Doowop (also spelled doo-wop or doo wop) music, American popular vocal music style, c. late 1940s-early 1960s. Doowop is a form of vocal harmony music, usually unaccompanied, that originated among amateur street-corner singers in major U.S. urban centers after World War II. It includes a wide range of vocalists, from bass to high falsetto, often used dramatically in solo spots for comic or dramatic effect; the use of nonsense syllables (sometimes to imitate musical instruments); and songs featuring simple melodies, harmonies, and rhythms. Although the term did not appear in print until 1961, the musical style thrived during the ‘50s with hit-making groups including African-American vocal groups The Ravens (“Count Every Star,” 1950), The Orioles (“Crying in the Chapel,” 1953), the mixed-race group, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, including African-American and Latino members (“Why Do Fools Fall in Love,” 1956), The Del-Vikings (“Come Go with Me,” 1957), The Coasters (“Yakety Yak,” 1958, and “Charlie Brown,” 1959, with its memorable bass refrain, “Why’s everybody always pickin’ on me?”), and the Crests (“16 Candles,” 1958). White street-corner singers also picked up on the style, including Danny and the Juniors (“At the Hop,” 1958), Dion and the Belmonts (“Teenager in Love,” 1959), and The Capris (“There’s a Moon Out Tonight,” 1960). Doowop was highly influential on the next generation of pop vocal groups, including The Four Seasons, and the girl groups like The Shirelles and The Ronettes.
See B. Dahl, Street Corner Symphonies: The Complete Story of Doo-Wop (2012; CD box set with booklet).
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