The Dellwoods

The Dellwoods were a mid-20th century American doo-wop vocal group from New York City. They are most noted for releasing two albums of novelty songs under the aegis of Mad magazine.

The members were Victor Buccellato (lead singer), Mike Ellis (tenor), Andy Ventura (tenor), Amadeo Tese (baritone), and Saul Zeskand (bass).[1][2] They first recorded as the Sweet Sick Teens (a takeoff on "sweet sixteen"), releasing "The Pretzel" (with a singer named Mike Russo soloing) backed with "Agnes (The Teenage Russian Spy)" on RCA Victor in 1961. The songs were written by Norman Blagman and Sam Bobrick (who had co-written Elvis Presley's #9 1960 hit "The Girl of My Best Friend" and would later go on to become a noted playwright as well as writing other novelty songs such as "Will My New Boobs Go To Heaven").[3][4]

In 1962, the Dellwoods (as they were now named) released an entire album of novelty songs by Bobrick and Blagman, with Russo and female singer Jeanne Hayes also featured on the album. The album had originally been written and produced for RCA, but was later sold to Mad and released on Bigtop Records as Mad "Twists" Rock 'N' Roll with a strong Mad tie-in – besides the title, a portrait of Alfred E. Neuman was featured prominently on the cover, and "(She Got A) Nose Job" from the album was bound as a flexi disc into an issue of Mad. Other songs included "(Throwing The) High School Basketball Game", "Please Betty Jean (Shave Your Legs)", "Somebody Else's Dandruff (On My Lover-Baby's Shirt)". "Agnes (The Teenage Russian Spy)" and "The Pretzel" (now titled as "Let's Do The Pretzel (And End Up Like One!))" were also included on the album.[5][4][6][2]

This was followed by another Dellwoods Bigtop release, again with Russo and Hayes, written by Bobrick and Blagman,[4] and tied in with Mad, in 1963. This album, titled Fink Along With Mad (a parody of the then-popular TV show Sing Along With Mitch), featured "She Lets Me Watch Her Mom And Pop Fight" which was bound into an issue of Mad (and described by Josiah Hughes as "one dark pop song" since it makes light of domestic assault).[7] Other songs on Fink Along With Mad included "I'll Never Make Fun of Her Moustache Again", "When the Braces on our Teeth Lock", and "Loving A Siamese Twin". "Don't Put Onions On Your Hamburger" from the album was released as a single, credited to just the Dellwoods.[8][9][10]

French-based Barclay Records released a 1962 EP with "Let's Do The Pretzel (And End Up Like One!)" and "Blind Date (Yaaaaahhh)" credited to Mike Russo, and "Agnes (The Teenage Russian Spy)" and "(She Got A) Nose Job" credited to the Dellwoods.[11]

In 1963, the Dellwoods renamed themselves to the Dynamics and released a serious non-novelty single for Liberty Records, "Chapel On A Hill" backed with "Conquistador".[1][2]

References

  1. 1 2 "THE SWEET SICK TEENS aka THE DELLWOODS aka THE DYNAMICS". White Doo-Wop Collector. March 26, 2009. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Dellwoods aka The Dynamics (8) aka The Sweet Sick Teens". Doo-Wop Groups – Biography and Discography. January 27, 2014. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  3. ↑ "The Pretzel" at Discogs
  4. 1 2 3 Sam Bobrick. "Music". Sam Bobrick official website. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  5. ↑ Mad "Twists" Rock 'N' Roll at Discogs (list of releases)
  6. ↑ "(She Got A) Nose Job" at Discogs
  7. ↑ Josiah Hughes (February 4, 2014). "15 weird and funny MAD Magazine songs". Aux. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Don't Put Onions On Your Hamburger" at Discogs
  9. ↑ Fink Along With Mad at Discogs (list of releases)
  10. ↑ Chuck Rothman (March 14, 2009). "Fink Along With MAD (music)". Great But Forgotten. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  11. ↑ Let's Do The Pretzel (And End Up Like One!) at Discogs
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