Pop-Tops
{{Short description|Spanish band}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2010}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Pop-Tops
| image =
| caption =
| image_size =
| background = group_or_band
| alias =
| genre = Pop
| years_active = 1967-1974
| label = Barclay Sonoplay (Spain)
Explosion (Spain)
Bellaphon (Germany)
| associated_acts =
| website =
| current_members =
| past_members = Phil Trim
Julián Luis Angulo
Alberto Vega
Enrique Gómez
Ignacio Pérez
José Lipiani
Ray Gómez
Francisco Urbano Romero
Rafael Guillermo Gertrudis
}}
Pop Tops (or Los Pop-Tops) were a vocal/instrumental band, formed in 1967 in Madrid, Spain, with Phil Trim from Trinidad and Tobago as lead singer. Their sound was a blend of baroque pop with the soulful vocals of Trim.
Members
Original set-up included
- Phil Trim (born January 5, 1940, in Trinidad and Tobago) – lead singer
- Julián Luis Angulo – guitar, vocals
- Alberto Vega – saxophone, clarinet, vocals
- Enrique Gómez – bass, trumpet
- Ignacio Pérez – organ, piano
- José Lipiani – drums
- Ray Gómez – guitar
Some changes occurred in members:
- Francisco Urbano Romero – drums (replacing José Lipani)
- Rafael Guillermo Gertrudis – keyboards, piano (replacing Ignacio Pérez)
Hits
Their first release to gain attention was "Oh Lord, Why Lord" (1968), written by Jean Marcel Bouchety and Phil Trim.[http://repertoire.bmi.com/TitleSearch.asp?querytype=WorkName&page=1&fromrow=1&torow=25&keyname=Oh%20Lord%20Why%20Lord&blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=False&blnAltTitles=False] {{dead link|date=August 2015}} It was the first pop song to incorporate the melody of Pachelbel's Canon in D. That single's b-side, "The Voice of the Dying Man" (based on a Johann Sebastian Bach composition) was also recorded in Spanish as "La Voz del Hombre Caido".
They are best known for their 1971 hit "Mamy Blue",{{discogs master|197160|Pop-Tops: Mamy Blue}} referring to a son's poignant song addressed to his departed mother about his childhood memories and life in general, sometimes spelled "Mommy Blue", "Mammy Blue" or "Mummy Blue", which was a Top 10 hit throughout much of Europe, Japan (#2), and Canada (#42), and a minor Billboard Hot 100 chart hit in the United States (#57). It was covered in the US by the Stories peaking at No. 50 in 1973. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a platinum record.{{cite book
| first= Joseph
| last= Murrells
| year= 1978
| title= The Book of Golden Discs
| edition= 2nd
| publisher= Barrie and Jenkins Ltd
| location= London
| page= [https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/297 297]
| isbn= 0-214-20512-6
| url-access= registration
| url= https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/297
}}{{where|date=February 2016}}
The composer and lyricist of the French song "Mamy Blue" was Hubert Giraud. English lyrics were written by Phil Trim. The Pop Tops also recorded Italian and Spanish versions, with lyrics by Gefingal.
As follow-up singles they released "Suzanne Suzanne" (early 1972) and "Hideaway" (mid 1972), which were only minor hits in some European countries.
Discography
=Albums=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
! align="center" rowspan="2" width="150"| Title ! align="center" rowspan="2" width="10"| Year ! align="center" colspan="1" width="20"| Peak positions |
| scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| GER |
|---|
| scope="row"| Canarios
| 1968 | align="center"| — |
| scope="row"| Mamy Blue
| 1971 | align="center"| 30 |
| scope="row"| Top Pops of Pop Tops
| 1976 | align="center"| — |
=Singles=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
! align="center" rowspan="2" width="150"| Title ! align="center" rowspan="2" width="10"| Year ! align="center" colspan="7" width="20"| Peak positions ! align="center" rowspan="2" width="120"| Album |
| scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| AUS {{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|authorlink=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, N.S.W.|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6|page=236}} ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| AUT ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| GER ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| ESP ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| SWI ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| UK ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| US |
|---|
| scope="row"| "Oh Lord, Why Lord"
| 1968 | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| 1 | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| 78 | Canarios |
| scope="row"| "Mamy Blue" {{cite book|title=Billboard|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_R0UEAAAAMBAJ|quote=MAMMY BLUE.|date=29 January 1972|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_R0UEAAAAMBAJ/page/n67 68]–|issn=0006-2510}}
| 1971 | align="center"| — | align="center"| 3 | align="center"| 1 | align="center"| 1 | align="center"| 1 | align="center"| 35 | align="center"| 57 | Mamy Blue |
| scope="row"| "Suzanne Suzanne"
| rowspan=2|1972 | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| 16 | align="center"| 23 | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | rowspan=2|Top Pops of Pop Tops |
| scope="row"| "Hideaway"
| align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| 22 | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — |
| scope="row"| "My Little Woman"
| 1973 | align="center"| 75 | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | align="center"| — | |
=Spanish releases=
Barclay, Spain
- 1967: Con su blanca palidez / I Can't Go On
- 1967: Viento to otoño (Autumn Winds) / Cry
- 1968: Somewhere / The Voice of the Dying Man (La voz del hombre caido)
- 1968: Oh Lord, Why Lord / Beyond the Sea (El mar)
- 1968: Oh Lord, Why Lord (in Spanish) / El mar
- 1968: Esa mujer (That Woman) / Adagio cardenal
- 1968: That Woman / The Man I Am Today
- 1969: Pepa / Junto a ti
- 1969: Dzim-dzim-dzas (Love and Care) / Young and Foolish
- 1970: Soñar, bailar y cantar (She's Coming Back) / Anytime
Explosion, Spain
- 1971: Dios a todos hizo libres (Road to Freedom) / Movimento de amor
- 1971: Road to Freedom / Who Will Believe
- 1971: Mamy Blue (span.) / Love Motion
- 1971: Mamy Blue / Grief and Torture
- 1972: Suzanne Suzanne / Happiness Ville
- 1972: Suzanne Suzanne (in Spanish) / Walk along by the Riverside
- 1972: Hideaway / What a Place to Live In
- 1973: My Little Woman / Girl, What's on Your Mind?
- 1973: Happy, Hippy, Youppy Song / Where Can I Go
- 1973: Happy, Hippy, Youppy Song (in Spanish) / Angeline
- 1974: What a Way to Go / Baby I Will Cry
=German releases=
Bellaphon, West Germany
- 1971: Mamy Blue / Road to Freedom
- 1971: Oh Lord, Why Lord / Walk Along by the Riverside (Remake)
- 1972: Suzanne Suzanne / Happiness Ville
- 1972: Hideaway / What a Place to Live In
- 1973: My Little Woman / Girl, What's on Your Mind?
- 1973: Happy, Hippy, Youppy Song / Where Can I Go
- 1973: What a Way to Go / Baby I Will Cry