Summer 2026
Welcome to our special double-issue for the summer. So much to go over so let’s dig right in. We were headed down the shore but had to stop at the rest stop in Wall Township—between exits 100 and 98 on the Parkway—on our way to Ocean City. Little did we know that what used to be known as the Monmouth Service Area is now The Judy Blume Service Area. Bingo! Nothing like getting a little TJS inspiration while on vacation! Blume, now 88 and long retired, was born and raised in Elizabeth. (She operates a small book store in Key West Florida.) Her 29 books have sold over 80 million copies and have been translated into 32 languages.
Her work is often listed as amongst the most frequently banned books in America. The National Coalition Against Censorship has honored her more than once. Five of her titles are on the list of “The 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of the 1990s.” Why? Because she dares to explore topics for young adults (her primary audience) such as bullying, racism, homelessness, homosexuality, masturbation and first-time sex. To that we say READ BANNED BOOKS! Let your teenaged children read banned books. In fact, ALA Editions has published Teaching Banned Books: 12 Guides For Young Readers.
Writing about Jackie Wilson—who wasn’t born here and never lived here—got me thinking. Jackie Wilson died here! Thus, he’s within our purview. In fact, this greatest soul-man of all-time died right on stage at the Latin Casino in Cherry Hill while performing “Lonely Teardrops.” The song’s lyric goes “my heart is crying crying,” and as he sang those words, he, indeed, had a heart attack. True, he stayed “alive” in a coma for nine years but that’s a mere technicality. So in the spirit of Jackie Wilson, this issue’s “Jersey History” is about another guy who didn’t live here and wasn’t born here: Thelonious Monk, The High Priest Of Bebop, who lived out the last six years of his life in Englewood.
The nine “Up-Close” artists this summer are Bike Routes from Burlington County, Lily Vakili from Montclair, Mike Herz from Newton, percussionist-vocalist Anthony Almonte from the touring bands of Little Steven & The Disciples of Soul AND Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Alexa Tabbacchino from Long Beach Island, Johnny Nameless from Asbury Park, The Random Hubiak Band, also from Asbury Park, Brian Bannon from Verona and The Sly Project from Red Bank.
You’ll “Meet…” The Brothers Union from Asbury Park. Their “Mama Tried” is not a cover of the 1968 Merle Haggard classic country song. It’s an alt-rock indie thrill-ride, and should sound best at top volume from car speakers.
The five clips in this summer’s “Visual Sound” are a varied lot from Hoboken rocker Glenn Morrow and Asbury Park’s Forever King Clark to the Shrubs of Plainfield and the sound of Red Bank’s Count Basie as pantomimed by Newark’s Jerry Lewis in the 1958 film, The Errand Boy. And regular readers of this space should remember last month’s “Jersey History” with Jersey Girl Jayne Mansfield. Well, you gotta see the moment in 1956 during the movie “The Girl Can’t Help It” when Little Richard sings the title song and Jayne struts her considerable stuff.
“See You In September,” as The Happenings sang in 1966. Oh yeah, they were from Paterson.