Dick Wells and the Jim Perry Band draws huge crowd at Railroad Green free concert

WARWICK — On Sunday afternoon, Sept. 11, Dick Wells and the Jim Perry Band drew a huge crowd at Railroad Green for one of the last few concerts of the 2011 free summer concert series sponsored by the Village of Warwick. And once again he received a standing ovation that lasted several minutes. Wells is well known locally from his programs on Warwick Radio WTBQ. His fans know that his long singing career includes performances with famous bands and legendary entertainers as well as n the Johnny Carson Tonight Show. The concert ran a little over two hours during which Wells, who always manages to arrive at each performance with a fresh repertoire, sang many old favorites including “A Summer Wind,” “The House I Live In,” and “Let me try again.” Since the concert fell on the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attack on the Pentagon and World Trade Center, the Village had surrounded the Green with red, white and blue banners. And members of Jubilate (pronounced yoo-bih-LAH-tey) Community Youth Choir of Warwick, who had performed just before the concert, joined Wells in singing, “God Bless America,” while the audience stood in silent respect for the occasion. All of the band arrangements were that of retired Sgt. Major Jim Perry, former group leader and lead alto saxophonist with the United States Military Academy Band Jazz Knights at West Point. Many of the musicians with the Jim Perry Band are veteran performers who had appeared with famous band leaders and entertainers like Benny Goodman, Gene Krupa, Lionel Hampton, Bob Crosby and Paul Simon.