Little Wendy's Underground Chicago Garage

Chicago PBS station WTTW Channel 11 could sound a lot like Little Steven Van Zandt's syndicated radio show Underground Garage tomorrow night when the Cornerstones Of Rock: American Garage TV special casts a spotlight on The Ides Of March, The Buckinghams, The Cryan Shames, The New Colony Six, The Shadows of Knight, The McCoys, and The American Breed. All of these groups, with the exception of the Indiana-based McCoys, came from Chicago's vibrant music scene in the mid-1960s, and I'm willing to bet Van Zandt has played each of them on his show at some point.

WGN radio personality Wendy Snyder will host the special, and Ides Of March will serve as the the house band behind original members of the other groups. The performers include Jim Peterik of The Ides Of March (the first rocker I ever interviewed back when I was a five-year old music critic at The Chicago Illini); Carl Giammarese, Nick Fortuna, and Dennis Tufano of The Buckinghams; Tom Doody, Jim Fairs, and J.C. "Hooke" Pilster from The Cryan Shames; Bruce Mattey and Ray Graffia from The New Colony Six; Jimy Sohns from The Shadows Of Knight; Rick Derringer from The McCoys; and Gary Loizzo, Al Ciner, Chuck Colbert, Jr., and Lee Graziano from The American Breed.

Joe Aliotta from Aliotta Haynes Jeremiah, will also be on hand, and take part in a massive performance by all the groups of "Lake Shore Drive" as a tribute to the late Mitch Aliota. The bands will also perform "Get It On," originally done by the band Chase. Local promoter Ron Onesti, who has booked countless hit bands from the 1960s at The Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, will also appear on the show. Cornerstones Of Rock: American Garage should be a treat for those who remember when these bands topped the charts in the days when WLS and WCFL ruled rock and roll radio in Chicago. It airs at at 7:30 PM tomorrow night.