The Toys

{{short description|American pop girl group of the 1960s}} {{About|the American girl group|the Thai musician|The Toys (Thai musician)}} {{Distinguish|The Toyes}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}} {{Infobox musical artist  | name = The Toys | image = The Toys 1965.jpg  | caption = The group in 1965: June Montiero (left), Barbara Harris (center), and Barbara Parritt (right) | image_size =  | background = group_or_band | alias = | origin = New York City, U.S. | genre = R&B, pop | years_active = 1961–1968 | label = DynoVoice, Musicor | website = | current_members = | past_members = Barbara Harris<br/>Barbara Parritt<br/>June Montiero }}

'''The Toys''' were an American pop girl group from Jamaica, New York, which was formed in 1961 and disbanded in 1968.<ref name="AMG"/> Their most successful recording was "A Lover's Concerto" (1965), which sold more than two million copies and reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart.

== History == {{More citations needed section|date=November 2014}} '''Barbara Harris''' started singing in her hometown churches at an early age and moved to Queens, New York City, when she was 11 years old. In high school, she joined a band with four other young singers: Barbara Parritt (later Toomer), June Montiero, Betty Stokes and Betty Blocker.<ref>{{cite news|title=Barbara Harris of the Toys: interview|author=Voger, Mark|newspaper=The Star-Ledger|date=May 27, 2011|url= http://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2011/05/barbara_harris_of_the_toys_int.html|access-date=November 4, 2014}}</ref> Stokes and Blocker eventually left the group, so Harris, Parritt and Montiero formed a trio.

Their friend Bobby Uri, a manager, named the band '''The Charlettes''', making them work doing background vocals for several recording artists. At a talent show in Brooklyn, they met Eddy Chase, who in turn introduced them to manager Vince Marc and songwriter/recording executive Bob Crewe.

The group was then named '''The Toys''' and landed their first recording contract on Crewe's DynoVoice Records. Marc introduced them also to songwriters Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell.<ref name="AMG">{{cite web |first= |last= |url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p24887/biography|pure_url=yes}} |title=Biography by Andrew Hamilton |website=AllMusic|access-date=16 December 2008}}</ref>

The couple wrote most of the songs the trio recorded. They took a piano piece from a Bach exercise book ("Minuet in G major" by Christian Petzold), put a Motown bassline to it, and "A Lover's Concerto" was born: it was released in 1965 and soon rose to No. 2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The band followed that up with another hit, "Attack!", also written by Linzer and Randell: released in 1966, it reached the Top 20.

The songwriters also produced the group's 1965–66 recordings on the DynoVoice record label.<ref name="AMG"/> Global sales of this disc exceeded two million copies, with a gold record awarded by the RIAA in 1965.<ref name="The Book of Golden Discs">{{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/198 198] | isbn= 0-214-20512-6 | url-access= registration | url= https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/198 }}</ref>

The first U.S. tour of the trio was with Gene Pitney.<ref name="The Book of Golden Discs"/> In 1967, they changed labels and producers, moving to the Pitney's ones, Musicor Records, but charted only one more minor single (a cover of Brian Hyland's "Sealed with a Kiss") before breaking up.<ref name="AMG"/>

The band appeared on most of the major TV rock programs, including ''Hullabaloo'' and ''Shindig!''.<ref name="AMG"/> They had a cameo role performing their song "Attack!" in the 1967 beach movie ''It's a Bikini World''.<ref name="The Book of Golden Discs"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061827/|title=It's a Bikini World|date=14 April 1967|access-date=15 October 2021|website=IMDb.com}}</ref>

Barbara Harris continued to perform on public television and at "Oldie Shows" as '''The Toys featuring Barbara Harris'''. She has also sung with Joe Rivers, known for Johnnie & Joe's hit, "Over the Mountain, Across the Sea".

In 1998, she produced and released her first solo CD, entitled ''Barbara Now'', for which she wrote all but two of the songs. In 2016, she released the singles "Forever Spring" and "(Rock 'n' Roll) Soothes The Soul".

==Members== The trio consisted of: * Barbara Harris (born "Barbara Ann Harris", August 18, 1945, Elizabeth City, North Carolina),<ref name="LarkinGE">{{cite book|title=The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music|editor=Colin Larkin|publisher=Guinness Publishing|date=1992|edition=First|isbn=0-85112-939-0|page=2522}}</ref> * Barbara Parritt (born October 1, 1944, Wilmington, North Carolina)<ref name="LarkinGE"/> * June Montiero (born July 1, 1946, Queens, New York)<ref name="LarkinGE"/>

==Discography== ===Singles=== :''(U.S. chart positions are ''Billboard'' Hot 100 except as noted)''. *1965: "A Lover's Concerto" (U.S. No. 2 (''Cashbox'' charts: No. 1), UK No. 5)<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums"/> *1966: "Attack!" (U.S. No. 18, UK No. 36)<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">{{cite book | first= David | last= Roberts | year= 2006 | title= British Hit Singles & Albums | edition= 19th | publisher= Guinness World Records Limited | location= London | isbn= 1-904994-10-5 | page= 563}}</ref> *1966: "Baby Toys" (U.S. No. 76) *1966: "Silver Spoon" (U.S. No. 111) *1966: "May My Heart Be Cast into Stone" (U.S. No. 85) *1968: "Sealed with a Kiss" (U.S. No. 112, U.S. R&B No. 43)

===Albums=== *1966: ''The Toys Sing "A Lover's Concerto" and "Attack!"'' (U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 No. 92; Billboard Black Albums No. 9) - a CD version was released in 1994 with two bonus tracks.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[http://www.barbarastoys.net/ Barbara Harris' official site] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20020421013643/http://www.sundazed.com/scene/exclusives/toys_exclusive.html Interview with The Toys] *[http://doowopheaven.blogspot.de/2013/10/the-toys-aka-charlettes.html The Toys at Doo Wop Heaven] *{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=mn0000388343|label=Barbara Ann Harris}} *{{IMDb name|1138407}} *{{Discogs artist}}

Category:African-American girl groups Category:American rhythm and blues musical groups Category:Musical groups established in 1961 Category:Musical groups disestablished in 1968 Category:20th-century African-American women singers Category:1961 establishments in New York City Category:Musical groups from Queens, New York