Today would have been Eric Carmen's 76th birthday.  To mark the occasion, we're thrilled to be first to break the news about an upcoming collection we know you're not going to want to miss!

The Raspberries blazed briefly but brightly.

When Eric Carmen and Wally Bryson of Cyrus Eyrie teamed up with Jim Bonfanti and Dave Smalley of The Choir, the result was pure bliss.  The Raspberries emerged from the ashes from the two bands, and over the course of four albums originally released between 1972 and 1974 - three with the original line-up, and one with just Carmen and Bryson joined by new members Michael McBride and Scott McCarl - they came to define power pop.  Despite placing just one Top 5 single in the U.S. and two more Top 20s, The Raspberries' influence has happily endured for decades, inspiring countless other groups and setting a joyful standard for impeccably crafted rock with big melodies, crisp guitars, youthful lyrics, and shimmering harmonies.

The high-octane sonic explosion of "Go All the Way," written by Carmen, remains one of the great album openers of all time.  And now, echoing its position on 1972's Raspberries, it opens what's sure to be the ultimate tribute to the ultimate power-pop band.  Play On: A Raspberries Tribute arrives on September 12 from Think Like a Key Records, and it's no ordinary tribute.  Its roster is anchored by such all-time MVPs as Rick Springfield, John Waite, Foreigner's Lou Gramm, The Bangles' Debbi and Vicki Peterson, and Marshall Crenshaw, each paying tribute to the band in his or her own inimitable style.

But that's not all.  Play On also features the illustrious likes of Cherie Currie of The Runaways, Kasim Sulton and Willie Wilcox of Utopia, '70s TV stars and teen idols The Hudson Brothers, Shoes, singer-actress Karla DeVito, The Lemon Twigs, Darian Sahanaja and Rob Bonfiglio of The Brian Wilson Band and Al Jardine's Pet Sounds Band, The Chefs (featuring Stan Lynch of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers and Dan Baird of Georgia Satellites) and rising star Tori Holub, who recently performed with Sulton and Todd Rundgren on the What the World Needs Now tribute to Burt Bacharach.  Musician and author Ken Sharp (Overnight Sensation: The Story of Raspberries), who co-produced this tribute with Fernando Perdomo, contributes two songs (the beautifully swooning "If You Change Your Mind" and pulse-pounding "I'm a Rocker," both penned by Carmen).  All told, Play On boasts a whopping 37 tracks on 2 CDs, and four songs feature a special guest: none other than Jim Bonfanti.  He plays drums on "I Wanna Be with You," "Tonight," "If You Change Your Mind," and "I Don't Know What I Want."  The late Eric Carmen is heard on the count-in to "Tonight."  Wally Bryson's son Jesse recreates his dad's "Might as Well" off 1972's Fresh.  The words "labor of love" come to mind for this electric, eclectic release.

Melding AM melodicism to FM energy with killer riffs and vibrant harmonies, "Go All the Way" captured a sense of youthful abandon and freewheeling spirit for an audience that may have been seeking something heavier than Gilbert O'Sullivan, Sammy Davis, Jr. or Melanie (all of whom scored Top 10 hits in the year-end Billboard Hot 100) but lighter than, say, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin or even the eternal Rolling Stones.  Here, it's sung by an artist who knows more than a little something about power pop: Rick Springfield.  The suggestive lyrics of "Go All the Way" earned it a banned-by-the-BBC badge of honor, but in the chart-topping Springfield's rendition, its three minutes of pop perfection seem simultaneously sweet and provocative.

"Go All the Way" is just one of the many highlights here, most of which are faithful to the original recordings while injecting fresh personality and vigor.  The original Raspberries LP was bookended by "Go All the Way" and the dreamy, eight-minute "I Can Remember" (a marked contrast to the album's mostly compact, AM radio-length tunes) with its shades of Brian Wilson, Jimmy Webb, and Todd Rundgren; Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman collaborator Karla DeVito is up to the challenge of making its stately melody her own.

The Bangles' Peterson sisters do the honors on an urgent "I Wanna Be with You" and Shoes polish up Carmen's epic "Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)."  Lou Gramm is full-throated on the Small Faces-inspired "Tonight," bringing an appropriately arena-sized vocal to the rocker.  Tori Holub conjures a mellower mood with her beautiful "Starting Over," the title track of Raspberries' fourth and final studio album.  Though her smooth, silken vocals call to mind Karen Carpenter and Rumer, this gentle take shows her growing as an artist and interpreter.  John Waite cuts loose on "I Don't Know What I Want," a heavier tune from Starting Over.  The same album's "Cry," with its cascade of vocals, is compellingly sung here by Kasim Sulton while his old Utopia bandmate, Willie Wilcox, channels his inner McCartney on Raspberries' bouncy "With You in My Life."  Robin Taylor Zander, son and now bandmate of Cheap Trick's frontman Robin (Wayne) Zander, deftly navigates the soaring Carmen/Bryson co-write "Don't Want to Say Goodbye," a rumination on love and loneliness which shares some of the same McCartney-esque musical DNA as it transforms from ballad to rocker.

Brian Wilson's longtime musical right hand Darian Sahanaja of The Wondermints was the perfect choice for "On the Beach," a melodically shifting opus from Side 3 with a dash of Wilson and a whole lotta Eric Carmen.  (Darian worked over the years with Carmen including on the song "Brand New Year" which was included on Legacy's Essential Eric Carmen collection.)  Sahanaja's current bandmate in The Pet Sounds Band, Rob Bonfiglio, tackles the wistful Scott McCarl composition "Rose Colored Glasses" with affection.  There's no mistaking The Beach Boys' influence, too, in Carmen and Smalley's fun, fun, fun pastiche "Drivin' Around," sung here by Popdudes, a.k.a. John M. Borack and Michael Simmons, and Carmen's bittersweet, warm, and altogether lovely "Let's Pretend," surveyed here by The Lemon Twigs.

P. Hux (ELO Part II, The Orchestra) brings Dave Smalley's "Hard to Get Over a Heartbreak" to vivid life, and Marshall Crenshaw appealingly blends a Spector-ish romanticism with a country twang on Smalley's "Should I Wait." Vocalist Adelaide Estep, who's covered everyone from Bread to Ariana Grande, showcases the Raspberries' softer side with "I Saw the Light." (Ironically, Todd Rundgren's uptempo, Carole King-inspired single of the same name was released on April 8, 1972 - two days before Raspberries hit stores with Carmen and Bryson's song of the same name.)

The Raspberries have blessed Play On: A Raspberries Tribute, and the first 200 CDs ordered directly from Think Like a Key Music will receive a set of two exclusive postcards signed by Dave Smalley and Scott McCarl.  The two CDs are housed in a six-panel digipak containing a 20-page booklet with liner notes by rock historian (whose recent work includes numerous projects by The Beach Boys) Howie Edelson.  In addition, an exclusive 45 RPM vinyl single of Springfield's "Go All the Way" by Rick Springfield b/w Gramm's "Tonight," will be made available with all profits benefiting the Linda Blair Worldheart Foundation animal rescue. (Visit them at www.lindablairworldheart.org.)

Play On: A Raspberries Tribute should remind listeners of why they fell in love with the band in the first place - or provide a fun, vibrant introduction to the classic group for those who might only know "Go All the Way," "I Wanna Be with You," or "Let's Pretend."  It's also a moving tribute to the late Eric Carmen, who died in March 2024 at the age of 74.  Look for it on September 12 from Think Like a Key Records.  Pre-orders are open now at the links below.

Various Artists, Play On: A Raspberries Tribute (Think Like a Key, 2025) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

1. "Go All the Way" - Rick Springfield
2. "I Wanna Be with You" - Vicki and Debbi Peterson
3. "Let's Pretend" - The Lemon Twigs
4. "Come Around and See Me" - Katie Ferrara
5. "Goin' Nowhere Tonight" - The Caulfields
6. "Don't Want to Say Goodbye" - Robin Taylor Zander
7. "Might As Well" - Jesse Bryson feat. The Kennedys
8. "It Seemed So Easy" - The Spongetones
9. "I Saw the Light" - Adelaide Estep
10. "Ecstasy" - Eric Dover feat. Eric Singer of KISS on drums
11. "On The Beach" - Darian Sahanaja
12. "If You Change Your Mind" - Ken Sharp
13. "Nobody Knows" - Chris Price
14. "I Reach for the Light" - Bird Streets
15. "Drivin' Around" - Popdudes
16. "Hard To Get Over a Heartbreak" - P-Hux
17. "Waiting" - Olivia Rubini
18. "I Can Remember" - Karla DeVito

CD 2

1. "Tonight" - Lou Gramm (Foreigner)
2. "Play On" - The Lemon Twigs
3. "I Don't Know What I Want" - John Waite
4. "Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)" - Shoes
5. "All Through the Night" - The Hudson Brothers
6. "Should I Wait" - Marshall Crenshaw
7. "Cry" - Kasim Sulton
8. "Making It Easy" - Brasko
9. "Last Dance" - Evan Stanley
10. "I Can Hardly Believe You're Mine" - John Powhida
11. "Rose Colored Glasses" - Rob Bonfiglio
12. "I'm A Rocker" - Ken Sharp (feat. Wally Stocker of The Babys)
13. "Party's Over" - The Chefs (feat. Stan Lynch and Dan Baird)
14. "Cruisin' Music" - Ronnie D'Addario
15. "Starting Over" - Tori Holub
16. "Hands On You" - Cherie Currie (The Runaways)
17. "Every Way I Can" - The Toms
18. "With You in My Life" - Willie Wilcox
19. "Please Let Me Come Back Home" - Bambi Kino (feat. members of Nada Surf and Guided by Voices)