Even though I’m probably known by my FSM friends as a lady of exquisite tastes,() I admit that I love Doo Wop music. My high school and college years always featured the 60’s and early 70’s music, and I am not fond of a lot of the music from that era. (Exceptions are The Beatles and Creedence.) As a little girl I loved all the silly Doo Wop music. As an adult, I still love Doo Wop. The rama lama ding dong doobie bop bip whop sounds are silly. The lyrics are silly. Maurice Williams’ STAY lyrics say things like, “Tell me that you’re going to ooh wah.” “The clouds above will see my love” rhyme schemes pepper the songs.
Yep, silly.
Still I like the sweet infectious melodies and rhythms of Doo Wop. After film scores, I own a lot of Doo Wop from the 50’s into the early 60’s when Doo Wop died. My favorites are Dion (alone) and Dion and the Belmonts, The Crests, Bobby Darin, Neil Sedaka, and others. I know, without mentioning names, that some of you remember Doo Wop.
Share some of YOUR favorite Doo Wop songs.
Here are a few of mine.
Donna, Donna, The Prima Donna. (Even has a Zsa Zsa Gabor rhyme.)
In The Still Of The Night
Next Door to An Angel
My favorite version of STAY is the more modern version by Jackson Browne heard Here at 6.00
Certainly Dirty Dancing brought back Doo Wop songs, and The First Wives Club reintroduced You Don’t Own Me. I notice some of famous Doo Wop songs are currently sung on The Voice or provide background to advertisements, so they all are not dead yet.
Joan I have long collected records but "Doo-Wop" has always been my favorite (with soundtracks a close second , of course.) I love the sound, the harmonies the staging etc. plus this was the music of my teenage years. The 50'-early 60' era was beautifully evoked with the great "Looking for An Echo" by Kenny Vance and the Planotones from 1975. Mike
Wow, Recordman, glad to find another Doo Wop aficionado. It is even listed in your profile. Loved that song you posted. "Looking For An Echo" was a new song for me; I'd never heard it. It does capture the Doo Wop era.
I found another discovery. After hearing the Echo song, I looked up Kenny Vance on youtube to see his songs. I found "Try Me," a song I heard in the Christian Slater movie Untamed Heart. I even bought the soundtrack to that movie, but it didn't have that song. Now I know who sang it. I may look for a Vance CD.
Oh and hey joan, I won free tickets to a Dion (and Little Richard) concert down here. Dion did all of 'em. Love that Donna but am partial to his Ruby too.
Big time - scored 2 Rhino 4cd boxes this summer and love the hell outta 'em. Always have loved it - fascinating history about limited pressings, fighting to collect back in the days of 45s. Go Penguins, must dig more into this thread tonight :-) -Sean
I thought I would add one more piece of information to this dying topic. Doo Wop over the decades has often been resurrected in movies and Broadway plays that are still touring. JERSEY BOYS, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, GREASE, HAIRSPRAY, and BYE BYE BIRDIE all have Doo Wop songs.
Wow, Purple, thanks for contributing. Some of these Doo Wop songs are new to me like "Make Believe Word" and "You and Me." "Biggest Mistake" really does sound like Vallie and the Four Seasons. Great memories.
Hmm, it turns out that I've always quite liked Doo Wop songs without actually knowing that's what they were called. Although I probably prefer the Doo Wop-influenced surfer genre a little more.
Wow, Purple, thanks for contributing. Some of these Doo Wop songs are new to me like "Make Believe Word" and "You and Me." "Biggest Mistake" really does sound like Vallie and the Four Seasons. Great memories.
Although they were recorded back in the day, I don't think "You And Me" and "Biggest Mistake" were released at the time, it's only more recently that they've appeared.
Although a lot of doowops have silly aspects, I think it's also the case that the doowop genre has some of the greatest, most heartfelt romantic songs.
The Cleftones - "You And I Can Climb"
Earline & Her Girlfriends - "Because of You" (Originally performed by The Dreamers, I think, but I like this version! )
) I admit
