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The Matadors (4) aka The Toreadors
Harry Bass (Lead)
The Matadors (4) (Brooklyn, NY.)
aka The Toreadors
Personnel :
Harry Bass (Lead)
Tommy Bethea (Bass)
Michael Edwards (Baritone)
Roy Scott (Second Tenor)
Jimmy Hall (First Tenor)
Discography :
The Matadors (4)
1962 - If You Left Me Today / It Ain't Nothin' But Rock And Roll (Keith 6502)
1962 - You'd Be Crying Too / My Foolish Heart (Keith 6504)
The Toreadors
1963 - Ring-A-Leevio (Part 1) / Ring-A-Leevio (Part 2)(Pawn 1202)
1966 - Do You Remember (Part 1) / (Midas 1001)
Jackie Wilson bb The Toreadors (Uncredited)
1964 - She's Alright' / Watch Out (Not Them) (Brunswick 55264)
Ray Pollard bb The Toreadors (Uncredited)
1965 - No More Like Me / This Time (I'm Gonna Be True) (Shrine 103)
Discography :
The Matadors group actually evolved from a teenager street corner doo-wop ensemble. They were Harry Bass and his younger brother Albert who out sang Frankie Lymon on any given day of the week. Roy Scott and Michael Edwards a guy Richard Steele joined together with Harry & Albert to form The Epsilons. Tommy Bethea joined the singing group as bass vocal accompaniment. in 1962, The group consisted of Harry Bass, Tommy Bethea, Michael Edwards, Roy Scott and Jimmy Hall . In time they link up with Richard Tenryke (Ritchie Tee) the classically trained pianist who would travel with them to Broadway for recording auditions and finally for Songwriter and producer: and co-founder of Shrine Records : Eddie Singleton.
Ray Pollard
Eddie Singleton and the group decided on a new name. The Matadors. Under that name they recorded "If You Left Me Today" / "It Ain't Nothin' But Rock And Roll" and "You'd Be Crying Too" / "My Foolish Heart" on Keith Records. Later they realized that another vocal group had the name Matadors. So they became the Toreadors. This was part marketing strategy and also an expression of cultural solidarity with the Spanish speaking community members proliferating in NYC There were many Puerto Rican doo-woppers, same as they and the Italians doing street corner work. Also, the thing was, that they had designed some Matador style costumes and could not afford to scrap the costumes. In 1965, Michael Edwards, Harry Bass and Tommy Bethea sing backing vocals behind Ray Pollard on the Shrine roster.
Songs :
The Matadors (4)
If You Left Me Today You'd Be Crying Too
My Foolish Heart
The Toreadors
Do You Remember (Part 1 & 2)
Jackie Wilson bb The Toreadors (Uncredited)
She's Alright'
Ray Pollard bb The Toreadors (Uncredited)
No More Like Me This Time (I'm Gonna Be True)
...
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The Rue-Teens
The Rue-Teens (Bronx, NY)
Personnel :
Jimmy Appollo (Lead)
Joe "Peppi" Contaldi (Baritone)
Jerry McGregor (First Tenor)
Frankie Bujosa (Second Tenor)
Discography :
Singles:
1964 - Lucky Boy / I Don't Cry Over Girls (Louis 6805)
1965 - Happy Teenager / Come A Little Bit Closer (Old Timer 612)
Unreleased:
1965 - Bad Girl (Old Timer)
1965 - Dance With Me (Old Timer)
1965 - She cried (Old Timer)
1965 - Cara Mia (Old Timer)
Biography :
Group from Tremont Avenue in the Bronx,NY. consisted of Jimmy Appollo (Lead), Joe "Peppi" Contaldi (Baritone), Jerry McGregor (First Tenor) and Frankie Bujosa (second Tenor). Joe Foti did at some point replace both Frank and Jerry at various times. The group recorded in 1964 two songs for Louis Records, a subsidary of Fernwood Records, Memphis, Tennessee Operated by Bill Black. "Lucky Boy" b/w "I Don't Cry Over Girls" was released in 1964.
The Rue-Teens at Palisades Park 1965 (Pepe, Jerry, Frankie and Jimmy)
The group recorded songs for Bobby Miller’s Old Timer (a cappella) label. "Happy Teenager" b/w "Come A Little Bit" Closer was released in December 1965 on Old Timer 612 .Jimmy Appollo and Joe Foti were original members of Jimmy & the Crestones ("New Girl On My Block" / "Angel Maureen"). Jimmy has been performing with various groups over the years.
Songs :
(Update By Hans-Joachim)
Dance With me Bad Girl I Don't Cry Over Girls
Lucky Boy She Cried Happy Teenager
Come A Little Bit Closer Cara Mia
...
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The Royal Teens
The Royal Teens (Fort Lee, New Jersey)
Personnel :
Joe Francovilla (aka Joey Villa) (Lead)
Billy Dalton
Billy Crandall
Tom Austin
Bob Gaudio
Larry Qualiano (Sax)
Discography :
The Corvells (BB The Royal Teens)
1957 - We made a Wow / Miss Jones (Lido 509/ Tip Top 509)
The Royal Teens
1957 - Sittin' with my baby / Mad Gas (Astra 1012/Power 113)
1957 - Perdido (Unreleased)
1958 - Short Shorts / Planet Rock (ABC 9882/Power 215)
1958 - Why (Power) (Unreleased)
1958 - Wounded Heart (Power) (Unreleased)
1958 - Dottie Ann (Power) (Unreleased)
1958 - Big Name Button / Sham Rock (ABC Paramount 9918)
1958 - Harvey's Got A Girl Friend / Hangin' Around (ABC Paramount 9945)
1958 - Open The Door / My Kind Of Dream (ABC Paramount 9955)
1959 - Believe Me / Little Cricket (Capitol 4261)
1959 - I'll not be the one / Royal blue (Mighty 111)
1959 - Royal blue / Leotards (Mighty 111)
1959 - Cave man / Wounded Heart (Mighty 112)
1960 - The moon's not meant for lovers (anymore)/ Was it a dream? (Capitol 4335)
1960 - It's the talk of the town / With you (Capitol 4402)
1961 - My memories of you / Little Trixie (Mighty 200)
1962 - Short short twist / Royal Twist (Allnew 1415/Jubilee 5418)
1965 - I'll love you til the end of time Pt.1/Pt.2 (By the Blue tones)(Swan 4200/Blue Jay 101)
1965 - Bad girl / Do the Montoona (TCF117)
1969 - Smile a little smile for me / Hey Jude (Musicor 139)
N/A - Lazy Walker (Empire 1001)
N/A - Day Dream (unreleased)
N/A - Carole (unreleased)
Biography :
The Royal Teens are, by one definition, a hard-luck band. They could play hard and loud, but they also sang well and knew how to harmonize. They were one of the better rock & roll bands of their period, nicely self-contained and with a great beat and hard attack on their instruments, which included sax, electric guitar, and piano. But for all of that, they're virtually a one-hit group, and that one hit, "Short Shorts," isn't too representative of their sound. And, yet, without it, it's unlikely that a version of the Royal Teens would still get gigs in the Northeast in the summer of 1999, 40 years after the group's last decent chart placement.
Bill Crandle, Bill Dalton, Tom Austin, and Bob Gaudio formed the original band, then known as the Royal Tones, in Fort Lee, NJ in 1957. Crandall left the band and was replaced on sax by Larry Qualiano, and in 1958, Joe Francovilla (aka Joey Villa) joined the lineup as singer. A name change followed to the Royal Teens, when they got a shot at recording on the tiny Power Records label.
Their first two singles, "Sitting with My Baby" and "Mad Gas," didn't chart, and they were in the process of cutting a couple of new singles in 1958 when their producer, against the wishes of the band, decided to use some leftover studio time to cut an instrumental jam that they'd done on-stage, to which they'd improvised some words. So the story goes, a couple of girls hanging around the studio were brought in and told to repeat the same line at the designated spots in the song, as the band sang and played.
Out of that session, "Short Shorts" was born, which, after initial success in New York City, Power quickly sold to the ABC-Paramount label. With help from American Bandstand and lots of radio stations that jumped on the song, "Short Shorts" spread quickly over the airwaves, and the band suddenly had a number three national hit.
The record, often perceived as one of the dumbest of novelty tunes, is actually better than most people remember it, and has everything a great rock & roll song needs to transcend its simplicity -- the sax part is thick with places for the soloist to have fun, there's a hot guitar break, and the beat is relentless and intoxicating, especially as punctuated by the honking sax, a song you can laugh at, dance to, and play variations on for five minutes or more. (If Lenny & the Squigtones had really wanted to generate a hit in the late '70s, they'd have cut "Short Shorts" with Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams, or their soundalikes, backing Michael McKean and David Lander).
Unfortunately, the Royal Teens were never able to follow it up with anything remotely as popular. "Harvey's Got a Girl Friend" charted very low, and "My Kind of Dream" stiffed, after which the group left ABC-Paramount. A short stay on the Mighty Records label, and a similar lack of success, brought them to Capitol, where they made the Top 30 in 1959 with the romantic, doo wop style number "Believe Me." That was their last chart record, however, and also the last record on which Bob Gaudio played -- he exited the Royal Teens and soon hooked up with a singer named Frankie Valli, together forming the Four Lovers, soon to become the Four Seasons.
The Royal Teens spent the next few years bouncing between labels, including Jubilee, Blue Jay, and Swan, and still appeared on shows like American Bandstand occasionally, even as their membership slowly shifted. Al Kooper spent much of 1959 playing guitar with the Royal Teens before moving on to much bigger things.
They still cut good sides, and they were even adaptable to the doo wop vocal sound; in fact, as "Believe Me" (which sounds more like Dion & the Belmonts than Dion & the Belmonts did) proves, they were better at it than a lot of bands, and they still came up with great riffs and bracing solos (check out the guitar break on "All Right Baby"). But not even follow-ups like "Little Trixie," patterned after "Short Shorts," or pure exploitation like "Short Shorts Twist," could crack the charts for them again. 
The group has continued in some form into the '90s, however, partly with help from the use of "Short Shorts" in a commercial for Nair, and the original record's continued popularity on oldies radio and in compilations. Those who've heard their other records, however, also know that this band had a lot more to offer, and may still.
Bruce Eder, All Music Guide
http://theroyalteens.com/
http://www.rockabilly.nl/references/messages/royal_teens.
htm http://koti.mbnet.fi/wdd/royalteens.htm
Videos :
Short Short
Songs :
I'll Love You Big Name Button
Believe Me The Moon's Not Meant For Lovers Anymore
CD :
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The Tides (2) aka The Triplets
The Tides (2) aka The Triplets (San Francisco, California)
Personnel :
Bobby Black
Larry Dean Black
Discography :
The Tides (2)
1959 - Rock Me / Gently Stoned (Dore 529)
1960 - Little Carmen / Smoke Signals (Dore 546)
1961 - Follow Me / Say You're Mine (Dore 579)
1961 - Dear Mr. President / Ring A Ding Ding (Dore 611)
1961 - Chicken Spaceman / Ring A Ding Ding (Dore 618)
The Triplets
1960 - Bagdad Beat / Gently, My Love (Dore 574)
Biography :
The Black Brothers, Bobby (born - Prescott, Arizona - 1934) and Larry (born - Inglewood, California - 1936) were raised in Tucson, Arizona and later grew up in the San Fernando Valley of California in the Forties.
The brothers, recording under various group names, were signed as artists with several major recording companies, and enjoyed some success.
With Jack Greenback on drums, their very first endeavor, as The Triplets, hit the Top 40 charts with a steel guitar instrumental called "Gently, My Love" (Dore Records) - a "new" sound at the time
Rarely using their real names as recording artists, The Black Brothers continued to perform and record as The Tides (Dore Records)….
Complete History :
http://www.theblackbrothers.net/
Song :
Ring A Ding Ding
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The Quin-Tones
The Quin-Tones (York, Pennsylvania)
Personnel :
Roberta Haymon (Lead)
Carolyn "Sissie" Holmes
Jeannie Crist
Phyliss Carr
Kenny Sexton
Discography :
Singles :
1958 - Ding Dong / I Try So Hard (Chess 1685)
1958 - Down The Aisle Of Love / Please Dear (Hunt 321/Red Top 108/Sparton 637)
1958 - What Am I To Do / There'll Be No Sorrow (Hunt 322)
1958 - Oh heavenly Father / I Watch The Stars (Red Top 116)
Unreleased :
1958 - Oh My Love (Featuring Kenny)
1958 - My Heart Has Told Me (Featuring Roberta)
1961 - All of My Life(Featuring Roberta)
1958 - Stars (First Version) (Featuring Roberta & Jean)
Biography :
The Quin-Tones name will be forever etched in doo wop Heaven because of "Down the Aisle of Love," released in June 1958. Its "Here Come the Bride" opening caught the public's ear. It became a hot seller, and a popular wedding song, reaching number 18 on Billboard, September 15, 1958, selling more than 800,000 copies. Roberta Haymon (lead), Carolyn "Sissie" Holmes, Jeannie Crist, Phyllis Carr, and Kenny Sexton attended William Penn Sr. High in York, PA.
Originally, called the Quinteros, they performed at local dances. At one function they impressed and befriended Paul Landersman, a disc jockey at WHGB in Harrisburg, who offered a management deal. Promising an appearance on American Bandstand within a year, the starry-eyed teens signed and cut four tunes. "Ding Dong" appeared on Chess Records in February 1958. It failed to chart, but generated enough interest to get some bookings for the newly named Quin-Tones.
The next session produced "Down the Aisle," a song they had been performing and sharpening on the road. Doc Bagby's Red Top label release it, but the demand got so heavy that Hunt Records took over to fill the orders. Subsequent 45s had the Hunt Record logo printed on them. "Please Dear," the flipside, featured Sissie Holmes on lead.Having a hit increased their gigging, and they even appeared on American Bandstand, as Landersman promised.
Their most memorable gig took place August 28, 1958 at the Apollo theater with the Coasters, the Olympics, the Spaniels, and the Chantels, where they received a standing ovation. Radar wouldn't have helped "There Be No Sorrow" find the charts, however, and a remake of Edna McGriff's "Heavenly Father" went unnoticed. The infinitesimal sales caused Landersman and Bagby to lose interest. Despite the big hit, they didn't schedule any more Quin-Tones' sessions. Disappointed, the members became disenchanted, and after five singles, never recorded again. All moved on, and started working regular jobs. The Quin-Tones never received a cent for "Down the Aisle." Reportedly, Dick Clark bought their contract. All they know is that it sold close to a million copies, but they never received an accounting.
In 1960, they officially disbanded when Roberta Haymon married. Kenny Sexton, the lone male, joined the service prior to moving to San Diego, CA. In 1986, the Quin-Tones reunited, sparked by a DJ from Grand Rapids, MI who had been looking for them for 25 years, not knowing they had been in York all the time. Jeannie Crist sings in her church's choir, and Ronnie Scott (keyboard player) hasn't been heard from yet.
On a sad note, Roberta Haymond-Johnson died in 1996, and Sissie Holmes died in 1995, but the New Quin-Tones continue. Vince Carr (Phyllis Carr's brother) is the primary lead, while Ceaser Westbrook and Buck Generetta primarily sing backup. Phyllis Carr manages the group, but no longer performs. The New Quin-Tones cut a demo of Con Funk Shun's "Straight from the Heart," and are seeking a record deal. Currently, they perform at private affairs and local clubs. ~ Andrew Hamilton, All Music Guide
http://colorradio.com/quintones.htm
http://www.history-of-rock.com/quin.htm
Down The Aisle Of Love Please Dear
Ding Dong Oh Heavenly Father
...
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The Enchantments (2)
The Enchantments (2) (Manhattan, New York)
Personnel :
Eugene Sanchez (Lead & Tenor)
Victor Velez (First Tenor & Lead)
Johnny Velez (Second Tenor)
Angelo Maurino (Falsetto & Baritone)
Joffrey Green (Bass)
Discography :
Single :
1963 - I Love My Baby / Pains In My Heart (Ritz 17003)
Unreleased :
1963 - Listen Lover (Ritz)
1963 - Thanks Magic Moon (Ritz)
1963 - Each Other's Love (Ritz)
Biography :
In an institute in Manhattan, teenager Gene Sanchez formed the vocal group The Five Spades in 1957, which was dedicated to sing only by the institution and the streets in a totally amateur way. Then he created The Corvairs that got to act in some dances, but that did not have enough life or success to leave anything recorded.
Even so, Sanchez had gained some fame among the teenagers in the area because there were few who knew how to play the piano and compose besides singing, so he was captured by the Velez brothers, students of a neighboring institute, to lead his new vocal group: The Enchantments. They sang a lot in dances and parties but without luck at the time of recording until Tony Cicinelli was signed as a representative.
This put them in contact with the producer Fred Castellano who, after receiving the denials from the big companies decided to record them himself and sell the tapes to the multinational London. These they published in their subsidiary Ritz the late "I Love My Baby" (1963), which led to some good performances but nothing more. It was not time for it, the times were changing and the group dissolved.
Songs :
Listen Lover Pains In My Heart
Thanks Magic Moon Each Other's Love
I Love My Baby
...
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The Opals (1) aka The Crystals (1)
top : Johnny Hopson & Earl Wade Bottom - Bottom : Teddy Williams & Marty Brown
The Opals (1) (Harlem, New-York)
aka The Crystals (1)
Personnel :
Earl Wade (Lead)
Marty Brown (Tenor)
Johnny Hopson (Tenor)
Teddy Williams (Bass)
Discography :
The Crystals (1)
1954 - Come To Me Darling / Squeeze Me Baby (Luna 100/ 101/5001)
The Opals (1)
1954 - Come To Me Darling / Squeeze Me Baby (Luna 100/ 101/5001)
1954 - My Heart's Desire / Oh But She Did (Apollo 462)
Biography :
In June of 1954 Luna Records issues #10-101, its very first recording by a group called The Crystals. The songs are "Come To Me Darling" and "Squeeze Me Baby". Soon after its release they find another group called The Crystals exists and they record for the DeLuxe label.
Six weeks after its initial release the record is re-issued as Luna 5001 by The Opals and the label is now identified as a subsidiary of Apollo Records. In October of that year The Opals record again, this time for the parent label Apollo and #462 is released - "Ooh But She Did" and "My Hearts Desire". That seems to be the entire history of The Opals on record. Later, Wade joined The Cadillacs. Earlier, Williams had been with The Vocaleers.
http://www.vocalgroupharmony.com/ROWNEW2/ComeToMe.htm
Songs :
Come To Me Darling / Squeeze Me Baby My Heart's Desire / Oh But She Did
...
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The Delltones (1) aka The Dell Tones
(Top) Gloria Alleyne, Frances Kelly and Sherry Gary (Bottom L-R) Della Simpson
The Delltones (1) (Long Island, N.Y.)
aka The Dell Tones
Personnel :
Della Simpson (Lead)
Sherry Gary
Gloria Alleyne
France Kelley (Bass)
Discography :
The Dell Tones
Singles :
1953 - Yours Alone / My Heart's On Fire (Brunswick 84015)
Unreleased :
1953 - Why Make A Fool Out Of Me (Brunswick)
1953 - After All I've Been To You (Brunswick)
The Delltones (1)
1954 - Little Short Daddy / I'm Not In Love With You (Rainbow 244) 

1955 - Don't Be Long / Baby Say You Love Me (Baton 212) 

1956 - My Special Love / Believe It (Baton 223)
The Kings And Queens (Orioles & Delltones)
1957 - Voices Of Love / I'm So Lonely (Everlast 5003)
Biography :
Della Simpson was born in the South and raised in Jamaica, New York. Growing up listening to the radio she heard all the big bands with Billie Holliday being her idol. It was while at work that she and another girl decided to put together a group. After recruiting two more girls they named the group The Enchanters. A piano player, Chris Townes began working writing and arranging songs for them.
The Enchanters 
(Clockwise from top left) Frances Kelly, Pearl Brice, Della Simpson and Rachel Gist
The Enchanters were among the first female groups to sing R&B in the early 50s. One day Simpson called and asked Jerry Blaine, owner of Jubilee Recordsto come see one of their shows. He did and signed them to Jubilee. The Enchanters first release for Jubilee was "Today Is Your Birthday." The group first began touring locally and later on the Chitlin Circuit.
The Delltones with Their Accompanists
After their two Jubilee recordings and a December 1952 tour, things began to fall apart. Rachel Gist and Pearl Brice left the other Enchanters to stay home with their families and attend to their marriages. Simpson and Kelley wished to continue with their singing. They then raided another local group called the Dorsey sisters, Gloria Alleyne replacing Rachel Gist and Sherry Gary joined to replace Pearl Brice. In addition, a new name, The Delltones (After Della) was chosen.
(Top) Della Simpson (Bottom L-R) Gloria Alleyne, Sherry Gary and Frances Kelly
Under the new name in 1953 they recorded "My Hearts On Fire" on the Brunswick label. The next single "I'm Not In Love With You"/"Little Short Daddy" was for Rainbow Records in 1954. The Delltones were now performing all over the United States and Canada. They continued to tour and even appeared on The Arthur Godfrey Show. However the group began to encounter problems when they were told they couldn't sing their usual material because they sounded to White.
The Delltones now moved to Baton Records where they recorded two singles. At this time Gloria Alleyne and Sherry Gary left the group. The last Delltone group included Bunny Foy, Algie Willie, Renee Stewart and Della Simpson. In June 1957, the Orioles & The Delltones combined to record "Voices Of Love" and "I'm So Lonely," for Danny Robinson's Everlast label, as the Kings And Queens.
Released around June 1957, the personnel consisted of: Sonny Til, Diz Russell, Jerry Holeman, Tex Cornelius, Billy Adams, Della Simpson (who leads both sides), Bunny Foy, Renée Stewart, and Algie Willie (who doesn't appear in the only photo taken of them).
The Kings and Queens
Della Griffin, Renee Stewart, Bunny Foy, Billy Adams, Sonny Till, Aaron Cornelius, Jerry Holeman and Albert Russell
This group appeared a couple of times at some New York clubs. The Delltones eventually disbanded due to marriages and family. Gloria Alleyne became Gloria Lynn, working as a soloist for years in the jazz world. Della Simpson went out working with her own organ and sax combo. She later married Paul Griffin The Orioles piano player.
http://history-of-rock.150m.com/delltones.htm
http://www.uncamarvy.com/Enchanters/enchanters.html
Songs :
The Dell Tones
Yours Alone My Heart's On Fire
The Delltones (1)
Little Short Daddy / I'm Not In Love With You Don't Be Long / Baby Say You Love Me
My Special Love Believe It
The Kings And Queens
Voices Of Love / I'm So Lonely
...
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The Skyliners (1)
The Skyliners (1) (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
Personnel :
Jimmy Beaumont (Lead)
Janet Vogel (First Tenor)
Wally Lester (Second Tenor)
Joe Versharen (Baritone)
Jack Taylor (Bass)
Discography :
The Skyliners (1)
Singles:
1958 - Since I Don't Have You / One Night One Night (Calico 103/104)
1959 - This I Swear / Tomorrow (Calico 106)
1959 - It Happened Today / Lonely Way (Calico 109)
1960 - How Much / Lorraine From Spain (Calico 114)
1960 - Pennies From Heaven / l"ll Be Seeing You (Calico 117)
1960 - Believe Me / Happy Time (Calico 120)
1961 - The Door Is Still Open / I'll Close My Eyes (Colpix 188)
1961 - The End Of A Story / Baion Rhythms (Colpix 607)
1961 - Close Your Eyes / Our Love Will Last (Colpix 613)
1962 - Everyone But You / Three Coins In The Fountain (Cameo 215)
1962 - Comes Love / Tell Me (Viscount 104)
1963 - I'd Die / Since I Fell For You (Atco 45-62-70)
1963 - This I Swear / It happened today (Original sound 37)
Unreleased :
N/A - Stardust (Calico)
N/A - Footsteps (Calico)
N/A - Blossoms To The Snow (Calico)
Lps :
1959 - The Skyliners (Calico LP3000)
Pennies From Heaven / When I Fall In Love / Tired Of Me / Zing Went The String Of My Heart / Since I Don't Have You / l"ll Be Seeing You / This I Swear / Tomorrow / One Night One Night / If I Loved You / I Can Dream Can't I / Warm
The Skyliners (1) without Jimmy Beaumont
1965 - The Loser / Everything Is Fine (Jubilee 5506)
1966 - Who do you love / Get yourself a baby (Jubilee 5512)
1965 - I Run To You / Don't Hurt Me Baby (Jubilee 5520)
Biography :
In 1958 , Jimmy, Wally Lester and Jack Taylor-who had been singing with Joe Rock's group, The Crescents - combined with Joe Versharen and Janet Vogel from The El Rios, another vocal group from Pittsburgh's South Hills. Joe Rock, then named them for jazz orchestra leader Charlie Barnett's theme song "Skyliner".
The Skyliners could have no better advocate than Joe Rock, an ambitious youth not much older than themselves, who was an industry insider with contacts gained from working as a promotion man for a local record distributor.
Janet Vogel & Jimmy Beaumont
The song that would inspire their success was inspired when a secretary at a radio station that Joe was promoting, said that she didn't want to date him anymore. While driving a few nights later, Joe conceived the words to the song and later Jimmy Beaumont provided the melody. Today, "Since I Don't Have You" is regarded as the quintessential fifties ballad from standard pop.
The recording itself was a radical departure from teenage Rock and Roll. True to the groups vision of combining two different musical styles, The Skyliners' blue eyed soul delivery is balanced by the lush string filled arrangement by Pittsburgher Lenny Martin.
The same concept of introducing full orchestra arrangement to Rock and Roll would later prove successful for the Drifters("There Goes My Baby"), The Duprees ("My Own True Love") and Phil Spector's "wall of sound" productions.
Legend has it that Janet ad libbed the song's memorable ending in high C (after repeating thirteen "you's") as a joke during rehersals. The group liked it so much they made it a permanent part of their arrangement. More than a dozen labels rejected the song before it was released by a local Pittsburgh label, Calico Records.
Credit for "breaking" "Since I Don't Have You" goes to deejay "Art Pallan of Pittsburgh's leading pop station KDKA, but the other Pittsburgh stations were not far behind. Dick Clark was an early believer in the group and featured them on American Bandstand on Friday, February 13, 1959. By March of 1959, "Since I Don't Have You" had spread from Pittsburgh to the national pop charts.
The soulful delivery was appreciated even more by R&B radio resulting in greater success in the rhythm and blues Cashbox Magazine. It was the first single by a Caucasian group to hit #1 on the Cashbox R&B charts.
Alan Freed invited The Skyliners to New York to appear on his 1959 Easter stage show with Jackie Wilson, Fats Domino, and Bobby Darin. They also made 8 appearances at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. Dick Clark took them on the road with his "Caravan of Stars" tour and featured them on Bandstand and his Saturday night television show numerous times.
In 1960, Calico released its first album, "The Skyliners", containing twelve songs, including both sides of the group's first two self-penned singles, 'Since I Don't Have You", B/W "One Night, One Night", and "This I Swear, B/W "Tomorrow" as well as another original, "Tired of Me".
The rest of the album was comprised of standards including "Zing Went The Strings of My Heart", "If I Loved You", and two songs led by Janet, "When I Fall In Love" and "I Can Dream Can't I". Two other standards from the album, "Pennies From Heaven"(inspired by The Clovers version) B/W "I'll be Seeing You" would be chosen for the group's fifth single. It was the Rock and Roll LP to break into the Top 50 Album chart.
In the interim, "Lonely Way" B/W "It Happened Today" and "How Much" B/W "Lorraine From Spain" were released. Their sixth and final Calico single was "Believe Me" B/W "Happy Time". The remaining three Calico masters, "Stardust", "Footsteps", and "Blossoms To The Snow" were released years later on a compilation album.
Joe Rock remembered that the group was so well prepared for their recording sessions that there wasn't much variation to their studio performances. The five outtakes preserved in their "40th Anniversary Edition CD" from their Calico sessions provide fans with a unique insight into the creative process.
In 1961, The Skyliners moved to the larger Colpix label, the recording division of Columbia Pictures, and continued their practice of recording standard established songs like, "Close Your Eyes", "The Door Is Still Open" (Both written by "The King Of The Stool", Chuck Willis). These two songs were backed with original material written by Joe Rock and Jimmy Beaumont for Janet.
The Skyliners recorded "Comes Love"(written by Pittsburgh singer/songwriter Johnny Jack a close friend of the group) for the local Viscount Label. It was backed by "Tell Me", a song that Jimmy liked so much he also released it as a solo artist on Bang Records.
Both sides received a lot of airplay in the Pittsburgh area and "Comes Love" became a collector's favorite. "Tell Me", which Rock/Beaumont also wrote, was Jimmy's mother's favorite Skyliner record.
By 1963 the group had signed with Atco Records which released their version of the standard "Since I Fell For You". Although Lenny Welch was to have the national hit with his version that year, the flip side of The Skyliners record, "I'd Die", was re-discovered in the mid-70's by 13-Q Radio deejay, Don Bombard (Now known as Bob Shannon on WCBS ÐFM in New York) and has become one of their most requested releases.
By the early sixties, the group was growing tired of the road and decided to take a hiatus from the business. Jummy Beaumont continued to record and perform as a single act. Joe Rock continued to write songs, notably with Otis Redding("Dreams To Remember") and managed other artists including, the Jaggerz("The Rapper").
In 1965, Jack Taylor, with Joe Rock's permission, fronted a Skyliner group which recorded "The Loser" on Jubilee Records. This soulful ballad, written by Taylor and Rock, became a much played slow dance at Pittsburgh area record hops and charted Top 40 nationally both Pop and R&B.
http://www.vocalgroup.org/inductees/the_skyliners.html
http://www.theskyliners.com/history.phtml
Movies :
Since I Dont Have You
Pennies From Heaven
Songs :
Since I Don't Have You One Night One Night This I Swear
Tomorrow It Happened Today Lonely Way
How Much Lorraine From Spain Pennies From Heaven
l"ll Be Seeing You Believe Me Happy Time
The Door Is Still Open I'll Close My Eyes The End Of A Story
Baion Rhythms
CD :
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