The J. Geils Band became one of the most popular rock and roll bands in the United States during the 1970's, using covers of R&B, doo wop and soul to build a following of frenzied fans who filled arenas all around the country to hear them play.
The band started as an acoustic blues trio in the mid 60's, with guitarist John Geils, bassist Danny Klein and harmonica player Richard Salwitz (who performed under the stage name Magic Dick). Drummer Stephen Jo Bladd and vocalist Peter Wolf also joined up, and eventually the J. Geils Band added Boston University organist Seth Justman to the mix, landing a recording contract with Atlantic in 1970.
A series of hit singles brought the band more attention. Tracks like cover versions of The Valentino's "Looking for Love," The Showstoppers' "Ain't Nothing But a Houseparty," "Give It To Me" and "Musta Got Lost" furthered the momentum. The back end of the decade saw the release of the albums "Monkey Island" and "Sanctuary," the latter of which charted at No. 49 on the Billboard Top 200 and spun off the hit single "One Last Kiss."
Despite some success in the early 80's, the J. Geils Band disbanded in 1985. Its members would reunite for tours of the East Coast and upper Mid-west in 1999, and over the last decade have played a number of charity functions and large events. This includes a stop at the Borgata Hotel/Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 2009, and opening for Aerosmith at a sold out show at Fenway Park in Boston the following year.
The J. Geils Band recently finished a short U.S. tour through August/September 2012. However, J. Geils was not part of the tour after filing a lawsuit against the other members of the band over the use of the name in an upcoming tour in which Geils does not plan to be part of. Geils claims the other band members "planned and conspired" to exclude him from the tour and are unlawfully using the group's trademarked name. On the current tour, guitarists Duke Levine and Kevin Barry have replaced Geils, and Tom Arey is the band's new drummer.