The Piltdown Men
Encyclopedia
The Piltdown Men were a rock and roll
instrumental
studio
group
from Hollywood, California
, featuring two lead saxophone
s.
They were the brainchild of Ed Cobb
and pianist
Lincoln Mayorga
of the Four Preps
, and their records
were issued on the Capitol
label
. Their name was inspired by the Piltdown Man
hoax. In 1960, their tune "Brontosaurus Stomp", featuring saxophonists Scott Gordon and Jackie Kelso
, guitarist Bob Bain, bassist Tommy Tedesco
, drummer Alan Brenmanen, and Mayorga on piano, reached #75 on the Billboard Hot 100
.
They were most successful in the UK
, where their hits
were, beginning in 1960, "McDonald's Cave" (based on "Old McDonald Had a Farm
", and originally the B-side of "Brontosaurus Stomp"), "Piltdown Rides Again" (based on Rossini's "William Tell Overture
"), and (in celebration of the coincidental start of The Flintstones
cartoon
series
on television
) "Goodnight Mrs. Flintstone" (based on "Good Night Ladies" by E. P. Christy
). They released no more records after "Night Surfin'" in 1962, produced by Nick Venet
.
A compilation LP called The Piltdown Men was released in Holland on Capitol
in 1981 and has been reissued several times. A CD
compilation album
was released on Ace
in 1998, entitled The Piltdown Men Ride Again.
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
instrumental
Instrumental
An 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....
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 Hollywood, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, featuring two lead 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...
s.
They were the brainchild of Ed Cobb
Ed Cobb
Ed Cobb was a musician, songwriter and record producer, most notably during the 1950s and 1960s.-Career:...
and pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
Lincoln Mayorga
Lincoln Mayorga
Lincoln Mayorga is an American pianist, arranger, conductor and composer who has worked in rock and roll, pop, jazz and classical music.-Pop music in the 1950s and 60s:...
of the Four Preps
The Four Preps
The Four Preps are an American popular music male quartet. In the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the group amassed eight gold singles and three gold albums...
, and their records
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
were issued on the Capitol
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
label
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,...
. Their name was inspired by the Piltdown Man
Piltdown Man
The Piltdown Man was a hoax in which bone fragments were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human. These fragments consisted of parts of a skull and jawbone, said to have been collected in 1912 from a gravel pit at Piltdown, East Sussex, England...
hoax. In 1960, their tune "Brontosaurus Stomp", featuring saxophonists Scott Gordon and Jackie Kelso
Jackie Kelso
John Joseph Kelson Jr., better known by his stage name Jackie Kelso is an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, and clarinetist....
, guitarist Bob Bain, bassist Tommy Tedesco
Tommy Tedesco
Thomas J. Tedesco was an American master session musician and renowned jazz and bebop guitarist.Tedesco's credits include the iconic brand-burning accompaniment theme from television's Bonanza, The Twilight Zone, Vic Mizzy's iconic theme from Green Acres, M*A*S*H, Batman, and Elvis Presley's '68...
, drummer Alan Brenmanen, and Mayorga on piano, reached #75 on 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...
.
They were most successful in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, where their hits
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...
were, beginning in 1960, "McDonald's Cave" (based on "Old McDonald Had a Farm
Old McDonald Had a Farm
"Old MacDonald Had a Farm" is a children's song and nursery rhyme about a farmer named MacDonald and the various animals he keeps on his farm. Each verse of the song changes the name of the animal and its respective noise. In many versions, the song is cumulative, with the noises from all the...
", and originally the B-side of "Brontosaurus Stomp"), "Piltdown Rides Again" (based on Rossini's "William Tell Overture
William Tell Overture
The William Tell Overture is the instrumental introduction to the opera Guillaume Tell by Gioachino Rossini. William Tell premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, after which he went into semi-retirement, although he continued to compose cantatas, sacred music and secular vocal...
"), and (in celebration of the coincidental start of The Flintstones
The Flintstones
The Flintstones is an animated, prime-time American television sitcom that screened from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966, on ABC. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones was about a working class Stone Age man's life with his family and his next-door neighbor and best friend. It...
cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
series
Television program
A 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...
on television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
) "Goodnight Mrs. Flintstone" (based on "Good Night Ladies" by E. P. Christy
Edwin Pearce Christy
Edwin Pearce Christy was an American composer, singer, actor and stage producer. He is more commonly known as E. P. Christy, and was the founder of the blackface minstrel group Christy's Minstrels.-Background:...
). They released no more records after "Night Surfin'" in 1962, produced by Nick Venet
Nick Venet
Nick Venet was an American record producer who began his career at age 19 with World Pacific Jazz...
.
A compilation LP called The Piltdown Men was released in Holland on Capitol
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
in 1981 and has been reissued several times. A CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
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...
was released on Ace
Ace Records (US)
Ace Records was a record label that was started in August 1955 in Jackson, Mississippi by Johnny Vincent, with Teem Records as its budget subsidiary. Ace also had the Vin label. Its records were distributed independently until 1962 when a distribution arrangement was set up with Vee-Jay Records....
in 1998, entitled The Piltdown Men Ride Again.
Singles
- "Brontosaurus Stomp" (1960) - USBillboard 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...
# 75 - "McDonald's Cave" (1960) - UKUK Singles ChartThe 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 ...
# 14 - "Piltdown Rides Again" (1961) - UK # 14
- "Goodnight Mrs. Flintstone" (1961) - UK # 18
External links
- [ The Piltdown Men biography] at the Allmusic websiteWebsiteA website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...