It's easy -- too easy -- to write off the Four Seasons as a passing whiff of the celebratory '60s, a band with an impossibly high-pitched singer that got left in the dust of Beatlemania, now reduced to three surviving members trying to scrounge up a little late-life glory and lucre with the musical drama "Jersey Boys."

On any point of that score, you'd be dead wrong.

Just as "Jersey Boys" welds personal drama onto music that remains lyrically and harmonically inventive, it also calls for revisiting just what made Frankie Valli and company so great in the first place -- and why the show based on the group's life story should cause music fans, the theater crowd and pop culture vultures alike to take serious notice.

If the roots of the Top 10 list come straight from the heart of the record charts (hey, even if it doesn't), we'll give you 10 reasons why "Jersey Boys" matters. And as you read on, we'll steer you in the direction of alternate entertainments we hope dovetail well with the heart, soul and themes stirred by this production's arrival in town.

And so ... why "Jersey Boys" matters.

The Four Seasons' 'Jersey' story

Over the group's remarkable career, the Four Seasons had at least 15 Top 10 hits. This Top 10 list may not be easy to sing in the shower -- but it does sing the praises of a quartet experiencing an unexpected revival. Weather reports aside, 'tis the season for the Four Seasons, with "Jersey Boys" set to take the Midwest by storm.

The Chicago show, presented by Broadway in Chicago, is in previews at the LaSalle Bank Theatre and opens Sunday for a run expected to last at least a year. The original "Jersey Boys" is still selling on Broadway and won the 2006 Tony for best musical, among other awards.

No simple nostalgia act for a has-been band.

10. They took vocal harmony to new (falsetto) heights

Like their rivals the Beach Boys, the Four Seasons boasted impeccable vocal-harmony chops. The New Jersey quartet cut its teeth on "street-corner singing" and '50s doo-wop. "The doo-wop stuff, we certainly did a lot of it -- and there certainly is a lot of that in the show," says original Four Seasons member Bob Gaudio.

The innovation, Gaudio says, came via Frankie Valli. "Frankie's falsetto was in a bit of a different world. When he started to do that, it had more edge, and the tracks had much more rhythm -- more than say, the Beach Boys. With Frankie's edge, you just don't leave him with some soft [backing] track."

*More vocal harmony: "Sounds So Good, Makes You Wanna Holler" at Black Ensemble Theatre, 4520 N. Beacon St. Open run. $40; 773-769-4451.

9. It's not your Abba's jukebox musical

So they took a bunch of beloved hits, weaved a plot around it and got a can't-miss nostalgia musical -- just like "Mamma Mia," right?

Nope. "Jersey Boys" doesn't manufacture its plot from the song lyrics, but the group's true story. And it's previously untold because unlike The Beatles or Beach Boys, the Four Seasons remained tight-lipped about personal lives and details through the years. "They were high school-dropout, Roman Catholic, Italian Americans from the wrong side of the river and they didn't have long hair or British accents, so they assumed no one would be interested," says Rick Elice, co-writer with Marshall Brickman of the Broadway show. "This is the true story."

*How about another musical with 1960s roots? Say yes to "I Do! I Do!" at American Theater Company, 1909 W. Byron St. Through Nov. 11. $30-$35; 773-929-1031 orhttp://www.atcweb.org .

8. Hooks and hits that just won't quit

In an age when rock groups come and go faster than you can say "MySpace.com," the Four Seasons endure because of their songs. In case you think it's a snap to uncork classic hooks such as "Big girls/ they don't cry-yi-yi!" take note: It's a mystery even to Gaudio, Four Seasons keyboardist and songwriter. "I don't usually sit down and try to come up with something that I'd call a hook," he says. "It's just something that I love. I start writing for myself and it turns out as something that has a reasonable amount of appeal. Writing for the group was almost always for Frankie in mind."

*Hooks and hits that just won't quit, part II: John Fogerty, Chicago Theatre, 8 p.m. Nov. 28. $37-$65; 312-559-1212 orhttp://www.ticketmaster.com .

7. Tributes done right matter

While not a pure tribute show, "Jersey Boys" uses the songs of the band with musician-actors playing the original members. Attention to detail? It's there -- thanks to the guidance of Valli and Gaudio. While not involved directly in the script writing, they were consulted to make sure the music and script passed muster. That's crucial because much of the potential audience never got to see and hear the original Four Seasons live. Gaudio says the singers in this show don't merely ape the music -- they nail the attitude. "There are people who can make the notes, but can they make them with that edge and that strength?" he says. Then he laughs: "We found a few for 'Jersey Boys.'"

*Another tribute done right: Ron Hawking's "The Men and Their Music" covers ground from Bobby Darin to Ray Charles -- and yes, Frankie Valli -- with a full live orchestra. Extended through Dec. 31 at Mercury Theatre, 3745 N. Southport Ave. $39.50-$55.50; 773-325-1700 orhttp://www.ticketmaster.com .

6. A Mafia story you can believe for a change

Fuggedabout "The Sopranos" and Hollywood's Outfit tales. The Four Seasons lived it, says "Jersey Boys" co-writer Elice.

"It was impossible for them to avoid it," he notes. "I grew up a nice little New York Jew and I had no idea [the Mafia] was a part of everyday life. It was news to me that the group developed a parallel path to the Mafia without becoming a part of it. It was absolutely fascinating."

Telling you how the Four Seasons survived it without getting buried in a Meadowlands end zone would spoil "Jersey Boys." But believe us, it's a story that's enjoyed something akin to omerta, the Mafia code of silence. Until now.

* Another tale of corruption: "A Steady Rain" follows two tough, foundering Chicago cops. Through Oct. 28 by Chicago Dramatists, 1105 W. Chicago Ave. $22-$28; 312-633-0630 andhttp://www.chicagodramatists.org .

5. New Jersey rocks!

The Four Seasons hail from Newark, N.J. -- and while the Garden State has a rep for refineries, garish Joisey accents and mob crime, the musical truth is different. Hordes of great pop, rock and indie bands hail from there. From Bruce Springsteen to new sensations the Roadside Graves (championed by Pitchfork.com), New Jersey delivers the rock -- and then some.

"When I think about New Jersey, I think about more than rock," says Dave Urbanski, "The Man Comes Around: The Spiritual Journey of Johnny Cash" (Relevant Books). "I think about Frank Sinatra. I think about beach towns such as Asbury Park -- Bruce Springsteen's old haunt. And I love the Smithereens; they're from Carteret. New Jersey has a zillion small burgs, each one with its own cool rock band."

*From the swamps of Jersey: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Oct. 21 and 22 at the United Center. $65-$95 (Oct. 21 sold out); 312-559-1212 orhttp://www.ticketmaster.com .

4. Italian Americans rock!

The Four Seasons, Italian Americans all, advanced a pop tradition that dates to Sinatra and Tony Bennett. For years Italianos have rocked out and still do: The Young Rascals. Johnny Rivers. John Sebastian. John Bon Jovi. Prince.

Prince?

"It's astonishing -- even Prince is part Italian, and he acknowledges it proudly," says A. Kenneth Ciongoli, chair of the National Italian American Foundation, which gave Frankie Valli a lifetime achievement award last year. "Bruce Springsteen is part Italian. You have Fabian, Bobby Rydell and Frankie Avalon -- the golden boys of South Philly -- and from there you have so many other groups. It never ends."

*Bass player Chuck Panozzo has been with Styx from the start. See him rock the four-string as Styx plays 8 p.m. Dec. 28 at the Star Plaza Theatre, Interstate 65 At U.S, Highway 30, Merrillville, Ind. Also 8 p.m. Dec. 29 at the Genesee Theatre, 203 N. Genesee St., Waukegan. $38-$98 (Star Plaza) or $43-$78 (Genesee); 312-559-1212 orhttp://www.ticketmaster.com .

3. Finally, a musical men can love

As a guy, you might prefer synchronized swimming on ESPN2 over a musical. But rest assured: The unrepentant, sublime machismo of the Four Seasons music promises to reverse the order of things. West Coast previews of "Jersey Boys" drew men in droves -- often more than once -- to immerse themselves in the autobiographical stage show.

"This is the rarity -- this is a guy's show, and usually with theater, it's the women who are dragging the men there," Gaudio says.

*A play men can love, too: "Hizzoner" is Neil Giuntoli's gripping -- and gritty -- look at Mayor Richard J. Daley as a tragic figure. Open run at Prop Thtr, 3504 N. Elston Ave. $35; 773-539-7838.

2. It's time Frankie Valli and company got their due

Though the Four Seasons made the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, they've been snubbed by classic-rock radio. Still, they proved pivotal in the '60s, bridging doo-wop and rock while innovating in sound (1965's "Let's Hang On" was one of the first hits with fuzz guitar).

"They were very important," says Stu Shea, co-author of "Fab Four FAQ" (Hal Leonard). "They were very popular with their contemporaries -- all the British groups were big fans, including the Beatles. They were very, very into R&B and soul. If you look at their mid-'60s records, they were very much showing a heavy R&B influence, the Motown influence."

*Also big fans of the Four Seasons: the Beach Boys, 6 p.m. Dec. 2 at the Rialto Square Theatre, 102 N Chicago St., Joliet. $55-$75; 312-559-1212 orhttp://www.ticketmaster.com .

1. Just the latest peak for Valli

Sure, the Four Seasons peaked in the '60s. But that's hardly the story's end or the point of "Jersey Boys." The act dabbled in post-"Sgt. Pepper" pop in 1969 (on the obscure but lauded LP "Genuine Imitation Life Gazette") and came back with the hits "Who Loves You" and "December 1963 (Oh What a Night)" in 1975. That same year, Valli hit No. 1 with "My Eyes Adored You" and the Top 10 with "Swearin' To God."

"Valli's staying power? One word: Talent," says legendary Chicago DJ Dick Biondi, who played the Four Seasons from the start -- and still spins them at the True Oldies Channel (WZZN-FM 94.7).

Biondi, who plans to host Valli's Nov. 9 show, says the singer's last show here in April was quite the trip: "The whole place was going crazy -- they were hand clapping and jumping."

He adds: "He's still going. He's gotta be doing something right."

*Who else but Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons? 8 p.m. Nov. 9 at the Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State St. $52.50-$57.50; 312-559-1212 orhttp://www.ticketmaster.com .

'Jersey Boys'

The life stories and music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, a group of blue-collar boys who become 1960s pop music sensations.

When: In previews; opens 6:30 p.m. Sunday

Where: LaSalle Bank Theatre,

18 West Monroe St.

Price: $30-$150;

312-902-1400 orhttp://www.ticketmaster.com .

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Four Seasons by the lake, 1962

In the early Four Seasons history, it was none other than Vee-Jay records -- founded in Gary, Ind., and with prominent offices on South Michigan Avenue -- that brought the group major acclaim. Back in the early 1960s, that area of Chicago was known as "Record Row," with Chess Records just the toss of a 45 from Vee-Jay. (Everyone from Chuck Berry to the Rolling Stones recorded at Chess' in-house studio.)

"It's amazing; a lot of people forget that they hit on a Chicago label with 'Sherry'" in 1962, says Dick Biondi, a DJ at the True Oldies Channel (WZZN-FM 94.7). "They hit so well with 'Sherry,' 'Big Girls Don't Cry,' 'Walk Like a Man.' Those were songs just like 'Please Please Me' that the kids loved. They were good, up-tempo songs."

Speaking of The Beatles' hit, the Four Seasons' Bob Gaudio relates a story he says he's never told until now. "In London, we played the Hammersmith Odeon and The Beatles came to see us. 'Please Please Me' was tearing up the town. We bought the record and I said to Frankie, 'You have to consider this. We can do a great job of it.' We were so enthusiastic about it, but we decided to go with something else."

Not covering the record, the Four Seasons left their copy at the Vee-Jay offices -- this before the Beatles had an American label because Capitol Records had passed on them. "The next thing I knew, Vee-Jay had five masters" of Beatles' songs.

When the British Invasion hit, Vee-Jay sold more Beatles records than they could press -- 2.6 million singles alone in early 1964. Yet two years later, the company went bankrupt, not long after Capitol snatched back The Beatles' rights. And the rest is rock history.

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lcarlozo@tribune.com