The 1910 Fruitgum Company is an American bubblegum pop band of the 1960s. The group's Billboard Hot 100 hits were "Simon Says", "May I Take a Giant Step", "1, 2, 3, Red Light", "Goody Goody Gumdrops", "Indian Giver", "Special Delivery", and "The Train".
Bubblegum pop was marketed to preteens as the evolving genre of rock music was beginning to target older adolescents and adults with darker lyrics and heavier rhythms. The simple structure of the songs and non-political content of bubblegum pop appealed to a younger audience. Many of the songs in the bubblegum pop genre like "1, 2, 3 Red Light" were intended to be singles within the budget of that younger preteen audience. "1, 2, 3 Red Light" became one of the biggest hits of the genre.
The band began as Jeckell and the Hydes in New Jersey in 1966. The original members were Frank Jeckell, Mark Gutkowski, Floyd Marcus, Pat Karwan and Steve Mortkowitz â all from Linden, New Jersey.
During 1967, they were signed to Buddah Records, where they released five LPs under their own name and a variety of singles, as well as appearing on the LP The Kasenetz-Katz Singing Orchestral Circus. Their first hit single, "Simon Says", reached number 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart. The band started touring, opening for major acts such as the Beach Boys. They also released these other chart hits: "May I Take a Giant Step" (U.S. number 63), "1, 2, 3, Red Light" (U.S. number 5), "Special Delivery" (U.S. number 38), "Goody, Goody Gumdrops" (U.S. number 37), "Indian Giver" (U.S. number 5) and "The Train" (U.S. number 57).
The original group disbanded in 1970.
In 1999, original member Frank Jeckell and Mick Mansueto put the act back together. As of 2019, Fruitgum currently performs its own hits, in addition to other songs from the 1960s.
"Simon Says" sold three and a half million. "1, 2, 3, Red Light" and "Indian Giver" each sold over one million copies. All three were awarded gold discs.