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, D.C., 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 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.
A vocal group is a performing ensemble of vocalists who sing and harmonize together. The first well-known vocals groups emerged in the 19th century, and the style had reached widespread popularity by the 1940s.
The Crows were an American R&B singing group formed in 1951 who achieved commercial success in the 1950s. The group's first single and only hit, "Gee", released in June 1953, has been credited with being the first rock n’ roll hit by a rock and roll group. It peaked at position #14 and #2, respectively, on the Billboard magazine pop and rhythm-and-blues charts in 1954. Although Gee fell into the Doo Wop genre, and "was the first 1950s doo-wop record to sell over one million records" in that genre, some consider it as the first of the "rock n' roll records".
The Silhouettes were an American doo wop/R&B group, whose single "Get a Job" was a number 1 hit on the Billboard R&B singles chart and pop singles chart in 1958. The doo-wop revival group Sha Na Na derived their name from the song's lyrics, later going on to perform "Get a Job" in the 1978 movie Grease, and the nickname "Xanana" of former East Timorese President and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão is in return derived from the name of the band "Sha Na Na", though with the spelling changed to "Xanana" to conform with the spelling rules of both Portuguese and Tetum, both of East Timor's official languages. "Get a Job" is included in the soundtracks of the films American Graffiti, Trading Places, and Stand by Me. The Silhouettes performed in the 1986 movie Joey.
Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs were an American doo-wop/R&B vocal group in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Originally the (Royal) Charms, the band changed its name to the Gladiolas in 1957 and the Excellos in 1958, before finally settling on the Zodiacs in 1959.
Lee Andrews & the Hearts were an American doo-wop quintet from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, formed in 1953. They recorded on the Gotham, Rainbow, Mainline, Chess, United Artists, Grand and Gowen labels. Managed by Kae Williams, in 1957 and 1958 they had their three biggest hits, "Tear Drops", "Long Lonely Nights" and "Try the Impossible".
The Quotations are an American doo-wop band, primarily from James Madison High School in East Brooklyn, New York, United States.
The Jesters were a doo-wop group based in New York City who achieved success in the late 1950s. They were students at Cooper Junior High School in Harlem, who graduated from singing under an elevated train station near 120th Street to the amateur night contest at the Apollo Theater, where Paul Winley discovered them and later signed them to his Winley Records.
"Gee" is a song by American R&B and Doo-wop group the Crows, released in June 1953. The song has been credited as the first rock and roll hit by a rock and roll group. It is a doo-wop song, written by William Davis and Viola Watkins, and recorded by the Crows on the independent label, Rama Records, at Beltone Studios in New York City in February 1953. It charted in April 1954, one year later. It took a year to get recognized on Your Hit Parade. It landed No.2 on the rhythm and blues chart and No. 14 on the pop chart. It was the first 1950s doo-wop record to sell over one million records. Recorded on an independent label, it was one of the first such R&B records to crossover to the wider pop market. In fact, some, including Jay Warner, consider it as the first of the "rock n' roll records".
Norman Fox & The Rob-Roys are an American 1950s doo-wop group from The Bronx, New York, United States.
Kenny Vance is an American singer, songwriter, and music producer who was a founding member of Jay and the Americans. His career spans from the 1950s to today, with projects ranging from starting doo-wop groups to music supervising to creating solo albums.
"It's Too Soon to Know" is an American doo-wop ballad by Deborah Chessler (1923–2012), performed first by The Orioles. It was number one on the American Rhythm and blues charts in November 1948. It is considered by some to be the first "rock and roll" song, and described by others as "the first rhythm and blues vocal group harmony recording".
"Memories of El Monte" is a doo-wop metasong released in 1963 by the Penguins featuring Cleve Duncan. It was written by Frank Zappa and Ray Collins before they were in the Mothers of Invention. The song was first released as Original Sound 27.
The Rockin' Chairs were a doo-wop recording group based in Queens Village, New York active in 1958 and 1959.
Nino and the Ebb Tides were a doo-wop musical group based in the Bronx, New York, formed in 1956.
Harvey Shield is an English musician, songwriter and actor.
The Willows are an American doo-wop group formed in Harlem, New York, in 1952. The group was an influential musical act that performed into the mid-1960s and had a Top 20 R&B hit with "Church Bells May Ring", a song which was covered with greater commercial success by The Diamonds.
The Capris were a 1950s doo-wop group from Philadelphia who started out in their teens. They consisted of four males and a female. They recorded singles for the Gotham Records label. The song that they are most known for is "God Only Knows".
"God Only Knows" was a regional hit for Philadelphia Doo wop group The Capris. It was their debut single for the group and was written by Ruben Wright. The song also had a dramatic effect on Motown singer Marvin Gaye. It has been covered by other artists as well.
