TeachRock

Formed in New Jersey in 1961 by sisters Barbara and Phyllis Allbut, the Angels are best known for scoring one of the premiere hits of the Girl Group era, 1963’s “My Boyfriend’s Back.”

Before “Boyfriend,” the Angels had moderate success with a few singles, and the Allbut sisters and lead singer Peggy Santiglia supplemented their incomes working as studio singers in New York City, singing backup on other people’s records and recording demos, commercials and radio jingles. In 1963 the group signed to Smash Records and began working with the team of Bob Feldman, Richard Gottehrer and Jerry Goldstein, who wrote and produced "My Boyfriend's Back." (The trio would later produce hits including “Hang On Sloopy” by the McCoys and “I Want Candy” by The Strangeloves.)

"My Boyfriend's Back" was an early example of the emerging “Girl Group” sound, fusing tough East Coast Doo-Wop with catchy Pop production touches and a message that females portrayed in songs were no longer content to run crying at the first sign of trouble. The combination of the song’s playful lyrics, its spoken introduction, the syncopated hand claps and the explosive chorus drove the single to number one, selling over a million copies.

With a succession of personnel changes, the Angels released many more singles throughput the 1960s, but while they met with modest success, they never again matched the heights they achieved with “My Boyfriends Back.” As background vocalists they continued to add their patented vocal sound to many recording sessions, most notably the 1966 No. 1 hit "Lightnin' Strikes" by Lou Christie. With a shifting lineup, the group has continued to perform, and remains a fixture on the oldies circuit.