The Cuff Links
Encyclopedia
The Cuff Links were an American
rock
/pop
studio
group
from Staten Island
, New York
. The band had a U.S.
No. 9 hit
in 1969 with "Tracy", with rich harmonised
vocals
provided entirely by Ron Dante
. The track was produced as part of a series of recording
sessions – sometimes as many as six in a day – by Dante, with the songs released under a variety of band names.
in October 1969, just as "Sugar, Sugar
", a single for The Archies
and the product of another anonymous recording session by Dante, was descending from its No. 1 spot. Dante's vocals for "Tracy" were recorded in just hours. He recalled: "I put on a lead voice, doubled it a few times, and then put about 16, 18 backgrounds." "Tracy" spent 12 weeks in the U.S. chart, and subsequently sold over one million copies, being awarded a gold record
by the R.I.A.A.
Dante had promised "Tracy"'s songwriter
s, Paul Vance
and Lee Pockriss
, that if the song
was a hit he would record an entire Cuff Links album
and when it charted, Vance and Pockriss quickly delved through their catalogue to produce more songs. Dante said: "It was the quickest album I'd ever done. I think I did the entire background vocals and leads in a day and a half – for the entire album. I remember doing at least four or five songs in one day." To speed the project, Vance and Pockriss hired novice arranger
Rupert Holmes
to work on the album, which including the second hit, "When Julie Comes Around", which peaked at No. 41 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
and No. 10 in the UK Singles Chart
.
As the album was being completed, Vance and Pockriss created a seven-member touring band, comprising Pat Rizzo (saxophone
), Rich Dimino (keyboards
), Bob Gill (trumpet
/flugelhorn
/flute
), Dave Lavender (guitar
), Andrew "Junior" Denno (bass
), Joe Cord (vocals) and Danny Valentine (drum
s).
Dante opted not to tour with the group, having accepted a solo
album recording contract
by Archies creator Don Kirshner
that excluded any more outside work. When he called Vance to obtain his royalties
for the first album, Vance refused to pay up unless Dante recorded a second album. The dispute was settled only after a personal confrontation at Vance's office and Vance erased Dante's vocals from his final song, "Run Sally Run" and replaced them with Cord's. It was the last Cuff Links single to chart, reaching No. 76 in April 1970.
Cord's vocals appeared on only a few tracks on the second Cuff Links album, The Cuff Links, with most songs featuring Holmes.
Note that the version of "Jennifer Tomkins" included on this second album is virtually identical to the hit version performed in 1970 by the ad hoc group Street People, which hit #36 on the US charts in 1970. This is because Street People also featured Rupert Holmes as its lead singer and arranger, as well as production by Paul Vance. The Cuff Links' track "Jennifer Tomkins" is essentially the same as the hit single, with a few minor differences in the mix.
The Cuff Links name was later revived for unsuccessful singles on the Atco
and Roulette
labels
in 1972 and 1975.
In 1999 singer-songwriter
Michael "Valentine" Ubriaco obtained the touring rights to the Cuff Links name and revived the group for live performances. That band includes original guitarist Dave Lavender and still tours.
"Tracy" / "All the Young Women" / "Heather" / "Early in the Morning" / "Put a Little Love in Your Heart" / "Lay a Little Love On Me" / "When Julie Comes Around" / "I Remember" / "Sweet Caroline
" / "Where Did You Go?" / "Sally Ann (You're Such a Pretty Baby)"
"Robin's World" / "Thank You Pretty Baby" / "Jennifer Tomkins" / "Down in Louisiana" / "Mister Big (Oh What a Beautiful Day)" / "The Kiss" / "Foundation of Love" / "Bobbie" / "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)
" / "Run Sally Run" / "Afraid of Tomorrow"
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
/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...
studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
group
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
from Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The band had a U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
No. 9 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...
in 1969 with "Tracy", with rich harmonised
Harmony
In music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
vocals
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
provided entirely by Ron Dante
Ron Dante
Ron Dante is an American singer, songwriter, session vocalist, and record producer...
. The track was produced as part of a series of recording
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound 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...
sessions – sometimes as many as six in a day – by Dante, with the songs released under a variety of band names.
History
"Tracy" hit the chartsRecord 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....
in October 1969, just as "Sugar, Sugar
Sugar, Sugar
"Sugar, Sugar" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim. It was a four-week 1969 number-one hit single by fictional characters The Archies. Produced by Jeff Barry, the song was originally released on the album Everything's Archie. The album is the product of a group of studio musicians...
", a single for The Archies
The Archies
The Archies are a garage band founded by Archie Andrews, Reggie Mantle, and Jughead Jones, a group of adolescent fictional characters of the Archie universe, in the context of the animated TV series, The Archie Show...
and the product of another anonymous recording session by Dante, was descending from its No. 1 spot. Dante's vocals for "Tracy" were recorded in just hours. He recalled: "I put on a lead voice, doubled it a few times, and then put about 16, 18 backgrounds." "Tracy" spent 12 weeks in the U.S. chart, and subsequently sold over one million copies, being awarded a gold record
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,...
by the R.I.A.A.
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
Dante had promised "Tracy"'s songwriter
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...
s, Paul Vance
Paul Vance
Paul Vance is an American songwriter and record producer.With over 300 recorded songs, Vance co-wrote such hits as "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini," recorded in 1960 by Brian Hyland, which rose to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and "Catch a Falling Star," recorded in 1957 by...
and Lee Pockriss
Lee Pockriss
Lee Julian Pockriss was an American songwriter who wrote many well-known popular songs and several scores for films and Broadway shows.-Early life and career:...
, that if the 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...
was a hit he would record an entire Cuff Links album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
and when it charted, Vance and Pockriss quickly delved through their catalogue to produce more songs. Dante said: "It was the quickest album I'd ever done. I think I did the entire background vocals and leads in a day and a half – for the entire album. I remember doing at least four or five songs in one day." To speed the project, Vance and Pockriss hired novice arranger
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...
Rupert Holmes
Rupert Holmes
Rupert Holmes is an American-British composer, singer-songwriter, musician and author of plays, novels and stories. He is best known for his number one pop hit "Escape " and the song "Him", which reached the number 6 position on the Hot 100 U.S. pop chart in 1980...
to work on the album, which including the second hit, "When Julie Comes Around", which peaked at No. 41 in the U.S. 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...
and No. 10 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
.
As the album was being completed, Vance and Pockriss created a seven-member touring band, comprising Pat Rizzo (saxophone
Saxophone
The 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...
), Rich Dimino (keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
), Bob Gill (trumpet
Trumpet
The 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...
/flugelhorn
Flugelhorn
The flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus...
/flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
), Dave Lavender (guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
), Andrew "Junior" Denno (bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
), Joe Cord (vocals) and Danny Valentine (drum
Drum
The 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).
Dante opted not to tour with the group, having accepted a solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
album recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
by Archies creator Don Kirshner
Don Kirshner
Don Kirshner , known as "The Man With the Golden Ear", was an American song publisher and rock producer who is best known for managing songwriting talent as well as successful pop groups, such as The Monkees, Kansas and The Archies.-Early life:Don Kirshner was born to Gilbert Kirshner, a tailor,...
that excluded any more outside work. When he called Vance to obtain his royalties
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...
for the first album, Vance refused to pay up unless Dante recorded a second album. The dispute was settled only after a personal confrontation at Vance's office and Vance erased Dante's vocals from his final song, "Run Sally Run" and replaced them with Cord's. It was the last Cuff Links single to chart, reaching No. 76 in April 1970.
Cord's vocals appeared on only a few tracks on the second Cuff Links album, The Cuff Links, with most songs featuring Holmes.
Note that the version of "Jennifer Tomkins" included on this second album is virtually identical to the hit version performed in 1970 by the ad hoc group Street People, which hit #36 on the US charts in 1970. This is because Street People also featured Rupert Holmes as its lead singer and arranger, as well as production by Paul Vance. The Cuff Links' track "Jennifer Tomkins" is essentially the same as the hit single, with a few minor differences in the mix.
The Cuff Links name was later revived for unsuccessful singles on the Atco
Atco Records
ATCO Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, currently operating through WMG's Rhino Entertainment.-Beginnings:Atco Records was founded in 1955 as a division of Atlantic Records. It was devised as an outlet for productions by one of Atlantic's founders, Herb Abramson, who...
and Roulette
Roulette Records
Roulette Records is an American record label, which was founded in late 1956, by George Goldner, Joe Kolsky, Morris Levy and Phil Khals, with creative control given to producers and songwriters Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore. Levy was appointed as director...
labels
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
in 1972 and 1975.
In 1999 singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Michael "Valentine" Ubriaco obtained the touring rights to the Cuff Links name and revived the group for live performances. That band includes original guitarist Dave Lavender and still tours.
Discography
| US Release Date | Label & Cat No. | Chart Positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 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... |
Australia | Canada | UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
||||
| August 1969 | "Tracy" | Decca 32533 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 4 | Tracy |
| November 1969 | "When Julie Comes Around" | Decca 32592 | 41 | 13 | 24 | 10 | |
| February 1970 | "Run Sally Run" | Decca 32639 | 76 | 23 | 40 | - | The Cuff Links |
| May 1970 | "Robin's World" | Decca 32687 | - | 45 | - | - | |
| October 1970 | "Thank You Pretty Baby" | Decca 32732 | - | - | - | - | |
| February 1971 | "All Because Of You" | Decca 32791 | - | - | - | - | Non-LP singles |
| 1972 | "Sandi" | Atco 6867 | - | - | - | - | |
| 1975 | "Some Girls Do (Some Girls Don't)" | Roulette 7171 | - | - | - | - |
Albums
- Tracy (DeccaDecca RecordsDecca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
, 1969)
"Tracy" / "All the Young Women" / "Heather" / "Early in the Morning" / "Put a Little Love in Your Heart" / "Lay a Little Love On Me" / "When Julie Comes Around" / "I Remember" / "Sweet Caroline
Sweet Caroline
"Sweet Caroline" is a pop song written and performed by Neil Diamond and officially released on September 16, 1969, as a single. It was later released on December 9, 1972 as a part of Diamond's Hot August Night album. There are three distinct mixes of this song...
" / "Where Did You Go?" / "Sally Ann (You're Such a Pretty Baby)"
- The Cuff Links (Decca, 1970)
"Robin's World" / "Thank You Pretty Baby" / "Jennifer Tomkins" / "Down in Louisiana" / "Mister Big (Oh What a Beautiful Day)" / "The Kiss" / "Foundation of Love" / "Bobbie" / "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)
Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)
"Love Grows " is a popular song by "one-hit wonder" Edison Lighthouse. The single hit the number one spot on the UK singles chart on the week ending on 31 January 1970, where it remained for a total of five weeks.- Song profile :...
" / "Run Sally Run" / "Afraid of Tomorrow"