By John Soltes
Editor-in-Chief

LYNDHURST (July 16, 2009) — Friday night, July 17, Darlene Love will take the stage at Lyndhurst’s annual “Music Under the Stars” event, and according to the singer, who talked with The Leader recently, the night should be one to remember.

“We’re going to do a little bit of everything,” Love said. “Of course, we’re going to do the old ones.”

And Love has a lot of good oldies to choose from. The prolific singer is the voice behind such timeless classics as “He’s a Rebel,” “Da Doo Ron Ron” and “He’s Sure the Boy I’m Gonna Marry.”

Love rose to prominence when she worked with producer Phil Spector in the 1960s and 1970s when girl groups were still in vogue. Her first group, The Blossoms, began recording for Spector, shortly after Love was discovered singing in a gospel choir as a high school sophomore. With The Blossoms, Love routinely performed on the popular television series, “Shindig!”

And then it really started to get interesting.

Love eventually began singing back-up for a number of high-profile acts, be it The Beach Boys, Tom Jones or Sonny & Cher. “It just gradually happened,” she remembers.

The hits kept coming and the star wattage kept getting brighter. Now, Love enjoys the life of a solo performer, plus she performed on Broadway in the now-closed “Hairspray.” And one would be remiss not to mention her annual stint on “The Late Show with David Letterman,” in which she sings the classic “Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home).”

One inclusion in Love’s set list for the Lyndhurst show may be Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna to Come.” Love worked with Cooke on “Shindig!” and also recorded “Chain Gang” with the legendary singer.

In fact, Love performed for so many years as a back-up singer that at one point she didn’t even know whether people would recognize her solo work or her tenure with The Blossoms. “I didn’t sing (my hits) for almost 10 or 15 years until after they were recorded,” she said. “Because I was working with other people.”

Love, a native of Los Angeles, said she is especially excited about performing in front of a New Jersey crowd. “I’ve been in New York for quite a while,” she said, “but never really ventured into New Jersey, and a lot of the fans came from New Jersey.”

Love said performing in an outside bandshell — the “Music Under the Stars” event will take place at the newly renovated Town Hall Park — makes for an intimacy with the audience not possible in larger, inside venues. “It gives you a closeness to the people,” she said. “And I encourage them to get up and dance and have a good time.”

One number Love will perform will be a gospel tune, something that might come as a surprise to those who know her hits with The Blossoms. But for this singer, gospel runs in the blood. “My father was a minister and I grew up in the church,” she said. “Back in the ’50s and ’60s, I had no idea I was going to have a career in singing, at least not in the secular world.”

Love took her first step into the secular world when she met the other members of The Blossoms at a wedding gig. But before venturing out, she first had to ask her parents for permission. “Back in those days, we had to call when we got where we were going,” Love said with a laugh.

One of the fondest memories the singer has from her résumé is her three-year gig in “Hairspray,” where she played Motormouth Maybelle. “I tell you this, I’ll never do another show for three years,” she said. “It’s probably the hardest job for any entertainer.”

But Love was inspired each time she performed at the Neil Simon Theatre in New York City, mainly because the show seemed pulled from the headlines of her own life. “Hairspray” tells the story of racial tensions over allowing the first black teenagers to dance on a variety television show. “I actually lived it for years,” she said. “We tried to do a television show and couldn’t do it because we were black.”

Love’s future, beyond her Lyndhurst concert, looks bright and, fortunately for locals, centered around the northern New Jersey area. On Dec. 20, Love will perform her holiday show at the Bergen Performing Arts Center in Englewood, and, of course, her fans will be able to see her 24th-annual appearance on Letterman’s show.

“I have people come up all year long, ‘You going to do David’s show?’ ” she said.

For a sneak peek, check out Love in Lyndhurst. You may be treated to a little Christmas in July.

Darlene Love will perform at Lyndhurst’s “Music Under the Stars” event Friday, July 17, at 9 p.m. On the same night at 7 p.m., Bob Miranda and The Happenings will perform. Visit www.lyndhurstnj.org for more information.