Help, I've Lost my US Backing Group Quiz

Answer: The Comets

Bill Haley and His Comets were a going concern a long time before "Rock Around The Clock" propelled them into the world of Rock and Roll. In the '40s Bill Haley played with The Down Homers and also formed The Four Aces of Western Swing. In the late '40s he formed Bill Haley and The Saddlemen who turned into Bill Haley and His Comets whose music was very different to what they used to play.

Their first hit was "Crazy Man Crazy" which peaked at number 12 on the Billboard chart in 1953. "Rock Around The Clock" was first released in 1954 as the B-Side of "Thirteen Women". Later it was featured in the 1955 Glenn Ford movie "Blackboard Jungle". It was re-released and became number one for eight weeks on the Billboard chart in 1955. It was Bill Haley and His Comets' only number one hit in the USA.

Answer: The Blue Caps

Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps were formed in 1956 and had their first hit when "Be-Bop-A-Lula" peaked at number seven on the Billboard Top 100 in 1956. Unfortunately their Billboard chart career was very short and they only had one more Top 20 hit when "Lotta Lovin'" which peaked at number 13 in 1957.

In the UK Gene Vincent had four Top 20 hits with "Be-Bop-A-Lula" (number 16 in 1956), "Blue Jean Bop" (number 16 in 1956), "My Heart" (number 16 in 1960) and "Pistol Packin' Mama" (number 15 in 1960). In 1960 while on tour in the UK he was badly injured in the car crash in which Eddie Cochran received fatal injuries.

Answer: The Crickets

Buddy Holly first recorded in 1954 with Bob Montgomery; in 1956 he recorded as Buddy Holly & The Three Tunes. In 1957 he recorded as Buddy Holly and The Crickets who were Jerry Allison (drums), Joe B. Mauldin (bass) and Niki Sullivan (rhythm guitar). Their first hit on the Billboard Top 100 was "That'll Be The Day", number one for one week in 1957.

In the USA Buddy Holly and The Crickets only had three Top Ten hits on the Billboard Top 100. In The UK they had three Top Ten hits under the Buddy Holly and The Crickets name and six under the Buddy Holly name. The Crickets played on some hits and others were overdubbed by The Fireballs after Buddy Holly's death. In 1963 "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" peaked at number three, "Bo Diddley" peaked at number four and "Wishing" peaked at number ten on the UK singles chart.

Answer: The Juniors

Danny and The Juniors were formed in 1955 as The Juvenaires. They recorded "Do The Bop" in 1957 and it came to the attention of DJ Dick Clark. He suggested that the group change its name and the title of the song.

They became Danny and The Juniors and the song became "At The Hop". It was their first hit on the Billboard Top 100 and was number one for seven weeks in 1958. It peaked at number three on the UK singles chart the same year and on re-release in 1976 it peaked at number 39. Their next record "Rock And Roll is Here To Stay" peaked at number 19 in 1958 and was their only other Billboard Top 20 hit.

Danny Rapp the lead singer was found dead in an Arizona hotel in 1983, he had apparently committed suicide.

Answer: The Belmonts

Dion and The Belmonts were formed in 1957. The four members lived in the Bronx, New York, and the name came about because two of the singers lived on Belmont Avenue and the other two lived near by.

Their first hit on the Billboard Top 100 was "I Wonder Why" which peaked at number 22 in 1958. They had two Top Ten hits, "A Teenager In Love", number five in 1959 and "Where Or When", number three in 1960.

In 1960 while in hospital for heroin addiction Dion decided that he wanted to go solo. He had a string of Top Ten hits up to 1968, which included "Runaround Sue", number one for two weeks in 1961, "The Wanderer" number two in 1962 and "Ruby Baby" number two in 1963.

Answer: The Hurricanes

Johnny and The Hurricanes were formed as The Orbits in 1957. Their first hit on the Billboard Hot 100 as Johnny and The Hurricanes was "Crossfire" which peaked at number 23 in 1959. They had two more Billboard Top 20 hits with "Red River Rock" number five in 1959 and "Beatnik Fly" number 15 in 1960.

In the UK they had six Top 20 hits which included "Red River Rock" number three in 1959, "Beatnik Fly" number eight in 1960, "Down Yonder" number eight in 1960 and "Rocking Goose" number three in 1960.

The Beatles were their support group when performing in Hamburg, Germany, in December 1962.

Answer: The Starliters

Joey Dee and The Starliters' first single was "Lorraine" in 1958. They had to wait until 1961 for their first chart entry, "Peppermint Twist - Part 1". It was number one for three weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1962. It peaked at number 33 on the UK singles chart the same year.

"Peppermint Twist - Part 1" by Joey Dee and The Starliters followed "The Twist" by Chubby Checker to the number one spot in 1962 which had also reached number one in 1960. "Peppermint Twist - Part 1" by Joey Dee and The Starliters is not to be confused with "The Peppermint Twist" by Danny Peppermint and The Jumping Jacks which peaked at number 54 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961 and is a different song.

Answer: The Romantics

Ruby and The Romantics' first record was "Our Day Will Come" it was number one for one week on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963. Their only other Top 20 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 was "My Summer Love" which peaked at number 16 in 1963.

The all male quartet named The Supremes was formed in 1961 and later Ruby Nash was asked to join them and became the lead singer. They were signed by Kapp records and Kapp records A&R director Alan Stanton renamed the group Ruby and The Romantics. The writers of the song wanted singer Jack Jones to record the song but allowed Ruby and The Romantics to record it with the proviso that if it flopped the song would be given to Jack Jones.

Answer: The Fireballs

The original Fireballs were formed in 1958 and had a few minor instrumental hits on the Billboard Hot 100. The highest charting of these was "Bulldog" which peaked at number 24 in 1960. They took their name from "Great Balls Of Fire" by Jerry Lee Lewis. They recorded at the studio of Norman Petty where they overdubbed some of Buddy Holly's posthumous releases.

Jimmy Gilmer joined the group in 1960 and under the name of Jimmy Gilmer and The Fireballs they had their biggest hit when "Sugar Shack" became number one for five weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963. They had one more Top 20 hit when "Daisy Petal Pickin'" peaked at number 15 in 1964.

In 1967 billed as The Fireballs they had a number nine hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Bottle Of Wine". Jimmy Gilmer left the group that year.

Answer: The Shondells

Tommy James and The Shondells were formed in 1959 as The Echoes. They then became Tom and The Tornadoes with a 12 year old Tommy Jackson (Tommy James) as lead singer. They became Tommy James and The Shondells in 1964 (after singer Troy Shondell) and released "Hanky Panky" which failed to chart. The group disbanded in 1965 and Tommy James formed a new group The Koachmen.

In 1966 Tommy James got a telephone call from Pittsburgh disc jockey "Mad Mike" Metro about how "Hanky Panky" was being played and becoming popular. He went to Pittsburgh to promote the song but had to recruit a brand new group as the others had all gone their own ways. "Hanky Panky" was re-released and was number one for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1966.

Between 1966 and 1980 Tommy James and The Shondells had 11 Top 20 hits of which eight made the Top Ten and two were number one hits. The second of which was "Crimson And Clover", number one for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969.