The Dynamic

Del-Aires

The Official Unofficial Tribute Page

The Del-Aires :: Why a Tribute Page?

Why a Del-Aires tribute? It's simple, really. Even though the group only had around ten minutes of screen time in The Horror of Party Beach, their tunes leave quite an impression. And so addled was I by their thunder and twang, I soon became determined to find out more about them. And the more I dug, the more intrigued I became with what I found. Hopefully, you will be, too.

The Del-Aires :: Who's Who.

Over the years, one of the biggest misconceptions concerning The Del-Aires was identifying who was actually in the group. So, to clear that up first, the line up went as follows:

Lead singer, Ronnie Linares; bassist, Gary Robert Jones; keyboardist and sax-player, Bobby Osborne; and drummer, John Becker, constituted the rollicking rock band that heralded from New Jersey. 

It was widely believed -- but ultimately proved wrong, that Edward Earle and Wilfred Holcombe were also members, due to some credit confusion from the group's biggest claim to fame, guest-starring in Del Tenney's gonzoidal classic, The Horror of Party Beach. Both Earle and Holcombe were old musical theater friends of Tenney's, who penned several songs for the film, including the infamous "Zombie Stomp".

The Del-Aires :: The History.

So. Where the heck did these guys come from? Well, here's what I've been able to piece together so far ... But before we get started, I'll remind everyone that this account is based on the facts at hand with a lot of conjecture sprinkled in to fill several gaps.

It all started back in 1957, when Patterson, New Jersey native Ronnie Linares started the The Treble Tones, who recorded and released a 45-single for B-Atlas Records, featuring the songs "Treble Rock" and "The Crawl." Alas, The Treble Tones just weren't meant to be, allowing Linares to defect to another fledgling group, and along with Gary Robert Jones, Bobby Osborne and John Becker, The Dynamic Del-Aires were officially born.

Setting up shop in the basement of Archie Block's linoleum store, the group found their sound and banged out a couple of songs. Not content to be just their landlord, Block soon became the band's manager and started his own record label to promote them, titled, obviously, Block Records. With that, the Del-Aires first 45-single was pressed and hit the streets. And when the songs "So Far So Long" and "Someplace" went into circulation, the band started getting a few gigs.

By all accounts The Del-Aires were pretty good and fairly popular, locally, and soon became regulars for several venues -- including The Peppermint Lounge and Big Daddy's in Greenwood Lake, New York. Several sources also prove they served a stint as the house band for the Atlantis Club at Coney Island in 1962. At around the same time, they began playing gigs at The Angel Lounge in Lodi, New Jersey -- a decision that would have a profound effect on their future; some good, some not so much ... On the plus side, it was while performing at the Angel when they were discovered by a rep from Coral Records, who signed them to a contract in late 1963. Their first Coral release was "Just Wigglin' N' Wobblin'" and "Elaine".

As the band's popularity grew, the buzz about their live shows soon brought them to the attention of Richard Hilliard ... Hilliard was a screenwriter and cinematographer whose latest project, a Beach Party knock-off called Invasion of the Zombies, needed a band, and after scoping the group out, felt they'd be perfect. After agreeing to be in the film, the quartet traveled to Stamford, Connecticut for the shoot, where they would provide the majority of the soundtrack. After the film was in the can, and went through a name change to The Horror of Party Beach, it was alleged that the Del-Aires recorded a soundtrack album to help promote the film ... But after years of fruitless searching, this turned out to be a macguffin and has since been debunked. However, it should be noted that though there never was an official soundtrack, several songs featured in the film were released separately though the Coral label. Regardless, the bat-shit insane tale of knock-kneed and googley-eyed monsters running amok, while The Del-Aires thundered along with the bloody action, is an absolute riot and well worth tracking down. 

After completing their obligation to the movie in 1963, the Del-Aires returned to Coral Studios and cut another 45, "My Funny Valentine" and "Drag" -- the second song featured during the opening credits of Party Beach. Alas, despite their successful live venues, the band never could get any sales traction for their label, and the last record the Del-Aires ever produced came shortly thereafter, "Arlene" and "I'm Your Baby", before Coral kicked them to the curb. After which, things get a little murky and somewhat twisted.

Before The Horror of Party Beach was even released, the Del-Aires continued with the usual roster of shows ... The night of August 25, 1963, found them playing in their usual stomping grounds, the Angel Lounge, where, as the story goes, it was a particularly rowdy show and the police had to be called in to restore order, and eventually, put a cease and desist on the racket. When the authorities stopped the show, while the band shut it down for the night and vacated, two members of the raucous audience, a Thomas "The Rabbi" Trantino, and one Frank Falco, refused to vacate and soon turned the tables ... After assaulting and overpowering the two police officers who answered the call, the hoods then forced them to strip naked before shooting them both in the back of the head. Two days later, Falco was shot dead while resisting arrest, but Trantino eventually turned himself in. Convicted of the murders of Sergeant Peter Voto and Patrolman Gary Tedesco, Trantino was initially sentenced to the electric chair but this was commuted to life after New Jersey abolished the death penalty. And as of 2002, Trantino is currently at the center of a great controversy because, believe it or not, this scum-bucket is now out on parole!

Forever linked to this brutal incident, the Angel Lounge was immediately shut down to appease an outraged public. Also caught in the backlash, a lot of other clubs were forced to close, too, when they were deemed the root cause of the tragedy ... I'm not sure if the band actually witnessed the grisly murders, or perhaps it was the sudden lack of venues, but almost immediately after the incident, the Del-Aires seemed to fall apart in 1964. According to my interview with Bobby Osborne, the break-up was more of an amicable split over diverging musical interests. However, they managed to stick together long enough to do some promotional gigs for The Horror of Party Beach. Then, after the hoopla for that died down, the quartet broke up for good.

Life for the band members after the Del-Aires is still a little sketchy. Osborne and Linares both stayed in the music business, stayed in touch with each other, and still occasionally play together in Bonita Springs, Florida. Both have lost touch with Jones, who maybe living in Arizona, and Becker, whose whereabouts are still unknown.

We'll keep looking, though, and keep you posted.

The Del-Aires :: The Interview

A Q&A with Bobby Osborne

First off, a big THANK YOU to Bill Bohs, a fellow Del-Aires enthusiast, whose persistence and patience helped make this interview happen. Initially, Mr. Bohs e-mailed me saying that Bobby Osborne, the bespectacled member of the Del-Aires, wanted to get a hold of me but didn't have any e-mail access. With Bill as a go between, I left a number where I could be reached for an interview. Almost a week passed before the phone rang one fateful morning. I was still asleep, and, determined to stay that way, decided to let the machine get it. When it kicked on with a familiar beep, the caller introduced himself as Bobby Osborne of the Dynamic Del-Aires. Hearing that, I immediately scrambled out of bed, got tangled in the covers, and gave myself a nice face-burger before regrouping and crawled toward the phone, knowing I'd never make it in time, and begging him to please leave a number and I'd call him back. Please! Please! Please!

He did. And I called him back. Twice as a matter of fact ... For both of those calls, Mr. Osborne was patient, polite, engaging, enthusiastic and very forthright in answering all my questions. So much so that I had trouble keeping up with him while scribbling it all down. Here is what I was able to translate:

3B Theater ::  If someone would have told me twenty years ago after first watching The Horror of Party Beach that I'd be talking to an actual member of the Del-Aires, I'd of said that knob was crazy, but here we are. 

Osborne ::  Thanks, man. Glad to be here. Can you answer me a question first?

3B Theater ::  Sure.

Osborne ::  Where are you from? How did you get into us?

3B Theater ::  Well, I'm from Nebraska, of all places, and I got in to you guys after watching The Horror of Party Beach. I dug your tunes. Thought you guys were pretty good but couldn't find anything out about you. So when I started this review website, I decided to make a corner of it dedicated to you guys, hoping, perhaps, to find out what happened to you some day. Heck, I didn't even know you and John Becker were in the band until recently. The credits for the film through us all for a whammy.

Osborne ::  Not a problem. You weren't the first one to get tripped up on that. Do you have any of our records?

3B Theater ::  I wish. You guys have got quite a cult following. Your records are pretty scarce and rare and going for well over $100 bucks on EBay.

Osborne ::  Seriously? Can I get any of that? (Laughs.) Listen, I can probably get you some recordings of our songs, some live shows and promotional stuff if you like. Just give me your address. 

3B Theater :: That would be outstanding. Thanks!

Osborne ::  Not a problem. So what do you need to know? What can I tell you?

3B Theater :: Let's start at the beginning. How did you guys first meet?

Osborne ::  Well I was only fifteen at the time and this was back in '58. Ronnie Linares and the other guys were playing at Lippy's Casino, while I was playing sax and keyboards at the Cha-Cha Club and they asked me to join them. That was me playing sax on "Drag" (-- the song playing during the credits of The Horror of Party Beach.) 

3B Theater ::  And this was in New Jersey right? 

Osborne ::  Yeah, Patterson, New Jersey.

3B Theater ::  Who was all in the band at this time.

Osborne ::  It was Ronnie Linares, Gary "Big Al" Jones, Jimmy Jersey and John Becker on the drums. Our first big gig was playing the Atlantis Club at Coney Island.

3B Theater :: I've heard your live shows were pretty wild. 

Osborne ::  They were. Ronnie was a wild man and I'd jump up on Jimmy's shoulders and blow the sax and we'd walk out into the audience. I tell you, John Becker was a helluva drummer. He was a big fan of Buddy Rich and would do these amazing drum solos and then kick over his equipment -- before Keith Moon made it famous.

3B Theater :: You guys eventually got signed by Coral Records. How did that come about?

Osborne ::  We got hooked up with a booking agent and started getting more gigs at places like The Peppermint Lounge. They saw us, liked us and we did our first record for them which was "Elaine" and "Wiggle Wobble". You know [sings] "Wiggle Wobble!" Those two songs, of course, wound up in the movie. They also released "Drag" and "My Funny Valentine."

3B Theater :: How did you guys get involved with The Horror of Party Beach?

Osborne ::  It was through the booking agent. Del Tenney was looking for a band for his movie. We auditioned and got the gig.

3B Theater :: Any good stories from the shoot?

Osborne ::  Nah, not really. We were just involved for about two or three days of shooting. They brought us up to Stamford, Connecticut and put us in a hotel room. We did the shoot out at the beach and that was about it.

3B Theater :: What did you think of that bratwurst monster?

Osborne ::  You know, we went to Del Tenney's house and he had the costume there. Those weren't hotdogs. Those were rubber gloves chopped up and stuffed in the mouth. And the eye-balls were ping-pong balls. Del actually shows up in the movie twice. 

3B Theater :: I know he was the gas station attendant where else is he?

Osborne ::  He was the guy wearing glasses getting a newspaper from the newsboy. There was also a bigger part in the movie for that head biker guy but there was a big accident. I think they all piled up into each other. The guy was hurt pretty bad so they had to change the script.

3B Theater :: Okay, here's a question that needs settling. Was there a soundtrack for the film recorded as several sources claim? 

Osborne ::  No. No soundtrack. Like I said a couple songs wound up on the Coral singles but that was it.

3B Theater :: I guess I can stop looking for one then. It wasn't that long after you guys made the movie that you broke up. What happened?

Osborne ::  Well, we played a few more shows and a couple of Drive-In gigs to help promote the movie. We attended the premiere at New York's Paramount Theater and had to sign the Fright Release to get in. I think our last release for Coral was "I'm Your Baby". We were young. Music was changing. The Beatles were just starting to hit big and we all just wanted to go in a different direction musically.

3B Theater :: Was it an amicable split?

Osborne ::  Yes. 

3B Theater :: Are you still in touch with the other guys?

Osborne ::  I honestly don't know where John or Gary are. I'd love to talk to them again. Maybe we can do a reunion show (Laughs.) If you find them shoo them my way. Ronnie and I have stayed in touch though. We're like brothers and we still play together on a regular basis.

3B Theater :: So what have you been up to since? Still in the business I hear.

Osborne ::  After the Del-Aires broke up, I continued to play. I was in a band called Gas Mask. We toured and opened for the likes of Sly and the Family Stone. We released some tracks through Tonsil Records. Did some studio work and still performing today, here in Bonita Springs, Florida. Ronnie and I will do a gig together. That's how I found out about the website. He told me "You're not going to believe this. We've got a website." We got so excited we played some of the old songs again. I think Ronnie wants to talk to you too. 

3B Theater :: Cool, give him my number.

Osborne ::  Can do. He's 59 years old but still a wild man and you can usually find him walking the piers doing some juggling.

3B Theater :: Well, you've answered all my questions. Thanks, I really appreciate it.

Osborne ::  Your welcome. It's nice to know we've got some fans. 

3B Theater :: Probably a lot more than you think. The fan response to the website has been huge. There's a lot of Del-Aires fans out there.

Osborne ::  Really? Publish my address if you want too. I'd love to hear from them. 

3B Theater :: Are you sure?

Osborne ::  Yeah. It might be fun. If you need anything else give me a call. I'll try to get that stuff sent to you as soon as you can.

3B Theater :: No problem, m'man. Take your time; no hurry on this end.

Again, big thanks again to both Bobby Osborne for the interview and Bill Bohs for hooking us up. And, as promised, Osborne's last known address: 1009 S. Pine St., Lake Worth, FL 33460.

The Del-Aires :: Acknowledgements

Thanks, Everybody.

This tribute site wouldn't have been possible without the help of a lot of people like Scott B., Bill Bohs, Deacon Brimstone, and Ron Linares Jr., whose contributions, corrections, and information have been priceless. Also a shout to my sponsors at Stomp Tokyo for footing the bills and making this thing possible.

And, of course, a huge thank to you Ronnie, Gary, Bobby and John.

Rock on, gentlemen. Rock on!