There are three groups called The Teenagers:
1) In a gust of pheromo… Read Full Bio ↴There are three groups called The Teenagers:
1) In a gust of pheromones and with a warm purr of guitars arrives the saviour of French indie pop, The Teenagers. 2008 has seen few Europeans garner more fevered hype than these three Parisian dreamboats, proving once and for all that style and substance neednβt be mutually exclusive. At a time when far too many seemed to be sat waiting for the next novelty bandwagon to jump onboard, this trio of hipper-than-thou neβr-do-wells have reignited the imaginations of clued-up music lovers across the globe with a curve ball of pervy wit, classic synth-work, and sunshine strumming. Together vocalist Quentin Dalafon, guitarist/synth man Dorian Dumont and bassist Michael Szpinner, have created a daydream world of enchanting melodies and engrossing narratives, as life-affirming as they are insatiably hormonal, and of course all delivered with that trademark audaciously sharp Parisian attitude. Their invitation to either celebrate or recapture oneβs youth has proved a hard one to turn down, with a hysterical fanbase growing by the second. And now on the eve of the release of their debut long-player, they stride from underground chic into the mainstream limelight, as one of the worldβs most enticing and individual new musical sensations.
Fittingly the bond between the three twenty-somethings was formed in the midst of their teenage years, when childhood pals Michael and Dorian stumbled across Quentin, one of their high schoolβs true eccentrics. Together, like many kids in Nineties inner city Paris, they fawned over the import of American trash TV, revelling in the sickly-sweet coming-of-age melodrama of shows like Beverly Hills 90210, something that would stay with them. Growing-up together musically, trading mixtapes, they developed a rich tapestry of influences, from national hero Jaques Le Cont and his one-time collaborator Madonna, to classic Nineties rock like Weezer and Nirvana, and further afield to the metal cry of Slayer and Dillinger Escape Plan. Although both Dorian and Michael had spent their teens in and out of bands (Dorian trying his hand at pop and electronica, Michael doing the rounds on their local hardcore punk scene), it wasnβt until one boozy Christmas evening in 2005 that they finally decided to put their creative heads together. The result was 'Fuck Nicole' which prompted the boys to officially form The Teenagers and start a Myspace page. It wasnβt long before their unmistakable sound emerged, with tracks like 'Homecoming' and 'Starlett Johansson' rapidly causing a stir online. These tasters showcased Quentinβs sardonic, often spoken word delivery, and deliciously sleazy lyrics, against a sublime backdrop of woozy synthesisers, simple drum machines and fluttering, twee guitars. A familiar Noughties success story followed β insane online attention gave way to a record industry cat-fight β with label du-jour Merok/XL (having launched the careers of Klaxons and Crystal Castles) winning through in the end.
2007 beckoned with a slew of releases in the pipeline. First up was the groupβs X-rated rallying cry, 'Homecoming', already an anthem in some circles by the time it hit shop shelves. The release was complimented by the couldnβt-be-more-perfect promo video by acclaimed director Kinga Burza (Kate Nash etc), nailing the trackβs playful, saucy mood with startling poignance. Starlett Johansson β a heart-felt, and typically droll ode to their favourite Hollywood starlet - followed later in the year, coinciding with the groupβs first full-scale tour, joining fellow trendsetters Crystal Castles and These New Puritans on Vice Magazineβs show-stopping Unitaur. The massive increase of commitments meant that Dorian and Michael were to join Quentin in the London.
From there theyβd meet long-term collaborator Lexxx in the studio to ready their first album 'Reality Check'. The precursor singles are joined by huge new tracks like 'Love No', 'Feeling Better' and others. While the bandβs components arenβt dissimilar too many an act of the moment, their implementation is unparalleled. Their candid commentary, both emotional and sincere and ferociously cutting, has resonated in a way thatβs neither nostalgic or trendy, but timeless. Their press coverage, having ticked all the major music and style titles off within the release of their first single, has seen the buzz ripple out to tabloid newspapers, surely just a taster of the mainstream acceptance soon to follow.
2)The Teenagers are an American integrated doo wop group, most noted for being one of rock music's earliest successes, presented to international audiences by DJ Alan Freed. The group, which made its most popular recordings with young Frankie Lymon as lead singer, is also noted for being rock's first all-teenaged act.
The Teenagers had their origins in The Earth Angels, a group founded at Edward W. Stitt Junior High School in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan by second tenor Jimmy Merchant and bass Sherman Garnes. Eventually, Garnes and Merchant had added lead singer Herman Santiago and baritone Joe Negroni to their lineup and evolved into The Coupe De Villes. In 1955, twelve-year-old Frankie Lymon joined the Coupe De Villes, who changed their name to first the Ermines and later The Premiers.
The same year Lymon joined the group, he helped Santiago and Merchant rewrite a song they'd composed to create "Why Do Fools Fall In Love". The song got the Teenagers an audition with George Goldner's Gee Records, but Santiago was too sick to sing lead on the day of the audition. Lymon sung the lead on "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" instead, and the group was signed to Gee as The Teenagers, with Lymon as lead singer.
"Why Do Fools Fall in Love" was The Teenagers first and biggest hit. The group, known for both their harmony and choreography, also had hits with "I'm Not a Juvenile Delinquent" and "The ABCs of Love".
By 1957, the group was being billed as "Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers". This caused in-fighting, and by September Goldner had pulled Lymon out of the group to record solo. The Teenagers continued recording, bringing in new lead Billy Lobrano. Lobrano, as the group's first white member, made them even more racially mixed, now with two black, two Hispanic, and one white member. The group had little success with Lobrano, and he left in mid-1958.
Merchant, Santiago, Garnes, and Negroni continued as a quartet, but were not able to find success in any new recordings. They tried a quintet lineup again in 1960, first with new lead Howard Kenny Bobo, then with another lead, Johnny Houston, but to no avail. They continued mainly as an "oldies circuit" group from this point on. By 1973, the Teenagers had resorted to using a female singer to imitate Lymon's prepubescent voice; the last of their female lead singers was Pearl McKinnon.
Sherman Garnes died of a heart attack in 1977, while Joe Negroni died a year later due to a cerebral hemorrhage. Their replacements were Bobby Jay and Frankie's brother Lewis Lymon, respectively. By the 1980s the group had settled on a new lead, Jimmy Castor. Castor remained lead until the 1990s, when he was replaced by Timothy Wilson, former lead of Tiny Tim and the Hits. This lineup appeared on the PBS special, Doo Wop 51, in 2000.
Lewis Lymon left to join Beary Hobbs' Drifters around 2003. He was replaced by Dickie Harmon. Jimmy Merchant retired shortly thereafter, and the group continued as a quartet. The group's current lineup is Herman Santiago, Bobby Jay, Timothy Wilson, and Dickie Harmon. They are often billed as "Frankie Lymon's Legendary Teenagers". This lineup appeared on the PBS special, My Music: Doo Wop Love Songs, in 2007.
In late 2008 Bobby Jay and Dickie Harmon both left the group. Jimmy Merchant has come out of retirement and returned to the Teenager's current line-up.
3) A punk rock duo from Jersey City featuring Ryan Larsen of The H-Bombs and Dead Tired, and Peter Murphy
4) A generic group of performers from the musical Bye Bye Birdie
1) In a gust of pheromo… Read Full Bio ↴There are three groups called The Teenagers:
1) In a gust of pheromones and with a warm purr of guitars arrives the saviour of French indie pop, The Teenagers. 2008 has seen few Europeans garner more fevered hype than these three Parisian dreamboats, proving once and for all that style and substance neednβt be mutually exclusive. At a time when far too many seemed to be sat waiting for the next novelty bandwagon to jump onboard, this trio of hipper-than-thou neβr-do-wells have reignited the imaginations of clued-up music lovers across the globe with a curve ball of pervy wit, classic synth-work, and sunshine strumming. Together vocalist Quentin Dalafon, guitarist/synth man Dorian Dumont and bassist Michael Szpinner, have created a daydream world of enchanting melodies and engrossing narratives, as life-affirming as they are insatiably hormonal, and of course all delivered with that trademark audaciously sharp Parisian attitude. Their invitation to either celebrate or recapture oneβs youth has proved a hard one to turn down, with a hysterical fanbase growing by the second. And now on the eve of the release of their debut long-player, they stride from underground chic into the mainstream limelight, as one of the worldβs most enticing and individual new musical sensations.
Fittingly the bond between the three twenty-somethings was formed in the midst of their teenage years, when childhood pals Michael and Dorian stumbled across Quentin, one of their high schoolβs true eccentrics. Together, like many kids in Nineties inner city Paris, they fawned over the import of American trash TV, revelling in the sickly-sweet coming-of-age melodrama of shows like Beverly Hills 90210, something that would stay with them. Growing-up together musically, trading mixtapes, they developed a rich tapestry of influences, from national hero Jaques Le Cont and his one-time collaborator Madonna, to classic Nineties rock like Weezer and Nirvana, and further afield to the metal cry of Slayer and Dillinger Escape Plan. Although both Dorian and Michael had spent their teens in and out of bands (Dorian trying his hand at pop and electronica, Michael doing the rounds on their local hardcore punk scene), it wasnβt until one boozy Christmas evening in 2005 that they finally decided to put their creative heads together. The result was 'Fuck Nicole' which prompted the boys to officially form The Teenagers and start a Myspace page. It wasnβt long before their unmistakable sound emerged, with tracks like 'Homecoming' and 'Starlett Johansson' rapidly causing a stir online. These tasters showcased Quentinβs sardonic, often spoken word delivery, and deliciously sleazy lyrics, against a sublime backdrop of woozy synthesisers, simple drum machines and fluttering, twee guitars. A familiar Noughties success story followed β insane online attention gave way to a record industry cat-fight β with label du-jour Merok/XL (having launched the careers of Klaxons and Crystal Castles) winning through in the end.
2007 beckoned with a slew of releases in the pipeline. First up was the groupβs X-rated rallying cry, 'Homecoming', already an anthem in some circles by the time it hit shop shelves. The release was complimented by the couldnβt-be-more-perfect promo video by acclaimed director Kinga Burza (Kate Nash etc), nailing the trackβs playful, saucy mood with startling poignance. Starlett Johansson β a heart-felt, and typically droll ode to their favourite Hollywood starlet - followed later in the year, coinciding with the groupβs first full-scale tour, joining fellow trendsetters Crystal Castles and These New Puritans on Vice Magazineβs show-stopping Unitaur. The massive increase of commitments meant that Dorian and Michael were to join Quentin in the London.
From there theyβd meet long-term collaborator Lexxx in the studio to ready their first album 'Reality Check'. The precursor singles are joined by huge new tracks like 'Love No', 'Feeling Better' and others. While the bandβs components arenβt dissimilar too many an act of the moment, their implementation is unparalleled. Their candid commentary, both emotional and sincere and ferociously cutting, has resonated in a way thatβs neither nostalgic or trendy, but timeless. Their press coverage, having ticked all the major music and style titles off within the release of their first single, has seen the buzz ripple out to tabloid newspapers, surely just a taster of the mainstream acceptance soon to follow.
2)The Teenagers are an American integrated doo wop group, most noted for being one of rock music's earliest successes, presented to international audiences by DJ Alan Freed. The group, which made its most popular recordings with young Frankie Lymon as lead singer, is also noted for being rock's first all-teenaged act.
The Teenagers had their origins in The Earth Angels, a group founded at Edward W. Stitt Junior High School in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan by second tenor Jimmy Merchant and bass Sherman Garnes. Eventually, Garnes and Merchant had added lead singer Herman Santiago and baritone Joe Negroni to their lineup and evolved into The Coupe De Villes. In 1955, twelve-year-old Frankie Lymon joined the Coupe De Villes, who changed their name to first the Ermines and later The Premiers.
The same year Lymon joined the group, he helped Santiago and Merchant rewrite a song they'd composed to create "Why Do Fools Fall In Love". The song got the Teenagers an audition with George Goldner's Gee Records, but Santiago was too sick to sing lead on the day of the audition. Lymon sung the lead on "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" instead, and the group was signed to Gee as The Teenagers, with Lymon as lead singer.
"Why Do Fools Fall in Love" was The Teenagers first and biggest hit. The group, known for both their harmony and choreography, also had hits with "I'm Not a Juvenile Delinquent" and "The ABCs of Love".
By 1957, the group was being billed as "Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers". This caused in-fighting, and by September Goldner had pulled Lymon out of the group to record solo. The Teenagers continued recording, bringing in new lead Billy Lobrano. Lobrano, as the group's first white member, made them even more racially mixed, now with two black, two Hispanic, and one white member. The group had little success with Lobrano, and he left in mid-1958.
Merchant, Santiago, Garnes, and Negroni continued as a quartet, but were not able to find success in any new recordings. They tried a quintet lineup again in 1960, first with new lead Howard Kenny Bobo, then with another lead, Johnny Houston, but to no avail. They continued mainly as an "oldies circuit" group from this point on. By 1973, the Teenagers had resorted to using a female singer to imitate Lymon's prepubescent voice; the last of their female lead singers was Pearl McKinnon.
Sherman Garnes died of a heart attack in 1977, while Joe Negroni died a year later due to a cerebral hemorrhage. Their replacements were Bobby Jay and Frankie's brother Lewis Lymon, respectively. By the 1980s the group had settled on a new lead, Jimmy Castor. Castor remained lead until the 1990s, when he was replaced by Timothy Wilson, former lead of Tiny Tim and the Hits. This lineup appeared on the PBS special, Doo Wop 51, in 2000.
Lewis Lymon left to join Beary Hobbs' Drifters around 2003. He was replaced by Dickie Harmon. Jimmy Merchant retired shortly thereafter, and the group continued as a quartet. The group's current lineup is Herman Santiago, Bobby Jay, Timothy Wilson, and Dickie Harmon. They are often billed as "Frankie Lymon's Legendary Teenagers". This lineup appeared on the PBS special, My Music: Doo Wop Love Songs, in 2007.
In late 2008 Bobby Jay and Dickie Harmon both left the group. Jimmy Merchant has come out of retirement and returned to the Teenager's current line-up.
3) A punk rock duo from Jersey City featuring Ryan Larsen of The H-Bombs and Dead Tired, and Peter Murphy
4) A generic group of performers from the musical Bye Bye Birdie
I Want You to Be My Girl
The Teenagers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Well, come on baby let's go downtown
Run, jump, kid around
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Well, come on baby I love you so
I will never, never let you go
Come on baby will you treat me nice
Please don't put my love on ice.
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Come and take me by the hand
Tell me I'm your lover man
Well have fun, just we two
You for me, me for you, oh-oh
Well, come on baby I love you so
I will never, never let you go
Come on baby will you treat me nice
Please don't put my love on ice.
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Come and take me by the hand
Tell me I'm your lover man
You for me, me for you,
Well have fun, oh, oh, oh
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Well I love you baby, love you baby
Love you baby, I love you baby
And I love you baby and I want you to be my girl.
Well, come on baby let's go downtown
Run, jump, kid around
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Well, come on baby I love you so
I will never, never let you go
Come on baby will you treat me nice
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Come and take me by the hand
Tell me I'm your lover man
Well have fun, just we two
You for me, me for you, oh-oh
Well, come on baby I love you so
I will never, never let you go
Come on baby will you treat me nice
Please don't put my love on ice.
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Come and take me by the hand
Tell me I'm your lover man
You for me, me for you,
Well have fun, oh, oh, oh
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Well I love you baby, love you baby
Love you baby, I love you baby
And I love you baby and I want you to be my girl.
"I Want You To Be My Girlfriend" by The Teenagers Feat. Frankie Lymon is a classic love song that expresses the feelings of a young man who is in love and wants to make a girl his girlfriend. The song is a joyful and happy expression of love, with the singer asking the girl to be his girlfriend and promising to be a good partner.
The song starts with the singer expressing his love for the girl and tells her that he wants her to be his girlfriend. He then invites her to go downtown and have some fun together. He promises never to let her go and asks her to treat him nicely. He pleads with her not to put his love on ice.
In the second verse, the singer asks the girl to take him by the hand and tell him that he is her lover man. He promises to have fun with her, just the two of them, and for her to be there for him and him to be there for her.
The song is simple but charming, capturing the innocence and excitement of young love. It is a testament to the enduring popularity of doo-wop music, which continues to be beloved by fans worldwide.
Line by Line Meaning
I love you baby and I want you to be my girl
Expressing strong feelings of love and asking the listener to be in a romantic relationship
Well, come on baby let's go downtown
Proposing to go out and have some fun together in the city
Run, jump, kid around
Suggesting engaging in lively activities together with childlike enthusiasm
Well, come on baby I love you so
Reiterating feelings of love and urging the listener to respond positively
I will never, never let you go
Assuring the listener of constancy and commitment
Come on baby will you treat me nice
Requesting the listener to show kindness and affection
Please don't put my love on ice.
Asking the listener not to reject or ignore their love and feelings
Come and take me by the hand
Inviting physical contact and emotional connection
Tell me I'm your lover man
Asking for validation and affirmation of the romantic relationship
Well have fun, just we two
Expressing desire for exclusiveness and intimacy
You for me, me for you, oh-oh
Reciprocating feelings of love and commitment
Well I love you baby, love you baby
Reiterating and emphasizing feelings of love
Love you baby, I love you baby
Continuing to express love and affection
And I love you baby and I want you to be my girl.
Affirming love and desire for a romantic relationship
Lyrics Β© O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: MORRIS LEVY, RICHARD BARRETT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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@user-cc6nb5th6x
Rest in peace, Frankie. You are still loved in 2024.
@DYNER0
Just a 15 year old enjoying the greatest music of the past! I found this song while sitting in my dads truck and well.... thought it fit well with my situation at the moment, because it reminded me of this girl π π³
@corkyandhoney5481
Saw him in concert when i was 14, never forget the great music he made. For his age he had a tremendous voice.
@AnOnYmOuS-lq8ge
Did u get to meet him
@HDzSpudzx21
Such a shame what happened to him.
@juliemorgan8021
One of the best voices ..EVERβ€οΈ
@themusicguy6885
In the 1950s Frankie Lymon was super popular! Thanks for this video. Frankie still sounds great.
Today they were playing this song in a McDonald's. I was there. I was singing it along with the song. I was there in the 50s. Once you heard Frankie you'll never forget him!
@nuknuknuk111
TheMusicguy68 amazing comment
@acrucker
Another Masterpiece for future generations to enjoy! Thank you,Β Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers!
@user-wt7ps7dq5h
I feel like he was a inspiration/ influence for young MJ. He had such a amazing voice.