Cruisin’ by one last time
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Darleene Barrientos
Brand Boulevard beware -- a beach party complete with hot rods is on
its way.
Glendale’s annual Cruise Night is July 19, and will feature
several hundred pre-1972 classic cars and several live music acts,
including headliners Jan and Dean.
One of the original California surf-music groups, Jan Berry and
Dean Torrence were responsible for hits like “Barbara Ann” and “Dead
Man’s Curve.”
The two surf-music icons found success during the 1960s, but also
went to school -- Berry went to UCLA, and Torrence graduated with a
degree in advertising design from USC.
“I have a lot of old friends in Glendale -- a lot of my USC
buddies living [there],” said Torrence, 63.
Although the pair have seen a resurgence of interest in their
1960s-era music, this year will be their final year playing together
because 62-year-old Berry has decided to retire.
“Lucky for us, oldies stations came along. Hit records had a shelf
life of about three months back when we were making records,”
Torrence said. “Then oldies stations came along in the ‘70s and ‘80s.
We probably get a lot more to play now than in the ‘60s.”
Cruise Night’s music schedule includes performances by The
Torquays, rockabilly singer James Intveld and the 40th Infantry
Division of the Army National Guard, which will present the colors,
event spokeswoman Annet Peairs said.
The city was lucky to book Jan and Dean before they went their
separate ways, Peairs said.
“They’re the true representation of the car culture, a true tie-in
of the car culture in southern California,” she said, adding that the
city has wanted to book the duo for Cruise Night for a while.
Jan and Dean are scheduled to take the stage at 9 p.m.
Police estimated close to 35,000 people came to last year’s event.
“But it’s a very warm feeling -- there’s so much space, it’s not
as overwhelming as it sounds,” Peairs said. “It’s a family event.”
Cruise Night is from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. July 19. For more
information about the event, call 548-6464.