Charles Calello

Charles Calello (born August 24, 1938) is an American arranger, composer, conductor, record producer, and singer born in Newark, New Jersey. Calello attended Newark Arts High School[1][2] and the Manhattan School of Music,[3] in New York City. His track record of successfully collaborating with various artists to produce or arrange Billboard hit songs led to his nickname in the industry as the "Hit Man."

Charles Calello
Calello Conducting in 2018
Calello Conducting in 2018
Background information
Birth nameCharles Calello
Born (1938-08-24) August 24, 1938
Newark, New Jersey, US
OriginNewark, New Jersey
GenresRock, pop
Occupation(s)Record producer, arranger, conductor, composer, musician
Instrument(s)Bass guitar
Years active1956-present

In the late 1950s, Calello was a member of Frankie Valli's group The Four Lovers, but left before the group was transformed into The Four Seasons. In 1962, he became the group's musical arranger. In 1965, he briefly filled in for Nick Massi (who was Calello's replacement in The Four Lovers five years earlier but had abruptly quit the band) while the band prepared Joe Long to take the role on a permanent basis.[4] Following his stint with the Seasons, he became a staff arranger/producer at Columbia Records. In 1968, he became an independent producer and arranger and a year later arranged Frank Sinatra's album Watertown, written by Bob Gaudio.

He has worked and recorded with Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Roberto Carlos, Neil Diamond, Al Kooper, Bruce Springsteen, Jane Olivor, Laura Nyro, Liza Minnelli, Engelbert Humperdinck, the Cyrkle, Jimmy Clanton, Ray Charles, Deana Martin, Natalie Cole, Bobby Vinton, Janis Ian, Barry Manilow, Juice Newton, Red Rider, Nancy Sinatra, the Highwaymen, Shirley Ellis, Deborah Allen, and many others. Calello was the conductor and responsible for the string arrangements on Springsteen's "Jungleland" from the album Born to Run.

Calello has had over 100 Billboard chart records, 38 of which have been top 20.[5] Some of his hits include “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond, “Native New Yorker” by Odyssey, “My Heart Belongs to Me” by Barbra Streisand, and “After the Lovin'” by Engelbert Humperdinck. In 1979, he had his own hit record with a disco version of "Sing, Sing, Sing".[6]

He has also composed film music, including the scores to Who Killed Teddy Bear (1965) and The Lonely Lady (1983). In 1992, he became principal arranger and assistant conductor of the Florida Symphonic Pops in Boca Raton, which became the Sunshine Pops Orchestra.

References
  1. "Newark Arts High School : Our history". Newark Public Schools. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
  2. McCall, Tris. "Sinatra at 100: Revisiting the voice of Hoboken", Inside Jersey, December 11, 2015. Accessed August 14, 2018. "On Watertown, a lost concept set about a small-town man abandoned by his wife, Sinatra collaborated with, among others, Four Seasons songwriter Bob Gaudio and arranger and pop bassist (and Newark Arts High graduate) Charles Calello."
  3. "Cover Biography: Charlie Calello" (PDF). New On The Charts Archive. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
  4. Jordan, Chris. "Joe Long, Four Seasons bassist and Elizabeth native, has died". North Jersey Media Group. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  5. "Calello Billboard Top 100". charlescalello.com. Retrieved 16 Jan 2016.
  6. "Charles Calello > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles". All Music. Retrieved 3 September 2009.


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