Euclid Beach Band
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1978) - John Hart -- vocals, guitar - Pete Hewlett -- lead vocals, guitar, percussion - Rich Reising -- guitar, synthesizers, backing vocals
supporting musicians (1978) - Bob Babbitt -- bass - John Barranco-- backing vocals - Ron Bell -- sax - Rick Bell -- sax - Eric Carmen -- piano - Steve Gelfand -- bass - Jim Girard (RIP 2006) -- - Juan Gomez -- percussion, backing vocals - Diva Grey -- backing vocals - Paul Griffin -- piano - Dan Hrdicka -- backing vocals - Don Kriss -- backing vocals - John Kruger -- drums, vocals - Yvonne Lewis -- backing vocals - Susan Lynch -- backing vocals - Ron Maelin -- percussion - Rich Marotta -- drums - Hugh McCrackin -- guitar - Yolanda McCullough -- backing vocals - Jeff Miranov -- guitar - Ron Mounsey -- synthesizers - Don Payne -- bass - Rodney Psyka -- backing vocals - Eric Robertson -- backing vocals - David Sanborne -- sax - Stanley Sheldon -- bass - George Sipi -- backing vocals - Joey Ward-- backing vocals
line up 2 (1982) - Rich Reising -- guitar, synthesizers, backing vocals
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- Eric Carmen Band (Peter Hewlett (solo efforts) - Charles Collins -- drums, percussion - Harlequin Colour.(Jim Giarard) - Peter Hewlett (solo efforts) - The Hit Men (Peter Hewlett) - Magic (Rich Reising) - Marvin Gardens (Rich Reising) - Novo Combo (Peter Hewlett) - Peter's Pipers (Peter Hewlett) - Sweet Lighinin' (Peter Hewlett) - Windfall (Peter Hewlett)
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Genre: pop Rating: *** (3 stars) Title: Euclid Beach Band Company: Cleveland International Catalog: JE
35619 Country/State: Cleveland, Ohio Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: still in shrink wrap (opened); original inner sleeve Available: 1 Catalog ID: -- Price: $30.00
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In mid-July, 2025, along with a pair of old friends we decided to follow US Route 20 from Portland, Oregon to Boston, Massachusetts. We gave ourselves four weeks to do the trip; stopping along the way at whatever captured our attention - The Billy Goat Tavern, Carhenge, Field of Dreams, etc.. Anyhow, the trip took us through Cleveland and we actually spent a little time in the Euclid Beach neighborhood. Though I didn't stop at any Cleveland record stores, I remember thinking there was a band named after the neighborhood (it was actually an amusement park). A week after we finished the trip and I'd returned home, I found a copy of the album at a local "junk" store. Weird coincidence.
The only things I remembered about the band is they had some sort of link to Eric Carmen and the one song I vaguely recalled was kind of a goofy "gag" tune (that I didn't particularly like).
Named after a defunct Cleveland amusement park, The Euclid Beach Band was the brain child of The Scene magazine editor Jim Girard and Jim Reising. In addition to working for the magazine, Reising was lead guitarist in the Cleveland band Magic who had backed Eric Carmen on his post-Raspberries debut album. One of the tunes Girary and Reising had written was a Beach Boys-styled paean to their native Cleveland - "There's No Surf in Cleveland". To record a demo of the song, Reising reached out to singer/guitarist Peter Hewlett. Hewlett had been a member of the Pittsburgh-based Sweet Lightening and worked with Reising when the paired supported Eric Carmen while touring the UK in support of his "Boats Against the Current" album. Produced by Carmen, the single was sort of a Cleveland "all stars" collaboration, intended as an effort to bolster the city's sagging self-imagine amidst corporate closures and other economic setbacks. The song was finished and recorded in the midst of a massive 1978 blizzard that all but paralyzed the city. Originally released on Girard's Scene label, the pair decided to donate all profits to the local American Red Cross affiliate. When the song began to gather local and national attention, Steve Popovich's Epic Records Cleveland International subsidiary stepped in to acquire rights and reissue the 45 nationally.
- 1978's "There's No Surf in Cleveland" b/w "Laugh In the Dark" (instrumental) (Scene catalog number SR 45001 - 1978's "There's No Surf in Cleveland" b/w "Laugh In the Dark" (instrumental) (Cleveland International 8-50584)
With
the single topping local charts and hitting several top-100 national charts,
Cleveland International agreed to release a full album. Produced by
Carmen (who also contributed two songs to the album), 1979's "Euclid
Beach Band" found the Carmen, Hewlett and Reising traveling to
New York City's Mediasound Studios for recording sessions. Backed by
an extensive collection of studio pros
"Euclid
Beach Band" track listing: 1.) Don't Play That Song (Rich Reising) - 4:04 rating: ** stars With a mild disco-tinge and some cringe worthy lyrics, "Don't Play That Song" could well have served as the theme song for a television sitcom. Heavy orchestration, a bland melody and irritating female backing vocals did nothing to improve the overall sound. Insipid captures it. 2.) There's A Moon Out Tonight (Jim Girard - Rich Reising) - 3:41 rating: *** stars "There's A Moon Out Tonight" offered up a weird mixture of reggae beat, '50s doo-wop influences and Raspberries styled power pop moves. Initially it was mildly intriguing, with a nice Reising guitar solo, but didn't hold up to repeated spins. The song was released as a promotion 45.
- 1979's "There's a Moon Out" b/w "There's a Moon Out" (Cleveland International catalog number 98-50741)
3.) Karen (Jim Girard - Rich Reising) - 3:50 rating: **** stars Perhaps the album's most commercially viable performance, with a catchy melody and a nice Hewlett vocal "Karen" was another track that would not have sounded out of place on a Raspberries album. Great if you liked Carmen and the Raspberries styled power pop (I do), otherwise this one was going to be a bit saccharine. 4.) I Need You (Eric Carmen) - 3:44 rating: ** stars The first of two Carmen penned songs, as a big, heavily orchestrated piano powered ballad, it was easy to see why Epic tapped "I Need You" as a single. Carmen was clearly a known quantity, but in this case the label's choice to go with a "name" product was a big mistake. Many of the Girard-Reising songs were far stronger. The song benefited from a nice melodic Reising guitar solo, but was otherwise forgettable
- 1979's "I Need You" b/w "Hard to Say Goodbye" (Cleveland International catalog number 8-50676) 5.) There's No Surf In Cleveland (Jim Girard - Rich Reising) - 4:32 rating: **** stars In case you failed to buy the 45, or somehow missed their love letter to Cleveland it was included on the album. If you had an affection for The Beach Boys and gimmicky pop tunes, then "There's No Surf In Cleveland" was likely to strike a chord with you. The Beach Boys vibe was blatant, but to me it sounded like 10cc trying to turn in a Brian Wilson tune. I'll just say I thought it was cute; far better than a lot of other "gimmick" tunes. There was also a low-tech promotional video for the song. You can see most of it on a news clip one of the local Cleveland televisions stations aired on the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WNf6fyQz0Y&list=RD2WNf6fyQz0Y&start_radio=1
(side
2) The second Carmen composition, "End of The World" was another heavily orchestrated, radio friendly ballad. A bit more adult contemporary than the first ballad, the song showcased an extended David Sanborne sax solo, shrill female backing singers and an "elevator music" melody. Once again the Carmen connection made it easy to see why the track was released as a single:
- 1979's "End of the World" b/w "You Make It Easy" (Cleveland International catalog number 9-50782)
2.) You Make It Easy (Pete Hewlett) - 4:05 rating: ** stars "You Make It Easy" was a sappy and instantly forgettable pop tune that sounded like it might have been written by an artificial intelligence program. The song also appeared as the "B" side to their "End of the World" 45. 3.) Don't You Know What You Mean To Me (Jim Girard - Rich Reising) - 3:20 rating: *** stars With Reising handling lead vocals, the keyboard powered "Don't You Know What You Mean To Me" was about as close to rock as the album came. Admittedly there wasn't a single original note here, but it actually demonstrated a bit of energy and I'll give it an extra star for the lyric: "Just like Kentucky Fried Chicken, you're my bucket of love ..." 4.) Hard To Say Goodbye (Pete Hewlett) - 3:15 rating: **** stars One of two Hewlett compositions, Hard To Say Goodbye" struck me as being the album's most commercially feasible tune. Kicked along by a nice Hewlett guitar solo and some cheesy Ron Mounsey synthesizer, it had a strong ear candy factor. The song also appeared as the "B" side to their "I Need You" 45. 5.) You're The One (Rich Reising) - 3:40 rating: **** stars Yacht rock, but decent yacht rock with a touch of early Steely Dan in the chorus ... "You're The One" was another tune that would have made a decent 45; certainly a better choice that the Eric Carmen ballads Epic tapped as singles.
For hardcore fans, there are two non-LP 45s. The first was a seasonal, promotional release:
- 1979 "Santa's First Stop" b/w "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" and It's A Brand New Year" (no label catalog NR11271)
Having been dropped by Epic, the "band" reunited in 1982 for an obscure 45 on the small Ohio based Kriminal label. Penned and produced by Reising, the song was inspired by Headlands Beach State Park and marked a return to a Beach Boys sound. Unfortunately the effort just had a feeling of desperation.
- 1982's "Headlands" b/w "Summer's Almost Over" (Kriminal catalog number 45001)
© Scott R. Blackerby August 2025
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including Motown Funk Brother bassist Bob Babbitt, guitarist Hugh McCrackin
and sax player David Sanborne, the resulting LP offered up a professional
and musically diverse set of late-'70s corporate
pop moves. Largely penned by
Girard and Reising, it
was clear the pair had their ears attuned to top-40 radio. "Don't Play
That Song" reflected the kind of light disco-flavor that was permeating
late-'70s radio. "Karen and "You Make It Easy" offered
up Raspberries-styled power pop. Penned by Carmen, "I Need You"
and "End of The World" offered up big radio-friendly
ballads. Nothing here was terrible, but it all sounded somewhat
sterile and throughout the collection I kept coming back to the fact Hewlett's
voice reminded me of Carmen and The Raspberries. That was particularly
on heartfelt ballads like the single "I
Need You". There
was something about his fragile, pleading delivery that recalled Carmen's
heartbreak voice. Not to get too far into the weeds, but his voice
actually reminded me even more of 10cc's Eric Stewart. Exemplified
by some of the more pop oriented tunes like "Karen", "Hard To
Say Goodbye" and "You're The One" about
half of the album had commercial potential though the overall results were
far from a great album. It wasn't so much any of the songs were truly
bad (okay "Don't
Play That Song" was awful),
rather most of the album's shortcomings were a reflection of how crappy
American musical tastes had become in the late '70s. 
