Cardinals

2 files

One of the bird groups, the Cardinals formed in their hometown, Baltimore, MD, in 1946, a year before a more famous bird group from Baltimore, the Orioles. Originally they were the Mellotones. The lineup was Warren, Donald Johnson, Meredith Brothers, Leon Hardy, and guitarist Sam Aydelotte, who also sang. They did the Baltimore bar scene for years, imitating all the ballad and modern harmony groups including the Ink Spots. A recording opportunity came in 1951 when a representative from Atlantic Records inked them after a talent search audition. Atlantic renamed them the Cardinals to avoid confusion with another Mellotones group that recorded for Columbia Records. The first single "Shouldn't I Know" (1951) mimicked the Orioles' sound; it rode into the R&B Top Ten and took the fellows on tours at big-city venues with other star R&B artists

Coasters

7 files

The Coasters grew out of a successful Los Angeles doo wop group called the Robins, which had been recording since 1949 and working with Leiber Stoller since 1953. Atlantic Records acquired the Robins in 1955, when the Leiber Stoller composition "Smokey Joe's Cafe" was becoming too big a hit for their small Spark label to handle; its success scored the duo an independent contract with Atlantic as producers and composers. Amid uncertainties over their new majorlabel arrangement, the Robins split up that fall; lead tenor Carl Gardner (a more recent addition) and bass Bobby Nunn formed a new group, The Coasters (named for their West Coast base), which maintained the Leiber Stoller association an extremely wise move. The initial Coasters lineup was completed by baritone Billy Guy (a gifted comic vocalist) and second tenor Leon Hughes, with guitarist Adolph Jacobs figuring prominently on their recordings through 1959. Their first single, "Down in Mexico," became a Top Ten RB hit in 1956, epitomizing the sort of humorous storysong Leiber Stoller were perfecting. The Coasters hit again in 1957 with the doublesided smash "Young Blood"/"Searchin'," both sides of which reached the pop Top Ten. The followups weren't as successful, and it was decided that both the group and Leiber Stoller would move their operations to New York, where Atlantic was based. As a result, Nunn and Hughes left the group in late 1957, to be replaced respectively by bass Will "Dub" Jones (exCadets, of "Stranded in the Jungle" fame) and second tenor Obie Jessie (for a very short period), then Cornell Gunter (exFlairs). The Coasters' first recording in New York was 1958's "Yakety Yak," which featured King Curtis on tenor sax. Its witty, sliceoflife lyrics about a teenager being hassled by his parents struck a resounding chord, and "Yakety Yak" became The Coasters' first numberone pop hit that summer, topping the RB charts as well. "Charlie Brown," which cast Jones in the title role of class clown (and immortalized him with the catchphrase, "why's everybody always pickin' on me?"), hit number two on both the pop and RB charts in 1959, firmly establishing The Coasters' widespread crossover appeal. More hits followed: the Westernthemed "Along Came Jones," "Poison Ivy," "Shoppin' for Clothes," and the group's final Top 30 hit, 1961's burlesquedancer tribute "Little Egypt." Following "Little Egypt," Gunter departed, to be replaced by Earl "Speedo" Carroll (of the Cadillacs). Other personnel shifts ensued over the next few years, especially as the hits dried up; even more discouragingly, Leiber Stoller left Atlantic in 1963. The Coasters parted ways with Atlantic in early 1966, signing with Columbia's Date subsidiary and reuniting with Leiber Stoller for a time. Although they charted several times, no more hits were forthcoming, given the radically different musical climate; their last chart single was a 1971 cover of "Love Potion No. 9" (by which time Gardner was the only remaining original member), and their last new release came with a 1976 version of "If I Had a Hammer." Since then, numerous different Coasters lineups have toured the oldies circuit; Gardner's holds the legal claim to legitimacy, but Gunter, Guy, Jones, Nunn, and Hughes all led differing lineups at one point or another. Nunn died of a heart attack in 1986, one year before The Coasters became the first vocal group inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Gunter was murdered in Las Vegas in 1990, and Jones passed away in early 2000.

Collegians

1 file

The Collegians formed in the Sugar Hill section of Harlem in the mid 1950's. They included Harlan Jackson, William Tarkenton, Henry Brown, Tim Holley and James "Charlie" McKay.

Coolbreezers

1 file

The Coolbreezer's personnel were Joe Reuth, Richard Steward, Bob Armstrong, William Primrose, Earl J. Williams and Sonny Williams. The group first started singing as a gospel group in Washington D.C. Bea Williams, Earl and Sonny's sister (and manager) sent a few R and B demos to New York and the result was a single recorded for ABC (You Know I Go for You/My Brother ABC9865 - 1957) which did not sell. So Bea started her own lable, BALE. The Coolbreezers released two singles on the BALE lable.
Earl also sang for the Twligthers on Marshall.

Crows

1 file

The Crows fromed in Harlem, New York and comprised of members Daniel "Sonny" Norton (lead), Bill Davis (baritone-tenor), Harold Major (tenor), Gerald Hamilton (bass) and Mark Jackson (tenor, guitar). The Crows have gained a place in history as makers of one of the first rock 'n' roll hits, "Gee", by virtue of the fact that as an R&B record it crossed over onto the pop charts. Because of its early date, early 1954, many historians of popular music consider it to be the first rock 'n' roll record. The group formed in 1952 as the Four Notes, and recorded for Jubilee without success. In 1953 they signed with George Goldner to record for his Rama label. Their debut, "Seven Lonely Days", did nothing. The second release, destined to make history, paired "Gee" with a ballad, "I Love You So", and that too failed, initially (Goldner's faith in "I Love You So" was justified in 1958 when the Chantels made it a big hit). The group's third release featured a good, deep, street-corner sound, pairing two remakes, "Heartbreaker" (a ballad originally recorded by the Heartbreakers) and "Call A Doctor" (a jump originally done by the Cap-Tans as "Chief Turn The Hose On Me"). In early 1954, "Gee" (number 2 R&B, number 14 pop) started climbing the charts and the Crows had their first, and last, hit. After subsequent records failed, such as the marvellous "Untrue" (1954), the Crows broke up.

Dells

2 files

The Dells were formed in 1953 in southern suburbs of Chicago, specifically the town of Harvey, IL, where all the members attended high school together. The original lineup featured lead baritone Marvin Junior, lead tenor Johnny Funches, tenors Verne Allison and Lucius McGill, second baritone Mickey McGill, and bass Chuck Barksdale. Initially called the El-Rays, the group recorded their first single, "Darling I Know," for Chess Records subsidiary Checker that year; it flopped. Lucius McGill departed not long after, and wasn't replaced, cutting the group down to a quintet. Newly christened The Dells, they got another shot in 1955 when they signed to Vee Jay. They had a minor RB hit with the ballad "Dreams of Contentment" that year, but really scored big in 1956 with the doo wop classic "Oh What a Nite," which featured Funches singing lead and went Top Five on the RB charts. Thus established, The Dells hit the road, although they found it difficult to duplicate their chart success. Tragedy nearly struck in 1958; on their way to a gig in Philadelphia, the body of the group's station wagon failed, resulting in a serious accident which lacerated Junior's larynx (slightly altering his voice thereafter) and nearly cost McGill the use of his leg. The Dells went on hiatus to recover; in the meantime, Barksdale became a temporary member of the Moonglows, where he sang alongside Marvin Gaye.

The Fiestasbiggest hit was 1959's "So Fine," which reached number three on the RB charts before crossing over to number 11 on the Hot 100. The Fiestas -- lead vocalist Tommy Bullock, Eddie Morris, Sam Ingalis, and Preston Lane -- were originally from Newark, NJ. They were signed to Old Town by owner Hy Weiss in 1959 after he heard the group singing "So Fine" in the bathroom next to his office (which was run out of the cloak room of ~the Triboro Theatre on 125th Street and Third Avenue in Harlem). The single shot onto the charts immediately. Weiss followed suit with the group's next single, "Last Night I Dreamed," which failed to connect. He continued trying, however, issuing soulful RB sides that were similar to what artists like Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson had been doing. Of these, favorites include "You Could Be My Girlfriend," a cover of Arthur Alexander's "Anna," and its flipside, "Think Smart," which is now a much-coveted Northern Soul rarity. A ballad from 1962, "Broken Heart," scored number 18 on the RB charts, but failed to chart on the pop lists.

Five Royales

2 files

The Five Royales began as the Royal Suns Quintet in 1942, a locally popular gospel quintet based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The original members include brothers Lowman, Curtis and Clarence Pauling, along with William Samuels and Otto Jefferies. In 1943 Jimmy Moore replaced Clarence Pauling just as the quintet was gaining a regional reputation in the Carolinas. By 1950 Obediah Carter and Johnny Tanner had replaced William Samuels and Curtis Pauling. In april 1952, the group sent a demo to Apollo Records, which had a fine reputation for its gospel records. Apollo was interested in the group, but not for gospel recordings. They were looking for a group that could compete with the Dominoes, the Orioles, and the Cardinals. The group was reluctant to change from gospel to secular music fearing alienating the religious community. It was at this time that they changed there name to the Royales.

Four Blues

2 files

The Four Blues a group from Philadelphia, first recorded for Decca in late 1940. They had a few singles which included Jitterbug Sadie, and Bluer Than Bluer Than Blue. In 1945 they started recording for Deluxe and also backed up Anne DuPont. In 1948 and 1950 they recorded for Apollo. The members were Earl Plummer (lead, also sang for The Red Caps), Arthur Davey (also a fromer Red Cap member) and Carrol Jones (bass). The fourth member's name is unknown.

Four Buddies

Hearts

2 files

Lee Andrews (b. Arthur Lee Andrew Thompson) was raised by a musical family in Goldsboro, NC. His father, Beechie Thompson, sang with the Dixie Hummingbirds. The Thompson family soon moved to Philadelphia, PA, when little Arthur Thompson was two. By the time he was a student at Bertram High School in 1952, Thompson had begun singing with four friends: Royalston "Roy" Calhoun (first tenor), Thomas "Butch" Curry (second tenor), James "Jimmy" McCalister (baritone), and John Young (bass). The quintet -- from the neighborhood of 49th and Woodland in South Philly -- first began calling themselves the Dreams and later, the Dreamers. Between 1952 and 1954, the Dreamers rehearsed after school (often tutored on spirituals by Curry's aunt) and soon began incorporating RB stylings into the mix. In early 1954, they visited the local WHAT radio station and danced in the studio adjacent to the DJ booth, where on-air personality Kae Williams held court. On one particular night, Williams asked a group of teens dancing in the next room about what local acts they liked and was told he should listen to the Dreamers. They later auditioned two Top Ten charters from previous decades and Williams was so awed by this unique assemblage that he offered to manage them on the spot. In the spring of that year, Williams squired the Dreamers into Reco Arts Studio and cut two sides. The group then traveled with Williams to New York City and to the offices of Eddie Heller and Bobby Heller's Rainbow Records, a label so small it shared space with a Hell's Kitchen storefront known as Sonny's Deli. The two also ran a club in North Philly and had previously associated with Williams. It was here that they learned there was already an act calling themselves the Dreamers and it was Jimmy McCalister who came up with the Hearts after spying a small plastic heart on a secretary's desk -- actually Heller's wife. Since Thompson was to be featured on as the group's leader, he began shuffling his names around to come up with something he felt would sound better -- and read better on the labels -- than Arthur Thompson and the Hearts. He finally settled on calling himself by his two middle names and thus the name Lee Andrews the Hearts was finally born.

Originally known as the Challengers, this adaptable vocal group, Walter Ward (b. 1940, Jackson, Mississippi, USA; lead), Eddie Lewis (b. 1937, Houston, Texas, USA; tenor), Charles Fizer (b. 1940, Shreveport, Louisiana, USA, d. August 1965; baritone) and Walter Hammond (baritone) was formed in Compton, California, in 1954. The Olympics' finest moment came with "Western Movies" (1958), a humorous novelty disc in the vein of the Coasters and the Clovers, which reached the Top 10 in the USA and Top 20 in the UK. The song was produced and co-written by Fred Smith, who later worked with Bob And Earl. The same was true of "Private Eye", another laconic tribute to 50s pulp-fiction culture, but it was 1960 before the group claimed another US hit with "Big Boy Pete", by which time Melvin King (b. 1940, Shreveport, Louisiana, USA), had replaced Walter Hammond. Meanwhile, the sacked lead vocalist Fizer, whose troubled life had already resulted in a prison sentence for drugs possession, was shot by the National Guard during the Watts riots. A reshaped Olympics later went on to have hits with such dancefloor favourites as "The Bounce" (1963), "Good Lovin'" (1965 - later successfully covered by the Young Rascals) and "Baby Do The Philly Dog" (1966), before being drawn towards the "oldies" circuit.

Plants

1 file

The Plants, from Baltimore, began singing together in 1955. The members were George Jackson (lead), Steve McDowell (1st tenor), James Lawson (baritone and Thurman Thrower (bass). They began as the Equadors and sang doing R&B and pop songs. After meeting Zell Sanders at a local show in Baltimore they started recording within three weeks. The group broke up in 1958 after several unsuccessful recordings.

Rainbows

1 file

The members of the Rainbows were Ronald Miles, Henry Womble, John Berry, James Nolan and Frank Hardy. Their second attemp to impress Bobby Robinson was successful. "Mary Lee" was written by John Berry and he also contacted Don Covay to help with the music backgrounds. After "Mary Lee" was recorded Womble left the group to attend school. Don Covay and Chester Simmons joined the group before the next record release. By 1957 Nolan and Simmons joined the Marquees on Okeh. The members on "They Say" are Berry, Miles, Convay and Simmons.

Rivals

1 file

The Group formed in Camden, N.J., in 1946 with Johnny Smith (Lead barritone), Chandler Tribble (first tennor), Booker T. Weeks (Second tenor), and Ira Mumford (bass) as the International Clavichords. They appeard on the "Arthur Godfrey Talent Scouts" and changed their name to the Rivals. The group only recorded one single in the summer of 1950, "Don't Say Your Sorry Again" and "Rival Blues".

Shirelles

3 files

The Shirelles were originally formed in 1958 in Passaic, NJ, by four high school friends: Doris Coley (later Doris KennerJackson), Addie "Micki" Harris, Shirley Owens (later Shirley Alston), and Beverly Lee. Christening themselves the Poquellos, the girls wrote a song called "I Met Him on a Sunday" and entered their school talent show with it. A school friend had them audition for her mother, Florence Greenberg, who ran a small record label; she was impressed enough to become the group's manager, and changed their name to The Shirelles by combining frequent lead singer Owens' first name with doo woppers the Chantels. The Shirelles' recording of "I Met Him on a Sunday" was licensed by Decca and climbed into the national Top 50 in 1958. Two more singles flopped, however, and Decca passed on further releases. Greenberg instead signed them to her new label, Scepter Records, and brought in producer Luther Dixon, whose imaginative, sometimes stringheavy arrangements would help shape the group's signature sound.
"Dedicated to the One I Love" (1959) and "Tonight's the Night" (1960) both failed to make much of an impact on the pop charts, although the latter was a Top 20 RB hit. However, they broke big time with the GoffinKing composition "Will You Love Me Tomorrow"; released in late 1960, it went all the way to number one pop, making them the first allfemale group of the rock era to accomplish that feat; it also peaked at number two RB. Its success helped send a rerelease of "Dedicated to the One I Love" into the Top Five on both the pop and RB charts in 1961, and "Mama Said" did the same; a more RBflavored outing, "Big John," also went to number two that year. 1962 continued their run of success, most notably with "Soldier Boy," a Luther Dixon/Florence Greenberg tune that became their second pop number one; they also had a Top Ten pop and RB hit with "Baby It's You." Unfortunately, Dixon subsequently left the label; The Shirelles managed to score one more pop/RB Top Ten with 1963's "Foolish Little Girl," but found it difficult to maintain their previous level of success.

Treniers

2 files

The heart of the Treniers are the twin brothers Claude and Clifford Trenier, born July 1919 in Mobile, Alabama. While attending Alabama State University in 1939 they met pianist Gene Gilbeaux and sax player Don Hill. In 1941 the twins were expelled from school. In 1944 Claude cut his first record with Jimmie Lunceford, who also hired Clifford. In 1945 the twins along with Lunceford cut their first record together, "Buzz Buzz Buzz". The record was not released until 4 years later. In 1947 while Claude was in Los Angeles, he convinced his brother, Gene Gilbeaux and Don Hill to come to L.A. Drummer Henry Green and bass player Herman Washington joined them.
The group traveled as the "Trenier Twins and the Gene Gilbeaux Quartet. They soon signed with Mercury and attempted to record "Hey Sister Lucy" and "I Miss You" but was rejected. In 1947 "Buzz Buzz Buzz" was released as their first single.

Wrens

1 file

EVALUATION COPY