“Screamin’ Scott” Simon, who played piano in the early-rock revival group Sha Na Na for more than a half-century and co-wrote the song “Sandy” that John Travolta crooned in Grease, died September 5 of sinus cancer in Ojai, CA. He was 75.
His daughter Nina Simon announced the news.
“Screamin’ Scott” Simon in an undated family photo
Courtesy
The elder Simon joined Sha Na Na in 1970, the year after its founding as a 1950s/early-’60s rock ‘n’ roll and doo-wop revivalist act and its appearance at Woodstock. He remained with the group, along with original members Donny York and Jocko Marcellino, until it disbanded in 2022. He played piano — banging out energetic covers of “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On,” “At the Hop” and others — and was known for his signature shirt whose sleeves bore piano keys, which he often pretended to play.
The group basked in the ’50s and early-’60s nostalgia craze of the mid-’70s as America came to grips with Watergate and Vietnam. Spurred by George Lucas’ American Graffiti and hit records by early-rock acts including Berry’s “My Ding-a-Ling” and Ricky Nelson’s “Garden Party,” the fad helped popularize the likes of “oldies” radio and TV shows and films including Happy Days and The Lords of Flatbush. It also gave new life to the careers of such midcentury hitmakers as Paul Anka, Neil Sedaka, The Four Seasons and many more.
Along the way, Simon and Sha Na Na hosted their own syndicated variety show from 1977-81 and appeared as the fictional Johnny Casino and the Gamblers in the juggernaut movie musical Grease, starring Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. Simon and Louis St. Louis co-wrote the ballad “Sandy” for the movie, which Travolta sings as he laments a drive-in date gone wrong with Newton-John’s Sandy.
The film’s soundtrack album topped the Billboard 200 for 12 weeks and is certified eight times platinum in the U.S. It reportedly has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide.
Born on December 9, 1948, in Kansas City, Simon was consumed by music from an early age. As a teenager, he played in jug bands, founded a jazz quartet and tried his hand at composing. His musical career continued when he moved to New York City to attend Columbia University in 1966, where he fronted a blues band called The Royal Pythons and was given the moniker “Screamin’ Scott” by a classmate.
In 1970, Simon answered an ad in the daily Columbia newspaper about an opening for a piano player and guitarist for a campus doo-wop group. Sha Na Na had played right before Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock in August 1969 but still was relatively unknown. Sha Na Na’s “Teen Angel” was featured in the 40th anniversary home-video edition of the Woodstock movie in 2009, and its “Book of Love” was included in the 2014 director’s cut.
After Simon graduated from Columbia, he joined the band as its keyboardist and eventual managing partner.
Scott later moved to Los Angeles to perform in all 96 episodes of Sha Na Na, their 30-minute variety show that featured his band and guest artists ranging from Chuck Berry, James Brown and Bo Diddley to the Ramones and Billy Crystal. On tour, Sha Na Na performed with acts including John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Steve Martin, Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel. Although the group played primarily classic ‘50s and ‘60s songs, Simon composed multiple songs and solo albums performed by the band and himself on records and on TV.
Along with Nina Simon, he is survived by his wife, Deborah Simon; daughters Morgan Simon; stepson Nick Richetta; and granddaughters Rocket Simon and Naomi Richetta.
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