The History of Doo-Wop

Doo-wop was the most popular Black music style in the 1950s. Its origins go back as far as the 1930s with male gospel quartets and vocal groups like the Mills Brothers and the Ink Spots. The use of nonsense syllables sung by background singers such as shoo bee doo wop bah dah, the use of a falsetto voice above the melody, and a pronounced bass voice became the basis of this genre. In this course, we trace its development beginning in the 1950s with the Ravens, The Spaniels, The Cadillacs, and Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers. This is followed by Dion and the Belmonts, the Penguins, and the Skyliners through the late 1950's and early 1960's. We also look at influential disc jockeys and record promoters who made these sounds mainstream.