Doo Wop - Rhythm & Blues - jcpiazza26@gmail.com

The Franciscans

Posted on May 3 2020 by dion1

The Franciscans

The Franciscans (San Francisco, CA.)

Personnel :

Benny Stevens Jr (Lead)

Leroy Johnson

J. C. Loggins

Theodis Riley

Larry Thornton

Discography :

Single :
1963 - Mother Please Answer Me / Walk To The Bottom Of The Sea (Jimbo 01/02)
Unreleased :
1963 - Ocean Of Love (Music City)

Biography :

The Franciscans started about 1959 in San Francisco and were composed of Benny Stevens Jr, Leroy Johnson, J. C. Loggins, Theodis Riley and Larry Thornton. It is at the end of 62 / beginning 63 that they recorded "Mother Please Answer Me" b/w "Walk To The Bottom Of The Sea" released by Jimbo record. They were together until about 1963 when the group started to fall apart. This occurred shortly after they returned from Los Angeles. They would go to Los Angeles occasionally to do some recording. They got a new manager and that is when things began to fall apart. The manager approached Bennie Stevens who they call Steve about leaving the group and going solo. He turned the offer down because those were his friends. This was a hard decision for him because he really wanted to sing. The manager decided that since Bennie Stevens would not leave the group he would invest in another singer : the manager’s girlfriend. He took off with their money and dropped them.

Songs :

Mother Please Answer Me Walk To The Bottom Of The Sea

Ocean Of Love

...

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The Bachelors (3) aka The Music Men (1)

Posted on May 2 2020 by dion1

The Bachelors (3) Top : Fred Merola & Santo "Sandy" Ratineri- Center : Kenny "Vance" Vogt - Bottom : Charlie Guanierie & Chico Gambardella

The Bachelors (3) (New Heaven, CT)
aka The Music Men (1)

Personnel :

Kenny "Vance" Vogt (Lead)

Santo "Sandy" Ratineri

Chico Gambardella

Fred Merola

Discography :

Kenny Vance & The Bachelors (3)
1957 - Flaming Red Hair / Did Your Pen In Sunshine (Winston 8001)

The Bachelors (3)
Singles :
1957 - From Your Heart / A Million Teardrops (National 104)
1958 - Today, Tomorrow, Forever / I Want A Girl (National 115)
1958 - Teenage Memory / Sometimes (MGM 12668)
Unreleased :
1958 - I'm Sincere (MGM)
1958 - Moon (MGM)

The Music Men (1)
1959 - Blue Bird / Santa Cruz (Bigtop 3006)
1959 - An Open Fire / Via De Paradisio (Bigtop 3014)

Biography :

Vocal group from New Heaven composed by Santo ”Sandy” Ratineri, Chico Gambardella , Fred Merola and Ralph Donnarummo. The Bachelors, all New Haven, Connecticut residents, first organised in 1956 under the name of the Teardrops. They worked the Connecticut and New York areas and built up quit a following for themselves under that name. Kenny Vance who is now a New Haven resident hails from Chicago, Illinois.

He came to Connecticut to live near his manager and also "to be near New York where everything is going on". He worked as a single in most of the top Connecticut nite-spots before teaming up with the the Teardrops to Replace Ralph Donnarummo. That happened one night after both acts worked a dance-job at the town House in New Haven. At the age of 23, Kenny is the oldest member of the group. When a new group called the Teardrops came out on the King label, the boys had to change their name to the Bachelors.

The Bachelors (3)

Bandleader Bobby Madera (Bobby Woodlen), ABC Paramount recording star was the co-composer of two tunes which he offered the boys after he heard them sing at a dance in New Haven. The tunes were suited to the style of the Bachelors and The Bachelors were suited tot he style of the tunes. A recording session was scheduled and "Flaming Red Hair" and "Did Your Pen In Sunshine" were released on the Winston Record Label. The release of the record brought a "double-first", as this is the first offering by Kenny Vance & the Bachelors and the first released by Winston.

The Bachelors (3) aka The Music Men (1)
Kenny Vance

In 1957, Charlie Guanieri join the Bachelors and the group sign a recording contract for National records. National label operated by industry veteran Joe Leahy for a short period in New York in 1957. It seems there may have been at least five totally different National labels over the years. The Group cut two singles for Joe Leahy, and "From Your Heart" became a Northeast regional hit song. Chico Gambardella abandons the group to execute his military obligationsand the quartet with Kenny Vance, Sandy Ratinieri, Fred Merola and Charlie Guanierie recorded a single for MGM in 1958 "Teenage Memory" b/w "Sometimes" . Two other titles were recorded but MGM will never release them.

The Bachelors (3) aka The Music Men (1)

But the story does not end there, at the end of 1958, the Bachelors signed a recording contract with Johnny Bienstock from BigTop records and in January 1959, Bigtop released the first of their two singles under their new name The Music Men, "Blue Bird" b/w "Santa Cruz" and four months later, a second single will be released by Bigtop : "An Open Fire" b/w "Via De Paradisio".

Songs :
(Updated by Hans-Joachim)

The Bachelors (3)

From Your Heart A Million Teardrops Sometimes

I Want A Girl (Shame Shame On You) Teenage Memory Today, Tomorrow, Forever

..

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The Kodaks aka The Kodoks aka The Kadak's

Posted on May 1 2020 by dion1

The Kodaks aka The Kodoks aka The Kadak's

The Kodaks (Newark, New Jersey)
aka The Kodoks aka The Kadak's

Personnel :

Pearl McKinnon (Lead)

James Patrick (First Tenor)

William Franklin (Second Tenor)

Larry Davis (Baritone)

William Miller (Bass)

Discography :

The Kodaks
1957 - Teenager's Dream / Little Boy And Girl (Fury 1007)
1957 - Oh Gee, Oh Gosh / Make Believe Worlds (Fury 1015)
1958 - My Baby And Me / Kingless Castle (Fury 1019)
1958 - Guardian Angel / Run Around Baby (Fury 1020)

The Kadak's
1960 - Don't Want No Teasing / Look Up To The Sky (J&S-1683 / 1684)

The Kodoks
1961 - Twista Twistin' / Let's Rock (Wink 1004)
1961 - Mister Magoo / Love Wouldn't Mean A Thing (Wink 1006)

Biography :

An early male R&B group with a female lead, the Kodaks' chief asset was the uncanny similarity of Pearl McKinnon's voice to that of Frankie Lymon. Pearl's first group got together in Newark, New Jersey, at Robert Trent Junior High and consisted of 15-year-old Pearl, Marian Patrick, and Jean Miller. The boys, who grew up in the Baxter Terrace housing project, included Marian's brother James (lead, tenor, and brother of Charles Patrick of The Monotones), William Franklin (second tenor), Larry Davis (baritone), and William Miller (bass). The guys met Pearl in 1957 and felt she would be the unique twist that would differentiate them from the volume of vocal acts singing throughout Newark. The group's influences included The Harptones, The Spaniels, The Heartbeats and Frankie Lymon's Teenagers.

The Kodaks aka The Kodoks aka The Kadak's
The Kodaks (1957) William Franklin, William Miller, James Patrick and Larry Davis

Whether conscious or not, Pearl's amazing ability to sound like Frankie made the group a popular quintet around the Baxter Terrace recreation hall where they rehearsed. They called themselves the Supremes (over four years before the Detroit superstars) and when they felt confident enough headed for Harlem to audition for Fury label owner Bobby Robinson. Since Bobby had reportedly missed out on signing Frankie Lymon because he had been late for an appointment with Richard Barrett (who had then taken Lymon downtown to George Goldner's Gee label), he made up for it by grabbing the Supremes and recording "Teenager's Dream," a ballad Pearl and he collaborated on.

The Kodaks aka The Kodoks aka The Kadak's
Pearl McKinnon

At this time the group decided to change their name to the Kodaks after the camera company. Both "Teenager's Dream" and its flip, the rollicking "Little Boy and Girl," were immediate New York airplay favorites, and the group's smooth yet enthusiastic harmonies gave both the songs and Pearl's lead an aura of quality not found in many of the Lymon-like groups. The group's second single, "Oh Gee Oh Gosh," written by Pearl when she was 12, became their best-known effort; it did well in the Northeast and reached number eight R&B on their hometown chart in June 1958. They performed a number of times at the Apollo, did the chitlin circuit from Philadelphia's Uptown Theatre to the Howard in Washington, and appeared on Dick Clark's "American Bandstand." Around this time Franklin and Davis left to join the Sonics ("This Broken Heart," Harvard, 1959).

The Kodaks aka The Kodoks aka The Kadak's

They were replaced by Harold "Curly" Jenkins and Richard Dixon. The group had two more Fury singles, neither of which reached the level of the previous efforts, and within a year the Kodaks had disbanded. Pearl married and stopped performing; James Patrick joined his brother in the Monotones. Miller, along with his wife Jean, Harold Jenkins, and Renaldo Gamble (the Schoolboys, Okeh), formed a new Kodaks and recorded one single for Zell Sanders' J&S label in 1960 and two for Sol Winkler's Wink label, the best side being "Love Wouldn't Mean A Thing". In 1960 Pearl, along with Carl Williams (first tenor), James Straite (second tenor), Luther Morton (baritone), and Aaron Broadnick (bass), became Pearl and the Del tars and did another version of "Teenager's Dream" for Robinson's Fury label.

Songs :

The Kodaks

Teenager's Dream        Little Boy And Girl                 Oh Gee, Oh Gosh


Make Believe Worlds            My Baby And Me                           Kingless Castle


Guardian Angel                     Run Around Baby

The Kadak's

Don't Want No Teasing Look Up To The Sky

The Kodoks

Twista Twistin' / Let's Rock Mister Magoo

Love Wouldn't Mean A Thing

...

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The Smoothies

Posted on May 1 2020 by dion1

The Smoothies
Top L to R: Mike Boran, John Phillips ana Scott McKenzie - Bottom : Bill Cleary

The Smoothies (New York)

Personnel :

John Phillips

Scott Mckenzie

Bill Cleary

Michael Rand

Discography :

1960 - Softly / Joanie (Decca 31105)
1960 - Lonely Boy And Pretty Girl / Ride,Ride,Ride (Decca 31159)

Biography :

Scott McKenzie (born Philip Blondheim, January 10, 1939, Jacksonville, Florida) is an American singer. He is best known for his 1967 hit single and generational anthem, "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)". McKenzie grew up in North Carolina and Virginia, where he became friends with the son of one of his mother's friends, John Phillips.

The Abstracts became The Smoothies

In the mid 1950s, he sang briefly with Tim Rose in a high school group called The Singing Strings, and later with Phillips, Mike Boran and Bill Cleary formed a doo wop band, The Abstracts. In New York, The Abstracts became The Smoothies and recorded two singles with Decca Records, produced by Milt Gabler. They had a minor hit, "Softly," in the late '50s with the Smoothies. Phillips had arranged his songs with Four Freshmen style harmonies.

The Smoothies
Bottom L to R: Bill Cleary, Scott McKenzie - Top L to R: Mike Boran, John Phillips

In 1961 Phillips and McKenzie met Dick Weissman and formed The Journeymen, which recorded three albums for Capitol Records. They disbanded The Journeymen in 1964, as McKenzie wanted to perform on his own. So Phillips formed the group The Mamas & the Papas with Denny Doherty, Cass Elliot and Michelle Phillips, his second wife. The group soon moved to California. Two years later, McKenzie followed from New York and signed with Lou Adler's Ode Records.

Songs :
(updated by Hans-Joachim)

Softly Lonely Boy And Pretty Girl

Ride, Ride, Ride Joanie

...

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The Pretenders (2) - ref The Dell-Mates

Posted on April 30 2020 by dion1

The Pretenders (2) - ref : The Dell-Mates

The Pretenders (2) (New York)
ref The Dell-Mates

Personnel :

Johnny Hanrahan (Lead)

Billy Thompson (Second Tenor/Baritone)

Freddy Comas (First Tenor)

Ralph Sabatino (Bass)

Discography :

The Pretenders (2)
Singles :
1961 - Smile / I'm So Happy (Power-Martin 1001)
1976 - Could This Be Magic / A Very Precious Love (Power-Martin 1006/1007)

Unreleased :
1961 - The Seven Teens (Rome)
1961 - Guardian Angel (Rome)
1961 - She's Gone (Rome)
1961 - Teenager's Dream (Rome)

The Dell-Mates
1962 - Angela / Cross My Heart And Hope To Die (Fontana 1934)

Biography :

In the late 1950s and early 1960s Johnny Hanrahan & his friends spent most of his time working on perfecting their vocal harmonies. To achieve richness in their harmonies, Street Corner Harmony practice was accomplished in the Saint Columba church vestibule, the Chelsea NYC Housing project hallways, in brownstone hallways on 25th street between 10th and 8th avenues, the hallways of Charles Evans Hughes H.S. and under the 25th street elevated train tracks between 10th and 11th avenues (the elevated tracks are now part of The Hi-line). Neighborhood groups practicing nightly helped Johnny and the other Pretenders become good at the craft, and one Saint Columba 8th grade student, Michael Anthony Orlando Cassavitis (Tony Orlando), who was two grades ahead of John, was a role model and inspired Johnny even further.

The Pretenders (2) - ref : The Dell-Mates
The Pretenders (1976 ) L to R Freddy Comas, Billy Thompson, Johnny Hanrahan, Ralph Sabatino.

The Pretenders consisted of Johnny Hanrahan (Lead Vocalist), Billy Thompson (2nd Tenor/baritone), Freddy Comas (1st Tenor) and Mike Skoran (Bass). Mike left the group early on and was replaced by Ralph Sabatino. At fifteen Johnny Hanrahan and the Pretenders recorded "Smile" b/w "I'm So Happy" released by Power-Martin, a Rome Records' subsidiary owned by Trade Martin and Johnny Power. The Pretenders had won a Murray the K radio station week-night contest, and then on the Saturday ending the week, The Pretenders won the run-off contest against all the previous daily winners of the past week. “Smile” took the neighborhood by storm and it climbed the charts until another established artist bumped them off the airways but soon thereafter Timmy Yuro released her version of the song and she got all the airplay.

The Pretenders (2) - ref : The Dell-Mates
                                                                                                                                Dennis Genovese (Dell-Mates)

In 1962, John Hanrahan and Ralph Sabatino teamed with Daniel Marsicovetere (from the Youngtones) & Dennis Genovese. They are called The Dell-Mates and are produced by Artie Ripp. They recorded “Angela” and “Cross My Heart” released by Fontana Records in early 1964. In 1976, In 1976, the original group of Pretenders reformed and recorded "Could This Be Magic" b/w "A Very Precious Love".

Songs :

The Pretenders (2)


     Smile                                           I'm So Happy

Could This Be Magic                        A Very Precious Love


The Seven Teens                            Guardian Angel

The Dell-Mates


             Angela                    Cross My Heart And Hope To Die

...

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The Debonaires (3)

Posted on April 26 2020 by dion1

The Debonaires (3)

The Debonaires (3) (Brooklyn, N.Y.)

Personnel :

Robert Adino

Mike DiBenedetto

Edwin Lamboy

Joe Reina

Discography :

Singles :
1956 - Won’t You Tell Me / I’m Gone (Gee 1008)
1959 - We'll Wait / Make Believe Lover (Gee 1054)
Unreleased :
1956 - Best Love (Gee)
1956 - I’d Climb The Highest Mountain (Gee)

Biography :

Vocal group from "Red Hook Brooklyn" composed by Robert Adino, Mike DiBenedetto, Edwin Lamboy and Joe Reina. Before becoming the Debonaires, Robert Adino and Mike DiBenedetto backed Lucille Val as the Echos, they recorded a disc that seems to have been released. The group began with several personnel combinations in 1956. Eventually, Adino and DiBenedetto were introduced to Lamboy and Reina. The group members all attended Boys High School. Between the school and their neighborhood came the Mystics, the Passions, Little Anthony and the Imperials, the Velours, and so on.

The Debonaires (3)

They played at local clubs, fairs, and various nightspots and were soon spotted by Bert Keyes of Gee Records. Bert Keyes organizes a recording session for them where they recorded six songs. For quite some time it was rumored that this group , due to their sound, was black. However, this is simply not correct. Gee released only one single en 1956 - "Won’t You Tell Me" b/w "I’m Gone" (Gee # 1008) . Too little promotion of "Gee" and soon after the group split. However, three years later, gee releases two new titles (Gee # 1054) including the splendid "We'll Wait". Encyclopedia of Rhythm and Blues and Doo Wop Vocal Groups

Songs :


Won’t You Tell Me                           I’m Gone


         We'll Wait                             Make Believe Lover

...

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The Dovers (1)

Posted on April 25 2020 by dion1

The Dovers (1)
L-R: Miriam Grate, Frank Edwards, Wyndham Porter, Eddie Quinones & James Sneed

The Dovers (1) (New York)
(updated by Hans-Joachim)

Personnel :

Miriam Grate (Lead)

Bobby Johnson (Lead) (replaced with Frank Edwards (Tenor) in 1959

Eddie Quinones (Tenor)

Wyndham Porter (Baritone)

James Sneed (Bass)

Discography :

Miriam Grate & The Dovers (1) / Bob Johnson & The Dovers (1)
1955 - My Angel / Please Squeeze (Apollo 472)

Lou Bartel (bb The Dovers) (uncredited)
1955 - I Pray / (Zoom) Give Me Your Love Tonight (Apollo 473)

The Dovers (1) (fb Miriam Grate)
Singles :
1959 - Sweet As A Flower / Boy In My Life (Davis 465)
1961 - The Sentence / Devil You May Be (New Horizon 501) (recorded in 1959)
Unreleased :
1955 - My Love (acappella) (Apollo)*
1955 - My Love (acappella) (with piano) (Apollo)**
1955 - Only Heaven Knows (acappella)*
1955 - Sweet As A Flower (acappella)*
1955 - The Sentence (acappella)*
1955 - Your Love (acappella)*

*Released in 1988 on Relic 5075
**Released in 1988 on Relic 5078

Biography :

The cozy, popular genre of doo-wop is no doubt considered to be great by the many listeners who cherish it. To explain how the actual name of Grate figures into this musical wonderland would require one of the few followers of '50s vocal groups who are not intimidated by endless detail. In a genre where dozens of groups use the same name, crossing over family lines as well as generations, it could even be considered comforting to single out Grate as one of the few surnames in the music business that simultaneously evokes excellence as well as details of sewer construction. To cut to the chase, or rather the grate, Miriam Grate is the female portion of a brother and sister that were active in the genre, although not together.

The Dovers (1)
Top: Eddie Quinones, Charlie Richardson, Wyndham Porter, Roland Martinez and James Sneed -
Bottom : Unknown, Buddy Bowser and Sara Lou Harris

Her brother Tommy Grate performed and recorded with The Five Wings, The Marvels and The Dubs, a progression that indicates a penchant for shorter and shorter band names. Miriam Grate is associated with only two groups, beginning in the mid '50s with The Dovers. The ensemble cut "My Angel" for the Apollo label in 1955, initially seemed primed for several thick coats of hit record paint but were instead left to peel in the shadow of the competition, of which there was plenty.

The Dovers (1)
L-R: Miriam Grate, Eddie Quinones, Frank Edwards, Wyndham Porter and James Sneed

Grate got something out of it, anyway, as in a husband and a new last name, although neither of the sort considered particularly desirable in the music business. Now legally Miriam Sneed after her marraige to James Sneed of The Dovers, the singer never had much choice about which surname to use in connection with four tracks also cut for the Apollo label in 1956.

L-R: James Sneed, Miriam Grate, Guitar player ? and Wyndham Porter

Performances with backing from the fine Mello-Tones--such as the aromatic "Sweet As A Flower" and a pair of possesive romantic variations, "Your Love" and "My Love"-- were simply never released, ending the label's efforts to send Grate back into the fray with a new group behind her. Historic doo wop compilations on labels such as Relic have brought such material to light. While some listeners feel Grate was a neglected, undiscovered Martha Reeves in Sneed clothing, others have dismissed her as sounding like an adolescent boy on her recordings with The Dovers.
Eugene Chadbourne, All Music Guide

http://www.uncamarvy.com/DoversVocaltones/doversvocaltones.html
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/miriam-grate-mn0001882918

Songs :

Miriam Grate & The Dovers (1) / Bob Johnson & The Dovers (1)

My Angel / Please Squeeze

Lou Bartel (bb The Dovers) (uncredited)

I Pray / (Zoom) Give Me Your Love Tonight

The Dovers (1) (fb Miriam Grate)

      My Love                                   My Love (with piano)


Only Heaven Knows                        Sweet As A Flower


          Your Love                 Sweet As A Flower / Boy In My Life


The Sentence                                       Devil You May Be

...

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The Four Chevelles

Posted on April 24 2020 by dion1

The Four Chevelles
Charles "Chuck" Thomas

The Four Chevelles (Denver Colorado)

Personnel :

Charles "Chuck" Thomas (Lead)

Discography :

The Four Chevelles
1964 - This Is Our Wedding Day / Darling Forever (Band Box 357)
1964 - I Can't Believe / I Know (Band Box 358)
1964 - This Is Our Wedding Day / Forever (Delft 6408)

Chuck Thomas
1965 - Why Baby / Let Our Hearts Be Our Guide (Band Box 360)
1965 - What Can I Do (To Make You Care) / What Happened Baby (Band Box 365)

Biography :

Bandbox Records was a small independent record label based in Denver, Colorado and owned by Vicki Morosen which she operated between 1954 and 1972. She had originally purchased a record company called Columbine Records in the early 50's, but Columbia Records thought that the name sounded too close to theirs and requested that she change it, which she reluctantly did. Bandbox concentrated on Denver's local musicians and many Rockabilly and Hot Rod instrumental discs. However in 1964, the label signed a vocal group called "The Four Chevelles" fronted by lead singer Chuck Thomas. The three other members of the Four Chevelles remain a mystery for the moment.

The Four Chevelles

The Four Chevelles recorded four sides all composed by Chuck Thomas. "This Is Our Wedding Day" b/w "Darling Forever" (Band Box #357) and "I Can't Believe" b/w "I Know" (Band Box #358). The following year, Bandbox Records released two more Chuck Thomas' singles (four sides again composed by Chuck Thomas) : "Why Baby" b/w "Let Our Hearts Be Our Guide" (Band Box #360) backed by a Female group and "What Can I Do (To Make You Care)" b/w "What Happened Baby" (Band Box #365).

Songs :
(updated by Hans-Joachim)

The Four Chevelles


    Darling Forever                           This Is Our Wedding Day


I Know                                         I Can't Believe

Chuck Thomas


Let Our Hearts Be Our Guide                     Why Baby


          What Can I Do                        What Happened Baby

...

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The Pretenders (3)

Posted on April 21 2020 by dion1

The Pretenders (3)
Kenny Shott,Dan Wisniewski,Skip Pietrobone,Sam Talarico and Mick Diana.

The Pretenders (3) (Reading, Pennsylvania)

Personnel : 

Skip Pietrobone (Lead)

 Sam Talarico

 Mick Diana

Kenny Shott

Dan Wisniewski

  Discography :

 The Pretenders (3)
Single :
1962 - The Day You Are Mine / Ding Dong Bells (Bethlehem 3050)
Unreleased :
1962 - Anything For You / Ding Dong Bells (Al Stan)

 Barry Petricoin & The Belairs bb The Pretenders (3)
1962 - Pretty Little Angel / Come Back To Sorrento (Inst.) (Al Stan 103)

Barry Petri
1962 - Pretty Little Angel / Come Back To Sorrento (Inst.) (Swan 4111)

Biography :

Sam Talarico started singing on the street corners in Reading in 1959. He then joined the Pretenders, a local Doo Wop group composed in the early years by Skip Pietrobone,, Mick Dianna, Kenny Shott and Dan Wisniewski . The original group at the time consisted of five white men. In 1961, the Pretenders recorded "The Day You Are Mine" b/w "Ding Dong Bells" released by Bethlehem Records owned by Creed Taylor and Teddy Charles.

The Pretenders (3) Bethlehem is remembered for its jazz releases from the 1950s, Bethlehem released the first albums recorded by singers Chris Connor, in 1954, Nina Simone (Little Girl Blue) in 1958, and singer/actress Julie London. In 1958, Bethlehem began a distributing deal with King Records. In 1962, it was sold and absorbed by King. In early 62the Pretenders returns in studio with Barry Petricoin & The Belairs where they recorded "Anything For You" and "Pretty Little Angel" for Al-Stan Records a label founded by Al Zanino. Al-Stan released only "Pretty Little Angel" with an instrumental on the B side.

The Pretenders (3)

After the departure of Kenny Shott and Dan Wisniewski and arrival of Al Coleman and Jerry Prentice, the group consisted of 3 white men and two black. Bill Yuhas later with the Incvictors sang a time with the group. In 1962 the Pretenders opened up a huge Rock & Roll show in Reading at Saint Mary’s church sponsored by the legendary Alan Freed. In that show was Chubby Checker, Little Anthony and the Imperials, Patti Labelle & The Blue Bells, Freddy “Boom Boom” Cannon and many, many more great acts. The Pretenders performed at all the dances in and around Reading and in clubs like the Melody Bar, and the Flamingo Bar on Penn street.

The Pretenders (3)

Sam Talarico left the Pretenders in 1964 and formed Tali & The Hustlers and was the front man in that band until 1968. The Hustlers were an R & B soul band. They played all the clubs and big Rock & Roll shows around Reading, Harrisburg, Pottstown, Lebanon and beyond. They were also the house band at the Crows Nest in Atlantic City.

The Pretenders (3)

They opened and backed up Gladys Knight & The pips and several other big name artists. The Pretenders were asked to get back together in 1993 to open a huge oldies show at the Scenic River Days in Reading. Sam was the front man and lead singer. They did so well at that show that they stayed together and played several big shows for the next several years including The First Annual Loose Foundation show, celebrating the induction of Shorty Long.

Songs :


The Day You Are Mine                     Ding Dong Bells


Anything For You                           Pretty Little Angel

…

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The Parisians (2)

Posted on April 19 2020 by dion1

Herbert "Tubo" Rhoad and Joe Russel

The Parisians (2) (Brooklyn, New York)

Personnel :

Robert Samuels (Lead)

Herbert "Tubo" Rhoad (Baritone)

Joe Russel (Second Tenor)

Jerome Brown

David Murrell

Jimmy Nelson

James Perry

Discography :

1962 - On The Sunny Side Of The Street / Why (I Want To Know) (Pova 1003/1004)

Biography :

Second tenor Joe Russell, and baritone Herb “ Tubo" Rhoad were part of the vocal group called The Parisians who recorded "On The Sunny Side Of The Street" and "Why (I Want To Know)" released on the Pova Label. The group consisted of Robert Samuels (Lead), Jerome Brown, David Murrell, Jimmy Nelson, James Perry, Herbert Rhoad and Joe Russel. One day, Jimmy Hayes and Jerry Lawson came to replace a member of the group. They went to this fella’s apartment in Brooklyn. They had a little piano.They did “Up On The Roof”. Then Robert Samuels angrily asked them to leave because they interrupted their practice. A few days later Joe Russel and Herbert Rhoad quit the Parisians and joined Jerry Lawson and Jimmy Hayes. Jayotis Washington joined them to form an a cappella group. They were taking a chance by getting audiences to like them without instruments and so Hayes named them the Persuasions.

Songs :

updated by Hans-Joachim)

On The Sunny Side Of The Street Why (I Want To Know)

…

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