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1910 Fruitgum Company

US pop band

1910 Fruitgum Company

US pop band

FieldValue
name1910 Fruitgum Company
image1910Fruitgum2007.jpg
captionThe 1910 Fruitgum Company performing live on November 17, 2007
originLinden, New Jersey, US
genre
years_active1965–1970, 1999–present
labelBuddah
current_members
past_members

The 1910 Fruitgum Company is an American bubblegum pop band of the 1960s. The group's Billboard Hot 100 hits were "Simon Says", "May I Take a Giant Step", "1, 2, 3, Red Light", "Goody Goody Gumdrops", "Indian Giver", "Special Delivery", and "The Train".

Background

Bubblegum pop was marketed to preteens as the evolving genre of rock music was beginning to target older adolescents and adults with darker lyrics and heavier rhythms. The simple structure of the songs and non-political content of bubblegum pop appealed to a younger audience. Many of the songs in the bubblegum pop genre like "1, 2, 3 Red Light" were intended to be singles within the budget of that younger preteen audience. "1, 2, 3 Red Light" became one of the biggest hits of the genre.

Career

The band began as Jeckell and the Hydes in New Jersey in 1966. The original members were Frank Jeckell, Mark Gutkowski, Floyd Marcus, Pat Karwan and Steve Mortkowitz – all from Linden, New Jersey.

During 1967, they were signed to Buddah Records, where they released five LPs under their own name and a variety of singles, as well as appearing on the LP The Kasenetz-Katz Singing Orchestral Circus. Their first hit single, "Simon Says", reached number 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart.

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The original group disbanded in 1970.

Late 1970s Fruit gum Co.

In 1999, original member Frank Jeckell and Mick Mansueto put the act back together. As of 2019, Fruitgum currently performs its own hits, in addition to other songs from the 1960s.

Million sellers

"Simon Says" sold three and a half million. "1, 2, 3, Red Light" and "Indian Giver" each sold over one million copies. All three were awarded gold discs.{{cite book | url-access= registration

Band members

Current lineup

  • Floyd Marcus (Original founding member, drummer)

  • Mick Mansueto (Lead vocals)

  • Frank Jeckell (Original Member, Guitar and Vocals)

  • Glenn Lewis (Bass and Vocals)

  • Keith Crane (Drums)

  • Eric Lipper (Keyboards and Vocals)

  • John Roginski (Guitar, Keyboards and Vocals)

Former members

  • Mark Gutkowski (Original Member, Lead Singer on all the hits, and Hammond B3 Organist)
  • Pat Karwan (Original Member, Lead Guitarist and Vocals)
  • Steve Mortkowitz (Original Member, Bass Player and Vocals)
  • Jerry Roth (Tenor Sax)
  • Bob Brescia (Keyboards, Vocals and Music Director)
  • Thomas "Bart" Bartleson (Drums)
  • Mike Edell (Keyboards and Vocals)
  • John Korba-Guitar/Vocals
  • Ralph Cohen (Douglas) (Trumpet)
  • Pat Soriano (Hammond B3 Organist)
  • Bruce Shay (Bass and Vocals)
  • Rusty Oppenheimer (Drums and Vocals)
  • Larry Ripley (Bass, Woodwinds and Vocals)
  • Chuck Travis (Guitar and Vocals)
  • Richie Gomez (Guitar and Vocals)
  • Michael Stoppiello (Guitar and Vocals)
  • Philip Thorstenson (Drums and Vocals)
  • Chuck Allen (Bass and Vocals)

1980s road band members

  • Randy Monaco (Lead Vocals)
  • Jim Bulkowski (Lead Guitar)
  • Russ Hoffmaster (Drums & Vocals)
  • Rick Gainor (Bass & Vocals)
  • John Siroky (Keyboards)
  • Mark Maroni 1982-1985 (Lead Guitar
  • Scott Vogt 1982-1985 (Bass Guitar)

Discography

Singles

YearTitlePeak chart positionsRecord LabelB-side
From same album as A-side except where indicatedAlbumUSUKAUSCAN
1967"Simon Says"4221Buddah Records"Reflections from the Looking Glass" (Non-LP track)*Simon Says*
1968"May I Take a Giant Step (Into Your Heart)"63–4221"(Poor Old) Mr. Jensen"
"[1, 2, 3, Red Light](1-2-3-red-light-song)"5–81"Sticky, Sticky" (Non-LP track)*[1, 2, 3, Red Light](1-2-3-red-light)*
"Goody Goody Gumdrops"37–2926"Candy Kisses" (Non-LP track)*Goody Goody Gumdrops*
1969"Indian Giver"5–51"Pow Wow" (Non-LP track)*Indian Giver*
"Special Delivery"38–4717"No Good Annie"
"The Train"57–6834"Eternal Light" (Non-LP track)*Hard Ride*
"When We Get Married"118–76–"Baby Bret" (Non-LP track)*Juiciest Fruitgum*
1970"Go Away"––77–Super K Records"The Track"Non-LP tracks

Albums

YearAlbum*Billboard* 200Record Label
1968*Simon Says*162Buddah Records
*[1, 2, 3, Red Light](1-2-3-red-light)*163
*Goody Goody Gumdrops*–
1969*Indian Giver*147
*Hard Ride*–
1970*Juiciest Fruitgum*–
1993*Juiciest Hits*–
1994*Bubblegum Goodies*–Victor Entertainment
*A Golden Classics Edition*–Collectables Records
2001*The Best of the 1910 Fruitgum Company: Simon Says*–Buddah Records
2007*Bubblegum Christmas*–Collectables Records

References

References

  1. "Interview With The 1910 Fruitgum Company". Classicbands.com.
  2. Simpson, Kim. ''Early '70s Radio: The American Format Revolution''. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2011, p.25–26
  3. Doggett, Peter. ''Electric Shock: From the Gramophone to the IPhone – 125 Years of Pop Music''. Random House, 2015. p.427
  4. Voger, Mark. [https://www.nj.com/entertainment/2014/02/1910_fruitgum_company_simon_says.html "1910 Fruitgum Company: From Linden to the Top 10"], NJ Advance Media for [[NJ.com]], February 28, 2014, updated March 29, 2019. Accessed November 25, 2019. "Jeckell's fellow founding members were Mark Gutkowski (lead vocals, keyboards), Pat Karwan (guitar), Steve Mortkowitz (bass), and Floyd Marcus (drums).... And so five young men from Linden with aspirations to be the next Vanilla Fudge scored a Top 10 hit ... with a bubblegum song."
  5. Roberts, David. (2006). "British Hit Singles & Albums". Guinness World Records Limited.
  6. "Floyd Marcus of 1910 Fruitgum Co : Songwriter Interviews". Songfacts.com.
  7. (1997). "[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music". [[Virgin Books]].
  8. "Remembering 1968: The Music of 50 Years Ago!".
  9. (February 2021). "'60s return to Newton Theatre".
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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