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 label, with Mann writing lyrics and Lowe the music; their biggest hit prior to starting the label was
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
's "
(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear
"(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear" is a popular song first recorded by Elvis Presley in 1957 for the soundtrack of his second motion picture, '' Loving You'', during which Presley performs the song on screen. It was written by Kal Mann and Bernie ...
".
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 his ...
joined the label from its inception as
A&R director, and 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 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
Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprise ...
" 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 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 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
Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...
has spoken of the "warm relationship" his program had with Cameo-Parkway, and of 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 was the label's second largest hit maker after
Chubby Checker
Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including The Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnight ...
, scoring with such hits as "
Wild One" (his biggest hit, peaking at No. 2), "Swingin' School", "
Volare", "
The Cha-Cha-Cha
"The Cha-Cha-Cha" is a song released in 1962 by Bobby Rydell.
Background
The song tells of the singer's desire to have his "baby" dance the Cha-Cha-Cha, while bemoaning the dance trends of the day (directly referencing the Twist, Wah-Watusi, Hul ...
", "
Forget Him" and others.
Chubby Checker
Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including The Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnight ...
had a minor novelty hit in the summer of 1959 called "The Class", which featured Checker doing comic imitations of singers
Fats Domino
Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American pianist, singer and songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New O ...
,
the Coasters
The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group who had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with " Searchin'" and " Young Blood" in 1957, their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producin ...
,
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
, drummer
Cozy Cole
William Randolph "Cozy" Cole (October 17, 1909 – January 9, 1981) was an American jazz drummer who worked with Cab Calloway and Louis Armstrong among others and led his own groups.
Life and career
William Randolph Cole was born in East Or ...
, and
Ricky Nelson
Eric Hilliard Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985) was an American musician, songwriter and actor. From age eight he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. In 1957, he bega ...
,
Frankie Avalon
Francis Thomas Avallone (born September 18, 1940), better known as Frankie Avalon, is an American actor, singer, and former teen idol. He had 31 charting U.S. ''Billboard'' singles from 1958 to late 1962, including number one hits, "Venus" an ...
, and
Fabian Forte
Fabian Forte (born Fabiano Anthony Forte, February 6, 1943), professionally known as Fabian, is an American singer and actor.
Forte rose to national prominence after performing several times on '' American Bandstand''. He became a teen idol o ...
as
The Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three ...
. In 1960, Checker's cover of
Hank Ballard
Hank Ballard (born John Henry Kendricks; November 18, 1927 – March 2, 2003) was an American singer and songwriter, the lead vocalist of The Midnighters and one of the first rock and roll artists to emerge in the early 1950s. He played an inte ...
's "
The Twist" became Parkway's first big hit. Although Ballard's version only reached No. 16 on 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
"Let's Twist Again" is a song written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell, and released as a single by Chubby Checker. One of the biggest hit singles of 1961, it reached No.8 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' pop chart (No.3 on ''Cash Box'') in August of that ...
", "
The Fly", "Slow Twistin'" (with
Dee Dee Sharp
Dee Dee Sharp (born Dione LaRue; September 9, 1945, in Philadelphia) is an American R&B singer, who began her career recording as a backing vocalist in 1961.
Career
Although Sharp had been playing the piano from an early age and directed chur ...
), "Limbo Rock", "Popeye (The Hitchhiker)", "Birdland" and others.
Around 1961, the Cameo and Parkway labels began developing some new stars. The vocal group
the Dovells
The Dovells were an American doo-wop group, formed at Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1957, under the name 'The Brooktones'. The original members were Arnie Silver, Len Borisoff, Jerry Gross (alias Summers), Mike Freda, a ...
, which featured
Len Barry
Leonard Warren Borisoff (June 12, 1942 – November 5, 2020), known professionally as Len Barry, was an American singer, songwriter, lyricist, record producer, author, and poet.
Life and career
Born on June 12, 1942 and raised in Philadelphia, ...
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
Philip Upchurch (born July 19, 1941) is an American jazz and blues guitarist and bassist.
Career
Upchurch started his career working with the Kool Gents, the Dells, and the Spaniels, before going on to work with Curtis Mayfield, Otis Rush, an ...
instrumental hit, was No. 35 in Cash Box magazine's year end-survey for 1963. The R&B quartet
the Orlons
The Orlons are an American R&B group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that formed in 1960. The group won gold discs for three of their singles.
Career
The quartet consisted of lead singer Rosetta Hightower (June 23, 1944 – August 2, 2014), Sh ...
released "
The Wah-Watusi
"The Wah-Watusi" is a song written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell and performed by The Orlons. It reached No.2 on the U.S. pop chart behind Bobby Vinton's " Roses Are Red (My Love)", No.5 on the U.S. R&B chart, and No. 12 in Canada in 1962. It wa ...
", 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
Dee Dee Sharp (born Dione LaRue; September 9, 1945, in Philadelphia) is an American R&B singer, who began her career recording as a backing vocalist in 1961.
Career
Although Sharp had been playing the piano from an early age and directed chur ...
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 the follow-up "Gravy" and another dance song, "
Ride!
"Ride!" is a song written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell and performed by Dee Dee Sharp. It was featured on the 1963 album ''All the Hits (Volume II)''.
The single sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc.
Background
The song beg ...
"
In the summer of 1963 the No. 1 hit "
So Much in Love
"So Much in Love" is a song written by George Williams and Bill Jackson, and arranged by Roy Straigis. It was originally performed by the Tymes and was the group's first hit single, topping the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart on August 3, 19 ...
" by the smooth R&B group
the Tymes
The Tymes are an American soul vocal group who enjoyed equal success in the United Kingdom and in their homeland. They are one of the few acts to have one and only one chart-topper in both the US and UK with different songs.
Early career
The ...
marked the last hit from Cameo-Parkway's peak period.
UK distribution
In the UK, Cameo and Parkway recordings were released first on EMI's
Parlophone
Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...
label, then on
London Records, then on
Top Rank
Top Rank, Inc. is a boxing promotional company founded by Jabir Herbert Muhammad and Bob Arum, which was incorporated in 1973, and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Since its founding, Top Rank has promoted many world class fighters, including Muh ...
, then on EMI's
Columbia label, then briefly
Pye International, before finally appearing on their own
Pye-distributed Cameo-Parkway label.
Decline and shutdown
In early 1964, three near-simultaneous events sent Cameo-Parkway into a sharp decline from which it would never fully recover. The first was the move of ''American Bandstand'' from
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
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
The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of British culture became popular in the United States and significant to the rising "counterculture" on ...
in 1964/1965, which dramatically changed 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 a handful of early British beat group singles, including the first two singles by
the Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhyt ...
,
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 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
Jo Ann Campbell (born July 20, 1938 in Jacksonville, Florida) is an American singer who was one of the pioneers of rockabilly.
Campbell began attending music school at the age of four, and won many honors as a drum majorette at Fletcher High S ...
,
Maynard Ferguson,
Clark Terry, the instrumental group LeRoy & His Rockin' Fellers, and TV-stars-turned-singers such as
Clint Eastwood and
Merv Griffin
Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. (July 6, 1925 – August 12, 2007) was an American television show host and media mogul. He began his career as a radio and big band singer, later appearing in film and on Broadway. From 1965 to 1986 he hosted his own t ...
.
In mid-1966, 23-year-old
Neil Bogart
Neil E. Bogart (born Neil Scott Bogatz, February 3, 1943 – May 8, 1982) was an American record executive. He was the founder of Casablanca Records, which later became Casablanca Record and Filmworks.
Life and career
Born Neil Scott Bogatz in t ...
was made the label's new head of
Artists and repertoire
Artists and repertoire ( colloquially abbreviated to A&R) is the division of a record label or music publishing company that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists (singers, instrumental ...
(A&R). Turning to Midwestern garage bands and orchestrated soul productions (including the distribution of
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music. '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
? and the Mysterians (or Question Mark and the Mysterians) are an American garage rock band from Bay City and Saginaw in Michigan, initially active between 1962 and 1969. Much of the band's music consisted of electric organ-driven garage rock a ...
(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
Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, ...
under the name Senator Bobby (1966), and "Beg, Borrow and Steal" by
the Ohio Express
The Ohio Express is an American bubblegum pop band formed in Mansfield, Ohio, in 1967. Though marketed as a band, it would be more accurate to say that the name "Ohio Express" served as a brand name used by Jerry Kasenetz's and Jeffry Katz's ...
(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), 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, the Cameo-Parkway company was sold to
Allen Klein
Allen Klein (December 18, 1931 July 4, 2009) was an American businessman whose aggressive negotiation tactics affected industry standards for compensating recording artists. He founded ABKCO Music & Records Incorporated. Klein increased profits ...
,
and renamed
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 ...
, 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
Buddah Records (later known as Buddha Records) was an American record label founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's foun ...
, founded by former MGM Records executive Art Kass, and brought along the former Cameo Parkway promotion staff.
Label variations
Cameo
*1957–1960: Orange label with CAMEO and "cameo" logo, both in black, at top
*1960–1966: Red and black label with CAMEO and new "gold cameo locket" logo at left side
*1966–1967: Red label with broken orange circle and new CAMEO "CP" logo at top
*1967 MGM distribution label: Pink and white label with CAMEO in dark blue w/pink outline and "cameo" logo inside the "O"
Cameo albums also used the above label variations, plus:
*Early mono albums: Black label with silver print, same CAMEO and "cameo" logo as orange label singles
*Early stereo albums: Black label with gold print, same CAMEO and "cameo" logo as orange label singles
Parkway
*1958–1960: Orange label with PARKWAY in black "jumbled" letters between two lyre logos at top
*1960–1966: Orange and yellow label with PARKWAY RECORDS in white letters between two lyre logos at top (Some of these labels do not include the lyres)
*1966–1967: Yellow label with broken orange octagon and new PARKWAY "CP" logo at top
*1967 MGM distribution label: brown label with new "Parkway" logo at top. The logo includes a large black letter "P" with white arrow inside its perimeter, resembling a highway.
Parkway albums also used all of the above label variations
Subsidiary labels
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
*Audio Arts!: The first two singles were released under Cameo/Parkway before the label was sold to
Amy /
Mala /
Bell
A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inte ...
*Chariot: At least five singles were released under Cameo/Parkway before the label was sold to
Amy /
Mala /
Bell
A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inte ...
*Cheltenham: At least four singles released from 1965-1966
*Cotton: At least three singles released in 1962
*Fairmount, featuring Lonnie Youngblood: At least 27 singles have been released on this label
*Ivanhoe: At least one single was distributed under Cameo/Parkway
*Key-Loc: At least one single was distributed under Cameo/Parkway by
Sunny and the Sunliners
Sunny is a daytime weather condition. It may refer to:
People
* Sunny (name), including a list of people and characters with the name
* Sunny (singer), member of Girls' Generation
* Sunny, of Sue and Sunny, who also recorded as a solo artist
...
*Lucky Eleven, based in Flint, Michigan, featuring
Terry Knight and the Pack
Terry Knight and the Pack (also known as The Pack and The Fabulous Pack) was an American garage rock band formed in Flint, Michigan in 1965. The band was signed to the Lucky Eleven label through most of its brief recording career. They produced ...
, which eventually transformed into
Grand Funk Railroad
Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in 1968 in Flint, Michigan, by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar), Don Brewer (drums, vocals), and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved peak popularity and succ ...
*Sentar: Owned by the families of pop group
the New Colony Six (the label's only group), four singles and one album were released under Sentar's Cameo/Parkway distribution
*Showplace, featuring
the Yellow Payges (at least two singles distributed)
*Tomorrow: Originally distributed by Atco, then by Cameo/Parkway. At least two singles were distributed under C/P
*Vando: Owned by
Van McCoy
Van Allen Clinton McCoy (January 6, 1940 – July 6, 1979) was an American musician, record producer, arranger, songwriter, singer and orchestra conductor. He is known for his 1975 internationally successful song " The Hustle". He has approximat ...
, five singles and one album were released under the label's C/P distribution, mostly by
Chris Bartley
*Winchester: Only two singles were released under this label, one by
the Tymes
The Tymes are an American soul vocal group who enjoyed equal success in the United Kingdom and in their homeland. They are one of the few acts to have one and only one chart-topper in both the US and UK with different songs.
Early career
The ...
and the other by
the Spokesmen The Spokesmen were an American pop music trio. They scored a hit single in the U.S. in 1965 with the tune "The Dawn of Correction", which was a partially sarcastic counterpoint and answer record to Barry McGuire's protest song, " Eve of Destructi ...
*Windy C: Owned by
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music. , eight singles and one album were released on this label, mostly by
the Five Stairsteps
The Five Stairsteps, known as "The First Family of Soul" and later "The Invisible Man's Band", was an American Chicago soul group made up of five of Betty and Clarence Burke Sr.'s six children: Alohe Jean, Clarence Jr., James, Dennis, and Kenn ...
Philadelphia connection
Several C/P labels were based on hometown suburbs, highways and landmarks, including...
*Parkway:
Benjamin Franklin Parkway
Benjamin Franklin Parkway, commonly abbreviated to Ben Franklin Parkway and colloquially called the Parkway, is a boulevard that runs through the cultural heart of Philadelphia. Named for founding father Benjamin Franklin, the mile-long Parkway c ...
*
Fairmount:
Fairmount Park; there is also a Fairmount Ave. north of the
Philadelphia Museum of Art
*
Wyncote: Northern suburb of Philadelphia where C/P founder
Bernie Lowe resided and set up office for C/P
*
Cheltenham:
Cheltenham Avenue
Cheltenham Avenue is a major east-west road in Southeastern Pennsylvania. It is served by many SEPTA bus routes, trolleys, regional rail, and subway. Cheltenham Avenue is an unsigned quadrant route t routes in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. ...
; there is also a
Cheltenham High School
Cheltenham High School is a public high school in the Wyncote neighborhood of Cheltenham Township, in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, located from the border of the City of Philadelphia and from Center City. Serving grades 9 through 12, Chelt ...
in suburban Wyncote
Reissues
ABKCO reissued Cameo-Parkway recordings in 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
Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including The Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnight ...
,
Dee Dee Sharp
Dee Dee Sharp (born Dione LaRue; September 9, 1945, in Philadelphia) is an American R&B singer, who began her career recording as a backing vocalist in 1961.
Career
Although Sharp had been playing the piano from an early age and directed chur ...
,
the Dovells
The Dovells were an American doo-wop group, formed at Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1957, under the name 'The Brooktones'. The original members were Arnie Silver, Len Borisoff, Jerry Gross (alias Summers), Mike Freda, a ...
,
the Orlons
The Orlons are an American R&B group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that formed in 1960. The group won gold discs for three of their singles.
Career
The quartet consisted of lead singer Rosetta Hightower (June 23, 1944 – August 2, 2014), Sh ...
,
the Tymes
The Tymes are an American soul vocal group who enjoyed equal success in the United Kingdom and in their homeland. They are one of the few acts to have one and only one chart-topper in both the US and UK with different songs.
Early career
The ...
and
Question Mark & the Mysterians
? and the Mysterians (or Question Mark and the Mysterians) are an American garage rock band from Bay City and Saginaw in Michigan, initially active between 1962 and 1969. Much of the band's music consisted of electric organ-driven garage rock a ...
. 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
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
to license some songs for its ''Complete Introduction to Northern Soul'' box set in 2008, and allowing
Collectors' Choice Music
Collectors' Choice Music (CCM) is an Itasca, Illinois, company originally primarily in two businesses, but since 2010 only in the second.
CCM was best known for reissuing albums originally recorded in LP record form as compact disc
The com ...
to reissue several albums in 2010. Despite these reissues, many more obscure Cameo-Parkway recordings, and even a few of their lesser hits, remain unavailable.
See also
*
List of record labels
File:Alvinoreyguitarboogie.jpg
File:AmMusicBunk78.jpg
File:Bingola1011b.jpg
Lists of record labels cover record labels, brands or trademarks associated with marketing of music recordings and music videos. The lists are organized alphabetically, b ...
References
External links
Official website from ABKCO Records Cameo Parkway history, pictures, lists
{{Authority control
American record labels
Record labels established in 1956
Record labels disestablished in 1967
Record labels established in 2005
Re-established companies
Pop record labels