’56 Dells

It’s back to basics tonight as we go back before my time, when the doo-wop groups were arriving on the scene. The Dells came together in 1953 in the southern suburbs of Chicago. Two of the members, Johnny Funches and Marvin Junior, sat down and penned this great tune, which shot to the Top 5 R&B charts in 1956. Funches sings lead on this one. This song is one that I have loved since the first time I heard it in my early teens. My first job ever was at a frame shop in Racine, Wisconsin. The radio in the back room was perpetually playing the oldies station, and this was one of the great songs that caught my ear.

This is one of the most popular doo-wop ballads of all time, so this certainly isn’t an obscure tune. But someone out there will hear this for the first time, and be moved. Enjoy.

The Dells: Oh, What a Night (mp3)

• Buy the Dells Anthology on Amazon.
• Did you know the group’s personnel hasn’t changed since 1960? They were just inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame last year.