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Encyclopedia > Music of New Jersey

Updated 55 days 17 hours 55 minutes ago.
Music of the United States
Local music
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Some of the most renowned musicians from New Jersey are Hoboken native Frank Sinatra, who was one of the most popular singers of the 20th century; and The Four Seasons (group) who had their first No. 1 hit record, "Sherry", in 1962. They were the first group to have a falsetto lead: Newark native, Frankie Valli. The popular group had many hits and held heir own against the British Invasion throughout the 1960s. Frankie Valli went on to a successful solo career. Bruce Springsteen became a 1980s icon with complex lyrical stories about teens growing up in Freehold and other economically depressed areas of New Jersey. In addition, Francis Hopkinson of Bordentown, is perhaps the first American composer. William Dunlap wrote the first American opera, The Archers. Other famous Jersey musicians include Lauryn Hill, Whitney Houston, Jon Bon Jovi, My Chemical Romance, and Kool and the Gang. Punk Rock and its creation also plays a large role in the music of New Jersey, with names Blondie, U.S. Chaos, and Blanks 77. The United States is home to a wide array of regional styles and scenes. ... Alaska is a state of the United States. ... Alabama has played a central role in the development of both blues and country music. ... Arkansas is a Southern state of the United States. ... The Samoas are a Polynesian island chain, currently divided between the independent state of Samoa (formerly Western Samoa) and an American territory called American Samoa. ... Arizonas musical history has been heavily influenced by Mexican immigrants. ... In the United States, California is commonly associated with the film, music, and arts industries; there are numerous world-famous Californian musicians. ... Colorado is a state of the United States, and has a notable reputation for music. ... Connecticut is a state of the United States in the New England region. ... The music of Washington D.C. is known for two primary scenes, hardcore and associated derivatives and a hip hop-dance music hybrid called go go. ... Delaware is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. ... Floridas ethnic diversity has led to a myriad of musical styles from punk rock to salsa and heavy metal being popular in various parts of the state. ... Georgias musical output includes Southern rap groups like Outkast and Goodie Mob, as well as a wide variety of rock, pop and country artists. ... Guam is an unincorporated territory of the United States. ... The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. ... The music of Iowa includes such notable musicians as Slipknot, Stallions Versus Unicorns, Bix Beiderbecke and Greg Brown, as well as Meredith Willson, composer of The Music Man, and Alice Ettinger who was renowned enough to perform in Europe in the 1890s. ... Idaho has produced a number of musicians, including pop star Paul Revere and Doug Martsch of Built to Spill. ... Illinois, which includes Chicago, the third-largest city in the United States, has a wide musical heritage. ... The music of Indiana was strongly influenced by a large number of German and Irish immigrants who arrived in the 1830s. ... For many decades, Kansas has had a vibrant country and bluegrass scene. ... The Music of Kentucky is heavily centered on Appalachian folk music and its descendants, especially in eastern Kentucky. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... New England Conservatory of Music in Boston Massachusetts is a U.S. state in New England. ... Famous musicians from Maryland include Francis Scott Key, who wrote The Star-Spangled Banner and pop punksters Good Charlotte, from Waldorf. ... Maine is a state of the United States, located in New England. ... In Michigan, the city of Detroit has remained the capital of musical innovation for many years. ... The music of Minnesota has played a role in the historical and cultural development of Minnesota. ... St. ... The Northern Mariana Islands are an island chain dependency of the United States. ... Mississippi is best-known as the home of the blues, which developed among the freed African Americans in the latter half of the 19th century. ... Montana is a state of the United States. ... North Carolina is known particularly for its tradition of old-time music, and many recordings were made in the early 20th century by folk song collector Bascom Lamar Lunsford. ... The Music of North Dakota has followed general American trends over much of its history, beginning with ragtime and folk music, moving into big band and jazz. ... Music of Nebraska has included a variety of country, jazz, blues, ragtime, rock and alternative rock musicians. ... New Hampshire is a state of the United States, located in the New England region. ... New Mexico is a state of the Southwest United States. ... For most outsiders, Nevadan music is probably most closely associated with lounge singers like Wayne Newton playing in Las Vegas. ... In the United States, New York City has long been a musical hub and, in some ways, the musical capital of the country. ... The most famous musicians from Ohio are probably Marilyn Manson, Dean Martin and Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders; the 19th century composer Daniel Emmett, born in Ohio to a Virginian family, wrote many of the most popular songs in his era, including some that remain well-known. ... While the music of Oklahoma is relatively young, Oklahoma having been a state for less than a hundred years, it has a rich history and many fine and influential musicians. ... Oregons music scene is most active in Portland and the college town of Eugene. ... The most famous musical innovaters to come out of Pennsylvania are perhaps the Philly sound in 1970s soul music, Gamble & Huff, The OJays, Teddy Pendergrass, Harold Melvin and The Delphonics, as well as jazz legends like Nina Simone and John Coltrane. ... The music of Puerto Rico has been influenced by African and European (especially Spanish) forms, and has become popular across the Caribbean and in some communities worldwide. ... Rhode Island is a state of the United States, located in the New England region. ... South Carolina is one of the Southern United States, and has produced a number of renowned performers of country, bluegrass and other styles. ... The United States state of South Dakota has an official state song, Hail! South Dakota, written by DeeCort Hammitt. ... The story of Tennessees contribution to American music is essentially the story of three cities: Nashville, Memphis, and Bristol. ... Texas has long been a center for musical innovation. ... Utah music has long been dominated culturally by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons), although other groups have also played an important role. ... Virginias musical contribution to American culture has been diverse, and includes Piedmont blues musicians and later rock and roll bands, many centered at such college towns as Blacksburg, Charlottesville (home of Dave Matthews Band) and Richmond. ... The music of the Virgin Islands reflects long-standing cultural ties to the island nations to the south as well as to various European colonialists. ... Vermont is a state in the United States. ... The U.S. state of Washington includes several major hotbeds of musical innovation. ... Perhaps the most influential musical output of Wisconsin came from Port Washington, Ozaukee County during the 1920s, when Paramount Records released a series of blues and jazz recordings. ... West Virginias folk heritage is a part of the Appalachian folk music tradition, and includes styles of fiddling and other techniques reminiscent of Scotch-Irish music. ... The first music of Wyoming was played by various Native Americans tribes in the present-day U.S. state of Wyoming. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. ... Sinatra redirects here. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Sherry is a song written by Bob Gaudio and originally recorded by The Four Seasons. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nickname: Map of Newark in Essex County Coordinates: , Country State County Essex Founded/Incorporated 1666/1836 Government  - Mayor Cory Booker, term of office 2006–2010 Area [1]  - Total 26. ... For other uses, see British Invasion (disambiguation). ... Springsteen redirects here. ... Freehold is a Borough located in Monmouth County, New Jersey. ... Francis Hopkinson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... See also: Bordentown Township, New Jersey The City of Bordentown highlighted in Burlington County. ... William Dunlap William Dunlap (1766-1839) was a pioneer of the American theater. ... For other uses, see Opera (disambiguation). ... Lauryn Noel Hill (born May 25, 1975) is an American singer, rapper, musician, record producer and film actress. ... Whitney Elizabeth Houston (born August 9, 1963) is a six-time Grammy award winning, American R&B singer, soprano, pianist, actress, film producer, and former model. ... Jon Bon Jovi (born John Francis Bongiovi, Jr. ... My Chemical Romance are an American rock band formed in 2001. ... Kool & The Gang Kool & the Gang was a massively successful rhythm and blues and disco group. ... Blondie is the name of an American rock band that first gained fame in the late 1970s, and which has sold over 140 million records. ... U.S. Chaos are an American hardcore punk band from New Jersey, formed in early 1981. ... Blanks 77 is a 77-style pogo punk formed in 1990. ...


Also, the phonograph record was invented by Thomas Edison in Menlo Park, and the Victor Talking Machine Company established its headquarters and plant in Camden. Manufacturers put records inside protective and decorative cardboard jackets and an inner paper sleeve to protect the grooves from dust and scratches. ... Edison redirects here. ... Edison Township is a township located in Middlesex County, New Jersey. ... Victor logo with the famous Nipper dog. ... The City of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey in the United States. ...

Contents

[edit] Jazz

In the early 20th century, Newark was an important center for jazz innovation. James P. Johnson and other pioneers helped invent stride. Other famous New Jersey jazzmen include bandleader Count Basie and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, who lived in Englewood from 1965 until his death in 1993. Nickname: Map of Newark in Essex County Coordinates: , Country State County Essex Founded/Incorporated 1666/1836 Government  - Mayor Cory Booker, term of office 2006–2010 Area [1]  - Total 26. ... For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... James Price Johnson (February 1, 1894 - November 17, 1955) was a pianist and composer. ... Stride is a pioneering jazz piano style. ... William Count Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. ... For the Australian cricketer nicknamed Dizzy, see Jason Gillespie. ...


[edit] Hardcore punk

Main article: Punk rock Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ...


Punk rock is one of the most innovative and important styles of music in New Jersey. New Jersey has many early punk bands, early circa 1977-'80, including The Misfits, and The Pleasure Hounds, and developed several regional, overlapping hardcore punk scenes by 1981-'82. New Jersey sports the largest amount of punk rock groups, as well as artists; that have met with international notoriety per-capita in the world. This article is about the band. ... Hardcore punk, now commonly known as hardcore, is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in North America in the late 1970s. ...


Proximity to New York and Philadelphia has long tended to draw punk and hardcore bands away from New Jersey, with historic examples including the Bergen County bands The Misfits The Radicals, later turned into U.S. Chaos[1],[1], defecting in one direction, Cause For Alarm and South Jersey bands such as Sadistic Exploits defecting in the other. Adrenalin OD (post Paterson Boys Quire), was probably the most important early hardcore punk band to identify primarily with New Jersey, however there were and continue to be multitudes of others, many of whom are nationally popular. This article is about the band. ... U.S. Chaos are an American hardcore punk band from New Jersey, formed in early 1981. ... Sadistic Exploits is an American hardcore punk band which existed in the 1980s. ... Adrenalin OD was an important and popular hardcore punk, and later punk rock n roll band from New Jersey, circa 1981-89. ... Hardcore punk, now commonly known as hardcore, is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in North America in the late 1970s. ...

  • The band U.S. Chaos is the first British influenced Oi! or Streetpunk style of it's kind of punk rock, in the United States.
  • Hogan's Heroes *Worldwide are the first New Jersey crossover Hardcore punk and the first New Jersey Straight Edge band. formed in 1984 .
  • Punk rock veterans the Bouncing Souls are from New Brunswick. They cite New Jersey as a major source of influence in their music.
  • Mental Abuse from Morris county had a big following in NJ as did Sand in the Face, Bodies in Panic, Pleased Youth and others. Buy Our Records put out cassettes, 45's and lps of many NJ bands such as Bedlam.

In NJ shows took place at a few regular venues such as City Gardens in Trenton and the Showplace in Dover but most shows ended up at youth centers such as the Union Rec Hall, Firehalls and VFW type venues. U.S. Chaos are an American hardcore punk band from New Jersey, formed in early 1981. ... For other uses, see Oi! (disambiguation). ... Oi! is a working class street-level subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the 1970s. ... CrossOver (before version 6. ... For the drawing or cutting tool, see Straightedge. ... The Bouncing Souls are a punk rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey formed in 1987. ... Nickname: Location of New Brunswick in Middlesex County Coordinates: , Country State County Middlesex Established December 30, 1730 Incorporated September 1, 1784 Government  - Type Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council)  - Mayor James Cahill Area  - City  5. ...


The NJ scene really blended into the NYHC scene because CBGB's was the center of it all. Sunday matinee was the place to be.


[edit] Hip Hop

This article or section needs to be wikified to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.
Please help improve this article with relevant internal links. (October 2007)


RAP PRINT MEDIA: The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop and funk group, known mostly for their biggest hit, Rappers Delight, the first hip hop single to become a Top 40 hit. ... Map highlighting Englewoods location within Bergen County. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... For other uses, see Soul (disambiguation). ... Look up pop in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Nickname: Map of Newark in Essex County Coordinates: , Country State County Essex Founded/Incorporated 1666/1836 Government  - Mayor Cory Booker, term of office 2006–2010 Area [1]  - Total 26. ... Hip hop music is a style of popular music. ... Hip hop music is a style of music which came into existence in the United States during the mid-1970s, and became a large part of modern pop culture during the 1980s. ... Also see the Arab singer Latifa Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970 in Newark, New Jersey) is a Grammy-winning American rapper/singer, model, and Academy Award-nominated actress. ... The Fugees are a critically acclaimed music band from the United States, popular during the mid-1990s, whose repertoire includes primarily hip hop, with elements of soul, and Caribbean music (particularly reggae). ... Naughty by Nature is a Grammy Award Winning American Hip hop group that at the time of its formation in 1991 consisted of Treach, Vin Rock, and the DJ Kay Gee. ... Reginald Reggie Noble (born April 17, 1970), better known by his stage name Redman, is an American rapper. ... Joseph Anthony Budden (born August 31, 1980) is an American rapper, born in Spanish Harlem, New York City but lived in Jersey City, New Jersey for most of his life. ... This article is about the American rap group. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... The Outsidaz are a rap crew from Newark, New Jersey. ... An artifact (also artefact) is a term coined by Sir Julian Huxley meaning any object or process resulting from human activity. ... Faith Renée Evans (born June 10, 1973) is a Grammy Award-winning American R&B singer, songwriter and producer. ... Martin Munsch was born in 1967 in Union County, New Jersey raised in the towns of Franklin Lakes & Wyckoff in Bergen County, New Jersey. ... The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop and funk group, known mostly for their biggest hit, Rappers Delight, the first hip hop single to become a Top 40 hit. ... Image File history File links Wikitext. ...


The first Hip Hop magazine to ever exist "The Hip Hop Hit List" was published in 1985 by the Carroll brothers Vincent and Charles Carroll both Newark, NJ natives and lets not forget their partner Jae Burnette. Nelson George a noted Hip Hop journalist and writer for Billboard Magazine mentioned the publication and Vincent in his summer 1987 Billboard column. It is also mentioned in books about the history of Hip Hop including books by notable authors Bill Adler and Professor Cheryl Keys. The Hip Hop Hit List was at one time the only media outlet to promote or read about rap music. It was the first publication to ever print unedited interviews of Rappers to expose the true essence of their personalities. It also was the first form of media to define Hip Hop as a culture recognizing every aspect of its connections the music art, dance, art and fashion. It is also known as the first publication to give many rappers their first cover interviews including Whodini, LL Cool J and more. Although the magazine was short lived for that time, Vincent Carroll went on to help market some of the biggest names in music, The Fugees, Outsidaz w/ Eminem, Rah Digga, Nelly, Akon, Murphy Lee, Wyclef Jean, The Pussy Cat Dolls, Lauryn Hill the Boost Mobile "Where You At?" campaign and more. The Hip Hop Hit List also had many notable hip hop contributors and writers including X-Clan's DJ “Paradise” Claude Gray who was the Photographer, Tommy Boy Records Monica Lynch, Zomba Jive Records Ann Carley aka “Tokyo Rose”, Mark Barbee aka “Marko”, Cheryl Keys, Bill Adler and so many more. The Hit List was the #1 launching pad for most of the independent and major record labels at the that time including, Select Records, Sunshine, Next Plateau, Jive, K-Tel, Warner Bros, Columbia, Universal etc.


For more on Vincent Carroll the New Jersey marketing guru. Go to: [2]


NIGHT CLUBS: Below is a list of night clubs that played rap and became some of the first venues in New Jersey to allow rap concerts on a regular basis


CLUB SENSATIONS, THE RINK, HIGH ROLLERS ROLLER RINK, OUTER SKATES ROLLER RINK, THE VFW, THE CORONET, THE BLACK BOX (OWNED BY VINCENT CARROLL) AND THE PEPERMINT LOUNGE.


[edit] Rap

  • Joe Budden, born in East Harlem, moved to Jersey City at a very young age. Joe currently resides and openly acknowledges Jersey City as his hometown.
  • Solo.X, Born in 1987. Solo.X staked his claim on the mic in Asbury Park. Releasing independent tapes & CDs he quickly gained a name for himself. And at the age of 15 was already rocking the stage with NYC underground heavyweights. In 2007 his group The Braves released their debut LP "Reporting Live"

which features Canibus & cuts from Total Eclipse of the X-Ecutioners. He is also set to release a solo LP with the legendary underground producer Domingo for 2008. You can find out more about him and his group at www.solofordolo.com & www.thebravesmusic.com Joseph Anthony Budden (born August 31, 1980) is an American rapper, born in Spanish Harlem, New York City but lived in Jersey City, New Jersey for most of his life. ... Location of Jersey City within Hudson County Coordinates: , Country State County Hudson Government  - Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy  - Business Administrator Brian P. OReilly Area  - City 21. ...

  • P.O.E.F.A.R, (Born 1988), Paterson,New Jersey native,Underground Hip-Hop Artist with some of the most intricate and sometimes catchy songs.website

[edit] Prominent musicians from or with connections to New Jersey

  • Bruce Springsteen, who has sung of New Jersey life on most of his albums, hails from Freehold, and is the most popular rock musician to ever come out of the state. Some of his songs that represent New Jersey life are "Born to Run", "Spirit in the Night", "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)", "Thunder Road", "Atlantic City", and "Jungleland."
  • Frank Sinatra, the only child of working-class Italian-American immigrants, was born December 12, 1915 in a tenement at 415 Monroe St. in Hoboken. He sang with a neighborhood vocal group, the Hoboken Four, and appeared in neighborhood theater amateur shows before he became an entertainment legend as an Academy Award winning actor, and one of, if not the, greatest male vocalists of all time. Some of his greatest hits include "Strangers in the Night", "My Way", "Luck Be A Lady", and "New York, New York."
  • Another Italian-American singer was Russ Columbo of Camden. His career was just starting to pick up with key hits ("Prisoner of Love", "You Call It Madness, But I Call It Love") and appearances, and could have been famous had he not died suddenly in a freak shooting accident at the age of 26. Columbo was one of the famed "crooners" whose contemporaries include Rudy Vallee, Bing Crosby, and later Sinatra.
  • Free Yon is from Central NJ.
  • Connie Francis is perhaps the state's best known solo artist from the pop/rock era of the late 1950s and early 60s. Born in Newark, Francis was raised in Belleville and developed into a prominent national and international recording star. Hits included her signature, "Where the Boys Are," along with "Who's Sorry Now?" and "Everybody's Somebody's Fool."
  • Legendary jazz pianist and bandleader Count Basie, was born in Red Bank in 1904. In the 1960s, he collaborated on several albums with fellow New Jersey native Frank Sinatra. There is a theater in Red Bank named in his honor.
  • Renowned arranger Nelson Riddle was born in Oradell, near Paramus in Bergen County, and graduated from nearby Ridgewood High School. Riddle's collaborations with Sinatra are credited with helping revive the singer's sagging career in the early 1950s. Riddle began his career arranging for local North Jersey bands before scoring big in Hollywood with the likes of Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Ella Fitzgerald, and in helping score movies and TV shows including Batman and Route 66.
  • The Broadway musical Jersey Boys is based on the lives of the members of the Four Seasons, three of whose members were born in New Jersey (Tommy DeVito, Frankie Valli, and Nick Massi)
  • Dionne Warwick was born in East Orange and has had a long career, including nearly 60 charted hits, from "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" (winning the first of her five Grammys), "Alfie", "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", and "That's What Friends Are For." She is a cousin of Whitney Houston.
  • Jon Bon Jovi, who hails from Sayreville, reached fame in the 1980s with hard rock outfit Bon Jovi. The band has also written many songs about life in New Jersey including "Livin' On A Prayer" and even named one of his albums after the state (see New Jersey).
  • Whitney Houston was born in the city of Newark, but grew up in neighboring East Orange. She had a successful solo career in the 1980s and 1990s, and is best known for her cover of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" which set new records for sales and weeks at number one. Houston has sold well over 180 million records internationally. Her mother is Cissy Houston, winner of two Grammy's in her own right.
  • Multilingual actor, star Rutgers University athlete, writer, activist and bass-baritone concert singer Paul Robeson was born in Princeton in 1898. Robeson's deep voice will forever be associated with the song, "Old Man River," signature theme for the Broadway musical, Showboat.
  • The Shirelles were one of the early 1960s most famous "Girl Groups." Led by Shirley Alston Reeves, the group formed at Passaic High School before achieving national fame with major hits including, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" and "Soldier Boy."
  • Joey Dee and The Starliters hailed from the Passaic area and fueled the early 1960s nationwide dance craze with their classic, "The Peppermint Twist." The song took its name from New York's famed Peppermint Lounge - where it frequently performed. Leader, Joey Dee, is a native of Passaic. Eventually, he recruited David Brigati, from neighboring Garfield, in forming this legendary group's nucleus.
  • David's brother, Eddie Brigati, along with Dino Danelli, formed part of the nucleus of another important 1960s soul-influenced group, The Rascals, in Garfield. With lead vocals provided by New Yorker Felix Cavaliere, the group's mid-to late-decade smash hits included "Groovin'," "Good Lovin'" and "People Just Got to Be Free."
  • Teen pop icon Lesley Gore hailed from Tenafly and teamed with famed producer Quincy Jones in churning out some major hits, starting in 1963 with "It's My Party." This was followed by "Judy's Turn to Cry," a sequel to the former. Gore's other hits included "You Don't Own Me" and "California Nights."
  • Debbie Harry from Blondie was raised in Hawthorne She attended Hawthorne High School in Hawthorne, New Jersey.
  • The Happenings were a 1960s Paterson area pop group whose biggest hit, "See You in September," peaked in 1966. Their modernized rendition of the Al Jolson standard, "Mammy," also charted.
  • Disco pioneer and diva Gloria Gaynor was born in Newark and achieved one of the early hits of the genre, remaking The Jackson Five's "Never Can Say Goodbye" in 1975. Her biggest hit, and signature tune, came in 1979 with the Number One smash "I Will Survive." The song has inspired countless remakes and parodies.
  • Jazz singer Sarah Vaughan was born in Newark, where she sang in church as a child. Newark was also the birthplace of recording star Connie Francis, Paul Simon, and rappers Queen Latifah and Ice-T.
  • Though born in Wisconsin, jazz guitar legend and audio/recording pioneer Les Paul is a long-time Bergen County resident. Paul teamed with singer-wife Mary Ford in the 1940s and 50s to make some technologically groundbreaking records for their time, and also made significant improvements to the electric guitar which have impacted succeeding generations of musicians to this day. In his early 90s, Paul still regularly performs before live audiences at a New York club.
  • Donald Fagen, a major creative force behind the 1970s jazz-rock band Steely Dan, has major New Jersey connections. Born in Passaic, Fagen graduated from South Brunswick High School in Central Jersey. The band eventually morphed into a two-man studio duo, also featuring Walter Becker. At its peak, the group's biggest hits included "Rikki Don't Lose that Number," "Reelin' In the Years" and "Do It Again."
  • Former Fugee Lauryn Hill, is a South Orange resident and is hip-hop's best-selling solo female artist. Her 1998 debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, sold 10 million copies internationally.
  • Marilyn McCoo, who had hits with the Fifth Dimension and her husband Billy Davis, Jr. hails from Jersey City.
  • Also from Jersey City are members of The famed 1970s R&B group, Kool and The Gang, whose big hits included "Jungle Boogie," "Celebration" and "Ladies Night."
  • The Isley Brothers are another R&B band whose members grew up in the Teaneck area and came to prominence in the early 1960s with the classic, "Shout." Other hits included "Twist and Shout," popularized later by The Beatles, and their 1969 signature, "It's Your Thing." The group recorded on T-Neck records, the label they named after their adopted hometown.
  • Acclaimed drummer Max Weinberg was born in Newark. Weinberg fronts The Max Weinberg 7, house band for NBC TV's Late Night With Conan O'Brien talk show, and is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.
  • Other E Street Band members from New Jersey include Springsteen's wife, singer, songwriter and guitarist, Patti Scialfa (born in Deal), accordion player/organist Danny Federici - grew up on the Jersey shore - and bass guitarist Garry Tallent (a Hunterdon Central High School graduate).
  • The Garden State contributed at least one major artist to the country music scene. Before making it big in Nashville as a songwriter and then a singer in the late 1970s, Eddie Rabbitt grew up in East Orange.
  • Walter Trout, always rated in the "top ten guitarist of all time" polls in Europe, was born in Ocean City, the little known island town south of Atlantic City. He was raised in a chaotic but musically literate family and was given trumpet lessons as a child. After hearing a Paul Butterfield album, his future as a rock/blues guitarist was sealed. After playing from 1968 to 1970 in Jersey coast cover bands, the 20 year old left for California and, subsequently, stints with John Lee Hooker, Joe Tex, Canned Heat, and John Mayall. As front man for his own band, Walter Trout and the Radicals, he continues a heavy touring schedule and has had several successful CD releases.
  • Janis Ian Also grew up in N.J.
  • Dean Friedman is a Garden State one-hit wonder who grew up in Paramus, has composed music for films and TV, and remains popular in the underground music scene. He peaked at #26 on the charts in 1977 with his tune "Ariel". It is based on a fictional Jewish girl, who, like Friedman, grew up in Bergen County and makes references to life in suburban North Jersey. The song mentions "Paramus," and speaks of how its subject is left "standing at the waterfall" at Paramus Park, one of three major shopping malls in Friedman's hometown.
  • Opera singer Richard Crooks (tenor) was born in Trenton in 1900. Was the "Voice of Firestone" and had a star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  • Though born in New York, Italian-American singer/comedian Lou Monte achieved his greatest fame while a longtime Lyndhurst resident and was a major contributor to the novelty songs genre of the late 1950s and early 1960s, with songs reflective of his proud heritage. These included his signature, "Peppino The Italian Mouse," as well as "Dominick the Donkey" and "Lazy Mary."
  • Jimmy Roselli is another noted Italian-American singer with New Jersey roots. Yet, unlike Monte, crooner Roselli's Italian songs tended to invoke a more serious tone. These included his signature, "When Your Old Wedding Ring Was New." Like Sinatra, Roselli is a Hoboken native, but he never attained the same international star status of that city's more famous native.
  • Singer Joan Weber, from Paulsboro, was a one-hit wonder as a 20-year old during the dawn of the rock era with her haunting classic, "Let Me Go Lover!" in 1955. The song benefitted from one of the first major merchandising tie-ins in the history of popular music, after it was featured in an episode of the TV anthology Studio One and then stocked in stores by Columbia Records mogul Mitch Miller. Weber was never heard from again, and died tragically at 46 in 1981.
  • Singer Tommy Leonetti, born in Bergen County, is also classified as a 1950s one-hit wonder with his song, "Free," which peaked the charts in 1956. Like Weber, Leonetti died young, at 50, in 1979 from cancer. Leonetti appeared in some roles on episodic television and even composed music for Broadway. He also enjoyed some popularity in Australia, where he lived for a time.
  • Celia Cruz was a three-time Grammy Award and four-time Latin Grammy winning Cuban-American salsa singer who spent most of her career living in New Jersey, and working in the United States and several Latin American countries
  • The Knickerbockers hailed from Bergenfield and were a one-hit wonder with the song, "Lies," in 1964. The group attempted to emulate a Beatles-style British Invasion sound and was named after Knickerbocker Avenue, a major thoroughfare in their hometown.
  • Another legendary one-hit wonder, Looking Glass, formed in 1969 at Rutgers University and achieved their fling with fame with the smash number one hit, "Brandy," in the summer of 1972. Part of the Jersey shore sound, the quartet followed up with a minor hit, "Jimmy Loves Marianne," one year later.
  • Rutgers also produced another noted musicmaker of much earlier vintage. Ozzie Nelson, from Jersey City and who grew up in Ridgefield Park, played football on the Scarlet Knights before achieving greater fame as a Big Band leader in the 1930s and 40s - and then as television star and producer. Perhaps Nelson's biggest contribution to early rock and roll was his son and fellow TV star, Ricky Nelson. The teen sensation achieved fame as s vocalist with major hits while living on the West Coast - but was born in Teaneck.
  • Ted Fiorito, another notable Big Band leader, was born in Newark. Fiorito's band scored two number one hits in the 1930s and was a major musical presence during the heyday of old-time network radio. Additionally, he wrote over 100 songs with various collaborators, played the piano and Hammond organ, and worked with various female vocalists, including Betty Grable and June Haver.
  • Brothers Les & Larry Elgart were two noted jazz trumpeters who grew up in Pompton Lakes with roots in the Big Band era. As a duo in the 1950s, both worked to keep the sound alive even as the genre was fading. Yet they will forever be associated with an instrumental that served as an anthem during the earliest days of rock and roll -"Bandstand Booogie." Their original version of the theme was used during the earliest years of the popular long-running dance music show - American Bandstand.
  • An occasional collaborator with Les Paul, famed jazz guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli was born in Paterson and raised his musical family, including son, noted jazz singer/guitarist, John Pizzarelli, in Bergen County. Bucky Pizzarelli collaborated with the likes of Vaughn Monroe and Benny Goodman. John keeps an active club schedule, occasionally records albums and hosts a jazz-oriented, syndicated radio show.
  • Parliament-Funkadelic was an influential R&B musical collective formed in the late 1960s as a hybrid from two groups under the leadership of Plainfield native, George Clinton. Its earliest beginnings came as a doo-wop group, The Parliaments, formed in Plainfield in 1956. Clinton also served as a songwriter at Motown. One of its best-known compositions is "One Nation Under a Groove."
  • Seminal 1960s "garage band," Richard and The Young Lions, formed in Newark in the mid-1960s and barely cracked the Billboard Hot 100 with the cult favorite, "Open Up Your Door," in 1966. Still, the band attained a popular underground following, particularly through their live concerts in the Midwest, and worked with a famous producer with connections to Newark's more famous The Four Seasons - Bob Crewe, also from Newark.
  • Crewe later became a one-hit wonder himself, recording as The Bob Crewe Generation with the 1967 hit instrumental, "Music to Watch Girls By." His hit became the signature theme for Pepsi Cola during television and radio commercials of the era.
  • Gary Wright spent his formative years in Cresskill as a child actor before joining legendary rock band Spooky Tooth in England in 1967 and embarking on a solo career that saw the keyboardist enjoy major success in the mid-1970s, most notably through a Number One hit, "Dream Weaver."
  • Blues Traveler was formed at Princeton High School in 1987. John Popper, along with high school buddies drummer Brendan Hill, guitarist Chan Kinchla and the late bassist Bobby Sheehan are all natives of New Jersey.
  • Spin Doctors began as Trucking Company in 1989 with Chris Barron (lead singer) and Eric Schenkman and were high school friends of the aforementioned Blues Traveler frontman John Popper at Princeton High School.
  • Avant-Folk musician Ben Vaughn, who often comments on NPR, is from the town of Collingswood
  • Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show was formed in Union City in 1968
  • Blues-rock guitarist Justin Scheuble grew up in Montville, New Jersey.
  • The first New JerseyWorldwide* Straight Edge Hardcore Punk band * Hogan's Heroes are from Toms River formed in 1984 and have material released in United States, Canada, Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska, Europe, Scandinavia, Asia, Australia, Middle East , Africa.
  • Four of the five members of the popular new rock group My Chemical Romance hail from New Jersey. Gerard Way, Mikey Way and Frank Iero are from Belleville, and Ray Toro is from Kearny. Some of their more popular songs include "Helena", "The Ghost of You" and "Welcome to the Black Parade". The band frequently speak about their home state, and guitarist Frank Iero can be seen on occasion wearing a guitar strap with the letter NJ encircled in a heart. Former drummer, Matt Pelissier is also from New Jersey, but was replaced by Illinois native Bob Bryar in 2004.
  • Musical artists Fountains of Wayne, a group of New Jerseyans who took the name of a semi-famous lawn and garden store on Route 46 in Wayne.
  • Zakk Wylde, who is currently the guitarist with Ozzy Osbourne and fronts his own metal band, Black Label Society, was born in Bayonne, and was raised in Jackson Township. Wylde is famous for his signature "Bulls-eye" Gibson Les Paul guitar and is considered to be among the best new guitarists in rock.
  • The alternative rock band Dramarama was formed in Wayne in 1982.
  • The first American Oi! Punk band U.S.Chaos is from Paterson, New Jersey formed around 1981.
  • Alex Kinen and Gary Reitmeyer formed The Radicals in 1979, an endeavor which lasted until about 1981. Afterwards, Alex Kinen moved on to form Cause For Alarm, which would later become New York hardcore supergroup Agnostic Front. Meanwhile, Reitmeyer formed the band U.S. Chaos that is managed by talent manager and producer Marty Munsch. The band is the first known American version of British aggressive punk music style known as Oi! (Gary Bushell 1982).
  • The new wave group Anything Box was formed in 1986 by Claude S. along with two friends, Dania Morales and Paul Rijnders. The New Jersey trio signed with Epic and released their debut album, Peace, in 1990, notching a hit with the upbeat "Living in Oblivion."
  • The rock band Monster Magnet hails from Red Bank. The band is best known for their late 90's alt-rock hit "Space Lord."
  • In the 1960s, famed Brill Building pop songwriters Carole King and Gerry Goffin lived in West Orange for a time and penned The Monkees 1966 hit "Pleasant Valley Sunday," about life in suburbia. The song took its name from Pleasant Valley Way, a major street in the town.
  • Goffin and King worked under the tutelage of legendary producer/impresario and music publisher, Don Kirshner, who was largely responsible for The Monkees early success. Kirshner, founder of Aldon Records, grew up in East Orange and lived in South Orange.
  • Hip-hop's longest running radio show, was founded by two Jerseyans, Special K (Kevin Bonners) and Teddy Ted (Ted Whiting) of Hackensack (known as the Awesome 2), began on New York's WHBI in 1982 and now appears on WPAT-AM.
  • Other rap artists, including Irvington's Queen Latifah, the first female rapper to succeed in music, film, and TV, and the Grammy-winning Naughty By Nature of East Orange, who cut 1992's smash hit "O.P.P." Redman, an influential underground figure and Newark native, has recently found commercial success through collaborations with Eminem and the Wu-Tang Clan's Method Man.
  • Singer/actor Constantine Maroulis, a popular finalist on the television show, American Idol, Season 4 (2005), spent a good portion of his formative years in Wyckoff, where he graduated from Ramapo High School. Maroulis is developing a television sitcom for ABC based on his family life in New Jersey and the surrounding metropolitan New York City area.
  • Ashley Tisdale was born in West Deal, New Jersey. Her songs, such as What I've Been Looking For, Stick To The Status Quo, Bop To the Top, and We're All In This Together were featured in the Disney movie High School Musical.
  • Uncle Floyd Vivino was raised in Paterson.

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Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ... Ruggiero Eugenio di Rodolpho Colombo (January 14, 1908–September 1, 1934), better known by the name Russ Columbo, was an American singer, violinist and actor, most famous for his signature tune, Some Call It Madness, But I Call It Love, and the legend surrounding his early death. ... Camden is the name of several places in the United States of America: Camden, Alabama Camden, Arkansas Camden, Delaware Camden County, Georgia Camden, Indiana Camden, Maine Camden, Michigan Camden, New Jersey Camden County, New Jersey Camden (village), New York Camden (town), New York Camden, Ohio Camden, South Carolina Camden, Tennessee... Rudy Vallee (July 28, 1901 - July 3, 1986) was a popular United States singer, actor, bandleader, and entertainer. ... Harry Lillis Bing Crosby (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer and actor whose career lasted from 1926 until his death in 1977. ... Connie Francis (born December 12, 1938 in Newark, New Jersey) is an American pop singer best known for international hit songs such as Whos Sorry Now?, Where The Boys Are, and Everybodys Somebodys Fool. She is known to have one of the most distinct voices in the... For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... A bandleader is the director of a band of musicians. ... William Count Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. ... The Borough of Red Bank is a Borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey incorporated in 1908. ... Sinatra redirects here. ... Nelson Smock Riddle, Jr. ... Bergen County is a county located in the state of New Jersey. ... Nathaniel Adams Coles, known professionally as Nat King Cole (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965) was a popular American singer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. ... Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917 – June 15, 1996), also known as Lady Ella and the First Lady of Song, is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th Century. ... Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a DC Comics fictional superhero who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. ... Alternate meanings of Route 66: New Jersey State Highway 66, Interstate 66, and a company named after the route US Highway 66 or Route 66 was and is the most famous road in the United States highway system and quite possibly the most famous and storied highway in the world. ... For other uses of Broadway, see Broadway. ... The Black Crook (1866), considered by some historians to be the first musical[1] Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining music, songs, spoken dialogue and dance. ... Jersey Boys is a documentary-style musical based on the lives of one of the most successful 60s rock n roll groups, the Four Seasons. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Tommy DeVito (born June 19, 1928) is an American musician and singer, best-known as a member and the lead guitarist of the pop group The Four Seasons. ... Frankie Valli (born May 3, 1934 or 1937[2]) is best known as the falsetto-voiced lead singer of The Four Seasons, a music act of the 1960s, which continues to perform. ... Nick Massi (born Nicholas Macioci) (September 19, 1935 - December 24, 2000) was the bass singer for the Four Seasons, born in Newark, New Jersey. ... Marie Dionne Warrick (born December 12, 1940), known professionally as Dionne Warwick, is an acclaimed five-time Grammy Award-winning African American singer best known for her work with Hal David and Burt Bacharach as songwriters and producers. ... Map of East Orange in Essex County East Orange is a city in Essex County, New Jersey, USA. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city had a total population of 69,824. ... Do You Know the Way to San José is a popular song by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. ... Grammy Award statuette The Grammy Awards, presented by the Recording Academy (an association of Americans professionally involved in the recorded music industry) for outstanding achievements in the recording industry, is one of four major music awards shows held annually in the United States (the Billboard Music Awards, the American Music... Jon Bon Jovi (born John Francis Bongiovi, Jr. ... Sayreville is a borough located on the Raritan River, near Raritan Bay in Middlesex County, New Jersey. ... Bon Jovi is a hard rock band originating from Sayreville, New Jersey. ... Singles from New Jersey Released: 1988 Released: 1988 Released: 1989 Released: 1989 Released: 1989 Bon Jovis fourth album, New Jersey was released on September 13, 1988. ... Whitney Elizabeth Houston (born August 9, 1963) is a six-time Grammy award winning, American R&B singer, soprano, pianist, actress, film producer, and former model. ... Nickname: Map of Newark in Essex County Coordinates: , Country State County Essex Founded/Incorporated 1666/1836 Government  - Mayor Cory Booker, term of office 2006–2010 Area [1]  - Total 26. ... Map of East Orange in Essex County East Orange is a city in Essex County, New Jersey, USA. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city had a total population of 69,824. ... Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American, Grammy Award-winning country music singer/songwriter, composer, author, actress, and philanthropist. ... I Will Always Love You is a song written and originally performed by American country singer-songwriter Dolly Parton (first released as a single in 1974) and then most famously recorded by American pop/R&B singer Whitney Houston. ... Cissy Houston (born Emily Drinkard on September 30, 1933) is a gospel and soul singer. ... Paul LeRoy Bustill Robeson (April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was a multi-lingual American actor, athlete, bass-baritone concert singer, writer, civil rights activist, fellow traveler, Spingarn Medal winner, and Stalin Peace Prize laureate. ... Nassau Street, Princetons main street. ... The Music City Queen on the Cumberland River, Nashville. ... The Shirelles were an influential American girl group in the early 1960s. ... Shirley Owens (born June 10, 1941, in Passaic, New Jersey) was the lead singer of the Shirelles. ... The Peppermint Lounge was a popular nightclub located at 128 West 45th Street in midtown Manhattan. ... Joey Dee and The Starliters are an American pop music group from the 1960s. ... David Brigati, c. ... Eddie Brigati is an american singer. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Felix Cavaliere (b. ... Lesley Gore (born May 2, 1946 in New York City as Lesley Sue Goldstein) is an American singer-songwriter of the girl group era. She is perhaps best known for her 1963 pop hit, Its My Party, which she recorded at the age of 16. ... This article is about the producer and songwriter. ... Deborah Ann Harry (born July 1, 1945, in Miami, Florida) is a singer-songwriter and actress most famous for being the lead singer for the punk rock/new wave band Blondie. ... Blondie is the name of an American rock band that first gained fame in the late 1970s, and which has sold over 140 million records. ... Hawthorne is a borough in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. ... The Happenings were a pop music group from the 1960s. ... Al Jolson (May 26, 1886–October 23, 1950) was a highly acclaimed American singer, comedian and actor of Jewish heritage whose career lasted from 1911 until his death in 1950. ... Gloria Gaynor (born Gloria Fowles September 7, 1949) is an American singer, best-known for the disco era hits I Will Survive (Hot 100 #1, 1979), Never Can Say Goodbye (Hot 100 #9, 1974), and I Am What I Am (Hot 100 #82, 1983). ... The cover to the Jackson 5s first LP, Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5, released on Motown Records in 1969. ... Sarah Lois Vaughan (nicknamed Sassy and The Divine One) (March 27, 1924, Newark, New Jersey – April 3, 1990, Los Angeles, California) was an American jazz singer, described as one of the greatest singers of the 20th century [1]. // Sarah Vaughans father, Asbury Jake Vaughan, was a carpenter and amateur... Nickname: Map of Newark in Essex County Coordinates: , Country State County Essex Founded/Incorporated 1666/1836 Government  - Mayor Cory Booker, term of office 2006–2010 Area [1]  - Total 26. ... Nickname: Map of Newark in Essex County Coordinates: , Country State County Essex Founded/Incorporated 1666/1836 Government  - Mayor Cory Booker, term of office 2006–2010 Area [1]  - Total 26. ... Connie Francis (born December 12, 1938 in Newark, New Jersey) is an American pop singer best known for international hit songs such as Whos Sorry Now?, Where The Boys Are, and Everybodys Somebodys Fool. She is known to have one of the most distinct voices in the... Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, half of the folk-singing duo Simon and Garfunkel who continues a successful solo career. ... Also see the Arab singer Latifa Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970 in Newark, New Jersey) is a Grammy-winning American rapper/singer, model, and Academy Award-nominated actress. ... Tracy Marrow (born February 16, 1958)[1], better known by stage name Ice-T, and nickname is an American rapper, rock musician, author, former United States Army soldier, and actor. ... This article is about the musician. ... Bergen County is a county located in the state of New Jersey. ... Mary Ford (aka Colleen Hatfield) (July 7, 1924, Pasadena, California, – September 30, 1977, Arcadia, California), vocalist and guitarist, was one-half of the famed husband-wife musical duo, Les Paul and Mary Ford. ... Donald Jay Fagen (born January 10, 1948 in Passaic, New Jersey) is an American musician and songwriter, best known as co-writer, co-founder, singer, and pianist with the jazz-rock band Steely Dan. ... Steely Dan is a Grammy-Award winning American jazz rock band centered on core members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen. ... Walter Carl Becker (born February 20, 1950 in New York, New York) is the guitarist (and sometimes electric bassist) half of the duo at the core of the jazz-rock group Steely Dan. ... Lauryn Noel Hill (born May 25, 1975) is an American singer, rapper, musician, record producer and film actress. ... Map of South Orange Village in Essex County South Orange is a village in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. ... Marilyn McCoo (September 30, 1943) is an American singer. ... For other uses, see Fifth Dimension (disambiguation). ... Billy Davis, Jr born June 26, 1940, St. ... Location of Jersey City within Hudson County Coordinates: , Country State County Hudson Government  - Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy  - Business Administrator Brian P. OReilly Area  - City 21. ... The skyline of Jersey City, as seen from Lower New York B