Southside Johnny is a singer and songwriter from Neptune Township, New Jersey. He sings in the bluegrass and soul genre with elements of rocks. He is perhaps most known for being the front man of the group “Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes”. The singer has been an active entertainer since the early 1970s. Apart from his singing, he is also known for playing various instruments including the harmonica, the piano and the guitar. He has also collaborated many times with “The E Street Band” and Bruce Springsteen. He will be performing on his own concert series soon so buy Southside Johnny tickets before they run out.

Johnny grew up in New Jersey and the culture and tradition of the city is directly reflected in his music. Many people call him the Godfather of that particular genre. Many who have succeeded him in the New Jersey style have cited him as their inspiration. Jon Bon Jovi is one artist who calls Johnny the single reason for him to choose singing as a career.

Johnny first gained popularity in the early 1970s when the New Jersey Sound was starting to gain a bit of attention. Springsteen was dominating the charts and people seemed to be responding well to this new kind of music. Thus Johnny became the second act to emerge with the sound of the Jersey Shore and found similar fame. His first three records perhaps showcased the tones of the state the best. He made his debut in 1976 with "I Don’t Want to Go Home" with the follow up being released the following year and titled "This Time It’s for Real". These early albums were more inclined towards a more R&B direction, being inspired heavily by the stax records. These albums were produced by Steven Van Zandt who was also working with Springsteen at the same time. In fact, Springsteen and Zandt wrote many songs for Johnny in this period. They wrote the title track "I Don’t Want to Go Home", which even today remains Johnny’s signature song. The track consisted of a mix of emotional lyrics, riffs and a horn section. Similarly, songs like "The Fever", "This Time It is For Real" and "Talk to Me" also became very popular among radio listeners.

It was in 1979 that Johnny and his band began to make television appearances. Their most notable one was at the sketch program, SCTV. Southside Johnny and Asbury Jukes played the role of a wedding band, playing altered versions of their own tunes. Apart from performing the full length tracks, they also edited their songs such that they would fade into commercials, or combine them so that the bridge of one song would lead to the chorus of the other. Johnny even acted in one of the sketches with the rest of the band joining in for different plot points.

The 1980s were a more difficult time for Johnny and his band. Springsteen’s fame only kept growing as he eventually became an international star. But while people appreciated his music, Johnny’s work took a backseat, and was considered only secondary to Springsteen’s. This led to Johnny being dropped by his label. This meant that the band was no longer working with Van Zandt. Without his guidance, they put out two records, "Love is a Sacrifice" and "The Jukes". Not one of these managed to gain the success of the albums prior.

Moreover, Johnny had to deal with the issue of failing to stick with one record company. Throughout the 80s, and with every album they produced, they changed labels. They continued to make albums nevertheless. In 1983, they released a record called "Trash it Up" which included Nile Rodgers and Billy Rush in the writing and producing team. This was the first time that the band and he had tried out disco music.

In the recent years, Johnny has continued to make music with the Jukes, although he has started a couple of side projects as well such as "The Poor Fools". He has recorded many tribute albums as well. To honor Van Zandt, he did a live performance of tracks from "Men without Women" which was later recorded onto a CD. He also did a tribute album for The Beatles. His latest album with the Jukes is called "Songs From the Barn" which was released in January 2013. He will be performing the complete track list this summer at his concert, for which Southside Johnny tickets are now available.