The popular cover band will perform a night of Beatles songs
The Fabulous Dialtones are a classic rock cover band based in Los Angeles. They play both acoustic and horn-powered tunes from the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s.
The Fairfax-based band formed in 1996 when Tony Bardo, who was working at MCI Telecommunications, grew bored with the annual company sales kick-off meeting and wanted to add some excitement to the proceedings.
“Every year was death by PowerPoint,” Bardo said. “I wanted to spruce things up and had a musical background, so I went around looking for people who had an interest in music.”
He soon recruited others in the company to form the Balding Eagles. This quartet played some songs at the next sales meeting, performing “Hotel California” with all new office-relevant lyrics.
It was right after the Eagles’ “Hell Freezes Over” Tour that gave him the idea to create the parody. It was so well received that the foursome began jamming during their spare time and invited others into the band. As the bandmates got more serious, they took on the moniker The Fabulous Dialtones.
“It was like getting together for poker night once a month, and we learned six cover songs, and one evening, one of the guys had a friend who asked us to play live on a Wednesday night down in D.C.,” Bardo said. “We played our six songs, then played them again, and we had a ball.”
Adopting the tagline “Classic Rock for the New Millennium,” the band started playing more local gigs and creating a following.
Around this time, MCI was planning a big national event at the House of Blues in New Orleans to honor some winners of a contest the company had held. Joe Walsh and Glenn Frye from the Eagles were playing as special guests. One of the higher-ups at MCI asked Bardo and his band to also play.
“We were flown down there, I wrote a little song, and we performed it,” Bardo said. “Joe and Glenn opened the party up with a 90-minute concert and then cleared out, and later that night, we played. So, my story is that they opened for The Fabulous Dialtones!”
Today, the band also consists of Arlington’s Bob Divine on vocals, guitar, percussion, and bass; Cliff Greenblatt on guitar and vocals; Alex Divine on vocals, guitar, and bass; Connor Divine on guitar, bass, and vocals; Jeff Miles on drums; Bob Holladay on trombone; Rich Kessler on trumpet; and Bob LoSchiavo on lead guitar and vocals.
The Fabulous Dialtones return to Jammin’ Java on Oct. 25 to perform an evening of Beatles music.
The night will include early Beatles acoustic classics, tunes from their movies, memorable ballads, and some of their most beloved songs from their more complex growth during the late 60s and post-Beatles work from the 70s and 80s.
“We’re having lots of practice sessions, going over the details of the songs,” Bob Divine said. “This is not a Beatles tribute where we dress up with the wigs and Sgt. Pepper costumes and all of that; we just go as ourselves and try to do exact duplicates of the original songs.”
That means breaking down all the different harmonies, guitar parts, and everything the Fab Four did in the studio.
“We also have a horn section,” Divine said. “When we pull apart these songs, there’s a lot of detailed practice that goes into it because Paul McCartney and John Lennon wrote very complicated songs. We do these songs.”
Jammin Java is a regular spot for the band, and they enjoy returning whenever the opportunity presents itself.
“It’s a thrill to play and laugh and party with people, and I just thoroughly enjoy it,” Bardo said. “We have a good corporate footprint and have a lot of friends in the IT business who spend money, and fortunately, we have people who love this music.”
The show starts at 8 p.m. For more information, visit jamminjava.com.