The Edsels (Campbell, Ohio)
(By Hans-Joachim)

Personnel :

George Jones Jr. (Lead)

Harry Green (Baritone)

Larry Green (Tenor)

James Reynolds (Tenor)

Marshall Sewell (Bass)

Discography :

Singles :
1958 – Lama Rama Ding Dong (aka Rama Lama Ding Dong) / Bells (Dub 2843)
1959 - Do You Love Me? / Rink-A-Dink-I-Do (Roulette 4151)
1960 - What Brought Us Together? / Don't Know What To Do (Tammy 1010)
1961 - Rama Lama Ding Dong / Bells (Twin 700)
1961 - Three Precious Words / Let's Go (Tammy 1014 / Ember 1078)
1961 - The girl i love / Got to find out about love (Tammy 1023)
1961 - Count the tears / Twenty four hours (Tammy 1027)
1961 - My Jealous One / Bone Shaker Joe (Capitol 4588)
1962 - Could It Be? / My Wisperling Heart (Dot 16311)
1962 - Shake, Shake, Sherry / If Your Pilow Could Talk (Capitol 4675)
1962 - Shaddy Daddy Dip Dip / Don't You Feel? (Capitol 4836)
1968 - Hide And Seek / Another Lonely Night  (Tammy 1031)

Unreleased :
N/A - Born In Mexico
N/A - Love Makes The World Go Round
N/A - Hide And Go Seek
N/A - Hide And Seek
N/A - Give Me Love

Biography :

A brief encounter with fame came for the Edsels when they recorded the doo wop masterpiece "Rama Lama Ding Dong." Originally released in 1959, the single became a hit some three years after its initial release, thanks to the efforts of diligent record collectors and disc jockeys.

 
Edsels with Dick Clark on Bandstand

Taking their name from Ford's legendary failed automobile, the Edsels formed in the tiny mill town of Campbell, OH, in the late '50s. The group consisted of lead vocalist George Jones, Jr., James Reynolds, Marshall Sewell, Harry Greene, and Larry Greene.

The group auditioned for a local Ohio music publisher in 1958. Through the publisher, the group landed a record deal with the small Dub Records. The first pressings on Dub Records were mislabeled "Lama Rama Ding Dong.""Rama Lama Ding Dong" became a local hit, but made no impact nationally. The Edsels' first single was a song Jones had written, "Rama Lama Ding Dong."

In 1961, disc jockeys began playing the song again because it sounded similar to the Marcels' current hit, "Blue Moon." Within a few months, the single was re-released on Twin Records -- this time with the correct song title -- and it quickly scaled the pop charts, peaking at number 21.

Ironically, the group had broken up by the time "Rama Lama Ding Dong" became a hit in 1961.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine & Cub Koda, All Music Guide
http://home.earthlink.net/~v1tiger/edsels.html
http://www.rockabilly.nl/references/messages/george_jones_jr.htm
http://www.oldies.com/artist-biography/The-Edsels.html

Songs:

     
Lama Rama Ding Dong                   Bells                          Do You Love Me?

       
Rink-A-Dink-I-Do              What Brought Us Together?      Don't Know What To Do

      
Three Precious Words                 Let's Go                     The Girl I Love

     
Got To Find Out Above Love         Count The Tears             Twenty Four Hours

     
My Jealous One                   Bone Shaker Joe                   Could It Be?

     
My Whispering Heart             Shake, Shake, Sherry         If Your Pilow Could Talk

     
Shaddy Daddy Dip Dip              Don't You Feel?                Born In Mexico

     
Love Makes The World Go Round      Hide And Go Seek             Give Me Love


Hide And Go Seek (unrel. vers.)
 

....

The Kittens (2) (Jersey City, NJ)
aka The Carmelettes

Personnel :

Angela LaPrete "Angela Murphy"

Vickie Cevetello

Discography :

1960 - Dark, Dark Sunglasses /Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini (Alpine 64)
1960 - A Letter On His Sweater / Broken Dreams    (Alpine 67)

Biography :

Trio named after Our Lady of St. Carmel Church composed by Angela LaPrete (Angela Murphy), Vickie Cevetello and Virginia Verga.  The Carmelettes were a group of Italian-American teenage girls from Jersey City, NJ -- a working class city just across the Hudson River from Manhattan -- in the late 50's.

The Kittens

Beatrice Verdi was their songwriter, arranger, and mentor, and she is the songwriter credited on Aching for You and Ding Dong. The group was signed to Alpine, a subsidiary of Epic Records, in about 1958 and recorded their own songs as well as background vocals for Neil Sedaka's Oh Carol.

When Carole King, for whom the song was written, recorded the answer song, Oh Neil, the girls were hired again to recreate the sound of the original song. This began a long collaboration with Carole King, although the girls were no longer called the Carmelettes.

Virginia Verga left the group, and  Angela and Vickie became the Kittens. They continued to record with Carole and for Alpine until they fazed themselves out of the business at age 18.

Songs :

   
Dark, Dark Sunglasses                           Broken Dreams

   
Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini     A Letter On His Sweater

....

 
The Tangiers (2)  (Watts, Los Angeles)
aka The Hollywood Flames aka …….





Personnel :

Joe Jefferson (Lead)

David Ford (First tenor)

Bobby Byrd (Bass)

Earl Nelson (Second Tenor)

Curtis Williams (Baritone)




Discography :

1958 - Don't Try / School Days Will Be Over (Class 224)

Biography :

In March, the Hollywood Flames were used to back up Joe Jefferson (as the Tangiers) on his Class recordings of "Don't Try" and "School Days Will Be Over." This is not the Decca Group but an evolution of the Flames Satellites.

  
                                              (paste-up picture) Left to right : Nelson, Ford, Williams, Byrd.

Interestingly, David Ford was with the Decca Group that had previously used the Tangiers name when he recorded the classic "Tabarin" with Gaynel Hodge, Alex Hodge and Jesse Belvin.
http://www.uncamarvy.com/HollywoodFlames/hollywoodflames.html





Songs :

  
Don't Try                                         School Days Will Be Over

....

The Classmen (1) (Shelton, CT.)

Personnel :

George DeJoy (Lead/Bass Guitar)

Eddie Greco (Vocal/Guitar)

Angelo Faccento (Vocal/Drums)

Discography :

1963 - True Love / Silver Medal (Gateway 712)

Biography :

By Daryl DeJoy
Vocal & Instrumental Group from Pittsburgh consisted from left, Eddie Greco (who is still alive and lives in Titusville, Florida), George DeJoy in the center sang lead and played bass guitar and on the right, Angelo Faccento.

They were the original "The Classmen" and the band recorded at Bob Schachner's Gateway Studio in Pittsburgh the songs "True Love" and "Silver Medal". George DeJoy is a multi-instrumentalist in the early '60s .

Unfortunately, He never had the opportunity to take his potential any further.  In between gigs he worked at the BF Goodrich plant in Shelton, Connecticut, and one day returned home complaining of a headache. George DeJoy passed away suddenly in 1963 of a cerebral hemorrhage  and the band broke up.

   

They were a rare three man doo wop group, which required one of the singers to sing two different parts during the song. Angie Faccento passed away about five years ago of cancer.

Songs :

  
True Love                                            Silver Medal


….

The Sharps (1) (Los Angeles)
 

aka
The Rivingtons
The Four After Fives
The Crenshaws
The Twisters (2)
The Ebbtides (3)
 The  Friends (3)

Personnel :

Carl White (Lead)

Al Frazier (Tenor)

Sonny Harris (Lead)

Turner "Rocky" Wilson Jr (Bass)

Discography :

The Sharps (1)

Singles:
1956 - Six Months, Three Weeks  / Cha - Cho Hop (inst.) (Tag 2200/Chess 1690)
1957 - Come On / Sweet Sweetheart (Jamie 1040/Vik 0264)
1957 - Our Love Is Here To Stay / Lock My Heart (Lamp 2007)
1957 - What Will I Gain / Shugglin' (Aladdin 4301)
1958 - All My Love  / Look What You've Done To Me (Combo 146/Dot 15806)
1958 - Look At Me / Have Love, Will Travel (Jamie 1108)
1958 - Here's A Heart / Gig - A - Lene (Jamie 1114)

Unreleased :
1958 - Honey Babe (aka Tapun, Tapun) (Combo)
1958 - Hold Me (Combo)
1958 - I’m Such A Lovin’ Man (Combo)

Thurston Harris & The Sharps (1)
1957 - Little Bitty Pretty One / I Hope You Won't Hold It Against Me (Aladdin 3398) 

Thurston Harris bb The Sharps (1)
1958 - Do What You Did / I'm Asking Forgiveness (T.Harris)  (Aladdin 3399)

Biography :

Thurston Harris recorded with the Lamplighters, one of the many groups on the early R&B scene in South Central Los Angeles, in the early '50s. This group later evolved into the Tenderfoots, then the Sharps, and it was under this last name they were credited to when they backed up Harris on his 1957 solo hit, "Little Bitty Pretty One" (# 2 R&B and # 6 pop) for Aladdin. Harris had one other hit the following year, the excellent "Do What You Did" (# 14 R&B, # 57 pop). But back to the early fifties. In addition to Harris, the Lamplighters' lineup included former Hollywood Flame second tenor Willie Ray Rockwell, Matt Nelson and Al Frazier. They formed in the spring of 1952, shortly after Harris had moved to California, and began recording for Federal in 1953, with Harris singing lead most of the time.

In spite of the high quality of many of their recordings, the Lamplighters/Tenderfoots never had a national hit. In 1957 - and now signed as a solo artist to Aladdin - Harris recorded a cover version of Bobby Day's "Little Bitty Pretty One," a classic novelty number, with a solid band featuring the ubiquitous Earl Palmer on drums, Plas Johnson on tenor sax and his friends the Sharps doing background vocals. The single propelled Harris immediately to the front-ranks of the R&B scene, touring with the top names from the era.

Meanwhile, after Harris moved on, the Sharps - now Carl White, Al Frazier, John "Sonny" Harris, and Turner "Rocky" Wilson Jr. and added Darryl White in 1960 - continued to perform into the early '60s. The name game continued; as the Sharps, they recorded the great "Lock My Heart" and for a spate of labels calling themselves the Rebels, the Four After Fives, and the Crenshaws (sometimes with Harris, but usually without).

  
Thurston Harris                                                                                          Duane Eddy            

Back again as the Sharps they provided sound effects, handclaps, and vocal choral treatments on some of Duane Eddy's big hits. Unfortunately, they had more success with their live appearances in the greater Southern California area than they did with any of their releases. In 1962, the Sharps joined up with producers Kim Fowley and Gary Paxton, who helped reconfigure the group as a black surf novelty act, now calling themselves the Rivingtons. Under this moniker, they scored a big hit (# 48) with the immortal "Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow" for Liberty (1962).

Songs :

The Sharps (1)

     
Six Months, Three Weeks  / Cha - Cho Hop    Come On / Sweet Sweethear    Our Love Is Here To Stay / Lock My Heart

     
What Will I Gain / Shugglin'         All My Love  / Look What You've Done To Me            Look At Me / Have Love, Will Travel

     
Here's A Heart / Gig - A - Lene                  Honey Babe (aka Tapun, Tapun)           Hold Me

  
I’m Such A Lovin’ Man                    Do What You Did


Thurston Harris & The Sharps (1)

  
Little Bitty Pretty One             I Hope You Won't Hold It Against Me

 .....