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Smokey Joe's Cafe

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description Smokey Joe's Cafe Overview

Smokey Joe's Cafe is a musical revue that opened on Broadway in 1995, featuring the rock and roll and rhythm and blues songbook of writers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. The production is distinguished by having no spoken dialogue, relying entirely on a sequence of roughly 40 classic songs like "Hound Dog" and "Stand by Me" to create a thematic narrative. It ran for 2,036 performances and won a Grammy Award for its cast album. The show is designed for audiences nostalgic for mid-20th-century American pop and rock music.

help Smokey Joe's Cafe FAQ

Does Smokey Joe's Cafe have a story or spoken dialogue?

No. The revue tells no continuous story and uses no spoken dialogue, instead building its evening around 39 songs associated with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.

Which famous songs appear in Smokey Joe's Cafe?

The score includes Leiber and Stoller standards such as "Jailhouse Rock," "Hound Dog," "Poison Ivy," and "Stand by Me." "On Broadway," written with Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, is also part of the revue.

How long did the original Broadway production run?

Smokey Joe's Cafe opened at Broadway's Virginia Theatre on March 2, 1995, and closed in January 2000. That run lasted nearly five years, unusually long for a plotless musical revue.

Did the Smokey Joe's Cafe cast recording win a Grammy?

Yes. The original Broadway cast album won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album in 1997, preserving performances by a nine-member principal cast.

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