Pleasant Surprise: The ULTIMATE DOO WOP SHOW at the Beacon Theatre

By Marivir R. Montebon

The Beacon Theatre in Manhattan’s Upper West Side was packed with the fifth year of an annual tradition of doo wop show. Eleven original artists which made a combined sale of over 200 million records were featured in the Ultimate Doo Wop Show on June 23, 2012.

The stellar lineup of Doo-Wop greats featured: From the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame, Charlie Thomas’ Drifters (On Broadway, There Goes My Baby, Up on the Roof, This Magic Moment, Dance with Me, Save the Last Dance for Me), Jimmy Beaumont & The Skyliners (Since I Don’t Have Your, Pennies from Heaven, This I Swear), Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs (Stay, I Remember, Come Along), The Marcels (Blue Moon, Heartaches, Summertime), Barbara Lewis (Hello Stranger, Be My Baby, Make Me Your Baby), The Mystics featuring originals, George Galfo & Phil Cracolici (Hush-A-Bye), Barbara Harris & The Toys (Lover’s Concerto, Attack), The Fireflies (You Were Mine, I Can’t Say Goodbye), Acappella by Voice Activated, and cool, Carl V. & The Blue Suede Orchestra (Buzz, Buzz, Buzz).

The Toys and the Drifters were instantly the crowd’s favorite. As original singer Barbara Harris belted ‘Don’t Cry Out Loud’, sending the audience singing as well. The Drifters were the last to perform, bringing the house down with such incredibly great songs as Broadway, There Goes My Baby, UP on the Roof, This Magic Moment, and Save the Last Dance for Me.

The Drifters is a long-lived American doo-wop and R&B/soul vocal group with a peak in popularity from 1953 to 1963, though several splinter Drifters continue to perform today. They were originally formed to serve as backing group for Clyde McPhatter (of Billy Ward & the Dominoes) in 1953.

The Toys were an American pop girl group from Jamaica, New York, which was formed in 1961 and disbanded in 1968. The trio consisted of Barbara Harris (August 18, 1945, Elizabeth City, North Carolina) who sang lead most of the time, Barbara Parritt (born October 1, 1944, Wilmington, North Carolina) and June Montiero (born July 1, 1946, Queens, New York).