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Peter Noone will perform Friday, June 22, at The Capitol Theatre, 159 S. Main St., Chambersburg, Pa. (Submitted photo / June 15, 2012) |
There is an eternal boyishness in Peter Noone — the tousled hair, the shy toothy grin, a mischievous charm and wit.
It's enough to make Mrs. Brown do a cartwheel.
The conversation is youthful, too, with talk of worldwide tours, the pros and cons of being famous, as well as the songs his fans most love to hear.
Aside from 40-plus years, not much has changed.
Yet, everything has changed.
Noone no longer is the 15-year-old who crossed the Atlantic as the lead singer of Herman's Hermits and became part of the musically important British Invasion.
He's now 64 years old and lives in California with his wife and daughter, Natalie, who is following in her father's footsteps.
He can walk through airports fairly unnoticed, he said — ;a far cry from the days when his every move was followed by mobs of screaming teenage girls.
The band that made him a heartthrob dissolved in 1972 after racking up 14 gold singles and releasing seven albums that sold more than 50 million copies. The music world had changed and so had the members of the band.
"It was time to move on," Noone said during a telephone interview.
Following the breakup, the singer from Manchester, England, transitioned into a solo career, acted in movies and television, and on the stages of Broadway and London's West End, most notably in "Pirates of Penzance." For three years, he hosted VH1's "My Generation" and served as a mentor on American Idol.
But as bands such as The Monkees decided to do reunion tours, fans and promoters began encouraging Herman's Hermits to do the same.
At first, Noone was hesitant. He didn't want to live in the past.
"We made lots of records, people liked us and we had done our thing," Noone noted.
Nostalgia, however, began to take hold.
"So, about 10 years ago, I decided to put the band back together," Noone said.
The new Herman's Hermits, however, is not the same as the old. Instead of the original band members, Noone has assembled a new group of musicians.
But the songs are the same and so are many of the fans who, this time around, are a little bit older.
"Those screaming young girls are now grandmothers," Noone joked.
It's enough to make Mrs. Brown do a cartwheel.
The conversation is youthful, too, with talk of worldwide tours, the pros and cons of being famous, as well as the songs his fans most love to hear.
Aside from 40-plus years, not much has changed.
Yet, everything has changed.
Noone no longer is the 15-year-old who crossed the Atlantic as the lead singer of Herman's Hermits and became part of the musically important British Invasion.
He's now 64 years old and lives in California with his wife and daughter, Natalie, who is following in her father's footsteps.
He can walk through airports fairly unnoticed, he said — ;a far cry from the days when his every move was followed by mobs of screaming teenage girls.
The band that made him a heartthrob dissolved in 1972 after racking up 14 gold singles and releasing seven albums that sold more than 50 million copies. The music world had changed and so had the members of the band.
"It was time to move on," Noone said during a telephone interview.
Following the breakup, the singer from Manchester, England, transitioned into a solo career, acted in movies and television, and on the stages of Broadway and London's West End, most notably in "Pirates of Penzance." For three years, he hosted VH1's "My Generation" and served as a mentor on American Idol.
But as bands such as The Monkees decided to do reunion tours, fans and promoters began encouraging Herman's Hermits to do the same.
At first, Noone was hesitant. He didn't want to live in the past.
"We made lots of records, people liked us and we had done our thing," Noone noted.
Nostalgia, however, began to take hold.
"So, about 10 years ago, I decided to put the band back together," Noone said.
The new Herman's Hermits, however, is not the same as the old. Instead of the original band members, Noone has assembled a new group of musicians.
But the songs are the same and so are many of the fans who, this time around, are a little bit older.
"Those screaming young girls are now grandmothers," Noone joked.
