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35-404: The music featured in the series was recorded by session musicians , including Ron Dante on lead vocals and Toni Wine on duet and backing vocals. The recordings were released as a series of singles and albums that achieved worldwide chart success. Their most successful song, " Sugar, Sugar ", became one of the biggest hits of the bubblegum pop genre that flourished from 1968 to 1973. In 2020,

70-555: A harmonica player. McCracken was additionally an arranger and record producer. Born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey , McCracken grew up in Hackensack, New Jersey . Especially in demand in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, McCracken appeared on many recordings by Steely Dan , as well as albums by Donald Fagen , Jimmy Rushing , Billy Joel , Roland Kirk , Roberta Flack , B. B. King , Hue and Cry , John Lennon , Paul McCartney ,

105-620: A brief demo song, or as long as several weeks if an album or film score is being recorded. Musicians' associations and unions often set out the remuneration terms. Some musicians may get the minimum scale rate set out by the union. Heavily in-demand session musicians may earn much more. The union rates may vary based on whether it is a music recording versus a film/television recording. While the film/television rates may be lower, there may also be residual payments to compensate them for reruns, DVD sales, streaming usage, and so on. Session musicians often have to bring their own instruments, such as in

140-623: A new version of the band was introduced in the TV series Riverdale , with Kevin Keller replacing Reggie Mantle. However, the band continues to appear with the five original members in the comic books published by Archie Comics. An Indian live-action feature film adaptation of the Archies was produced for Netflix . It was released on December 7, 2023. The Archies first appeared in a comic book, Life with Archie #60 (April 1967). The fictional band

175-532: A nuanced sense of the playing styles and idioms used in different genres. For example, a sax player who mainly plays jazz needs to know the R&;B style if they are asked to improvise a solo in an R&B song. Similarly, a bass player asked to improvise a walking bassline in a rockabilly song needs to know the stock lines and cliches used in this genre. Regardless of the styles of music session musicians play, some qualities are universal: punctuality in arriving at

210-519: A part to fill a last-minute time slot. In the 1960s, Los Angeles was considered the top recording destination in the United States — consequently studios were constantly booked around the clock, and session time was highly sought after and expensive. Songs had to be recorded quickly in the fewest possible takes. In this environment, Los Angeles producers and record executives had little patience for needless expense or wasted time and depended on

245-573: A repeat of the Monkees fiasco while still allowing himself full control, Kirshner commissioned a band based on cartoon characters—if the session musicians tried to rebel or leave, they could be replaced seamlessly. The early stories copied the TV show's fast cuts and action: "There were pages that had no panel-to-panel continuity at all, just pure strings of nonsense, fantasy, fourth-wall breaking, and exasperated commentary from Betty and Veronica." The feature ended in issue #66. A set of studio musicians

280-405: A sub-specialization within trumpet session players is "high note specialist." The working schedule for session musicians often depends on the terms set out by musicians' unions or associations, as these organizations typically set out rules on performance schedules (e.g., regarding the length of sessions and breaks). The length of employment may be as short as a single day, in the case of recording

315-536: A wider range of musical situations, genres, and styles. Examples of "doubling" include double bass and electric bass , acoustic guitar and mandolin , piano and accordion , and saxophone and other woodwind instruments. Session musicians are used when musical skills are needed on a short-term basis. Typically, session musicians are used by recording studios to provide backing tracks for other musicians for recording sessions and live performances, recording music for advertising , film, television, and theatre . In

350-627: Is a composer and producer in his own right. However, the music for The U.S. of Archie , which aired in 1974, was produced by Jackie Mills, a Hollywood producer, who also produced Bobby Sherman and the Brady Kids . The vocalist for these shows was Tom McKenzie, who also sang on some Groovie Goolies segments, and was a regular member of the popular singing group Doodletown Pipers . According to Ron Dante, over 100 songs were recorded, but at least 40 went unreleased. In 2020, Sunset Blvd Records released Ron Dante's Funhouse! , which includes some of

385-450: The 2000s, the terms "session musician" and "studio musician" were synonymous, though in past decades, "studio musician" meant a musician associated with a single record company , recording studio or entertainment agency . Session musicians rarely achieve mainstream fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders . However, top session musicians are well-known within the music industry . Some have become publicly recognized, such as

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420-568: The Archies include " Who's Your Baby? " (U.S. No. 40), " Bang-Shang-A-Lang " (U.S. No. 22), and " Jingle Jangle " (U.S. No. 10). "Jingle Jangle" also sold over one million copies, garnering a second gold disc award. Their records were released on the Calendar Records label, which was shortly thereafter renamed to Kirshner Records. Male vocals for the fictional Archies group were provided by The Cuff Links ' lead singer Ron Dante and female duet vocals were provided by Toni Wine . Wine, who

455-402: The Archies' records included guitarists Hugh McCracken and Dave Appell , drummers Gary Chester and Buddy Saltzman , bassists Chuck Rainey and Joey Macho, and keyboard player Ron Frangipane. The sound engineer was Fred Weinberg, who was Jeff Barry's and Andy Kim's favorite and also recorded Barry's other hits " Be My Baby ", " Baby, I Love You ", and Kim's " Rock Me Gently ". Fred Weinberg

490-506: The M.G.'s . The benefit of having a regular group, an approach which typified Southern soul , is that the group has much more experience playing together, which enables them to get a better sense of ensemble. Hugh McCracken Hugh Carmine McCracken (March 31, 1942 – March 28, 2013) was an American rock guitarist and session musician based in New York City , primarily known for his performance on guitar and also as

525-494: The Monkees , Paul Simon , Art Garfunkel , Idris Muhammad , James Taylor , Phoebe Snow , Bob Dylan , Linda McCartney , Carly Simon , Graham Parker , Yoko Ono , Eric Carmen , Loudon Wainwright III , Lou Donaldson , Aretha Franklin , Bob James , Van Morrison , the Four Seasons , Barbra Streisand , Hall & Oates , the Archies , Don McLean , Hank Crawford , Jerry Jemmott , Gary Wright and Andy Gibb . In

560-587: The Wrecking Crew , the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and The Funk Brothers who worked with Motown Records . Session musicians may play in a wide range of genres or specialize in a specific genre (e.g., country music or jazz ). Some session musicians with a classical music background may focus on film score recordings. Even within a specific genre specialization, there may be even more focused sub-specializations. For example,

595-431: The case of guitar, bass, woodwinds, and brass. It is expected that studio musicians will have well-maintained professional-tier instruments. In some cases, larger or heavier instruments may be provided by the recording studio, such as a grand piano or Hammond organ and Leslie speaker . In certain cases, a session musicians may bring some instruments or musical gear and use them with larger instruments that are provided by

630-453: The case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a tour. Session musicians are usually not permanent or official members of a musical ensemble or band. Many session musicians specialize in playing common rhythm section instruments such as guitar , piano , bass , or drums . Others are specialists, and play brass , woodwinds , and strings . Many session musicians play multiple instruments, which lets them play in

665-678: The era, the two groups of musicians in Memphis, both the Memphis Boys and the musicians who backed Stax/Volt recordings, and the Funk Brothers in Detroit, who played on many Motown recordings. At the time, multi-tracking equipment, though common, was less elaborate, and instrumental backing tracks were often recorded "hot" with an ensemble playing live in the studio. Musicians had to be available "on call" when producers needed

700-413: The group made its second live-action appearance on Riverdale , with Kevin Keller replacing Reggie Mantle. In this incarnation, Kevin sings and plays keyboard, and Veronica sings only. Session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician ) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance . The term sideman is also used in

735-535: The many albums he performed on was the 1970 recording by writer/critic Robert Palmer 's Insect Trust, Hoboken Saturday Night , together with Bernard "Pretty" Purdie and Elvin Jones . In 1971, because of such high demand for his work, McCracken declined Paul McCartney's invitation to help form his new band, Wings . McCracken also played on, arranged and co-produced with Tommy LiPuma , Dr. John 's City Lights (1978) and Tango Palace (1979). His most well-known work

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770-752: The middle 1960s, McCracken played in a North Jersey night club cover band called the Funatics under the stage name of Mack Pierce. The band became Mario & the Funatics for a short time when it merged with saxophonist Mario Madison. He was a member of Mike Mainieri 's White Elephant Orchestra (1969–1972), a 20-piece experimental jazz-rock outfit based in New York City. The band was made up of Steve Gadd , Tony Levin , Warren Bernhardt , George Young , Frank Vicari , Michael Brecker , Ronnie Cuber , Jon Faddis , Lew Soloff , Randy Brecker , Barry Rogers , Jon Pierson, David Spinozza and Joe Beck . Among

805-611: The series' musical episode soundtrack, which was released by WaterTower Music on April 15, 2020. On November 10, 2021, Netflix announced the Indian live-action feature film adaptation of the Archies of the same name . The film was produced by Tiger Baby Films and Graphic India with Zoya Akhtar as director, starring Agastya Nanda as Archie, Mihir Ahuja as Jughead, Vedang Raina as Reggie, Khushi Kapoor as Betty and Suhana Khan as Veronica, alongside others. Filming started on April 18, 2022, and then ended on December 19, 2022. The film

840-427: The service of reliable standby musicians who could be counted on to record in a variety of styles with minimal practice or takes, and deliver hits on short order. A studio band is a musical ensemble that is in the employ of a recording studio for the purpose of accompanying recording artists who are customers of the studio. The use of studio bands was more common during the 1960s with groups such Booker T. &

875-683: The session; rhythmic and intonation precision; ability to play with good ensemble and excellent blending with the other performers; willingness to take direction from bandleaders , music directors , and music producers ; and having good musical taste in regards to choices with musical ornaments and musical phrasing . During the 1950s and 1960s, session players were usually active in local recording scenes concentrated in places such as Los Angeles , New York City , Nashville , Memphis , Detroit , and Muscle Shoals . Each local scene had its circle of "A-list" session musicians, such as The Nashville A-Team that played on numerous country and rock hits of

910-428: The studio, such as a synthesizer player, who might bring rack-mounted synth modules and connect them to the studio's MIDI controller stage piano . Similarly, if the studio has a selection of well-known bass amplifiers , and speaker cabinets, a bass player may only have to bring basses and effect units . The requirement to read different types of music notation, improvise and/or " play by ear " varies according to

945-412: The teens play in the fictional band are: One distribution mode for the Archies' music was embossing cardboard records directly onto the back of cereal boxes, which were cut out and played on a turntable (although their music was also available on standard issue LPs and 45s). Though the group no longer appears in animation, they are still frequently used in stories published by Archie Comics . In 2020,

980-400: The television film Archie: To Riverdale and Back Again in 1990. It includes KJ Apa as Archie, Cole Sprouse as Jughead, Lili Reinhart as Betty, Camila Mendes as Veronica and Casey Cott as Kevin Keller . For the first time, Kevin Keller is part of the group, replacing Reggie Mantle (played by Charles Melton ). Kevin sings and plays keyboard. The song "Midnight Radio" was included in

1015-570: The type of recording session and the genres of music being performed. Classical musicians and many jazz and popular music musicians are expected to read music notation and do sight-reading . In jazz, rock, and many popular music genres, performers may be expected to read chord charts and improvise accompaniment and solos. In country music, performers may be expected to read Nashville Number System charts and improvise accompaniment and solos. In many traditional and folk music styles, performers are expected to be able to play by ear. Session musicians need

1050-520: The unreleased songs and most of the "Dance of the Week" segments, all of them pulled straight from Archie's Funhouse and The Archie Show , respectively. Some of the group's songs have appeared on episodes of the TV series Riverdale . The group made its debut in Riverdale , in the musical episode " Chapter Seventy-Four: Wicked Little Town ", for only the second time in a live-action adaptation after

1085-547: Was "Strangers In The Morning". Jeff Barry , Andy Kim , Ritchie Adams , Bobby Bloom , Ellie Greenwich , Lesley Miller , Susan Morse and Maeretha Stewart contributed background vocals at various times, with Barry contributing his trademark bass voice (portrayed by Jughead in the cartoons) on cuts such as "Jingle Jangle", "Rock 'n' Roll Music", "A Summer Prayer For Peace" (which hit number one in South Africa and Scandinavia in 1971), and "You Little Angel, You". Musicians on

The Archies - Misplaced Pages Continue

1120-574: Was assembled by Don Kirshner in 1968 to perform various songs. Their most famous song is " Sugar, Sugar ", written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim , which went to number one on the pop chart in 1969, sold over six million copies, and was awarded a gold disc . In the Billboard Hot 100 , it was ranked as the No. 1 song of that year, the only time a fictional band has ever claimed Billboard ' s annual Hot 100 top spot. Other Top 40 songs recorded by

1155-472: Was inspired by the success of the 1966 TV series The Monkees ; in particular, Don Kirshner , who had managed the initially-fictional band, wanted a musical act that he could fully control: as the Monkees were fictional but still used the real musicians' names, the musicians themselves became increasingly irritated at being micromanaged , leading to a dispute that culminated in Kirshner being fired. To avoid

1190-402: Was only paid for the recording session and quit the group when "Jingle Jangle" became a huge hit, was succeeded in 1970 by Donna Marie, who in turn was replaced on the final recordings by Merle Miller. The only Archies song not to feature Ron Dante on lead was 1971's "Love Is Living In You", sung by Bob Levine (co-author of the song) and produced by Ritchie Adams. The last single, released in 1972,

1225-496: Was released on December 7, 2023. The film's soundtrack was released by Sony Music India on November 25, 2023. The Archies play a variety of contemporary popular music , consistent with the era in which the comic is drawn. Most of the members sing vocals, with Jughead handling the bass voice on a few tracks. Their singing voices were soft and appropriate for pop vocals, but their speaking voices were much different, as their speaking roles were played by voice actors. The roles that

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