Badfinger coming to Newton
newton — Badfinger’s Straight Up Live and Complete starring Joey Molland is coming to The Newton Theatre on Saturday, Nov. 11, at 8 p.m.
Tickets range from $22.00 to $37.00 and may be purchased by visiting www.TheNewtonTheatre.com or contacting the Box Office at 973-940-NEWT.
It's the 45th anniversary of the greatest album by Badfinger, 1972's Straight Up, and the band's legendary guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist Joey Molland — along with his dynamic band — brings the album, and all their hits, to the stage in an exhilarating live show. George Harrison produced four tracks on Straight Up, Name of the Game, Suitcase, I'd Die Babe, the latter two written by Molland, and Pete Ham's Day After Day, which gave the group a Top 5 U.S. single. The album, which also featured Baby Blue, stayed on the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart for 32 weeks.
Badfinger's classic lineup of Tom Evans, Pete Ham, Mike Gibbins, and Joey Molland came together in 1969. Signed by the Beatles to their newly formed Apple Records label, they scored an Instant Top 10 U.S. smash with the Paul McCartney penned theme song Come and Get It from the film the Magic Christian. They followed this with their own compositions No Matter What, Day After Day (produced by George Harrison), and Baby Blue, which went to #8, #4 and #14 respectively.
Joey Molland and Badfinger played alongside John Lennon on his Imagine album, Ringo on his smash It Don't Come Easy, and George Harrison on his All Things Must Pass LP; on stage, they backed George, Ringo, and Bob Dylan on the Concert for Bangladesh.
Both Mariah Carey (1994) and Harry Nilsson (1971) covered Badfinger's classic ballad Without You and took it to #1 on the U.S. charts. VH1 produced a Behind The Music documentary about the band, whose songs continue to be heard in films, on television, and of course on classic rock and oldies radio; Harry Nilsson's version of Without You was featured in the 2016 film starring Tina Fey, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.
Badfinger’s Baby Blue has enjoyed extensive and enduring appeal through its use in television and film. It was featured in Martin Scorcese’s film, The Departed, and the highly popular TV drama, The O.C., but its most spectacular resurgence came when it was featured in the closing scene of the finale of AMC’s classic series, Breaking Bad in September 2013. In the first full week following the finale of the show, the group's Baby Blue, equaled its 1972 Hot 100 success, by roaring back onto the Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart at No. 14, thanks to hefty sales and streaming gains.
Today Badfinger features original guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Joey Molland, who continues the unforgettable legacy of Badfinger. Molland released Return to Memphis in 2014, and is currently working on a new album in Southern California.