Classic blues rockers The J. Geils Band brings Houseparty Tour 2015 with special guest Ian Hunter & The Rant Band to DTE Energy Music Theatre on Friday, September 11 at 8 p.m.

Tickets at $99.50, $59.50, $49.50 and $39.50 in the pavilion, $29.50 on the United Shore lawn and $75 United Shore lawn four-packs are available at Livenation.com, Palacenet.com, The Palace and DTE Energy Music Theatre Ticket Stores and all Ticketmaster locations. Tickets may be also charged by phone to American Express, Discover, Visa and MasterCard by calling 800.745.3000.

The J. Geils Band started as an acoustic blues trio in the mid-1960s with singer and guitarist John Geils, bassist Danny Klein (Dr. Funk) and harmonica player Richard “Magic Dick” Salwitz.

The band formed under the name ‘Snoopy and the Sopwith Camels’, while Geils was attending Worcester Polytechnic Institute for a couple of semesters. In 1967, the band switched focus, starting to play electric guitar and bass and recruiting drummer Stephen Jo Bladd and fast-talking ex-disc jockey singer Peter Wolf, born Peter Blankenfeld, both from Boston. They became the J. Geils Blues Band, later dropping the word “Blues” from the band name. The following year, former fan Seth Justman joined as an organist. The group signed to Atlantic Records in 1970.

Although living in Boston, the band had always considered Detroit their second home because of their enormous popularity there. Two of their three live albums were recorded in Detroit at various venues. The third live album was recorded in Detroit and Boston.

The J. Geils Band first received FM radio airplay with the live single “First I Look at the Purse”. They then began to get AM radio airplay as well with a series of several hit singles in the 1970s, the most successful of which were “Looking for a Love” (1971), “Give it to Me” (1973), a cover version of The Showstoppers’ “Ain’t Nothin’ But a Houseparty” (1973) and “Must of Got Lost” (1974). Later in the 1970s, the band signed with EMI America Records.

After their initial commercial successes the group seemed destined to be nothing more than a party band, until the release of Monkey Island (1977), followed by Sanctuary (1978).

The group’s commercial fortunes improved in the early 1980s, first with the humorous Love Stinks, then with their success with the Freeze Frame album which included “Centerfold” (#1 for six weeks on the Billboard Hot 100) and then the title cut (#4).

The J. Geils Band with special guest Ian Hunter & The Rant Band at DTE Energy Music Theatre is part of the Belle Tire Concert Series.