The Impacts (1) (Brooklyn, New York)
aka The Blue Chips (2)

Personnel :

Kenneth Seymour (Lead and Baritone)

Steve Liebowitz (Tenor & Baritone)

Horace Brooks (Tenor)

Robert Baber (Bass)

Helen Powell  (Tenor)

Discography :

The Renditions(with Steve Liebowitz)
Unreleased :
1957 - Roses
1957 - My Juanita

The Impacts (1)
Singles :
1959 - Now Is The Time / Soup (Watts 5599)
1959 - Croc-O-Doll / Bobby Sox Squaw (RCA 7583)
1959 - Canadian Sunset / They Say (Watts 5600/RCA 7609)
1961 - Help me Somebody / Darling Now you're Mine (Carlton 548)
1965 - Just Because / Pigtails (DCP 1150)
Unreleased :
1958 - Here I am (End)

Kenny & The Impacts (1)
1965 - Wishing Well / Heartaches (DCP 1147)

The Blue Chips (2)
1961 - Puddles Of Tears / The Contest (RCA 7923)
1961 - Let It Ride / Adios Adios (RCA 7935)
1962 - Promise / One Hen (Groove 0006)

The Impact
1967 - My World Fell Down / Could You Love Me (MGM 13726)

Biography :

In 1957, Steve Liebowitz with his Brooklyn group the "Renditions" recorded a two-sided acappela Demo, "Rose" and "My Juanita". Steve would unite with fellow Bedford Styvesant Brooklynites, Horace Brooks (Tenor), Robert Baber (Bass), Kenneth Seymour (Lead and Baritone) and a Female tenor, Helen Powell who Steve eventually marry. They would record the novelty record "soup" backed with "Now is the Time" for the small Watts label in 1958. They left them for End records later in 1958, Recoding a song called "Here I am" which never came out.

   A year later they signed a contract with RCA where 4 sides were recorded and released. Steve Liebowitz was away on these recording and was replaced with Charles 'Churchill' Mattocks. After some personnel changes (Paul Fulton and Sammy Strain replaced Powell and Baber), the Group had one release for Carlton Records.  The Two new members were both from the Chips "Rubber Biscuit" and Sammy Strain also sang with the Fantastics, later with the Imperials and the O'Jays.

They Moved back to RCA (Two new releases) and would record for the Groove subsidiary but due to contractual problems they were forced to change their name to The Blue Chips. Bert Can now joined the group replacing Paul Fulton. Through their association with Richard Barret, they backed Pookie Hudson as his Spaniels and Earl Wade. They did Backup for Lenny Welch and Little Peggy March.

     
Pookie Hudson                                     Earl Wade                                             Little Peggy March                                          Lenny Welch

 Kenny Seymour saw the music scene changing and along with Sammy Strain he was joined by Harold Jenkins and Renaldo Gamble both from The Kodaks and The Schoolboys. The Group was rounded out by adding Allen Morton (Also from The Chips). The Group had two releases on DCP, the second as Kenny & The Impacts and a final release on MGM as the Impact.
Thanks to Robert Baber



Songs :

The Impacts (1)

       
Now Is The Time                        Soup                               Croc-O-Doll

         
Bobby Sox Squaw                 Canadian Sunset                   They Say

         
Help me Somebody            Darling Now you're Mine             Just Because


Pigtails

Kenny & The Impacts (1)

 
Wishing Well


The Blue Chips (2)

       
Puddles Of Tears                      The Contest                                     Let It Ride

     
Adios Adios                              Promise                                      One Hen

 The Impact

  
My World Fell Down                  Could You Love Me

....

The Ambers (1) (Los Angeles)


Personnel :

Ralph Mathis (Lead)

Barry Tompkins (Second Tenor)

Stan Voetz (Bariton)

Manny Haber (Bass)

Discography :

1958 - Never Let You Go / I'll Make A Bet (Ebb 142)

Biography

The Ambers were a group from San Francisco's George Washington High School: Ralph Mathis (lead and brother of Pop singing sensation Johnny Mathis), Barry Tompkins (second tenor), Stan Voetz (baritone), and Manny Haber (bass).

  
                                                                            Ralph Mathis

December 1957, the Ambers did a single session for Ebb Records. Ebb Records, run by Lee Rupe (the ex-wife of Specialty Records' owner Art Rupe), was a minor Los Angeles rock and R&B label of the late 1950s.

 
Ralph Mathis at The Apollo Theater (1958)                                                                                 

 Session producer Jesse Johnson decided to throw in more voices, and rounded up everyone he could find to do additional vocals and clapping .Present in the studio , the Jaguars became part of the backup on the Ralph Mathis and the Ambers session. "Never Let You Go" b/w "I'll Make A Bet" were released in March 1958.

Songs :

     
 Never Let You Go                             I'll Make A Bet

 ...

The Kampus Kids (East Liverpool, Ohio)
aka Rick & The Legends (4)
aka Riki & The Rikatones

Personnel :

Rick Palmer (Guitar / Lead Vocal)

Jerry Nolan (Rhythm Guitar / Vocal)

Jay Stewart  (Guitar Bass / Vocal)

Discography :

Rick Palmer
1958 - You Threw A Dart / My Greatest Wish (Carlton 491)

The Kampus Kids
1960 - Leave Me Alone / Mr Rainbow Man (Ensign 5000)

Riki & The Rikatones
1960 - Whiphash    / T.N.T. (Manhattan 201)

Rick & The Legends (4)
1963 - The Diary Of A Teenage Bride / All Of Your Love (JD 155)
1965 - I Wonder Why / Leave Me Alone (JD 162)
1966 - I Wonder Why / Love Me Like I Know You Can (UA 5093)

Biography :

Originally from East Liverpool, Ohio, the group begin in 1958 as The Teen-Kings, a musical group  comprised of Rick Palmer, Bill Pipes, Don Hay and Jerry Nolan.  In November 1958, Rick Palmer recorded  "You Threw a Dart" b/w "My Greatest Wish" released On Carlton records.In 1959 Rick Palmer on lead vocal and lead guitar teamed up Jerry Nolan on rhythm guitar and vocal and Jay Stewart on bass and vocal. Their current manager  sold their contract to Buck Ram. As Their new manager, Buck provided the group with "Mr. Rainbow Man" and "Leave Me Alone" released on on the new Ensign label (Antler’s subsid) as the The Kampus Kids.

The Kampus Kids - From top : Jay Stewart, Jerry Nolan & Rick Palmer

The single made it all the way into the top five on radio station WNOR in Norfolk, Virginia. Even though the song was extremely popular regionally it failed to achieve success nationally. After several ups and downs they moved to Cleveland Ohio where their manager had a "You Write 'Em and I'll Record 'Em" business for songwriters who wanted to hear their songs recorded. They were his house band and some of the recordings they made for him were released on his Manhattan label as Riki & The Rikatones, two Rockabilly "Whiphash" and "T.N.T.". In the very early 60s (1961/1962) the band relocated to the Norfolk, Virginia area & played Virginia Beach regularly as well as the naval base officers club. It was here that the band got to open up for and back-up the late, great Roy Orbison. Rick Palmer also did lots of session work and played with Ray Peterson on "Tell Laura I love her".

 
                                                                                      clockwise from top left: Jean Palmer, Buzzy Rose, Jerry Nolan and Rick Palmer

 He backed up Nashville artist, Minnie Pearl also. In 1968 the band relocated to Massachusetts where they recorded "Love me like I know you can" in their basement for the United Artists label. In 1962 Buzzy Rose joined Rick Palmer and Jerry Nolan as their drummer and added Rick's wife Jean  (keyboards & vocals). They call themselves The Coachmen and changed to Rick & The Legends. Soon they cut their first record on the JD label "The Diary Of A Teenage Bride" b/w "All Of Your Love". The next record was "I Wonder Why" b/w "Leave Me Alone". Then United artists cut "I Wonder Why" and a new song Rick wrote, "Love Me Like I Know You Can".

Songs :

The Kampus Kids

  
Mr Rainbow Man                                   Leave Me Alone

Rick & The Legends (4)

  
The Diary Of A Teenage Bride                    All Of Your Love            

  
         I Wonder Why                           Love Me Like I Know You Can

Rick Palmer


You Threw A Dart


Riki & The Rikatones

  
Whiphash  (Rockabilly)                      T.N.T. (Rockabilly)    

..

Bobby (Boris) Pickett

The Stompers (2) (Los Angeles)
aka The Cordials (3)

Personnel :

Bobby (Boris) Pickett

Leonard "Lenny" Capizzi

Bill Capizzi

Ron Deltorto

Lou Toscano

Discography :

The Stompers (2)
1962 - Quarter To Four Stomp / Foolish One (Landa 684)

The Cordials (3)
1962 - Eternal Love /  The International Twist (Reveille 106)

Biography :

Bobby (Boris) Pickett was born in Somerville, Massachusetts. After high school, he spent three years in Korea in the US army signal corps. Upon demobilisation, Pickett headed for Hollywood, where he wanted to break into movies and stand-up comedy - his first nightclub act included a horror film routine. His initial success was modest, and in 1961 he joined a vocal group called the Cordials.  The Cordials were Leonard "Lenny" Capizzi, Bill Capizzi, Ron Deltorto, Lou Toscano and Bobby Boris Pickett. It specialised in the doo-wop close-harmony style and occasionally Pickett would enliven shows by intoning the spoken section of Little Darlin', a hit by the Diamonds, in his Karloff voice.

The Cordials soon came to the attention of the record producer and songwriter Gary Paxton. Under his guidance, the Cordials, a white group in a mainly black genre, recorded "Eternal Love"  and "The International Twist" both written By the Capizzi brothers .  Gary Paxton produced the Next single "Quarter To Four Stomp", a surf-orientated adaptation of Garу US Bonds’ “Quarter To Three” . The single was released under the name of the Stompers. 

Shortly after this release Bobby Boris Pickett left for a solo career and co-wrote "Monster Mash" with Cordials/Stompers member Leonard Capizzi to take advantage of the Mashed Potato dance craze. Pickett's half-spoken, half-sung narration includes a brief snatch of a heavily accented Bela Lugosi impersonation as well as the Karloff voice. The refrain ran, "He did the mash/ He did the monster mash/ The monster mash/ It was a graveyard smash".

Songs :
(updated by Hans-Joachim) 

The Cordials (3)

  
Eternal Love                      The International Twist 


The Stompers (2)

  
Quarter To Four Stomp                            Foolish One


Bobby Pickett


Monster Mash

...

The Hi Tones (2) (New York)

Personnel :

Jay Thompson

David Eason

Charles Baskerville

William White

Discography :

1960 - Let's Have A Good Time / Fool, Fool, Fool (King 5414)

Biography :

Co-written with the “5” Royales’ Lowman Pauling, ‘"Let's Have A Good Time" was also credited as being composed by Jay Thompson, David Eason, Charles Baskerville and William White on the label. The likelihood is that these were the group members brought to King by Lowman Pauling for this one-off 45. Eason and White had been members of the Glendells from Waycross, Georgia in 1959 who had performed with Ruth Brown on a show. She encouraged the group to move up to New York. Charles Baskerville had been a member of the Videos vocal group, who recorded on Casino in 1958 and 1959 and went on to be a member of Shep & The Limelighters. Maybe Baskerville and Jay Thompson teamed up with Eason and White and came up with this rocking blues vocal group gem.

Songs :

  
   Fool, Fool, Fool                           Let's Have A Good Time


...