The 2022 Happy Together Tour LIVE! at MPAC
July 4, 2022
New Jersey Stage
Spring Lake, New Jersey
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Inside Morristown, NJ's MPAC auditorium this Thursday, June 23, 2022 evening, music lovers can be seen dancing to the sound of happy '60s tunes played on the house PA system as they make their way to their seats. After a two-year postponement, fans of classic 1960s hits are all here for tonight's 2022 edition of the Happy Together Tour starring The Turtles, Gary Puckett, The Association, The Classics IV, The Vogues, and The Cowsills.
Radio DJ Shadoe Stevens' pre-recorded voice counts down, "2 minutes . . . 1 minute . . . 30 seconds . . .," before the crowd cheers, the lights dim, and the Happy Together musicians - Greg Smith on bass, Chris Camilleri on drums, Manny Focarazzo on keyboards, and musical director Godfrey Townsend on guitar - take the stage and tonight's show begins.
The Cowsills - featuring siblings Susan, Paul, and Bob Cowsill - are up first. "Hello, Morristown!" exclaims Paul, "1967 was the summer of love, and this is for all the flower girls out there!" The group opens their set with a buoyant rendition of their catchy '67 hit, "The Rain, The Park, and Other Things" (aka "The Flower Girl").
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The happy strains of this joyful tune fill the air as audience members move to the '60s groove at their seats.
Following enthusiastic applause, the group performs their 1967 hit, "We Can Fly," as blue lights rain down and create rays that criss-cross above the soaring sound.
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The audience claps along to the song's snappy melody and the siblings' tight vocal harmonies.
Susan, 63, introduces her brothers, Bob, 72, and Paul, 70. Then, The Cowsills perform a bouncy version of their hit, "Indian Lake," where the group's tight vocals and Manny Focarazzo's honky-tonk piano takes audience members back to the carefree summer days of the 1960s.
As members of the family band that provided the inspiration for TV's The Partridge Family, the siblings perform a television theme song they recorded back in 1969 - the theme from Love, American Style.
After Paul thanks the audience, acknowledging "Without you, there is no us," The Cowsills end their nostalgic set with a high-energy rendition of their 1969 smash, "Hair," where Susan and Paul get the crowd clapping along as rainbow-colored lights swirl over the audience. The audience stands and cheers as The Cowsills say "We love you!" while bowing together.
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