Frank Guida

Frank Joseph Guida (May 26, 1922 – May 19, 2007) was an Italian-American songwriter and independent music producer credited with creating what he dubbed the “Norfolk Sound." The “Norfolk Sound” was an amalgam of Guida’s roots in Calypso music, rhythm and blues, novel production techniques, an entirely original double-bass drumbeat, overmodulated party sound, and talented musicians steeped in jazz and rhythm and blues traditions. The distinct sound he created has been credited as influencing such major songwriters and producers as Bruce Springsteen, Phil Spector, The Beatles, and Motown. Two of Guida’s hits, “New Orleans” and “Quarter to Three” were favorites of John Lennon’s. Guida’s recordings have been used in such films as Mask, Mermaids, Jaded, Chances Are, Clean and Sober, The Fabelmans, and Bikeriders.