Jay & The Techniques
Encyclopedia
Jay & the Techniques was an inter-racial
pop
group
, which was formed in Allentown
, Pennsylvania
during the mid 1960s. A group whose sound and songs were more pop than soul
, Jay & the Techniques earned some points for the playful, joyous "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie," which was their lone Top 10 R&B
and pop hit in 1967 on Smash
.
, "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie", which was released in 1967 and reached #6 in the Billboard Hot 100
chart
. The track was arranged
by Joe Renzetti
, and written
by Maurice Irby, Jr. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
. Although this song
served as the band's primary hit
, the group also captured various chart positions with "Keep the Ball Rolling" (#14) and "Strawberry Shortcake". "Keep the Ball Rolling" also notched up sales in excess of a million copies, to secure a second gold disc for this group. However, its position on the 1960s pop charts declined after "Baby Make Your Own Sweet Music" was released. Jay & the Techniques made their final effort with its R&B hit, "Number Onderful", but after that, the group disbanded.
In 1996, Mercury Records
released a compilation album
of the band's hits entitled The Best of Jay & the Techniques.
Nick Ashford, Valerie Simpson and Melba Moore
often served as backing vocalist
s.
Miscegenation
Miscegenation is the mixing of different racial groups through marriage, cohabitation, sexual relations, and procreation....
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
group
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
, which was formed in Allentown
Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
during the mid 1960s. A group whose sound and songs were more pop than soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, Jay & the Techniques earned some points for the playful, joyous "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie," which was their lone Top 10 R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
and pop hit in 1967 on Smash
Smash Records
Smash Records is an American record label. It was founded in 1961 as a subsidiary of Mercury Records by Mercury executive Shelby Singleton and run by Singleton with Charlie Fach. Fach took over after Singleton left Mercury in 1966...
.
Career
The band was best known for its Top 10 debut singleSingle (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie", which was released in 1967 and reached #6 in the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
. The track was arranged
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
by Joe Renzetti
Joe Renzetti
-Early life and education:Joseph Renzetti - Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaJoe Renzetti studied composing and orchestrating under Nicholas Flagello, NYC, Manhattan School of Music...
, and written
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
by Maurice Irby, Jr. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
. Although this song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
served as the band's primary hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
, the group also captured various chart positions with "Keep the Ball Rolling" (#14) and "Strawberry Shortcake". "Keep the Ball Rolling" also notched up sales in excess of a million copies, to secure a second gold disc for this group. However, its position on the 1960s pop charts declined after "Baby Make Your Own Sweet Music" was released. Jay & the Techniques made their final effort with its R&B hit, "Number Onderful", but after that, the group disbanded.
In 1996, Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
released a compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
of the band's hits entitled The Best of Jay & the Techniques.
Original band members
- Jay Proctor: Lead vocalist and primary founder of the group
- George "Lucky" Lloyd: Second vocalist
- Dante Dancho: Lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
- Chuck Crowl: Bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Karl Landis (Lippowitsch): DrumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s (was replaced by Paul Coles, Jr.) - Ronnie Goosley: SaxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
- Jon Walsh: TrumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
(was replaced by Danny Altieri)
Nick Ashford, Valerie Simpson and Melba Moore
Melba Moore
Beatrice Melba Smith , known by her stage name, Melba Moore is an American disco, R&B singer and actress. She is the daughter of saxophonist Teddy Hill and R&B singer Bonnie Davis.-Early life:...
often served as backing vocalist
Backing vocalist
A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
s.
Singles
- "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie" (1967) - U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
PopBillboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
#6; R&BHot R&B/Hip-Hop SongsHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
#8 - "Keep The Ball Rolling" (1967) - U.S. Pop #14
- "Baby Make Your Own Sweet Music" (1968) - U.S Pop #64
- "Strawberry Shortcake (1968) - U.S. Pop #39
- "I Feel Love Comin' On" (1974) - U.S. DiscoHot Dance Club PlayThe Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...
#6
Other versions
- The track "Keep The Ball Rollin'" was used in instrumentalInstrumentalAn instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
form, as recordedSound recording and reproductionSound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
by Al HirtAl HirtAl Hirt was an American trumpeter and bandleader. He is best remembered for his million selling recordings of "Java", and the accompanying album, Honey in the Horn . His nicknames included 'Jumbo' and 'The Round Mound of Sound'...
, on the television programTelevision programA television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
, Bowling for DollarsBowling for DollarsBowling for Dollars is a television game show on which people could play the sport of bowling to win cash and sometimes prizes based on how well they bowled....
. Cory Daye, the vocalist from Dr. Buzzard's Savannah Band, also recorded a cover version of the song on her first solo album, "Cory and Me" on RCA. - "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie" was coveredCover versionIn popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by The FourmostThe FourmostThe Fourmost were an English Merseybeat band that recorded in the 1960s. Their biggest UK hit single was "A Little Loving" in 1964.-Biography:...
in 1968.
External links
- Jay Proctor article in The Standard Report
- [ Allmusic.com biography]