Why Long Islanders love tribute bands, from acts saluting Ozzy to Pearl Jam

Back in high school Ricky Woods, of New Hyde Park, was nicknamed Ricky Osbourne because of his ability to sing like the late heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne.

"I took on Ozzy’s voice as my own," Woods says. "We share a similar tone so it’s familiar to me."

Today Woods fronts an Ozzy Osbourne tribute band, Ozzmosis, which is headlining The Suffolk in Riverhead on Oct. 23. On stage he transforms into the Prince of Darkness by donning a black trench coat, wire-rimmed glasses, black boots and a cross around his neck while speaking with an English accent.

"I want people to feel like they are walking into an Ozzy concert," says Woods, who works as an IT technician by day. "I emulate Ozzy to the best of my abilities every single time I’m up on stage and the crowd really feeds upon that."

Tribute bands zone in on the material of one particular artist or band by recreating their live stage show. They have been around for years but recently reached new heights on Long Island, headlining bars, clubs and even theaters in Nassau and Suffolk.

"People enjoy things that are familiar to them, so they want to go out and be entertained by music that they know and like," says Michele Rizzo-Berg, executive director of the Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts, who books tribute bands at her  venue. "These bands don’t just play, they really make a show out of it. There’s as much effort put in as if they were the actual artists using video, wardrobe changes, choreography, lights, smoke machines, some even dress up and get into character."

Guitarist Paul Duthil, of Brentwood, plays in 10 such groups, ranging from the Twisted Sister tribute band Sister Twisted to Pink Floyd tribute band Shine On. He sees tribute bands as providing a vital service.

When the artists who originally wrote the music are no longer available to perform, tribute bands fill that void.

— Paul Duthil, of Brentwood, a guitarist in several bands

"When the artists who originally wrote the music are no longer available to perform, tribute bands fill that void," says Duthil, 62. "Some tribute bands pay so much attention to detail that you would swear you’re hearing the original band. We try to make our shows incredibly realistic, so when people walk away, they feel like they saw something memorable."

QUALITY IS THE KEY

Fans who are going to see a tribute band of their favorite artist are difficult to please. They expect high quality if they aren’t seeing the original act.

"People are very forgiving of an original artist not being as great as they were in their heyday. But if you are a tribute show, they are so critical," says Gary Hygom, executive director of The Suffolk in Riverhead, who features many tribute bands on his stage. "You need to be on your game and blow the crowd away with your ability to perform the music."

Some fans think tribute bands outshine the original artists they are paying homage to who are still performing.

"I saw the Eagles at Sphere in Las Vegas and I think our local tribute band Echoes of The Eagles played their music better than they did," says Michael Brech, 58, of East Northport. "The tribute bands try to match the studio sound. The original artists play the music differently than when we first heard them. Tribute bands are doing the songs more authentically."

Additionally, Mark Topaz, 68, of Long Beach, feels the tribute bands often offer a more expansive set list.

You get a better representation of a band’s music by seeing a tribute band.

— Mark Topaz, 68, of Long Beach

"You get a better representation of a band’s music by seeing a tribute band," he says. "Bad Animals, the Heart tribute, will play the whole gamut of Heart hits. But Heart, the band themselves, are not big on that. Styx the band won’t play songs that are associated with their former lead singer Dennis DeYoung, who in turn also won’t play hits that involve the other members of the band. But when you see the Styx tribute band Return to Paradise, they don’t have an agenda, so they play the whole catalog."

COST FACTOR

Seeing legacy artists these days can cost hundreds of dollars, but tribute bands are more affordable. A standard ticket to see the Smashing Pumpkins at Barclays Center on Oct. 4 can range from $85 to $179.55, whereas the Smashing Pumpkins tribute band Drown is playing a free show at the Blue Point Brewery in Patchogue on Sept. 19. Fans of No Doubt paid $165-$395 to catch the band’s reunion shows at Sphere earlier this year, but Long Islanders can go see the tribute band Hella Doubt at The Warehouse in Amityville on Oct. 30 for $18.

"Ticket prices for the actual band are through the roof. No one can afford it," says Hella Doubt bassist Daniela Ammendolea, 43, of Melville. "People want to go out and enjoy themselves, but they don’t want to go broke doing it. I think they are looking for the next best thing."

Arlene Braverman, 77, of Plainview, adds, "Who could afford to go see Paul McCartney? Instead, my husband and I catch Beatles tribute bands like Strawberry Fields or the Fab Four when they are in town. Plus, we don’t have to drive too far to get to the show."

PICK A FLAVOR

Originally tribute bands were reserved for iconic groups like The Beatles or The Who. Today tribute bands are like ice cream flavors — there are so many to choose from and they come in all different styles.

Aerosmith is no longer touring, but Pump, the Aerosmith tribute band, is still rolling after 14 years. "The band retiring has actually made us more in demand," says bassist Frank Tassielli, 54, of Port Jefferson Station. "You are not going to see Aerosmith play anytime soon."

The Rolling Stones may not be touring this year, but tribute band Streetfighter has been giving Long Islanders their Stones fix since 1978. The band is led by vocalist Peter VerEecke, of Medford, who takes on the role of Mick Jagger.

"I don’t want to be a caricature of Mick. I simply feel the music and go with it," says VerEecke, 70. "The music gives me a lot of energy, so I project that energy. It just works."

Jon Bon Jovi might be struggling with his vocal cords these days, but Steve Sage, of Deer Park, lead singer of Bon Jovi tribute Bad Medicine, can still belt out "Livin’ on a Prayer."

"I look like him, sing like him and play guitar like him," says Sage, 58. "Not only is my voice like his, so is my passion."

Sometimes tribute bands get creative by flipping the script, having females take over the male roles. For example, Red Hot is an all-female tribute band that performs the music of Mötley Crüe.

"We are not offended by the masculine Mötley Crüe vibe. It gives us an edge," says vocalist Valerie Rose, 41, of Huntington. "Besides, Vince Neil’s voice is very high for a guy. His songs are more fitting for a female vocalist to cover."

During the day Jane Gilbert, of Albertson, works as an occupational therapist for the disabled and is the mother of nine kids, but on the weekends, she rocks the mic as the lead singer of Slaves & Bulldozers, a Chris Cornell/Led Zeppelin tribute band.

"It takes a lot of endurance, both singers are challenging," says Gilbert, 54.. "With Cornell, it requires more air and more grit, which can be straining on the vocal cords. With [Robert] Plant, it involves holding the breath. You have to gear up for that."

One of Long Island’s most popular tribute bands is a group that focuses on a specific genre of music. Lovesong plays a plethora of '80s new wave that gets everybody moving.

"Being from Long Island and having WLIR in our backyard here it just made sense," says drummer Chris Tibaldi, 55. "That radio station exposed us to so much incredible music. It brings you back to your college days in your dorm room."

There are even tribute bands that cater to the millennial crowd focusing on groups from the '90s and early 2000s.

Last Exit has tackled the Pearl Jam catalog for the past 21 years with lead singer Pete Griesbach, 50, of Wantagh, at the helm.

"The best compliment I get is that I sound like Eddie Vedder without doing a bad impression. It’s very easy to make a caricature of Eddie’s voice," he says. "You must convey the warmth of his baritone with vibrato and deliver his high register when he screams. You have to nail that."

Projekt Xero, a tribute to Linkin Park, was born out of lead guitarist Matt Capitano's  Face the Music Podcast. Capitano, of Massapequa, put together a group of seven musicians to record a Linkin Park-themed episode and the band took off.

"We are fans first and treat every show like a celebration for the life of lead singer Chester Bennington, who passed away in 2017," says Capitano, 38. "Listening to Linkin Park made me feel like I am OK not being OK. I think a lot of people resonate with that kind of sentiment."

TRIBUTE FANDOM

Interestingly, these tribute bands have developed their own rabid fanbases much like the artists they are honoring, but on a local level.

If you go to a Hella Doubt show and see people dressed in banana costumes, those are members of the Hollaback Squad, who will often join the band on stage.

"These people have become our family," Ammendolea says. "It’s like a reunion every time we do a show and it keeps getting bigger. They’ve become part of the act."

Peter and Liz Robinson, of Mineola, never miss a Lovesong show. They go approximately twice a month and always sit in the front row.

"There are a lot of people in the crowd that went to the old Long Island clubs like Malibu, Spit and Reds from back in the day," says Liz, 68. "Lovesong gives everyone an opportunity, who is of a certain age, to be able to find the type of people that we hung out with in our youth."

Tom Machin, 49, of East Moriches, enjoys the Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute band, Sons of Skynyrd, so much he hired them to play at a private party in his backyard last month.

"People had a blast and they were very interactive with the crowd," he says. "They even got my mother-in-law, who is close to 80, up and dancing."

MOVING INTO THEATERS

Tribute bands have gotten so big on Long Island that they are headlining theaters where original artists play like Flagstar at Westbury Music Fair, The Paramount in Huntington and Northwell at Jones Beach Theater.

Yacht Rock Revue opened for Train and REO Speedwagon at Jones Beach in 2024. This year they packed the Wantagh amphitheater on their own.

"When the opportunity came up we jumped on it," singer-guitarist Nick Niespodziani says. "We were so impressed with the vibe out there. It was epic."

"They are more than just a tribute band, they are an experience," says Daniel Hertz, 26, of Levittown, who attended the show. "The band has a certain stage presence and a flair for the dramatic. They know how to work a crowd."

Streetfighter is set to debut a new show, "Rolling Through the Decades," at The Argyle Theatre in Babylon on Oct. 31.

"It’s a trip through the '60s and '70s in the eyes of the Rolling Stones. There’s going to be videos playing behind the band for every song," VerEecke says. "It starts with the British Invasion, goes into the mod era of the '60s, the psychedelic era, Vietnam War, New York City in the '70s, up to the big concerts the band is doing now."

KEEPING IT LEGAL

The question then arises, how are tribute bands allowed to perform the music of another group live without facing legal issues with the original band? The venues all regularly pay fees to music licensing companies like SESAC (Society of European Stage Authors and Composers), BMI (Broadcast Music Inc.) and ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) for the shows to happen.

"This gives venues the right to have any artist perform on their stage," Rizzo-Berg explains. "The licensing companies will then pay the artists for use of their material."

ISLAND OF TRIBUTES

Long Island has been deemed a hot spot for tribute bands. Just ask Ira Levy, who runs Ira’s List on Facebook, promoting all the local shows each week. His page boasts more than 24,000 followers, with 300,000 views per month.

"Nothing compares to Long Island," says Levy, 62, of Babylon. "We are the capital of tribute bands."

But why Long Island? Promoter Guy Brogna of G&R Events has a theory.

"Long Islanders never stopped listening to and playing this music we all grew up with," he says. "This whole thing has been going on since we were teenagers. Now in our 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, we are still the ones consuming it. We are supporting the tribute scene and will continue to support it."

Brech adds, "With the atmosphere around in the country, seeing a tribute band is a comfortable place to be. It’s like going to a high school reunion. People are really tied to the music that they grow up with. The songs bring you back to a state of innocence. There’s nothing like live music."