For today's Vinyl Vault I didn't pick a group or an artist, instead I went for a genre.
I've had these two compilation albums kicking around for quite a while now with many more in digital format. Although the original music is predominately from the 50s the tracks, on the whole, stand up well. This then is not any sort of review or critique, it's more of a trip down memory lane, mentioning some songs that still resonate with me.
So what is Doo Wop. Well, let's start with a quote from "The Complete Book of Doo Wop" by Gribin & Schiff. They list 5 defining points ..
1) it is vocal music made by groups
2) it features a wide range of vocal parts, "usually from bass to falsetto"
3) it includes nonsense syllables
4) there is a simple beat and low key instrumentals
5) it has simple words and music
I think we all know Doo Wop songs that have point #3, the nonsense syllables. Sing along with me to the sound of The Spaniels ..
"Doop-doo-do-doo-do,
Goodnight sweetheart well it's time to go,
Goodnight sweetheart well it's time to go,
I hate to leave you but I really must say
Goodnight, sweetheart, goodnight. .."
How about this one by the Crew-Cuts ..
"Hey, nonny, ding, dong
Alang, alang, alang
Boom ba doh, ba doo, ba doodle ay
Oh, life could be a dream
(Sh-boom)
If I could take you up in paradise up above
(Sh-boom)
If you would tell me I'm the only one that you love
Life could be a dream, sweetheart"
And the last one .. this is easy if you get the rhythm right ..
"Ba-bom-a-bom-bom
(Ba-bom-a-bom-bom)
(Ba-bom-a-bom-bom)
(Ba-dang-a-dang-dang)
(Ba-ding-a-dong-ding)"
Yes, of course, The Marcels with 'Blue Moon'.
There are literally thousands of Doo Wop songs and many that aren't quite as nonsensical as those. There's the lilting tones of The Five Keys singing 'The Glory of Love' or the string of hits by The Platters with 'Twilight Time', 'Smoke Gets in Your Eyes', 'The Great Pretender' etc.
Doo Wop did have it's controversy, particularly with a couple of songs, 'A Thousand Miles Away' and 'Daddy's Home' both co-written by James Sheppard of Shep and the Limelites. Both songs sounded very very similar and were recorded by 2 different groups under 2 different labels. The Heartbeats did 'Thousand Miles ..' in 1956 and Shep and the Limelites did 'Daddy's Home' in 1961. As is the way of these things there was legal action for copyright violation and the 'Daddy' publishers lost.
That didn't stop Cliff Richard doing a version of 'Daddy's Home' in 1981 and making it a #2 in England and a #23 in the US.
Some remakes of Doo Wop songs became more well known than the originals. It was many years before I realised that the Herman's Hermits song 'Silhouettes' from 1965 had been done in 1957 by The Rays. Likewise the Pipkins novelty song 'Yakety Yak' in 1970 was a makeover of the 1957 classic by the magnificent Coasters.
Two of my favourites come from The Manhattan Transfer who in their heyday of the mid 70s to 80s covered some great doo wop classics - 'Gloria' by The Cadillacs, 'Trickle Trickle' from the Videos and 'The Boy From New York City' originally by The Ad-Libs.
Some Doo Wop song lyrics became the basis for naming other groups. The best example is from the Silhouettes song 'Get a Job'. It comes out with the catchy refrain ..
"Yip yip yip yip yip yip yip yip
Mum mum mum mum mum mum
Get a job, sha na na na, sha na na na na"
From that emerged the rock 'n' roll doo wop group Sha Na Na. They had a meteoric rise to fame due to Jimi Hendrix seeing them at a New York club in 1969 only a few months after forming. He got them a slot at the upcoming Woodstock festival and they performed right before Hendrix's closing session. Despite it being 3 days of peace and love with a long-haired hippie population in attendance, they totally blew the crowd away and had standing ovations by singing predominately Doo Wop standards. 'Duke of Earl', 'Come Go With Me', 'Book of Love' and the song that gave them their name 'Get A Job'.
Doo Wop tracks are often used in movies. Probably the most songs in one movie goes to 'American Graffiti' just because of the time the movie is set in. Lots of doo wop, with the added voice-over of Wolfman Jack doing the DJ'ing.
One of my favourite uses of a doo wop song is in the movie 'Christine', the John Carpenter film based on the Stephen King book of a demonic, possessed car. The film is shockingly acted and poorly scripted but the star of the show, the red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury, is malevolently magnificent. When the strains of the Thurston Harris song 'Little Bitty Pretty One' can be heard in the distance during the death scene of Moochie Welch the evil is electric. Tracy dislikes the movie but still bought me a beautiful metal scale model of that iconic car.
Dig out some Doo Wop, take yourself back to street corner harmonies and simpler times. It's worth the trip.
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