The Demensions are an American
doo wop
Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a subgenre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, ...
group from
The Bronx
The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
. They attended Christopher Columbus High School. Over the years, there have been a number of lineup changes. The group that sang on most of their earlier recordings includes Lenny Dell, Phil Del Giudice, Howie Margolin, and Marisa Martelli.
At the height of their popularity in the early 1960s, The Demensions played often in
Palisades Park, New Jersey
Palisades Park is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 20,292, an increase of 670 (+3.4%) from the 2010 census count of 19,622, which in turn reflected ...
, as well as on ''
American Bandstand
''American Bandstand'' (AB) is an American Music television, music performance and dance television series that aired in various iterations from 1952 to 1989. It was hosted by Dick Clark who also served as the program's Television producer, pr ...
'' and ''
The Clay Cole Show
''The Clay Cole Show'' is an American rock music television show based in New York City, hosted by Clay Cole from 1959 to 1967.
History
First broadcast on WNTA-TV (now WNET) in September 1959 as ''Rate the Records'', within two months the forma ...
''. They also appeared at the Braniff Space Rover, known as the "Space Ship," at
Freedomland U.S.A. in The Bronx. They first scored radio airplay as a result of
Cousin Brucie, a
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...
at New York radio station
WINS, who began spinning their version of "
Over the Rainbow
"Over the Rainbow", also known as "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", is a ballad by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg. It was written for the 1939 film '' The Wizard of Oz'', in which it was sung by actress Judy Garland in her starring role ...
". The song became a hit, peaking at No. 16 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1960
and No. 17 in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. Their only other chart hit was 1962's "
My Foolish Heart", which peaked at No. 95 early in 1963.
In 1992, The Demensions (with an altered lineup) recorded again for the first time since 1963, releasing ''Beyond the Rainbow''.
Original lead singer Lenny Dell died in 2021.
Members
''Note: This list is incomplete''
*Lenny Dell (Original lead)
Present members:
*Tom Clemente
*Robin Robbert
*Vinny Pizzo
*Charlie Marrone (Guitar / background)
*Dennis Cirolia (Drums)
*Michael Banek (Bass guitar)
Previous members:
*John Martinucci
*Ron Scauri
*Patti McTernan
*Richard Carnese (Guitar)
*Peter Soonarie (Bass guitar)
*Dominick V. Cassano (Drums)
*Uncle Phil Del Giudice (deceased)
*Marisa Martelli
*Howie Margolin
*Charlie Peterson
[Joel Whitburn, ''The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits'']
*Joel Reinlieb
*Patrick Gamberdella (Bass guitar)
References
External links
Official website of the Demensions*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Demensions, The
Doo-wop groups
Musical groups from the Bronx