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102-604: Gross left the Brooktones in 1959 to form the group The Gems with Jerry Gross, Mark Stevens, Mike Freda, Warren Purdy, and Roland Scarinci. The remaining Brooktones signed to Parkway Records in 1960 and added Jerry Sirlen and William Shunkwiler to the group, while changing the band's name to The Dovells. While rehearsing " Out in the Cold Again ", which turned out to be the B-side of " Bristol Stomp ", Len called Jerry and asked for help with

204-585: A I–vi–ii–V -loop chord progression in those hit songs ; composers of doo-wop songs varied this slightly but significantly to the chord progression I–vi–IV–V , so influential that it is sometimes referred to as the ' 50s progression . This characteristic harmonic layout was combined with the AABA chorus form typical for Tin Pan Alley songs. Hit songs by black groups such as the Ink Spots (" If I Didn't Care ", one of

306-596: A Detroit vocal harmony group called the Matadors, met the producer Berry Gordy , who was beginning to take up new styles, including doo-wop. Gordy wanted to promote a black style of music that would appeal to both the black and white markets, performed by black musicians with roots in gospel, R&B, or doo-wop. He sought artists who understood that the music had to be updated to appeal to a broader audience and attain greater commercial success. Early recordings by Gordy's Tamla Records , founded several months before he established

408-515: A Philadelphia hospital of myelodysplasia, a bone marrow disease, on November 20, 2020. He was 78 years old. Cameo-Parkway Records Cameo-Parkway Records was the parent company of Cameo Records and Parkway Records, which were major American Philadelphia -based record labels from 1956 (for Cameo) and 1958 (for Parkway) to 1967. Among the types of music released were doo-wop , dance hits , popular/rock , rockabilly , big band , garage rock , soul and novelty records . Until 1962, Cameo

510-661: A big hit, in Las Vegas and the Night Club circuit around the country, doing over 300 shows a year. Steve van Zandt , “Miami Steve” at the time, was in the band in the early ‘70s. In 1975, Silver was tired of being on the road and left the group. Gross and Stevens went on as a duo to great reviews for their music and comedy, and continue to perform to this day. The Dovells performed at both of President Bill Clinton 's inaugural balls, with Clinton guest appearing on saxophone . In 1991, Len Barry reunited with The Dovells twice. He died in

612-502: A cappella arrangements, used wordless onomatopoeia to mimic musical instruments. For instance, " Count Every Star " by the Ravens (1950) includes vocalizations imitating the "doomph, doomph" plucking of a double bass . The Orioles helped develop the doo-wop sound with their hits " It's Too Soon to Know " (1948) and " Crying in the Chapel " (1953). Although the musical style originated in

714-474: A distributor in marketing the group on an independent label. They cut six sides, one of which was a doo-wop ballad written by Chessler called " It's Too Soon to Know ". It reached no. 1 on Billboard's national Most-Played Juke Box Race Records chart, and, in a first for a doo-wop song, the record crossed over to the mainstream pop chart, where it reached no. 13. The Du Droppers formed in Harlem in 1952. Members of

816-588: A few of their lesser hits, remain unavailable. Doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop ) is a subgenre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Detroit, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. It features vocal group harmony that carries an engaging melodic line to

918-550: A handful of early British beat group singles, including the first two singles by the Kinks , but none made the US charts. The third and final event was that Bernie Lowe had become increasingly disenchanted with the business side of record making and, suffering from nervous exhaustion and bouts of depression, he sold his stake in the company in 1964. Mann and Appel soon followed. By mid-1965 none of Cameo-Parkway's founding trio were associated with

1020-556: A helpful guide, they need not all be present in a given song for aficionados to consider it doo-wop, and the list does not include the aforementioned typical doo-wop chord progressions. Bill Kenny , lead singer of the Ink Spots, is often credited with introducing the "top and bottom" vocal arrangement featuring a high tenor singing the intro and a bass spoken chorus. The Mills Brothers, who were famous in part because in their vocals they sometimes mimicked instruments, were an additional influence on street vocal harmony groups, who, singing

1122-407: A high tenor singing over the chords of the blended mid-range voices and a strong bass voice. Their lead singer, Sonny Til , had a soft, high-pitched tenor, and like the rest of the group, was still a teenager at the time. His style reflected the optimism of young black Americans in the postmigration era. The sound they helped develop, later called '"doo-wop", eventually became a "sonic bridge" to reach

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1224-704: A major outlet for doo-wop performers to be discovered by record company talent scouts. In 1951, Robinson started Robin Records, which later became Red Robin Records , and began recording doo-wop; he recorded the Ravens, the Mello-Moods, and many other doo-wop vocal groups. He used the tiny shop to launch a series of record labels which released many hits in the US. Robinson founded or co-founded Red Robin Records, Whirlin' Disc Records, Fury Records, Everlast Records, Fire Records and Enjoy Records. Arthur Godfrey 's long-running (1946–1958) morning radio show on CBS, Talent Scouts ,

1326-625: A model for success. The Swallows began in the late 1940s as a group of Baltimore teenagers calling themselves the Oakaleers. One of the members lived across the street from Sonny Til, who went on to lead the Orioles, and their success inspired the Oakaleers to rename themselves the Swallows. Their song "Will You Be Mine", released in 1951, reached number 9 on the US Billboard R&;B chart. In 1952,

1428-538: A native of South Carolina, was an independent record producer and songwriter in Harlem who helped popularize doo-wop music in the 1950s. He got into the music business in 1946 when he opened "Bobby's Record Shop" (later "Bobby's Happy House") on the corner of 125th Street and Eighth Avenue , near the Apollo Theater , a noted venue for African-American performers. The Apollo held talent contests in which audience members indicated their favorites with applause. These were

1530-498: A part in developing the vocal potential of the doo-wop groups, but Chicago doo-wop was "created and nourished" on the street corners of the city's lower-class neighborhoods. The Chicago doo-wop groups, like those in New York, started singing on street corners and practiced their harmonies in tiled bathrooms, hallways, and subways, but because they came originally from the deep South, the home of gospel and blues music, their doo-wop sound

1632-515: A sharp decline from which it would never fully recover. The first was the move of American Bandstand from Philadelphia to Los Angeles in February. Suddenly, Cameo-Parkway's primary source of national exposure and promotion was gone. Just as devastating (as it was to many other American labels) was the second event: the onslaught of the British Invasion in 1964/1965, which dramatically changed

1734-433: A simple beat with little or no instrumentation . Lyrics are simple, usually about love, sung by a lead vocal over background vocals, and often featuring, in the bridge , a melodramatically heartfelt recitative addressed to the beloved. Harmonic singing of nonsense syllables (such as "doo-wop") is a common characteristic of these songs. Gaining popularity in the 1950s, doo-wop was "artistically and commercially viable" until

1836-512: A swing-like off-beat , while using the "doo-wop" syllables as a substitute for drums and a bass vocalist as a substitute for a bass instrument. Doo-wop's characteristic vocal style was influenced by groups such as the Mills Brothers, whose close four-part harmony derived from the vocal harmonies of the earlier barbershop quartet . The Four Knights ' "Take Me Right Back to the Track" (1945),

1938-421: A white teen audience. In 1948, Jubilee Records signed the Orioles to a contract, following which they appeared on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scout radio show. The song they performed, "It's Too Soon to Know", often cited as the first doo-wop song, went to number 1 on Billboard' s "Race Records" chart, and number 13 on the pop charts, a crossover first for a black group. This was followed in 1953 by "Crying in

2040-628: The Cats and the Fiddle 's song "I Miss You So" (1939), and the Triangle Quartette's even earlier record "Doodlin' Back" (1929) prefigured doo-wop's rhythm and blues sound long before doo-wop became popular. In The Complete Book of Doo-Wop , co-authors Gribin and Schiff (who also wrote Doo-Wop, the Forgotten Third of Rock 'n' Roll ), identify five features of doo-wop music: While these features provide

2142-649: The Chubby Checker movie Don't Knock the Twist in 1961. They released a series of singles over the next few years. These included " You Can't Sit Down ", a top hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963. Len left at the end of 1963 for a solo career under the name Len Barry . The high point of his solo career was the Top 5 smash " 1-2-3 " in 1965, and the follow-up hit "Like a Baby". The Dovells released " If You Wanna Be Happy " on

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2244-745: The Motown Record Corporation in January 1959, were of either blues or doo-wop performances. " Bad Girl ", a 1959 doo-wop single by Robinson's group, the Miracles , was the first single released (and the only one released by this group) on the Motown label—all previous singles from the company (and all those following from the group) were released on the Tamla label. Issued locally on the Motown Records label, it

2346-659: The Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. They, along with Bruce Tate and Curtis Williams, recorded the song "Earth Angel" (produced by Dootsie Williams), which rose to number one on the R&;B charts in 1954. Most of the Los Angeles doo-wop groups came out of the Fremont, Belmont , and Jefferson high schools. All of them were influenced by the Robins , a successful R&B group of the late 1940s and

2448-464: The best selling singles worldwide of all time, and "Address Unknown") and the Mills Brothers (" Paper Doll ", " You Always Hurt the One You Love " and "Glow Worm") were generally slow songs in swing time with simple instrumentation. Doo-wop street singers generally performed without instrumentation, but made their musical style distinctive, whether using fast or slow tempos , by keeping time with

2550-540: The "Bristol Stomp". Mealey left the group in 1962 for personal reasons, but still did some recordings with them. The Dovells first national hit was " Bristol Stomp ", a dance song . This was followed by the similar hit "Do the New Continental" (featured in the John Waters movie Hairspray for a minute). "Bristol Stomp" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc . They appeared performing both songs in

2652-411: The 1920s record label Cameo Records . Parkway, initially a subsidiary label, was formed in 1958. Mann and Lowe had been a successful songwriting team prior to the start of the label, with Mann writing lyrics and Lowe the music; their biggest hit prior to starting the label was Elvis Presley 's " (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear ". Dave Appell joined the label from its inception as A&R director, and

2754-538: The 1950s doo-wop groups, and the Flamingos, who had national hits as well. In 1945, Joe Von Battle opened Joe's Record Shop at 3530 Hastings Street in Detroit; the store had the largest selection of rhythm and blues records in the city, according to a 1954 Billboard business survey. Battle, a migrant from Macon, Georgia, established his shop as the first black-owned business in the area, which remained primarily Jewish up to

2856-401: The 1950s to its a capella vocals; the romantic style of the doo-wop groups appealed to them, as it was reminiscent of the traditional ballads and harmonies of Mexican folk music. In 1960, Art Laboe released one of the first oldies compilations, Memories of El Monte , on his record label, Original Sound . The record was a collection of classic doo-wop songs by bands that used to play at

2958-880: The 1950s who formed in San Francisco, or by other groups including the Flairs , the Flamingos (not the Chicago group) and the Hollywood Flames . Many other Los Angeles doo-wop groups of the time were recorded by Dootsie Williams' Dootone Records and by John Dolphin's Central Avenue record store, Dolphin's of Hollywood. These included the Calvanes, the Crescendos, the Cuff Linx, the Cubans, the Dootones,

3060-725: The Belmonts, and "Barbara Ann" by the Regents. Johnny Maestro, the Italian American lead singer of the interracial Bronx group the Crests, was the lead on the hit " Sixteen Candles ". Maestro said that he became interested in R&B vocal group harmony listening to the Flamingos, the Harptones , and the Moonglows on Alan Freed 's radio show on WINS in New York. Freed's various radio and stage shows had

3162-575: The Bronx . Judy Craig , fourteen years old, was the lead singer, singing with Patricia Bennett and Barbara Lee, both thirteen. In 1962, the girls met songwriter Ronnie Mack at the after-school center; Mack suggested they add Sylvia Peterson, who had sung with Little Jimmy & the Tops , to the group. The group was named the Chiffons when recording and releasing their first single, " He's So Fine ". Written by Mack, it

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3264-469: The Bronx, who attended the Catholic St. Anthony of Padua School in the Bronx , where they were trained to sing Gregorian Chants . Their first recording was "He's Gone" (1958), which made them the first pop rock girl group to chart. Their second single, "Maybe" hit the charts, No. 15 on Billboard ' s Hot 100. In 1960, the Chiffons began as a trio of schoolmates at James Monroe High School in

3366-662: The Bronx; his mother was from North Carolina. Crier was a founding member of a doo-wop group called the Five Chimes, one of several different groups with that name, and sang bass with the Halos and the Mellows . Many years later he observed that there was a shift in the music sung on the streets from gospel to secular rhythm and blues between 1950 and 1952. New York was also the capital of Italian doo-wop, and all its boroughs were home to groups that made successful records. The Crests were from

3468-514: The Cameo-Parkway company was sold to Allen Klein , and renamed ABKCO Records , with Bell Records acquiring its remaining subsidiary, Vando label. Cameo Parkway Records was shut down in September 1967. Bogart landed feet first at the newly formed Buddah Records , founded by former MGM Records executive Art Kass, and brought along the former Cameo Parkway promotion staff. Cameo albums also used

3570-496: The Chapel", their biggest hit, which went to number 1 on the R&B chart and number 11 on the pop chart. The Orioles were perhaps the first of the many doo-wop groups who named themselves after birds. The sexual innuendo in the Orioles' songs was less disguised than in the vocal group music of the swing era. Their stage choreography was also more sexually explicit, and their songs were simpler and more emotionally direct. This new approach to sex in their performances did not target

3672-834: The Dovells , the Orlons , the Tymes and Question Mark & the Mysterians . A various artists CD titled Cameo-Parkway: The Greatest Hits was also issued, as well as two digital-only compilations: Holiday Hits From Cameo Parkway and Original Northern Soul Hits From Cameo Parkway . ABKCO has also begun to license its repertoire out to other labels, allowing Universal Music Group to license some songs for its Complete Introduction to Northern Soul box set in 2008, and allowing Collectors' Choice Music to reissue several albums in 2010. Despite these reissues, many more obscure Cameo-Parkway recordings, and even

3774-522: The Dovells , which featured Len Barry as the lead singer, released " Bristol Stomp ", which reached No. 2 in late 1961, followed by "Bristol Twistin' Annie," "(Do The New) Continental," "Hully Gully Baby" and other dance-related songs in 1962 and 1963. " You Can't Sit Down ", a vocal version of the Phil Upchurch instrumental hit, was No. 35 in Cash Box magazine's year end-survey for 1963. The R&B quartet

3876-656: The Elegants , the Mystics , the Duprees , Johnny Maestro & the Crests , and the Regents . Some doo-wop groups were racially mixed. Puerto Rican Herman Santiago , originally slated to be the lead singer of the Teenagers , wrote the lyrics and the music for a song to be called "Why Do Birds Sing So Gay?", but whether because he was ill or because producer George Goldner thought that newcomer Frankie Lymon 's voice would be better in

3978-459: The Flamingos ' "I Only Have Eyes for You", and the Jive Five " My True Story ". Teenagers who could not afford musical instruments formed groups that sang songs a cappella , performing at high school dances and other social occasions. They rehearsed on street corners and apartment stoops, as well as under bridges, in high school washrooms, and in hallways and other places with echoes: these were

4080-542: The Impalas , whose " Sorry (I Ran All the Way Home) " was a hit in 1959. Chico Torres was a member of the Crests, whose lead singer, Johhny Mastrangelo, would later gain fame under the name Johnny Maestro. Female doo-wop singers were much less common than males in the early days of doo-wop. Lillian Leach , lead singer of the Mellows from 1953 to 1958, helped pave the way for other women in doo-wop, soul and R&B . Margo Sylvia

4182-847: The Jaguars, the Jewels, the Meadowlarks , the Silks, the Squires, the Titans, and the Up-Fronts. A few groups, such as the Platters and Rex Middleton's Hi-Fis, had crossover success. The Jaguars, from Fremont High School, was one of the first interracial vocal groups; it consisted of two African Americans, a Mexican American, and a Polish-Italian American. Doo-wop was popular with California Mexican Americans, who were attracted in

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4284-928: The Lower East Side in Manhattan; Dion and the Belmonts, the Regents, and Nino and the Ebb Tides were from the Bronx; the Elegants from Staten Island; the Capris from Queens; the Mystics, the Neons, the Classics, and Vito & the Salutations from Brooklyn. Although Italians were a much smaller proportion of the Bronx's population in the 1950s than Jews and the Irish, only they had significant influence as rock 'n' roll singers. Young people of other ethnicities were listening to rock 'n' roll, but it

4386-573: The Ohio Express (originally on the Attack label as by The Rare Breed) (1967). Bogart also signed Bob Seger to his first recording contract, and Cameo-Parkway issued Seger's first five singles, which were all huge regional hits in Michigan but failed to catch fire nationally. In mid-1967, Cameo-Parkway entered into a short-lived distribution pact with MGM Records and released four more albums (two on Cameo, one on Parkway and one on Vando), and three more singles (one on Parkway and two on Vando). Cameo's final single, "Billy Sunshine" by Evie Sands (KC-2002),

4488-431: The Orlons released " The Wah-Watusi ", which hit No. 2 in the summer of 1962. They had a few more top 20 hits, including " Don't Hang Up ", " South Street ", "Not Me" and "Crossfire!" Fifteen-year-old Dee Dee Sharp had done a duet with Chubby Checker on "Slow Twistin'", and recorded her first solo single, " Mashed Potato Time ", on the same day. It went to No. 2 in the spring of 1962. More dance songs followed, including

4590-402: The R&B chart in 1958, Checker's version went to No. 1 in 1960, and again in early 1962. Checker had several hits, including " Pony Time " (his second No. 1), " Let's Twist Again ", " The Fly ", " Slow Twistin' " (with Dee Dee Sharp ), " Limbo Rock ", " Popeye the Hitchhiker ", " Birdland " and others. Around 1961, the Cameo and Parkway labels began developing some new stars. The vocal group

4692-469: The Swallows released "Beside You", their second national hit, which peaked at number 10 on the R&B chart. Some Baltimore doo-wop groups were connected with street gangs, and a few members were active in both scenes, such as Johnny Page of the Marylanders . As in all the major urban centers of the US, many of the teen gangs had their own street corner vocal groups in which they took great pride and which they supported fiercely. Competitive music and dance

4794-399: The United States after World War II was the most popular form of rhythm and blues music among black teenagers, especially those living in the large urban centers of the East Coast , in Chicago, and in Detroit. Among the first groups to perform songs in the vocal harmony group tradition were the Orioles , the Five Keys , and the Spaniels ; they specialized in romantic ballads that appealed to

4896-616: The above label variations, plus: Parkway albums also used all of the above label variations Wyncote Records was a budget label started in 1964. It released compilation albums of material by Cameo and Parkway artists as well as new albums of soundtrack and easy listening music. These records were mainly distributed in drug, book and department stores, usually through rack jobbers. Other related labels, mostly independently owned but distributed by Cameo-Parkway, included Several C/P labels were based on hometown suburbs, highways and landmarks, including... ABKCO reissued Cameo-Parkway recordings in

4998-415: The aim of getting signed to a record deal. The city of Chicago was outranked as a recording center in the United States only by New York City in the early years of the music recording industry . During the late 1940s and early 1950s, independent record labels gained control of the black record market from the major companies, and Chicago rose as one of the main centers for rhythm and blues music. This music

5100-487: The album You Can't Sit Down in 1963. The song was previously released by Jimmy Soul earlier that year and based on the song "Ugly Woman" by Roaring Lion . In 1963, American Bandstand signed the band to Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars national U.S. tour which was scheduled to perform its 15th show on the night of November 22, 1963 at the Memorial Auditorium in Dallas, Texas until suddenly the Friday evening event had to be cancelled moments after U.S. President John F. Kennedy

5202-466: The band were experienced gospel singers in ensembles dating to the 1940s, and were one of the oldest groups to record during the era. Among the Du Droppers' most enduring songs are "I Wanna Know" and "I Found Out (What You Do When You Go Round There)", which both reached number three on the Billboard R&B charts in 1953. Frankie Lymon, lead vocalist of the Teenagers , was the first black teen idol who appealed to both black and white audiences. He

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5304-585: The constraints of the built environment , to live in certain parts of New York City of the early 1950s. They identified with their own wards, street blocks and streets. Being effectively locked out of mainstream white society increased their social cohesion and encouraged creativity within the context of African American culture. Young singers formed groups and rehearsed their songs in public spaces: on street corners, apartment stoops, and subway platforms, in bowling alleys, school bathrooms, and pool halls, as well as at playgrounds and under bridges. Bobby Robinson ,

5406-447: The dances Laboe organized at Legion Stadium in El Monte, California , beginning in 1955. It included songs by local bands such as the Heartbeats and the Medallions . Laboe had become a celebrity in the Los Angeles area as a disc jockey for radio station KPOP , playing doo-wop and rhythm and blues broadcast from the parking lot of Scriverner's Drive-In on Sunset Boulevard . In 1962, Frank Zappa , with his friend Ray Collins, wrote

5508-421: The decade, Cameo continued to have hits by groups like the R&B group the Rays , who had a No. 3 hit with "Silhouettes" later that year (picked up from independent XYZ Records). In 1958, the label had further hits with " Dinner With Drac ", a novelty record by John Zacherle in the top 10, and "Mexican Hat Rock", an instrumental by the Applejacks , in the top 20. A major factor in Cameo-Parkway's success

5610-456: The distribution of Curtis Mayfield 's "Windy C" label), Bogart managed to shepherd in a brief Cameo-Parkway renaissance. The last major hits for the label were " 96 Tears " by Question Mark and the Mysterians (picked up from independent Pa-Go-Go Records), which went to No. 1 in the fall of 1966, a novelty remake of "Wild Thing" by comedian Bill Minkin imitating Robert F. Kennedy under the name Senator Bobby (1966), and "Beg, Borrow and Steal" by

5712-417: The doo-wop song " Memories of El Monte ". This was one of the first songs written by Zappa, who had been listening to Laboe's compilation of doo-wop singles . Zappa took the song to Laboe, who recruited the lead vocalist of the Penguins, Cleve Duncan, for a new iteration of the group, recorded it, and released it as a single on his record label. Early doo-wop music, dating from the late 1940s and early 1950s,

5814-474: The doo-wop style during the late 1950s. Doo-wop groups also formed on the west coast of the United States, especially in California, where the scene was centered in Los Angeles. Independent record labels owned by black entrepreneurs such as Dootsie Williams and John Dolphin recorded these groups, most of which had formed in high schools. One such group, the Penguins, included Cleveland "Cleve" Duncan and Dexter Tisby, former classmates at Fremont High School in

5916-509: The early 1960s and continued to influence performers in other genres. Doo-wop has complex musical, social, and commercial origins. Doo-wop's style is a mixture of precedents in composition, orchestration, and vocals that figured in American popular music created by songwriters and vocal groups, both black and white, from the 1930s to the 1940s. Such composers as Rodgers and Hart (in their 1934 song " Blue Moon "), and Hoagy Carmichael and Frank Loesser (in their 1938 " Heart and Soul ") used

6018-564: The early 1970s, but allowed them to fall out of print after that time. Virtually all Cameo-Parkway recordings, including all of their numerous chart hits, were officially unavailable in any format for about 30 years, from 1975 to 2005. In May 2005 ABKCO revived the Cameo-Parkway name for reissues only, and released a multi-CD box set of the labels' most notable output: Cameo-Parkway: 1957-1967 . In October 2005 it began to issue various single-artist "best of" CD compilations, including Charlie Gracie , Bobby Rydell , Chubby Checker , Dee Dee Sharp ,

6120-400: The first few years of, serving as backing musicians for the label's vocalists as well as issuing a handful of instrumental singles on their own. Lowe, also a musician, played piano on many early tracks. The first hit for Cameo was " Butterfly " by Charlie Gracie , which reached No. 1 nationally in early 1957; it was also Cameo-Parkway's first of five chart-toppers. Throughout the remainder of

6222-561: The follow-up "Gravy" and another dance song, " Ride! " In the summer of 1963 the No. 1 hit " So Much in Love " by the smooth R&B group the Tymes marked the last hit from Cameo-Parkway's peak period. In the UK, Cameo and Parkway recordings were released first on EMI's Parlophone label, then on London Records , then on Top Rank , then on EMI's Columbia label, then briefly Pye International , before finally appearing on their own Pye -distributed Cameo-Parkway label. In early 1964, three near-simultaneous events sent Cameo-Parkway into

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6324-419: The group was signed as the Teenagers with Lymon as lead singer. The song quickly charted as the number one R&B song in the United States and reached number six on the pop chart in 1956, becoming the number one pop hit in the United Kingdom as well. The Willows , an influential street corner group from Harlem, were a model for many of the New York City doo-wop acts that rose after them. Their biggest hit

6426-605: The harmonies. After two days of trying, Len asked Jerry to be part of the group and replace two of the other members. Sirlen and Shunkwiler were replaced by Gross and Freda. Mark went on to start his own group Tony & the Raindrops ("Our Love is Over", a local hit), and later joined The Dovells in the 1960s. Warren Purdy went to work for The Boeing Company. Roland Scarinci enlisted in The Marine Corps then went on to work for AT&T. The Dovells at that point (1961) were Len Borisoff (aka Len Barry), Gross, Silver, Mealey, and Freda, which went on to record eight hit records, starting with

6528-402: The label's willingness to ensure that quality musical acts were always available to the program on short notice. The label benefited tremendously from the arrangement, as the exposure many Cameo-Parkway artists received on American Bandstand helped propel them to stardom. In 1959, Bobby Rydell scored his first hits with " Kissin' Time " and " We Got Love " on Cameo. From 1960 to 1964, Rydell

6630-533: The label, and their biggest stars (Bobby Rydell and Chubby Checker) had also left. Cameo's new management was unable to replicate its success with artists like Jo Ann Campbell , Maynard Ferguson , Clark Terry , the instrumental group LeRoy & His Rockin' Fellers, and TV-stars-turned-singers such as Clint Eastwood and Merv Griffin . In mid-1966, 23-year-old Neil Bogart was made the label's new head of Artists and repertoire (A&R). Turning to Midwestern garage bands and orchestrated soul productions (including

6732-419: The late 1940s and was very popular in the 1950s, the term "doo-wop" itself did not appear in print until 1961, when it was used in reference to the Marcels ' song, "Blue Moon", in The Chicago Defender , just as the style's vogue was nearing its end. Though the name was attributed to radio disc jockey Gus Gossert, he did not accept credit, stating that "doo-wop" was already in use in California to categorize

6834-517: The late 1940s. Young aspiring performers would gather there in hopes of being discovered by the leading independent record company owners who courted Battle to promote and sell records, as well as to find new talent at his shop and studio. Battle's record labels included JVB, Von, Battle, Gone, and Viceroy; he also had subsidiary arrangements with labels such as King and Deluxe. He supplied Syd Nathan with many blues and doo-wop masters recorded in his primitive back-of-the-store studio from 1948 to 1954. As

6936-405: The late 1950s and early 1960s, many Italian-American groups had national hits: Dion and the Belmonts scored with " I Wonder Why ", " Teenager in Love ", and " Where or When "; the Capris made their name in 1960 with " There's a Moon Out Tonight "; Randy & the Rainbows , who charted with their Top 10 1963 single "Denise" . Other Italian-American doo-wop groups were the Earls , the Chimes ,

7038-510: The latest hits in hopes that the store owners' connections with record companies and distributors might land them an audition. A King Records talent scout discovered the Swallows as they were rehearsing in Goldstick's record store. Sam Azrael's Super Music Store and Shaw's shoeshine parlor were also favored hangouts for Baltimore vocal groups; Jerry Wexler and Ahmet Ertegun auditioned the Cardinals at Azrael's. Some groups cut demos at local studios and played them for recording producers , with

7140-439: The lead, Santiago's original version was not recorded. To suit his tenor voice Lymon made a few alterations to the melody, and consequently the Teenagers recorded the song known as " Why Do Fools Fall in Love? ". Racially integrated groups with both black and white performers included the Del-Vikings , who had major hits in 1957 with " Come Go With Me " and " Whispering Bells ", the Crests, whose " 16 Candles " appeared in 1958, and

7242-442: The lyrics. Particularly productive doo-wop groups were formed by young Italian-American men who, like their black counterparts, lived in rough neighborhoods (e.g., the Bronx and Brooklyn), learned their basic musical craft singing in church, and would gain experience in the new style by singing on street corners. New York was the capital of Italian doo-wop, and all its boroughs were home to groups that made successful records. By

7344-566: The music. "Doo-wop" is itself a nonsense expression. In the Delta Rhythm Boys ' 1945 recording, "Just A-Sittin' And A-Rockin", it is heard in the backing vocal . It is heard later in the Clovers ' 1953 release "Good Lovin'" (Atlantic Records 1000), and in the chorus of Carlyle Dundee & the Dundees' 1954 song "Never" (Space Records 201). The first hit record with "doo-wop" being harmonized in

7446-616: The nonsense phrase as vocalized by the bass singers, who provided rhythmic movement for a cappella songs. Soon, other doo-wop groups entered the pop charts , particularly in 1955, which saw such cross-over doo-wop hits as " Sincerely " by the Moonglows , " Earth Angel " by the Penguins , the Cadillacs' "Gloria", the Heartbeats' "A Thousand Miles Away", Shep & the Limelites' " Daddy's Home ",

7548-430: The only spaces with suitable acoustics available to them. Thus they developed a form of group harmony based in the harmonies and emotive phrasing of black spirituals and gospel music. Doo-wop music allowed these youths not only a means of entertaining themselves and others, but also a way of expressing their values and worldviews in a repressive white-dominated society, often through the use of innuendo and hidden messages in

7650-459: The pivotal recording mogul in the Detroit area, Battle was an important player in the independent label network. Jack and Devora Brown, a Jewish couple, founded Fortune Records in 1946 and recorded a variety of eccentric artists and sounds; in the mid-1950s they became champions of Detroit rhythm and blues, including the music of local doo-wop groups. Fortune's premier act was the Diablos , featuring

7752-400: The popular music of African Americans, treated it as their own, and were an appreciative audience for black doo-wop groups. Similarities in language idioms, masculine norms, and public comportment made it possible for African American and Italian American young men to mingle easily when societal expectations did not interfere. These cultural commonalities allowed Italian Americans to appreciate

7854-641: The refrain was the Turbans ' 1955 hit, "When You Dance" (Herald Records H-458). The Rainbows embellished the phrase as "do wop de wadda" in their 1955 "Mary Lee" (on Red Robin Records ; also a Washington, D.C. regional hit on Pilgrim 703); and in their 1956 national hit, " In the Still of the Night ", the Five Satins sang across the bridge with a plaintive "doo-wop, doo-wah". The vocal harmony group tradition that developed in

7956-529: The sexual fantasies of teenagers in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The nonsense string of syllables, "doo doo doo doo-wop", from which the name of the genre was later derived, is used repeatedly in the song "Just A Sittin' And A Rockin", recorded by the Delta Rhythm Boys in December 1945. By the mid-1950s, vocal harmony groups had transformed the smooth delivery of ballads into a performance style incorporating

8058-426: The singing of black doo-woppers in deterritorialized spaces, whether on the radio, on records, at live concerts, or in street performances. Dozens of neighborhood Italian groups formed, some of which recorded songs at Cousins Records, a record shop turned label, on Fordham Road. Italian American groups from the Bronx released a steady stream of doo-wop songs, including "Teenager In Love" and "I Wonder Why" by Dion and

8160-521: The so-called " Chitlin Circuit ", which served as a school of the performing arts for blacks who had migrated from the deep South , and even more so for their offspring. In the late 1940s, the Orioles rose from the streets and made a profound impression on young chitlin' circuit audiences in Baltimore. The group, formed in 1947, sang simple ballads in rhythm and blues harmony, with the standard arrangement of

8262-557: The soaring tenor of lead vocalist Nolan Strong, a native of Alabama. The group's most notable hit was " The Wind ". Strong, like other R&B and doo-wop tenors of the time, was profoundly influenced by Clyde McPhatter , lead singer of the Dominoes and later of the Drifters. Strong himself made a lasting impression on the young Smokey Robinson , who went out of his way to attend Diablo shows. In late 1957, seventeen-year-old Robinson, fronting

8364-564: The success of two teen groups from the Bronx, the Chantels and the Bobbettes . The six girls in the Bobettes, aged eleven to fifteen, wrote and recorded "Mr. Lee", a novelty tune about a schoolteacher that was a national hit. The Chantels were the second African-American girl group to enjoy nationwide success in the US. The group was established in the early 1950s by five students, all of them born in

8466-573: The tastes of the American record buying public. In a 2021 retrospective, Ken Barnes, analyzing the hit acts of 1963, noted that Cameo-Parkway acts were among the hardest hit by the Invasion, with most acts associated with them suffering permanent career damage; Barnes also cited the Bandstand move and the rise of Motown Records as other factors in Cameo-Parkway's downfall. Cameo tried to keep pace by licensing

8568-495: The three worked together as a production team on many early Cameo releases. Mann and Lowe wrote many of the label's early singles, while Mann and Appell also became a successful songwriting team that was responsible for many of the label's hits, particularly after Lowe cut back on his songwriting around 1961, to attend to the business of running the label. In addition, Appell's group the Applejacks functioned as Cameo's house band for

8670-511: The white teen audience at first—when the Orioles took the stage, they were appealing directly to a young black audience, with Sonny Til using his entire body to convey the emotion in the lyrics of their songs. He became a teen sex symbol for black girls, who reacted by screaming and throwing pieces of clothing onto the stage when he sang. Other young male vocalists of the era took note and adjusted their own acts accordingly. The Orioles were soon displaced by newer groups who imitated these pioneers as

8772-621: Was " Church Bells May Ring ", featuring Neil Sedaka , then a member of the Linc-Tones , on chimes . It reached number 11 on the US R&;B chart in 1956. Although they never had a national chart hit, the Solitaires , best known for their 1957 hit single " Walking Along ", were one of the most popular vocal groups in New York in the late 1950s. The heyday of the girl group era began in 1957 with

8874-425: Was Italian Americans who established themselves in performing and recording the music. While relationships between Italian Americans and African Americans in the Bronx were sometimes fraught, there were many instances of collaboration between them. Italian Americans kept African Americans out of their neighborhoods with racial boundary policing and fought against them in turf wars and gang battles , yet they adopted

8976-461: Was a New York venue from which some doo-wop groups gained national exposure. In 1948, the Orioles, then known as the Vibra-Nairs, went to the city with Deborah Chessler , their manager and main songwriter, and appeared on the show. They won only third place, but Godfrey invited them back twice. Chessler leveraged a few demo recordings the group had cut, along with the recent radio exposure, to interest

9078-718: Was a part of African American street culture, and with the success of some local groups, competition increased, leading to territorial rivalries among performers. Pennsylvania Avenue served as a boundary between East and West Baltimore, with the East producing the Swallows and the Cardinals and the Blentones , while the West was home to the Orioles and the Four Buddies . Baltimore vocal groups gathered at neighborhood record stores, where they practiced

9180-467: Was a vital source for the youth music called rock 'n' roll. In the mid-1950s, a number of rhythm and blues acts performing in the vocal ensemble style later known as doo-wop began to cross over from the R&B charts to mainstream rock 'n' roll. The Chicago record companies took note of this trend and scouted for vocal groups from the city that they could sign to their labels. The record labels , record distributors, and nightclub owners of Chicago all had

9282-635: Was almost always a cappella ; instrumental accompaniment was added when the songs were recorded. The large numbers of blacks who had migrated to New York City as part of the Great Migration came mostly from Georgia, Florida, and the Carolinas. In the 1940s black youths in the city began to sing the rhythm and blues styling that came to be known as doo-wop. Many of these groups were found in Harlem . Blacks were forced by legal and social segregation, as well as by

9384-530: Was also the parent company name for both labels, and Parkway was a subsidiary. In 1962, the parent company was renamed from Cameo to Cameo-Parkway, to give both labels equal status. In some foreign markets, Cameo-Parkway was also a label name, issuing records by artists from both labels. The Cameo-Parkway catalogue is currently owned by ABKCO Records . Cameo Records was founded in December 1956 in Philadelphia by Bernie Lowe and Kal Mann ; it has no connection to

9486-697: Was assassinated that afternoon while touring Dallas in an open car caravan. The Dovells continued as a trio , and recorded as The Magistrates for MGM in 1968. As the Magistrates, they recorded the chart hit "Here Comes the Judge," taking advantage of the popularity of the skit on the TV show Laugh-In . Gross and Freda wrote and produced the song, added the female voice of Jean Yost (Hillary), and performed as The Magistrates as well as The Dovells. Freda left to do his own thing in 1969. The Dovells (Gross-Silver-Stevens) went on to be

9588-544: Was born in Harlem, where he began singing doo-wop songs with his friends on the streets. He joined a group, the Premiers, and helped members Herman Santiago and Jimmy Merchant rewrite a song they had composed to create " Why Do Fools Fall In Love ", which won the group an audition with Gee Records . Santiago was too sick to sing lead on the day of the audition, consequently Lymon sang the lead on "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" instead, and

9690-725: Was especially popular in the Northeast industrial corridor from New York to Philadelphia, and New York City was the world capital of doo-wop. There, African American groups such as the Ravens, the Drifters, the Dominoes, the Charts , and the so-called "bird groups", such as the Crows, the Sparrows, the Larks, and the Wrens , melded rhythm and blues with the gospel music they had grown up singing in church. Street singing

9792-485: Was its relationship with the Philadelphia-based TV program American Bandstand . Being located in the same city where this popular nationally broadcast music show was produced meant that Cameo-Parkway artists were always available to perform on the show—especially in the event any other act should cancel. Host and producer Dick Clark has spoken of the "warm relationship" his program had with Cameo-Parkway, and of

9894-475: Was licensed to and released nationally by Chess Records because the fledgling Motown Record Corporation did not, at that time, have national distribution. "Bad Girl" was the group's first national chart hit, reaching number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100. Written by Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson and Motown Records' president Berry Gordy, "Bad Girl" was the first of several of the Miracles' songs performed in

9996-607: Was more influenced by gospel and blues. Vee-Jay Records and Chess Records were the main labels recording doo-wop groups in Chicago. Vee-Jay signed the Dells , the El Dorados , the Magnificents , and the Spaniels, all of whom achieved national chart hits in the mid-1950s. Chess signed the Moonglows, who had the most commercial success (seven Top 40 R&B hits, six of those Top Ten ) of

10098-501: Was originally released with the red and yellow "CP" label then reissued with the new MGM-designated label. For the first time both label names appeared on the record labels, although neither the Cameo or Parkway name was emphasized, and the two series continued to use separate catalog numbering systems. That suggests that a gradual merger of the two labels was in progress, but it was never completed. By late 1967, after financial problems worsened,

10200-509: Was released on the Laurie Records label in 1963. "He's So Fine" hit No. 1 in the US, selling over one million copies. Public School 99, which sponsored evening talent shows, and Morris High School were centers of musical creativity in the Bronx during the doo-wop era. Arthur Crier, a leading figure in the doo-wop scene in the Morrissania neighborhood, was born in Harlem and raised in

10302-702: Was the label's second largest hit maker after Chubby Checker , scoring with such hits as " Wild One " (his biggest hit, peaking at No. 2), " Swingin' School ", " Volare ", " The Cha-Cha-Cha ", " Forget Him " and others. Chubby Checker had a minor novelty hit in the summer of 1959 called "The Class", which featured Checker doing comic imitations of singers Fats Domino , the Coasters , Elvis Presley , drummer Cozy Cole , and Ricky Nelson , Frankie Avalon , and Fabian Forte as The Chipmunks . In 1960, Checker's cover of Hank Ballard 's " The Twist " became Parkway's first big hit. Although Ballard's version only reached No. 16 on

10404-567: Was the lead singer for the Tune Weavers . Like other urban centers in the US during the late 1940s and early 1950s, Baltimore developed its own vocal group tradition. The city produced rhythm and blues innovators such as the Cardinals , the Orioles , and the Swallows . The Royal Theatre in Baltimore and the Howard in Washington, D.C. were among the most prestigious venues for black performers on

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