Formed:
1963 (Dayton, OH)
Genres:
Pop, Pop-rock, Rock and roll, Frat rock, Bubblegum, Garage rock, Psychedelia
Principal Members:
Tommy James (b. Thomas Gregory Jackson, April 29, 1947, Dayton, OH): vocals
Eddie Gray (b. February 27, 1948, Scottsdale, PA): guitar
Ronnie Rosman (b. Claren Rosman, February 28, 1945, New Alexandria, PA): organ
Mike Vale (b. July 17, 1949, Greensburg, PA): bass
Peter Lucia (b. Peter Paul Lucia, Jr., February 2, 1947, Morristown, NJ; d. 1987, Los Angeles, CA): drums
Eddie Gray (b. February 27, 1948, Scottsdale, PA): guitar
Ronnie Rosman (b. Claren Rosman, February 28, 1945, New Alexandria, PA): organ
Mike Vale (b. July 17, 1949, Greensburg, PA): bass
Peter Lucia (b. Peter Paul Lucia, Jr., February 2, 1947, Morristown, NJ; d. 1987, Los Angeles, CA): drums
Contributions to music:
- Created some of the Sixties' most enduring party songs
- Leader Tommy James was one of the era's self-produced artists
- Helped incorporate psychedelia and garage rock into the mainstream
- Sold more singles in 1968 and 1969 than any rock band, including the Beatles
- An important American bulwark against the British Invasion
- Sonic innovators in the studio, to as much of a degree as their more celebrated peers
Early years:
Of all the lost-and-found singles rescued from obscurity in the Sixties, "Hanky Panky" must be the greatest, rocketing this Michigan band to stardom after three years of indifference. Singer James had formed the band as a mere hobby, and only cut the song in question -- written by Brill Building vets Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich and recorded by them as the Raindrops -- as a favor to Niles, MI disc jockey Jack Douglas (of WNIL) in 1964. Only after another enterprising on-air personality in Pittsburgh found it in a box of rejects and started touting it as an "exclusive" did it start to make waves there.
Success:
The resulting DJ war, spurred on by growing popularity at local dances, led to somewhere between 20,000 and 80,000 bootleg copies of "Hanky Panky" flooding the city. The Roulette label (until then best known for Buddy Knox and Jimmie Rodgers) took notice and picked it up in '66, taking it straight to #1. By then, the original Shondells had broken up, but James quickly found a new band and, given complete creative control by Roulette, began scoring hits like the bubblegum of "I Think We're Alone Now" and the frat rock of "Mony Mony." Most were written by the team of Richie Cordell and Bo Gentry.
Later years:
The new Shondells weathered the late Sixties better than most, as James, who had begun writing himself, experimented with psychedelia in the studio. By 1972 he'd gone solo again, and had also begun writing and producing hits for other artists (namely "Tighter, Tighter" for Alive and Kicking). Although he scored a minor hit in 1980 with "Three Times In Love," mainstream success has largely eluded the solo James. Drummer Peter Lucia, who wrote "Crimson and Clover" with the singer, died of a heart attack in 1987; James has begun recording again recently and touring with yet another Shondells.
Other facts:
- James is a well-known Christian pacifist
- Was 15 when he cut "Hanky Panky"; he forgot much of the lyrics and made some up
- Linda McCartney's first professional photo shoot was for the group's It's Only Love album
- "Mirage" was written over the chords of "I Think We're Alone Now" played backwards
- "Mony Mony" got its title from the Mutual Of New York bank (MONY), which James was looking at as the band rehearsed the song
- Turned down a gig at Woodstock when James declared he wouldn't "travel 6,000 miles to play in a pig farmer's field"
- Covers of "I Think We're Alone Now" and "Mony Mony" hit #1 consecutively in 1987, a chart first
Awards/Honors:
- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs That Shaped Rock": "Hanky Panky" (1995)
Recorded work:
#1 hits:
Pop:
Pop:
Pop:
Wrote or co-wrote: "Tighter, Tighter," Alive and Kicking
Covered by: Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Tiffany, Billy Idol, R.E.M., Concrete Blonde, John Wesley Harding, Snuff, Evil Stig, The Pooh Sticks, Amazulu, Lene Lovich, Morcheeba, Guster, Ratcat
Pop:
- "Hanky Panky" (1966)
- "Crimson And Clover" (1969)
Pop:
- "I Think We're Alone Now" (1967)
- "Mirage" (1967)
- "Mony Mony" (1968)
- "Crystal Blue Persuasion" (1969)
- "Sweet Cherry Wine" (1969)
- As Tommy James: "Draggin' the Line" (1971)
Pop:
- Crimson And Clover (1969)
Wrote or co-wrote: "Tighter, Tighter," Alive and Kicking
Covered by: Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Tiffany, Billy Idol, R.E.M., Concrete Blonde, John Wesley Harding, Snuff, Evil Stig, The Pooh Sticks, Amazulu, Lene Lovich, Morcheeba, Guster, Ratcat
