The Archies
The Archies was a fictional American cartoon music group, which became known in 1968 for four years by several hits worldwide and had their origin in the same comics by John L. Goldwater and Bob Montana.
Genesis
Music producer and music promoter Don Kirshner was launched in August 1966, the retorts rock band The Monkees into life and they accommodated in the eponymous television series on NBC. The TV series was used as a vehicle for the Monkees - plates, which were played by session musicians and advanced to enormous sales success. When in March 1968 waned, the success of the Monkees, Kirshner was looking for a copy of this success story. After May 1968 the music magazine Billboard had reported that promoter Kirshner would put together a new rock group to produce with it the cartoon television series The Archie Show from the fall of 1968 with 17 episodes, he applied the same methods as for the Monkees. He continued the success familiar composers Jeff Barry as a copywriter, this brought Toni Wine as a session singer. Kirshner turn brought the experienced session singer Ron Dante on lead vocals. As a session musician were Ron Frangipane (keyboards), Dave engaged appeal (guitar), Chuck Rainey (bass) and Gary Chester (drums). The artificially assembled group was only intended for studio performances, they never really existed as a group and did not occur in shows.
The session musicians received in September 1968 formally known as Archie in Kirshners Calendar Records a record deal. The animated series The Archie Show was launched nationally on Saturdays on CBS on September 14, 1968 was a year until 30 August 1969. The television series was based on the cartoon characters The Archies, the comic book publisher John L. Goldwater from December had published in 1942 in newspapers. The young band members of the comic book series were initially Archie Andrews ( guitar), Reggie Mantle ( guitar accompaniment) and Jughead Jones ( drums), and later Betty Cooper (tambourine ) and Veronica Lodge (keyboard) to do so.
The banal content of the series is about Archie, who is also in love with Betty and Veronica, and can not decide between the two. With ratings of up to 75%, the series was one of the absolute hit series on U.S. television. It served as a vehicle for the fictional pop group Archies, which was compiled only for the purpose by Kirshner.
Singles
The first single was released in September 1968 in parallel with the start of the television series of the title Bang - Shang -A- Lang, as well as the top of the pop - charts misguided as the follow-up single Feelin ' So Good ( Skooby -DOO ), which in December 1968 came on the market.
Sugar, Sugar was dubbed the third single of the Archies and recorded in January 1969 at the RCA Studio A Manhattan, arranged and produced by Jeff Barry, from which almost all the initial titles were written as sole author - as well as the first plate Bang - Shang - A- Lang. The unknown Canadian Andy Kim contributed with the interpretable text and was responsible for the music.
The in June 1969 as Sugar, Sugar / Melody Hill (Calendar # 1008 ) released single was initially unsuccessful. The breakthrough came only in July 1969, when the progressive radio station KYA in San Francisco, the board repeatedly played and the drug scene interpreted the passage "pour your sugar on me" as a drug reference. Until August 30, 1969 1 million copies were sold on October 30, 1969 already over 3 million in the U.S. alone, another million was added in the UK. Except in the USA (4 weeks) and GB (8 weeks ), the disk still in 6 other countries number one in Germany ( together for 7 weeks). Worldwide least 6 million copies have been implemented.
Further single releases from 1972 were again mediocre, so that the artificial group with Sugar, Sugar is identified.
The group was given in 1970 by Reader's Choice a Silver Bravo Otto the German teen magazine Bravo.
Discography
Singles ( with Date )
- Bang Shang -A- Lang / Truck Driver, September 1968
- Feelin ' So Good ( Skooby -DOO ) / Lovelight, December 1968
- Sugar, Sugar / Melody Hill, June 1969
- Jingle Jangle / Justine, November 1969
- Together We Two / Everything's Alright, January 1970
- Who's Your Baby? / Senorita Rita, March 1970
- Sunshine / Over and Over, July 1970
- This Is Love / Throw a Little Love My Way, 1971
- A Summer Prayer for Peace / Maybe I'm Wrong, 1971
- Love Is Living In You / Hold On to Lovin ' 1972
- Strangers in the Morning / Plum Crazy 1972