Class of 1976 30-Year Reunion Chair to Perform at Benny Rae Day Celebration in Bridgeport

Andrew Warde High School Class of 1976 30-year reunion committee president Tony Procaccini will perform during the Benny Rae Day celebration this Monday in Bridgeport.

Procaccini (at left) was one of dozens of musicians influenced by Rae (right) and worked with him from 1973 to 1985.

"Benny Rae Day" will be celebrated at Bridgeport City Hall Annex on Monday, November 5, at 2 p.m. Mayor John Fabrizi has proclaimed the day to honor the legendary bandleader-singer.

Since his early years as a child prodigy singer, trumpeter and composer, Benny Rae has been known in area music circles. While still young, he performed and toured with his mentor, international star Louis Prima, and Prima's wife, Keely Smith. He later settled in Bridgeport for a long and stellar career at local venues.

Benny Rae is steeped in the American Songbook, following the path of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Mel Torme’. In later years, he added contemporary music to his mix, expanding his repertoire and attracting more fans.

He influenced dozens of musicians who worked with him, including Tony Procaccini, music director of St. Patrick's Church in Bridgeport. The driving force behind the proclamation, Procaccini notes, "I felt it was only right to thank and honor Benny for his great work over many years. The city's music life has been greatly enriched because of him."

Many individuals have contributed to the event. In addition to Procaccini, the principal organizer and initiator of the proclamation, they include former Bridgeport Mayor Leonard Paoletta, Warde 1976 classmate Tommy DeLaurentis (owner of Daybreak Doughnuts), Robert Lisi, and guitarist and college music professor Bruce Bednarsky. Bednarsky performed and recorded with Benny Rae for 10 years, and attributes much of his current success to the singer.

The event is free and open to the public. City Hall Annex is located at 999 Broad Street in Bridgeport.

Procaccini wrote, "He (Rae) worked with Prima and Keely Smith for years. Benny did impersonations like Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, Frank, Ella, Dick Haymes, Al Hibler, Anthony Newley, Tony Bennett, Bing, Satchmo, a dead-ringer on Prima (who once almost tried to have him arrested for doing his shtick!!!), and many, many others.

"I worked with Benny from 1973 until 1985, plus a couple small spurts with some others. Two summers the band wasn't hired, so we played duo.

"A kid like me could never learn a tune like "Nina Never Knew" or "Stars Fell on Alabama" unless working with him. I have many lyrics in my head from those years. I helped Benny at some points, too. He called tunes by opening lyrics, not titles."

"He lent me a Sinatra album in 1979, and I was hooked on Frank. I learned tunes I didn't know from other LP's I went out and bought, imitating the Riddle arrangements, etc."

Benny Rae, born Benedetto Mechello Rea, was a local child-prodigy singer, trumpeter and composer before emerging on the national scene with Louis Prima and Keely Smith in the 1940s and 1950s. He reestablished his presence in the Bridgeport area soon after, and became a local legend. He led a “little big band” called Benny Rae Plus Three, influencing fellow musicians as well as audiences. His repertoire included music from Al Jolson to Barry White, and he helped keep Bridgeport’s nightclubs hopping for decades, until the era of live music ended.

Please sign the AWHS Class of 1976 Guest Book.

Visit the Andrew Warde High School Gift Shop.

Watch the AWHS 1976 vintage "film."