It's a New Jersey invasion: Springsteen, Bon Jovi and "Jersey Boys," the hit musical about Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, are all coming to town in the next five days. Did you realize that the Armpit of America has turned out more big-name hitmakers per capita than perhaps any other state? Is there something in the water -- besides industrial waste? MATCH THE HITS BELOW WITH THE STARS

1 Connie Francis

2 Bruce Springsteen

3 Eddie Rabbitt

4 The Isley Brothers

5 Whitney Houston

6 The Rascals

7 Frank Sinatra

8 Dionne Warwick

9 Lauryn Hill

10 Bon Jovi

11 The Shirelles

12 Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons



A "Livin' on a Prayer"

B "Say a Little Prayer for You"

C "I Love a Rainy Night"

D "My Way"

E "Groovin'"

F "Where the Boys Are"

G "Big Girls Don't Cry"

H "I Will Always Love You"

I "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow"

J "Born to Run"

K "It's Your Thing"

L "Doo Wop (That Thing)"



TRUE OR FALSE 1 The phonograph record was invented in New Jersey.

2 Whitney Houston and Gloria Gaynor are cousins.

3 Rockers Yo La Tengo started out as a joke salsa band.

4 Jersey natives Frank Sinatra, Connie Francis and Dionne Warwick have the same birthday.

5 Wyclef Jean, Akon and Queen Latifah all were born abroad, but grew up in Jersey.


BONUS ROUND Which of these one-hit wonders was not from N.J.:

• The Soul Survivors ("Expressway to Your Heart")

• Joey Dee & the Starliters ("Peppermint Twist")

• The Happenings ("See You in September")

• The Knickerbockers ("Lies")


Answers
MATCH THE HIT with THE STAR
A-10, B-8, C-3, D-7, E-6, F-1, G-12, H-5, I-11, J-2, K-4, L-9
TRUE OR FALSE
1. True. Thomas Edison invented it at his Menlo Park, N.J., laboratory in 1877. (His first recording? "Mary Had a Little Lamb.")
2. False, though they're both from Jersey. Houston is actually Dionne Warwick's cousin.
3. False. The band's name — Spanish for "I've got it" — comes from the hapless early days of the New York Mets. One player was Venezuelan, so to avoid collisions when chasing pop flies, a teammate learned to call for the ball in Spanish.
4. True. They were all born on Dec. 12 (Sinatra in 1915, Francis in 1938 and Warwick in 1940).
5. False. Just Wyclef (he was born in Haiti, but has lived in New Jersey since his teens). Latifah was born in Newark. Akon spent much of his childhood in Senegal, but was born in St. Louis and settled in New Jersey when he was 7.
BONUS ROUND
The Soul Survivors were from Philadelphia — just across the Delaware River.