ÔSME NARODENINY KLUBU - John Ellison / The Carpenter Ants / René Lacko

We invite you to celebrate the eighth birthday of SMER KLUB 77. Great concerts, jam sessions, parties (until the wee hours of the morning) and kettle stew (until the kettle is empty), all this awaits you on Saturday, August 1st on the magical terrace of our club. LACCO. We are also very much looking forward to the joint Jam Session of these musicians.

ADMISSION IS VOLUNTARY!!! Whoever is able and willing will contribute to the hat
We look forward to seeing you!

John "Some Kind of Wonderful" Ellison

John Ellison, who will turn 85 in August, is a legendary American blues and soul singer, guitarist, composer. Despite his age, he still performs with extraordinary energy and his performances are full of fantastic music, emotions and stories from his rich life.

During his career, he won five lifetime achievement awards and was nominated for a Grammy Award. In 2024, BMI honored him for his biggest hit, Some Kind of Wonderful, which has been played over 6 million times on commercial radio. The song was sung by more than 75 artists, including Grand Funk Railroad, Buddy Guy, Huey Lewis and the News and Rod Stewart.

Ellison was born in Montgomery, West Virginia and grew up in the mining town of Landgraff. In 1959, he left for a better life in Rochester, New York. In 1967, he founded the group The Soul Brothers Six and after the success of Some Kind of Wonderful, he signed a contract with Atlantic Records. The original version was a hit on the R&B charts, but the song became world famous when it was covered by Grand Funk Railroad in 1974.

In 2015, he was inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame. During his career, he collaborated with stars such as Patti LaBelle, Diana Ross, James Brown and Smokey Robinson.