The Chordettes

The Chordettes were an American female vocal quartet, specializing in traditional pop music. They are best known for their 1950s hit singles "Mr. Sandman" and "Lollipop", both of which sold over a million copies.

Career

The group organized in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, in 1946. The original members of the group were Janet Ertel Bleyer (née Buschmann; September 21, 1913 – November 22, 1988), Alice Mae Buschmann Spielvogel (July 31, 1925 – January 6, 1981), Dorothy "Dottie" (Hummitzsch) Schwartz (February 18, 1927 – April 4, 2016) and Jinny Osborn/Lockard (April 25, 1927 – May 19, 2003). Alice Spielvogel was replaced by Carol Buschmann (May 13, 1927 – September 30, 2023), her sister-in-law, in 1947. In 1952, Lynn Evans (née Hargate; May 2, 1924 – February 6, 2020) replaced Schwartz, as Evans described in a 2015 interview. And in 1953, Margie Needham replaced Osborn (who was having a baby), though Osborn later returned to the group. Nancy Overton (February 6, 1926 – April 5, 2009) joined the group for live performances in 1957 after Janet Ertel, who was more than a decade older than the other members of the group, decided to retire from touring, although she continued to perform on recorded material. Originally they sang folk music in the style of The Weavers, but eventually changed to a harmonizing style of the type known as barbershop harmony or close harmony. Part of this change seems to be influenced by Osborn's father.

Jinny Osborn was born in Seattle, Washington. She was born Virginia Cole, the daughter of O. H. "King" Cole, who was president (1948-1949) of the Barbershop Harmony Society (then known as SPEBSQSA), and Katherine Flack.

After performing locally in Sheboygan, they won on Arthur Godfrey's radio program Talent Scouts in 1949. They held feature status on Godfrey's daily program, and in 1950 cut their first LP, a collection of standards titled Harmony Time for Columbia Records. Three more LPs followed.

In 1953, Godfrey's music director and orchestra leader, Archie Bleyer (June 12, 1909 – March 20, 1989), founded Cadence Records. He signed a number of Godfrey regulars and former regulars, including the Chordettes, who had a number of hit records for Cadence.

Beginning in January 1954, the group sang on the Robert Q. Lewis Show, a weekday afternoon program on CBS-TV.

The Chordettes had released a couple of singles with Arthur Godfrey on Columbia in 1950-51 but did not cut a solo single until their breakout hit, "Mr. Sandman", released in late 1954 and which went on to become a number one 1955 hit for 7 weeks. It sold in excess of a million copies and was awarded gold disc status. Archie Bleyer himself was on that record along with the group; Bleyer stripped down the sound to highlight the girls' voices. They also reached number two with 1958's "Lollipop", another million-seller, and a number 2 on the charts, also charted with a vocal version of the themes from Disney's Zorro (U.S. number 17) (1958) and the film Never on Sunday (U.S. number 13) (1961). Other hits for the group included "Eddie My Love" (U.S. number 14) (a cover of a song by doo-wop group The Teen Queens), "Born to Be With You" (U.S. number 5), "Lay Down Your Arms" in 1956, and "Just Between You and Me" (U.S. number 8) in 1957. Their cover of "The White Rose Of Athens" reached the Australian Top 15 in May, 1962. The US single "In The Deep Blue Sea" was a one-week Music Vendor entry four months later (number 128).

Janet Ertel married Bleyer in 1954. Her daughter Jackie married another Cadence recording star, Phil Everly of The Everly Brothers.

The Chordettes appeared on American Bandstand on August 5, 1957, the first episode of that show to be broadcast nationally on the ABC Television Network. The Chordettes also appeared on American Bandstand on February 22, 1958, and again on April 26, 1958.

In 1961, Jinny Osborn again left the group. Unable to find a satisfactory replacement, the group disbanded in 1963.

Recent events

The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001.

Lynn Evans Mand sang on all the Chordettes' Cadence Recordings. In 2004, Mand appeared on a PBS television special Magic Moments: The Best of 50s Pop, with other 1950s pop icons, singing "Lollipop".

In mid-2023, hundreds of videos featuring women dancing to the Chordettes recording of "Pink Shoe Laces" went viral on TikTok and YouTube.

Deaths

Alice Mae Buschmann Spielvogel died in 1981 at the age of 55.

Janet Ertel Bleyer died on November 22, 1988, at the age of 75.

Jinny Osborn (later known as Jinny Janis) died in 2003 at the age of 76.

Nancy Overton died on April 5, 2009, at the age of 83 after a long battle with esophageal cancer.

Dorothy "Dottie" (Hummitzsch) Schwartz died on April 4, 2016, at the age of 89.

Lynn Evans Mand died on February 6, 2020, at the age of 95.

Carol Buschmann died in Sheboygan, Wisconsin on September 30, 2023, at the age of 96.

Members

• Janet Ertel (née Buschmann; September 21, 1913 – November 22, 1988) (1946-1963; did not tour from May, 1958-1963)
• Alice Mae Buschmann Spielvogel (July 31, 1925 – January 6, 1981) (1946-1947)
• Dorothy "Dottie" (Hummitzsch) Schwartz (February 18, 1927 - April 4, 2016) (1946-1952)
• Jinny Osborn/Lockard (April 25, 1927 – May 19, 2003) (1946-1953, 1957-1961)
• Carol Buschmann (1947-1963) d. 2023
• Lynn Evans (née Hargate; May 2, 1924 – February 6, 2020) (1953-1963)
• Margie Needham (1953-1957)
• Nancy Overton (1957-1963; touring only?) (February 6, 1926 - April 5, 2009)

Discography