The Castells were a male vocal quartet from Santa Rosa, California best remembered for their hits "Sacred" (No. 20 in 1961) and "So This Is Love" (No. 21 in 1962), both released as singles by

Era Records Era Records was an independent American record label located in Hollywood, California. History Era Records was founded by Herb Newman and Lou Bedell in March 1955 as a popular music, pop and rhythm and blues outlet. The label later expanded into ...

Joel Whitburn Joel Carver Whitburn (November 29, 1939 – June 14, 2022) was an American author and music historian, responsible for setting up the Record Research, Inc. series of books on record chart placings. Early life Joel Carver Whitburn was born in W ...

, ''The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits''. 7th ed, 2000 Their sound blended light

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

with elements of collegiate vocal harmony and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

History

The Castells were formed at Santa Rosa High School around 1959. They were booked for a performance at a local teenage "canteen". They did not have a name and their pianist, Jeff Bush, suggested one. It had no meaning other than they thought that it sounded good, and the intent was to be more thoughtful and change it later. Through a Santa Rosa KJAX disc jockey who went by the name of Dan Dillon, they got Hollywood contacts. Chuck Girard's mother financed a demo for a hundred dollars, which was recorded in a San Francisco studio. They took their demo and went door-to-door in Hollywood, first to Crystalette Records, which seemed to be defunct,

Aladdin Records Aladdin Records was a record company and label founded in Los Angeles in 1945 by brothers Eddie and Leo Mesner. It was originally called Philo Records before changing its name in 1946. Philo Records Philo's releases included 78 RPM singles of ...

, and then

. They were excited that Aladdin seemed interested, as they considered themselves to be R&B, but eventually it was Era who signed them. Their first release, "Little Sad Eyes", went to "Bubbling Under" on the ''Billboard'' chart, then came "Sacred", which reached the charts, peaking at No. 20 in the early summer of 1961. "Make Believe Wedding" went "Bubbling Under", then "So This Is Love" again charted, reaching No. 21 in the spring of 1962. They played shows for a few years, and shared the stage with

Jackie Wilson Jack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson Jr. (June 9, 1934 – January 21, 1984) was an American singer who was a prominent figure in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. Nicknamed "Mr. Excitement", he was considered a master showman and one of th ...

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American pianist, singer, and songwriter. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock 'n' roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis m ...

Bobby Vee Robert Thomas Velline (April 30, 1943 – October 24, 2016), known professionally as Bobby Vee, was an American singer who was a teen idol in the early 1960s and also appeared in films. According to '' Billboard'' magazine, he had thirty- ...

, and

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...

. They never charted again but did continue to record for a few years, first for

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...

and then

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

. They disbanded around 1964. Chuck Girard later joined the

surf rock Surf music (also known as surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a genre of rock music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Southern California. It was especially popular from 1958 to 1964 in two major forms. The first is inst ...

group

The Hondells The Hondells were an American surf rock band. Their cover of the Beach Boys' " Little Honda" went to No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1964. History The Hondells were a band manufactured by Gary Usher, originally consisting of session music ...

and, in the 1970s, became a popular CCM artist.

Members

The band's original members were Chuck Girard, Tom Hicks, Warren Hays, Bob Ussery, and Jeff Bush. Bush did not sing, but played piano on all the gigs. Hays left when the group was signed by Era Records. The group planned to move from Santa Rosa to southern California. Hays, a minor, was not allowed to move with the boys, and his parents also objected on religious grounds. When Hays left, Joe Kelly replaced him. When the group signed with Era Records, label president Herb Newman insisted on session pianists, and Jeff Bush was edged out. In 1963 Bob Ussery got married, left the group, and moved out of California. He was temporarily replaced by Greg Van Krugel, Chuck Girard's roommate and high school friend, because he knew the material from attending rehearsals. After a few live performances as a substitute, he was elected to permanent membership. By late 1964, The Castells were still recording and doing public appearances, but their popularity was waning. By 1965 the group members remained friends but went their separate ways. Most often produced by

Gary Usher Gary Lee Usher (December 14, 1938 – May 25, 1990) was an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer, who worked with numerous California acts in the 1960s, including the Byrds, the Beach Boys, and Dick Dale. Usher also produced fic ...

, Chuck Girard and Joe Kelly went on to record as a duo under their real names, Chuck and Joe, recording blue-eyed soul covers of earlier popular songs like "Harlem Shuffle" and "Feel So Fine." They recorded a few edgy pop-folk singles as the Devons. They worked for Usher for several years and recorded a number of hot rod and surf albums under many different group identities. Tom Hicks began a family with a new wife and went on to become a successful businessman in southern California. Greg Van Krugel also married. He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1966. In 1968, after active duty, he returned to his wife and daughter in southern California and made his career in the defense and aerospace electronics industry. Other performers of note with whom the Castells shared the stage include

Bobby Rydell Robert Louis Ridarelli (April 26, 1942 – April 5, 2022), known by the stage name Bobby Rydell (), was an American singer and actor who mainly performed rock and roll and traditional pop music. In the early 1960s, he was considered a teen idol. ...

, Dick and Dee Dee,

Jan and Dean Jan and Dean were an American rock music, rock duo consisting of William Jan Berry (April 3, 1941 – March 26, 2004) and Dean Ormsby Torrence (born March 10, 1940). In the early 1960s, they were pioneers of the California Sound and vocal surf m ...

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The Righteous Brothers The Righteous Brothers are an American musical duo originally formed by Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield but now comprising Medley and Bucky Heard. Medley formed the group with Hatfield in 1963. They had first performed together in 1962 in the L ...

The Rivingtons The Rivingtons were a 1960s doo-wop band, known for their 1962 novelty hit "Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow". The members were lead vocalist Carl White (June 21, 1932 – January 7, 1980), tenor Al Frazier (died November 13, 2005), baritone Sonny Harris an ...

Donnie Brooks Donnie Brooks (born John Dee Abohosh; February 6, 1936 – February 23, 2007) was an American pop music singer. Brooks is a member of the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Early life Born in Dallas, Texas, Abohosh moved to Ventura, California in his ...

, Dobie Gray,

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, Ted Neely and Larry Verne. Session musicians the Castells worked with later became known as The Wrecking Crew. They included

Billy Strange William Everett Strange (September 29, 1930 – February 22, 2012) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist, and actor. He began as a session musician with The Wrecking Crew, a famous session band of the 1960s and 1970s, and was i ...

(guitar),

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(guitar), Ray Pohlman (bass and arranger of one of the group's sessions), Frankie Capp (percussion),

Plas Johnson Plas John Johnson Jr. () (born July 21, 1931) is an American soul-jazz and hard bop tenor saxophonist, probably most widely known as the tenor saxophone soloist on Henry Mancini’s " The Pink Panther Theme". He also performs on alto and bar ...

(saxophone),

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

(guitar), and

Hal Blaine Hal Blaine (born Harold Simon Belsky; February 5, 1929 – March 11, 2019) was an American drummer and session musician, thought to be among the most recorded studio drummers in the music industry, claiming over 35,000 sessions and 6,000 singles. ...

(drums).

Discography

Singles

In popular culture

The Castells version of "Some Enchanted Evening" from the musical '' South Pacific'' was used in episode 1 of the ''

Fallout Nuclear fallout is residual radioactive material that is created by the reactions producing a nuclear explosion. It is initially present in the radioactive cloud created by the explosion, and "falls out" of the cloud as it is moved by the ...

'' TV series, during a slow-motion battle scene within Vault 33 between the Vault Dwellers and Raiders who had infiltrated the Vault whilst dressed as members of Vault 32. "Little Sad Eyes" was used at the end of season 1 episode 3 of the TV series '' What We Do In The Shadows''.

References

External links

Chuck Girard's official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castells, The (http://www.thecastells.weebly.com/ Musical groups from California Era Records artists