Cartoon Pop
tagStarted 1969Peak 1969-1972Last big hit still active
Pop performed by fictional animated bands or cartoon characters, the act existing only on screen while studio musicians cut the records. Sunny bubblegum hooks, hand-clap beats and squeaky-clean harmonies tied to a Saturday-morning show. Manufactured, frictionless and irresistibly catchy, sometimes outselling real bands while the 'group' never set foot in a venue.
History
Don Kirshner perfected the model with The Archies, whose 1969 "Sugar, Sugar" topped the Hot 100 and became one of the year's biggest sellers despite the band being a comic-strip cartoon. The Banana Splits and Josie and the Pussycats followed; Alvin and the Chipmunks revived cartoon pop on charts into the 2000s with film soundtracks.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar,_Sugar
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Archies
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Banana_Splits