The Angels were an American girl group best known for their 1963 No. 1 hit single "My Boyfriend's Back".

The Angels originated in New Jersey as the Starlets, consisting of sisters Barbara "Bibs" and Phyllis "Jiggs" Allbut, Bernadette Carroll, and Lynda Malzone. They had local hits and worked as backup singers in the studio. Linda Jansen replaced Malzone as lead singer, and the group eventually changed their name to the Angels. In 1963, they signed with Mercury Records' subsidiary Smash Records and released their biggest hit, "My Boyfriend's Back," which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold over one million copies. The group underwent several lineup changes and disputes over their name, resulting in a temporary rebranding as the Halos. In 2005, the Angels were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. As of 2021, Phyllis Allbut and Peggy Santiglia are the last living founding members.

History

The group originated in New Jersey as the Starlets which consisted of sisters Barbara "Bibs" and Phyllis "Jiggs" The song was a major hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100. "My Boyfriend's Back" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. The follow-up was the lower-charting "I Adore Him" (No. 25 US). The B-side "Thank You And Goodnight" charted at No. 84 US. During their Smash career, the Angels maintained a steady string of moderately successful singles which included "Wow Wow Wee (He's The Boy For Me)" (No. 41 US). Their album My Boyfriend's Back made the top forty, charting at No. 33. but their next, A Halo to You, did not chart.

On February 19, 2019, the Angels' original lead singer Linda Jansen died at the age of 74.

Members

  • Barbara "Bibs" Allbut Brown (born September 24, 1940, in Orange, New Jersey; died July 10, 2021)
  • Phyllis "Jiggs" Allbut Sirico (born September 24, 1942, in Orange, New Jersey)
  • Linda Jansen (born Linda Jankowski, July 7, 1944, in Newark, New Jersey; died February 19, 2019)
  • Peggy Santiglia Ricker (born May 4, 1944, in Belleville, New Jersey)
  • Bernadette Carroll (born Bernadette Dalia, June 21, 1944, in Elizabeth, New Jersey; died October 5, 2018, at her home in Florida)

Discography

Albums

{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center;

|-

!rowspan="2"|Year

!rowspan="2"|Album

!colspan="1"|Peak chart positions

!rowspan="2"|Record Label

|-

!Billboard 200<br/>

|-

|rowspan="1"| 1962

|align=left| ...And the Angels Sing

| -

|rowspan="1"| Caprice Records

|-

|rowspan="1"| 1963

|align=left| My Boyfriend's Back

| 33

|rowspan="1"| Smash Records

|-

|rowspan="1"| 1964

|align=left| A Halo to You

| -

|rowspan="1"| Smash Records

|-

|rowspan="1"| 2008

|align=left| Love, the Angels

| -

|rowspan="1"| Angel Sound Records

|-

|}

Singles

The Starlets

{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center;

|-

!rowspan="2"|Year

!rowspan="2"|Title

!colspan="2"|Peak chart positions

!rowspan="2"|Record Label

!rowspan="2"|B-side

|- style="font-size:smaller;"

!align=centre| US

!align=centre| R&B

|-

|rowspan="2"| 1960

|align=left| "P.S. I Love You"

| 106

| —

|rowspan="2"| Astro Records

| "Where is My Love Tonight"

|-

|align=left| "Romeo and Juliet"

| —

| —

| "Listen for a Lonely Tambourine"

|-

|}

The Angels

{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center;

|-

!rowspan="2"|Year

!rowspan="2"|Title

!colspan="2"|Peak chart positions

!rowspan="2"|Record Label

!rowspan="2"|B-side

!rowspan="2"|Album

|- style="font-size:smaller;"

!align=centre| US

!align=centre| R&B

|-

|rowspan="1"| 1961

|align=left| "'Til"

| 14

| —

|rowspan="5"| Caprice Records

| "A Moment Ago"

|rowspan="3"| And the Angels Sing

|-

|rowspan="4"| 1962

|align=left| "Cry Baby Cry"

| 38

| —

| "That's All I Ask of You"

|-

|align=left| "Everybody Loves a Lover"

| 103

| —

| "Blow, Joe"

|-

|align=left| "You Should Have Told Me"

| —

| —

| "I'd Be Good for You"

|

|-

|align=left| "A Moment Ago"

| —

| —

| "Cotton Fields"

| And the Angels Sing

|-

|rowspan="3"| 1963

|align=left| "My Boyfriend's Back"

| 1

| 2

|rowspan="1"| Smash Records

| "(Love Me) Now"

| My Boyfriend's Back

|-

|align=left| "Cotton Fields"

| 119

| —

|rowspan="1"| Ascot Records

| "Irresistible"

| And the Angels Sing

|-

|align=left| "I Adore Him" /<br />"Thank You and Goodnight"

| 25<br />84

| 13<br /> —

|rowspan="5"| Smash Records

|

| A Halo To You<br />My Boyfriend's Back

|-

|rowspan="4"| 1964

|align=left| "Wow Wow Wee (He's the Boy for Me)"

| 41

| —

| "Snowflakes and Teardrops"

| rowspan="3"|A Halo To You

|-

|align=left| "Little Beatle Boy"

| —

| —

| "Java"

|-

|align=left| "Dream Boy"

| —

| —

| "Jamaica Joe"<br /><small>(Non-LP track)</small>

|-

|align=left| "The Boy From 'Cross Town"

| —

| —

| "World Without Love"<br /><small>(from My Boyfriend's Back)</small>

|rowspan="8"|Non-LP tracks

|-

|rowspan="3"| 1967

|align=left| "What to Do"

| —

| —

|rowspan="6"| RCA Records

| "I Had a Dream I Lost You"

|-

|align=left| "You'll Never Get to Heaven"

| —

| —

| "Go Out and Play"

|-

|align=left| "You're the Cause of It"

| —

| —

| "With Love"

|-

|rowspan="3"| 1968

|align=left| "The Modley"

| —

| —

| "If I Didn't Love You"

|-

|align=left| "The Boy with the Green Eyes"

| —

| —

| "But for Love"

|-

|align=left| "Merry Go Round"

| —

| —

| "So Nice"

|-

|rowspan="1"| 1974

|align=left| "Poppa's Side Of The Bed"

| —

| —

|rowspan="1"| Polydor Records

| "You're All I Need to Get By"

|-

|}

References

Bibliography

  • Clemente, John (2000). Girl Groups – Fabulous Females That Rocked The World. Iola, Wisconsin, Krause Publications. pp.&nbsp;276.
  • Clemente, John (2013). Girl Groups – Fabulous Females Who Rocked The World. Bloomington, Indiana, Authorhouse Publications. pp.&nbsp;623. (sc); (e)
  • The Starlets known as The Angels, The Powder Puffs, The Beach Nuts, The Halos
  • The Angels at classicbands.com
  • The Angels at history-of-rock.com
  • American singing groups by Jay Warner
  • Fantasia featuring Peggy Santiglia
  • The Angels (Gee) R&B 1954–1958 by Marv Goldberg
  • Theangelsonline.com