John Medora

Last updated

John Medora
Birth nameJohn L. Medora
Also known asJohn/Johnny Madara
Born (1936-05-28) May 28, 1936 (age 86)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres Rock, soul, soft rock
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter, producer
Years active1957–present
Labels

John L. Medora (born May 28, 1936), also known as John or Johnny Madara, is an American singer, songwriter, composer and record producer best known to have teamed up with David White and Arthur Singer to write the 1957 hit song "At the Hop". [1]

Contents

Early life

Medora was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1936. His family lived in public housing known as "projects" located in south Philadelphia. He was the only one of six children interested in music. He took vocal lessons and began his career as a musical artist. His first recording was released in 1957 and became a hit record single "Be My Girl".

Career

Later in 1957 he wrote a song called "Do the Bop" with Dave White. The "Bop" was a popular dance on the TV show, American Bandstand .Dave White was a member of a local group 'The Juvenaires' and they recorded the song with Madara on lead vocal.Local DJ Artie Singer got a co-writers' credit for the song. He took the record to Dick Clark,the host of "America Bandstand".Clark suggested some changes.The lyrics and title were changed to "At the Hop", The Juvenaires became Danny and the Juniors.They recorded the song, this time with Danny Rapp on lead vocal.It became a US number 1 and international hit. He later co-wrote other hits including "1-2-3" for Len Barry, and "You Don't Own Me" for Lesley Gore. [2]

In 1965, he and White co-wrote and performed, as the Spokesmen, the song "Dawn of Correction", an answer song to Barry McGuire's hit "Eve of Destruction". The song reached number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100. The pair also formed their own publishing company which was later sold to Michael Jackson. Madara also worked as a record producer, and discovered both Leon Huff and Kenny Gamble (Gamble and Huff), later a successful songwriter and producer attributed to pioneering the style of music known as Philly Soul, and the recording artist Hall and Oates. [2] [3]

Medora spent two years in Las Vegas working with one of the most successful performers of all time, Wayne Newton. He produced two of his albums and further produced and wrote songs for a Christmas television special for Wayne Newton on CBS. In the mid 1970s he moved to Los Angeles, and produced music for movies including Cinderella Liberty and Hey Good Lookin' , as well as for television. [2]

Film soundtracks

Songs have appeared on some of the biggest grossing soundtrack albums of all time, including American Graffiti and Woodstock ("At The Hop"), Grease ("Rock and Roll is Here to Stay"), Hairspray ("The Fly" and "You Don't Own Me"), Mr. Holland's Opus ("1-2-3"), and Dirty Dancing and The First Wives Club ("You Don't Own Me"). It was the 1996 hit film, The First Wives Club, that not only featured "You Don't Own Me", but it was used as the theme of the movie. On November 27, 2016, the song was announced to be inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller</span> American songwriting and record producing duo

Leiber and Stoller were an American Grammy award-winning songwriting and record production duo, consisting of lyricist Jerome Leiber and composer Michael Stoller They wrote numerous standards for Broadway.

Thomas Randolph Bell was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, pianist, and composer known as one of the creators of Philadelphia soul in the 1970s. He found success as a producer and songwriter for the Delfonics, Stylistics, and Spinners. In June 2006, Bell was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2016, Bell was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gamble and Huff</span> American songwriting and record production team

Kenneth Gamble and Leon A. Huff are an American songwriting and production team credited for developing the Philadelphia soul music genre of the 1970s. In addition to forming their own label, Philadelphia International Records, Gamble and Huff have written and produced 175 gold and platinum records, earning them an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the non-performer category in March 2008.

Philadelphia International Records (PIR) was an American record label based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1971 by songwriting and production duo Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff along with their longtime collaborator Thom Bell. It was known for showcasing the Philadelphia soul music genre that was founded on the gospel, doo-wop and soul music of the time. This sound later marked a prominent and distinct era within the R&B genre. During the 1970s, the label released a string of worldwide hits that emphasized lavish orchestral instrumentation, heavy bass and driving percussion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danny & the Juniors</span> American doo-wop and rock and roll vocal group

Danny & the Juniors are an American doo-wop and rock and roll vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, originally consisting of Danny Rapp, Dave White, Frank Maffei and Joe Terranova. Formed in 1955, they are most widely recognized for their 1957 hit single "At the Hop".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Medley</span> American singer and songwriter (born 1940)

William Thomas Medley is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers. He is noted for his bass-baritone voice, exemplified in songs such as "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'". Medley produced a number of the duo's songs, including "Unchained Melody" and "(You're My) Soul and Inspiration".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Len Barry</span> American singer (1942–2020)

Leonard Warren Borisoff, known professionally as Len Barry, was an American singer, songwriter, lyricist, record producer, author, and poet.

Walter "Bunny" Sigler was an American R&B singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer who did extensive work with the team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, and was instrumental in creating the "Philly Sound" in the early 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">At the Hop</span> 1957 single by Danny & the Juniors

"At the Hop" is a 1950s pop song written by Artie Singer, John Medora, and David White and originally released by Danny & the Juniors. The song was released in the fall of 1957 and reached number one on the US charts on January 6, 1958, becoming one of the top-selling singles of 1958. "At the Hop" also hit number one on the R&B Best Sellers list. Somewhat more surprisingly, the record reached #3 on the Music Vendor country charts. It was also a big hit elsewhere, which included a number 3 placing on the UK charts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Be-Bop-a-Lula</span> 1956 single by Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps

"Be-Bop-a-Lula" is a rockabilly song first recorded in 1956 by Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Jonsin</span> American musical artist (born 1970)

James Gregory Scheffer, professionally known as Jim Jonsin, is an American record producer, songwriter, businessman and DJ from South Florida. Jonsin has collaborated with numerous artists, including Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, Usher, Lil Wayne, Kid Cudi, Eminem, Pitbull, Yelawolf, Nelly, T.I., Danity Kane and Jamie Foxx, among others. Jonsin won a Grammy in 2009, for Best Rap Song for Lil Wayne's "Lollipop". That year he was also nominated for his production on T.I.'s "Whatever You Like", which also garnered a nomination for Best Rap Song.

Arthur Singer was an American songwriter, music producer and bandleader. He was the co-writer and producer of the songs "At the Hop" and "Rock and Roll Is Here To Stay" by Danny & the Juniors.

David Ernest White, also known as David White Tricker, was an American singer and songwriter. He formed the doo-wop quartet Danny & the Juniors, as well as being a founding member of the pop trio The Spokesmen. He wrote "Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay" and co-wrote a number of other hit songs, including "At the Hop", "You Don't Own Me", and "1-2-3".

Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers are New York–based songwriters and record producers. They have produced hits for Ruben Studdard, Wild Orchid, Christina Aguilera and Evelyn Champagne King and helped build the career of Rihanna. In addition to being principals of Rihanna's production company SRP Music Group, they have achieved more than twenty top 40 hits, twelve top 5 hits and six BMI Awards. Their songs have sold more than 60 million albums around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clark Datchler</span> Musical artist

Clark Wynford Datchler is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He first rose to fame in 1987 as the lead singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist in the band Johnny Hates Jazz.

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 Destruction". The song was written by the group's members, John Medora, David White, and Ray Gilmore, the latter a long time radio personality at WIBG (Wibbage) 990AM in Philadelphia, Pa. The tune hit #36 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. They also released a remake of the Beatles' "Michelle" as a single on Decca Records that got significant airplay on WIBG.

"Call Me" is a song written and recorded by American singer Aretha Franklin. The song was co-produced by Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd and Arif Mardin.

Warren "Oak" Felder is a Turkish-born American songwriter and record producer based in Atlanta and Los Angeles. He is known for his work as part of the production duo Pop & Oak, and was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2015.

Kelly Gordon was an American singer, songwriter and record producer.

Barry James Eastmond is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and record producer. Eastmond is an adjunct professor at New York University Steinhardt Performing Arts Department in songwriting and is part of the NYU Summer Songwriting Workshop.

References

  1. ↑ "At the Hop – Danny and the Juniors". Billboard. Retrieved August 5, 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 The Philly Sound: John Madara. Thatphillysound.com. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
  3. ↑ "John Madara Remembers ..." Forgottenhits.com. Retrieved September 4, 2014
  4. ↑ "Nirvana, Bowie, R.E.M. Songs Among Grammy Hall of Fame's 2017 Inductees". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on December 12, 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.