The Poni-Tails

Toni Cistone (lead), LaVerne Novak, and Karen Topinka were the original Poni-Tails. Unlike some other acts who scored big in rock, the trio of ladies didn't come from meager beginnings; they all were from Lyndhurst, OH (an upper-middle-class suburb of Cleveland where they expected children to graduate from high school, go to college, earn a degree, and become a professional; involvement in popular music was considered frivolous). The trio began singing at Brush High School; attorney John Jewitt introduced them to music publisher Tom Illius who got the ball rolling. Illius liked a self-penned song the high schoolers wrote, "Que la Bozena," and offered to shop it around town. A deal was secured with a local label, Point Records, with Illius acting as their manager. Point released "Your Wild Heart" with the Poni-Tails tune as the B-side. They almost charted with their first release, but Joy Layne, a Chicago singer, covered the song on Mercury Records. Layne's version zoomed to number 20 on Billboard's pop charts; her version deserved to hit, she had range and vocal dynamics that the Poni-Tails didn't possess, and she was only 15 years old. Layne was a Sandy Duncan look- and soundalike. Tom Illius secured a deal for the Poni-Tails with Marc Records; one release resulted, "Can I Be Sure," which didn't do as well as their debut recording. Around this time, Karen Topinka's father had enough of the music business, its promises, the broken dreams, and elusive royalties, and persuaded Topinka to quit. The Poni-Tails held auditions and chose Patti McCabe, a Regina High School student, as Karen Topinka's replacement. Through Illius, a deal got consummated with ABC-Paramount and the revamped Poni-Tails waxed "Just My Luck to Be Fifteen," which vanished from sight upon release. Then...