Interview: John Sebastian at Bickford Theatre in Morristown on 11/30

The renowned singer and songwriter, John Sebastian will make his only New Jersey appearance this year at the Bickford Theatre at the Morris Museum on Thursday evening, November 30. Sebastian's performance promises to be an exciting musical event for area audiences.

Broadwayworld.com had the great pleasure of chatting with John Sebastian about his background, his career, and what's been going on.

For almost 50 years, songs by John Sebastian have been a permanent part of our American musical fabric. From The Lovin' Spoonful to Woodstock to "Welcome Back Kotter," this Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer/songwriter and virtuoso musician was responsible for a host of hits: "Do You Believe in Magic," "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice," "Daydream," "Younger Girl," "Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind," "Summer In The City," "Rain On The Roof," "Nashville Cats," "Darling Be Home Soon," "Younger Generation," and, of course, "Welcome Back."

Raised in Greenwich Village by a mother who wrote for radio and a father who was a famed classical harmonica player, John honed his performance skill in New Jersey at Blair Academy. Making his professional debut with the Even Dozen Jug Band, John quickly became a much sought-after accompanist, working with Fred Neil, Tim Hardin, Mississippi John Hurt, Judy Collins, and Bob Dylan.

With his group, The Lovin' Spoonful, he became an international star and had a string of smash hits which led to writing music for films such as Francis Ford Coppola's You're A Big Boy Now and Woody Allen's What's Up Tiger Lily. And then came Welcome Back, a chart-topping solo recording for the popular television show. Since then he has not slowed down, recording, touring, writing and even creating a series of instructional materials for guitar. He was the subject of a PBS special "Do You Believe in Magic: The Music of John Sebastian" and his music is heard everywhere, in movies, on television, in commercials, and on the radio.

In our interview, we soon learned that John grew up surrounded by very creative people. He told us a charming story from his youth. His godmother was Vivian Vance, the singer, theatre, and television actress well known for her role as Ethel in "I Love Lucy." When John's family was living in Huntington Long Island, Vance pulled up to their house in her car and handed John a double barrel toy shotgun. He was 6 years old at the time and his mother objected vehemently telling her, "You know we don't have those kinds of toys in this house." Handing him the toy gun, Vance responded to his mother saying, "Oh, hell. He's going to like me better than you when he grows up!"

We asked John for some advice for young people who aspire to be musicians. "First of all, don't do it unless you can't stand to do anything else." He added, "You simply have to follow your talent like you follow your nose."

We wanted to know if John had an "ah-hah" moment in his career. "I was having fun and games playing in the little clubs around Greenwich Village. One night in 1964, at the Night Owl Café on 1650 Broadway, Phil Spector was there. The next night it was packed and I knew then that things would be happening for me."

John's musical interests span a myriad of genres. We asked him what music he personally likes to. He said that there were so many but offered the names of a few greats that included Fred Neel, Marcus King, and Mo Pitney

We found out a little about what John has been up to in recent weeks. He just completed a reunion performance of "The Jug Band Giants" in Newtonville, Massachusetts with his friends and fellow musicians, Jim Kweskin and Geoff Muldaur.

You won't want to miss this evening of great music and fascinating story-telling with John Sebastian, one of this generation's greatest songwriters. Tickets are $45.00 in advance, $50.00 at the door and are available through the Bickford Theatre website at www.morrismuseum.org/la-carte-series or by calling 973-971-3706.

The Bickford Theatre at the Morris Museum is located at 6 Normandy Heights Road in Morristown, NJ, and offers free parking and full accessibility. Box office hours for phone sales are Monday through Friday, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. Walk-up hours are Tuesday through Friday, 11:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Photo Credit: Catherine Sebastian