The Six Teens

Last updated

The Six Teens were an American pop group from Los Angeles, California, United States. [1]

Contents

All of the group's members were teenagers, or younger, at the time of their first recordings: the oldest was 17-year-old Ed Wells and the youngest, 12-year-old Trudy Williams. [2] Their first release was the song "Don't Worry About a Thing", released by Flip Records under the name The Sweet Teens in 1956. Following this was the single "Teenage Promise" b/w "A Casual Look", released on Flip later that year under their new name. [1] "A Casual Look" became a hit at radio and hit the national charts, peaking at No. 7 on the U.S. Black Singles chart and No. 25 on the Billboard Hot 100. [1]

Following the success of "A Casual Look", the group moved to Hawaii and performed there in the summer of 1957. [2] Their next release, "Send Me Flowers", was a hit there. "Only Jim" and "Arrow of Love" followed, with the former failing to chart and the latter hitting No. 80 Pop. [2] The group underwent a lineup change and began recording singles for younger audiences, but they saw no further success. Under varying lineups, they continued to perform into the late 1960s. In later decades they regrouped to play doo-wop revival shows.

Members

Related Research Articles

The Temptations American rhythm and blues group

The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top 10 hit single "Cloud Nine" in October 1968, pioneered psychedelic soul, and was significant in the evolution of R&B and soul music. The band members are known for their choreography, distinct harmonies, and dress style. Having sold tens of millions of albums, the Temptations are among the most successful groups in popular music.

The Isley Brothers American musical group

The Isley Brothers are an American musical group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that started as a vocal trio consisting of brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decades, the group has been cited as having enjoyed one of the "longest, most influential, and most diverse careers in the pantheon of popular music".

Martha and the Vandellas American vocal group

Martha and the Vandellas were an American vocal girl group formed in Detroit in 1957. The group achieved fame in the 1960s with Motown.

Sister Sledge American vocal group

Sister Sledge is an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consisted of sisters Debbie, Joni, Kim, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. In 1979, they released their breakthrough album We Are Family, which peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and included the 1979 US top-10 singles "He's the Greatest Dancer" and "We Are Family". A third single, "Lost in Music", reached the US top 40. "We Are Family" earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

Mary Wells

Mary Esther Wells was an American singer, who helped to define the emerging sound of Motown in the early 1960s. Along with The Supremes, The Miracles, The Temptations, and the Four Tops, Wells was said to have been part of the charge in black music onto radio stations and record shelves of mainstream America, "bridging the color lines in music at the time."

Blazin' Squad were an English hip hop group. The group had seven top ten hits, including "Crossroads", a cover version of the Bone Thugs-n-Harmony original. Jon O'Brien of AllMusic called them the "Self-proclaimed pioneers of 'chav' culture."

Andy Kim (singer) Canadian pop rock singer and songwriter

Andrew Youakim, known professionally as Andy Kim, is a Canadian pop rock singer and songwriter. He grew up in Montreal, Quebec. He is known for hits that he released in the late 1960s and 1970s: the international hit "Baby, I Love You" in 1969, and "Rock Me Gently", which topped the US singles chart in 1974. He co-wrote "Sugar, Sugar" in 1968 and sang on the recording as part of the Archies; it was #1 for four weeks and was "Record of the Year" for 1969.

Soul II Soul British musical collective

Soul II Soul are a British musical collective formed in London in 1988. They are best known for their 1989 UK chart-topper and US top five hit "Back to Life ", and "Keep On Movin'" which reached number five in the UK and number 11 in the US. They won two Grammy Awards, and have been nominated for five Brit Awards—twice for Best British Group.

DeBarge American R&B, soul and funk musical group

DeBarge was an American musical recording group composed of several members of the DeBarge family. In addition to various solo projects completed by members of the family, DeBarge was active between 1979 and 1989. The group originally consisted of Mark, Randy, Bunny and El. James joined the group a year later for their second album. Bobby and Chico joined in 1987 and 1988 respectively, replacing Bunny and El.

The Browns

The Browns were an American country and folk music vocal trio best known for their 1959 Grammy-nominated hit, "The Three Bells". The group, composed of Jim Ed Brown and his sisters Maxine and Bonnie, had a close, smooth harmony characteristic of the Nashville sound, though their music also combined elements of folk and pop. They disbanded in 1967 and were elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in March 2015.

Bobby Freeman

Robert Thomas Freeman was an American rock, soul and R&B singer, songwriter and record producer from San Francisco, best known for his two Top Ten hits, the first in 1958 on Josie Records called "Do You Want to Dance" and the second in 1964 for Autumn Records, "C'mon and Swim".

Maze, also known as Maze Featuring Frankie Beverly and Frankie Beverly & Maze, is an American soul band founded by Frankie Beverly in Philadelphia in 1970. Under its original name Raw Soul, the band relocated to San Francisco and was introduced to Marvin Gaye. Gaye took the group on the road with him as one of his opening acts, and in 1976, he suggested that they change their name from Raw Soul. Maze released 9 Gold albums from 1977 to 1993. Their well-known songs include "Happy Feelin's", "While I'm Alone", "Golden Time Of Day", “Southern Girl”, "The Look in Your Eyes", "Joy and Pain", "Before I Let Go", "We Are One", "Back in Stride", "Can't Get Over You" and "The Morning After". The band has maintained a large and devoted following.

Five Star are a British pop group, formed in 1983 and comprising siblings Stedman, Lorraine, Denise, Doris and Delroy Pearson. Between 1985 and 1988, Five Star had four Top 20 albums and 15 Top 40 singles in the UK, including the Top 10 hits "System Addict" (1986), "Can't Wait Another Minute" (1986), "Find the Time" (1986), "Rain or Shine" (1986), "Stay Out of My Life" (1987) and "The Slightest Touch" (1987). They won the 1987 Brit Award for Best British Group.

Candy Flip were a British electronic music duo from Stoke on Trent, who were associated with the indie dance music scene in the early 1990s. They are best remembered for their cover version of the Beatles song "Strawberry Fields Forever", which was a No. 3 hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1990.

D Train was an American duo that had hits on the Billboard magazine Dance and R&B charts during the first half of the 1980s. Three of their singles also reached the Top 30 in the UK Singles Chart.

"Don't Look Back" is a 1965 song recorded by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label. The flip side to their Top 20 hit "My Baby", "Don't Look Back" broke out and became a hit among the R&B audience on its own, reaching #14 on the R&B charts.

The Walker Brothers American pop group

The Walker Brothers were an American pop group of the 1960s and 1970s that included Noel Scott Engel, John Walker and Gary Leeds. After moving to Britain in 1965, they had a number of top ten albums and singles there, including the No. 1 chart hits "Make It Easy on Yourself" and "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)", both of which also made the US top 20 and Canadian top 2. In between the two was the lesser US hit "My Ship is Coming In", which was another major hit in Britain, where it reached No.3 in the charts. The trio split up in 1968, but reunited in the mid-to-late-1970s and scored a final top 10 UK hit with "No Regrets".

Dobie Gray American singer and songwriter

Dobie Gray was an American singer and songwriter, whose musical career spanned soul, country, pop, and musical theater. His hit songs included "The 'In' Crowd" in 1965 and "Drift Away", which was one of the biggest hits of 1973, sold over one million copies, and remains a staple of radio airplay.

Flip Records (1950s)

Flip Records was an American record label that flourished in the 1950s, releasing rhythm and blues and doo-wop music by such artists as Richard Berry, The Six Teens, Donald Wood, the Elgins, and many others. Max and Lilian Feirtag operated the label in Los Angeles, California, and published music under the Limax Music trademark.

The Cookies

The Cookies were an American R&B girl group active in two distinct lineups, the first from 1954 to 1958 which later became The Raelettes, and the second from 1961 to 1967. Several of the members of both lineups were members of the same family. Both lineups were most prominent as session singers and backing vocalists.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Colin Larkin, ed. (2002). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music (Third ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 399/400. ISBN   1-85227-937-0.
  2. 1 2 3 "Six Teens | Biography & History". AllMusic . Retrieved October 28, 2019.