Goldie and the Gingerbreads

Last updated

Goldie and the Gingerbreads, 1963 Goldie and the Gingerbreads.jpg
Goldie and the Gingerbreads, 1963

Goldie & the Gingerbreads was an all-female American rock band from 1962 to 1967. [1] They were the first all-female rock band signed to a major record label. [2]

Contents

Whereas most female bands were ignored by the big record labels and their live performances rarely attracted more than gimmick-seeking crowds, the quartet consisting of three musicians and a singer: Ginger Bianco, Margo Lewis, Carol MacDonald, and Genya "Goldie" Zelkowitz (later Genya Ravan), were among the first to break into a domain dominated by men. They were signed to Decca in 1963 [3] and to Atlantic in 1964. [4]

Early days

In 1962, local musician Genya Zelkowitz (later known as Genya Ravan) was introduced to drummer Ginger Bianco (née Panabianco), in the New York City club where Zelkowitz was the lead singer of Richard Perry's band The Escorts. [5] [6] Panabianco was on stage, drumming for a friend of Perry's. This acquaintance with a female drummer inspired in Genya the idea of an all-female rock and roll band. [6] The name of the would-be band was quickly decided on: Goldie was the name given to Genya by her mother after their arrival in the United States from post-war Poland, whilst gingerbread was a play on Ginger's name. [6]

Richard Perry and the other members of the Escorts were college students. [7] When the summer concert season ended, Genya and Ginger began to look for a pianist and soon recruited Carol O'Grady. [8] Finding a female guitarist turned out to be much harder. Various ad-hoc recruits filled in as and when required, but when they accompanied Chubby Checker on his 1962 concert tour of West Germany and Switzerland, they performed without a guitarist. [9] Organist Margo Lewis, who turned out to be the group's third permanent member, replaced O'Grady and performed with the group on the Chubby Checker tour. The following year, Goldie and the Gingerbreads found guitarist and vocalist Carol MacDonald, who at the time was signed to Atlantic/Atco Records, and she became the fourth permanent band member. [10]

The group's first release on the Spokane Records label was titled "Skinny Vinnie". Although credited to Zelkowitz and Stan Green, the song was, in fact, the Bill Haley composition "Skinny Minnie" with slight lyric changes.

The Mods and Rockers Ball

In 1964, fashion photographer and director Jerry Schatzberg threw a party for the Warhol superstar Baby Jane Holzer that was later referred to by writer Tom Wolfe as "the Mods and Rockers ball, the party of the year." [11] Goldie and the Gingerbreads were booked to provide the musical entertainment and impressed the assembled attendees with both their music and their inimitable presence. [12] Among the guests at this fashionable and well-attended event were the Rolling Stones and Ahmet Ertegün, the chairman of Atlantic Records, who promptly signed them to the label. [4]

The Gingerbreads in Europe

Later in 1964, the band met Eric Burdon and the Animals, whose manager contracted the Gingerbreads for a tour in England. [10] These standard group tours were arranged by record companies to showcase their roster of talent and the Gingerbreads were one of up to six bands on the tour, performing on the same bill night after night in small towns. In Britain, they toured with the Rolling Stones, the Animals, the Beatles, the Yardbirds, the Hollies and the Kinks, among others. [13] After supporting the Kinks on their 1965 UK tour, the Gingerbreads recorded several songs with the Kinks' producer Shel Talmy, including a cover of "Look for Me Baby", though it went unissued. [14]

Troubles with British working visa requirements led to the band performing dates in West Germany (where many UK and US troops were then stationed as part of the NATO defences) at venues including the Star-Club in Hamburg while they waited for their British work permits to come through. [15]

A subsequent appearance in Paris at the Olympia earned Goldie & the Gingerbreads a favourable introduction to the French music scene, despite technical difficulties that arose during the performance. [16]

Throughout the early 1960s, Goldie and the Gingerbreads toured extensively throughout North America. Here, the club and venue promoters were not so much interested in their music as in presenting the novelty of an all-female musical group. [10]

Goldie and the Gingerbread's single "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat" reached No. 25 on the UK Singles Chart in 1965. [4] Although it was also released in the United States, a recording of the same song by the heavily promoted Herman's Hermits was released nationwide with great fanfare just two weeks prior to the Gingerbreads' version, thus fatally undermining the Gingerbreads' chances for their first hit single in the U.S. [17]

The end

Over the course of 1967 and 1968, the group began to fragment as various members came and went. [4] A return to the United States in a final attempt to garner mainstream success there failed. Genya Ravan's strong personality and selfish leadership has been cited as the major factor in the band's split, [5] although frustration due to making little profit from their record releases may also have been a significant issue. [17]

Future careers

Genya Ravan went on to form Ten Wheel Drive and a career in record production and radio. She produced the Dead Boys 1977 debut album Young Loud and Snotty . She now hosts two radio shows on Little Steven's Underground Garage channel on Sirius/XM: Goldie's Garage and Chicks and Broads. Ravan's memoirs, entitled Lollipop Lounge: Memoirs of a Rock and Roll Refugee, were published in 2004 by Billboard Books. [18]

Carol MacDonald and Ginger Bianco later formed the nucleus of jazz-fusion band Isis. [19]

Margo Lewis is owner and president of Talent Consultants International, Ltd., a talent booking agency in New York, and a partner in Talent Source, Ltd, which manages the estate of Bo Diddley. Lewis toured with Diddley as his personal manager and as his keyboard player for the last 10 years of his life.

In 2011, Goldie and the Gingerbreads were recognized by the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame as part of its "Women Who Rock: Vision, Passion, Power" exhibit.

1997 reunion

On November 13, 1997, the Gingerbreads performed once more to mark their 30th anniversary and to commemorate the release of The Rolling Stone Book of Women in Rock. [4] Accompanying Ginger, Margo and Genya was Debby Hastings on bass and Diane Scanlon on guitar.

Touchstone Award

On February 3, 1998, Goldie and the Gingerbreads were presented with a Touchstone Award from NY based Women in Music. [20] This distinction is given to women who "have the courage and inspiration to make a difference in the music industry and whose work has set new standards.". [21] At the awards ceremony, the statuettes were presented to each member of the group by music legend Ahmet Ertegun.

Line-up

Although several other musicians played with Goldie & the Gingerbreads over the years, permanent members were:

Discography

Compilations

Singles

YearTitlePeak chart positions
UK [22]
1964"Skinny Vinnie"
b/w "Chew Chew Fee Fi Fum"
  • Label: Spokane
1965"That's Why I Love You"
b/w "What Kind of Man Are You"
"Can't You Hear My Heartbeat"
b/w "Little Boy"
  • Label: Decca
25
"That's Why I Love You" [upper-alpha 1]
b/w "The Skip"
  • Label: Decca
1966"Think About the Good Times"
b/w "Please Please"
"Sailor Boy" [upper-alpha 1]
b/w "Please Please"
  • Label: Decca
1967"Walking in Different Circles"
b/w "Song of the Moon"
  • Label: ATCO
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.
  1. 1 2 Single released only in the U.K. [23]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Doors</span> American rock band

The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts of the 1960s, partly due to Morrison's lyrics and voice, along with his erratic stage persona. The group is widely regarded as an important figure of the era's counterculture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fanny (band)</span> American all-female rock band

Fanny was an American rock band, active in the early to mid 1970s. They were one of the first all-female rock groups to achieve critical and commercial success, including two Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 singles.

An all-female band is a musical group in popular music that is exclusively composed of female musicians. This is distinct from a girl group, in which the female members are solely vocalists, though this terminology is not universally followed. While all-male bands are common in many rock and pop scenes, all-female bands are less common.

Genya Ravan, a.k.a. Goldie is an American rock singer and music producer. She was lead singer of the Escorts, Goldie and the Gingerbreads, and Ten Wheel Drive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mick Avory</span> Musical artist

Michael Charles Avory is an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer and percussionist for the English rock band the Kinks. He joined them shortly after their formation in 1964 and remained with them until 1984, when he left amid creative friction with guitarist Dave Davies. He is the longest-serving member of the band, apart from the Davies brothers. He is also the most prolific member, again apart from the Davies brothers, who has played on twenty studio albums or nearly all of the band's creative output.

Goldie is a British musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Star-Club</span> Music club on Große Freiheit street in Hamburgs St. Pauli district, West Germany

The Star-Club was a music club in Hamburg, Germany, that opened on Friday 13 April 1962, and was initially operated by Manfred Weissleder and Horst Fascher. In the 1960s, many of the giants of rock music played at the club. The club closed on 31 December 1969 and the building it occupied was destroyed by a fire in 1987. The address of the club was Große Freiheit 39 in the St. Pauli quarter of Hamburg. Große Freiheit is a side street of the Reeperbahn. The club had a capacity of 2,000 people, and cinema-style seating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ten Wheel Drive</span> American rock band

Ten Wheel Drive was an American rock band which existed from 1968 to 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Underground Garage</span> Radio station

Underground Garage is the name shared by two related but different radio outlets that present rock 'n' roll and garage rock on the radio: a syndicated show and a satellite radio station. Steven Van Zandt, best known as a guitarist in Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, is the founder and supervisor of both outlets. Both outlets play a mixture of past and current garage rock, and feature one song as "The Coolest Song in the World This Week".

Gabriel Mekler was an American songwriter, musician, and record producer who attained fame in the 1960s, helming albums for Steppenwolf, Three Dog Night, and Janis Joplin. He also collaborated with R&B singer Etta James for two critically acclaimed albums in the early 1970s, mixing blues, soul, and then topped it off with Genya Ravan production jazz and rock.

Isis was an all-female rock band from New York. They took their name from the Egyptian goddess Isis, and were an early example of professional women in rock music in the 1970s.

Kenneth Alan James Hawker known as Ken Lewis, was an English singer, songwriter and record producer. He is considered one of the more successful songwriters of the 1960s as a result of his collaborations with John Carter. His biggest success was "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat", which was a 1965 US number 2 hit single for Herman's Hermits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brie Howard-Darling</span> American singer-songwriter and actress

Brie Howard-Darling is an American drummer, singer, percussionist, songwriter, artist, cake designer, and actress of Filipino and European descent. She has recorded with such recording artists as Carole King, Ringo Starr, ELO, Keith Moon, The Temptations, Jimmy Buffett, Melissa Manchester, Janiva Magness, and Glen Campbell. She has toured extensively with Martin Mull, Kiki Dee, Jack Wagner, Bruce Willis, Robert Palmer, Carole King, Jimmy Buffett, Robbie Nevil, and Duran Duran. She has been a band member of Fanny, American Girls, Boxing Gandhis, Fanny Walked The Earth, and Cherie Currie & Brie Darling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Vamps (Australian band)</span>

The Vamps were an Australian all-female pop rock band formed in April 1965 by founding mainstay Margaret Britt on guitar. Between 1965 and 1969 they toured extensively in Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia and the Pacific Islands, including six months performing at military bases in South Vietnam during 1967–1968. In 1969 they relocated to the United States, and performed there through to early 1975, before returning to Australia. In 1977 the Vamps were renamed Peaches and played in Australasia and the Pacific until they disbanded in 1980. As from 2014 Britt performs with Skyz the Limit.

Trude Heller's was a club in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City and located at 6th Avenue and West 9th Street and operated from the early 1960s to the early 1980s. It has been described as the only truly “in” spot in Greenwich Village. Some of the acts that got their starts there were Duane and Gregg Allman of the Allman Brothers, Cyndi Lauper, and the Manhattan Transfer.

Rosie was an American pop group from New York, United States. The group existed from 1975 to 1978 and consisted of David Lasley, Lana Marrano and Lynn Pitney, all of whom were cast members and met during the touring show of "Hair". Lasley wrote all the songs, mostly with Marrano.

Women of Rock Oral History Project is an oral history project based at Smith College focusing on American women and gender non-conforming, LGBT, and feminist rock and roll and punk music musicians from the 1970s to the present.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ricky Byrd</span> American musician

Ricky Byrd is a rock and roll guitar player, singer, songwriter and producer. He spent over a decade as a member of Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, where he contributed music and background vocals to two platinum albums, I Love Rock 'n Roll and Up Your Alley, the gold certified Album, and four others for the band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roll Me Through the Rushes</span> 1976 single by Rosie

"Roll Me Through the Rushes" is a song written by David Lasley and Lana Marrano, originally recorded by Rosie, featuring the vocals of David Lasley and released on their "Better Late Than Never" album by RCA in 1976. American R&B singer and songwriter Chaka Khan covered the song for her debut solo album, Chaka, produced by Arif Mardin and released in 1978 by Warner Bros. Records.

The English rock band the Kinks staged their fourth concert tour of the United Kingdom in April and May 1965. The thirty-three concerts comprised the second stage of a world tour, following shows in Australasia and Asia and before stages held later that year in the United States and continental Europe. After the Kinks had served as a support act during all of their previous tours, including during the first leg of their world tour, the 1965 UK engagements were the band's first as the headline act. Supporting groups included Goldie and the Gingerbreads and the Yardbirds.

References

  1. Deborah Frost. "Garageland." The Rolling Stone Book of Women in Rock. Ed. Barbara O'Dair. 415–425. New York: Random House, Inc., 1997. 415.
  2. Lucy O'Brien. She Bop II: The Definitive History of Women in Rock, Pop and Soul. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2002. 95.
  3. O'Brien. She Bop II. 129.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Mitch Patrick. Girls with Guitars. Liner Notes. 4. Ace Records, 2004. CDCHD989.
  5. 1 2 Frost. "Garageland." 416.
  6. 1 2 3 Genya Ravan. Lollipop Lounge: Memoirs of a Rock and Roll Refugee. London: Billboard Books, 2004. 49.
  7. Ravan. Lollipop Lounge. 42.
  8. Ravan. Lollipop Lounge. 52.
  9. Ravan Lollipop Lounge. 63.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gillian G. Gaar. She's a Rebel: The History of Women in Rock and Roll. Seattle: Seal Press, 1992. 64.
  11. Lisa Rhodes. Electric Ladyland: Women and Rock Culture. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005. 135
  12. Ravan. Lollipop Lounge. 90.
  13. Gaar. She's a Rebel. 65
  14. Ravan. Lollipop Lounge. 113–114.
  15. Ravan. Lollipop Lounge. 99.
  16. Ravan. Lollipop Lounge. 109.
  17. 1 2 Gaar. She's a Rebel. 66.
  18. Ravan, Genya (2004). Lollipop Lounge: Memoirs of a Rock and Roll Refugee. New York: Billboard Books. ISBN   9780823083626. OCLC   56984554.
  19. Glenn O'Brien. "Isis: Eight-Piece, All-Woman Band in Musical No-Man's Land." Rolling Stone. 8 November 1973.
  20. "Untitled Document". Archived from the original on September 13, 2007. Retrieved June 12, 2021.
  21. "WOMEN IN MUSIC". Womeninmusic.org. Retrieved June 12, 2021.
  22. "Goldie and the Gingerbreads". Official Charts Company . Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  23. Ravan, Lollipop Lounge. 279.