The Critters were a successful American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 pop

Pop music

Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

 group

Musical ensemble

A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...

 with several hits

Hit record

A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...

 in the 1960s.

The group formed in New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

 in 1964 when singer-guitarist

Guitarist

A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...

 Don Ciccone and saxophonist

Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...

 Bob Podstawski joined local group the Vibratones, comprising Jim Ryan (lead guitar

Lead guitar

Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...

), Ken Gorka (bass

Bass guitar

The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

), Jack Decker (drum

Drum

The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...

s), and Chris Darway (keyboards

Keyboard instrument

A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

). They named themselves The Critters in emulation of similar band names like The Animals

The Animals

The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...

.

Originally signed to Musicor Records

Musicor Records

Musicor Records was a New York City based record label, active during the 1960s and 1970s. The label was founded by songwriter Aaron Schroeder and distributed by United Artists Records...

 by Jimmy Radcliffe

Jimmy Radcliffe

James "Jimmy" Radcliffe was an American soul singer, composer, arranger, conductor and record producer.-Biography:James Radcliffe was born in New York City...

, who also produced their first release "Georgianna" backed with "I'm Gonna Give" in 1964 they eventually signed with Kapp Records

Kapp Records

Kapp Records was an independent record label started in 1954 by David Kapp, brother of Jack Kapp . David Kapp founded his own label after stints with Decca Records and RCA Victor Records. Kapp licensed its records to London Records for release in the UK.In 1967, David Kapp sold his label to MCA Inc...

, and, in 1964, recorded John Sebastian

John Sebastian

John Benson Sebastian Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and autoharpist. He is best known as a founder of The Lovin' Spoonful, a band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000...

's song

Song

In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...

 "Younger Girl

Younger Girl

"Younger Girl" is a song written by John Sebastian and originally recorded by his band, The Lovin' Spoonful, for their 1965 debut album Do You Believe in Magic. American pop group, The Critters, covered the song and released it as a single in 1966. It reached number 38 on the UK Singles Chart....

" for their first release. The song was selected for the band by Kapp producer Artie Ripp. However, because Ciccone, Ryan and Podstawski were then all accepted at Villanova University

Villanova University

Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...

, the record

Gramophone record

A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...

 was not completed until late 1965. "Younger Girl" became a minor pop hit in early 1966, and reached #38 in the UK Singles Chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 in July that year. It was followed by Ciccone's song "Mr. Dieingly Sad", which reached #17 later in the year. The group had their final chart

Record chart

A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....

 hit with "Don't Let The Rain Fall Down On Me" in 1967, hitting #39.

After recording several singles and one album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

 (Younger Girl), the original band split up when Podstawski, Ciccone and Decker joined the armed services, and Darway left for art college. Ryan and Gorka then attempted to maintain the group with new members for some time, releasing two more albums (Touch 'n Go With The Critters and Critters).

Later, Ryan recorded

Sound recording and reproduction

Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...

 and toured with Carly Simon

Carly Simon

Carly Elisabeth Simon is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records, and has since been the recipient of two Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for her work...

 before working as a studio

Recording studio

A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...

 guitarist. Ciccone joined Frankie Valli

Frankie Valli

Frankie Valli is an American musician, most famous as frontman of The Four Seasons. He is well-known for his unusually powerful falsetto singing voice...

 and The Four Seasons

The Four Seasons (group)

The Four Seasons are an American rock and pop band who became internationally successful in the mid-1960s. The Vocal Group Hall of Fame has stated that the group was the most popular rock band before The Beatles...

, and later toured with Tommy James and the Shondells. Gorka now owns The Bitter End

The Bitter End

The Bitter End is a nightclub in New York City's Greenwich Village. It opened its doors in 1961 at 147 Bleecker Street under the auspices of owner Fred Weintraub. The club changed its name to The Other End during the 1970s...

 in Greenwich Village

Greenwich Village

Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...

.

Chris Darway went on to form Johnny's Dance Band, a popular group in the Philadelphia area in the late 1970s, followed by The Chet Bolins Band.

Kurt Shanaman of Mountainside, New Jersey

Mountainside, New Jersey

If you are looking for the community in Ontario, see Mountainside, Ontario.Mountainside is a borough in Union County, New Jersey, United States...

filled in on drums on tour and in the studio in 1967.