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Marcels
The Marcels were an American doo-wop group known for turning popular music songs into rock and roll. The group formed in 1959 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and signed to Colpix Records with lead Cornelius Harp, bass Fred Johnson, Gene Bricker, Ron Mundy, and Richard Knauss. The group was named after a popular hair style of the day, the marcel wave, by Fred Johnson's younger sister Priscilla. Career In 1961, the Marcels released a doo-wop cover of the ballad "Blue Moon" that began with the bass singer singing, "bomp-baba-bomp-ba-bomp-ba-bomp-bomp... vedanga-dang-dang-vadinga-dong-ding...". The record sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc. It is featured in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. The disc went to number one in the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart. In the US, additional revivals in the same vein as "Blue Moon"—" Heartaches" and " My Melancholy Baby"—were less successful, although "Heartaches" ...
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Blue Moon (1934 Song)
"Blue Moon" is a popular song written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1934 that has become a standard ballad. Early recordings included those by Connee Boswell and by Al Bowlly in 1935. The song was a hit twice in 1949, with successful recordings in the U.S. by Billy Eckstine and Mel Tormé. In 1961, "Blue Moon" became an international number-one hit for the doo-wop group The Marcels, on the ''Billboard'' 100 chart and in the UK Singles Chart, and later that same year, an instrumental version by The Ventures charted at No. 54. Over the years, "Blue Moon" has been covered by many artists, including versions by Frank Sinatra, Jo Stafford, Ella Fitzgerald, Under the Streetlamp, Ray Stevens, Billie Holiday, Al Bowlly, Amália Rodrigues, Elvis Presley, Bobby Vinton, Sam Cooke, The Platters, The Mavericks, Dean Martin, Yvonne De Carlo, The Supremes, Cyndi Lauper, New Edition, Bob Dylan, Chromatics, and Rod Stewart. Bing Crosby included the song in a medley on his album ''On th ...
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Blue Moon (The Marcels Album)
''Blue Moon'' is the debut studio album by the doo-wop group The Marcels. It was released in 1961 on Colpix Records and included 12 songs. The album was available in mono, catalogue number CP-416. ''Blue Moon'' was produced and arranged by Stu Phillips and recorded in New York at RCA Studios. ''Blue Moon'' features a cover version of the Judy Garland hit "Over the Rainbow". Four decades after the group's debut album was released, the Marcels were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. Reception Although the album ''Blue Moon'' failed to chart on the ''Billboard'' albums chart, the first single "Blue Moon" did well. The single charted at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for three weeks, charted at No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart, sold one million copies and the group was awarded a gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such ...
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Heartaches (song)
"Heartaches" is a song written by composer Al Hoffman and singer John Klenner and originally published in 1931. A fast-tempo instrumental version of the song by Ted Weems and his Orchestra became a major hit in 1947, topping the ''Billboard'' Best Selling Singles chart. Later versions by band leader Harry James and doo-wop group the Marcels were also chart successes. "Heartaches" has received renewed attention in the 2010s and 2020s after several 1930s recordings of the song, including a version by Sid Phillips & his Melodians with Al Bowlly, were sampled in the Caretaker's album ''Everywhere at the End of Time''. Early recordings Al Hoffman composed "Heartaches" after moving to New York City in a bid to become a successful songwriter; though it was not initially a major hit, it has been described by ''Billboard'' as Hoffman's first great song. The song's lyrics were written by John Klenner. A 1931 recording by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians on Columbia (catalogue number 2 ...
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Doo-wop
Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre 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, DC, and Los Angeles. It features vocal group harmony that carries an engaging melodic line to 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 the early 1960s, but continued to influence performers in other genres.Hoffmann, FRoots of Rock: Doo-Wop In ''Survey of American Popular Music'', modified for the web by Robert Birklin ...
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Doo-wop
Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre 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, DC, and Los Angeles. It features vocal group harmony that carries an engaging melodic line to 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 the early 1960s, but continued to influence performers in other genres.Hoffmann, FRoots of Rock: Doo-Wop In ''Survey of American Popular Music'', modified for the web by Robert Birklin ...
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Marcel Wave
Marcelling is a hair styling technique in which hot curling tongs are used to induce a curl into the hair. Its appearance was similar to that of a finger wave but it is created using a different method. Marcelled hair was a popular style for women's hair in the 1920s, often in conjunction with a bob cut. For those women who had longer hair, it was common to tie the hair at the nape of the neck and pin it above the ear with a stylish hair pin or flower. One famous wearer was Josephine Baker. History Accounts vary about the invention of the style, but Marcel Grateau (October 18, 1852–May 31, 1936) is widely credited with inventing the hair styling technique in the 1870s (differing accounts report 1872 or 1875). The inventor and stylist emigrated to the United States and changed his name to François Marcel Woelfflé, sometimes reported as François Marcel. He was granted U.S. patents for implements for performing the technique; the first, U.S. patent 806386, entitled "Curling ...
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Colpix Records
Colpix Records was the first recording company for Columbia Pictures–Screen Gems. Colpix got its name from combining Columbia (Col) and Pictures (Pix). CBS, which owned Columbia Records, then sued Columbia Pictures for trademark infringement over the Colpix name. It was founded by Jonie Taps and Harry Cohn in 1958 and was based in New York City. Paul Wexler headed the label. Stu Phillips was in charge of A&R. Lester Sill later headed the label, after breaking with Philles Records partner Phil Spector. The label's roster included Lou Christie, James Darren, Paul Petersen, Freddie Scott, Tommy Boyce. Two of the label's best known number one hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Singles Charts were "Blue Moon" by the Marcels in the spring of 1961 (also a number one in the UK, where Colpix was licensed to Pye International), and "Johnny Angel" by Shelley Fabares in the spring of 1962. Bernadette Castro recorded for the label "Get Rid of Him"/"A Girl in Love Forgives" and "His Lips G ...
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Doo Wop 50
Doo Wop 50 was a PBS pledge drive special created and produced for PBS member station WQED-TV by TJ Lubinsky, grandson of Herman Lubinsky (founder of Savoy Records). The special was inspired by a 1994 CD box-set of doo wop music produced and sold by Rhino Records, which was also a development and production partner in the special. It aired on December 5, 1999. Doo Wop 50 was videotaped live at The Benedum Center For The Performing Arts, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on May 11 & 12, 1999. It showcased many doo-wop groups that had existed since the 1950s, and was hosted by former Impressions lead and soul soloist Jerry Butler. It was followed by Doo Wop 51 and the American Soundtrack series. Doo Wop 50 became the highest-producing pledge drive special in the history of PBS at that time, garnering more than $20 million for its member stations. The American Soundtrack series has become a mainstay for PBS and WQED. Groups on the program Part One Herb Reed's Platters *" Only You" *"The ...
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Vocal Group Hall Of Fame
The Vocal Group Hall of Fame (VGHF) is an American-based hall of fame that honors vocal groups throughout the world in every genre of music. Headquartered in the Columbia Theatre in Sharon, Pennsylvania, it includes a theater and a museum. It was established in 1998 by Tony Butala, the founding member (and now only surviving original member) of The Lettermen. The VGHF typically inducts sixteen artists annually. Unlike the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, artists are inducted within categories, with each category having at least one representative. These categories include 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and duos. The Vocal Group Hall of Fame releases a public ballot, allowing everyone to vote for both the nominees and the inductees. While only groups are eligible, solo vocalists may be inducted if they have a legitimate backing band with backing singers (for example, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers). The VGHF has been on hiatus since 2008, as well as the theater and museum. Hist ...
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The Earth Angels
The Earth Angels are a Spanish doo-wop vocal group from Barcelona, Catalonia which performs a cappella music. On tour, they also sing on city streets. The group formed in 2007, when bass-baritone Christian Carrasco (son of Rafael Carrasco, second drummer of the Spanish band Los Sírex) announced that he was looking for a doo-wop singer and found lead vocalist Jordi Majó. They specialize in cover versions of rare doo-wop songs, many originally recorded between 1958 and 1964. The Earth Angels released a music video, directed by David Conill and Christina Scheper, in which they covered the Valiants' 1958 "This is the Night for Love". The group released '' Street Corner Style'', an album of 15 covers and two original songs, in 2010. They were called the premier band of Rockin' Records' Today's Doo Wop Masters Series. The Earth Angels owe their success in the United States to their discovery by ''Doowop Cafe'' host Joe Conroy (DJ Brad). The Internet radio station is dedicated to ...
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Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 positions but was shortened to 50 positions in October 2012. The chart is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, rock and roll, soul, and funk, it is today dominated by contemporary R&B and hip hop. Since its inception, the chart has changed its name many times in order to accurately reflect the industry at the time. History Beginning in 1942, ''Billboard'' published a chart of bestselling black music, first as the Harlem Hit Parade, then as Race Records. Then in 1949, ''Billboard'' began publishing a Rhythm and Blues chart, which entered "R&B" into mainstream lexicon. These three charts were consolid ...
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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the Allegheny Mountains, the paper formed under its present title in 1927 from the consolidation of the ''Pittsburgh Gazette Times'' and ''The Pittsburgh Post''. The ''Post-Gazette'' ended daily print publication in 2018 and has cut down to two print editions per week (Sunday and Thursday), going online-only the rest of the week. In the 2010s, the editorial tone of the paper shifted from liberal to conservative, particularly after the editorial pages of the paper were consolidated in 2018 with '' The Blade'' of Toledo, Ohio. After the consolidation, Keith Burris, the pro-Trump editorial page editor of '' The Blade'', directed the editorial pages of both papers. Early history ''Gazette'' The ''Post-Gazette'' began its history as a four-page w ...
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