With 17 albums and more than 2,500 shows across 46 years of continuous touring, The Smithereens continue to attract new admirers and satisfy their loyal fans.
The band is widely regarded as one of the architects of the alternative rock scene, influencing generations of musicians. Their 1986 classic album, Especially For Youfeatures classic rock tunes, “Blood and Roses” and “Behind the Wall of Sleep”. In 1987 and 1988, they won the New York Music Award for best rock band and were inducted in the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2019.
The current band line-up for the Sleepy Hollow Music Festival incudes: Jim Babjak, founding lead guitarist, Severo “The Thrilla” Jornacion, bassist, Dennis Diken, founding drummer, and guest vocalist Marshall Crenshaw.
As a fan of The Smithereens, it was a privilege to talk with drummer Dennis Diken about the band’s history and the story behind their popularity and longevity. And what to expect at their upcoming festival performance.
EZ: The Sleepy Hollow Music Festival is going be a fun day. I hear that the Headless Horseman always makes an appearance.
DD: Yeah, of course! Growing up, Sleepy Hollow was legendary. “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” We’re big fans of the season of autumn. This is the place to be for us!
EZ: The town of Sleepy Hollow celebrates Halloween from October 1st to October 31st. LOL. You’ve been drumming for The Smithereens since 1980. Were drums your first instrument and who are your musical influences?
DD: Yeah, drums were absolutely my first instrument. In Christmas of 1959 when I was two or three, I got my 1st toy drum and started to teach myself how to play. I was exposed to rock and roll music and got the bug at a very early age from watching American Bandstand on TV. When Chubby Checker came out with the Twist – it was a very rhythmic. I had been gravitating toward the rhythm tracks of songs prior to that, but I think that really made a dent in my musical psyche. Then the records that I really loved, the drumming on early 60s records – The Beach Boys, Phil Spector records, The Ronettes and Leslie Gore. Other influences were session drummer, Buddy Saltzman, Greg Errico from Sly and the Family Stone, Dino Danelli, and Earl Palmer.
Diken, along with fellow New Jersey-ites Pat DiNizio, Jim Babjak and Mike Mesaros, co-founded The Smithereens in 1980, but their friendship and musical history go back to the early 70s.
EZ: Were you in any bands or any ensembles prior to forming The Smithereens in 1980?
DD: Well, yeah, Jimmy (Babjak, guitar) and I met in 1971 on the first day of high school, freshman year. Jimmy opens up his loose leaf and he’s got color pictures of The Who. I spoke to him that day and we started playing together that week. We grew up with Mike Masaros, our bass player too.
Throughout most of the 70s the three of us were trying to find a lead singer and finally met Pat through a classified ad. I played in a cover band with Pat before The Smithereens were formed. And then, Pat started writing songs and we started playing on his songs. That’s how it all came together.
EZ: I was a teenager in the early 80s and remember hearing your music on the radio stations WLIR, which was new wave and alternative, and the rock station WPLJ, It was the era of like Devo, Talking Heads, Elvis Costello and certainly The Smithereens. Over the years your album Especially for You has remained a staple in my on my playlist.
DD: Thank you.
EZ: What do you think it was about your music that resonated with your early audience?
DD: We grew up our consciousness began in the late 50s and took hold in the 60s We all have our influences and are coming from that place in our youth where we were inspired to do what we do. The stuff we grew up with was highly melodic with a lot of harmonies. We loved the Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Who, The Kinks – all that wonderful stuff that comes through in our music. We weren’t trying to imitate it, we have put our own spin on it, our own energy.
EZ: When Pat passed away, the band continued to tour with other lead singers, Robin Wilson of Gin Blossoms, Marshall Crenshaw, and John Cowsill.
DD: Yes, and also Wesley Stace – all four of them are wonderful singers, and they all bring something unique to our shows. We’re fortunate that we have those folks to be our guest vocalists. When Pat passed, we didn’t know for a few beats what was going to transpire. We weren’t looking for a sound alike or lookalike, we were hoping that we could continue with somebody who could interpret the music with integrity and fortunately, our audience has been very accepting.
EZ: Yeah, I was thrilled when you guys decided to continue touring. 46 years is an extraordinary milestone. From what I’ve read, you’re one of the longest running bands in rock history. Many rock band of the 80s and 90s stopped touring and are back now doing nostalgia tours, Howard Jones with Men with Hats and The English Beat, for example. You guys never stopped performing.
DD: There has not been a year that went by where we didn’t play some dates. This is our gig. Again, as long as people want to keep coming to see us, there’s no reason not do it anymore.
EZ: Each guest vocalist has their own vocal style. What adjustments did the band have to make to suit each guest singer?
DD: Well, we didn’t really have to adapt or change a thing. The only thing we have to consider is the selection of songs and each singer’s preferences. They just kind of stepped in, did their thing, and it worked.
EZ: Marshall Crenshaw will be singing lead vocals with the band at the Sleepy Hollow Festival. Tell us about working with him.
DD: We know Marshall and have a long-standing relationship him. When Pat passed in December of 2017, we already had some gigs on our calendar. One was for January 2018 at the Count Basie Theater in Red Bank (New Jersey) – an event being produced by Stevie Van Zandt. We said that we didn’t have a lead singer, and he said, “Well, here’s an idea. You guys play the gig, and we’ll get some guest vocalists.” It turned out to be twenty different singers that we enlisted and a tribute to Pat. Man, it was such a special event. You could really feel the heavy love in the room that night. And Marshall was one of the guests, so that was his audition. That’s how that one happened.
EZ: Wow, do you think things would have been different if you didn’t participate in that event?
DD: Good question. We didn’t really know. I think there was a pivotal event. I think it really certainly helped us get going quicker with moving forward.
EZ: I know fans of all generations love your music and will come out on October 3rd to the Sleepy Hollow Music Festival. What should we should expect from the band?
DD: Well, we always play the well-known songs and some covers. It’s a pretty good cross section of Smithereen’s music, and it seems to work. I can’t say this enough, we’re really, really grateful that we have an audience that likes us and keeps coming to see us. We could always keep playing in our garages or at local bars, but the fact that we are still reaching people is really meaningful to us. It’s a dream come true that carried through for decades and a wonderful thing.
EZ: Thank you for talking with me today. I can’t wait to see you guys in October.
