Power-pop fans were was dealt a devastating blow on Monday night when news broke that Raspberries frontman Eric Carmen had died over the weekend at the age of 74. “Sweet, loving and talented Eric passed away in his sleep,” his wife, Amy Carmen, wrote to fans. “It brought him great joy to know that for decades, his music touched so many and will be his lasting legacy.”
The tributes that followed focused on his solo hits “All by Myself,” “Hungry Eyes” and “Make Me Lose Control,” but his biggest contribution came during his Raspberries recording career, even though it only lasted two- year and a half between 1972 and 1974. During this time, the Cleveland power-pop icons released four albums and timeless singles such as “Go All the Way,” “I Wanna Be With You,” “Let's Pretend,” “I 'm a Rocker' and 'Overnight Sensation (Hit Record).'
“Go All the Way” was their only Top Ten song, but their influence was huge. “They are THE great underrated masters of pop power,” wrote Bruce Springsteen in 2007. “Their best records are as fun and sound as fresh today as they did when they were released. The soaring choruses, Beach Boys harmonies over crunchy Who guitars, lyrics that are at once innocent, folksy and all about sex, sex, sex continue to make for an unbeatable combination.”
Interestingly, Carmen kept a very low profile after finally finding genuine stardom in 1987 thanks to “Hungry Eyes” from Dirty dancing soundtrack. He scored an even bigger hit the following year with “Make Me Lose Control,” but didn't capitalize on the momentum by cutting an actual album. This wasn't until the 1997 LP Winter Dreams, which was initially released only in Japan. It centers around covers such as “Caroline, No” and “Walk Away Renée”. (Eventually released in America as I was born to love you in 2000.)
Raspberries guitarist Wally Bryson played Winter Dreams, setting the stage for a full-on Raspberries reunion that started off on a rocky patch. The genesis for the regroup began in 1999 when Carmen's original quartet of Bryson, bassist David Smalley and drummer Jim Bonfanti gathered at the home of Cleveland-based manager-agent David Spero. It was the first time they had been in the same room in nearly a quarter of a century. “They found they really liked each other,” Spero said The Akron Beacon Journal, adding that they went to a local studio afterwards for an impromptu jam session. “It was like they never stopped. They sounded great.”
This was near the end of a golden reunion era of the 70s, when the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Kiss and Jimmy Page and Robert Plant all made a fortune by taking their fans on a time machine two decades into the past. But similar attempts by the J. Geils Band and Blondie to do the same were relative box office disappointments, and both of those groups were significantly more popular than the Raspberries.
When big deals failed to come their way, Eric Carmen pulled out of the reunion and signed on to tour with Ringo Starr's All-Starr Band. (This led to the fantastically odd sight of Ringo drumming every night on “Hungry Eyes” alongside Jack Bruce, Dave Edmunds and Simon Kirke.)
The other three Raspberries attempted to reunite as a trio, but their reunion EP, Refreshed, was a huge flop, and they didn't tour behind it. Instead, they used the EP as a means to vent their frustration on Carmen over the aborted tour. “You said there was going to be a tour,” Smalley wrote on the bittersweet “Pop Teasers.” “You wore it for summer/I packed the coolest/Man, what a blast… I check my e-mail every day/I need some confirmation… They're old/They're turning gray/Their gear is covered in dust.”
Just when it looked like the dust would settle forever on the Raspberries' gear, Carmen agreed to a reunion gig at the opening of the Cleveland House of Blues in November 2004. There was no hint of animosity on stage as they revisited all their hits, quite deep tracks , and songs that inspired them in their youth, including the Beatles' “No Reply” and “Ticket to Ride.” They opened with 'I Wanna Be With You'. As you can see from the video of that historic moment, Carmen's voice was in remarkably pristine form. (It's hard to think of any reunited band in rock history that sounded so perfect in their comeback show.)
The Raspberries played eight shows in the summer of 2005 at intimate venues across America and another five in 2007 after releasing a live LP documenting the original reunion. Their final performance took place on April 3, 2009, at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, shortly before that year's induction ceremony.
Sadly, Carmen didn't live to see the Raspberries themselves inducted into the Hall of Fame or even appear on a ballot. That's a huge injustice, but at least they played those 14 reunion shows between 2004 and 2009. Anyone lucky enough to have seen any of them will remember it forever.
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