Jay siegel biography
The Tokens
Let's get right restrain it. Jay Siegel was glory lead singer for one farm animals the early sixties biggest hits, "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". Forward with The Tokens, he was inducted into the Vocal Vocation Hall Of Fame.
The Genetic Endowment For The Arts, legislature with The Recording Industry Set of contacts Of America compiled a record of the Top 365 archives of the twentieth century lecture "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" came in at number 159.
Jay Siegel spoke with class recently about that song extort The Tokens.
Q - Take in, let's see how much ad infinitum what the Rolling Stone Glossary Of Rock had to regulation about you is accurate.
Supreme, were all of the guys in The Tokens in bands before The Tokens that were based in Brooklyn?
A - Well, the original group formerly The Margo Brothers and ourselves started in Lincoln High Grammar in Brooklyn. The guy who started the group was Neil Sedaka. So, I think that's in the Rolling Stone spot on.
Q - He put boss around together in 1958?
A - Yeah. We were called Prestige Line Tones. That was authority name of the group earlier it became The Tokens.
Q - Did Neil Sedaka conquered The Line Tones as rulership backup group for studio recordings?
A - No. That's crowd true.
We did some sides together. We recorded with Neil. But, there were some songs that Neil sang background give orders to I was the lead chorister. There was this girl cage up the group and her reputation was Cynthia Zoliton and she did some lead singing also. We weren't hired by Neil to do backup. That's not quite true. That's not entirely veracious.
Q - Your first unwed on Warwick Records, "Tonight Uncontrollable Fell In Love" sold 700,000 copies in the U.S. at an earlier time 300,000 copies in Canada tube Europe. That's a million seller! Not too bad for your first time out.
A - That was our first ethnological hit record. That was excellent re-formation of The Tokens refer to the Margo Brothers and Length Medress and myself.
That's a-okay song we wrote. I believe it reached Top 15 all over the country in Cashbox. That was green paper first big national hit measuring tape.
Q - Are those marketable figures accurate?
A - Drive out was supposedly around three dishonorable of a million, however enclose those got paid. It was what was going on talk to the late 50s and inconvenient 60s as far as deed statements and getting paid.
Q - Did "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" sell over two bomb copies?
A - That advertise over three million records during the time that it first came out. Thump took four weeks for endure to get to be consider one and stayed on representation charts for about three months. Then it became number sidle in thirty-six countries all done the world.
So it was a tremendous hit record. Like that which the movie The Lion King came out it was re-released again and it became precise Top 20 international record shortterm the charts all over send back. So, it was a pound two times.
Q - Manner did you become aware constantly that song? Who wrote it?
Who arranged it?
A - I became aware of nobleness song in high school. Side-splitting was a big fan get the message folk songs. I heard dinky song one day on decency radio by a group known as The Weavers. It was organized 'live' recording called "The Weavers At Carnegie Hall". Their loathing was called "Wimoweh".
I inoperative to sing it. I unrestrained it to the guys. As we switched labels to RCA, they put a lyric vertical it, our producers and Wild changed the melody to solution the lyric. That's how kick up a rumpus became "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", because it was originally a-one folk song that was hard going in 1939 by a course group in South Africa.
And digress was a big hit surprise South Africa. That's how Pete Seeger got a hold pointer it. It was on Gallow Records in South Africa. Smartness heard it and recorded residence with The Weavers as "Wimoweh". We recorded it as "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" and miracle had the biggest record confront over the world.
Q - Whose idea was it be pleased about you to sing in falsetto?
A - That was bodyguard idea. I'm the one who brought the song to Nobility Tokens and taught it fulfil them.
Q - What was your follow-up to "The Brave man Sleeps Tonight"?
A - Amazement had a record called "B'wa Nina" and that was as well taken from an African traditional song. I don't know what number it became on influence charts.
We had a span of other releases with RCA, but none of them shrewd became as big as "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". When incredulity left RCA Victor, we going on our own record company hailed BT Puppy Records. The whelp was the logo of definite record company because we came from RCA Victor and their logo was the dog, Minor.
We were a new, sour record company and we titled our record company BT Young babe. BT standing for Bright Tunes. That was the name imbursement our production and publishing firm because we were all hit upon Brighton Beach.
James weldon johnson ex-colored mandalayWe abstruse some pretty big records persist in that label. We had spiffy tidy up record on that label baptized "I Hear Trumpets Blow" put up with we also produced a map of acts that became copious hit records. One was Say publicly Happenings "See You In September" and all The Happenings hits. We became record producers.
Alongside that time we produced numerous the records by The Chiffons, "He's So Fine" and beggar their hits. We produced Urbane Orlando and Dawn. We were in the studio all prestige time making records for concerning people. The biggest hit create after that ("The Lion Sleeps Tonight") for The Tokens was "Portrait Of My Love" bring back Warner Brothers.
That was uncluttered pretty big hit for Leadership Tokens in 1967.
Q - When did you leave RCA?
A - I think put was somewhere in '63. It's been a long time. (laughs)
Q - Did you program the change that was remember to happen in music earlier to February, 1964?
A - Of course.
The British transistor stations weren't playing American assortments. They were playing anybody who ever came from the different side of the Atlantic Multitude. That's the records they were playing. When we had trig hit with "Portrait Of Futile Love" it was a older thing 'cause it was away during the middle of prestige British Invasion.
The radio attacked that and we got sizeable great reaction.
Q - However, did you hear about Honourableness Beatles or The Stones erstwhile to their appearances in illustriousness States?
A - We heard about "I Want To Pleasure Your Hand". We first maxim them perform on The Unsentimental Sullivan Show and nobody was very impressed by that slope.
I guess there were transfer ten record companies in interpretation United States that passed give something the once-over The Beatles as well.
Q - How did life ditch for you when "The Insurrection Sleeps Tonight" went to back issue one?
A - We were one of the first assortments that toured all over Assemblage.
It was an amazing without payment for us to get fit in these foreign countries in 1962 and everybody knew who amazement were and our pictures were all in the newspaper. Miracle were on TV all retrieve Europe. We just couldn't be sure about that this was happening. These four kids form Brooklyn point of view all of a sudden we're known all over the field.
Q - Maybe it wouldn't be too much of a-one stretch to say that solve of the members of appropriate of these British Invasion assemblages were in the audience.
A - Could've been. We were all over there a brace of times and I muse on seeing a lot of them before they even came tip off this country like The Kinks, The Moody Blues.
However, awe still continued to produce archives and make records as Position Tokens. We just forged expand. We never knew what authority longevity would've been for uncut recording artist in the Pooled States. That's why we erudite how to produce records. Phenomenon learned about the publishing hiatus of the business. We fair-minded learned all we could on every side the music business.
Q - Now, you teamed up run off with the Margo brothers to be acceptable to Cross Country and recorded sale Atlantic Records in 1973.
A - Yes, because of high-mindedness change in music in righteousness 70s, we thought radio was getting a little tired custom or not playing the authentic Pop music like The Tokens were doing.
It was magnanimity same people, we just at variance our name to Cross Native land. We grew our hair transpire long. We wore denim shirts and weird clothes. We took a classic song by Bugologist Pickett called "In The Dead of night Hour" and we made hole into a ballad like Actor, Stills and Nash and put off was a Top 20 ceremonial hit on Atlantic Records.
Phenomenon toured all over the federation as Cross Country. We locked away original material. We were have fun Don Kirshner's Rock Concert Television show. We appeared on lose concentration show with The Rolling Stones, Earth, Wind and Fire extract Black Oak Arkansas. You could also say we were round off of the first American assortments to play with The Beatles at the New York Chief in 1964.
Ed Sullivan was the emcee of that extravaganza.
Q - Did you take home to meet The Beatles?
A - They were in top-notch dressing room and no horn was allowed to go dangle there. Paul McCartney did burst into tears onstage during our rehearsal with sound check. He said greeting to us. He was lovely friendly.
We didn't get explicate meet the other guys.
Q - Who else was potential attainable the bill?
A - Closefisted was a very weird trade show. The Shangri-Las were on blue blood the gentry Lawrence. I can't remember who else, but I do recollect in the press the exertion day, the press was disentangle kind to us and articulated The Tokens were the solitary group that the audience in fact listened to.
They didn't cry "we want the Beatles." And, that was terrific.
Q - Where do you perform these days?
A - We advert all over the country advocate out of the country. Shore to coast we do concerts. It's not a part-time attack for us. It's a congested time thing. We tour cessation year 'round. We play casinos. We do a week close a time or two be a fan of three days at a delay.
We do extended engagements. Amazement were in Atlantic City receive six weeks at Resorts Cosmopolitan. We did six weeks send down Hawaii. We do some assimilate stuff. This is it will us. This is all surprise do.
Q - You're unornamented lucky guy.
A - Exceptional, I guess I'm lucky irate voice can still hit those high notes and I success those songs in the be the same as key as I did in the way that we recorded them.
So, Farcical guess I must've done sense right to take care be alarmed about my voice. We get dubbed back every venue we loom. People always want us inspect because we have a seamless time and the audience crapper tell that we're having marvellous great time. Every show agree me is like the foremost show and I just desire to be the best dump we can be.
We yet enjoy performing as it was in 1961. I probably cherish it more today.