Three E's of Doo-wop: The Echoes; The Elegants; and The Excellents

By Robert Reynolds

The 1950s brought radio listeners a host of great vocal groups.  Some, like Dion and the Belmonts, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, The Crests, The Cleftones, The Flamingoes and others churned out a remarkable number of hits and to this day are highly recognized.  The popularity of many other fine groups was short-lived.  Three E's of Doo-wop: The Echoes; The Elegants; and The Excellents tells of a trio of superb groups that made a splash and quickly disappeared from record charts.  

• Language: English
• Publisher: Robert Reynolds
• Release date: Feb 14, 2021
• ISBN: 9781387682188

Robert Reynolds

Based in Calgary, Robert is an emerging author who spends his days working in the oil and gas industry but has been a big fan of the spy thriller genre ever since his childhood when he read one of his grandfather's original James Bond paperbacks from the late 50's. He is married with a young daughter and when he's not day dreaming about dangerous adventures in exotic locales he enjoys running and other outdoor pursuits.

Book preview

Introduction

During the late fifties and early sixties, optimistic young men wiled away their idle time harmonizing on busy street corners, beneath dusty boardwalks and even in tenement hallways and bathroom showers, where it was said acoustics were especially good.   

Perhaps the most enjoyable way to read this composition would be to put some scratchy old vinyl discs on your turntable and let them play softly in the background. 

In this dissertation we look at three New York City Doo-Wop vocal groups whose stage names all begin with the letter E.  The Echoes, the Elegants and the Excellents.

First, let’s set the mood...

Picture a lazy summer night with couples strolling along the boulevard.  Young lovers holding hands. 

Hear the hiss of rubber rolling over warm pavement as old sedans cruise past—souped up Chevys, shiny Oldsmobiles, tank-like Buicks...  their radios blaring Top 40 hits...

Old friends sharing a park bench. 

The mellow sounds of clean-shaven quartets practicing beneath corner street lamps. Hushabye, In the Still of the Night, That’s My Desire, Goodnight My Love...

Do doo, do doo wah...

Pop open a cold Nehi, close your eyes, soak in the harmonies...

Chapter 1: The Echoes

Brooklyn was a hotbed of white doo-wop talent in the late fifties.  It seemed young doo-wop