I've always wondered what songs did Mafioso listen to....of course they listened to Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Luciano Pavarotti...but I'd like you guys to contribute to this thread some songs which they listened to...Also, mention the artist names & Album names. And for those of you planning to mention Tupac Shakur and his brand of so-called 'Gangsta Rap'....I'm gonna whup your ass!!!
I know 50s and 60s Doo Wop was popular with wiseguys as many artists were Italian-American. Artists like Dion and the Belmonts, the Duprees etc, and then a bit later Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. I think with those guys all albums of them were popular!
My father was in the jukebox business from the '40s through the '70s in Brooklyn, New York. Most of his business was in Mob owned bars and the late '50s (to me, anyway) seemed to be the hey-day. From personal experience (I used to go work with my dad on weekends and helped him collect the coins from the jukeboxes and pinball machines) the one, biggest and most popular song from those bars was in 1958-9 called "Volare".
The bars would blast the song day in and out and I remember my dad mentioning that he had to replace the records in some of the jukeboxes because the plastic wore out.
of course...Volare!!!! this is the opening track of the album Mob Hits....does anyone have the album? I have it and its fantastico! its only drawback is that the Movie 'Godfather' didnt allow licensing of their songs....:sigh:
When I was a kid growing up in the Belmont section of the Bronx back in the '60s and '70s, both Jimmy Roselli and Jerry Vale could be heard coming out of just about every bar in the neighborhood. The wiseguys loved them.
Good call on "Volare," SC. Interesting factoid: The artist who sold the most copies of that song was Bobby Rydell, with his cheesy, American, lounge lizard version. As a single (45rpm), Rydell sold more copies than both Dean Martin and Domenico Modugno combined.
Originally Posted By: NickyScarfo
I know 50s and 60s Doo Wop was popular with wiseguys as many artists were Italian-American. Artists like Dion and the Belmonts, the Duprees etc, and then a bit later Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. I think with those guys all albums of them were popular!
Good call on the Duprees, Nicky. Back in the late '70s and early '80s, Greg DePalma owned a nightclub up in Scarsdale called Fudgie's. The Duprees used to play there all the time. I saw them there a few times. It always surprised me that David Chase didn't use any of their songs on "The Sopranos." They were Italian from Jersey so they would have been a perfect fit.
None of the original members are still alive but they still sound great:
yes it is surprising he didn't use the Duprees. Another band featured though were Randy and The Rainbows, and Lou Christie, really great music even for a young kid like me!
