Audience and musicians at the “Let’s Groove Tonight: Motown and the Philly Sound!” concert by the No Name Pops in Philadelphia on Oct. 28. Photo by Elizabeth Robertson/Philadelphia Inquirer.
In Sunday’s (10/29) Philadelphia Inquirer, Peter Dobrin writes, “It was part concert, part dance party—an event both hopeful and pretty risky. But even after all of the arts turmoil of the past year or so, Saturday afternoon’s Kimmel Center debut of a new musical group in town was affirmation that Philadelphia loves its pops and knows how to show it. In a nearly two-hour show, the No Name Pops led by conductor Herb Smith with three charismatic singers had the audience dancing in the aisles, singing along and filling Verizon Hall with a great vibe. No small feat, this, since the concert was organized by neophyte presenters: the musicians themselves. The No Name Pops is made largely of former players of the Philly Pops who decided—after the latter group put concerts on hiatus last season amid financial troubles and the unleashing of lawsuits—to start their own pops orchestra. At Saturday afternoon’s concert, the new 52-piece ensemble framed its rise from the ashes in historic terms, casting itself as heir to the artistic legacy of Peter Nero, who led the Philly Pops from its founding in 1979 until 2013….This first outing by the No Name Pops points toward success.”
