Others were not so lucky , songwriters and producers came to the forefront. And the mastermind of this was none other than Don Kirshner (Yes, THE Don Kirshner of the late-night '70s show "Don Kirshner's Rock Concert."). Kirshner began as a songwriter in 1958 and wanted to create a teen version of Tin Pan Alley.
That same year, he and Al Nevins (guitarist for the group The Three Suns) founded Aldon Music. The new company was across the street from the Brill Building, which was occupied by well-known publishing firms.
Teams of new composers were quickly discovered . Just two days after the business opened, aspiring writers Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield walked in. They played a few songs for Kirshner. And the rest is history. Kirshner's friend, Connie Francis, recorded "Stupid Cupid" and "Fallin' ". Sedaka also began to record his own material (which was unusual for the time). In 1959, he was signed by RCA (which Al Nevins helped him secure) and released 'The Diary", which launched his singing career.
Carole Klein (later known as Carole King and the subject of "Oh! Carol", a Sedaka hit), met songwriting partner Gerry Goffin in 1958. In 1960, the duo wrote "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" and the song was then shopped around to several record companies. ( At one point, Johnny Mathis was suggested to sing this!) The song was finally taken over to an independent company, Scepter Records. Several careers were launched as the song went to No.1 and became the first No. 1 hit by a female group.
Barry Mann-Cynthia Weil and Ellie Greenwich-Jeff Barry were two other prominent songwriting teams that Kirshner discovered. These two teams composed songs primarily for The Shangri-las, The Ronettes, The Crystals, The Dixie Cups, and Darlene Love.
Otis Blackwell, a prominent songwriter himself ("All Shook Up" "Don't Be Cruel" and "Great Balls Of Fire" among others), brought in the team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. This duo wrote mostly for Elvis Presley and The Drifters.
The team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, already renowned for their classic '50s hits, most notably with The Coasters, often worked in conjunction with several of the Brill Building regulars. (One of Leiber's sons has continued the tradition: He co-wrote "Forever Your Girl" by Paula Abdul!) As the hits began to happen, Aldon Music became a publishing empire; Kirshner and Nevins became very wealthy.
