Salt Water Taffy Vinyl Record Albums

The core group who comprised Salt Water Taffy was Rod McBrien, Johnny Giametta, Phil Giarrantano, Kathy Weinberg, and Janie Brannan. McBrien, the co-writer and producer for the group, was their leader. He was raised in Amityville, near Long Island, in New York. He'd written and recorded his first songs in high school, and fronted a band called the Tornadoes, who recorded a single for R&M Records. Soon, that group was banging on the doors of the Brill Building, where Jim Gribble, a manager, liked what he heard in their new demos, signing them to a recording/management contract. Their album was released on Down Records, then a new George Goldner label. McBrien, meanwhile, became an apprentice audio-engineer at Ultra-Sonic Recording Studios, in Long Island, where he met George "Shadow" Morton and engineered the Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack." He also became a member of the Valrays, and later moved over to Roulette Records' studios, where he met songwriter Ted Daryll. In addition to working with the Valrays, McBrien worked with the Casualeers and another group called the Eastern Scene. From Roulette, McBrien moved to Allegro, a studio owned by Laurie Records, located in the basement of the Brill Building.