October 28, 2022 | 7:30 PM
In 1975 Pablo Cruise released its first A&M album simply entitled Pablo Cruise. The album cover was shot in the tropical gardens of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park and it featured a huge gorilla standing front and center. The band, David Jenkins (guitars, vocals), Cory Lerios(keyboards, vocals), Bud Cockerel (bass, vocals), and Steve Price (drums, percussion) were nowhere in sight. At that point, there was a bit of a mystique surrounding Pablo Cruise and when asked what Pablo Cruise meant, the well-rehearsed answer went something like this:
“Pablo”, represents an honest, real, down-to-earth individual, and “Cruise” depicts his fun-loving, easy-going attitude towards life: In essence, that’s what Pablo Cruise music is all about. Honest, real down to earth vocals, accompanied by fun yet elegant, infectious grooves. To hear Pablo Cruise on record is one thing, but to experience the band live is an exhilarating event!
From 1975 to 1985 the band toured the United States, Canada and Japan extensively, welcoming fans to “Climb Aboard The Good Ship Pablo Cruise.” Reaching the top 10 with mega hits like “Whatcha Gonna Do When She Says Goodbye?” and “Love Will Find A Way,” and several other top 20’s, the band went on to sell several million albums and singles collectively and established themselves as well respected writers and performers within the industry. They appeared on numerous TV shows, including Dick Clark’s American Bandstand, The Merv Griffin Show, The Dinah Shore Hour and in 1979 they broke Elvis Presley’s attendance record at the Sahara Tahoe in South Lake Tahoe, Nevada, becoming the first rock band to play a casino showroom. They also became the first rock band to grace the stage at the Grand Ole Opry, but by 1985 after completing several national tours and releasing 7 studio albums in all, the band decided to take a hiatus…one that lasted nearly 20 years.
Fast forward 20 years…In 2005 a reunited Pablo Cruise picked up where they left off and today the band performs all over the U.S. and Canada and they’re enjoying it more than ever…Since getting back together, they have released two live CDs and a DVD all through Sony Music documenting their exceptional live shows. “One of the great things about playing shows after all these years is that the core band, David, Steve and myself are still here and lovin’ it, says Cory! Going out and playing shows these days gives us the opportunity to not only pay tribute to our timeless repertoire, it gives us a chance to see old friends and fans from back in the day as well as gaining a whole new audience!” Today Pablo Cruise is bringing more energy and excitement to the stage than ever before and with the addition of Larry Antonino and Robbie Wyckoff, the band has never sounded better…If you get an opportunity to see Pablo Cruise live, don’t pass it up… ”IT’S GOOD TO BE LIVE”
