The return of Philly’s Golden Boys

The Golden Boys will return, Frankie Avalon told me Wednesday during an interview session jointly sponsored by the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia and the Delaware County Press Club.

The long-running touring act of Avalon, Fabian, and Bobby Rydell was suspended after the untimely death of Rydell on April 5, 2022.

Was there any chance of the act returning, I asked, possibly using today’s technology to utilize Bobby’s video images and recordings?

Avalon, 83, said he didn’t know about technology, but “the loss of Bobby Rydell from the Golden Boys, oh, what a talent…. He was just magnificent. We had 38 years together.” 

As for what’s next, “We decided to just let it settle for a little bit, until [singer] Joey Montello came to me with Tommy C, who does a tribute to Bobby Rydell.”

Avalon was impressed, and that led to discussions that resulted in Golden Boys 2.0, you might say, with Tommy Cono not replacing Bobby Rydell, but in place of Bobby Rydell.

Cono will be doing a tribute to his friend, said Avalon, not an impersonation.

As a matter of fact, Cono — who is now Avalon’s protege — did a video duet with Rydell on his hit “Sway,” shortly before the South Philly crooner’s death.

This was among the last things Rydell did, Montello said. And the voice on the video was recorded in 2022, to replace the voice recorded in 1960.

As part of Avalon’s mentorship of Tommy Cono, the pair did a “fun duet” (Avalon’s words)  video of his hit, “Beauty School Dropout.”

Of all Avalon’s hits, why this one, I wondered?

The answer, provided by Avalon, was simple. That tune was in the movie “Grease,” which was a global hit, and is still a hit with fresh generations of kids.

One final note, per protege.

Frankie Avalon’s show biz angel was another South Philly crooner, Al Martino, who got Avalon — then an 11-year-old trumpet player — a shot on the Jackie Gleason TV show. And Rydell fans know he started playing nightclubs as a drummer when he was just a kid.

These two Golden Boys had a lot in common.