Girl Groups

The motorcycle revving, the startled "lookout-lookout-lookout-lookout" cry of the protagonist, the somber bass drum beat following the inevitable accident – all of these contribute to one of pop's mini-masterpieces, the Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack". The track serves as a great touchstone for modern-day girl group classics like Girls Aloud's "Something Kinda Ooooh". Groove with the superstars (from the Supremes to Destiny's Child) before further exploring the universe of sister acts in Next Steps.

Phil Spector's reputation was made during the classic girl group era, as he oversaw careers for the Crystals and others. His unique "Wall of Sound" was often imitated, but never replicated. By the mid-'60s, the girl-group phenomenon had faded, but disco would deliver us the Nolans ("I'm in the Mood for Dancing") and the '90s got all feisty thanks to Shampoo ("Trouble"). Find some of the crucial bands who paved the way for future girl rockers in Deep Cuts.

There are some fabulous, hard-rockin' girl groups here, none more inspirational (or less appreciated, sadly) than Fanny, featuring the Millington sisters, Jean and June. "Blind Alley" is belter, and so is "Race with the Devil" by Girlschool who would win big respect from the likes of Mötorhead. Modern bands such as the Donnas ("Take It Off") owe these outfits a huge debt.

Right around the beginning of the sexual revolution (noted by British poet Philip Larkin as arriving "Between the end of the Chatterley ban/And the Beatles' first LP"), the girl group sprang up as a pop force. Although they sometimes portrayed women as subservient, many of their songs presaged the burgeoning feminist movement, which would propel a host of rockin' sisters into the charts as future decades unfolded. In the course of pop history, the girl group would take on all genres, from the disco of Sister Sledge to the new wave of the Go-Go's and the R&B of TLC. These Essentials show the girl group in all its colours.