The Supremes were an American girl group, and were a major act of the Motown label having 12 number one hits in the 1960’s. “Stop in the name of Love” ” Come See about Me” “Baby Love” You Can’t Hurry Love”. And many more, a number of these hits were written and produced by Motown’s main songwriting and production team, Holland, Dozier – Holland. It is said that their breakthrough made it possible for future African-American R&B and soul musicians to find mainstream success. Billboard ranked the Supreme’s as the 16th greatest Hot 100 artist of all time!
| CBS Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
The Shirelles were an American girl group formed in Passaic New Jersey in 1957, Founded in 1957 for a talent show at their high school, they were signed by Florence Greenberg of Tiara Records. Their first single, “I Met Him on a Sunday”, was released by Tiara and licensed by Decca Records in 1958.
| The Shirelles ~ Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
Working with Luther Dixon, the group rose to fame with “Tonights The Night”. After a successful period of collaboration with Dixon and promotion by Scepter, with seven top 20 hits,
Martha and the Vandellas (known from 1967 to 1972 as Martha Reeves & The Vandellas were an American vocal girl group formed in Detroit in 1957. The group achieved fame in the 1960’s with Motown records.
The group’s string of hits included ” Come and Get These Memories”, “Heat Wave”, “Quicksand”, “Nowhere To Run”, “Jimmy Mack”, “I”m Ready for Love”, ” Bless You” and “Dancing in the Street”, the latter song becoming their signature single.
| Martha and The Vandella’s ~ Gory Records, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
The Chiffons The group was originally a trio of schoolmates – lead singer Judy Craig, backed by Patricia Bennett and Barbara Lee – enrolled at James Monroe High School in the Bronx in 1961.
The group chose the name The Chiffons while recording and releasing their first single, “He’s So Fine”, written by Ronnie Mack, produced by The Tokens of “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” fame, and released on the Laurie Records label.
| The Chiffons ~ Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
The Angels The Angels originated in New Jersey as the Starlets, consisting of sisters Barbara “Bibs” and Phyllis “Jiggs” Allbut, Bernadette Carroll, and Lynda Malzone. They had local hits and worked as backup singers in the studio. Linda Jansen replaced Malzone as lead singer, and the group eventually changed their name to the Angels.
| Murray the K-real name Murray Kaufman, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
The Ronettes In 1963, they signed with Mercury Records’ subsidiary Smash Records and released their biggest hit, “My Boyfriend’s Back,” which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold over one million copies. the Angels were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. As of 2021, Phyllis Allbut and Peggy Santiglia are the last remaining founding members of the group still alive.
The Blossoms were an American girl group that originated from California. During their height of success in the 1960’s, the group’s lineup most famously consisted of Darlene Love, Fanita James, and Jean King.
| Reprise Records, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
Although the group had a recording career in their own right, they were most famous for being the group to actually record the No. 1 hit ” He’s a Rebel” (which producer Phil Spector credited to The Crystals, and for providing backing vocals for many of the biggest hits of the 1960’s
The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960’s, their 1961–1964 chart hits – including ” There’s No Other Like My Baby”, “Up Town”, ” He’s Sure The Boy I Love”, “He’s a Rebel”, “Da Doo Ron Ron” and “Then He Kissed Me”– featured three different female lead singers and were all produced by Phil Spector.
The latter three songs were originally ranked number 263, number 114, and number 493, respectively, on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time” However, two songs were omitted from the magazine’s 2010 update, leaving only “He’s a Rebel” at number 267. In the 2021 update, “Da Doo Ron Ron” was added back to the list at number 366.
| Publisher-Beat Publications/Prestige Publishing-Cinnamon Cinder teen club., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
The Shangri-Las were an American girl group of the 1960’s, consisting of Mary Weiss, Elizabeth “Betty” Weiss, Marguerite “Marge” Ganser, and Mary Ann Ganser. Between 1964 and 1966 several hit pop songs of theirs documented teen tragedies and melodramas. They continue to be known for their hits “Remember ” Walking in the Sand” “Give Him a great Big Kiss”, and in particular, “Leader of the Pack” which went to #1 in the United States in late 1964.
The group was formed at Andrew Jackson High School in Cambria Heights a neighborhood in Queens New York City, in 1963.
The group consisted of two pairs of sisters: Mary Weiss (lead singer) and Elizabeth “Betty” Weiss, and identical twins Marguerite “Marge”/”Margie” Ganser and Mary Ann Ganse.
| Red Bird/ photographed by Bruno Bernard, aka “Bruno of Hollywood”, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
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