The Emersons  (Manhattan, New-York)
aka The Demens (1)

Personnel :

Eddie “California” Jones (Lead)

Jimmy Caines (First Tenor)

Thomas Cook (Second Tenor, Lead)

Frankie Cook ( Baritone)

Discography :

The Demens (1)
1957 - Take Me As I Am / You Broke My Heart (Teenage 1006)
1957 - The Greatest Of Them All / Hey Young Girl (Teenage 1008)

The Emersons
1958 - Hungry / Joannie, Joannie (Newport 7004)
1959 - Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde / The Hokey Pokey (Cub 9027)
1961 - Down In The Valley / Loneliness (United Artists 379)

Eddie Jones & The Demons
196? - The Greatest Of Them All / Long Tall Texan (Jim Mann & Demons) (Kairay 1003)

Biography :

The Demens (yes, that spelling is correct) formed in New York City and harmonized on street corners. They may have opted for that spelling of the word demon because of a record label called Demon Records famous for “Western Movies” by the Olympics and "Endless Sleep" by Jody Reynolds. The vocal group consisted of Eddie Jones, Thomas Cook, Frankie Cook, and Jimmy Caines. The group then hooked up with the manager of the Bobbettes of “ Mr. Lee” fame (Atlantic #1144), Jim Dailey, and got to record for the small Teenage record label located on Broadway.

This affiliation yielded two singles—the original version of "Take Me As I Am"  (Teenage #1006), later covered by the Duprees, and the much less successful “The Greatest of Them All” (Teenage #1008). Shortly after the second release by the Demens, the Teenage label folded and its owners seemingly disappeared. Another label had interest in the group, but couldn't find the owners of Teenage to release the group from their contract, so in order to proceed, a name change occurred.

The group became the Emersons and was more likely named for the electronics company than the college. ow with the Newport Records label, the group recorded a ballad called “Joanie, Joanie” and backed it up with a novelty song titled "Hungry" (Newport 7004)  The novelty side became a minor hit, and the owner of Newport Records, Jerry Winston, then brought the group over to MGM's Cub label subsidiary (#9027), where they recorded a two-sided novelty record “The Hokey Pokey” backed with “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.”

NEven on a major label, the group failed to match the regional success of their earlier releases. They gave it one more try, again for a major label—United Artists (#379—“Loneliness” backed with “Down In The Valley",  but it just wasn't meant to be, and the group disbanded. Lead singer Eddie Jones remained in the music business and the group disbanded. Lead singer Eddie Jones remained in the music business and worked with several girl groups, including arranging and playing piano for the Chantels of “ Maybe” fame. Jones continued to work until his passing on August 24, 2008.

Songs :
(updated by Hans-Joachim) 

The Demens (1)

     
Take Me As I Am            You Broke My Heart          The Greatest Of Them All


Hey Young Girl



The Emersons

     
Hungry                           Joannie, Joannie              Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde

   
The Hokey Pokey              Down In The Valley / Loneliness

Eddie Jones & The Demons

The Greatest Of Them All

 ...

(L to R) Joey, Jessie, Ron, Johnny and Jackie

The Monograms (3) (Brooklyn, New York)

Personnel :

Ron Friedman

Joey ...

Jessie ...

Johnny ...

Jackie ...

Biography :

Vocal group from Brooklyn consisting of five guys. Formed in 1957, the Monograms were Joey, Jessie, Ron, Johnny and Jackie.  In 1958, the Monograms recorded  "Old Rock And Roll"  written by the group, which was an acapella group. The record was recorded at Bell Sound Studio in New York City. 

Song :


Old Rock And Roll

...

 (L to R) O’Kelly, Rudy, Ron & Vernon

The Isley Brothers (Cincinnati, Ohio)
The Early years



Personnel :

Vernon Isley (Lead)

Rudolph Isley

O'Kelly Isley Jr.

Ronald Isley





Biography :

The Isley Brothers originally came from Cincinnati, Ohio, and were raised at the city's Lincoln Heights suburb, eventually settling at the satellite town of Blue Ash when they were teenagers. Their father, O'Kelly Isley, Sr., a former United States Navy sailor and vaudeville performer from Durham, North Carolina, and Georgia-reared mother Sallye, guided the elder four Isley boys in their singing while at church. Patterning themselves after groups such as Billy Ward and his Dominoes and the Dixie Hummingbirds, the brothers began performing together in 1954. Eventually they landed a spot on Ted Mack's Amateur Hour where they won the competition, winning a watch. With Vernon on lead vocals, the quartet soon began touring all over the eastern US regions performing in a variety of churches. When Vernon was thirteen, he was killed after a car struck him as he was riding his bike in his neighborhood. Devastated, the remaining trio disbanded.

Eventually convinced to regroup, the brothers decided to record popular music and left Cincinnati for New York in 1957 with their parents' blessings. With Ronnie assuming the lead vocal position in the group, the group got into contact with Richard Barrett, who soon had the group in contact with a variety of New York record producers. They eventually had their first records produced by George Goldner, who recorded the group's first songs, including "Angels Cried" and "The Cow Jumped Over the Moon" for the Teenage, Cindy and Mark X imprints




Songs :

  
           Angels Cried                       The Cow Jumped Over The Moon



...

 
Reggie Walker, John Blount, Robert Coleman & Ronald Coleman

The Delroys (Queens, New-York) 
aka The Del-Roys

Personnel :

Reggie Walker (Bass, Lead)

John Blount (First Tenor)

Ronald Coleman (Second Tenor)

Robert Coleman ( Baritone)

Discography :

The Delroys
Singles:
1957 - Bermuda Shorts / Time (Milton Sparks) (Apollo 514)
1959 - Wise Old Owl / Strange Land (Sparkell 102)

The Del-Roys
Singles :
1961 - Love Me Tenderly / Pleasing You (Carol 4113)
Unreleased:
1961 - Happy Life (Carol)
1961 - Mexico (Carol)

Lps :
1964 - Al Browne Presents Dyno Sounds (MOON AB 1)
Alimony

Biography :

Long Island, NY-based doo wop quartet the Delroys formed in the city's Queensbridge Projects in 1956 -- according to Marv Goldberg's profile in the July 1989 issue of Record Collectors' Monthly, brothers Ronald (first tenor) and Robert Coleman (baritone) lured away bass Reggie Walker from a rival group, and with the subsequent addition of lead John Blount, the lineup was complete. Named in honor of the acrobatic troupe the Five Flying Delroys, the teens were soon introduced to manager Ernest Kelly, who in early 1957 secured a deal with Apollo Records that also included another of his clients, soloist Milton Sparks. Thus, the Delroys' debut single, "Bermuda Shorts," featured Sparks' "Time" on the flip side -- when the Walker-penned tune began earning interest at radio, Apollo vice president Charlie Merenstein partnered with stations across the U.S. to launch contests promising winners copies of the record as well as gift certificates for their own "Bermuda shorts."

  
                                                                Reggie Walker, John Blount, Ronald Coleman & Robert Coleman

Although the Delroys scored a major hit in markets including Baltimore, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and New York City, spotty distribution hampered the momentum of "Bermuda Shorts" and the single failed to crack the national pop charts; moreover, when Apollo withheld payment from the group, their parents balked at future recording sessions, bringing their tenure with the label to an abrupt halt. The Delroys continued touring, however, at each date performing in Bermuda shorts of their own -- a frustrated Blount resigned from duty in 1958, prompting the additions of two new members, lead Bobby Taylor and second tenor Junior Talbot. When Kelly and Sparks co-founded their own Sparkell label in 1959, the Delroys entered the studio to cut their second single, "Wise Owl" -- when it failed to generate the interest of "Bermuda Shorts," the lineup began to splinter, with several members called for military duty.

In 1961, Ronald Coleman assembled a new Delroys lineup featuring lead Ray Paine, second tenor Norman Baquie, and baritone Cliff Davis, cutting "Love Me Tenderly" for the Carol label and scoring a minor hit in the New York market. A second Carol single remained on the shelf, however, and the new group dissolved as well. However, in 1964 Coleman reunited with Reggie Walker to form yet another iteration of the Delroys, this one with second tenor Walter Pope. Their lone recording, "Alimony," appeared on the compilation LP Al Browne Presents Dyno Sounds. The Coleman brothers joined forces with Walker again in 1970, adopting the name the First Three for their lone Deep label effort, "Don't Get Caught Faking." After more than a decade of inactivity, the trio re-formed as the Delroys in 1982, becoming a staple of the oldies revue and corporate events circuits.
http://www.uncamarvy.com/Delroys/delroys.html

Songs :


The Delroys

      
Bermuda Shorts                                          Time             

    
Strange Land            

The Del-Roys

  
Love Me Tenderly                                         Pleasing You

...

The Scholars (1)  (Houston, Texas)

Personnel :

Al Eisman (Lead)

Kenny Rogers (First Tenor)

Bruce Mosier

John Kirby

Discography :

1956 - Poor Little Doggie / What I Did Wrong (Cue 7927)
1956 - Waddie / Spin The Wheel (Cue 7931)
1956 - Rocky Road / Spin The Wheel (Dot 15498)
1956 - If you listen with your heart / Poor Little Doggie (Dot 15519)
1956 - Beloved / I Didn't Want To Do It (Imperial 5449)
1957 - Eternally Yours / Kan-Gu-Wa (Imperial 5456)

Biography :

At Jefferson Davis High School, though, Young Kenny Rogers began to develop his childhood interest in music. He put together his first band, a four–part harmony group called the Scholars.  Through his friendship with 17–year–old Houston DJ Larry Kane, Lelan (His brother and manager) was able to ditch it all and get a job promoting and distributing records first for the local label Cue, then for Decca Records where he specialized in rhythm 'n' blues music.

The Scholars played the hits of the day, the pop, rhythm 'n' blues and especially vocal–harmony stuff that Kenny and his three bandmates enjoyed. Kenny sang the high parts, and played stand–up bass. The Scholars cut a couple of singles that sold around Houston, and subsequently the ante was upped via a one–shot deal with Dot Records. In 1956, Dot released "Rocky Road" b/w "Spin The Wheel" and "If You Listen With Your Heart" b/w "Poor Little Doggie".  The Scholars appeared on Dick Clark's American Bandstand.

 After a long, hot drive, with Kenny's bass strapped to the roof of the car, the Scholars recorded four sides in a Los Angeles studio  "Beloved," with a song called "Kangewah" on the B–side. Improbaby, "Kan-Gu-Wa" had been composed by Hollywood gossip columnist Louella Parsons; the Scholars reasoned that she'd plug their record on her radio show and wammo, instant hit. The Scholars disbanded after  Kenny Rogers moved on to a solo career. In 1957 Kenny recorded "Crazy Feeling " released by Carlton records. The Song went to N° 1 in Houston.

Songs :(updated by Hans-Joachim) 

The Scholars (1)

   
 Beloved                                       Eternally Yours

   
 Kan-Gu-Wa                                  I Didn't Want To Do It

   
What I Did Wrong                                   Spin The Wheel
 
   
If You Listen With Your Heart                          Rocky Road            

  
   Waddie                                 The Poor Little Doggie

 Kenny Rogers


That Crazy Feeling

 ...