The Chords were a 1950s American doo-wop group, whose only hit was "Sh-Boom".
The Chords, featured Carl Feaster (lead), Claude Feaster (baritone), Jimmy Keyes (first tenor), Floyd "Buddy" McRae (second tenor) and William "Ricky" Edwards (bass), were formed in 1951 in the Bronx, New York, but were not discovered until three years later when they were spotted singing in a subway station, a performance that ultimately landed them a recording contract with Atlantic Records' Cat Records label.
Jerry Wexler, Atlantic's A&R man, had The Chords cover a Patti Page hit, "Cross Over the Bridge" (it was also covered by The Flamingos for the Chance Records label), but it was the B-side, "Sh-Boom," a vocal tune with an a cappella catchy introduction that caught the imagination. After "Sh-Boom" became a hit, the A-side was replaced by the song "Little Maiden." A cover version later done by a white group called The Crew-Cuts, attempted to add their own spin on the song by seemingly adding nonsensical syllables ("shh-boom, shh-boom, yadda da da yadda da da da da da") that caused considerably more commotion. However the words ("Yadda da da yadda da da da da da") were never sung in the original version by The Chords.