Discoveries

A look back at the golden days of pop music

The ever-changing Spaniels created a doo-wop musical legacy

May 9, 2012 | Susan Sliwicki | 0

The Spaniels are recognized as true originals, one of the most revered 1950s vocal groups among their peers, successors and generations of group harmony fans. ►

Deserving acts are on the outside looking in to the Rock Hall

March 14, 2012 | Susan Sliwicki | 14

Discoveries columnist Todd Baptista weighs in on a few of the deserving artists who’ve been excluded from The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame but deserve to be there. ►

Charlie Thomas’ dream come true: Meeting the president

February 21, 2012 | Susan Sliwicki | 0

Sure, entertainers are famous. But turns out, they have a lot of the same dreams we do, right down to meeting the president. ►

Go back to the boardwalk with The Drifters’ Charlie Thomas

February 21, 2012 | Susan Sliwicki | 0

From rehearsal to showtime, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Drifters member Charlie Thomas shares an evening in his life. ►

Harlem’s Bop Chords built their own ‘Castle In The Sky’

November 12, 2011 | Susan Sliwicki | 1

The Bop Chords went from a street corner to Harlem’s legendary Apollo Theater in a matter of weeks. Their career was brief, but they left behind three singles. ►

1940s musicians laid the cornerstone for rock ‘n’ roll

September 29, 2011 | Susan Sliwicki | 4

“Rhythm and blues had a baby and they called it rock and roll,” Little Richard quipped at the Concert For The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland in 1995. So who were the parents? Here are 13 Fabulous ’40s artists who facilitated that birth. ►

Hank Ballard & The Midnighters helped to shape rock and roll

August 23, 2011 | Susan Sliwicki | 2

Seeking the fountain of youth? Check out rock and roll. That was the philosophy of Hank Ballard, who rose to fame with The Midnighters and helped shape music. ►

King Records’ Syd Nathan was decades ahead of the competition

July 19, 2011 | Susan Sliwicki | 0

The 1940s was a watershed decade for labels such Chess, Imperial and Aladdin. But King Records ruled the indie circuit, thanks largely to owner Syd Nathan. ►

Meet The Mello-Moods, the teen doo-wop group that started it all

July 19, 2011 | Susan Sliwicki | 0

At the dawn of the vocal-group era, several years before adolescent hit-making groups were an industry norm, five Harlem, N.Y., boys formed The Mello-Moods, scored a top 10 R&B hit and ultimately influenced countless youngsters who followed. ►

Spend time in the presence of a master: Johnny Maestro

April 19, 2011 | princep | 3

Before he crossed over to the Brooklyn Bridge, Maestro made his way through R&B with The Crests. ►