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Cameo-Parkway
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 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. History Cameo Records was founded in December 1956 in Philadelphia by Bernie Lowe and Kal Mann (it has no connection to 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 sta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby Rydell
Robert Louis Ridarelli (April 26, 1942 – April 5, 2022), known by the stage name Bobby Rydell, was an American singer and actor who mainly performed rock and roll and traditional pop music. In the early 1960s he was considered a teen idol. His most well-known songs include " Wildwood Days," " Wild One" and " Volare" (cover of an Italian song by Domenico Modugno, " Nel blu, dipinto di blu"); in 1963 he appeared in the musical film ''Bye Bye Birdie''. In the 1980s, he joined a trio called The Golden Boys, with fellow former teen idols Frankie Avalon and Fabian Forte. He continued to tour up until his death in 2022. Early life Rydell was born in April 1942 and was the son of Jennie Ridarelli (nee Sapienza) and Adrio "Al" Ridarelli. Both of his parents were of Italian descent. He grew up in the Lower Moyamensing neighborhood of South Philadelphia. As a child, he mimicked the singers he saw on television, and at the age of seven his father took him around the clubs of Philadelphi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ABKCO Records
ABKCO Music & Records, Inc. (Allen & Betty Klein Company) is a major American independent record label, music publisher, and film and video production company. It owns and/or administers the rights to music by Sam Cooke, the Rolling Stones, the Animals, Herman's Hermits, Marianne Faithfull, Dishwalla, the Kinks as well as the Cameo Parkway label, which includes recordings by such artists as Chubby Checker, Bobby Rydell, the Orlons, the Dovells, Question Mark & the Mysterians, the Tymes and Dee Dee Sharp. Until 2009, ABKCO administered Philles Records and its master recordings, including hits by the Righteous Brothers, the Ronettes, the Crystals and others (via a licensing deal with EMI Music Publishing, which owned the Philles catalog since the mid-1990s). ABKCO Records is currently distributed by Universal Music Distribution, which also controls distribution of the Rolling Stones' post-ABKCO catalog through Polydor Records and Interscope Records. In addition to music, ABKCO con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bernie Lowe
Bernard Lowe (born Lowenthal, November 22, 1917 – September 1, 1993) was an American songwriter, record producer, arranger, pianist and bandleader. Born in Philadelphia, Lowe started Teen Records and in 1955 was working with Freddie Bell and the Bellboys. He asked Bell to rewrite the lyrics of " Hound Dog" to appeal to a broader radio audience. Teen Records and the group had a regional hit with this version of the song, which was one of four songs the group did with Lowe. It was this same version that Elvis Presley heard in Las Vegas, Nevada, adopted, recorded, and made his own. Lowe went on to co-pen with Kal Mann the chart-topping song, "Teddy Bear", for the same singer. Lowe sometimes masqueraded as 'Harold Land'. This enabled him to be affiliated with both ASCAP and BMI. Lowe founded Philadelphia, Pennsylvania's Cameo Records in 1956, and Cameo was later expanded into the Cameo-Parkway Records label. The owners then signed a then unknown singer, Ernest Evans, to their bu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charlie Gracie
Charles Anthony Graci (May 14, 1936 – December 16, 2022), known professionally as Charlie Gracie, was an American rock and roll and rhythm and blues singer and guitarist. His biggest hits were "Butterfly" and " Fabulous", both in 1957. Career Early career Charlie Gracie was born in South Philadelphia to Santo ("Sam") and Mary Graci (née Cappizzi), who were both of Sicilian heritage. At the age of 10, Gracie's father encouraged him to play the guitar. His musical career started at the age of 16 when he appeared on the Paul Whiteman television show in 1952. Gracie performed at weddings, local restaurants, and parties, and on local radio and television. He also won regional talent contests. Charlie graduated from South Philadelphia High School in 1952. The owner of Cadillac Records, Graham Prince, heard one of Gracie's early radio performances, contacted the young musician and signed him to a recording contract. This association yielded the single "Boogie Woogie Blues" backe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dave Appell
David Appell (March 24, 1922 – November 18, 2014) was an American musician, musical arranger and record producer born in Philadelphia. Career Appell (pronounced "AP-el") is associated mainly with the Cameo-Parkway record label, in whose history he played a substantial part. He started working as an arranger for several United States Navy big bands in the mid-1940s during his service in World War II, including Jimmie Lunceford's black orchestra. He later arranged for dance orchestras, including Benny Carter and Earl "Fatha" Hines. He recorded for a while on Decca Records as the Dave Appell Four, until Paul Cohen of Decca suggested he change the group name to the Applejacks. Appell also became a publisher, joining ASCAP in 1955, collaborating with Max Freedman. He appeared prominently in the 1956 Alan Freed film, ''Don't Knock the Rock'', and worked for a while as the studio band and music director on the Ernie Kovacs TV and radio shows in Philadelphia. Next Appell and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cameo Records
Cameo Records was an American record label that flourished in the 1920s. It was owned by the Cameo Record Corporation in New York City. Cameo released a disc by Lucille Hegamin every two months from 1921 to 1926. Cameo records are also noted for dance music. The catalogue also included the Original Memphis Five and the Varsity Eight. Musicians such as Red Nichols, Miff Mole, Adrian Rollini, and Frank Signorelli made trips to the Cameo studios. In 1926, Cameo started recording using a microphone-electrical process. An interesting blues number is 583, "Crazy Blues", by Salt & PepperListen to the podcast at 26:46, where the disc is mentioned as an "early electric". The Cameo Record Corporation started Lincoln Records (1924) and Romeo Records (1926). In 1928 it merged with Pathé Records, and then the American Record Corporation. The resulting company stopped using the Cameo name in the 1930s. This label is not affiliated with Cameo-Parkway Records which was active in the 1950s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kissin' Time (song)
"Kissin' Time" is a song by the American rock and roll singer Bobby Rydell. It was released in 1959 on Cameo-Parkway Records. Written by Bernie Lowe and Kal Mann, the track was Rydell's first single and it would also go on to be his first Top 20 hit. Background Bernie Lowe and Kal Mann, founders of Rydell's label, wrote "Kissin' Time". In the US, it quickly became a number 11 hit on the Hot 100, number 29 on the Hot R&B Sides chart, and number 5 in the Canadian CHUM Charts. The popularity of his first single, made Rydell (then a 17-year-old) a "teen idol", whose success was followed by a tour through Australia with The Everly Brothers, Billy "Crash" Craddock, Marv Johnson, the Champs and the Crickets. Rydell recorded a new version of "Kissin' Time" to fit Australia ("they're kissin' in Sydney. Perth and Brisbane too..."). Kiss version In 1974, the hard rock band Kiss released its eponymous debut album. The record struggled to stay on the charts and the group was in need of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Bandstand
''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the program's producer. It featured teenagers dancing to Top 40 music introduced by Clark; at least one popular musical act—over the decades, running the gamut from Jerry Lee Lewis to Run–D.M.C.—usually appeared in person to lip-sync one of their latest singles. Freddy Cannon holds the record for most appearances, at 110. The show's popularity helped Dick Clark become an American media mogul and inspired similar long-running music programs, such as '' Soul Train'' and British series ''Top of the Pops''. Clark eventually assumed ownership of the program through his Dick Clark Productions company. Background ''American Bandstand'' premiered locally in late March 1952 as ''Bandstand'' on Philadelphia television station WFIL-TV Channel 6 (n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Zacherle
John Zacherle ( ; sometimes credited as John Zacherley; September 26, 1918 – October 27, 2016) was an American television host, radio personality, singer, and voice actor. He was best known for his long career as a television horror host, often broadcasting horror films in Philadelphia and New York City in the 1950s and 1960s. Best known for his character of "Roland/Zacherley", he also did voice work for films, and recorded the top ten novelty rock and roll song "Dinner With Drac" in 1958. He also edited two collections of horror stories, ''Zacherley's Vulture Stew'' and ''Zacherley's Midnight Snacks''. Biography Zacherle was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, the youngest of four children of a bank clerk and his wife. He grew up in Philadelphia's Germantown neighborhood, where he went to high school. He received a bachelor's degree in English literature from the University of Pennsylvania. In World War II he enlisted in the United States Army and served in N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Rays
The Rays were an American group formed in New York City in 1955, and active into the early 1960s. They first recorded for Chess Records. Their biggest hit single was "Silhouettes", a moderately-slow doo-wop piece of pop music that reached number 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1957 on Cameo after being initially released on the small XYZ Records. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. The song was written by Bob Crewe and Frank Slay, Jr. Also on XYZ, they had a minor hit with "Mediterranean Moon" a mid-chart hit with "Magic Moon" (by this time, XYZ was being nationally distributed by London Records). They also recorded the original version of " Daddy Cool", which was used as part of a medley with Little Richard's "The Girl Can't Help It", for the UK band Darts which made number 6 in the UK Singles Chart in 1977. The song also lent its name to the Australian band Daddy Cool, who recorded the song in 1971. "Silhouettes" was also released by The Diamon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Butterfly (1957 Song)
"Butterfly" is a popular song written by Bernie Lowe and Kal Mann and published in 1957. The song is credited to Anthony September as songwriter in some sources. This was a pseudonym of Anthony Mammarella, producer of ''American Bandstand''. The original recording of the song by Charlie Gracie reached No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Juke Box chart, No. 10 on the R&B chart and No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart in 1957. Andy Williams recording A cover version by Andy Williams reached No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Top 100 chart in 1957. Williams' version also reached No. 1 the UK in May 1957, where it spent two weeks, and also reached No. 14 on the US R&B chart. The Charlie Gracie and Andy Williams versions were ranked #20 on the first Canadian CHUM Chart, May 27, 1957. Other versions *A version recorded by Bob Carroll on Bally Records made the charts in 1957 peaking at No. 61. *The Crests recorded a cover version for their 1960 album, ''The Crests Sing All Biggies''. *Tommy Steele - i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
We Got Love (Bobby Rydell Song)
"We Got Love" is a song written by Bernie Lowe and Kal Mann. It was first released as a single by Bobby Rydell in 1959. The song became a hit, spending 17 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at No. 6, while reaching No. 4 on the ''Cash Box'' Top 100, and No. 5 on Canada's CHUM Hit Parade. Other versions *A cover version by Alma Cogan was released in late 1959, and reached No. 26 on the UK's ''New Musical Express'' chart. *A French-language version, titled "Je Compte Sur Toi", was issued by Petula Clark in 1960, and reached No. 36 in Wallonia. *The song was also covered by Tom Jones in 2009 at a Vincent Moon Take-Away Show video session. *A Swedish-language version, "Jag är kär" (I'm in love) by Britt Damberg Britt Damberg (married Britt Elisabet Lindroth; 11 January 1937 – 31 March 2019) was a Swedish Schlager and jazz singer and occasional actress. Life and career In 1954, Britt Damberg first entered the world of music finishing second in an am ... was releas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
