The Jim Craine Show, September 19, 2026

The Jim Craine Show Steel Pier Memories, Smithville Italian Fest Plans, and The Association's Story with James Yester (Jim Yester of the Musical sunshine pop group called the Association) Jim Craine broadcasts from the Pleasantville Music Shop ahead of the Smithville Italian Festival and talks with longtime friend Jim Yester, founding member of The Association, about the band's 61-year history, its biggest hits, and life on the road. A Pre-Taped Saturday From Pleasantville Jim Craine opens the show explaining this is a pre-recorded broadcast since he'll be performing the next day at the Smithville Italian Festival. He broadcasts from the Pleasantville Music Shop, noting the perfect southern New Jersey weather and previewing the day's main event: a phone conversation with Jim Yester, a founding member of The Association. Craine then turns to his recurring sponsor bit, introducing his character Dr. Boris in a spooky voice to read through the sponsor list, opening with Pleasantville Music Shop's 87 years in business, followed by Copiers Plus in Egg Harbor Township and its owner Bobby Matthews, The Maplewood Inns of Hammonton, Vineland, and Mays Landing, and the Dr. Jonathan Pitney House and Colonial Inn bed and breakfasts in Absecon and Smithville. Dr. Boris reads out the show's call-in number and signs off, handing the show back to Craine, who confirms the timing of the broadcast and previews more news about the Smithville festival before the interview begins. Smithville Italian Festival Preview Craine spends time detailing his own gig the next day at the Smithville Italian Festival, where he and his band, the Atlantic City All-Stars, play from 11:30 to 4:30, admission free. He names the players joining him: Tony DeLuca on piano, accordion, and cornet, Andy Lawless on bass, Ray Nunzi on drums, and Johnny Guida. Craine promises food vendors selling sausage, onions, and peppers, plus beer and wine, and urges listeners to come find him. He circles back to promoting Pleasantville Music Shop itself, describing its Black Horse Pike location, its 87 years serving the Jersey Shore, its rental programs for local schools, and its new fall back-to-school push. Craine mentions that CD sales in the shop benefit the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, run by Bob Schoelkopf and Sheila Dean, who care for seals, turtles, and dolphins at their museum on Brigantine Boulevard, before setting up the interview with Jim Yester. The Godfather Plugs Maplewood Inns Before bringing on his guest, Craine introduces another recurring bit, handing the microphone to his Marlon Brando-voiced character The Godfather, who delivers a comic pitch for The Maplewood Inns locations in Hammonton and Vineland. The Godfather praises the veal parmesan, chicken parmesan, and clams casino, jokes that listeners should bring a wife or girlfriend but never both on the same night, and notes the restaurants cater parties as well. He gives the Maplewood Inns his mock approval and reminds listeners that The Jim Craine Show airs Saturdays from two to three Central time on bbsradio.com. Craine returns to close the bit and announces that Jim Yester is finally ready to join the show by phone, teasing a bit about wanting to sing a parody of Never My Love with Dr. Boris before getting serious and welcoming his old friend onto the air for the main interview segment of the broadcast. Jim Yester Recalls The Association's Origins Craine welcomes Jim Yester, a friend since 1967 when Craine first saw The Association at the Steel Pier, and the two joke warmly before Yester explains that the band is celebrating its 61st year, having formed on February 10th, 1965. Yester, who grew up in Burbank, credits his father, a professional accordion and keyboard player who arranged the Everybody's Favorites songbook series, for his own musical start. He describes the Troubadour's Monday night Hootenanny sessions in Hollywood, where musicians between groups gathered to sing folk standards, eventually forming a thirteen-man group called The Men. After personality conflicts, six members walked out to Terry Kirkman's apartment and became The Association that same day, nearly naming themselves The Aristocrats before Kirkman's girlfriend found the word "association" in the dictionary. Yester recalls the group's early residency at The Ice House folk club in Pasadena before their first hit sent them on the road. Behind Along Comes Mary, Never My Love, and Cherish Yester walks Craine through the stories behind three of The Association's signature songs. Along Comes Mary, he says, became their breakthrough single after their Ice House run. He recalls that Never My Love arrived when songwriting brothers the Addrisi Brothers showed up at the band's shared West LA house, rowing an imaginary boat with a guitar paddle before playing the song live, and Yester notes it remains the second most-played song in BMI's catalog. Terry Kirkman, he says, wrote Cherish after a publisher initially objected that the title word was too archaic, a story the band turned into a running joke about having their cake and eating it too. Craine mentions slow dancing to Cherish at the Melody Lounge in Atlantic City and recalls backing Yester at Lucy the Elephant, while Yester also touches on his brother's stint in The Lovin' Spoonful, replacing bandmate Zal before the two later became a production team behind Pat Boone's Red Sails in the Sunset. Ed Sullivan Memories and a Warm Sign-Off Yester tells Craine that the current lineup includes original member Jules, drummer Bruce Pictor since 1985, returning member Paul Holland, bassist Joe Lamanno, and keyboardist Gary Swan, and that the band recently played the Nixon Center in Newnan, Georgia. He recalls appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show more than once, praising Sullivan as a gentleman who insisted every performance be sung live rather than lip-synched. He and Craine also discuss this year's Happy Together Tour alongside the Cowsills and The Vogues, and Craine mentions mutual friend Cathy Rich, Buddy Rich's daughter, and her big-band arrangement of Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead. Craine thanks Yester warmly, promising to host him again at the music shop, before signing off with a Maplewood Inns spot and playing Without Love, a song his friend Billy Crashner of Longport wrote for him, which he dedicates to his wife Joanne. Craine closes with his usual Red Skelton farewell and the show's theme song.