Founded in New Jersey in 1980, The Smithereens have been creating electrifying, original rock’n’roll for 44 years. Jim Babjak (guitar,) Dennis Diken (drums,) and Mike Mesaros (bass) grew up together in Carteret and lead singer, the late Pat DiNizio, hailed from Scotch Plains. The band paid its dues in clubs all over the NYC tri-state area from Kenny’s Castaways in Greenwich Village to the Court Tavern and Stone Pony in NJ. They’ve since performed on stages coast to coast from the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles to the Meadowlands Arena in NJ to Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan, and internationally from Europe to Australia. Tour mates have included Tom Petty, Squeeze, The Pretenders, Lou Reed, and the Ramones, among others.
As The Smithereens’ fame escalated, they were in heavy rotation on MTV and appeared on The Tonight Show and Saturday Night Live. Other television credits include Late Night with Conan O’Brien, MTV’s Unplugged, CBS This Morning, The Dennis Miller Show, The Uncle Floyd Show, The Joe Franklin Show, and The Arsenio Hall Show.
Recent Smithereens’ releases include the Covers album on CD and red vinyl, features 22 of the band’s favorite songs first recorded by other artists. A limited edition vinyl 45 rpm of Love Me Do b/w P.S. I Love You featuring The Beatles session drummer, the late Andy White, released on the band’s own Tollie label. And the green vinyl holiday 45, Christmas Morning b/w Twas the Night Before Christmas.
Moving forward and against all odds,The Smithereens reach a major milestone in 2024 as they celebrate their 44th continuous year as a band with non-stop touring and an album of all new material in the works.
Visit: officialsmithereens.com