Doo Wop
A classic postwar vocal-group style with deep Black American roots, doo-wop pairs lean harmony with memorable hooks and a strong sense of romantic drama. The genre’s best-known recordings still sit at the center of its story, even as the term itself came later than the music.
Origins and context
Postwar African American urban vocal-group scenes and street-corner harmony singing in major U.S. cities.
The sound
Characteristics
- Unaccompanied or lightly accompanied vocal harmony
- Lead vocal with background responses
- Nonsense syllables/vocables
- Handclaps
- Steady backbeat
History
Doo-wop took shape in African American communities after World War II, especially in urban neighborhoods where young vocal groups sang on corners, in halls, and wherever they could gather without instruments. The Library of Congress notes that the term was applied later and comes from the vocables and nonsense syllables groups used to fill out the sound; AllMusic places its peak popularity in the late 1950s, when it became one of the era’s defining forms of rock and R&B. (loc.gov) The style drew on gospel, blues, jazz, and earlier harmony traditions, and it moved easily between Black vocal-group R&B and the broader pop market. Records such as The Penguins’ “Earth Angel” and Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers’ “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” helped carry the sound into the national mainstream, while official artist pages and catalog listings preserve the groups’ place in the genre’s history. (loc.gov)
Notable artists
- TPThe Platters
- TPThe Penguins
- FLFrankie Lymon & the Teenagers
- TDThe Drifters
- TMThe Moonglows
Essential listening
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Explore connected genres
Sources and further reading
- Rhythm and Blues: popular songs of the day
- Doo Wop genre overview
- Apple Music
The Penguins' 'Earth Angel' is a doo-wop classic and appears in Apple Music's catalog as a 1954 release.
- Apple Music
Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers' 'Why Do Fools Fall in Love' is listed in Apple Music with Frankie Lymon on lead vocals and credited songwriters including Frankie Lymon, Jimmy Merchant, Herman Santiago, and Morris Levy.
- theplatters.com
The Platters' official site identifies the group as a legendary rock & roll vocal group with origins in the early 1950s.