Discography

These are all the Sha Na Na records Chico played on:

Live In Germany Musikladen DVD (1973)
Hot Sox (1974)
Maybe I’m Old Fashioned/Strolling All Night (1974)
Sha Na Now (1975)
Rock N Roll Graffiti – Live In Japan (1975)
Smokin’ Boogie/We’re Still Smokin’ (1975)
Rockin’ In The 80′s (1980)
Silly Songs (1981)
Sha Na Na Rock N Roll & Dance Party VHS (1987)
Sha Na Na In Concert DVD (1989)
34th & Vine (1990)
The Sha Na Na 25th Anniversary Collection (1993)
Live In Concert – 21 Rock N Roll Classics (mid 90′s)
Live In Concert – 20 Hits – Vol 1 (mid 90′s)
Live In Concert – 20 Hits – Vol 2 (mid 90′s)
Rock N Roll Dance Party (1996)

Songs recorded with Mal Gray:

“Blackboard Rock” (w/ Bill Haley)
“The King” (w/ Bill Haley)
“I Will” (w/ Bill Haley)
“Promised Land” (live in Germany)
“Whole Lotta Shakin’” (live in Germany)
“Lover’s Question” (live in Germany)
“Hello Mary Lou”
“School Is Out”
“Iron Curtain”
“Stood Up”
“I Believe What You Say”
“It Doesn’t Matter Anymore”
“I Need Your Love Tonight”
“Just A Little Too Much”
“Ring Around Your Neck”
“It’s Late”
“Treat Me Nice”
“Honey Don’t”
“Feel So Bad”
“Gotta Lotta Livin’ to Do”
“Cincinatti Fireball”
“Rock ‘n’ Roll Man”
“Get Off The Line”
“Brahma Bull”
“Tommy’s Back In Town”
“Rock ‘n’ Roll Days”
“Save Your Love”
“I Fought The Law”
“Quarter To Three”

Records Chico played on outside of Sha Na Na:

Puff (1969)
The Wing-It Band – I Can’t Be 50 (I Still Like Rock N’ Roll) (1998) – Chico wrote “My Birthday Party” and co-wrote “I Can’t Be Fifty (I Still Wanna Rock n” Roll)” with Al LoRusso.  According to Al, he had written the lyrics for one version of “I Can’t Be 50″ and he asked Chico to write lyrics for another version of the song which Chico did.  Al liked Chico’s version better and Chico liked Al’s version.  Al asked Chico which version they should record and Chico said record them both.  Chico wrote “My Birthday Party” which came from a song Sha Na Na recorded called “My Basement Party” and Chico was even thinking of writing another version called “Earth Party” which he joked would make the environmentalists happy.

Dance – Chico wrote this and was planning to record it with Sha Na Na.

Shanana Christmas – Chico wrote this song and Steve LoRusso tells the story on this one.  “This is a song that Chico was working on with the Wing It Band.  He was planning on doing this song with Sha Na Na. It was just a work in progress that was never completed. This was one of the last  songs we worked on before he passed away.  This take was just a lay it down to begin the process  of putting it together.  The vocal tracks were just ghost vocals and we never did the final takes.  It’s just a rough track.  There is a line in the song where Chico says “Hey Lenny, What do you want for Christmas?” Lenny Baker’s response was never in the song up until yesterday. I called Lenny and he did his part yesterday.   This is a good time of year to put this song out for Chico fans to hear it. So I mixed what I had and cleaned it up the best I could, So here it is.”  You’d never know it was an unfinished song just by listening to it.  Apparently he was planning to record this with Sha Na Na.

Other People’s Records:

Grease:  The Original Soundtrack From The Motion Picture (1978)
Scott Simon – Transmissions In Space (1981)
Dan McBride – 16 Tunes And Whaddaya Get (1999)
Myles Connor & Friends – I Was The One (unsure of date)

Recorded music with Doug Kupper and Jesse Henderson.  Interesting fact.  Jesse went down to Hollywood to work with Chico and Danny on Chico’s stuff.  Jesse also produced a live album of Sha Na Na’s called “Rockin’ In The Eighties”.  Jesse also filled in for Jocko for six weeks in 1975.

Chico’s tour with Bill Haley as one of the Comets:

Bill Haley (vocal & rhythm guitar)
Jerry Tilley (lead guitar)
Pete Thomas (tenor saxophone)
Chico Ryan (rhythm guitar)
John Gordon (bass guitar)
Steve Murray (drums)
Mal Gray (clapper boy)

Hilversum, Holland 26th October 1979
Amsterdam, Holland 27th October 1979
Holland 27th October 1979
Stockholm, Sweden 5th November 1979
Hamburg, GermanyNovember 13, 1979
Royalty Nitespot, Southgate, London 19th November 1979
Theatre Royal Drury Lane 26th November 1979

Recorded performances of that tour:

October 27, 1979
Amsterdam, Netherland – TV
November 13, 1979
Star Club, Hamburg, Germany – Privately taped live recording (unissued)     .
November 19, 1979
BBC Studios, London, England – BBC Radio 2     .
November 26, 1979
Theatre Royal, London, England – TV show (Royal Comand Performance). This is the last known recording of Rock Around The Clock by Bill Haley, as this performance closed his 1979 European tour

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