Ronny Amodea, producer, vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter, has enjoyed a career in the music industry spanning decades. He has performed on stage with music icons from Sinatra and Tony Bennett to the Four Seasons and Bruce Springsteen. He achieved Four RIAA Certified Gold Records in the seventies for hit recordings with The Tokens and Tony Orlando.
As a bandleader with the Peter Duchin Orchestras in New York, he performed worldwide atseveral Presidential Inaugural Balls in Washington DC to President Clinton’s Fiftieth birthday celebration at the Waldorf Astoria, NY. At celebrity weddings for Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, and the Kennedy family to star-studded Hollywood galas.
Motion picture credits Include: Mortal Thoughts, Jade, Sabrina and Xmas. Television credits include Good Morning America, Juvenile Diabetes telethon, the Jerry Lewis, MDA, Labor day Telethon for fifteen years, The Mike Douglas Show, The Jerry Blauvelt Show, Upbeat, Sesame Street and 321 Contact. Ronny Amodea has also produced hundreds of records and well-known television and radio jingles.
He has performed with these iconic recording stars: Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis, Al Green, Tony Orlando, The Tokens, The Rascals, Johnny Maestro and the Brooklyn Bridge, Steve Martin, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The Ronettes, Sammy Davis Jr., Maureen McGovern, Natalie Cole, and hundreds more.
1959-1963
Ron began taking guitar lessons at the age of twelve in South Beach, Staten Island, NY. By the time he was fourteen Ron had his own band that played all around Staten Island. While performing at a block party, a talent agent asked Ron and his band to come to New York City to meet a record producer whose roster included The Mello Kings, The Passions, The Mystics, The Earls, Kenny Vance and many more. The producer, Jimmy Gribble made Ron’s band, The Demotrons his official band. Ron arranged and recorded hundreds of records for the next four years.
Below are some of these records, which have become well known over these years and today on YouTube and record collector websites.
1959 – Rockaway Special – TheDEmotrons first record, where they were given their name. Ron was 14 years old.
Rockaway Special
You Copped My Soul
Steel Driving Man
Meet Mr. Callahan
Brother Where Are You – Sceptor Records
East is East
I Want a Home in the Country – Atlantic Records
The Apollo – Radar Records
Beg, Borrow or Steal – Cameo Parkway Records
Hombre
Sleep, Sleep, Sleep
1961 – The Toughest Band Around
Produced by Bobby Daren and his company TM Productions.
Other Hit Singles
Ron recorded and arranged hundreds of records for other vocal groups. Including The Earls, The Classics, The Del-Satins, The Elegants, The Fiestas, The Jarmels and the Belmonts, just to name a few. Below are some of these records.
A Little Bit of Soap – The Jarmels
Remember Then – The Earls
Ron’s guitar sound on this record has become a classic amoungst do wop fans.
So Nice – The Fiestas
Teardrops Follow Me – The Del-Satins. Who later became Dion’s backup group on all his hit singles. Later they formed The Brooklyn Bridge with Johnny Maestro
Goodnight My Love – The Elegants Famous for the classic hit Little Star
Cinderella – The Classics
Comeon Little Angel – The Belmonts – without Dion
Is This Too Much To Ask – The Harbor Lites – featuring Keny Vance and Sandy who would later become Jay & the Americans
On Stage with
Dion
The Ronettes
The Marvelettes
The Happenings
The Tokens -(when Ron met the Tokens who would later ask him to join their group)
The Dubs
The Shells
Lou Christy
Leslie Gore
Johnny Tillotson
The Jive Five”The Elegants
Johnny Mathis
The Rascals
Jay & the Americans
The Four Seasons
The WMCA – NY Good Guys radio DJs
The Vagrants
The Valina Fudge
and hundreds more
1964-1969
his bands the Demotrons and Front Page played all around the New York, New Jersey and Conn. area. During this time they did their own shows and backed up virtually every hit group of that time. Including Motown and all the top R&B groups.
Ron then met Lenny Welch, famous for his #1 hit Since I Fell For You. Ron became his music directo
Ron then traveled around the country. They traveled through the south where segregation was still in effect. Ron also played with Lenny for a week long engagement at the Apollo theater in New York.
Ron then met and joined the Tokens where he embarked on another phase of his journey
1970-2020
After being discharged from the US Army Ron started performing with bands all around New York and across the World. He also performed on TV and in movies. Here is a partial listing of these performances.
Bands & Orchestras
Steven Scott Orchestras
The Soap Factory Band
NRG Band
Island Breeze Band
Hundreds of dance bands i the tri-State area
Tony Sotos/Bob Zittola Orchestra
Bobby Rosengarden Tonight Show Band
The Dick Cavet Show band
Ray Block Orchestra
Bob Hardwick Orchestras
The Paul Ringe band
The Peter Duchin Orchestra
The Cincinnati Pops Orchestra
Notable Events
Sarah Jessica Parker/Mathew Broderick wedding – NYC
Secretary of State, Charles Schultz wedding – CA
Henry Kissinger’s son’s wedding – CN
Peter Benchly family parties – CN
Cousin Brucie Morrow new years eve – Brooklyn, NY
Kennedy Family Parties
Fund raisers for Marlo Thomas at her home – CN
Hurst Family Parties
Bette Midler – Cast premier party at the 21 club, NY
President Clinton’s 50th birthday party – NYC
Sabrina cast premier party – Tavern on the Green, NY
1994 Republican gala – Washington DC
Robert Duvalle’s new years eve party at his NY residence – two years
President Clinton’s Inauguration – Washington DC
President Clinton’s 50th birthday bash – NY
Bruce Springsteen’s E-Street band keyboardist’s wedding – NY
Al Gore’s’s TN Inauguration – Washing DC
Marvin Davis Hollywood Gala (four years) – Hollywood Hills CA
The White House – Ronald Reagen, George H. Bush, Bill Clinton
Ivana Trump’s second wedding – Le Cerc NYC
Mara Largo – the first and second new years eve parties
Save Venice Gala – Venice, Italy
Bonds for Israel – Dozens of events where Ron sang the Israeli National anthem
ADL event
IBM Conventions – Maui, Hawaii, Acapulco, Mexico, Bermuda
The Jerry Lewis Labor day telethon – 15 years
and many, many more
Performed with
Frank Sinatra
Ray Charles
Tito Puente
Peter Duchin
Bobby Rosengarden
The Coasters
Bill Cosby
Flip Wilson
The Crystals
Jay & The Americans
Al Green
Maureen McGovern
Soupy Sales
Peter Allen
The Pointer Sisters
Natalie Cole
Dr John
The Tokens
Dawn
Steve Martin
Flip Wilson
Sammy Davis Jr.
and hundreds more
TV and Radio Commercials
Pan Am makes the going great
Benson & Hedges – a silly millimeter longer
Bootstrap shoes
Clairol – She Lets Her Hair Down
Mcleans toothpaste
Exxon
and many more
TV Apearences
The Mike Douglas Show – Philadelphia, PA
Upbeat – Ohio
The Jerry Blauvelt Show – Philadelphia, PA,
321 Contact – The Children’s Television Workshop
Good Morning America – ABC – NY
Juvenile Diabetes Telethon – Hollywood, CA
Videos of TV apearences
Motion Pictures Performances
Jade – David Carusso
Sabrina – Harrison Ford
Mortal Thoughts – Bruce Willis and Demi Moore
XMAS – Short subject – music written by maestro Alexander Stienert
Cast member and soundtrack recording
Soundtrack recording
Actor and soundtract recording