The 1910 Fruitgum Company is an American bubblegum pop band of the 1960s. The group's Billboard Hot 100 hits were "Simon Says", "May I Take a Giant Step", "1, 2, 3, Red Light", "Goody Goody Gumdrops", "Indian Giver", "Special Delivery", and "The Train".[1]
1910 Fruitgum Company | |
|---|---|
 The 1910 Fruitgum Company performing live on November 17, 2007 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Linden, New Jersey, United States |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1965–1970, 1999–present |
| Labels | Buddah |
| Members |
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| Past members |
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Background
editBubblegum pop was marketed to preteens as the evolving genre of rock music was beginning to target older adolescents and adults with darker lyrics and heavier rhythms.[2] The simple structure of the songs and non-political content of bubblegum pop appealed to a younger audience.[3] Many of the songs in the bubblegum pop genre like "1,2,3 Red Light" were intended to be singles within the budget of that younger preteen audience. "1,2, 3 Red Light" became one of the biggest hits of the genre.[2]
Career
editThe band began as Jeckell and The Hydes in New Jersey in 1966. The original members were Frank Jeckell, Mark Gutkowski, Floyd Marcus, Pat Karwan and Steve Mortkowitz – all from Linden, New Jersey.[4][5]
During 1967, they were signed to Buddah Records, where they released five LPs under their own name and a variety of singles, as well as appearing on the LP The Kasenetz-Katz Singing Orchestral Circus.[citation needed] Their first hit single, "Simon Says", reached #4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and peaked at #2 on the UK Singles Chart.[6]
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The band started touring, opening for major acts such as The Beach Boys.[7] They also released these other chart hits: "May I Take a Giant Step" (U.S. #63), "1, 2, 3, Red Light" (U.S. #5), "Special Delivery" (U.S. #38), "Goody, Goody Gumdrops" (U.S. #37), "Indian Giver" (U.S. #5) and "The Train" (U.S. #57).[8]
The original group disbanded in 1970.[9]
In 1999, original member Frank Jeckell and Mick Mansueto put the act back together.[9] As of 2019, Fruitgum currently performs its own hits, in addition to other songs from the 1960s.[10]
Million sellers
edit"Simon Says" sold three and a half million. "1, 2, 3, Red Light" and "Indian Giver" each sold over one million copies. All three were awarded gold discs.[4]
Band members
editCurrent lineup
edit- Frank Jeckell (Original Member, Guitar and Vocals)
- Mick Mansueto (Lead Vocals and Percussion)
- Glenn Lewis (Bass and Vocals)
- Eric Lipper (Keyboards and Vocals)
- Keith Crane (Drums)
- John Roginski (Guitar, Keyboards and Vocals)
Former members
edit- Mark Gutkowski (Original Member, Lead Singer on all the hits, and Hammond B3 Organist)
- Pat Karwan (Original Member, Lead Guitarist and Vocals)
- Steve Mortkowitz (Original Member, Bass Player and Vocals)
- Floyd Marcus (Original Member, Drummer and Vocals)
- Mick Mansueto (Lead vocals)
- Jerry Roth (Tenor Sax)
- Bob Brescia (Keyboards, Vocals and Music Director)
- Thomas "Bart" Bartleson (Drums)
- Mike Edell (Keyboards and Vocals)
- John Korba-Guitar/Vocals
- Ralph Cohen (Douglas) (Trumpet)
- Pat Soriano (Hammond B3 Organist)
- Bruce Shay (Bass and Vocals)
- Rusty Oppenheimer (Drums and Vocals)
- Larry Ripley (Bass, Woodwinds and Vocals)
- Chuck Travis (Guitar and Vocals)
- Richie Gomez (Guitar and Vocals)
- Michael Stoppiello (Guitar and Vocals)
- Philip Thorstenson (Drums and Vocals)
- Chuck Allen (Bass and Vocals)
1980s road band members
edit- Randy Monaco (Lead Vocals)
- Jim Bulkowski (Lead Guitar)
- Russ Hoffmaster (Drums & Vocals)
- Rick Gainor (Bass & Vocals)
- John Siroky (Keyboards)
Discography
editSingles
edit| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Record Label | B-side From same album as A-side except where indicated |
Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | UK | AUS | CAN | |||||
| 1967 | "Simon Says" | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | Buddah Records | "Reflections from the Looking Glass" (Non-LP track) | Simon Says |
| 1968 | "May I Take a Giant Step (Into Your Heart)" | 63 | – | 42 | 21 | "(Poor Old) Mr. Jensen" | ||
| "1, 2, 3, Red Light" | 5 | – | 8 | 1 | "Sticky, Sticky" (Non-LP track) | 1, 2, 3, Red Light | ||
| "Goody Goody Gumdrops" | 37 | – | 29 | 26 | "Candy Kisses" (Non-LP track) | Goody Goody Gumdrops | ||
| 1969 | "Indian Giver" | 5 | – | 5 | 1 | "Pow Wow" (Non-LP track) | Indian Giver | |
| "Special Delivery" | 38 | – | 47 | 17 | "No Good Annie" | |||
| "The Train" | 57 | – | 68 | 34 | "Eternal Light" (Non-LP track) | Hard Ride | ||
| "When We Get Married" | 118 | – | 76 | – | "Baby Bret" (Non-LP track) | Juiciest Fruitgum | ||
| 1970 | "Go Away" | – | – | 77 | – | Super K Records | "The Track" | Non-LP tracks |
Albums
edit| Year | Album | Billboard 200 | Record Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Simon Says | 162 | Buddah Records |
| 1, 2, 3, Red Light | 163 | ||
| Goody Goody Gumdrops | – | ||
| 1969 | Indian Giver | 147 | |
| Hard Ride | – | ||
| 1970 | Juiciest Fruitgum | – | |
| 1993 | Juiciest Hits | – | |
| 1994 | Bubblegum Goodies | – | Victor Entertainment |
| A Golden Classics Edition | – | Collectables Records | |
| 2001 | The Best of the 1910 Fruitgum Company: Simon Says | – | Buddah Records |
| 2007 | Bubblegum Christmas | – | Collectables Records |
Further reading
edit- Greene, D. (2012). Teens, TV and Tunes: The Manufacturing of American Adolescent Culture McFarland Publishers.
References
edit- ^ "Interview With The 1910 Fruitgum Company". Classicbands.com. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
- ^ a b Simpson, Kim. Early '70s Radio: The American Format Revolution. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2011, p.25-26
- ^ Doggett, Peter. Electric Shock: From the Gramophone to the IPhone – 125 Years of Pop Music. Random House, 2015. p.427
- ^ a b Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 244 & 264. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ Voger, Mark. "1910 Fruitgum Company: From Linden to the Top 10", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, February 28, 2014, updated March 29, 2019. Accessed November 25, 2019. "Jeckell's fellow founding members were Mark Gutkowski (lead vocals, keyboards), Pat Karwan (guitar), Steve Mortkowitz (bass), and Floyd Marcus (drums).... And so five young men from Linden with aspirations to be the next Vanilla Fudge scored a Top 10 hit ... with a bubblegum song."
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 395. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "Floyd Marcus of 1910 Fruitgum Co : Songwriter Interviews". Songfacts.com. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
- ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 904. ISBN 1-85227-745-9.
- ^ a b Bower, Carolyn. "Remembering 1968: The Music of 50 Years Ago!". Boomermagazine.com. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
- ^ Price, Robert. "'60s return to Newton Theatre". New Jersey Herald. Retrieved April 19, 2019.[permanent dead link]
External links
edit- Official website
- Group biography by Tom Simon
- 1910 Fruitgum Company discography at Discogs