New Bedford Names Tavares Brothers’ Way for Singing Stars

Life has been one long song for New Bedford's Tavares brothers: often upbeat, sometimes sad, a constant mix of playful, hopeful and bittersweet. It's a song of family, hard work, pure talent, perseverance and gratitude.

"Sing pretty for the people," their mother always encouraged.

They never stopped.

On a sunny Saturday in June, the song brought them home to Tavares Brothers' Way. Griffin Court, near Alfred J. Gomes Elementary School, has been renamed for the soulful siblings who rocketed to fame as Tavares in the 1970s with hits including "Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel," "More Than a Woman" and "It Only Takes a Minute."

The honor fell appropriately during Cape Verdean Recognition Week in the heavily Cape Verdean neighborhood where the brothers grew up.

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"It takes a village: Bay Village," Perry "Tiny" Tavares said, referring to the housing development a few yards away from the street that now bears his last name. "Without Bay Village, we wouldn't be the gentlemen we are now because the village is what kept us in line. It took a village to get us where we are today."

The honor is permanent and prominent. Tavares Brothers' Way connects South Second Street to Route 18, and signs at both ends make it clear. It's a fitting tribute for a group of guys who never forgot where they came from.

READ MORE: The Songs New Bedford's Tiny Tavares Wishes He Had Recorded

"They created something timeless and gave back to this city time and time again," Mayor Jon Mitchell said.

"Tiny" Tavares was joined at the June 29 ceremony by brothers Antone "Chubby" Tavares and Victor Tavares. They lovingly remembered brothers and band members Ralph Tavares and Arthur "Pooch" Tavares, who died in 2021 and 2024, respectively. The group also includes Feliciano "Butch" Tavares. Dozens of family members, including grandchildren and great-grandchildren, looked on with pride, alongside lifelong friends and fans.

One of those fans was Nancy Beberness of New Bedford. Wearing the vintage blue Tavares jacket she told her children she wants to be buried in (or she'll haunt them), she echoed the sentiments of many about the dedication.

"It's been a long time coming," she said. "They deserve it and so much more."

What would this Tavares superfan tell someone who has never heard Tavares music before?

"Either you've heard a Tavares song or you don't bother talking to me," she said.

Tavares has worldwide fans but New Bedford might have everyone beat. People flocked to the weekend ceremony with their Tavares T-shirts, baseball caps and albums.

"I think they're better than the Bee Gees," Rep. Antonio Cabral said.

New Bedford City Councilor Brian Gomes remembered watching Tavares on American Bandstand with Dick Clark and dancing to their music every chance he got.

"We all wanted to be Tavares," he said.

When it came time for the brothers to pull down the cloth over a new street sign, they did it the Tavares Way -- surrounded by the people they love.

They looked up and smiled. Despite a career full of big moments (including a 1979 Grammy Award for their work on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack), it seemed hard to imagine the Tavares song being complete without hometown recognition like this.

People will see this sign and they'll think of the New Bedford brothers who made their dreams come true. They can't miss it. It's at a four-way intersection, just above one of those red, octagonal signs designed to stick out.

"Chubby" Tavares got a twinkle in his eye.

"What's so good," he said, "is they have to stop."