Pop Tops (or Los Pop-Tops) were a vocal/
instrumental
An instrumental or instrumental song is music without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through Semantic change, semantic widening, a broader sense of the word s ...
band, formed in 1967 in
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, Spain, with Phil Trim from Trinidad and Tobago as lead singer. Their sound was a blend of
baroque pop
Baroque pop (sometimes called baroque rock) is a fusion genre that combines rock music with particular elements of classical music. It emerged in the mid-1960s as artists pursued a majestic, orchestral sound and is identifiable for its appropria ...
with the
soulful vocals of Trim.
Members
Original set-up included
*Phil Trim (born January 5, 1940, in
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...
) – lead singer
*Julián Luis Angulo – guitar, vocals
*Alberto Vega – saxophone, clarinet, vocals
*Enrique Gómez – bass, trumpet
*Ignacio Pérez – organ, piano
*José Lipiani – drums
*Ray Gómez – guitar
Some changes occurred in members:
*Francisco Urbano Romero – drums
(replacing José Lipani)
*Rafael Guillermo Gertrudis – keyboards, piano
(replacing Ignacio Pérez)
Hits
Their first release to gain attention was "Oh Lord, Why Lord" (1968), written by Jean Marcel Bouchety and Phil Trim. It was the first pop song to incorporate the
melody
A melody (), also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combination of Pitch (music), pitch and rhythm, while more figurativel ...
of
Pachelbel's
Canon in D
Pachelbel's Canon (also known as Canon in D, P 37) is an accompanied canon by the German Baroque composer Johann Pachelbel
Johann Pachelbel (also Bachelbel; baptised – buried 9 March 1706) was a German composer, organist, and teacher ...
. That
single's b-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
, "The Voice of the Dying Man" (based on a
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...
composition) was also recorded in Spanish as "La Voz del Hombre Caido".
They are best known for their 1971
hit "
Mamy Blue",
referring to a son's poignant song addressed to his departed mother about his childhood memories and life in general, sometimes spelled "Mommy Blue", "Mammy Blue" or "Mummy Blue", which was a
Top 10 hit throughout much of Europe, Japan (#2), and Canada (#42), and a minor
''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart
A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphics, graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can repres ...
hit in the United States (#57). It was covered in the US by
the Stories peaking at No. 50 in 1973. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a
platinum record
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music Sound recording and reproduction, recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video ...
.
The composer and lyricist of the French song "Mamy Blue" was Hubert Giraud.
English lyrics were written by Phil Trim. The Pop Tops also recorded Italian and Spanish versions, with lyrics by Gefingal.
As follow-up singles they released "Suzanne Suzanne" (early 1972) and "Hideaway" (mid 1972), which were only minor hits in some European countries.
Discography
Albums
Singles
Spanish releases
Barclay, Spain
*1967: Con su blanca palidez / I Can't Go On
*1967: Viento to otoño (Autumn Winds) / Cry
*1968: Somewhere / The Voice of the Dying Man (La voz del hombre caido)
*1968: Oh Lord, Why Lord / Beyond the Sea (El mar)
*1968: Oh Lord, Why Lord
(in Spanish) / El mar
*1968: Esa mujer (That Woman) / Adagio cardenal
*1968: That Woman / The Man I Am Today
*1969: Pepa / Junto a ti
*1969: Dzim-dzim-dzas (Love and Care) / Young and Foolish
*1970: Soñar, bailar y cantar (She's Coming Back) / Anytime
Explosion, Spain
*1971: Dios a todos hizo libres (Road to Freedom) / Movimento de amor
*1971: Road to Freedom / Who Will Believe
*1971: Mamy Blue (span.) / Love Motion
*1971: Mamy Blue / Grief and Torture
*1972: Suzanne Suzanne / Happiness Ville
*1972: Suzanne Suzanne
(in Spanish) / Walk along by the Riverside
*1972: Hideaway / What a Place to Live In
*1973: My Little Woman / Girl, What's on Your Mind?
*1973: Happy, Hippy, Youppy Song / Where Can I Go
*1973: Happy, Hippy, Youppy Song
(in Spanish) / Angeline
*1974: What a Way to Go / Baby I Will Cry
German releases
Bellaphon, West Germany
*1971: Mamy Blue / Road to Freedom
*1971: Oh Lord, Why Lord / Walk Along by the Riverside (Remake)
*1972: Suzanne Suzanne / Happiness Ville
*1972: Hideaway / What a Place to Live In
*1973: My Little Woman / Girl, What's on Your Mind?
*1973: Happy, Hippy, Youppy Song / Where Can I Go
*1973: What a Way to Go / Baby I Will Cry
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pop-Tops
Spanish musical groups
Musical groups established in 1967