The Crows

One of the first doo wop groups, one of the first so-called bird groups, and one of the first acts of any kind to score a bona fide rock & roll hit record, the Crows were among the more important one-shot artists in rock & roll history. Discovered at New York's Apollo Theater in 1952, the Crows were one of the many groups pioneering doo wop with their infectious, cheerful vocals and harmonies, use of nonsense syllables, and modified jump blues instrumental backing. Cut in 1953, "Gee," with its irresistible melody, naively enthusiastic street-corner singing, and Charlie Christian-like guitar solo, was far and away their best single. It was also their only successful one, although it needed almost a year to take off, reaching number 14 on the pop charts (and number two on the R&B charts) in early 1954. Recording about a half-dozen other 45s between 1952 and 1954, the group broke up with little fanfare only months after "Gee" fell off the hit parade. ~ Richie Unterberger