TOUR NOTES BIOGRAPHIES
The Royal Teens
Hailing from Fort Lee, New Jersey, The Royal Teens were made up of 4 young men: Bob Gaudio (piano), Tom Austin (drums), Bill Crandall (sax) and Billy Dalton (guitar). Known for their instrumental ditties, their first single, "Planet Rock" had a sax and guitar instrumental. The other side of this album had a song called, “Short Shorts” which began to take off immediately with the help of Alan Freed and Dick Clark.
The record shot to #3 on the Billboard charts and the group began a heavy touring schedule without Bill Crandall who decided to concentrate on his education. His replacement was Larry Qualino. In late 1958, the Royal Teens decided to add vocals to their group and recruited Joey Villa, an accomplished vocalist. By 1959, the group line-up changed slightly and the group became a quartet with Villa, Gaudio, Austin and new addition, Ray Mariani. The group soon became a vocal harmony unit.
The group spent the rest of their careers bouncing between labels, and appearing on American Bandstand. Many original members left, namely Gaudio, who went on to join The Four Seasons. Their biggest hit, "Short Shorts" is now mainly known as the song in the Nair Commericals. The song has appeared on many compilation albums and movies about the 1950’s.
Read more on The Royal Teens at: www.artistdirect.com/nad/music/artist/card/0,,487540,00.html
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