Harrah's Resort brings in charting a cappella group for a summer-long run in Atlantic City
Straight No Chaser
Granted, Straight No Chaser has only been in town around three weeks and may still be reaping the benefits of its novelty status, but a packed, mid-week Harrah’s Concert Venue crowd gave the a cappella group a standing ovation following its July 7 show. And as sure as there are more 90-degree days in Atlantic City’s near future, so are crowd reactions of that sort for the sensational 10-man ensemble.
Straight No Chaser is essentially a group of friends who started a musical trend at Indiana University in 1996 that still exists today. The original 10 members graduated and pursued separate paths, but came together for 10-year reunion that immediately preceded the posting of a YouTube clip of their “12 Days of Christmas” recording that redlined on the viewer tachometer. They followed that up with a couple of big-selling holiday CDs and a 12-song CD of pop hits called With A Twist, released in April on the Atlantic Records label.
The group signed an eight-week engagement with Harrah’s Resort that runs through Aug. 28 at the Concert Venue in Atlantic City. Shows are 8pm Wednesday through Sunday and tickets are $25 to $35. The act is incredible and well suited for all ages. There is a lot of audience interaction, stage adjustments and suit changes included in the act, which masterfully segues song medleys from each of the five decades between the 1950s and ’90s. The group puts personal spins on many of the songs they cover (tailoring The Beach Boys' “Surfer Girl” into a contemporary, Atlantic City-themed tune), and use vocal skills to compensate for lack of instruments.
Straight No Chaser is comprised of Michael Luginbill, Randy Stine, David Roberts, Charlie Mechling, Jerome Collins, Walter Chase, Dan Ponce, Ryan Ahlwardt, Seggie Isho and Tyler Trepp. Chase spoke with Atlantic City Weekly following the July 7 performance.
Can you talk a little bit about how the group formed and its history?
For 50 years there’s been a show choir called the Singing Hoosiers at Indiana University. It’s a 120-person choir that tours all around the country, and 10 of us decided to form an a cappella group based on those that had formed at schools like Harvard, Yale and others around the country 50 or 60 years ago. Ours was the first a cappella group at Indiana. We started doing small shows at the local dance marathon, where we raised money for various causes, and started singing at sorority houses and dorms. Then we threw our own concert, and another concert, then started touring with the alumni association and other groups. The original 10 guys graduated and we went our separate ways, but we decided to keep Straight No Chaser at Indiana University. So if you went back there now there would be an SNC comprised of 18- to 21-year old guys, and auditions are held to bring new guys into the group each year. It was all because of this YouTube video — the 12 Days of Christmas — that got 10 million hits that the [original] 10 guys decided to get back together.
It’s incredible how you can use vocal skills to sound like there’s a band behind you, especially with some songs that would ordinarily be instrument-heavy. How hard is something like that to overcome?
There’s a term called “a cappella friendly.” I’m one of the [musical] arrangers and Dan [Ponce] is too, and what you try to do is find a song that will work in a cappella — as in, just voices — and it can be very difficult, especially with something like a ‘hair band’ song with a lot of drums and synthesizers and stuff in it. That’s why with the Bon Jovi songs and all of those Bruce [Springsteen] songs [during the ‘80s segment], we kind of made it into more of a medley, or turn it into more of a ballad, to compensate for lack of instruments. Sometimes it takes a little bit of creativity to make it sound sharp. That’s part of the line we tow.
Most bands have four or five people with one or two as leaders — a lead singer or lead guitarist that fronts the band or whatever. We have 10 guys who, for the most part, equally contribute to the passion and the orchestration of every song. Everyone sings every show, and sometimes it’s a case of going through song by song and deciding what we can do best, and it sometimes it turns into Congress, where one side is going one way and the other side is going another way, and you’re trying to write the bill so that everyone’s happy.
Do all 10 of you have formal backgrounds in music?
Out of the 10 guys, five of us were music majors in college. Obviously all 10 of us sang with the group in college, and even those who were not formal music majors in college have backgrounds such as singing in the choir in high school, or having performed in bands or musical productions in high school or college. So a lot of the educational path just came from the 10 of us just singing together, trading music and figuring out how to make it all mesh. But some guys have more formal music training than others. Dan [Ponce] is a classical pianist, Jerome [Collins] basically has perfect pitch, Charlie [Mechling] never sang until he was 18 years old but has one of the strongest voices in the group.
Has the group evolved much since you first formed in 1996?
[With A Twist]’s our third album on Atlantic Records and it’s our first non-holiday album. Back in school we would do a few holiday songs during the holiday season, but 98 percent of our live shows have always been pop music and songs we all enjoy singing. Now we’re dipping back into earlier genres because we’d hear a lot of people say “Why don’t you do the doo-wop era, why don’t you do the Beatles or the Beach Boys?” None of us were born before 1976, but we all have musical influences and experiences that introduced us to those songs and styles that came before us. My experience, or what got me into singing a cappella, was that my dad would play the Beach Boys both ways — on the way up to my grandmother’s house in Perth Amboy, where we’d go every Saturday, and back. At the time, frankly, it seemed kind of agonizing to listen to the same 30 Beach Boys songs over and over again, but it subconsciously drilled four-part harmony into my head. And I developed an appreciation for how great the Beach Boys, The Four Seasons, Bruce [Springsteen] and others my dad listened to a lot are in terms of how much excellent material they produced. All of us — especially Jerome — have a very solid music background from our families, and it’s especially nice when they come out to see the shows and we take them through the decades starting with the ‘50s and going through artists like Beyonce in the ‘90s.
There’s a new element where we re-wrote the entire show from scratch and only three or four out of the 54 songs that we do are from the old show. What we do now is more of a stage show with more lights and staging and choreography and sets. It’s a big change for us, and each year, whether we’re recording an album or not, we try to add songs before we go on tour. Because our crowd knows that there’s new twists that we add to it. We do Toto's "Africa" [from 1982] and change the lyrics to it and incorporated it into the "12 Days of Christmas.” We’re always trying to one-up ourselves. We try to dig into the songs we have and put new twists on them, and add new songs while we’re doing it.
How do you and the others plan to spend you down time in Atlantic City?
All 10 of us are friends, so a lot of us will hang out, go to dinner together, hit the beach, the pool, the gym. I have family that’s down here [Chase is originally from Easton, Pa.] and my wife’s in New York, so I spent the last couple of days going to New York City and back. A few of the guys are single, so I’m sure a few of them are going to find Atlantic City a fun place to be during the summer. There’s a lot to do. Our normal routine is being on the road where we’re on the tour bus, showering in the hotel, performing in a venue, getting back on the bus, sleeping in a different place the next night. So it’s a nice switch to have a place to get settled into for a little bit instead of going from place to place. And so far we love it here. We’ve been here a little over three weeks — since June 19th — and we’re not sick of it yet.”
Like just about every facet of the casino industry, shows that celebrate the holiday season have changed considerably over the years. Gone are the days when a seemingly endless array of top-name artists brought their seasonal productions to showroom stages.
While both groups are different, in particular with SNC’s ability to mimic musical instruments and Human Nature backed by a smokin’ R&B band, they share a passion for magnificent harmonies.
A comprehensive listing of entertainment coming to the Atlantic City casinos, Boardwalk Hall and Bader Field.
For the last few years, Harrah’s Resorts has brought a Broadway show to their main stage for a summer run. This year the casino is changing things up by presenting the a capella group Straight No Chaser for an eight week run July 2 to August 28. Perhaps the success of the Fox TV series [...]
For the last few years, Harrah’s Resorts has brought a Broadway show to their main stage for a summer run. This year the casino is changing things up by presenting Straight No Chaser for an eight week run July 2 to August 28.
“It was like, ‘Oh my god, we might lost $20,000 or $30,000 on an event.’ Well, you might lose hundreds of millions of dollars if this town just continues to play defense. And we’re trying to play offense. [The city] has already lost a billion dollars it can never get back.”
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1. DMeyer said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 10:40AM
“We saw you in A.C. on July 9th. My Brother surprised me with tickets. Awesome is the best description I can find. Totally enjoyed the show. We also gave you a standing ovatiion!!”
2. MWaltz said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 10:53AM
“Terrific interview,Walt. We can never get enough info about you guys. Hope you continue to have great crowds in AC. Patiently waiting to see you again in Ft. Wayne, IN, in Sept.!”
3. TRISHheartsSNC said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 11:16AM
“Can't wait to see you guys on July 23rd...waiting no so patiently!”
4. Kristin in PA said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 11:44AM
“So thrilled for all of you... how amazing and awesome that your talents have been shared with so many to enjoy! Hope the summer is a blast for you in AC... got my tix for July 29.... can't wait!!!”
5. Kelli in NJ said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 04:14PM
“My mom and I saw you guys on Thursday, July 8th...and another well deserved standing ovation! We have tickets to come back on July 29 and just got tickets for August 27th to bring the hubbys. Love the show and can't wait to come again. Couldn't stop smiling the whole time. Your music just makes us happy. Thanks for sharing the gift of your beautiful music and thanks to Harrah's for giving us the opportunity to see you so close to home (1 hour away)!”
6. Lisa Viering said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 05:33PM
“Straight No Chaser ROCKS!! Can't wait til you make it back to OHIO again!! Just love "With A Twist"!! Keep doing your thing, guys...you are truly amazing!!”
7. Annie L said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 06:34PM
“Sensational is an understatement - but only if I could find a stronger adjective! I'm running out of glowing adjectives for SNC! A smile appears as soon as the curtain goes up and still hasn't left my face (3 days after seeing their concert, my second one)! I brought my sister, a brand-new fan, and she's already asked if I'd go back to Harrah's for a second SNC show - undoubtedly YES! A mere 4-hour drive from DC is nothing, to see these guys perform - they transport their audience to another place - 'somewhere over the rainbow' is almost an accurate desription of that place :) Thanks for the great interview and sensational performances!”
8. macfan1950 said... on Jul 13, 2010 at 08:09PM
“Thanks for the interview and the insight into your arrangements. I drove from Maryland to Atlantic City last Saturday for your show and loved every minute of it (the show--not the drive...). I was glad to see people from 20's to 80's in the audience. I've been a fan of SNC for years, so it was great to hear several people say how glad they were that their friends brought them to the show. I'm hoping for a new album soon with some of the numbers from the show...”
9. Fran King said... on Jul 15, 2010 at 07:15PM
“I took my 13-year old grandson to the show while we were in A/C. He used his own money to purchase a water bottle and one of your CD's. He sings in his school chorus and thought you guys were incredible!”