PLYMOUTH — At the height of the British Invasion of the mid-1960s, Chad & Jeremy were the first of the invaders to appear on the West Coast — even before John, Paul, George and Ringo, The Beatles.
Jeremy Clyde, now 84, was in the area Friday and Saturday, making an unannounced, but much appreciated appearance at Happy Pizza in the shop’s Shawnee Room.
There, Clyde sang the iconic hits of Chad & Jeremy to the delight of the crowd of about 85 people, who sang along to several of the songs.
Edd “Beatledd” Raineri, host of the Beatledd Fab Four Hour on Rock 107 WEZX-FM Sunday mornings, 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. — which by the way is heard online worldwide — arranged for his friend Jeremy to appear, and it was a night to remember, for sure.
Jeremy Clyde, who had numerous mega-hits with his duo partner, the late Chad Stuart, sang all those great songs, like “Yesterday’s Gone,” “A Summer Song,” “Willow Weep for Me,” and more. All told, Chad & Jeremy had seven Top 40 singles on the U.S. charts between 1964 and 1966.
Before he dazzled the crowd, Clyde took time to talk about those days, and he told some astonishing stories.
Asked why he still performs, Clyde simply answered, “It’s what I do — what I’ve always done.”
And he still has the voice and intertwines some compelling and often funny stories of the hysteria that was the 1960s rock scene. Clyde also went on to become one of England’s most accomplished actors, having played many roles in British films and TV shows.
But getting back to the 1960s and that West Coast trip and the immense popularity of performers like Chad & Jeremy, Clyde said, “It was a phenomenon. We were in exactly the right place at exactly the right time.”
He recalled landing at the airport in Los Angeles and being greeted by hundreds of screaming fans.
“They told us to run for it, and they rushed us to a limo and drove us to the Beverly Wilshire Hotel,” Clyde said. “When we got to the hotel, there was another crowd waiting. We ran through a wedding party and ran to safety. I often wonder whatever happened to the bride and groom.”
Clyde said those scenes were repeated everywhere he and Chad would go — and it was the same for all the British Invasion groups, especially The Beatles.
“But let me be clear, my life didn’t end in 1969,” Clyde said. “I went on to do quite a bit, and I’m still doing it.”
After Chad Stuart died, Clyde played a bit with Peter Asher, who was half of a similar British duo, Peter and Gordon Waller, who died in 2009. Asher’s sister, Jane, was a child actress in the 1950s and had a relationship with Paul McCartney in the mid-1960s. Peter & Gordon also had several mega-hits, including “I Go to Pieces,” “Lady Godiva,” “Woman” and “True Love Ways.”
While in the U.S., Chad & Jeremy appeared in several popular TV shows — “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” “The Patty Duke Show,” and two episodes of “Batman” — and they played themselves.
Joining Jeremy was Fred Seaman, who was a personal friend of Beatle John Lennon. Fred served as Lennon’s personal assistant for a couple of years — he was with Lennon for most of his last days. Seaman said he spent most of Lennon’s last day on Dec. 8, 1980 — the night he was gunned down in Manhattan.
Edd ‘Beatledd’ Raineri
The evening at Happy Pizza’s Shawnee Room was made possible by Edd “Beatledd” Raineri — “Beatledd” Raineri, a native of Nanticoke and lifelong resident of Luzerne County.
“The Beatledd Fab Four Hour” on WRKC-FM, Radio King’s College, began on May 7, 2010, and is now heard on Rock 107.
In addition to playing Beatles classics, outtakes, rare and deep cuts, solo tracks, a wide variety of covers, and “’60s Music Sets” for nearly 15 years, Raineri has interviewed more than 300 well-known celebrity types from the ‘60s pop music world, TV shows, films, et al.
Notable interviews include:
Pete Best (former Beatle); Tommy James (of the Shondells); Gary Lewis (of The Playboys); Louise Harrison (George Harrison’s sister); Mark Farner (Grand Funk); Felix Cavaliere (Rascals); Gary Puckett; Janis Ian; Melanie (Safka); Chris Montez; Peter Noone (Herman’s Hermits), Dennis Tufano (The Buckinghams); Chubby Checker; Peter Tork & Davy Jones (The Monkees); Terry Sylvester (The Hollies); Julia Baird (John Lennon’s sister); Jerry Mathers & Tony Dow (Leave It To Beaver); Billy J. Kramer; Angie McCartney (Paul McCartney’s step mother); Bobby Rydell; Chad Stuart and Jeremy Clyde (Chad & Jeremy); Peter Asher (of Peter & Gordon); La La Brooks (The Crystals); Terry Kirkman (The Association); Tommy Roe; Rick Derringer; Mitch Ryder; Bill Kelly & Jerry Hludzik (The Buoys/Dakota).
Also, Petula Clark; Johnny Rivers; Bob Eubanks (promoter who brought The Beatles to L.A. 3 times; also host of The Newly Wed Game); Eddie Money; Susan Cowsill (The Cowsills); Lou Christie; Randy Bachman; Bobby Hart (of the Boyce & Hart songwriting team); Vince Martell (The Vanilla Fudge); Shawn Klush (Elvis tribute artist); Spanky McFarlane (Spanky & Our Gang band); Jon Provost (Timmy on “Lassie”); Martha Davis (The Motels); Dave Getz (Big Brother & The Holding Company).
Raineri resides at Shickshinny Lake with his wife, Lisa, and their cat, Maisie. He holds a master’s degree in social work from Marywood University and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Pennsylvania State University.