Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes

Lusk Field House, SAB Concert Comm

Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes brought their legendary Jersey Shore rock and soul sound to SUNY Cortland in 1981 for a highly memorable performance. Organized by the Student Activities Board (SAB) Concert Committee, this specific show stands out in campus history because it deviated from the usual rock venues and took place inside Lusk Field House. The concert is also notable because Patti Scialfa performed on this tour as one of the backup singers. Scialfa later joined the E Street Band as a backup singer in 1984 and eventually married its leader, Bruce Springsteen. Patti Scialfa has also released a number of solo albums.

The 1981 Concert & The Jukes at Their Peak

The Tour Era: In 1981, Southside Johnny (Johnny Lyon) and his band were riding a massive wave of critical acclaim following the release of their definitive double-live album, Reach Up and Touch the Sky. They were widely considered one of the fiercest, most tireless live touring acts in America.
The Sound: Backed by a legendary, powerhouse brass horn section, the Jukes delivered a sweat-soaked, high-energy blend of gritty rhythm and blues, Stax-flavored soul, doo-wop, and straight-ahead rock.
The Setlist Anthems: While exact setlists for the Cortland date are confined to archival memories, their 1981 shows were famous for tearing through iconic Jersey anthems like “I Don’t Wanna Go Home”, “Talk to Me”, “The Fever”, and their show-stopping cover of Sam Cooke’s “We’re Having a Party”
The Venue: Lusk Field House
While massive arena-rock acts of the era like the Eagles or the Ramones were historically placed in the PER Ice Arena, the SAB Concert Committee chose Lusk Field House for this performance.
- - Opened originally as a dirt-floor field house for indoor track and practice space, the venue offered a vast, wide-open layout.
  - For the Jukes’ performance, it transformed the atmosphere from a standard stadium concert into a massive, densely packed, high-energy dance floor that perfectly mirrored the band’s famous Asbury Park bar-room roots.
The Cortland Connection

The 1981 show was so successful that it cemented Southside Johnny as a major university favorite. The SAB actually brought him back to campus later in the decade to co-headline Music Fest ’87 at the PER Ice Arena alongside rock band Zebra and Patty Smyth. Furthermore, the band’s connection to the local community has endured for decades, with the Jukes making subsequent modern touring stops right down the road at the Center for the Arts in Homer, NY.