An Evening With Ambrosia & Friends At The Paramount

Peter Beckett will perform solo and as part of Ambrosia & Friends on Friday, Oct. 27 at The Paramount.

By Connor Beach
cbeach@longislandergroup.com

Ambrosia & Friends is bringing an evening of hits from the ’70s and early ’80s to The Paramount later this month.

The show, dubbed “An Evening in Time,” will feature soft rock group Ambrosia, known for “Biggest Part of Me” and “How Much I Feel,” as well as artists Bill Champlin, Robbie Dupree, John Ford Coley and Peter Beckett, best known for the 1977 hit “Baby Come Back.”

Beckett, 69, said each of the artists will perform individually, but will all appear together on stage at the end of the show to perform a song that everyone can sing along to.

“It’s a great night because people know all the songs,” Beckett said.

The former voice of the band Player, Beckett grew up in Liverpool but currently lives outside of Los Angeles. He said the idea of collaborating with other artists from the ’70s and ’80s began through the Yacht Rock movement on the West Coast, and that different variations of the collaborative concert have been performing all year.

“It’s actually a lot of fun, and we are really grateful that people still want to come out and see us,” Beckett said.

Ambrosia’s drummer Burleigh Drummond, 66, said the band has played with Beckett many times, and that Bill Champlin was one of their first major influences.

“This is the inaugural time that these guys will be joining us,” Drummond said. “We are fans of the other artists, and fortunately over the years we have had the opportunity to play with a lot of great musicians.”

Ambrosia, which Drummond said plays 60 to 80 shows a year, will open the Friday, Oct. 27 show at The Paramount before fans hear a variety of other styles.

“Peter Beckett has a rock star side that is a perfect fit for the show; the fans are going to hear a hits package from a variety of artists,” Drummond said.

Drummond, like Beckett, lives in the hills outside of Los Angeles, but visits Long Island for a couple of shows each year. “The East Coast were always bigger fans of our progressive stuff, and it’s always a refreshing change to play there,” he said.

“If you’re thinking of coming to the show at The Paramount, just come,” Beckett said. “Bring everybody, it’s going to be a family affair.”

Doors will open at 7 p.m. for the 8 p.m. show. Tickets are $29.50-$89.50 and available at the box office or Paramountny.com.