THE CONCORDS
 
 
 
 

Out of all the great white 60's doo-wop groups that hailed from the New York borough of Brooklyn, few had as tight a sound as the Concords.  They were the quinessential 60's white group - driving bass, solid uptempo tenors and a sugar-sweet lead.  Its too bad their music didn't go farther but we will always remember them for their terrific melodies and harmonies.

The Concords were from the Brighton Beach and Sheepshead Bay sections of Brooklyn.  They were a product of the legendary Lincoln High School that turned out all those great artists - the Tokens, the Quotations, Carole King, Neil Sedaka.  Tuesday nights in Brighton Beach, the city would send out barges to shoot off fireworks.  That was a mingling place for a lot of groups.  "You would hear some guys hanging out singing and you'd just walk over and join in," remembers Steve Seider, the group's bass.  The original members were Dickie Goldman (lead), Mike Lewis (first tenor), Murray Moshe (second tenor), Charles Presti (baritone) and Steve Seider (bass).  They used to hang out at the same club singing together.  They later started singing at Charles "Chippy" Presti's house (they only one whose family had a house).  Chippy's father asked the group to sing at his church and they were discovered there.

The name "Concords" was Spanish for "with cords."  The group started as the "Con-Chords" but later they became the "Concords" because, as Steve Seider remembers, their original record label (RCA) spelled it that way and they stuck with it.

Their first release was on RCA records - the standard Again.      The group did an uptempo version with Mike Lewis on lead.   The record was arranged by the legendary Teacho Wiltshire who produced a number of great records for RCA.  Steve Seider recalls that the record was not well produced technically with too little bass and too much treble.  The record made it as a Murray the K "pick hit" which produced some publicity for the group and the group later did some shows for Murray.  "The first record gave us the confidence to go on," recalls Steve.  The group also performed a memorable show at Stern's Department store in New York along with Santo and Johnny.  A memorable moment was when the lovely Ann Margaret showed up to sing!  They also performed with the Supremes.

Later, a local songwriter - Stu Wiener - took an interest in the group and asked if they would record for his father's label - Gramercy Records.  The group recorded Cross My Heart b/w Our Last Goodbye (Gramercy 304 - 1961) and My Dreams b/w Scarlet Ribbons (Gramercy 305 - 1961) neither of which were big sellers.  "I can't seem to recall either of them getting too much attention," says Steve.  But following their release, Wiener met the guys in front of Yankee Stadium and they all piled into his car.  They proceeded to tour across the country with the intent on going all the way to Los Angeles.  They had a "phenomenal" time hitting many spots along the way but they only made it to San Antonio because of a big snowstorm.  "A bunch of kids, out on the road, singing....it was a wonderful time," remembers Steve.
 

Dickie Goldman would leave the group at this point.  The group continued on as a four member group with Mike Lewis singing lead and in late 1962 recorded for Rust releasing Away b/w One Step From Heaven (Rust 5048 - 1962).  Following that record, the group added Mike Lasman as their new lead.  He was a friend of Mike's and they had heard him sing before.  He had previously sang with Mike and the Utopians on Cee Jay Records and with the Accents on Sultan Records (Rags to Riches - Sultan 5500 - 1961).

The group, with Lasman on lead, went to Herald Records and released Marlene b/w Our Love Wasn't Meant to Be (Herald 576  - 1962) and Cold and Frosty Morning b/w Don't Go Now (Herald 578 - 1963).  Marlene became the group's first real hit and they were able to obtain a number of shows and tours because of its success (probably because of the experienced promotion by Herald).  The group also did a lot of work backing up other artists like Sue Kenny, Ginny Michaels, Neil Scott, Lisa and the Lullabies, Joey Grayson, and Wally Hawkins.
 

The group temporarily disbanded.  Mike Lewis formed a new group called the Planets with Sal Tepedino (of the Travelers) and Teddy Graybel (of the Stardrifts) and they released Mr. Moon b/w You Are My Sunshine.  In 1964, Lewis reformed the Concords.  Lewis took Tepedino, Graybel, Bobby Gans and original Concords bass Steve Seider and the group recorded Should I Cry b/w Its Our Wedding Day (Epic 9697 - 1964).  Should I Cry is a fantastic record.  It epitomizes the entire era of 1960's doo-wop singing.  If you wanted to play a record for someone to show them what that era of music was all about - Should I Cry would be a great choice.  Its uptempo, of course, with a great bass, great harmonies and a great lead by Teddy Graybel.  Not to mention some great instrumentation and a hot sax break as well.  Simply a terrific recording.  While their best record, battles between Epic Records and the producers lead to its promotion and production being halted.  The Graybel led Concords released one last record - Down the Aisle of Love b/w I Feel a Love Coming On for Boom Records in 1965.

Teddy Graybil and the Raindrops can be heard singing on Eddie Engel's Crystal Ball Records including the hauntingly-beautiful I Love No One But You (the Jesters classic) included below.  Nice stuff.