Doo Wop Lead Singers Styles

Examples: Billy Williams (Charioteers), Bill Kenny (Ink Spots), Maithe Marshall (Ravens}

Examples: Jimmy Ricks (Ravens), Ormand Wilson (Basin Street Boys)

Example: Sonny Til (Orioles), Willie Winfield (Harptones), later Eugene Mumford (Dominoes)

Notes: High-register male voices, anchored in pre-doo wop era. Affected and formal delivery geared to an adult audience

Notes: Romantic, adult, sophisticated

Notes: Til set the standard for romantic leads as a matinee idol on the chitlin circuit.

Bluesy	Gospel	Romantic
Time Frame: Early 50s through late 50s	Time Frame: Early 50s through late 50s	Tim Frame: Early 1950s through mid-1950s
Examples: James Denby (Swallows) Bobby Lester (Moonglows) Solly McElroy	Examples: Clyde McPhatter (Dominoes) Eugeme Mumford (Larks) David Baughan	Examples: Clyde McPhatter (Dominoes) Eugeme Mumford (Larks) David Baughan
Notes: Moonglows and Flamingos influenced by Chicago Blues. Rudy West borderline blues	Notes: melismatic and emotional, Call and response common between lead and background. Aimed at Black audience	Notes: young teens trying to sound romantic and adult, before Frankie Lymon made it legitmate for a kid to sound like a kid.

Pop	New York Style	Stylized
Time Frame: Mid to late 1950s	Time Frame: 1954 to early 1960s	Time Frame: 1954 to early 1960s
Examples: Tony Williams (Platters) Nate Nelson (Flamingos) later Rudy West (Five Keys)	Examples: Tony Williams (Platters) Nate Nelson (Flamingos) later Rudy West (Five Keys)	Examples: Anthony Gourdine (Little Anthony and the Imperials), James "Shep" Sheppard (Heartbeats, Limelites)

Notes: Generally refers to blaccent-free leads with good voices that would sell to white audiences

Notes: Pleading leads doing slow ballads, with heavy background. lots of riffing bass and falsetto.

Notes: Sounded like they were acting act the lyrics as they sang them. Stiltted yet effective way of sounding out words.

Examples: Frankie Lymon (Teenagers) Lewis Lymon (Teenchords) Pearl McKinnon (Kodaks)

Examples: Mack Starr (Paragons) Adam Jackson (Jesters), Ernest Harrison (Bopchords

Examples: Kripp Johnson (Dell-Vickings), Herb Cox (Cleftones), Johnny Maestro (Crests) Norman Fox (Robroys)

Notes: Kids with high tenor voices, singing like kids. This generation offerred upbeat, uptempo songs with simple lyrics. This generation offerred upbeat, uptempo songs with simple lyrics.

Notes: Got the job done without smoothness. Sound romantic, yet you might not wanted to turn your back on them. Primarily a New York phenomenon

Notes: More or less blaccent-free leads in a delivery that was aimed at a white teen audience. Heavy beat with greater reliance on instruments.

West Coast	White	Soul
Time Frame: mid-1950s through late 1950s	Time Frame: 1958 through the end of the era	Time frame: 1958 into and through the 1960s
Examples: Jesse Belvin ( Cliques) Cleve Duncan (Penguins), Arthur Lee Maye (Crowns)	Examples: Dion DiMucci (Belmonts) Larry Chance (Earls) Jimmy Beaumont (Skyliners) Joey Canzano (Duprees)	Examples: Pookie Hudson (Spaniels) Johnny Funches (Dells) Tommy Bullock (Fiestas) Jerry Butler (Impressions)
Notes: Generally laid back vocal style compared to East Coasters. Short on diction, long on feeling.	Notes: Singers avoid melisma, holding their notes for longer periods of time. Less "Soulful" than black leads.	Notes: Frequent use of melismas, gospel inluenced delivery. Early examples still anchored in innocent love of doo wop era

Falsetto
Time Frame: 1950 through end of the era
Examples: Nolan Strong (Diablos) Al Banks (Turbans) Earl Lewis (Channels) Julius McMichaels (Paragons)
Notes: Falsetto is primarily a technique used by lead singers for part or all of the songs, by lead singers who sing as tenors for most of the song but use the false tenor to trail off at the end of the song, by lead second leads usually during the bridge, as an echo to the lead, or by a first tenor behind the lead in choruses.