Annual celebration ready to rev up the fun

SANDPOINT — Come get Lost in the ’50s.

If you were a teenager in love during the 1950s and ’60s (or even if you weren’t), Lost in the ’50s will transport you back to a time of great music, lots of fun and the magic of the era that gave birth to rock ‘n’ roll.

With performances by Charlie Thomas and The Drifters and Little Anthony and The Imperials, this year’s concerts are going to rock your sock-hop booties off. Charlie Thomas and The Drivter will headline the Friday, May 17, show and dance and Little Anthony and The Imperials will headline the Saturday, May 18, show and dance. Both events will start at 7:30 p.m. with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. “House band” Rocky and the Rollers is slated to perform both nights.

And if THAT isn’t enough to get you bee-bopping all over town, consider that the weekend’s fun kicks off on today, May 16, with Rock ‘n’ Roll Heaven with tribute artists paying homage to everyone from The King himself, Elvis Presley, to Jerry Lee Lewis; followed Friday by the vintage car parade through downtown Sandpoint and a street dance at the Jeff Jones Town Square as well as Saturday’s car show that fills the downtown the entire day.

Rock ‘n’ Roll Heaven, the annual tribute artist concert, will be highlighted by performances paying tribute to Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis as well as a group honoring the girl groups of the era.

The doors to Thursday’s show open at 6 p.m. at the Bonner County Fairgrounds and the music begins at 7 p.m.

Tickets are available at the door or by calling 208-265-LOST.

Friday, the fun continues with the vintage car parade with hundreds of classic rides revving their way through town. Cars meet up at Sandpoint High School and then make their way down Division Avenue, to Church Street, over to First Avenue and then Cedar Street. Following the parade, head over to the town square for a street dance before heading out to the fairgrounds for the first of the weekend’s two show and dance concerts.

Friday’s concert features Charlie Thomas and The Drifters, one of the classic groups of the era with hits such as “ Money Honey” in 1953, “Fools Fall in Love” in 1957, “There Goes My Baby” in 1959, “Save the Last Dance for Me” in 1960 and “Under The Boardwalk” in 1964.

According to Wikipedia, the Vocal Group Hall of Famenotes the original Drifterss “managed to set musical trends and give the public 13 chart hits, most of which are legendary recordings today” despite the turmoil and changes in the group’s lineup. The 1950s and ’60s incarnations of the group were also a force on the U.S. R&B charts, notching six number one R&B hits.

Saturday, downtown Sandpoint grooves back to another era with hundreds of hot rods and sweet classic rides fill the downtown. The show runs from 9:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. with an awards ceremony following at First and Cedar. Once you’ve whetted your appetite on all things ’50s and ’60s, head on over to the fairgrounds to catch Saturday’s show with Little Anthony and The Imperials.

An American R&B/soul vocal group from New York City, Little Anthony and the Imperials was founded by Clarence Collins in the 1950s and named in part for its lead singer, Jerome Anthony “Little Anthony” Gourdine, who was noted for his high-pitched voice, Wikipedia notes. The group was one of the very few doo-wop groups to enjoy sustained success on the R&B and pop charts throughout the 1960s. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 4, 2009, 23 years after the group’s first year of eligibility for induction.

Among their hits are “Tears on My Pillow” in 1958, “My Empty Room” in 1960, “A Lovely Way to Spend An Evening” in 1961, “Goin’ Out of My Head” in 1964, “You Only Live Twice” in 1967 and many more.

For ticket information, call 208-263-9321. For dance tickets call either 208-265-LOST (5678) or 208-263-9321 — or head on over to Second Avenue Pizza, 215 Second Ave..

Tickets to today’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Heaven concert are $40 plus tax, tickets to the Friday and Saturday concerts are $45 plus tax; a weekend pass to all concerts is $120.

Proceeds from the concert, as well as T-shirt and merchandise sales help fund the car parade, street dance and car show.

Information: facebook.com/lost50s or 208-265-LOST