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115-641: The Pied Pipers were an American popular singing group originally formed in the late 1930s. They had several chart hits throughout the 1940s, both under their own name and in association with Tommy Dorsey , with Johnny Mercer and with Frank Sinatra . Originally, the group consisted of eight members who had belonged to three separate groups: Jo Stafford from The Stafford Sisters, and seven male singers: John Huddleston, Hal Hopper, Chuck Lowry, Bud Hervey, George Tait, Woody Newbury, and Dick Whittinghill , who had belonged to two groups named The Four Esquires and The Three Rhythm Kings, all of whom were contributing to

230-458: A New York Times bestseller . In 1989, Francis resumed her recording and performing career once again. For Malaco Records , Francis recorded a double album entitled Where the Hits Are , containing re-recordings of 18 of her biggest hits, as well as six classics of yesteryear Francis had always wanted to record such as "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" and " Torn Between Two Lovers ". In 1992,

345-527: A 1961 television interview that she was fluent in Spanish and Italian, but always had a translator nearby to make sure her translated lyrics and especially her pronunciation were as correct as possible. In the wake of " Die Liebe ist ein seltsames Spiel ", Francis enjoyed her greatest successes outside the United States. During the 1960s, her songs not only topped the charts in numerous countries around

460-565: A British representative of the sponsor objected to some of the songs in their repertoire and fired them. They went back to California , but in the time they had been in New York had recorded two records for RCA Victor Records . While in Los Angeles , the group was reduced to a quartet: Jo Stafford, her then-husband John Huddleston, and Chuck Lowry from the original eight, and Billy Wilson. They were getting little work, however, and were on

575-446: A baby boy, Joey. Francis married TV producer Bob Parkinson on June 27, 1985, divorcing later that year. Early in her career, Francis was introduced to Bobby Darin , then an up-and-coming singer and songwriter. Darin's manager arranged for him to help write several songs for her. Despite some disagreement about material, after several weeks Darin and Francis developed a romantic relationship. Francis' strict Italian father would separate

690-408: A career in medicine and was about to accept a four-year scholarship offered at New York University . At what was to have been her final recording session for MGM on October 2, 1957, with Joe Lipman and his orchestra, she recorded a cover version of the 1923 song " Who's Sorry Now? " written by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby . Francis has said that she recorded it at the insistence of her father, who

805-530: A chance to gain popularity. In contrast to Western popular music, genres of music that originated outside of the West are often categorized as world music . This label turns otherwise popular styles of music into an exotic and unknown category . The Western concept of 'World Music' homogenizes many different genres of popular music under one accessible term for Western audiences. New media technology has led urban music styles to filter into distant rural areas across

920-533: A culture regarding music. Popular music in Indonesia is often categorized as hybrid forms of Western rock to genres that originated in Indonesia and are indigenous in style. The genre of music Dangdut is a genre of popular music specifically found in Indonesia . Dangdut formed from two other genres of popular music: indo pop and underground music coming together to create a new fusion genre. Dangdut takes

1035-719: A double-sided hit: on the A-side, " Lipstick on Your Collar " (number 5), and on the B-side, " Frankie " (number 9). Following another idea from her father, Francis traveled to London in August 1959 to record an Italian album at EMI 's famous Abbey Road Studios . Titled Connie Francis Sings Italian Favorites , the album was released in November 1959. It soon entered the album charts where it remained for 81 weeks, peaking at number 4 and becoming Francis's most successful album. "Mama,"

1150-527: A drop in the use of major keys and a rise in the use of minor keys since the 1960s; 85% of songs were in a major key in that decade, while only around 40% of songs are in a major key now. The subject matter and lyrics of popular music have also undergone major change, becoming sadder as well as more antisocial and self-centered since the 1960s. There has also been an increasing trend of songs' emotional content, key, and tempo not following common associations; for example, fast songs with sad subject matters or in

1265-618: A good example for us - they show great respect for themselves and their arts. Wherever they are, they wear their native dress and their music is known throughout the world. This is the right way." She discussed this to explain why Egypt and the Arab world needed to take pride in the popular music styles originating in their culture so the styles were not lost in the modernization. Local musicians learned Western instrumental styles to create their own popular styles including their native languages and indigenous musical features. Communities in throughout

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1380-503: A larger number of music lovers to hear the new popular piano tunes. By the early 1900s, the big trends in popular music were the increasing popularity of vaudeville theaters and dance halls and a new invention—the gramophone player . The record industry grew very rapidly; "By 1920 there were almost 80 record companies in Britain, and almost 200 in the USA". The availability of records enabled

1495-451: A larger percentage of the population to hear the top singers and bands. Radio broadcasting of music, which began in the early 1920s, helped to spread popular songs to a huge audience, enabling a much larger proportion of the population to hear songs performed by professional singers and music ensembles, including individuals from lower income groups who previously would not have been able to afford concert tickets. Radio broadcasting increased

1610-434: A level of stability within societies to characterize historical periods, distribution of music, and the patterns of influence and continuity within the popular styles of music. Anahid Kassabian separated popular music into four categories: A society's popular music reflects the ideals that are prevalent at the time it is performed or published. David Riesman states that the youth audiences of popular music fit into either

1725-464: A major record company under Francis's own name. Even when MGM Records decided to sign a contract with her, it was because one track she had recorded, "Freddy", happened to be the name of the son of a company executive, Harry A. Meyerson, who thought of the song as a nice birthday gift. Hence, "Freddy" was released as Francis's first single, which turned out to be a commercial failure, just like her next eight solo singles. Despite these failures, Francis

1840-527: A majority group or a subculture . The majority group listens to the commercially produced styles while the subcultures find a minority style to transmit their own values. This allows youth to choose what music they identify with, which gives them power as consumers to control the market of popular music. Music critic Robert Christgau coined the term "semipopular music" in 1970, to describe records that seemed accessible for popular consumption but proved unsuccessful commercially. "I recognized that something else

1955-567: A medley of remixed versions of her biggest German hits charted in Germany. A single, entitled "Jive, Connie", ended up among the top-ten best-selling singles of the year, which brought Francis the prestigious R.SH-Gold award for the "Best Comeback of the Year" from R.SH (short for "Radio Schleswig-Holstein"), then one of Germany's most important private radio stations. A subsequent compilation album of her biggest German hits in their original versions

2070-404: A minor key, or slow songs with happier content or in a major key. There are multiple possible explanations for many of these changes. One reason for the brevity of songs in the past was the physical capability of records . Vinyl record singles, which were heavily favored for radio play, only had room for about three minutes of music, physically limiting the possible length of popular songs. With

2185-531: A more globalized culture. The second reason is that the Chinese television and music industry since the 1980s has broadcast television shows from their neighboring Asian societies and the West. The third reason is the impact of the internet and smartphones on the accessibility of streaming music. In 2015, students in China accounted for 30.2% of China's internet population and the third and fifth most popular uses of

2300-420: A number of ballads they had written for her. After a few hours, Francis began writing in her diary while the songwriters played the last of their ballads. This, and her refusal to let Sedaka and Greenfield see the diary to mine it for material, inspired the duo to write Sedaka's own breakthrough hit " The Diary .") Afterwards, Francis told them that she considered their ballads too intellectual and sophisticated for

2415-636: A number of sides. In 1944 Jo Stafford had a hit on her own, ahead of the Pipers, and after a couple more hits, she left for good to pursue a solo career. She was replaced in May by June Hutton , who had been singing with the Stardusters . The Pipers had twelve charted hit singles on Capitol, including " Dream " and ending with " My Happiness " (biggest hit version by Jon and Sondra Steele , later made popular again by Connie Francis ) in 1948. They also continued

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2530-425: A pianist to reproduce popular songs and pieces. In addition to the influence of sheet music, another factor was the increasing availability during the late 18th and early 19th century of public popular music performances in "pleasure gardens and dance halls , popular theatres and concert rooms". The early popular music performers worked hand-in-hand with the sheet music industry to promote popular sheet music. One of

2645-599: A popular underground subculture through the Middle East . Just like their Western counterparts, Middle Eastern metal followers expressed their feelings of alienation. But their thoughts came from war and social restrictions on youth. In interviews of Iranian teenagers between 1990 and 2004, the youth overall preferred Western popular music, even though it was banned by the government. Iranian underground rock bands are composed of members who are young, urban-minded, educated, relatively well-off, and global beings. Iranian rock

2760-485: A press agent and entertainment director for the Aladdin Hotel . In January 1971, she married Izzy Marion, a hair-salon owner, divorcing 10 months later. In 1973, Francis married for the third time – her only marriage to last more than a few months – to Joseph Garzilli, a restaurateur and travel-agency owner; they divorced in 1977. It was during the third marriage that Francis adopted

2875-427: A record company's singing star could be cross-promoted by the conglomerate's television talk shows and magazine arms. The "introduction of digital equipment (mixing desks, synthesizers, samplers, sequencers)" in the 1980s resulted in what Grove Dictionary of Music dubbed the creation of "new sound worlds", as well as facilitating DIY music production by amateur musicians and "tiny independent record labels ". In

2990-617: A relationship with Frank Sinatra, doing several tours with him starting in 1945 and becoming a regular on his radio program from 1945 to 1947. In 1944, The Pied Pipers were regulars on Johnny Mercer's Chesterfield Music Shop on the NBC Radio Network Monday through Friday nights. Beginning March 30, 1948, the group became a part of Club Fifteen on CBS . They sang on the program's Tuesday and Thursday episodes, alternating with The Andrews Sisters , who sang on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. In 1950, June Hutton left

3105-422: A return of the verse in one last A section (AABA). Verse-chorus form or ABA form may be combined with AABA form, in compound AABA forms. Variations such as a1 and a2 can also be used. The repetition of one chord progression may mark off the only section in a simple verse form such as the twelve bar blues. "The most significant feature of the emergent popular music industry of the late 18th and early 19th centuries

3220-426: A singer and accordion player. Francis attended Newark Arts High School in 1951 and 1952. She and her family moved to Belleville, New Jersey , where Francis graduated as salutatorian from Belleville High School Class of 1955. Francis continued to perform at neighborhood festivities and talent shows (some of them broadcast on television), appearing alternately as Concetta Franconero and Connie Franconero. Under

3335-513: A solo hit, "Yes Indeed", in 1941. Around Thanksgiving 1942, Tommy Dorsey (who was prone to incidents of bad temper) became angry at one of the Pipers for sending him in the wrong direction at a railroad station in Portland, Oregon , and fired him. The Pipers, out of "team loyalty," resigned en masse . At that moment, the No. 1 record on the charts was " There Are Such Things " sung by Frank Sinatra and

3450-440: A song or piece becomes known to listeners mainly from hearing the music (in contrast with classical music , in which many musicians learn pieces from sheet music); its appeal to diverse listeners, its treatment as a marketplace commodity in a capitalist context, and other factors. Sales of 'recordings' or sheet music are one measure. Middleton and Manuel note that this definition has problems because multiple listens or plays of

3565-466: A variety of styles, ranging from R&B, vocal jazz , and country to Broadway standards , children's music, waltzes, spiritual music, schlager music , traditionals from various ethnic groups represented in the US, and select songs from popular songwriters of the day, such as Burt Bacharach and Hal David , or Les Reed . Francis was married four times. In 1964, she was briefly married to Dick Kanellis,

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3680-476: A wide appeal within the culture of their origin. Through the mixture of musical genres, new popular music forms are created to reflect the ideals of a global culture. The examples of Africa , Indonesia , and the Middle East show how Western pop music styles can blend with local musical traditions to create new hybrid styles. Some sort of popular music has existed for as long as there has been an urban middle class to consume it. What distinguishes it above all

3795-431: A wider range of people. Although due to the significance and strong position of culture in traditional African music, African popular music tends to stay within the roots of traditional African Popular Music. The genre of music, Maskanda , is popular in its culture of origin, South Africa. Although maskanda is a traditional music genre by definition, the people who listen to it influence the ideals that are brought forth in

3910-491: Is a cross-bred concentration of fashionable modes." In his mind, a liking "for the nasty, brutish, and short intensifies a common semipopular tendency in which lyrical and conceptual sophistication are applauded while musical sophistication— jazz chops or classical design or avant-garde innovation—is left to the specialists." American folk singer Pete Seeger defined pop music as "professional music which draws upon both folk music and fine arts music". Form in popular music

4025-412: Is a niche genre of music. In South India, Carnatic is a niche genre of music people enjoy listening to. Music genre popularity changes greatly over time. This can be influenced by a number of factors such as current trends or even historical events. In the 19th and 20th century, Classical music was far more popular than it is in modern times. This can be attributed to a wide variety of changes, including

4140-484: Is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She is estimated to have sold more than 100 million records worldwide. In 1960, Francis was recognized as the most successful female artist in Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy, and Australia, and in every other country where records were purchased. She was the first woman in history to reach No. 1 on

4255-715: Is described by the traits that these band members possess. The youth who take part in underground music in the Middle East are aware of the social constraints of their countries, but they are not optimistic about social change. Iranian rock bands have taken up an internationalist position to express their rebellion from the discourses in their national governments. 44. HeadphonesAddict. "20+ Music Genre Statistics: Most Popular Music Genres (2022)". HeadphonesAddict , 8 July 2022, https://headphonesaddict.com/music-genre-statistics/. Connie Francis Connie Francis (born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero ; December 12, 1937)

4370-439: Is most often sectional , the most common sections being verse , chorus or refrain , and bridge . Other common forms include thirty-two-bar form , chorus form , and twelve-bar blues . Popular music songs are rarely composed using different music for each stanza of the lyrics (songs composed in this fashion are said to be " through-composed "). The verse and chorus are considered the primary elements. Each verse usually has

4485-503: Is popular in Indonesia is punk rock . This genre was shaped in Indonesia by the local interpretations of the media from the larger global punk movement. Jeremy Wallach argues that while Green Day was seen as the " death of punk ," in Indonesia they were seen catalyst for a larger punk movement. Punk in Indonesia calls on the English-speaking world to embrace the global sects of the punk subculture and become open-minded to

4600-703: Is the aesthetic level it is aimed at. The cultural elite has always endowed music with an exalted if not self-important religious or aesthetic status, while for the rural folk , it has been practical and unselfconscious, an accompaniment to fieldwork or to the festivals that provide periodic escape from toil. But since Rome and Alexandria , professional entertainers have diverted and edified city dwellers with songs, marches, and dances, whose pretensions fell somewhere in between." — Robert Christgau , in Collier's Encyclopedia (1984) Scholars have classified music as "popular" based on various factors, including whether

4715-642: The Billboard Hot 100 when “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool” topped the chart in 1960, she was also the first woman to have 3 No. 1 hits on the chart, just three of her 53 career hits. Francis was born to an Italian-American family in the Ironbound neighborhood of Newark, New Jersey , the first child of George Franconero and Ida (née Ferrari-di Vito), spending her first years in the Crown Heights, Brooklyn area (Utica Avenue/St. Marks Avenue) before

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4830-425: The Billboard Hot 100 . Eventually, the single sold over one million copies. However, her minor chart success came too late for her record label—Francis's recording contract consisted of ten solo singles and one duet single. Though success had finally seemed to come with "The Majesty of Love", Francis was informed by MGM Records that her contract would not be renewed after her last solo single. Francis considered

4945-466: The 1960s . One major change is that popular music has gotten slower; the average BPM of popular songs from the 1960s was 116, while the average of the 2000s was 100BPM. Additionally, songs getting radio play in the 1960s were, on average, only about three minutes long. In contrast, most of the songs in the Billboard Top 5 in 2018 were between 3:21 and 3:40 minutes long. There has also been

5060-515: The American Bandstand 30th Anniversary Special and appearing in the town where she had been raped. Francis' new-found success was short-lived, though. She was diagnosed with manic depression , which again brought her career to a halt. She was committed to multiple psychiatric hospitals. Francis attempted suicide in 1984. Nevertheless, in 1984, Francis was able to write and publish her autobiography, Who's Sorry Now? , which became

5175-629: The Billboard chart and was her second number 1 in the UK. The success of "Stupid Cupid" restored momentum to Francis' chart career, and she reached the U.S. top 40 an additional eight times during the remainder of the 1950s. She managed to churn out more hits by covering several older songs, such as "My Happiness" (number 2 on the Hot 100) and " Among My Souvenirs " (number 7), as well as performing her own original songs. In 1959, she gained two gold records for

5290-678: The Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra . In both 1944 and 1945, The Pied Pipers won awards from Down Beat magazine as the best and most popular group of the year. The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001. Popular music The original application of the term is to music of the 1880s Tin Pan Alley period in the United States . Although popular music sometimes is known as "pop music",

5405-534: The Las Vegas Hilton with Dionne Warwick , a show billed as "Eric Floyd's Grand Divas of Stage". In December 2017, Francis released her most recent autobiography, Among My Souvenirs . While her singles were mostly kept in the then-current sounds of the day such as rock 'n' roll, novelty songs , the twist , torch ballads , or the girl group sound created by Brill Building alumni Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry , Francis' albums represented her in

5520-549: The verse and chorus or refrain repeating throughout the song and the bridge providing a contrasting and transitional section within a piece. From the 1960s through the mid-2000s, albums collecting songs were the dominant form for recording and consuming English-language popular music, in a period known as the album era . In the 2000s, with songs and pieces available as digital sound files, it has become easier for music to spread from one country or region to another. Some popular music forms have become global, while others have

5635-549: The 1938 movie Alexander's Ragtime Band . Multi-instrumentalist Spencer Clark was also a member at one point. Paul Weston and Axel Stordahl , who were arrangers for Tommy Dorsey 's big band , heard of the group through two of The King Sisters , Alyce and Yvonne. Weston had a jam session at his home and a visiting advertising executive signed the octet for Dorsey's radio program, broadcast in New York City . They sang with Dorsey's orchestra for about six weeks before

5750-462: The 1950s featured Stordahl's orchestra as backing group. Louanne Hogan , who was the dubbed singing voice behind several movie stars, was briefly a member of The Pied Pipers in 1951. Lee Gotch, who had sung in the 1940s with the swing group Six Hits and a Miss , joined the Pied Pipers from 1954 to 1967, during which time he recorded an LP by Lee Gotch's Ivy Barflies. The Pied Pipers appeared on

5865-571: The 1970s, the trend towards consolidation in the recording industry continued to the point that the "... dominance was in the hands of five huge transnational organizations, three American-owned ( WEA , RCA , CBS ) and two European-owned companies ( EMI , Polygram )". In the 1990s, the consolidation trend took a new turn: inter-media consolidation. This trend saw music recording companies being consolidated with film, television, magazines, and other media companies, an approach which facilitated cross-marketing promotion between subsidiaries. For example,

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5980-445: The 1990s, the availability of sound recording software and effects units software meant that an amateur indie band could record an album—which required a fully equipped recording studio in previous decades—using little more than a laptop and a good quality microphone . That said, the audio quality of modern recording studios still outstrips what an amateur can produce. There are many genres of music worldwide, over 300. Leading for

6095-455: The Arab world place high value on their indigenous musical identities while assimilating to new musical styles from neighboring countries or mass media. Through the 1980s and 1990s, popular music has been seen as a problem for the Iranian government because of the non-religious meanings within the music and the bodily movements of dancing or headbanging. During this time period, metal became

6210-512: The December 12, 1955 episode 'Ricky's European Booking' on TV's "I Love Lucy". The Pied Pipers sang on a few tracks of Frank Sinatra's 1950s studio albums , backed up Sam Cooke on his No. 1 hit, " You Send Me ", and made a guest appearance on I Love Lucy . The current Pied Pipers are Nancy Knorr, Don Lucas, Kevin Kennard, Chris Sanders, and David Zack. The group frequently performs with

6325-606: The European education system that the early nationalistic leaders grew up in. Not all African political songs were based on Western styles. For example, in South Africa, the political songs during the Anti-Apartheid Movement were based on traditional tribal styles along with hybrid forms of imported genres. Activists used protest and freedom songs to persuade individuals to take action, become educated with

6440-423: The Pied Pipers, the last RCA record they did with Dorsey. They returned to Los Angeles and signed with Capitol Records , where Paul Weston was now working, and he became the arranger and orchestra leader for most of the Pipers' recordings. Huddleston left to join the war effort (he was divorced from Stafford around that time), and Hal Hopper rejoined the group to replace him. The group also backed Johnny Mercer on

6555-675: The Rain" on GSF Records. This answer song to "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree" by Tony Orlando & Dawn bubbled under the charts. The recording of a German version, though, remained unfinished. After her modest success with "(Should I) Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree?" Francis began performing regularly again. While appearing at the Westbury Music Fair in New York , on November 8, 1974, Francis

6670-582: The Seventies (1981): "In popular music, embracing the '70s meant both an elitist withdrawal from the messy concert and counterculture scene and a profiteering pursuit of the lowest common denominator in FM radio and album rock ... In the '70s the powerful took over, as rock industrialists capitalized on the national mood to reduce potent music to an often reactionary species of entertainment—and to transmute rock's popular base from audience to market." In

6785-499: The US during the late 19th century was in New York's ' Tin Pan Alley ' district. The Tin Pan Alley music publishers developed a new method for promoting sheet music: incessant promotion of new songs. One of the technological innovations that helped to spread popular music around the turn of the century was player pianos . A player piano could be used to record a skilled pianist's rendition of a piano piece. This recorded performance could be "played back" on another player piano. This allowed

6900-407: The US until her contract with MGM Records expired in 1969. In 1965, Connie Francis participated in that year's edition of the annual San Remo Festival , where her team partner Gigliola Cinquetti and she presented " Ho bisogno di vederti ", which finished on number 5 of the final ranking. Francis returned to San Remo in 1967 to present " Canta Ragazzina " with her team partner Bobby Solo . In

7015-625: The US, Connie Francis had a third number-one hit in 1962: " Don't Break the Heart That Loves You ", and her success led MGM to allow her complete freedom to choose whichever songs she wanted to record. Francis's first autobiography, For Every Young Heart , was published in 1963. On July 3 that same year, she played a Royal Command Performance for Queen Elizabeth II at the Alhambra Theatre in Glasgow , Scotland. During

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7130-403: The US, however, " Time Alone Will Tell ", Francis's cover version of San Remo's 1967 winning entry " Non pensare a me " which had been presented by Iva Zanicchi and Claudio Villa , peaked at number 94 on Billboard's Hot 100 and at number 14 on Billboard's AC charts. In 1973, Francis returned to the recording studio, cutting "(Should I) Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree?", b/w "Paint

7245-405: The ability of songwriters, singers and bandleaders to become nationally known. Another factor which helped to disseminate popular music was the introduction of "talking pictures"— sound films —in the late 1920s, which also included music and songs. In the late 1920s and throughout the 1930s, there was a move towards consolidation in the recording industry, which led several major companies to dominate

7360-748: The basis for her April 1960 recording, " Everybody's Somebody's Fool " which would go on to become the first single by a female artist to top the Hot 100 . Veteran lyricist Ralph Maria Siegel penned a set of German lyrics, named " Die Liebe ist ein seltsames Spiel ", which, after some friction between Francis and her MGM executives, was recorded and released. The song peaked at number 1 in West Germany . She had two more number one hits there, "Paradiso" in September 1962 and "Barcarole in der Nacht" in July 1963. It

7475-429: The contemporary United States, one of the most popular forms of music is rap. DJ Kool Herc, is famously known for creating hip-hop itself in the 1970s. With the technique he created when mixing two identical records back and forth, he was able to make unique-sounding sounds that later gave birth to rap itself. In modern times, rap is used to bring awareness to a problem such as: racism, sexism. It developed communities in

7590-468: The country, and I'll bet ninety-five percent of them sing. "There's no doubt about it", predicted Mr. Clark. "She's is headed straight for the number one spot". I began feeling sorry for myself and a bit envious, too. Good luck to her, I thought. And then Mr. Clark just happened to play a song called "Who's sorry now" - MY "Who's Sorry Now"! Well, the feeling was cosmic - just cosmic! Right there in my living-room, it became Mardi Gras-time and New Year's Eve at

7705-403: The difference in songs' subject matter and emotional content, popular music since the late 1960s has increasingly been used to promote social change and political agendas. Artists since that time have often focused their music on current events and subjects relevant to the current generations. Another theory is that globalization makes audiences' tastes more diverse, so different ideas in music have

7820-427: The early popular music performers to attain widespread popularity was a Swedish opera singer Jenny Lind , who toured the US in the mid-19th century. In addition to living room amateur music-making during the 19th century, more people began getting involved in music during this era by participating in amateur choirs, joining brass bands or playing in amateur orchestras. The center of the music publishing industry in

7935-512: The family moved to New Jersey. Growing up in an Italian-Jewish neighborhood, Francis became fluent in Yiddish , which led her later to record songs in Yiddish and Hebrew . In her autobiography Who's Sorry Now? published in 1984, Francis recalls that she was encouraged by her father to appear regularly at talent contests, pageants, and other neighborhood festivities from the age of four as

8050-417: The fast-growing genre's ability to communicate, educate, empower, and entertain. Artists who would have started in traditional music genres, like maskanda, became hip hop artists to provide a stronger career path for themselves. These rappers compare themselves to the traditional artists like the griot and oral storyteller, who both had a role in reflecting on the internal dynamics of the larger society. In

8165-472: The globe. The rural areas, in turn, are able to give feedback to the urban centers about the new styles of music. Urbanization, modernization, exposure to foreign music and mass media have contributed to hybrid urban pop styles. The hybrid styles have also found a space within Western popular music through the expressions of their national culture. Recipient cultures borrow elements from host cultures and alter

8280-408: The group and was replaced by Sue Allen and later by Virginia Marcy. (However, the trade publication Billboard reported that Virginia Maxie replaced Hutton in December 1949.) Hutton married Axel Stordahl, the other half of Dorsey's original arranging team. Just as Jo Stafford (who had married Paul Weston) had her husband's orchestra accompany her on her solo hits, June Hutton's solo hits on Capitol in

8395-566: The height of the Vietnam War in 1967, Connie Francis performed for US troops. Francis recalls this story frequently during the introduction to " God Bless America " at her live concerts. Due to music trends in the early and mid-1960s, especially the British Invasion , Francis's chart success on Billboard's Hot 100 began to wane after 1963. She had her final top-ten hit, "Vacation", in 1962. A number of Francis's singles reached

8510-691: The internet were respectively, internet music and internet video use. The youths described being able to connect to the emotions and language of the Chinese music, but also enjoyed the melodies found within Anglo-American music. The students also believed that listening to the English music would improve their English language skills. Modernization of music in the Arab world involved borrowing inspiration from Turkish music and Western musical styles. The late Egyptian singer, Umm Kulthum , stated, "We must respect ourselves and our art. The Indians have set

8625-456: The invention of CDs in 1982, and more recently with streaming , music can be as long or short as both writers and listeners wish. However, songs have shortened again, partially due to the ubiquity of streaming. The average song length in 2018 was 3 minutes and 30 seconds, 20 seconds shorter than the average in 2014. The most probable cause of this is that artists are now paid per individual stream, and longer songs could mean fewer streams. As for

8740-425: The latter name, she appeared on NBC 's variety show Startime Kids between 1953 and 1955. During rehearsals for her appearance on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts in December 1950, Francis was advised by Godfrey to change her stage name to Connie Francis for easier pronunciation. Godfrey also told her to drop the accordion—advice she gladly followed, as she had begun to hate the large and heavy instrument. Around

8855-719: The live album The Return Concert: Live at Trump's Castle . That same year, she also released With Love to Buddy , a tribute album of songs made famous by the late Buddy Holly . In late December 2004, Francis headlined in Las Vegas for the first time since 1989. In March and October 2007, Francis performed to sold-out crowds at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco. She appeared in concert in Manila , Philippines, on Valentine's Day 2008. In 2010, she appeared at

8970-518: The meaning and context found in the host culture. Many Western styles, in turn, have become international styles through multinational recording studios. Popular African music styles have stemmed from traditional entertainment genres, rather than evolving from music used with certain traditional ceremonies like weddings, births, or funerals. African popular music as a whole has been influenced by European countries, African-American and Afro-Latin music, and region-specific styles that became popular across

9085-484: The most popular genres worldwide, pop music takes the first spot. In countries like the United States, rock, rap and hip-hop, blues and R&B have a long history of taking the leading spots. The most popular genres of music rank differently throughout the world. However, there are also very niche genres of music. For example, in Canada the most popular niche genre of music is video game soundtracks. In Sweden, black metal

9200-603: The music. A popular maskandi artist, Phuzekhemisi, had to lessen the political influence within his music to be ready for the public sphere. His music producer, West Nkosi, was looking for the commercial success in Phuzekhemisi's music rather than starting a political controversy. Political songs have been an important category of African popular music in many societies. During the continent's struggle against colonial rule, nationalistic songs boosted citizens' morale. These songs were based on Western marches and hymns reflecting

9315-439: The noisy instrumentation from underground music, but makes it easier to listen to, like indo pop. Dangdut attempts to form many popular music genres like rock, pop, and traditional music to create a new sound that lines up with the consumers' tastes. This genre has formed into a larger social movement that includes clothing, youth culture, the resurgence of Islam, and the capitalist entertainment industry. Another music scene that

9430-403: The public, who merely buy or reject what music is being produced. He claims that the listeners in the scenario would not have been able to make the choice of their favorite music, which negates the previous conception of popular music. Moreover, "understandings of popular music have changed with time". Middleton argues that if research were to be done on the field of popular music, there would be

9545-897: The record industry. In the 1950s and 1960s, the new invention of television began to play an increasingly important role in disseminating new popular music. Variety shows regularly showcased popular singers and bands. In the 1960s, the development of new technologies in recording, such as multitrack recorders gave sound engineers and record producers an increasingly important role in popular music. By using multitrack recording techniques, sound engineers could create new sounds and sound effects that were not possible using traditional "live" recording techniques, such as singers performing their own backup vocals or having lead guitarists play rhythm guitars behind their guitar solo . The next decade saw moves away from these sensibilities, as Robert Christgau noted in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of

9660-458: The recording "Who's Sorry Now?" was finished, only a few seconds remained on the tape. The single seemed to go unnoticed like all previous releases, just as Francis had predicted, but on January 1, 1958, it debuted on Dick Clark 's American Bandstand . Francis watched the show and wrote in her diary: I heard Dick Clark mention something about a new girl singer. So, what else is new? Another girl singer. There are ninety-five million females in

9775-497: The rise of technology. In America during the 1980s, rock music was at its peak and then slowly lost its top spot as pop music began to climb the charts. Since the early 2000s, pop music has charted number one in American music charts, but since 2017, RnB and Hip Hop have taken that spot. In addition to many changes in specific sounds and technologies used, there has been a shift in the content and key elements of popular music since

9890-404: The same melody (possibly with some slight modifications), but the lyrics change for most verses. The chorus (or "refrain") usually has a melodic phrase and a key lyrical line which is repeated. Pop songs may have an introduction and coda ("tag"), but these elements are not essential to the identity of most songs. Pop songs that use verses and choruses often have a bridge, a section which connects

10005-430: The same song or piece are not counted. Evaluating appeal based on size of audience (mass appeal) or whether audience is of a certain social class is another way to define popular music, but this, too, has problems in that social categories of people cannot be applied accurately to musical styles. Manuel states that one criticism of popular music is that it is produced by large media conglomerates and passively consumed by

10120-440: The same time, Francis took a job as a singer on demonstration records , to bring unreleased songs to the attention of established singers and/or their management who might choose to record them for a professional commercial record. In 1955, Startime Kids went off the air. In May that same year, George Franconero Sr. and Francis's manager George Scheck raised money for a recording session of four songs which they hoped to sell to

10235-458: The single taken from the album, reached number 8 in the United States and number 2 in the United Kingdom. Following this success, Francis recorded seven more albums of "favorites" between 1960 and 1964, including Jewish , German , and Irish , among others. These albums marked Francis's transition from the youth-oriented rock 'n' roll music to adult contemporary music , which George Franconero, Sr. had realized would be necessary if his daughter

10350-426: The solo may be improvised based on the chord progression . A solo usually features a single instrumental performer (e.g., a guitarist or a harmonica player) or less commonly, more than one instrumentalist (e.g., a trumpeter and a sax player). Thirty-two-bar form uses four sections, most often eight measures long each (4×8=32), two verses or A sections, a contrasting B section (the bridge or "middle-eight") and

10465-595: The struggle, and empower others to be politically conscious. These songs reflected the nuances between the different classes involved in the liberation struggle. One of the genres people of Africa use for political expression is Hip hop . Although hip hop in Africa is based on the North American template, it has been remade to produce new meanings for African young people. This allows the genre to be both locally and globally influential. African youth are shaped by

10580-486: The studio in 1981 to cut " Comme ci, comme ça ", and "I'm Me Again", the latter of which became the title track of an album which featured the new songs. "I'm Me Again" became Francis' last single to chart on the AC charts. In 1981, further tragedy struck Francis when her brother, George Franconero, Jr., with whom she was very close, was murdered by Mafia hitmen. Despite that, she took up live performing again, even gracing

10695-431: The theme song of Francis's first motion picture . The movie introduced the concept of spring break , as the once sleepy town of Fort Lauderdale became the hotspot for college students on their spring vacation in the wake of the movie's success. The success of "Connie Francis Sings Italian Favorites" in late 1959/early 1960 led Francis to become one of the first American artists to record regularly in other languages. She

10810-598: The threshold of disbanding when they received a call from Tommy Dorsey (in Chicago ). Dorsey said he could not afford to hire eight Pipers but would be happy to have them join him if they could cut the number down to a quartet. As they had already done that, and with only one unemployment check remaining, they were happy to comply. In 1939, they moved to Chicago, with Clark Yocum, who had played guitar and sung for Dorsey, replacing Wilson. Although Paul Weston left Dorsey to become Dinah Shore 's music director about that time, he

10925-563: The top 40 in the US Hot 100 in the mid-1960s, with her last top-40 entry in 1964 being her cover version of " Be Anything (but Be Mine) ", a 1952 song made famous by singer/bandleader Eddy Howard . Despite her declining success on the Hot 100, Francis remained a top concert draw, and her singles – with a more mature style – were charting on the top quarter of Billboard's Adult Contemporary (AC) Charts and sometimes even reached Billboard's Country Charts . Francis enjoyed lasting chart success in

11040-606: The transnational genre. In a 2015 study involving young students in Shanghai , youths stated they enjoyed listening to both Chinese, other Asian nationalities, and Anglo-American popular music. There are three ways that young people of China were able to access global music. The first reason was a policy change since the late 1970s where the country was opened up to the rest of the world instead of being self-contained. This created more opportunities for Chinese people to interact with people outside of their country of origin to create

11155-479: The turn of the century! And on February 15 of that same year, Francis performed it on the first episode of The Saturday Night Beechnut Show , also hosted by Clark. By mid-year, over a million copies had been sold, and Francis was suddenly launched into worldwide stardom. In April 1958, "Who's Sorry Now?" reached number 1 on the UK Singles Chart and number 4 in the US. For the next four years, Francis

11270-419: The two terms are not interchangeable. Popular music is a generic term for a wide variety of genres of music that appeal to the tastes of a large segment of the population, whereas pop music usually refers to a specific musical genre within popular music. Popular music songs and pieces typically have easily singable melodies . The song structure of popular music commonly involves repetition of sections, with

11385-446: The verse and chorus at one or more points in the song. The verse and chorus are usually repeated throughout a song, while the bridge, intro, and coda (also called an "outro") tend to be used only once. Some pop songs may have a solo section, particularly in rock or blues -influenced pop. During the solo section, one or more instruments play a melodic line which may be the melody used by the singer, or, in blues- or jazz-influenced pop,

11500-592: The world such as Britain, Germany, Spain and Italy. Even at the height of the Cold War , Francis's music was well received in Iron Curtain countries, and some of her recordings were made available on state-owned record labels such as Melodiya in the former Soviet Union and on Jugoton in former Yugoslavia, although it was common knowledge that rock 'n' roll was highly disparaged in Eastern bloc countries. In

11615-528: The world, but she was also voted the number 1 singer in over 10 countries. In 1960, she was named the most popular artist in Europe, the first time a non-European received this honor. From mid-1961 to mid-1963, Radio Luxembourg closed each day's broadcasts with "It's Time to Say Goodnight", a song Francis had recorded especially for them and was not officially released until 1996. Francis's enduring popularity overseas led to television specials in countries around

11730-531: The young generation and requested a more lively song. Greenfield urged Sedaka to sing a song they had written that morning with the Shepherd Sisters in mind. Sedaka protested that Francis would be insulted, but Greenfield said that since she hated all the other songs they had performed, they had nothing to lose. Sedaka then played " Stupid Cupid ." When he finished, Francis announced that he had just played her new hit song. It went on to reach number 14 on

11845-541: Was raped at the Jericho Turnpike Howard Johnson's Lodge in Jericho, New York , and nearly suffocated under the weight of a heavy mattress the culprit had thrown upon her. She subsequently sued the motel chain for failing to provide adequate security and reportedly won a $ 2.5 million judgment, one of the largest such judgments in history, leading to a reform in hotel security. Her rapist

11960-655: Was a disco version of "Where the Boys Are". That and other songs from the Who's Happy Now? sessions were subsequently recorded in Italian, Spanish, Japanese, and German. The Spanish and German recordings became albums of their own in as Connie Francis en Español in Spain and as Was ich bin (What I Am) in Germany. All three albums and the singles culled from them were released on United Artists Records . Francis returned again to

12075-496: Was also released successfully. In the wake of this, Francis recorded two duets for the German Herzklang label (a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment ) with Peter Kraus , with whom she had already worked several times in the late 1950s and early 1960s. A German-language solo album was supposed to follow on Herzklang, but despite all songs being recorded and mixed, the album remains unreleased. In 1996, Francis released

12190-434: Was convinced it stood a chance of becoming a hit because it was a song adults already knew and that teenagers would dance to if it had a contemporary arrangement . Francis did not like the song and argued about it with her father heatedly, delaying the recording of the two other songs during the session so much that she thought no time was left on the continuously running recording tape. Her father insisted, though, and when

12305-595: Was followed by other major British and American recording stars including Wanda Jackson , Cliff Richard , Petula Clark , Brenda Lee , the Supremes , Peggy March , Pat Boone , Lesley Gore , the Beatles and Johnny Cash , among many others. In her autobiography, Francis mentioned that in the early years of her career, the language barrier in some European countries, especially in Germany, made it difficult for her songs to get airplay. Francis used these reflections as

12420-450: Was going on—the distribution system appeared to be faltering, FM and all", he later wrote in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), citing that records like The Velvet Underground and The Gilded Palace of Sin (by Flying Burrito Brothers ) possessed populist qualities yet failed to impact the record charts . "Just as semiclassical music is a systematic dilution of highbrow preferences, semipopular music

12535-466: Was hired to record the vocals for Tuesday Weld 's "singing" scenes in the 1956 movie Rock, Rock, Rock , and for Freda Holloway in the 1957 Warner Brothers rock and roll movie Jamboree . In the fall of 1957, Francis enjoyed her first modest success with a duet single she had recorded with Marvin Rainwater : "The Majesty of Love", with "You, My Darlin' You" as the B-side, peaked at number 93 on

12650-524: Was never found. In the years after the incident, Francis went into depression, taking as many as 50 Darvon pills a day and rarely leaving her home in Essex Fells, New Jersey . In 1977, Francis underwent nasal surgery and completely lost her voice. She went through three more operations and was unable to sing for four years. In 1978, Francis returned to the recording studio to cut an album titled Who's Happy Now? The lead recording on this album

12765-651: Was not until her number 7 on the US charts, " Many Tears Ago ", later in 1960 when Francis began to record cover versions of her songs in foreign languages other than German. Over the years she expanded her recording portfolio to 15 languages. She also sang in Romanian during a live performance at the 1970 edition of the Cerbul de Aur in Brașov , Romania. Francis was not fluent in all of these languages and she had to learn her foreign language songs phonetically . Francis explained in

12880-489: Was the extent of its focus on the commodity form of sheet music". The availability of inexpensive, widely available sheet music versions of popular songs and instrumental music pieces made it possible for music to be disseminated to a wide audience of amateur, middle-class music-makers, who could play and sing popular music at home. Amateur music-making in the 19th century often centred around the piano , as this instrument could play melodies , chords and basslines, thus enabling

12995-408: Was to figure in the fortunes of the group again. In 1940, Dorsey hired another vocalist, Frank Sinatra , who had previously sung in a quartet, The Hoboken Four, and later with Harry James ' orchestra. Sinatra and the Pipers teamed to record a major hit, " I'll Never Smile Again ", in that year. The group had twelve more chart hits with Dorsey, ten of them with Sinatra. Also, Jo Stafford herself had

13110-613: Was to have a successful longterm music career. Nevertheless, Francis continued to record singles aimed at the youth-oriented market. Among her top-ten hits on the Hot 100 were " Breakin' in a Brand New Broken Heart " (1961, number 7), "When the Boy in Your Arms (Is the Boy in Your Heart)" (1961, number 10), " Second Hand Love " (1962, number 7), and "Where the Boys Are" (1961, number 4). The last one became her signature tune and became

13225-469: Was voted the "Best Female Vocalist" by American Bandstand viewers. As Connie Francis explains at each of her concerts, she began searching for a new hit immediately after the success of "Who's Sorry Now?" since MGM Records had renewed her contract. After the relative failure of the follow-up singles "I'm Sorry I Made You Cry," which stalled at No. 36) and "Heartaches" , failing to chart at all, Francis met Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield , who sang

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