2002 Inductee – The Vocal Group Hall of Fame

The Swan Silvertones

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 07:27:32 +0000

The Swan Silvertones

THE SWAN SILVERTONES are a premiere gospel group and one of the great music experiences awaiting anyone who has never heard them. If you are not a fan of gospel music or “religious” music of any kind, don’t let that fact deter you from having this unique listening experience. This is pure music at the highest level.

The a cappella quartet Four Harmony Kings was created by tenor Claude Jeter in 1938 in Coalwood, West Virginia, but the name was changed to the Swan Silvertones when they began a 15-minute radio show sponsored by the Swan Bakery Company on the Knoxville station WBIR in 1942. They developed a national reputation during their contract with King Records from 1946 to 1951, recording some 21 recordings (mostly in the jubilee gospel style) including “I Cried Holy” and “Go Ahead.” They joined Specialty Records from 1951 to 1953, but issued only four singles (in a more contemporary, harder style) before they were dropped by that label. The early group had lead singers Jeter and Solomon Womack, tenors Robert Crenshaw and John Manson, baritone John H. Myles, and bass Henry K. Bossard.

They really came into their own when they signed and recorded with Vee-Jay and recorded with that label from 1956 through 1964. The smoother Vee-Jay sound is probably due to arranger Paul Owens, who joined the group in 1952. Influenced by jazz-vocal groups like the Four Freshmen and the Hi-Los, Owens smoothed out the sound and made it more contemporary, even progressive.

Starting in 1956, the group began adding instruments to what had been up until then a purely vocal or a capella sound. The excellent guitarist Linwood Hargrove added greatly to the emerging Vee-Jay sound and the additions (on recordings) of jazz sidemen Bob Cranshaw on bass and Walter Perkins — founding members of MJT (3) — on drums completed the sound.

Perhaps their greatest hit was “Oh Mary Don’t You Weep,” released in 1959 — an incredible listening experience. It is in this song that Claude Jeter intones the phrase “I’ll be a bridge over deep water, if you trust in my name” that inspired Paul Simon to compose “Bridge Over Troubled Water” some years later. The Swan Silvertones had a great effect on many rock (Al Kooper) and country (Gary Stewart) artists. During their nine years at Vee-Jay, the main members of the group were tenor (and falsetto) Claude Jeter, baritone John H. Myles, tenor Paul Owens and bass William Conner. Other singers who were in the group during that time were tenors Dewey Young, Robert Crutcher, and Louis Johnson. When Vee-Jay closed in 1965, the group moved to Hob records, where they did one last album before Claude Jeter left to record on his own and focus on his ministry.

– Michael Erlewine

The Skyliners

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 07:24:47 +0000

The Skyliners

If you were to put together the harmonies of the best ‘50s R&B groups and mix them with The Four Freshmen and The Hi-Los, the result would be the Skyliners, an unbelievably perfect blend of voices emanating from five white Pittsburgh teenagers. The group was formed of members from their different local groups, the Crescents, the Montereys, and the El Rios. In 1958, the Crescents attended St. George’s Catholic School in the Allentown area of Pittsburgh’s South Hills. Former vocalist (the Marquees, studio singers) Joe Rock, now a promo man heard the group and took note of the promising 13-year-old Wally Lester on tenor (although the group as a whole wasn’t completely together). Sometime later, Rock attended a local record hop hosted by Al “Nickles” Noble of KTV’s “Jukebox.” He saw an a cappella group called the Monterey’s and flipped over the 14-year-old bass singer, promptly drafting him for the Crescents. The kid’s name was Jimmy Beaumont, and as good as he was on bass, when he sang in tenor voice he floored everyone; he immediately became the Crescents’ new lead singer.

Around this time, the Crescents heard about a young South Hills High School guitarist. Jackie Taylor’s Hank Ballard guitar style was warmly received, and he too joined the group.

After doing a demo tape of a few originals along with “Sympathy” (THE CADILLACS) and “Please Don’t Tease” (THE SPANIELS), Rock sent the tape to ABC Paramount. The company eventually offered them a contract. In the interim they auditioned for Atlantic’s Jerry Wexler, Jerry Leiber, and Mike Stoller, who also wanted the teenage group; Leiber and Stoller even volunteered to write for them. But somehow both deals were blown.

At Rock’s request, a promotion man from Specialty Records came to Pittsburgh to hear the group, but half of the demoralized Crescents decided to go joy riding rather than meet with him. The three who showed up were Jimmy, Wally, and Jackie. Jimmy was so upset about the missed opportunity he sought out another local quartet that included Janet Vogel (top tenor), Joe VerScharen (baritone), and Richie Atkins (bass), and asked the three if they’d like to join the Crescents. Janet and Joe jumped at the offer and Richie declined. The group had everything but a bass until Jimmy realized their rockin’ guitar player Jackie had a voice that could cover a range from bass to falsetto.

In mid-1958 the Crescents were now Jimmy Beaumont (17, lead), Janet Vogel (16, top tenor), Wally Lester (16, tenor), Joe VerScharen (17, baritone), and Jackie Taylor (17, bass).

Joe Rock, while sitting in his car between stoplights, wrote a lyric titles “Since I Don’t Have You” about the girl who had just left him. Jimmy wrote the music the next night. Someone brought in a tape recorder and a rough a cappella demo was done. Janet, thinking the tape had been turned off, kept riffing at the end, weaving up to an incredible high C finale.

It was this tape that Rock sent to 13 established labels, including Chess, ABC, Imperial, and RCA. All 13 came back with rejection notes. One said the song was negative and should have been “Since I Have You.” Another wrote, “A song with 13 ‘yous’ at the end will never sell!” Undaunted, the group thumbed through the phone book and came up with Calico Records, which was owned by Lou Caposi and Bill Lawrence and had Lenny Martin as A&R head and arranger. The Crescents, who were influenced by the Cadillac’s, the Spaniels, THE EL DORADOS, the Four Freshman, and the Hi-Los, practiced their hearts our and on November 3, 1958 Dodge, sped off, and promptly became involved in a head-on collision. Miraculously, no one was hurt and they arrived in time to audition. After singing ”Since I Don’t Have You” and “One Night, One Night,” Martin said, “Hold it, no need to go any further. That’s my group.”

“Since I Don’t Have You” was recorded on December 3, 1958, at Capitol Studios in New York. 18 musicians were used, an awesome number for a teen vocal group at the time and the first time a full orchestra had been used with a rock group. When the test pressing came back there was no group name on the label, which prompted Rock and the Crescents to think about a new permanent moniker. They came up with the title of an old Charlie Barnett 1945 hit (#19), “Skyliner.”

“Since I Don’t Have You” was released the day after Christmas 1958. The record was soon number one in Pittsburgh, and Dick Clark invited the Skyliners to appear on his February 13th “American Bandstand” show (after their performance he announced the song was an old standard a tribute to the songwriting of Rock and Beaumont). Within three days of the Dick Clark performance “Since” had charted on Billboard’s Top 100 and had sold 100,000 records. Beaumont and company’s debut single did better R&B (#3) then Pop (#12), and the group began to perform on the chitlin circuit, including the Apollo on eight occasions. In the early days stunned silence usually greeted them until they began singing and converting black audiences to instant fans. The Skyliners became the first white group ever to tope the R&B charts (“Since” went to number one in Cashbox).

“This I Swear,” another dreamy Beaumont-Rock love ballad, was issued in May from Calico’s 1409 Fifth Avenue Pittsburgh offices. (Appearing at the New York recording session was a young writer/artist/producer and member of the Teddy Bears named Phil Spector; he later cited “Since I Don’t Have You” as an influence on his production style in the 60s.) Like “Since I Don’t Have You,” “This I Swear” did better on the black charts (#20 R&B to #26 Pop).

Though all the originals issued on Calico read “Skyliners,” Rock and Beaumont actually wrote the songs, occasionally with VerSharon.

“It Happened Today” was their third 45. It reached only number 59 Pop in the fall, but oldies radio played it for the next 30 years as if it had been a top 10 hit. Another goodie was the flip balled “Lonely Way,” which reached number on in Hawaii and was one of their most requested performance songs. As recorded by THE ZIRCONS in 1963, “Lonely Way” helped to start the ‘60s a cappella craze in America. It became a favorite tune of THE MANHATTAN TRANSFER (as the Skyliners were one of their favorite groups).

The January 18, 1960, issue of Billboard cited both sides of the follow-up single (“How Much” and “Lorraine from Spain”) as “Spotlight” Winners of the Week, commenting, “The group has two fine outings. ‘How Much’ is a nicely chanted rock-a-balled. ‘Lorraine’ is a Latin-ish rocker. Their deliveries on both are smooth and winning and either side can take off.” “How Much” had been written by Rock and Beaumont between shows (five a day) at the Regal Theatre in Chicago. They played the test pressing for Alan Freed, who loved it. The record broke quicker than their previous releases but never charted nationally.

In the spring of 1960 the Skyliners released an up-beat version of the Arthur Johnson-Johnny Burke standard “Pennies from Heaven,” putting the group back in the spotlight at number 24 on the home of yet another great Pittsburgh quintet, THE MARCELS.

The Skyliners’ first single on Colpix, “The Door Is Still Open,” failed to chart. The follow-up, “Close Your Eyes,” only reached number 105.

VerScharen got tired of living out of a suitcase and left shortly after getting married. The group signed to Cameo for the single “Three Coins in the Fountain” and then moved on to Viscount Records for “Comes Love,” their best ballad since the early Calico days, masterfully arranged by Jim Drake and sung to perfection by the group. It managed to chart nationally at number 128 on February 16, 1963.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Beaumont left briefly to record a few solo sides for Colpix and its affiliate May, without success.

In June 1963 Jimmy and the group recorded a beautiful version of THE HARPTONES “Since I Fell for You” on Atco that was overlooked. The group them disbanded.

In 1965 Jackie Taylor formed a new Skyliners on Jubilee, issuing a blue-eyed soul ballad called “The Loser,” produced by Mike Lewis (of THE CONCORDS) and Stu Wiener. It reached number 34 R&B and number 72 Pop in the summer of 1965.

After two more ballad singles failed to hit, 1970, when Beaumont, Janet Vogel Rapp (now married), Lester, and VerScharen re-formed for Richard Nader’s Madison Square Garden oldies revival and kept on playing the oldies circuit. The foursome then recorded a Buddah LP in 1970 called The Skyliners Featuring Jimmy Beaumont “Once Upon A Time,” but no single was issued.

A 1975 single, “Where Have They Gone,” looked promising, but its fate was summed up in a note from Joe Rock to this writer: “Here’s a copy of the record Capitol is losing for us.” The record stopped dead at number 100 on March 22nd, becoming their last chart single.

In 1978, Jimmy, Janet, and two newcomers, Bobby Sholes and Jimmie Ross, did an LP for Tortoise International of Southfield, Michigan. As recently as the early ‘90s, Beaumont, Sholes, Rick Morris, and Donna Groom were playing the oldies circuit and keeping the Skyliners; name alive (oldies radio continued to spin “Since I Don’t Have You” and “This I Swear” as if they were new records).

Jackie Taylor became a captain in the army in Vietnam and then went into computers. Wally Lester became a VP for the Clairol Corporation and Joe VerScharen delved into real estate and insurance. Joe Rock continued to manage the Skyliners with Jimmy Beaumont sounding as good as ever. Janet Vogel, wife, mother, and soprano supreme, died on February 21, 1980, at the age of 37.

– Jay Warner

The Shirelles

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 07:21:05 +0000

The Shirelles

The Shirelles were instrumental in defining the girl group sound, and were one of the style’s most successful acts between 1960 and 1963, when they placed six singles in the Top Ten. Bridging doo wop and uptown New York pop-soul, the group projected a beguiling mixture of tenderness and innocence that was grounded in R&B as much as pop/rock. Forming as high school classmates in New Jersey, the Shirelles came under the wing of manager Florence Greenberg, who also ran the Scepter label.

Many of their classic early sides featured innovative, occasionally string-laden production by Luther Dixon, who also penned several of their greatest songs. Top Brill Building pop songwriters like Goffin-King, Bacharach-David, and Van McCoy also supplied the group with material. “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” “Baby It’s You,” “Foolish Little Girl,” “Soldier Boy,” “Dedicated to the One I Love,” and “Mama Said” were their biggest hits, but they also cut a number of less-famous sides, including “Boys,” which (like “Baby It’s You”) was covered by the Beatles on their first LP. After mid-1963, the Shirelles were unable to dent the Top 40, although they recorded several songs, including the original version of “Sha La La” (covered for a hit by Manfred Mann). The group recorded well into the ’70s, updating their sound into a more soul-oriented mode.

– Richie Unterberger
Courtesy of allmusic.com

The Marcels

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 07:15:27 +0000

The Marcels

One of the best vocal groups of all time, the Marcels produced more good recordings in heir tragically short career than many groups did in their long careers.

Their tale starts in 1959 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where baritone Richard F. Knauss of local unnamed ensemble conceived the idea of putting together a Pittsburgh supergroup when he heard bass Fred Johnson sing. They added second tenor Gene J. Bricker from a third group and soon found their first tenor, Ron “Bingo” Mundy. The toughest part was finding an exciting lead, but when they heard Cornelius Harp they knew they had something special.

They practiced on Woodstrun Avenue on Pittsburgh’s north side while attending Oliver Allegheny High School. Sometime during their formation Dick Knauss auditioned for another group, the Dynamics (“Don’t Leave Me,” Dynamic, 1959), but wound up telling their manager Jules Kruspir about n even more exciting quintet he was working with.

Jules went to hear the mixed fivesome (Knauss and Bricker were whit; Harp, Johnson, and Mundy black) at Johnson’s house and liked what he heard. At this time the group decided to call themselves the Marcels after a popular hairstyle of the day that Cornelius wore.

The Marcels practiced songs by many of the ‘50s best R&B acts, including such influences as THE HARPTONES, THE SPANIELS, THE CADILLACS, LITTLE ANTHONY AND THE IMPERIALS, and THE DELVIKINGS. Several of these numbers wound up on a demo tape that Jules sent to Colpix Records, a division of Columbia Pictures. They had no original songs, so the purpose of the tape was strictly to showcase their singing ability. Little did they know that the vocal arrangements on the Cadillacs’ “Zoom” from that 1960 tape would help give them immortality.

Stu Phillips, A&R director for Colpix, liked the demo enough to bring the group to New York. Though he was under orders to concentrate solely on another Colpix act, he liked the Marcels so much he snuck them into the studio after the other artist’s session. They began recording several oldies at RCA Studios on February 15, 1961. Stu asked them to do “Heart and Soul” but no one knew the song, so they opted for an evergreen called “Blue Moon” that had been a 1935 number one hit for alto sax man Glen Gray. Apparently the bass intro arrangement from the demo tape of “Zoom” was still buzzing around in Phillips’s head since he had Johnson apply the now-famous intro note-for-note to the Rogers and Hart standard. That intro went something like “Bomp baba bomp, ba bomp ba bomp bomp, bbaba bomp baba bomp, da dang da dang dang, da ding and dong ding.” Sound familiar?

The recording was done in two takes, which was lucky for the Marcels since they only had eight minutes left in the studio. An overzealous promo man for Colpix heard the Marcels master and played it for WINS disc jockey Murray the K. The soon-to-be “fifth Beatle” was so knocked out by it he reportedly played “Blue Moon” 26 times during his four-hour show. (He never did that with a Beatles song. Perhaps they should have named him he sixth Marcel.) Reaction was so terrific that Colpix rush-released the single in February. Billboard’s February 20th reviewer wrote, “Here’s a wild and woolly old time rock & roll treatment of the well-known standard. There’s a great deal happening on this arrangement and the side figures to have a strong chance.”

Even the label wasn’t prepared for what happened next. In four weeks it was number one on both the Pop and R&B charts, having pushed no less than Elvis Presley out of the top spot. It took Del Shannon’s historic “Runaway” to displace the Marcels on April 24th. “Blue Moon” didn’t stop there. It reached number one in England, number four in Australia, number seven in Holland, number seven in Sweden, number six in French Belgium, number five in Denmark, number two in New Zealand, and went top 10 in such locales as Israel, Norway, Spain, South Africa, and France.

Not only had half the world gotten a healthy dose of American doo wop, but America itself had a rekindling of interest in a bass vocal tradition that had been slowly disappearing from U.S. recordings since the mid-‘50s.

On March 16th, a month and a day after their first session, the Marcels recorded six more gems that included “Over the Rainbow,” “Two People in the World,” “Sweet Was the Wine,” and “Teeter Totter Love.” On April 11th they recorded five more sides, coming up with their well-timed second single, the Porgy and Bess classic, “Summertime.”

Its “ba-oo” bass intro, Cornelius’s velvety baritone lead, and a solid wall of Marcels vocals made this the best group version of the Gershwin classic ever recorded, but it only reached number 78 Pop and number 46 in the U.K.

During that summer the Marcels appeared in a rock and roll movie for Columbia titled Twist Around the Clock with Dion and Chubby Checker. In the film they sang “Blue Moon” and a number called “Merry Twistmas.”

In July the LP Blue Moon was issued containing all the sides from the March 16th session, their hit and its flip, a strong version of THE CHANTELS’ “Goodbye to Love,” and some doo wop and R&B standards cut at the first session including “Peace of Mind” (the Spaniels), “I’ll Be Forever Loving You” (THE EL DORADOS), “Most of All” (THE MOONGLOWS), and Sunday Kind of Love (the Harptones). In all, the LP was a strong showcase for the Marcels’ vocal talents.

Unfortunately, the 18 recordings made at those three sessions were the sum total of the original group’s output. Some mysterious goings on between Jules Kruspir and Richard Knauss caused the latter to leave with Gene Bricker in August. They were replaced by Alan Johnson (baritone, Fred’’ brother) and Walt Maddox (second tenor).

The now all-black quintet’s first session, on September 1, 1961, yielded their fourth, a remake of the 1931 Guy Lombardo number 12 hit “heartaches.” By November 27th it ranked seventh in the nation on the Pop chart (#19 R&B).

1962 opened with their self-parody, “My Melancholy Baby.” Although a Billboard reviewer enthused, “The great standard is wrapped up in their amusing bomb de bomp styled delivery and a rockin’ beat. Watch it,” “Melancholy Baby” only reached number 58 Pop in March 1962, becoming their last Top 100 chart 45.

By the end of 1961 Mundy had left and their February 1962 release, “Twistin’ Fever,” had stalled at number 103. Colpix continued to issue older secondary sides through 1963, of which “That Old Black Magic” and “One Last Kiss” were strong cuts.

Cornelius Harp, the heart of the Marcels, left at the end of 1962. The group then left Colpix, picking up a few singles between Kyra and 888, two Pittsburgh labels, in 1964. Then Alan Johnson dropped out, leaving acting leader Fred Johnson to add William Herndon and Richard Harris (formerly of THE ALTAIRS).

Te quartet now included Walt Maddox (lead), Richard Harris (baritone), William Herndon (first tenor), and Fred Johnson (bass).

The Marcels recorded again in 1973, but without Harp’s strong lead they turned in a mediocre traditional ballad performance of “In the Still of the Night” (Queen Bee).

In 1975 the Marcels shined once again with their formula sound on “Lucky Old Sun,” with Harp back on lead and Johnson on bass, but the Pittsburgh-based St. Clair label had no marketing capability and the record faded into collectors’ dreamland.

That same year Val Shively issued three great sides for the collectors’ market from the group’s first LP. But by now the Marcels were working the oldies circuit even though they were capable of a contemporary R&B hit in the SPINNERS of O’JAYS mode.

On January 14, 1973, the original members help a reunion at an oldies club called the Villa Madrid in Pittsburgh. Ron Mundy and Dick Knauss continued singing there in a group called the Memories. Ironically, the hit Marcels lasted only a few years while the Maddox, Harris, Herndon, and Fred Johnson grouping lasted on and off for over two decades.

In the early ‘90s Cornelius Harp was living in Pittsburgh. Ron Mundy worked for Pittsburgh’s Port Authority as a bus driver. Dick Knauss was a school janitor. Gene Bricker died in the ‘80s. Walt Maddox continued to perform in nightclubs, doing a musical tribute to nat King Cole. Alan Johnson was working or the University of Pittsburgh. Fred Johnson continued leading modern-day Marcels through their bomp baba bomps.

– Jay Warner

Soundtrack/Filmography

Twist Around the Clock (1961) (as The Marcels)

Filmography links and data courtesy of The Internet Movie Database

Jay and The Americans

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 07:01:16 +0000

Jay and The Americans

The Harbor Lites, Sandy Yaguda, Sydell Sherman, and Kenny Vance In 1959, Kenny Vance and Sandy Yaguda were part of a vocal group called the Harbor Lites; so called because they lived in Belle Harbor, New York. The other members were Sydell Sherman, Gail Sherman, Linda Kahn and Richie Graff. They all attended the same school. One of the owners of IVY Records, Stan Feldman, also lived in that neighborhood and the Harbor Lites went to his home to audition for his label. He thought that the group was terrible and told them to go home and do a lot of practicing. Linda, Gail and Richie left the group at this point and the three remaining members practiced constantly. When they thought that they were good enough they went back to his office to audition again. This time they were signed to a contract and their first record was “Is That Too Much To Ask”- originally on Ivy but Jaro Records purchased the master. Jaro stood for The J. Arthur Rank Organization. Cousin Brucie (Morrow), a very popular New York City Disc Jockey, liked the record and because of him, it was a minor hit.

The Harbor Lites, had, like so many other white groups of that era, been managed by Jim Gribble. Another of his groups was The Mystics, who, at that time, were minus a lead singer, Phil Cracolici, who had to drop out of the group for awhile – just after their hit record “Hushabye”. John Traynor (Jay) was filling in as lead until Phil returned to the group. Jay sang lead on two of The Mystics’ songs – “White Cliffs Of Dover” and Blue Star”, as well as on some of their unreleased records, but was unhappy with the group because they had not accepted him. They were guys who had grown up together and they resented anybody taking Phil’s place. Jay considered himself an outsider. At this time. Kenny and Sandy decided that they wanted to have a male recording group. Through the Gribble Office, they met Jay and he agreed to join their, as yet, unnamed group. Shortly after, Sandy called on an old buddy of his, Howie Kane and got him to join the group. Living also in Belle Harbor was a song writer/producer named Terry Philips (now the owner of Perception Records). The group auditioned for Terry and he liked the way they sang. Terry knew Danny Kessler, who was partners with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller in a publishing company. This was when Leiber/Stoller were the hottest producers/writers in the business. The group sang “Wisdom of a Fool” for their audition and some songs that had been written by Terry. L&S (Leiber and Stoller) loved the group but didn’t want to record any of Terry’s songs. There was a dispute in the office between L&S and Terry, and L&S threw Jay and the Americans (although they still had no name at the time) out, along with Terry. L&S had promised the guys the world and four very dejected boys walked out of the office. Kenny got angry and decided to go back to their office and tell them off. Apparently L&S were not used to this kind of back talk because they finally said that they would go through with the deal.

L&S had a production deal with United Artists and got the group signed to that label. They (L&S) were into “spoofs” and wanted to call the group, Binky Jones and the Americans, but the guys didn’t go for it. Hence, they compromised on Jay and the Americans. They went into the studio and cut Tonight’ from “West Side Story’.

United Artists had also produced the film and had the piano duo, Ferrante and Teicher under contract. U.A. promised Jay and the Americans a great deal of promotion if they would record “Tonight” and apparently offered Ferrente and Teicher the same deal . Ferrente and Teicher recorded it and it became a big hit. It was also a hit (though not as large) for Jay and The Americans – selling well in New York – about 40,000 copies.

Their second record was “Dawning” b/w “She Cried”. “Dawning” was supposed to be the hit side but very little was happening with it. The record was out for about six months when Danny Kessler came running into the office yelling “We’ve got a hit.'” There was a West Coast Disc Jockey (unfortunately, the guys don’t remember his name) who flipped over
“She Cried” and locked himself into the broadcasting booth, playing it over and over for about four hours. He got into quite a bit of trouble but he’s the one responsible for “She Cried” becoming a hit. The album “She Cried’ was released shortly thereafter, containing almost all Drifters and Ben E. King material.

To go back to 1959 – David (Jay) Black and Marty Sanders were next door neighbors who started to sing together in High School. A friend of theirs took them to Nat Garrick who decided to manage them and took them to Ivy Records as The Two Chaps. Atlantic Records heard the master of “Forgive Me” on Ivy and purchased it. The record didn’t do much and that was the brief career of The Two Chaps. Subsequently, Marty formed another group called The Interludes who later changed their name to The Empires when they started recording for Epic. The group consisted of Marty, Eddie Robbins, Leo Rose (lead) and two other guys called Phil and Gary. Here again, their names (last) are not remembered. Right after their demo session, Leo dropped out of the group and Marty called in Jay Black. The Empires cut one record entitled “Time And A Place” b/w “Punch Your Nose”. Jay and Marty wrote “Time And A Place” and Jay sang lead. “Punch Your Nose” was written by Marty and he sang lead. This too, was a short lived group.

During the album session of “She Cried”, Danny Kessler asked Marty, who was then Jay and The Americans’ guitarist, to sing with the group. Marty agreed and has been with them ever since.

Due to the success of “She Cried”, the group was doing a lot of traveling and this proved too much for Jay Traynor. He started missing rehearsals and the guys thought that he wanted to solo. Jay admitted that he had been thinking about it and the guys said that they would go on without him. Marty said that he had sung with a guy who had a great voice and the next day, he brought Jay Black to Sandy’s house to audition. Jay sang “Cara Mia” (acappella) and they flipped. Jay and the Americans’ first record with the new Jay was “Only in America” and the story behind it is fascinating.

L&S were having great success with their other acts and the choice material was going to them. Jay and the Americans felt that they were getting the leftovers and were quite unhappy. They were in the studio one day and heard a master of the new Drifters’ record “Only In America”. They complained to L&S that this was a great song and would have been perfect for them. At that moment, L&S received word from Atlantic Records that they were not going to release the record by the Drifters because it was outrageous for a black group to be singing about becoming President in those pre-Civil Rights days. L&S thought the song had “great social comment” and might bring people to realize that things in this country were not as they should be. Atlantic Records had the final say and the record was never released. It is rumored that there are several copies of the Drifters’ version around. L&S said that they could get the song for Jay and the Americans if they wanted it. They said they did and Les called Atlantic and said that they were interested in purchasing the master tape. Atlantic agreed to sell it for the cost of the session. The music track was retained and Jay and the Americans went into the studio to overdub the voice track. The rest is history. Many people are under the impression that this song is from “West Side Story” and apparently get in confused with the song from that show called “America”. There is no connection between the song and the show.

After this record, L&S became extremely busy with The Drifters, The Coasters, Ben E. King, etc., so an outside producer was called in. He was Artie Ripp – at that time of Kama Sutra Productions (later to become Kama Sutra Records). The first record he did with the guys was “Come A Little Bit Closer” and producer credits were shared with L&S. The group was also the first to have a hit with a Neil Diamond song. “Sunday And Me”

After “Sunday And Me”, Jay cut a solo record for UA – “What Will My Mary Say” b/w “Return To Me”. He also cut a solo album but somehow or other the master tape was lost.

When Jay auditioned for the group, he sang “Cara Mia” and for 3 1/2 years. the group did it in their act. Jay had always wanted to record it but the people in the business thought that nothing could happen with this song. Jay finally got his way and shortly thereafter, the song hit the top of the charts,

Gerry Granahan, a house producer for U.A. also cut the group. Gerry, you will remember, had a smash hit in “No Chemise Please” and was also the lead singer of Dicky Doo and The Don’ts. Dicky Doo was known as the lead singer but it was really the voice of Gerry Granahan that was heard.
In 1969, Jay and The Americans: Kenny Vance, Marty Sanders, Jay Black and Sandy Yaguda produced their first album – “Sands Of Time” for their own company – JATA (For Jay and The Americans) Enterprises, consisting of oldies. Throughout the years, The Drifters held a very special place in the hearts of the guys and their single released from this album was “This Magic Moment” which went on to be one of their biggest hits. Sandy told me this album was a tribute to the way they all feel about R&B music of the 50’s. They felt that this album was their greatest effort and are very proud of it. Sandy said, “We were recording it white, but feeling it soul.” Their following two singles “When You Dance” and “Hushabye” were also taken from this album followed with the album
“Wax Museum” which also was all oldies.
“Tricia Tell Your Daddy” was their last Single before the group fell into Inactivity for a year and a half.

Recently they did a show at Madison Square Garden In New York along with The Four Tops, Frankie Valle and The Four Seasons, and Martha Reeves and The Vandellas. The show (a sell-out) was a smash and was video taped for television showing. If you ever have a chance to see Jay and The Americans in a club or show, don’t miss them. They put on a class act that is extremely enjoyable.

We are fortunate in that they are now recording again and their new release Is another Drifters’ song – “There Goes My Baby”. When I heard a test pressing of this record, I flipped. I think it’s great and I loved the violin part, taken from “True Love, True Love” also by The Drifters.

Jay and The Americans are back on the scene again and it is a pleasure seeing and hearing them once more.

Update…

To this day, Jay Black is a major concert attraction. Kenny Vance is heading a highly acclaimed group with a loyal following; Kenny Vance and the Planotones (https://planotones.com), blending a unique style of R&B, and Oldies with new arrangements, which transcends the idiom. Kenny is also an actor and musical director for films. Howie Kirschenbaum is a social worker and heads a drug and alcohol program. Sandy Yaguda went on to produce Beatlemania and owns a health spa and Marty Kupersmith is still performing and recording and co wrote with Joan Jett “Bad Reputation” which was in the smash animated movie,”Shrek”.

Soundtrack/Filmography

A Wake in Providence (1999) (performer: “Cara Mia”)
The Sandlot (1993) (performer: “This Magic Moment”)
- A.K.A. The Sandlot Kids
Wild, Wild Winter (1966) (performer: “Two of a Kind”)

Filmography links and data courtesy of The Internet Movie Database

The Harptones

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 06:56:06 +0000

The Harptones

The Harptones, one of the most respected rhythm and blues groups of all time, never put one of their 29 singles on the national R&B lists. Yet many of their recordings are oldies standards today.

1953 was the year members of the Harps from downtown Manhattan joined up with members of THE SKYLARKS from uptown. The Harps consisted of Willie Winfield, his brothers Jimmy and Clyde, Bill “Dicey” Galloway, and Johnny Bronson. Willie, originally from Norfolk, Virginia, occasionally sang with his cousin Dickie Smith and his group THE FIVE KEYS before coming to New York but never recorded with them.The Harps practiced under the Monroe Street underpass of the Manhattan Bridge (probably the largest echo chamber ever used) while the Skylarks-Bill Dempsey, Curtis Cherebin, Fred Taylor, Eugene “Sonny” Cooke, Raoul J. Cita, and the street singer remembered only as Skillum-hit their harmonies on 115th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues.

Early in 1953 Dicey Galloway went uptown to find a piano player who could work with the Harps and ran into the 115th Street Skylarks. In the midst of the Skylarks was Raoul Cita, a piano player, songwriter, arranger, baritone, and exactly the man the Harps needed. As time passed, a new Harps group emerged with Willie Winfield and Dicey Galloway of the original Harps and Curtis Cherebin, Bill Dempsey, and Raoul Cita of the Skylarks.

Soon after, Billy Brown replaced Cherebin, and Claudie “Nicky” Clark of the nearby FIVE CROWNS joined the group. The lineup now resembled the “Willie” club with Willie Winfield (24 and lead), Nicky Clark (20, second lead and first tenor), William “Bill” Dempsey (17 and second tenor), Bill “Dicey” Galloway (17 and baritone), Bill Brown (17 and bass), and Raoul Cita (25, tenor and baritone but usually piano player). Occasionally another Brown sang with the Harps-Johnny Brown-but his career direction became that of a comedian and he wound up as a cast member of the long-running ‘60s hit “Laugh-In.”

The group’s influences, especially Willie’s, were the Five Keys, THE SWALLOWS, and THE LARKS, but what set them apart was the influence on Raoul of THE FOUR FRESHMEN. Their jazz harmony, tailored by Cita to fit the Harps’ enormous talent, lifted them above most rhythm and blues groups and far above typical street-corner collaborations.

Their first paying performance was in New Jersey at the Piccadilly Club where the “huge” sum of $100 was garnered for two nights of singing. They branched out from there, working in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and New Jersey and even performing on the local New York TV show Spotlight on Harlem.” They also practiced extensively in Cita’s 119th Street basement working on new Cita compositions like “My Memories of You.”

Then in late 1953 came the big test. They felt ready for that equalizer of men and boys, the Apollo amateur night contest. The Skylarks had tried it in 1951 and had been booed off the stage. Willie remembered: he had been in the audience at the time. But this night would be different. The Harps sang a magical rendition of the Jo Stafford 1947 hit (#15) “Sunday Kind of Love” and were rousingly applauded.

If not for a twist of fate, many of the great Harptones recordings might have wound up on MGM. They met the label’s representative at the show. They were to reconvene with him later in a hallway away from the Apollo crowd, but while singing in the hall they met Leo Rogers of Bruce Records. He took them to his partners, Morty Craft and Monte Bruce, who loved their sound. They knew that there was a group called the Harps recording on Savoy (Little David Baughn and the Harps), so Cita changed their name to the Harptones.

In December 1953 the song they had sung at the Apollo became their first single. From the eerie organ intro to the group’s deep harmony to Willie’s velvety vocalizing, “I Want a Sunday Kind of Love” was a classic. The record received large doses of airplay and was selling throughout the tri-state area when word reached the Harptones that a Baltimore group, Bobby Hall and the Kings, had covered “Sunday.” Thought the Kings’ version did well in the Baltimore-Washington area, the Harptones’ superior recording won out and sold as well as an R&B record could sell in 1954 without getting national attention. Even the flip ballad “I’ll Never Tell” was getting airplay.

In January 1954 the first of the Cita-penned masterpieces came out. “My Memories of You” boasted five-part lyric harmony, and Willie Winfield, the “Sultan of Smooth” (as Phil Groia called him), was fast becoming noticeable that Bruce Records didn’t have national clout.

“I Depended on You” was the next record and was led by Nicky Clark and Winfield missed the rehearsal that night. Only three musicians, Don Gardner (guitar), Jimmy Smith (organ), and Al Cass (sax), were on the session as Bruce tried to cut 10 sides one after the other to avoid a midnight January 1, 1954, musicians strike, and the other players had walked out.

The Harptones’ fourth single, “Why Should I Love You,” took them 22 takes while recording in Bruce’s 1650 Broadway space. The 22 tries were not for the song itself but for the whistling intro and exit done over a modified boogie-woogie piano. By the time they got it done, THE FOUR LADS, whose offices were down the hall, had lifted it and put it on the B side of their “Skokiaan” hit. The pop up tempo number had the Harptones’ newly minted jazz-flavored harmonies. It gathered enough momentum to make the pop charts on September 18, 1954, reaching number 25. Though today it’s one of the group’s least remembered recordings it was their biggest national hit.

The Harptones did a number of backup sessions over the years. Their first was a loan by Bruce Records’ Leo Rogers to friend Dave Miller and his Essex label so Dave could record Texas artist Bunny Paul on the Harptones’ “I’ll Never Tell.” (Since Rogers owned the publishing rights he gained from the favor.) Essex issued it in August and the now sought-after collectors’ item quickly vanished. Soon after, Dicey was drafted and replaced by Jimmy Beckum (“Laughing on the Outside,” THE MAJORS, Derby).

In December, “Since I Fell for You” came out thanks to Buddy and Ella Johnson’s suggestion to the Harptones after they met at the Apollo that the group try their song. Their unison-into-harmony intro, high-weaving vocals, and Willie’s trademark pristine lead made for a memorable record-the standard version of the song that Bruce was unable to take beyond the tri-state borders.

On January 14th the Harptones appeared at the historic Alan Freed Rock and Roll Ball at the St Nicholas Arena in New York with an all-star lineup that included THE DRIFTERS, THE CLOVERS, Fats Domino, THE MOONGLOWS, and Joe Turner.

Their sixth and last Bruce release (March 1955) was the bluesiest of all Harptones singles, a remake of Ivory Joe Hunter’s “I Almost Lost My Mind” with an exciting chime harmony intro.

By June the Harptones had signed with Hy Weiss’s Old Town label and issued a song Cita had written almost two years earlier, the classic “Life Is But a Dream.” With higher harmonies than previous Harptones sides and an almost angelic chorus of voices, the group’s jazz leanings were becoming more predominant. The song has since become a street-corner classic and the solo singer’s opening line “will you take part in” has become a measuring stick for group leads.

In September they played another historic gig (of their many one-nighters and package shows). The week-long Alan Freed Labor Day Rock and Roll Show at the Brooklyn Paramount featured the Moonglows, Chuck Berry, THE NUTMEGS, THE CARDINALS, and Tony Bennett, with Red Prysock and Sam “the Man” Taylor and their orchestras.

“(My Success) It All Depends On You” was the October 1954 Harptones issue. It lost momentum due to a Georgia Gibbs song with lyric similarities.

“What Is Your Decision,” written by Ben Raleigh and Ben Weissman (the latter would go on to write 57 songs for Elvis Presley), became their only issue on Leo Rogers’ Andrea label in April 1956. It was the most pop of their melodies, and Billboard’s April 21st reviewer commented, “The lads ask the big soulful question in slow emotional style. Winfield wails again and the group is with him all the way. This one should spin and spin.”

By now the group consisted of Willie, Jimmy, Dempsey, and Bobby Spencer (THE CADILLACS, THE CHORDS, THE CICKETS). “My Memories of You” was re-recorded by this version of the Harptones on the same session as “What Is Your Decision,” and Rogers leased it to Tiptop Records for their September 1956 release.

Feeling their records weren’t being promoted properly (and they weren’t) the group moved over to George Goldner’s complex in the summer of 1956. The first single for Rama was the minor classic “That’s the Way It Goes.” It was the group’s favorite recording and was ahead of its time. Their tight harmony on the verses with part of the Raoul Cita chorus on the top (actually the Joytones and Lyrics were the chorus, in this case Joytones Lynn Middleton Daniel and Vickie Burgess) made this a jazz harmony jubilee. The ending had unison voices weaving upward until they broke into a full blown harmony finale. The flip (actually the A side) “Three Wishes” was a superb pop-jazz ballad that had the smoothest of blend.

The Rama sides were the group’s renaissance. “The Masquerade Is Over” followed in November 1956 and was a prime example of modern R&B jazz, with Cita’s sax-led arrangement and peerless harmonies and lead.

In 1956 the Harptones appeared in the first rhythm and blues motion picture, Rockin’ the Blues, along with THE WANDERERS, the Hurricanes, Linda Hopkins, the Miller Sisters, and disc jockey Hal Jackson.

They continued to tour and perform throughout the East with everyone from THE HEARTBEATS, THE FLAMINGOS, and THE SWALLOWS to Bo Diddley and Etta James, but they never got to the West Coast even though several records were getting play out there.

Watching their acrobatics in their cream colored suits one wondered how they could sing at all. (Few people realize how innovative and talented the group was at dance routines, which they choreographed to Five Keys rockers like “Hucklebuck with Jimmy.”

At one point in 1956 Fred Taylor came in when Jimmy was ill, and Harriet “Toni” Williams Brown sunned for Dempsey while he helped his cancer stricken father. Toni was the third member of the Joytones (“Gee What a Boy,” Rama).

The Harptones’ last Rama single, “The Shrine of St. Cecilia” (originally recorded by the Royals in 1952, Federal), had the most magnificent intro harmony of all their records. The full tenor harmonies descending like a cascading waterfall were truly memorable. It was also memorable as Bill Brown’s last recording. He died soon after, and the group never could replace him.

The Harptones didn’t issue another single until November 1957’s “Cry Like I Cried.” Released on Goldner’s Gee label, the hard-to-sing ballad, a rhythm and blues grind number, had the group’s first use of horns and a big-band intro.

In early 1959 Warwick released “Laughing on the Outside,” the same song Jimmy Beckum had sung with the Majors back in 1953, but it saw little action. So too for “Love Me Completely” and their best Warwick single “No Greater Miracle” in May 1960.

One single in 1960 on Coed produced by Billy Dawn Smith (former lead of the Heralds) and one for Solitaires singer-turned-exec Buzzy Willis at MGM’s Cub label (“Devil in Velvet”) and the Harptones found themselves on Companion Records with two good sides (“The Last Dance” and “All in Your Mind”) that Billboard noted in its February 13, 1961, issue: “The Harptones turn in a strong reading of something of an answer to ‘Save the Last Dance for Me’ on this pretty ballad. Side could easily take off. Flip is an answer to the current Maxine Brown (‘All in My Mind’) chart entry.”

Their next single (the group’s 22nd) took off at least temporarily. “What Will I Tell My Heart” mustered enough across-the-country play and sales to reach number 96 on the pop charts in May 1961.

Their last new single with Willie came in 1964 on a song written by their lawyer’s son, Ted Troob, titled “Sunset.”

A year before, Bruce Records had issued a heretofore unreleased cut from 1953, called “Loving a Girl Like You.” Why it was never released in the mid 50’s is a mystery as it was a beautiful and competitive recording. In They All Sang on the Corner, Phil Groia wrote,” “ ‘Loving a Girl Like You’ was sung in the classic five-part Harptones harmony, the soft tenor and baritone, the high falsetto of the second tenor and baritone, the high falsetto of the first tenor, the redoubtable bass and the mournfully heavy affirmation of the rhythm and blues piano chords.”

In 1956 the Harptones backed Ruth McFadden (Old Town) on “Schoolboy,” which was actually a female version of “Loving a Girl Like You.”

In 1965 a group called the Soothers remade the Johnny Ray song “Little White Cloud that Cried” (Port). The Soothers were the Harptones without Willie-Bill Dempsey, Nicky Clark on lead, Fred, Curtis, Raoul, and Hank Jernigan. When you think about the group’s heritage you realize that the last Harptones/Soothers single was cut by four members of the Skylarks and one of THE FIVE CROWNS.

In April 1970 the group with Willie, Dempsey, Jimmy, Curtis, Fred, and Raoul regrouped for the opening of the rock and roll revival at the Academy of Music and stayed together until 1972 when Willie and Raoul added Linda Champion and Lowe Murray (the Fitones, Angeltone) to form the current Harptones.

In November 1981 the group recorded and LP (Ambient Sound) which encompassed yesterday’s feel with today’s technology titled Love Needs the Harptones.

39 years later Willie, Raoul et al were still playing clubs in the East while disc jockeys across the country were still playing “Life Is But a Dream,” “Memories of You,” “Sunday Kind of Love,” and other Harptones gems for the many thousands of faithful listeners.

The Harptones would undoubtedly be included on the top 10 vocal group list of anyone who remembers the ‘50s.

In 1971 Cita was asked, “How do you feel the Harptones compare to other groups?” He replied, “The only groups I feel are up there with us (musically) are the Flamingos, the Platters, and the Four Freshmen.” Many would agree.

– Jay Warner

The Four Knights

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 06:52:29 +0000

The Four Knights

Most black gospel groups that sang in the ‘40s or ‘50s and then changed their musical direction, changed it to rhythm and blues. The Four Knights, however, were a refined gospel group that became a refined pop blues group.

Actually they started out in 1943 as the Southland Jubilee Singers in Charlotte, North Carolina. The membership included Gene Alford (lead), John Wallace (second tenor and guitar), and Oscar Broadway (bass).

By 1944 Oscar had brought in a baritone he knew, Clarence Dixon, and the lineup was set. Their soft and breezy harmonies drew immediate attention and the group made its debut on NBC’s affiliate WSOC-Charlotte radio.

In six months they moved up to CBS’s mega power station, the 50,000-watt WBT-Charlotte. The quartet replaced the Southern Sons on the station’s “Carolina Hay Ride” show, a popular program that attracted one listener in particular, Cy Langois of Long-Worth Transcriptions. He signed the group to management.

His first move was for a name change to the Four Knights. He took them to New York and they started appearing on Arthur Godfrey’s radio show in 1945. Lang-Worth was a company that made what were called transcriptions, actually early albums containing four to six songs on each side of an eight inch disc that played at 33-1/3 rpm. These discs were not sold to the public; most all were sent to radio stations, allowing a local disc jockey to give the impression the group was right in the studio. The Knights did a number of these recordings. Between this type of exposure and the Godfrey show the group became fairly well-known.

In 1946 they signed with Decca Records and in April of that year they released their first single, “Just in Case You Change Your Mind.” After four singles featuring Gene’s mellow lead, Oscar’s broad bass, and usually incorporating Gene’s whistling over the instrumental section, the group was moved to Decca’s Coral affiliate for three more 78s through 1949.

They toured with dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson and got a shot s regulars on the Red Skelton radio show in 1948. They spent two years doing Skelton in Los Angeles and performing in clubs across the country. The Knights lost the Skelton job in 1950 when their manager wanted more than the show could pay, and so he pulled the group. They then discharged him for losing what they considered to be a prime exposure medium.

In 1951 they brought their soft harmony to Capitol Records and began with “I Love the Sunshine of Your Smile” (#23). They also began covering R&B and pop artists on songs like “The Glory of Love” (THE 5 KEYS), “Sin” (THE FOUR ACES), which they took to number 14, and their biggest pop cover record at number eight in 1953, “Oh Happy Day” (Don Howard).

The group’s biggest hit came in 1954 when “I Get So Lonely When I Think About You (Oh Baby Mine)” reached number two and ran for 24 weeks, even becoming a smash in England at number five, a tough thing for a black American group to do in 1954. The Pat Ballard-penned original was so popular in England that when it fell off the charts it resurfaced the following month (July), reaching number 10.

Toward the end of 1953 George Vereen began subbing on studio work and singing lead at live shows for Gene Alford, whose epilepsy was affecting his ongoing involvement with the group. Vereen was replaced in 1955 by ex-DELTA RHYTHM BOYS member Cliff Holland as Alford retired.

Prior to their 1952 recordings the group sang with only a guitar backup, but Capitol soon had them working with full orchestras.

By 1953, tours for the four were in full swing, and they played clubs from Las Vegas to Rio de Janeiro while appearing on the TV shows of Perry Como, Ed Sullivan, and of course Red Skelton. On August 27, 1954, they headlined at the famed Apollo in New York.

During the mid-‘50s the reigning king op Capitol’s roster, Nat King Cole, ran into the group nd liked their style; he asked Capitol to have the Knights back him on some recordings. Their first collaboration, in early 1955, was titled “A Blossom Fell.” Though it didn’t chart, Nat and the Knights tried agin in January 1956, and by September their ”That’s All There Is to That” was number 16 on the pop char and number 14 R&B, the first time the Knights had ever appeared on the black charts. The next time out with Nat was the last: a ballad, “My Personal Possession,” released in May 1957 and reaching number 21 (#3 R&B).

The only pop charter of the mid-and late ‘50s for the group by themselves was “O Falling Star” (#83, 1959) after they’d re-signed with Coral in late 1957. Capitol stayed with them for 39 45s throughout the ‘50s.

In 1960 Gene Alford died. Clarence left the act in 1963 and the Knights disbanded three years after his departure. John Wallace died in 1978. Dixon and Broadway moved to the suburbs of Los Angeles in retirement.

– Jay Warner

The Five Keys

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 06:50:47 +0000

The Five Keys

One of the most popular, influential, and beautiful sounding R&B singing groups of the ‘50s, the Five Keys were not only a link between the gospel/pop units of the ‘40s and the later R&B and rock groups, they led by example, having hits in R&B, rock and roll, and pop before the decade was through.

The Keys formed from two sets of brothers, Rudy and Bernard West and Raphael and Ripley Ingram. Calling themselves the Sentimental Four, they practiced in their local church in Newport News, Virginia, and on the streets of Jefferson Avenue and 25th Street. The Huntington High School students originally sang gospel songs but segued into secular material around 1949 when Rudy was 17, Bernie 19, Ripley 19, and Raphael 18. The group did some touring in the late ‘40s with Miller’s Brown-Skinned Models, an all-black revue that played fairs and carnivals. They garnered valuable on-the-job training and returned to Newport News to play talent shows for exposure and prize money.

The foursome won the Wednesday night amateur contest at the Jefferson Theatre three times, qualifying them for a trip to New York to compete in a similar event at the Apollo Theatre. They won that, too, beating over 30 other acts. Word of this superior vocal foursome spread during engagements that followed at the Royal Theatre and the Howard. Eddie Meisner, president of L.A.-based Aladdin Records, signed them in February 1951 but lost Raphael to the army before they could record. He was replaced by Rudy’s classmate and member of the Avalons, Maryland Pierce, along with Dickie Smith.

The group now called themselves the Five Keys, three of whom were the most talented lead singers any group ever had. Dickie Smith was a soulful lead, Maryland Pierce had a fantastic blues sound, and Rudy West possessed a smooth, polished, clear-as-a-bell tenor.

On March 22, 1951, the Five Keys recorded five songs. “With a Broken Heart” b/w “Too Late” was released in April as their first single, receiving scattered airplay but setting the stage for their brilliant version of the 1936 Benny Goodman hit (#1), “Glory of Love.”

Released in July, “Glory” charted on August 18th and became a number one R&B record by September, spending four weeks on top. The Keys’ captivating harmonies helped make “Glory” an eventual million seller and put them on the cross-country tour circuit for years to come. In December, Aladdin issued “It’s Christmastime” as a follow-up single. Releasing a Christmas record after a number one hit was like not issuing anything; few of December and this single was no exception.

The Keys had 10 more single releases between 1952 and 1953, but none cracked the hit lists though many, such as “Red Sails in the Sunset,” “My Saddest Hour,” “These Foolish Things,” and “Serve Another Round,” would have with more promotion, and they were all great listening.

By 1953 Rudy and Dickie were army bound, replaced by Ulysses Hicks and Ramon Loper.

– Jay Warner

The 5th Dimension

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 06:43:37 +0000

The 5th Dimension

Whether you believe an artist launches a songwriter’s career or vice versa, it’s undeniable that the talented 5th Dimension had a creative formula that benefitted writers, the public, and themselves.

The group formed because of a beauty contest winner and a photographer. Lamonte McLemore was a photographer and his subject was Miss Bronze America of 1963, Marilyn McCoo. They decided to merge their gospel singing interests and form a group with fellow Los Angeles residents Harry Elston and Floyed Butler. The foursome hooked up with Ray Charles for a six-month tour but Elston and Butler left to form a separate group, the Friends of Distinction (RCA). Lamonte went back to picture-taking and Marilyn became an executive trainee at a department store.

In to the picture came Lamonte’s cousin Billy Davis, Jr. from St. Louis (formerly of the Emeralds of Bobbin, 1959-60), and the seeds of a new group were planted. Lamonte and Billy brought in Ron Townson, Marilyn, and a teacher from Grant Elementary School in Hollywood named Florence LaRue. Lamonte knew Florence because she was Miss Bronze America 1962 and was the one who crowned her successor Marilyn McCoo the day Lamonte was photographing them.

The group now called themselves the Versatiles and met with producer Johnny Rivers at his Soul City label. Johnny liked the group but not what he felt was a passe name, so Ron and his wife, Babette, came up with the 5th Dimension.

The first single, in November 1966, was by Willie Hutch, and the song was “I’ll Be Loving You Forever.” The producers must have been Motown fans, because the song sounded like a FOUR TOPS record along the lines of “Reach Out.” When that single failed, their second record was done in a black MAMAS AND PAPAS direction using a forgotten John Phillips cut called “Go Where You Wanna Go” from a Mamas and Papas LP.

By passing the R&B charts, “Go” went straight up the Pop listings on January 14, 1967, stopping at number 16.

Their third single, the P.F. Sloan/Steve Barri song “Another Day, Another Heartache,” was back in the black Mamas and Papas groove but by now you could hear their harmonies developing into the more familiar 5th Dimension sound of later hits. “Another Day” made it to number 45 Pop, and by May the group began working on its first LP. Fate stepped in when Rivers decided to stop production to participate in the San Remo Song Festival, and young session pianist Jimmy Webb took the weekend off to attend a fair. It was there that he saw a hot air balloon taking off, inspiring him to write “Up Up and Away.” When the group heard it their reaction was so enthusiastic that Webb wound up with that and four more songs on the LP “Up” was immediately cut and released, logging on to Billboard’s Top 100 on June 3rd and rising to number seven by July 8th. The free-and-easy big band, jazz, pop flavor of the song lifted it to standard status and made it their first million seller. It went on to win five Grammys in 1968, for Best Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Best Contemporary Group of the Year, Best Contemporary Single, and Best Performance By a Group of Two to Six.

The 5th Dimension continued to issue intricately arranged singles. Among them were “Paper Cup” (#34), and “Carpet Man” (#29), both by Jimmy Webb. They were particularly successful in 1968 with “Stoned Soul Picnic” (#3, Pop, #2 R&B) and “Sweet Blindness” (#13 Pop, #45 R&B) by New York writer Laura Nyro.

Another twist of fate provided the 5th Dimension with their biggest hit of all time. During a booking at New York’s Americana Hotel in 1968 Billy lost his wallet while shopping. It turned out to have been left in a taxi, and the finder cheerfully returned it to him. Billy was grateful and invited the gentleman and his wife to a 5th Dimension performance at the hotel. The honest man turned out to be one of the producers of a hit Broadway play titled Hair. He reciprocated by inviting the whole group to see his play, where they heard the incredible opening number “Aquarius” and immediately resolved to record it. When producer Bones Howe heard it he felt it was only half a song and needed additional material, possibly a gospel-styled ending. Bones then traveled to New York to see the play for himself and hit upon the needed ending. It was the final section of “The Flesh Failures” (“Let the Sunshine In”), and though the group had doubts about the coupling, Bones and former SIGNATURES vocalist (Warner Bros.) and jazz arranger extraordinaire Bob Alcivar connected to two halves, thus creating one of the most exciting records of the late ‘60s, “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In.”

“Aquarius” took off for its meteoric rise to number one on March 8, 1969. It spent six weeks there, selling over two million copies in less than a month. “Aquarius” also went to number 11 in the U.K. and became a worldwide best seller.

The Neil Sedaka-penned follow-up, “Working on a Groovy Thing,” went to number 20, followed by the Laura Nyro winner “Wedding Bell Blues” (#1) in the fall of 1969. Wedding bells were on everyone’s mind: Marilyn married Billy and manager Marc Gordon married Florence.

In 1970, the group moved over to New York City’s Bell Records, which signaled a softer easy listening style for the quintet. They alternated between Webb and Nyro songs for charters “Puppet Man” (Webb, #24) and “Save the Country” (Nyro, #27) until they hit it big again on January 2, 1971, with the ballad “One Less Bell to Answer,” a Bacharach/David song (#2).

The group continued to record quality sides for Bell, including 1971’s “Never My Love” (THE ASSOCIATION) which hit number 12 Pop (#45 R&B) and “(Last Night) I Didn’t Get to Sleep At All” (#8 Pop, #28 R&B) in 1972.

In November of that year the 5th Dimension performed at the White House for President Nixon.

In the fall of 1975 Marilyn and Billy went out as a duet, and both they and the 5th (now with Marjorie Barnes and Danny Beard as replacements) signed with ABC Records.

The group’s last Pop chart record was “Love Hangover” for ABC (#80) in the spring of 1976. Meanwhile, Marilyn and Billy hit gold with “You Don’t Have to Be a Star” (#1 Pop and R&B) and went on through 1977 with four charters, the last being “Look What You’ve Done to My Heart” (#51) and “Shine on Silver Moon” (#86, 1978).

The 5th Dimension moved over to Motown in 1978 for a few unsuccessful LPs and singles. In June 1977 Marilyn and Billy co-hosted a six-week CBS TV variety show, which led to Marilyn having a successful run as host of 1980’s “Solid Gold.”

The 5th Dimension continued to be a popular performance attraction through the ‘80s, when Michael bell replaced Ron Townson.

Their vocal flexibility made them an ideal producer’s group and a great vehicle for sophisticated songs that other wise might never have reached the masses.

– Jay Warner

Soundtrack/Filmography

View from the Top (2003) (performer: “Up Up and Away”)
Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001) (performer: “UP, UP AND AWAY”)
- A.K.A. Bridget Jones (UK: informal title)
- A.K.A. Journal de Bridget Jones, Le (France)
Recess: School’s Out (2001) (performer: “Let The Sunshine In”)
The Kid (2000) (performer: “Up, Up and Away”)
- A.K.A. Disney’s The Kid (USA: complete title)
Last Night (1998/I) (performer: “(Last Night) I Didn’t Get to Sleep at All”)
- A.K.A.Minuit (Canada: French title)
“Dusino” (1997) TV Series (performer: “Up Up And Away”)
Forrest Gump (1994) (performer: “Aquarius”)
My Girl (1991) (performer: “WEDDING BELL BLUES”)
1969 (1988) (performer: “Aquarius / Let The Sun Shine In”)
Thank God It’s Friday (1978) (performer: “You’re the Person I Feel”)
The Best on Record (1970) (TV) (performer: “Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In”)

Filmography links and data courtesy of The Internet Movie Database

The Clovers

crosbbw — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 06:34:29 +0000

The Clovers

Throughout pop music history, record company presidents have gone to great lengths to coax hit records out of their artists, but rarely have they gone to the extreme of writing the hits for the acts themselves. Ahmet Ertegun did that for the Clovers, however. In fact, Ertegun wrote eight A or B sides for that group out of their first nine singles, including their first two number one R&B chart records.

The Clovers story started in Washington, D.C., in 1946. Harold “Hal” Lucas founded the group by choosing schoolmates at Armstrong High School. The original members were tenor Thomas Woods, bass Billy Shelton, and Harold (all were from the area of T Street and 7th in the nation’s capital).

When John “Buddy” Bailey came on board as lead, Harold moved over to baritone. Hal wanted to give his music career a lucky start so he named the group the Four Clovers. By 1949, second tenor Matthew McQuater had replaced Thomas Woods. The group played clubs and amateur shows, singing songs by THE INK SPOTS, THE ORIOLES, and THE RAVENS. It was at one such show that Harold Winley met the group and wound up replacing Billy Shelton. They officially became the Clovers when guitarist Bill Harris gained membership in 1949.

In 1950 they met record store owner Lou Krefetz at a club they were playing (called the Rose Club) right in the neighborhood they grew up in. Krefetz became their manager and took them to Eddie Heller’s Rainbow Records at 767 Tenth Avenue in New York City, a label so small it shared space with a Hell’s Kitchen storefront known as Sonny’s Deli. Rainbow signed the Clovers, making them the label’s first vocal group. Rainbow would become the launching pad for two more great acts, LEE ANDREWS AND THE HEARTS and THE FIVE CROWNS (who later became THE DRIFTERS).

A recording session produced two sides. One was a remake of the 1925 Gene Austin hit “Yes Sir, That’s My Baby” in an Ink Spots style with John Bailey doing an excellent imitation of Spots lead Bill Kenny. Accompanied by a tinkling piano and a standup bass, the group’s solid harmony was much in evidence, as were the Ravens and CHARIOTEERS influences. Rainbow Records slipped up on their promotional efforts, however, and “Yes Sir” never had a chance. The record was reviewed by Cashbox magazine on January 6, 1951 as a pop release, indicative of the industry’s initial perception of the quartet. Krefetz, noting Rainbow’s inabilities and still very high on his group’s potential, immediately took the Clovers to Ahmet Ertegun’s Atlantic Records. Ahmet, a son of the former Turkish ambassador to the United States, had launched Atlantic on an investment of $10,000 from his family’s dentist in late 1947.

Ertegun didn’t really like Ink Spots-type groups (he didn’t even like the Ink Spots) and was reluctant to sign the Clovers, but when “Waxie Maxie” Silverman interceded on his friend Krefetz’s behalf, the Atlantic chief began to see how he could mold the group into a successful act. To achieve that end he wrote a song that would forever dictate the style and direction of the Clovers. On February 22, 1951 the Clovers recorded “Don’t You Know I Love You,” a mid-tempo, choppy-rhythmed shuffle with Buddy Bailey’s blues-tinged vocal leading the group. The surprising use of a sax solo (one of the first on a vocal group record) came about when bandleader Frank Culley demanded to be paid even though he and his sax were not supposed to play on the record. Since Ertegun had to pay Frank as a leader anyway, he let him play and Culley winged it from “Skylark” written by Johnny Mercer and Hoagy Carmichael and recorded in 1942 by Dinah Shore (a top five pop hit for her).

The songwriting credit for “Don’t You Know I Love You” on Atlantic 934 read Nugetre-Ertegun spelled backward. ( He may have been trying to avoid embarrassment for his relatives stemming from the notion of a diplomat’s son writing R&B songs.) Actually Nugetre wrote “head” melodies since he couldn’t play an instrument or write music. He would record his songs in Times Square recording booths, then take the paper discs and give them to his musicians to reproduce.

The single came out in March 1951 to little fanfare; vocal group records with a mid-tempo blues feel had not yet reached the black record buyer’s consciousness. Another obstruction was the fact that in 1950 the black charts consisted of only 10 positions, so a record really had to be selling to make it. But by June “Don’t You Know” had built enough momentum to jump on the R&B top 10 at number three. It took the Clovers 13 more weeks to get to number one, finally beating out THE DOMINOES’ “Sixty Minute Man” for the coveted spot. All told it lasted 21 weeks in the top 10 and sold a reported quarter-of-a-million copies.

The Clovers’ next session was on July 12 at WHOM Studios where they cut “Needless” by guitarist Harris, tenor McQuater, and manager Krefetz (everyone was getting in on the writing act), and another Ertegun tune called “Fool, Fool, Fool.” Their Ink Spots styling gone, the Clovers were now a pioneering blues vocal group. The group’’ sound was rough and unpolished. They sang riffs usually played on a keyboard. Buddy’s lead was bluesy, a little like what B. B. King might have sung.

“Fool” became their second number one hit, staying at the top of the Billboard R&B chart for six weeks and selling more than half a million platters. Amazingly, with two number one records Atlantic was still recording only two sides at a time. On December 17, they cut yet another Ertegun song, “In the Middle of the Night,” with pounding drum beat ad walking bass line woven into a bluesy ballad. The other recording done that day was “One Mint Julep,” a witty Rudy Toombs composition about one libation too many. “In the Middle” rose to number three, giving Ertegun his third hit in a row as a writer. “One Mint Julep,” went to number two and was only kept out of the top spot because of Rudy Toombs himself: the number one record at the time, “5-10-15 Hours” by Ruth Brown, was also one of Rudy’s compositions. In that same month the Clovers cut three sides of which two, “Ting-A-Ling” and “Wonder Where My Baby’s Gone,” charted in July. “Wonder” went to number seven while “Ting-A-Ling” and “Wonder Where My Baby’s Gone,” charted in July. “Wonder” went to number seven while “Ting-A-Ling,” another Ertegun slice of R&B, went to number one.

The next release was another chart-bounded two sider: “Hey Miss Fannie” (cut at an August 7th session) and “I Played the Fool” (from the March session that produced “Ting-A-Ling”). “Fool” was their prettiest and most harmony-oriented ballad since “Skylark,” with a weaving falsetto harmony behind Bailey’s lead that was ahead of its time y several years. “Fannie” was an out rocker with more than a passing similarity to THE MOONGLOWS’ 1954 “Real Gone Mama” and THE PARAGONS’ 1957 “Hey Little Schoolgirl.” It was a rock and roll cut two years before such recordings were considered to exist. “Fannie” (another Ertegun original) peaked at number two R&B while “I Played the Fool” went to number three.

By the time the Clovers charted with “Crawlin’ ” their ninth song on six singles, lead John Bailey had been in the army almost four months. “Crawlin’ ” was Bailey’s last lead for two years. While it was reaching the number three spot in March 1953, Bailey’s slot was filled by former DOMINOES and Checkers member Charlie White. Their next single had White on lead. Ertegun’s “Good Lovin’ ” reached number two, spending four-and-a-half months on the charts.

In 1954 White made his biggest contribution to the ever-growing Clovers legend when he led the group through two scorching blues rockers, “Little Mama” (#4) and the Ertegun co-penned “Lovey Dovey” (#2). The “Little Mama”/”Lovey Dovey” September 24th session was the first Clovers production matching Ertegun with the now-legendary producer Jerry Wexler.

Ongoing chart recognition enabled the quartet to work the top theaters around the country, from the Apollo to the Howard and the Regal. They also played Alan Freed’s first rock and roll show in early 1954 and toured with other Atlantic artists such as Big Joe Turner, the Drifters, and Ruth Brown.

By April 1954 Charlie White had joined the Playboys on Cat (another Atlantic subsidiary) and was replaced by Atlantic vocalist Billy Mitchell. He had previously issued four singles on Atlantic as a solo artist between 1951 and 1952 but had never charted. His stint with the Clovers changed that with Your Cash Ain’t Nothin’ But Trash” (#6, 1954). The B side, a holdover from the “Little Mama” session, was written by Harold Winley’s brother Paul (Paul would go on to write many of the great recordings of the Paragons and THE JESTERS), and it reached number seven. By the fall of 1954 Bailey had returned; the group decided to retain Mitchell for alternate leads.

“I Confess” (written by Nugetre and featuring Charlie White) and “All Right Oh Sweetie” (Bailey’s re-debut) came out in November and failed to chart. Luckily the R&B hit list had expanded allowing a number 14 charting for the classic ballad “Blue Velvet,” issued in late 1954 with an exceptional Buddy Bailey lead and harmony background. By early 1955 the R&B market was saturated with vocal groups and record labels, all competing for the top spots on the charts. The Clovers’ new releases weren’t up to the competition: “Love Bug” failed and “Nip Sip” spent two weeks getting to number 10. In January 1956 Atlantic released the Clovers’ 15th single, a pop-sounding ballad entitled “Devil or Angel” that lifted the group back up to number three while it’s flip side, the rocking “Hey Doll Baby,” went to number eight and became the last of six double-sided charters for the group.

By mid-1957 the Clovers (the most popular R&B vocal group of the first half of the ‘50s, with 19 hits on 15 singles) had accomplished about everything a group could do except put a record on the pop listings. That changed in June 1956 when “Love, Love, Love” rose to number 30 (#10 R&B). But instead of leading to a greater degree of national popularity, the pop hit had just he opposite effect. Their next six singles failed to chart on either Pop or R&B lists. Having taken the Clovers to the masses, Atlantic now found itself losing its original R&B base. In August 1957 the label’s dismay led them to release a four-year-old recording, “Down in the Alley,” whose chief feature was its “changity-changity-changity-changchang” intro and an exit borrowed from the feel of Joe Turner’s “TV Mama.” The B side was reworking of “O Solo Mio” (from 1899) (and the Clovers’ version quite possibly gave Elvis the idea for his 1960 hit “It’s Now or Never”).

Though their deal expired with Atlantic in July 1957 Ertegun’s company still released two more singles-that went nowhere. Lou Krefetz then decided to start his own Poplar label, releasing two less-than-exciting singles and an LP by Bailey and company. In 1959 they moved to United Artists and continued their slump with nine non-charting records, including an average reading of the oldie “Old Black Magic.” In the summer of 1959 the magicians behind the COASTERS hits, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, took hold of the Clovers and wrote a cross between “One Mint Julep” and half the records recorded by the Coasters. Titled “Love Potion No. 9,” it was their most successful release ever on the pop listings, peaking at number 23 in October (#23 R&B, December).

Trying to keep the magic going, they remade their old hit “One Mint Julep.” It, and the next three U.A. singles, stirred little interest. By November 1961, the Clovers found themselves back on Atlantic for only one release.

The original Clovers disbanded, but Bailey and Hal Winley formed a new Clovers to record for Paul Winley’s Winley Records in 1961. In 1962, Harold Lucas formed a second Clovers group with Roosevelt “Tippie” Hubbard on lead, Jerome “Toy” Walton at tenor, and Robert Russell on bass. This group sang for Brunswick, Stenton (as Tippie and the Clovermen), and Tiger Records (as Tippie and the Clovers). Meanwhile, Bailey’s Clovers had moved over to Porwin Records for two singles, the best of which, a ballad titled “Stop Pretending,” featured background harmonies that were closer to a girl group sound than they typical Clovers raunchiness. In April 1965 Bailey and Lucas, with Jimmy Taylor on tenor and Robert Russell, recorded “Poor Baby” and “He Sure Could Hypnotize,” produced by original Atlantic co-owner Herb Abramson. Soon after, Russell died and Bailey’s Winley Clovers never recorded again. It’s reported that Lucas, with Jimmy Taylor on tenor and Robert Russell, recorded “Poor Baby” and “He Sure Could Hypnotize,” produced y original Atlantic co-owner Herb Abramson. Soon after, Russell died and Bailey’s Winley Clovers never recorded again. It’s reported that Lucas, with the addition of Walton, John Bowie (he and Walton were formerly in the Bachelors on Royal Roost), and Tippie, recorded for Josie in 1968 and continued to perform into the ‘70s. 43 years after he formed the Clovers, Harold Lucas and the current contingent (John Bowie, Steve Charles, and Johnny Mason) recorded “Run Rudolph Run” (formerly by Chuck Berry) and an original song called “The Magic of Christmas Eve.” Both were included on the 1989 LP A Capitol Xmas (BJM Records).

The Clovers were the most successful rhythm and blues vocal roup of the ‘50s, scoring 21 chart records, far more than any other group. That alone would have secured their place in music history. But their distinctive style is better remembered than many of their hits. Under the guidance of Ahmet Ertegun, Herb Abramson (who coproduced many of their early hits with Ahmet), and Jerry Wexler, they reworked blues and gospel into blues with a beat. In so doing they became on of the first R&B groups to cross the bridge to rock and roll.

– Jay Warner