[78-L] Dickey Doo & the Don'ts

[Taylor Bowie]

When I was about five or six I thought that  Nee Nee Na Na Na Na Nu Nu was 
pretty cool...but it was the other side of the 45 that I really liked: 
"Flip Top Box."

Thanks for the history about the "group" who made these records.

Taylor



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Lennick" <dlennick at sympatico.ca>
To: "78-L Mail List" <78-l at klickitat.78online.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 24, 2009 8:20 AM
Subject: Re: [78-L] Dickey Doo & the Don'ts


> http://www.answers.com/topic/dickey-doo-the-dont-s
> Dickey Doo & the Dont's started out as a joke with a purpose. Gerry 
> Granahan, a
> producer, songwriter, and performer needed an alias under which he could
> release his newest record without getting into legal trouble with another
> record label to which he was already under contract and the alias turned 
> into a
> successful recording act. Granahan, born in Pittston, PA, was a musician 
> and
> singer who'd handled demos for Hill & Range aimed at Elvis Presley. Signed 
> to
> Sunbeam Records in 1957, he had a hit in mid-1958 with "No Chemise 
> Please," a
> novelty song that got to number 23 on the Billboard chart. His next four
> singles stiffed, but then he found himself with a song that seemed like a
> certain hit, "Click Clack," and a label -- Swan Records of Philadelphia --  
> that
> wanted to release it; moreover, with Swan behind it, the label's silent
> partner, Dick Clark, would give it a boost on the local version of his 
> daily
> music showcase, American Bandstand, thus ensuring it had every chance to 
> become
> a hit. Granahan's different contractual relationships, with Sunbeam and an
> earlier contract with Atlantic, however, made it risky for him to release
> anything with Swan, at least under his own name. Thus were born Dickey Doo 
> &
> the Dont's, a mythical act whose name would be attached to the song "Click
> Clack." Swan partner Tony Mammarella suggested the name Dickey Doo & the 
> Dont's
> as an "in" joke that obliquely referred to Clark's secret involvement with
> Swan. The song broke out gradually and rose to number 28 during a
> three-and-a-half-month run. With a hit behind him, Granahan now faced 
> another
> problem: coming up with a group to appear as Dickey Doo & the Dont's. He
> recruited a quartet -- Harvey Davis (bass), Al Ways (sax), Ray Gangi 
> (guitar),
> and Dave Alldred (drums) -- to back him as Dickey Doo & the Dont's; 
> Granahan
> was referred to on their recordings as Richard A. Doo. The quintet proved
> extremely popular in concert and charted more singles, including "Nee Nee 
> Na Na
> Na Na Nu Nu," "Leave Me Alone," and "Teardrops Will Fall," over the next 
> year
> and a half. By the 1960s, the group had left Swan and moved to the United
> Artists label, where they cut two albums and remained under contract until
> 1965. Granahan continued his extensive activities as a producer during 
> this
> period, working with the music of the Angels and Patty Duke, among others.
> Dickey Doo & the Dont's have never been compiled on one CD, but their 
> music is
> spread among several compilations devoted to Swan Records and early '60s
> oldies. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide
>
> (Seems to suggest that it's only Granahan, with Alldred coming on board 
> when an
> actual performing group was needed.)
>
> dl
>
> Stephen Davies wrote:
>> Yes, folks,
>>         it's nonsense / novelty, but there still has to be a right 
>> answer.
>>         My Quality copy of "Click-Clack" (1958) lists Dickey Doo as
>> co-author, however BMI lists "Dicky Doo".  Which spelling is correct?
>> (I've even heard of a "Richard A Doo" in connection with the group.)
>>         It is commonly understood that this is a pseudonym for Gerry
>> Granahan, who was working for the Swan label covertly.  However, BMI
>> doesn't reveal the author's identity.  It appears to infer that Dickey is
>> both Gerry Granahan AND Dave Alldred, the rock and roll drummer, because
>> they list Dicky Doo as co-author on several of Alldred's tunes prior to
>> his connection with Granahan.  (Here's a database that could stand some
>> more transparency.)
>>
>>         See the label:
>>                 http://bigband-smallband.blogspot.com/#554436820518916381
>>         See the BMI entry for Dickey Doo:
>>                 http://tinyurl.com/mhupy7
>>
>>         The "Lee" and "Grant" (generals?) who are co-credited on
>> "Click-clack" should be Aaron Schroeder and Jerry J Grant, respectively.
>>
>> - Stephen D
>> in Calgary
>>
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