts of Stone," were produced by band co-founder Steven Van Zandt (E St. Band, The Sopranos), and largely featured songs written by Van Zandt and/or Springsteen. The Van Zandt written "I Don’t Want to Go Home" became Southside’s signature song. With their classic blends of hard-core RandB and street level rock, molten grooves, soulful guitar licks and blistering horn section, Johnny and his Jukes continue to put their unique stamp on the Jersey Shore sound.

In a business where success is defined as getting a second single and longevity measured in nano-seconds, just surviving for 30-plus years is a rare accomplishment. But Johnny and the Jukes have not just survived, they have flourished with more than 30 albums, thousands of live performances, a legion of dedicated fans, dozens of classic songs, a record, Hearts of Stone, that Rolling Stone called one of the "top 100 albums of the 70s and 80s.” The story continues as the band releases its newest studio album, "Pills and Ammo," full of new material that is already getting rave reviews from fans.

While still tinged with the exuberant rhythm and blues feel that is the Jukes' trademark, and loaded with the driving sound of the Jukes horn section, this new CD has a sharper, guitar-oriented, rock and roll feel to it. But, as always, the sheer joy of making music is obvious throughout, placing the band in their classic, jubilant "let's play all night" mood. And the band has never sounded better.

Born and raised on the Jersey Shore, Southside's fascination for the club scene started early.

"My father played in bands for years, and my mother actually went into labor with me at some seedy New Jersey club," he said. "I guess some things were just meant to be."

Singing and playing in a number of blues and RandB bands, often joined by pals Bruce Springsteen, "Miami Steve" Van Zandt, and Garry Tallent, Johnny worked hard. "We played for years on the shore, but it wasn't until Bruce hit with "Born to Run" that these AandR guys would drive to Asbury Park to see what was happening."

Southside (so nicknamed because of his bent toward the Blues sounds of the Southside of Chicago) and his band, eventually called the Asbury Jukes, worked on growing their reputation as a dynamic live band through the late 60s and early 70s. "We built a big band, a home for lots of musicians, horns and all: sure we called it Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, but it was really just a bunch of guys getting crazy on stage."

Then, in 1975, they signed with CBS/Epic Records, released the critically acclaimed "I Don’t Want To Go Home," and a legend was begun. What followed has been over three decades of recording, touring and solidifying a place in rock 'n roll history.