Blue moon, now I'm no longer alone

March 1, 2016 1:03 PM

RIP Lennie Baker, 69. He was the saxophonist for Sha Na Na for 30 years. Rolling Stone obit. Recent performance with Bowzer and Johnny Contardo. Early video of his signature lead vocal, Blue Moon.
posted by Melismata (17 comments total)

Also: Dennis Greene, "Denny," died in the past year. They were both members of the group during the TV show.
posted by Melismata at 1:19 PM on March 1, 2016 [3 favorites]

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posted by Faint of Butt at 1:20 PM on March 1, 2016

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posted by Joey Michaels at 1:24 PM on March 1, 2016

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posted by Smart Dalek at 1:36 PM on March 1, 2016 [1 favorite]

Musicians dying, Leo getting an Oscar...hell has frozen over. It's Super Tuesday... go Kasich, go!

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posted by otherchaz at 1:50 PM on March 1, 2016

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posted by Radiophonic Oddity at 1:56 PM on March 1, 2016

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posted by twidget at 2:12 PM on March 1, 2016

I often wonder how the LSD-soaked kids at Woodstock handled Sha-Na-Na hitting the stage.

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posted by Thorzdad at 2:21 PM on March 1, 2016 [3 favorites]

Thorazad: Indeed. I find that Sha Na Na performance one of the strangest things I've ever seen when I'm totally sober.
posted by persona au gratin at 2:27 PM on March 1, 2016 [3 favorites]

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posted by mikelieman at 2:45 PM on March 1, 2016

Buh-buh-buh-Boom. sir.

(I grew up on th Sha Na Na show , it was the cornerstone of the 70's Fifities revival.)
posted by jonmc at 3:58 PM on March 1, 2016 [4 favorites]

you can move to Montana and listen to Santana but you still won't be as cool as Sha Na Na.

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posted by You Can't Tip a Buick at 4:03 PM on March 1, 2016 [1 favorite]

The Sha Na Na page on Wikipedia makes endlessly engaging reading, as their reputation as a one-note novelty act is totally at odds with the reality: their first manager, Ed Goodgold, codified the idea of a trivia contest. Original guitarist Henry Gross left the band and recorded a now-mostly forgotten song which was an inescapable massive hit in the mid-seventies, "Shannon." Gross' successor, Vinnie Taylor, died of an overdose in 1974 and subsequently an escaped child murderer stole his identity and recorded and performed as him under a new name. Alan Cooper was my religious studies prof when I was an undergrad and is now provost at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. Vocalist Scott Powell left to study medicine and later became a professor at USC and part of the medical team for the US national soccer team; Frederick Greene left to study law and apparently became vice-president of production and features at Columbia Pictures.

It goes on and on.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 4:24 PM on March 1, 2016 [4 favorites]

Oh, no. Lennie Baker was me and my sister's favorite member of Sha Na Na when we were kids, in large part because of how much he resembled our dad. I just lost my father last June. Now "TV Dad" is gone. I'm heartbroken.

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posted by KingEdRa at 4:38 PM on March 1, 2016

Maybe Wolfman Hot Dog still has a shot!
posted by anarch at 5:20 PM on March 1, 2016

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posted by pt68 at 5:34 PM on March 1, 2016

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posted by oneironaut at 7:32 PM on March 1, 2016