Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes are a Jersey Shore musical group led by Southside Johnny. They have been recording albums since 1976 and are closely associated with Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.
They have recorded and/or performed several Springsteen songs, including "The Fever" and "Fade Away". Springsteen has also performed with the band on numerous occasions and in 1991 guested on their Better Days album.
During the bands formative years Miami Steve Van Zandt acted as the bands co-leader, guitarist, songwriter, arranger and producer while other E Streeters including Clarence Clemons, Max Weinberg, Garry Tallent, Ernest Carter, Patti Scialfa and Soozie Tyrell have all performed, toured and/or recorded with the Jukes.
The bands horn section – The Miami Horns – has also toured and recorded with Springsteen. More than one hundred musicians can claim to have been members of The Asbury Jukes, including Jon Bon Jovi who toured with the band as a special guest during 1990.
Bon Jovi has also cited the band as an influence and Jukes' Bobby Bandiera and Jeff Kazee have also toured with Bon Jovi. Other notable band members include Mark Pender and Richie "La Bamba" Rosenberg who have played regularly with The Max Weinberg 7 on both Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien.
In 2010, the band released "Pills and Ammo" with songs written by (Southside) John Lyon and Jeff Kazee. The album received critical acclaim internationally. The Jukes continue to perform extensively throughout the Northeast United States and annually in the UK and Europe.
In 2011, looking to expand his artistic opportunities, Southside Johnny and The Poor Fools were formed. Composed of musicians Jeff Kazee, John Conte, Tommy Brynes and Soozie Tyrell, this acoustic-ish ensemble plays a wide range of music from Dylan, Mose Allison, Muddy Waters, NRBQ, Richard Thompson, Emmylou Harris, The Band, George Jones and more, as well as some of the legendary Asbury Jukes material in a stripped down format.
