(Image above: 2025 Buffalo Music Hall of Fame inductees with BMHOF board members)

The Buffalo Music Hall of Fame Class of 2025 includes everything from doo wop to Balkan music to … kazoos!

The BMHOF announced its next class of inductees Wednesday at the Buffalo History Museum. The Hall’s induction will take place on Oct. 8 at Samuel’s Grand Manor in Williamsville, with a concert celebration the following night (Oct. 9) at the Cove Seafood & Banquets in Depew.

The new inductees (with information largely based on the BMHOF’s own report) are:

The Balkan Serenaders: Established in 1948, the Balkan Serenaders are the ambassadors of
Tamburitza culture, blending traditional folk melodies—rooted in the Serbian, Croatian, and
broader Balkan repertoires. They toured widely, recording at least three LPs over the years.

Bob Burwell: The music industry executive was an artist manager, concert promoter,
label executive and music publisher, working with the likes of Billy Joel, Emmy Lou Harris, Kenny Rogers, the Oak Ridge Boys and even Steve Vai.

The El Tempos were an R&B vocal/doo wop group from Lackawanna. Their single on Vee Jay Records “My Dream Island,” was later converted into a reggae standard by Bunny Wailer and the Wailers (pre-Bob Marley). One of their members, Otis Tolliver, went on to play with Dyke & the Blazers.

Jim Beishline: A pianist and arranger, Beishline is known for his versatility, sharing the stage with
artists such as Chuck Berry, Danny and the Juniors, The Diamonds, Muddy Waters, and
Aretha Franklin, plus performing with his wife, Buffalo Music Hall of Famer Janice Mitchell.

Johnny Soul is a link to Buffalo’s old-time soul and blues community, one of the best at belting out classic ’60s soul songs. You can read a bit more about him toward the end of this story.

John Bryans is a Western New York-based drummer who has played with national performers such as Red Volkaert, Jim Lauderdale and Cory Wells (Three Dog Night) as well as with local legends such as the late Barbara St. Clair.

Tina Parol is a singer, songwriter and record producer who has written songs for major artists such as Britney Spears, Celine Dion, Sabrina Carpenter and what became the hit song “Champagne Night” for Lady A (before they changed their name from Lady Antebellum).

Larry Covelli – An old-school jazz saxophonist who has performed with composers and arrangers including David Rose, John Williams, Chuck Mangione, Quincy Jones, Henry Mancini, the Don Menza Quintet, Louie Bellson Big Band and Woody Herman’s various orchestras.

Michelle Thomas is a nationally honored musician and choir director who has made significant contributions to the WNY Music Community through her lifetime of work in education, performance and community engagement, especially through the Park School and Faith Baptist Church.

Buffalo Philharmonic Choir – The symphonic choral ensemble won the 2020 Grammy for best choral performance for its recording of Richard Danielpour’s “The Passion of Yeshua” with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Original Kazoo Factory, located in Eden, is the oldest—and today the ONLY—metal kazoo factory in the world with roots going back to 1907. The kazoo stands out as the only known musical instrument
invented and mass-produced in the U.S. SASI, (Suburban Adult Services, Inc.) a Western
New York nonprofit supporting individuals with intellectual and developmental
disabilities, owns and operates the factory and museum.