The Versatiles (2) (Philadelphia)
aka The Majors (5) aka The Performers (3)

Personnel :

Rick Cordo (Lead)

Ron Gathers

Gene Glass

Idella Morris

Frank Troutt



Discography :

The Majors (5)
 

Singles :
1960 - Lundee Dundee / I'll Whisper In Your Ear (The Versatiles) (Rocal 1002)

1962 - A Wonderful Dream / Time Will Tell (Imperial 5855)

1962 - She's A Troublemaker / A Little Bit Now  (Imperial 5879)

1963 - Anything You Can Do / What In The World (Imperial 5914)

1963 - Tra La La / What Have You Been Doin' (Imperial 5936)

1963 - Get Up Now / One Happy Ending  (Imperial 5968)

1963 - Life Begins / Which Way Did She Go  (Imperial 5991)
1963 - Ooh Wee Baby / I'll Be There (Imperial 66009)

Lps :
1963 - Meet The Majors (Imperial Lp 9222)
A Wonderful Dream / Ooh Wee Baby / Time Will Tell / Tra La La / Twist and Shout / A Little Bit Now  / She's a Troublemaker / Don't Lose your Cool / I Wonder Who's Dancing With Her Now / What in the World / Come on Come On / Anything You Can Do

The Versatiles (2)
1960 - Lundee Dundee (The Majors) / I'll Whisper in your ear (Rocal 1002)
 
The  Performers (3)
1966 - Just Dance / Love Is A Answer  (ABC 10777)

Biography :

Robert Morris, Gene Glass, Frank Troutt, Rick Cordo, and Ron Gathers made up the original quintet, with Idella Morris soon replacing her brother Robert. The group first called themselves The Premiers and formed in Philadelphia in 1959. Although they attended different high schools, they hung around together after school, and on weekends, in Harlan Street, performing on the street corners between 19th and 20th streets. Idella was the youngest member at nineteen years and Gene Glass, who had just returned from the US Air Force, was the oldest group member, being twenty five.

 

The group met club owner Buddy Caldwell early in 1960 and he persuaded them to record for his Ro-Cal label. They recorded "Lundee Dundee" and "Let Me Whisper in Your Ear" as The Versatiles since the studio apparently had another group listed on their books as The Premiers. The record had local success, but Ro-Cal just wasn’t geared up for national distribution and the group received little in the way of royalties. At that point some of the male members went off to the service. Two and a half years later, the group reformed, with an identical lineup, as The Majors.

Jerry Ragovoy

When the group reformed Jerry Ragavoy heard them perform and he already knew of "Lundee Dundee".  Ragavoy liked The Majors enough to get them a recording deal with Imperial. In July 1962 they turned up at the Imperial studios and “A Wonderful Dream” b/w “Time Will Tell”. “A Wonderful Dream” entered the Cashbox pop chart on the 4th of August and rose to # 20 on September the 22nd, it made # 22 on Billboard and # 23 on the national R&B chart.

Following the success of “A Wonderful Dream” a lone and now quite collectible, LP was issued and, in rapid succession, six more singles.  The next release was a bouncy tune in the mould of Wonderful Dream, “A Little Bit Now (A Little Bit Later)” b/w “She's A Troublemaker”. Both sides made moderate moves on the national listing. “A Little Bit Now” peaked at # 63 and “She’s A Troublemaker” reached # 83. Three of the groups remaining five Imperial releases made the Bubbling Under list on Billboard.

“Anything You Can Do” reached # 117 in Februrary 1963. “Your Life Begins at Sweet Sixteen” made #125 in September 1963 and “I’ll Be There” reached #113 in February, 1964. At this point The Majors contract with Imperial Records concluded. The Majors, with their line-up intact, recorded just once more. In 1966 they entered Frank Virtue's studios as The Performers. ABC-Paramount issued the Peter DeAngelos’ produced disc, but it failed. The group continued to tour during the 1960s, but made no more recordings and disbanded.

In a 1986 a Dick Clark TV special gathered all of the original members for a performance. Rick Cordo, Idella Morris, who had by this time changed her name to Haleema Alkhatib and Gene Glass then, recommenced working as The Majors. Sometimes Troutt and Gathers also join them.
http://vicrock.com.au/community/showthread.php?2424-The-Majors

Songs :

The Majors (5)

     
Lundee Dundee                 A Wonderful Dream                  Time Will Tell

     
She's A Troublemaker                A Little Bit Now               Anything You Can Do

     
 What In The World                  Tra La La                  What Have You Been Doin'

     
Get Up Now                  One Happy Ending                     Life Begins

     
 Which Way Did She Go            Ooh Wee Baby                   I'll Be There

     
Twist And Shout                    Don't Lose Your Cool     Come On, Come On


I Wonder Who's Dancing With Her Now

The Versatiles (2)

I'll Whisper In Your Ear

The  Performers (3)

  
Just Dance                                 Love Is A Answer

Cds :



...

The Crescendos (3) (Nashville, TN)
 (Update By Hans-Joachim)

Personnel :

George Lanius

Kenneth Brigham

Jim Lanius

Jimmy Hall

Tommy Fortner

Discography :

The Crescendos (3)

Singles :
1957 - Oh, Julie  / My Little Girl (Nasco 6005)
1958 - School Girl / Crazy Hop  (Nasco 6009)

1958 - Young And In Love / Rainy Sunday (Nasco 6021)

1961 - Let's Take A Walk / Strange Love (Scarlet 4007)

1961 - Angel Face / I'm So Ashamed (Scarlet 4009)
1962 - Oh, Julie / Angel Face (Tap 2027)

Unreleased :
1958 - I've Tried (Nasco) 
1958 - Gawk' N' Stroll (Nasco) 
1958 - Lucky Love (Nasco)
1958 - Teenage Angel (Nasco) 

Lowell McGuire bb The Crescendos (3) (Uncredited)
1958 - Spellbound / Leave My Girlie Alone (Nasco 6007)

Janice Green bb The Crescendos (3) (Uncredited)
1958 - Jackie / With All my heart (Nasco 6013)

Lps :

The Original "Oh Julie" With the Crescendos  (Guest Star 1453)
1962 - Oh Julie / Angel Face / I'm So Ashamed (Other tracks by another Crescendos group)

Biography :

In 1958  the sounds  of a sweet ballad chanting "Oh Julie" pierced the airwaves of   all top 40 radio stations across the country. The second vocal group release for the new Excello subsidiary Nasco, based in Nashville Tennessee, the Crescendos had the biggest Nasco label hit by far, selling about a million copies.

It was also a popular song to record. Otis  Williams and the Charms sold 300,000 on King, and Sammy Salvo sold 250,000 copies with   RCA. The female voice  that really added a hook to the record was Janice Green.

The Spades

The  group was originally called the Spades, but wisely changed their name. They attended Cumberland  High school in Nashville Tennessee,  and the group was discovered at a talent show.

There were three releases on Nasco, two on Scarlet, an album released after the fact on Guest Star, and a release on the Tap label.

The Crescendos did the back-up vocals for Lowell McGuire on "Spellbound" backed with "Leave My Girlie Alone"on Nasco, but they were not credited because the Label operations manager, Ernie Young, did not want them to interfere with the monster hit they had in the making with, "Oh Julie".

Ernie Young with The Crescendos

They also backed  Janice Green (The Oh Julie Girl) on her Nasco record "Jackie".

The Crescendos were part of the national tour called "The Biggest Show Of Stars". Oh Julie was riding high late 1957, and carried well into 1958.

For their two records on Scarlet, The group did not include Jimmy Hall.
http://www.colorradio.com/crescendos.htm
http://www.waybackattack.com/crescendos.html
http://www.answers.com/topic/the-crescendos
http://www.bigbobh.net/dowop/crescendos.htm



Songs :

The Crescendos

    
Lucky Love                                      Teenage Angel

    
Oh, Julie                                    I've Tried

     
My Little Girl                                    Gawk' N' Stroll


Lowell McGuire (bb The Crescendos) 

    
Spellbound                                  Leave My Girlie Alone

Cds :

Janice Green bb The Crescendos (3) (Nashville, TN)

Personnel :

Janice Green (Lead)

The Crescendos (3)

George Lanius

Kenneth Brigham

Jim Lanius

Jimmy Hall

Tommy Fortner

Discography :

1958 - Jackie / With All my heart (Nasco 6013)





Biography :

In 1958 the sounds  of a sweet ballad chanting "Oh Julie" by the Crescendos pierced the airwaves of all top 40 radio stations across the country.

   
Janice Green                                                         The Crescendos

The female voice  that really added a hook to the record was Janice Green. Janice Green was dubbed "The Oh Julie Girl". Because of her unique sound, Nasco issued this single "Jackie"  and  "With All My Heart".

http://www.colorradio.com/crescendos.htm



Songs :


   
With All my heart                           Jackie



Cds :

The Tenderfoots aka The Lamplighters (Los Angeles)
(Update By Hans-Joachim)

Personnel :

Carl White (Lead)

Al Frazier (Tenor)

Sonny Harris (Lead)

Matthew Nelson (Bass)



Discography :

1955 - Kissing Bug / Watussi  Wussi Wo (Federal 12214)

1955 - Save Me Some Kisses / My Confession (Federal 12219)

1955 - Those Golden Bells / I'm Yours Anyhow (Federal 12225)

1955 - Sindy / Sugar Ways (Federal 12228)
1955 - Lavern (Federal) (Unreleased)
1955 - No Other One (Federal) (Unreleased)

Biography :

This group recorded as, and evolved from the Lamplighters.
The Lamplighters personnel was changing often. By year's end, they were an entirely different group.

The Lamplighters

Later in the year, the Lamplighters signed with Decca for only one single, then returned to Federal, who tried something new: they decided to re-name them "The Tenderfoots," hoping to start anew and get off on the good (tender) foot. Four recordings were released by the group under this name, but were quickly forgotten.


Songs :

   
La Verne                                    No Other One

   
My Confession                             Those Golden Bells

   
Cindy                                                Watussi  Wussi Wo

   
Save Me Some Kisses                            I'm Yours Anyhow

   
Sindy                                            Sugar Ways

CDs :

The Leaders (Newport News, Virginia)

Personnel :

Harry Burton (First Tenor)

Edward "Snipper" Alston (Second Tenor)

Nelson Shields (Second Tenor)

Ronald Judge (Baritone)

Charles Simpson (Bass)

Discography :

Singles :
1955 - Stormy Weather / A Lover Of The Time (Glory 235)
1956 - Nobody Loves Me / Dearest Beloved Darling (Glory 239)
1956 - Can't Help Lovin' That Girl Of Mine / Lovers (Glory 243)

Unreleased :
1956 - Dry Your Eyes (Glory)
1956 - I Almost Lost My Mind (Glory)

Biography :

The Leaders were known  early in their career as the Pokenoes and then the Five Swans. They all grew up in the same neighborhood and attended the same high school, Hunnington High. As the Five Swans, they competed in many amateur shows and did quite well. Well enough  to win a trip to the famed Apollo theatre in New York. They won the show 4 weeks in a row in 1955, and soon after signed a record deal with the Glory label.

The name change  was first, and in the late summer of 1955, they recorded their bluesy rendition of "Stormy Weather". The band that backed them up included Mickey Baker, Sam The Man Taylor and Panama Francis. Two additional records followed, but none had the same  success as their first, and the contract with Glory records was not renewed. Burton, Alston, and Simpson continuing on as the Three Voices while Judge and Shields relocated to New York City, forming the Corvairs with tenors Joe Shepard and Prince McKnight along with bass Billy Faison.
http://www.colorradio.com/leaders.htm
http://www.uncamarvy.com/Leaders/leaders.html

Songs :

      
Stormy Weather            Can't Help Lovin' That Girl Of Mine             Lovers

     
Nobody Loves Me                  Dearest Beloved Darling       A Lover Of The Time

...