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Classic Urban Harmony Newsletter
Issue # 55: March 2021
With more people getting vaccinated and the rates of COVID infection dropping, can it really be the beginning of the end of the pandemic? When it's again safe for full attendance, live concerts will there be any vocal groups or venues still left? We certainly hope so. With this, our 55th issue of the Classic Urban Harmony free email newsletter, we'd like to try out a new feature, a theme. Interspersed throughout the news and other features you'll find articles about this month's theme - vocal group picture discs. This may be an, as yet, undiscovered niche area to collect, and we record collectors are all looking for ways to expand our collections! Of course, all of our regular features are back again this month. So set aside a couple hours to again immerse yourself in what's going on in the world of Classic Urban Harmony.
Quote of the Month: "Sometimes music is the only medicine the heart and soul needs."
Classic Urban Harmony LLC promotes the legacy of Rhythm & Blues, Doo Wop, Soul and Gospel Vocal Group Harmony through multimedia presentations, historical research, interviews, magazine articles, museum exhibits & displays, radio guest appearances, lectures, college courses, concert production and emceeing, consultation for documentaries, vocal group bookings, our website, www.classicurbanharmony.net, and this free newsletter. Here you'll find news of important events relevant to our music as well as updates to our website and summaries of our Classic Urban Harmony activities and projects. To read more about and see more photos from the articles in this newsletter, check the What's New Page of www.classicurbanharmony.net. We hope you'll enjoy this issue of the newsletter and again find it entertaining and informative. Please continue passing the word on to others who might want to receive it. They can sign up by sending their names and email addresses to CUH@att.net. - Charlie & Pamela Horner - March 13, 2021 |
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I know! We can't wait either!
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Anthem Lights out with new tight harmony acappella doo wop medley
If you're not familiar with the Christian Pop Rock group, Anthem Lights, they've been around for a while. They started as a solo project in 2007 and have now grown to have millions of followers worldwide with their original songs, covers and medleys. They've always had great harmony and you can’t miss the influence of the Backstreet Boys on their style. They sing pop rock, Christian rock, Christian pop, doo wop, and covers all in perfect harmony. Their latest effort is a fine doo wop harmony medley of “In the Still of the Night“ and “Earth Angel.” The song has only been out a couple weeks but is already drawing tens of thousands of views on YouTube. Give a listen by clicking
Anthem Lights Doo Wop Medley. They have a website https://anthemlights.com Hoping they will post tour dates soon. - Pamela Horner
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Dan Clemson passes. Co-founder and past president of the Mills Brothers Society.
It is with great sadness that I report the passing of my friend and mentor, Dan Clemson. Back in 1991, Dan Clemson, Jim McGowan and I met in Jim's apartment to discuss founding the Mills Brothers Society. It took a couple years, but with the help of friends like Anthony DiFlorio and others we put together the organization in 1994 with Dan Clemson as president. It was a position he held for about ten years. We issued a newsletter and had some great annual conventions in Bellefonte, PA and Virginia Beach, VA, that featured concerts by the Mills Brothers, museum displays, and film screenings. As an organization we did quite a bit to document the history of the Mills Brothers, Our work aided greatly in Douglas Friedman's Mills Brothers biography. Dan Clemson passed on February 19, 2021, just eight days short of his 90th birthday. Dan was the ultimate authority on the Mills Brothers.
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Chi-Lites to get a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
The smooth sweet soul group the Chi-Lites have been chosen to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2021. The dedication date has not yet been set due to COVID restrictions. The group will most likely be represented by the founder and only surviving original member, Marshall Thompson. The Chi-Lites began singing as teenagers as the Hi-Lites in the 1960’s. They changed their name to the Chi-Lites to honor their home town of Chicago. The group smoked the charts with blockbuster #1 million seller hits “ Have You Seen Her,” and “ Oh Girl.” We were happy to see Marshall Thompson at Soul Trip USA in Chicago a few years ago where this photo was taken. - Pamela Horner |
Coltrane House in Philadelphia safe from destruction (for now)
In what is a rarity in the preservation of historic sites of music history, comes the good news that the home of the late jazz great, John Coltrane, is safe for now. Jazz music fans have been panicking over recent rumors that the historic landmark was scheduled for demolition. Those rumors are apparently untrue. They were sparked by the news that a neighboring property was slated for demolition. Now comes word that the contractor is obligated to protect adjacent structures. The John Coltrane House at 1511 North 33rd Street in Philadelphia is a National Historic Landmark. it was the home of American saxophonist and jazz pioneer John Coltrane from 1952 until 1958. Coltrane purchased the house for his family after leaving the U.S. Navy and lived there until he relocated to New York City in 1958. He continued to use the house as an alternate residence to his New York home until the end of his life in 1967.
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Historic 1957 Poster
Here's a historic concert poster shared with us from the collection of reader Mark Eastman. The poster is from an August 8, 1957 concert in Chattanooga, TN. If featured Little Richard and his band, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Junior Parker, the 5 Royales, Wynonie Harris, Big Maybelle, Tab Smith, Jimmy Reed, Noble Watts & his band and Tony Harris. Advanced tickets were only $1.50.
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Earls' Larry Chance added to all star line up on forthcoming Stormin' Norman Seldin & Friends album.
Norman Seldin has just announced the addition of Earls lead Larry Chance to all star line up on his highly anticipated forthcoming album. "I can't say enough on how proud we all are to have the legendary Larry Chance on my newest CD/Vinyl release as a one of the lead singers!" said Norman. "I actually managed Larry as a teenager and booked him as you'll find out in my true life story autobiography being co-written by historian Charlie Horner which will be out late in 2021. I can't imagine Larry Chance, Pam McCoy, Jillian Rhys McCoy, Doreen Arminio, Ryan Gregg, Vini Lopez, Nicky Addeo, Leon Trent, & Joel Katz all on vocals along with me. Wow!" Some of the talented musicians besides Stormin' Norman include Vini Lopez, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Christopher Plunkett, Pam McCoy, Rick Brunermer, Victoria Warne and Ryan Gregg. The album is due out later this year as a companion to Norman's autobiography.
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Paul Brembly celebrates 50 years with the Golden Gate Quartet
Congratulations to our good friend, Paul Brembly, who is celebrating 50 years with the legendary vocal group, the Golden Gate Quartet. The Golden Gate Quartet officially marks its beginning as 1934 in Norfolk, Virginia. The GGQ's rhythmic jubilee-style spirituals forever changed the face of American music. The group relocated to Paris in the mid-1950's where they continue to thrill huge audiences even today. The nephew of the Gates' iconic original bass singer, Orlandus Wilson, Paul Brembly joined his uncle in the Gates in 1971. Upon Orlandus Wilson's passing in December 1998, Paul Brembly assumed leadership of the group. If you'd like to see an incredible performance here's a link to the Golden Gate Quartet singing at the Vienna Jazz Festival in 2015. It's a long video, but you'll be hooked by the first minute! Click Golden Gates.
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New Feature, Record Company Sleeves: Clock Records
We’ll take a look at some interesting record company sleeves in the next few months. While vinyl is hot again, record sleeves will never be so remarkable as they were in the past. The one featured today is a work of art to me. Clock Records was an independent record label that operated out of the Brill Building (1619 Broadway, NYC). They were in business from 1959-1962 and issued about 50 singles. While the sleeve looks like only instrumental music was featured, that was not the case. They released solo recordings by a former member of the Del Vikings, Charles Jackson. He recorded three singles for Clock before moving to Wand Records. There he recorded as Chuck Jackson (“Any Day Now, “and “I Don’t Want To Cry.”) The Clock label had some good R&B vocal groups like the Corvairs (What Cha Gonna Do”/ “Love Her So.). Little Jan & the Radiants recorded “Is It True’” and “Now is the Hour.” Lynn Taylor and the Peachettes did “The Bells of Saint Mary’s.” Clock Records’ biggest hitmaker was Dave “Baby” Cortez with his song “The Happy Organ” a very popular instrumental. His real name was David Clowney and he was previously a member of the Pearls and Valentines. – Pamela Horner
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Hint of the month: When training your dog to hunt for and bring home records, make sure they don't bite down into the grooves.
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Artifact from our CUH Archives: Rare Sheet Music of the Month. The Coasters "Charlie Brown"
Our newsletter feature, rare sheet music of the month is the Coasters' "Charlie Brown." The Leiber & Stoller composition was recorded by the Coasters in 1958 and released on the Atco label. The song reached #2 on both the Pop and R&B Charts early in 1959. This was the first hit record with Dub Jones (formerly of the Cadets) singing bass. Jones had just replaced Bobby Nunn in the group and can be heard mouthing the famous line, "Why's everybody always pickin' on me?" King Curtis is playing the infectious sax solo. I (Charlie) had always heard that the song was initially banned in the U.K. because of the line "Who's always throwing spitballs." Either they thought it would cause chaos in British schools or they felt the practice was disgusting. Anyway, I also heard at the time the they had the Coasters record an alternate version without that line for distribution in the U.K. So, many years ago, on a record hunting trip to London, I picked up a copy of "Charlie Brown" pressed in the U.K. Unfortunately when I listened to it, it was the same take as the U.S. version, spitballs and all.
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Crystalaires 7" picture disc single
Here's an interesting 7" doo wop picture disc single. The Crystalaires are a doo wop group out of Germany. They've been singing since 1988. We had a chance to see them in one of their rare visits to the U.S. I believe it was at UGHA in the early 2000's. In 2001, the Crystalaires released a 7" picture disc of the single, Love You Too Much" / "Winter On Kanada." It came out on the Part label from Germany but was distributed by Crystal Ball Records in the United States. To listen to the song, click Crystalaires. |
Latest issue of "Echoes of the Past" has our article on Twig Smith of the Sapphires, Modern Red Caps
The latest issue of "Echoes of the Past" magazine is now out with our article in Gerald "Twig" Smith. While Gerald's name may not be familiar to many of you, his career is interwoven into the fabric of Philadelphia R&B. He played an integral part in the careers of the Sapphires, Teddy & the Twilights and Modern Red Caps and even played guitar on Freddy Cannon's "Palisades Park." Also in this issue are Bob Bosco's article on the Trenteens, George Frunzi's article on the Chordettes, Steve Propes article on R&B songs about cars, plus an article about radio jingles and much more.. "Echoes..." is by subscription only. Email Bob Belniak at echoes.past@yahoo.com |
James Burke of the Five Stairsteps dies at 70.
James Burke of the great Chicago soul group the Five Stairsteps died February 19, 2021, at the age of 70. The Five Stairsteps formed in the mid-1960's consisting of four brothers and a sister. The group’s name came from their mother who said her children resembled a staircase when lined-up by age and height. After winning first prize in a talent contest at the Regal Theater where it's said they beat out the Jackson Five, the Five Stairsteps were discovered by Fred Cash of the Impressions, who introduced them to Curtis Mayfield. Mayfield signed to his Windy City label. They score immediately with the song, "You Waited Too Long" followed by "World of Fantasy." They group was soon joined by their youngest (3 year old) brother, Cubie. A string of hits followed, the biggest being "O-o-h Child," a top ten record in 1970.
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Neal Stuart of Neal Stuart & the Empire State, Zircons dies at 70.
Neal Stuart of the band, Neal Stuart & the Empire State, a tribute group to Johnny Maestro, died February 27, 2021 from complications due to COVID-19. Neal was 70. Neal began singing during the 1960's with the Bronx acappella group, the Zircons.
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WDAS's Cody Anderson and Tony Brown die within a few days of each other
For those who grew up in Philadelphia and listened to soul music station WDAS February was a sad month. In the space of a few days, two voices once associated with the station have been silenced. Anderson was also the longtime GM and president of WDAS-FM 105.3 FM and a former owner of WHAT-1340 AM. He was also the first General Manager of WURD, Philly’s only African American owned and operated talk radio station. Cody died from complications of COVID-19 on February 20, 2021 at the age of 78.
Tony Brown, longtime popular nighttime radio personality at WDAS-FM and WUSL-FM (Power 99) died February 24 of congestive heart failure at the age of 75. His signature show, "The Quiet Storm," mixed of music, shout-outs to listeners, and soothing commentary in his rich voice.
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Platters 12" picture disc LP
This is an interesting one. It's a 12" picture disc album out of Denmark in 1982. It was release by the NCB label without any mention of who the group is or what the sing titles are. This must have really hurt sales, so the picture disc was reissued the next year with the word "Platters" and the song titles listed on one side. To the best of our knowledge, thus is the only picture disc that has been reissued. Our Classic Urban Harmony Archives only files the original first press without the song titles.
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Lou Ottens, inventor of the cassette tape dies
Dutch engineer Lou Ottens died in the Netherlands on March 6, 2021. He was 94. Ottens is credited with inventing the cassette tape. He began working for Phillips in 1952. His invention was the result of his aggravation when trying to use an open reel tape player. He wanted to make a product that was pocket-sized and easy to use. He even had a piece of wood that was his desired size. Photographs of his cassette made their way to Japan where they were copied. In 1960, Ottens and his team made the first portable tape recorder. It has been said that there were more than 100 billion cassettes sold. Ottens also spearheaded a team at Philips to develop the CD. This was a collaboration with Sony in 1980. The world-wide success of his invention always surprised him. “We knew it could become big, but could never imagined it would be a revolution.” - Pamela Horner
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Mills Brothers 12" album picture disc
Another interesting 12" album picture disc is this one on the Mills Brothers. It was released on the ATP label out of Germany in 1981. The album is called "Memories of the Mills Brothers." We don't know of any other picture discs released by this short lived label.
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Jackson 5 records on the back of Post Cereal boxes.
Records on the back of cereal boxes have been around for a while. We don't really consider them the same as picture discs but we do file the following in our Classic Urban Harmony Archives. During the early 1970's Post Cereals had the Motown group, the Jackson 5 on the back of Alpha Bits, Super Sugar Crisp and Frosted Rice Krinkles Cereals. You could cut them out with a scissors and have the Jackson 5's hits like "ABC", "I'll Be There" and "Never Can Say Goodbye." We believe there were about ten different ones. We have copies of "ABC," "Sugar Daddy," "I Want You Back" and "Never Can Say Goodbye." At the time, the Jackson 5 appeared in commercials for Alpha Bits.
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The CUH Newsletter Inbox
After each issue of this news letter, we get interesting feedback from out readers. We'd like to share a few emails with you.
"More sheet music, less obituaries! Great work as always Pam & Charlie!" - Joseph Mirrione
We wish! Thanks , Joe. - Charlie & Pam
"Another great newsletter. I was unaware of those Viscaynes tracks. Very cool. Gonna buy the CD. Which brings me to...when, if ever, will the Gotham Lee Andrews & the Hearts tracks be on CD. (Or are they already?) Cheers." - Ed Osborne
Thanks, Ed. The Lee Andrews & Hearts Gotham Sessions was on a CD but we don't know if it is still available. - Charlie & Pam
"Great read-thank you. Please keep them coming." - AL C, Avenue D Records
Thanks Al. Good to hear from you. We'll do our best. - Charlie & Pam.
"Thank you so much, stay safe and blessed " - George Kerr.
Thanks George. Hope to see you soon. - Charlie & Pam
"Every time you send out your newsletter I get a run on new subscribers. Thanks. I think I counted 20 obits. It sucks getting old🥴But, the newsletter is terrific. Keep up the good work". - Glen Fisher, Doo Wop Revival
Thanks Glen. Actually, I think it was 24 obits last newsletter. Enjoy your newsletter also. Stay safe. - Charlie & Pam
"Two weeks ago I bought an Orioles 50th Anniversary CD in which you interview Sonny Til around 1980. You're the best, Charlie! - Al Heitzer
Thanks Al. I don't even have a copy of that CD, but of course I have the reel-to-reel tape. Sonny was a good friend. That interview was recreated in the musical "Soul Harmony." Hoping the musical will have another run. Are you ready Alan, De'Sean, Joel, Ali, etc. Charlie
"Super issue. Of course strewn with some very sad losses but it compels us to dig out our faves by these greats. Regarding the Vogues, have you heard this one? Very nice version by a solid group." - John Mattei
Thanks John. We weren't aware of the Vogues doing "Troubles Are Not At End." Not the Penguins but a nice version. For those who want to hear it, click Vogues. - Charlie & Pam
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Visit our website.
If you haven't visited our website in awhile, you're in for a treat. We're nominated for East Coast Music Hall Of Fame Music Maker Best Website / Publication. The Articles By Us page lists our many articles from Echoes of the Past, which you can click on and read. Unfortunately our Events Page for now is sparse as the pandemic has postponed many events. But when the lock down is lifted you'll be able to see the new dates for all your favorite events. For more about Classic Urban Harmony's activities, along with news, articles, photos and videos, please visit our website, www.classicurbanharmony.net.
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Jackie Nunez Latin Music Podcast
For those who enjoy Latin music as we do, our friend Jackie Nunez has a new music podcast show. It's called "It's A Latin Thing" and it features the best in Latin Soul, Salsa, Latin Doowop and Latin Jazz. To listen to a podcast click Latin Thing. |
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The East Coast Music Hall Of Fame still looking forward to June 7 - 8, Awards Gala in Atlantic City.
At this point we're still on track to hold our Awards Gala in Atlantic City on June 7 - 8, 2021. We are closely monitoring the current situation in Atlantic City with respect to live events. We'll be following the evolving guidance of local and state government and the CDC. it's important to remember that the East Coast Music Hall of Fame is not a single event, it's not a building and it's not a stack of paperwork or even an award. It is a community. We believe that those of us who grew up on (or simply appreciate) the East Coast sound, have different heroes than the rest of the world. We love bringing those heroes together, recognizing them and ensuring that generations to come know of their contributions to the musical fabric of our country. Visit the ECMHOF website.for more details.
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Ron Gravino added to East Coast Music hall Of Fame Board of Directors.
The East Coast Music Hall of Fame is proud to announce the addition of Ron Gravino to our Board of Directors. Ron is a Board Member of the Garden State Arts Foundation, based at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ, through which he works with strategic partners PNC Bank and LiveNation. The Foundation offers free shows to the public which have included many great performers of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s including Bobby Rydell, Tony Orlando, Tommy James, Petula Clark and radio personalities Bruce “Cousin Brucie” Morrow and Jerry Blavat. Ron currently serves as Senior VP of Finance and Human Resources for INVIDI Technologies Corp in Princeton, NJ. Prior, he was a financial and management consultant in private practice for over 15 years, as well as CFO for Squibb-Novo Inc., an international pharmaceutical joint venture between Squibb Corporation and Novo Industri A/S of Denmark. He serves as a Board Member of Rising Tide Capital, Inc., a non-profit organization which provides entrepreneurial training for underserved populations such as women, working poor, and minorities. Gravino is also recognized as an expert on Federal and State campaign regulation and has served as Treasurer for several Governors, Congressmen and Senators, including NJ Governor Chris Christie and the NJ State Police. He is currently Commissioner of the $2 billion NJ Turnpike Authority, as well as Chairman of its Audit Committee.
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Why Not Collect R&B Group Picture Discs?
To many of our fellow record collectors. especially collectors of R&B and Doo Wop vocal groups, we know you're searching for something new to collect. Maybe the only records left on your want list are in the "never seen" or "$1,000 and up" category. You don't want to stray too far from vocal harmony so you've moved into gospel groups, Reggae groups, soul groups, etc. Well, now even those genres may be out of reach. You might want to start collecting R&B vocal groups on picture discs. They are out there at reasonable prices and there aren't very many so you can complete your collection relatively easily. Unlike streamed or downloaded songs, you can hold them in your hand and look at them and even play them (though we don't recommend that as picture disks wear out faster than regular vinyl records). Anyway, continue reading this newsletter and we'll give you a primer on what's out there.
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The History of Picture Discs
The concepts of picture discs (playable phonograph records with the grooves over a photograph) go back a long time. The earliest picture records were not discs but rectangular picture postcards with small, round, transparent celluloid records glued onto the illustrated side. These were in use by about 1909. Later, the recordings were pressed into a transparent coating that covered the entire picture side of the card. The Classic Urban Harmony Archives does not have any of these, which does not bother us, as there are no picture postcard records with vocal groups, that we know of. This same concept of clear plastic coating records over cardboard has existed through recent times, resulting on records in the backs of cereal boxes. Motown did a series of these on Post cereal boxes in the late 60's. Our CUH Archives does archive these (see article farther below) but they are not as prized as our true picture discs. True picture discs, 78 RPM's, originated in the 1920's but their peak came in 1946 with the Vogue picture discs. Vogue Records were a well-made product with a core of aluminum featuring artwork done in the styles typical of 1940's illustration art. The audio quality was very good and they featured professional talent, though not well known names. Vogue records sold for fifty percent more than ordinary 78 rpm records. The colorful discs attracted interest at first, but success proved elusive and Vogue went out of business in 1947 after issuing fewer than 100 picture discs. Most if not all of the Vogue artists were white. An interesting Vogue recording from our Archives is shown above. The rarest of the Vogue recordings are ones by Kenny Roberts & the Downhomers. A young Bill Haley played with this group in the 1940's and it's possible he is the guitarist on these recordings.
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The Maybellene label Picture Discs
Probably the most prolific of the picture disc labels was Maybellene out of Denmark. In 1987, Maybellene pressed 101 different 7" 45 RPM picture discs, mostly of 1950's and early 1960 popular recording artists. Most releases can still be found on EBay and other sources for very reasonable prices. It's surprising because Maybellene only pressed 1000 copies of each in limited edition runs. Discs have a photo of the artist on at least one side. Their picture discs include releases by Paul Anka, the Beach Boys, Chuck Berry, Sam Cooke, Elvis Presley, Fats Domino, Johnny Otis, Little Richard, Jackie Wilson and many others. Of interest to vocal group collectors are the following:
# 008 - Danny & Juniors - At The Hop
# 011 - Drifters - Save The Last Dance For Me / There Goes My Baby
# 024 - Frankie Lymon - Why Do Fools Fall In Love / Jailhouse Rock
# 031 - Platters - Great Pretender / Twilight Time
# 040 - Shirelles - Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow / Dedicated To The One I Love
# 074 - Platters - Only You / My Prayer
# 099 - Dion & Belmonts - Teenager In Love / I Wonder Why.
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The Lightning label picture discs
Perhaps not as exciting as some other 7" 45 RPM picture discs, the series on the Lightning Records label featured the word "Cruisin" along with the record titles on a light blue background on one side and the photo of an antique car on the flip side. I say not as exciting, as I would have preferred a photo of the artist somewhere on the picture disc. These came out in 1979. We know of 10 Lightning picture discs, including:
# 9012 - Casinos - Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye
# 9013 - Del Vikings - Come Go With Me / Whispering Bells
# 9014 - Drifters - Save The last dance For Me / When My Little Girl Is Smiling
# 9019 - Earls - Remember Then
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Vinyl City Broadcasting
It's good to see that the pandemic has not at all slowed the postings of YouTube interviews being produced by Rico and Marie Orisak of Vinyl City Broadcasting. If you're not yet aware of them, Vinyl City Broadcasting is a Youtube video channel that interviews rock & roll and doo wop artists. It’s a trivia show where they ask the artists questions to shed light on their music and many accomplishments. Over the past 4+ years, Vinyl City Broadcasting has interviewed over 40 different artists including Claudette Robinson of the Miracles, the Chantels, Kenny Vance of the Planotones, Chris Montez, Johnny Farina of Santo & Johnny, Maurice Williams of the Zodiacs, John Kuse of the Excellents, Terry Johnson of the Flamingos, Jimmy Stephens of The Safaris, Herman Santiago of the Teenagers, Jay Siegel of the Tokens, Eugene Pitt of the Jive Five and many more. My (Charlie's) favorite clip is VCB's 2017 interview with Micky Toliver of the Capitols which includes video of the group reuniting in 2007 to briefly harmonize on TV. Click Capitols to watch. This year, VCB has moved to Zoom to virtual interviews with people like Elegants' Vito Picone and Duprees' Tony Testa. Another new feature at VCB is a Podcast. The first one gives a snapshot of Smokey Robinson & the Miracles career and features an audio track of the group singing "Ooh Baby Baby" acappella. A second podcast edition catches Little Anthony & the Imperials impromptu acappella harmonizing. "Our goal is to continue to keep the music alive in whatever venue or platform that is available to us and possibly open this music to a younger generation," says Rico. Vinyl City Broadcasting is non-profit. Check out their YouTube Channel by clicking VCB.
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Jamaica Reggae icon, Bunny Wailer, dead at age 73.
Bunny Wailer, a founding member of The Wailers alongside Bob Marley and Peter Tosh, died Tuesday, March 2nd, 2021, at the age of 73. Bunny Wailer, real name Neville O'Riley Livingston, was born on 10 April 1947 in Kingston, Jamaica. He and his step-brother Bob Marley and friend Peter Tosh formed the Wailin' Wailers in 1963. The Wailers were to a large part responsible for my (Charlie's) developing an appreciation for Jamaican music. It was in the 1970's that Don Leins and I were on a record hunting trip down south. It was in either Virginia Beach or Myrtle Beach, I can't recall which, that we came across a little record store called "We Be Jammin' Records" that sold Jamaican records. I admit I didn't know very much about music form Jamaica at the time. I picked up a copy of the Wailers first album on Studio One (shown above) mainly because one of the cuts was "The Ten Commandments of Love." I love Bob Marley's interpretation of the Moonglows' classic. From that point on, I started collecting 45's of Jamaican vocal groups of Ska, Rock Steady and Reggae genres.
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Are you receiving the Doo Wop Ramblings newsletter?
If you're enjoying reading this newsletter, there's another great free email newsletter we know you'll enjoy and this one comes out weekly! Doo Wop Ramblings hits your inbox every Sunday. You can subscribe by visiting Subscribe Now.
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Yet, Another Great Newsletter you should be receiving!
In addition to the newsletter above, you need to check out the New England Doo Wop Society's free email newsletter. Published by our friends Bob Belniak and Gary Jones the New England Doo Wop Society is quite active in keeping our music alive in New England but their newsletter covers music news from all over. Click Subscribe to email Bob and get on their mailing list.
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Past Issues of the CUH Newsletter Now viewable on our website!
Want to catch up on any past issues of this newsletter that you may have missed? Now you can. Just go to the top of this newsletter and click on "View it in your browser". Then you be able to click on "Past Issues" on the upper left of your screen. You can also see most of our past CUH email newsletters (going back to 2012) from the link on our website's Articles Page. Here's a Direct Link. |
More great acappella on Our YouTube Channel
Looking for something to do while you're in lockdown? Our YouTube channel " chorner1" has nearly 350 acappella doo wop and R&B video clips from our past concerts. That's over 17 hours of great acappella. Our channel has had 643,000 views from acappella fans in 37 countries. Over 950 people subscribe to our channel. We'll be posting more videos shortly. |
Very cool addition to the VocalGroupHarmony.com website
Regular readers of our newsletter know we are bug fans of Tony Fournier's VocalGroupHarmony.com website. Tony now has a very cool new page called " Various Newspaper Clippings" where you can click on the name of an artist and see a newspaper clipping of them. The alphabetical listing let's you know if the group was a prior "Record of the Week" feature, the date of the article and whether the clipping has a group photo and/or text. This is fascinating. I could spend all day clicking on clippings. Thanks, Tony , for a great website. |
2021 Edition of Joe Marchesani's "Time Capsule Discoveries" show now available for listening
Fans of the old Time Capsule Show anxiously await Joe Marchesani's "Time Capsule Discoveries" show each year. This year's show is bitter sweet with the recent passing of Joe's former TCS co-host, Tom Luciani. Joe dedicates this years TCD to Tom, relaying memories of Tom throughout the two hour program. This year's Time Capsule Discoveries show is again spectacular. The show can be either streamed or downloaded from Tony Fournier's website by clicking Time Capsule Discoveries. |
Picture disc LP's: The Golden Gate Quartet
So now we move to 12" LP picture discs and will just show you a few. This a an album picture disc by the Golden Gate Quartet manufactured by the Music Dist. label out of Hamburg. Germany. [Some people say that Music Dist. is a subsidiary of Happy Bird Records and we wouldn't doubt it because the number series is the same as a regular vinyl Golden Gate Quartet album that we have.] We believe this record was issued in 1984, as the members seen pictured on the record are Orlandus Wilson, Clyde Riddick, Paul Brembly and Calvin Williams.
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Philly soul songwriter Bruce Hawes dies
Philadelphia soul music songwriter, Bruce Hawes died on February 17, 2021 at the age of 67. Hawes helped shape the Sound of Philadelphia, co-writing songs like "Mighty Love," "One of a Kind (Love Affair)," and "(They Just Can't Stop It) Games People Play" for the Spinners. Over the years, Hawes also wrote songs for Blue Magic, Loleatta Holloway, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, the Three Degrees, New York City, First Choice, Melba Moore, the Whispers, Phyllis Hyman and many others, - Pamela Horner
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Collectables label picture disc albums
Back around 1982, I was writing liner notes for a number of albums Jerry Greene was issuing on his Collectables label. Jerry decided to press a limited number of picture discs on a few of the albums. The picture on the 12" discs is the same as the album cover. Released were picture discs on both Del Vikings albums (# 5001 and #5010), the Crests (#5009) and the Castelles (# 5002). All have group photos on them except the Castelles disc. That's because no photo exists of the original Castelles group. At the time, I was also helping promote the acappella group, Neighbor's Complaint. (They made me and my co-host, Don Leins, honorary members of the group. I still have my Neighbor's Complaint jacket.) Anyway, Collectables released an album on Neighbor's Complaint and ran a limited number of copies of a picture disc of it (#5013). To the best of my knowledge, it's the only picture disc of an acappella group.
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New website, EarlyRnB.com posting interviews, much more.
We've just become aware of a new website, EarlyRnB.com that has begun posting some fascinating interviews of R&B vocal group singers. As the website has just been created during the pandemic, a lot of pages are still under construction. But we must say, it's off to a good start. Already there are great interviews/articles on Sonny Turner (Metrotones on the Reserve label and of course, the Platters) and Ed Martin of the Five Satins. In the interview, Ed talks about being asked to join the Five Satins the very night they recorded "In The Still Of The Night" and learning the song on the way to the recording! Kirk Lang, the Editor-In-Chief and co-creator of EarlyRnB.com tell us he has a number of new interviews/articles "in the bank" that will be posted in the near future. These include one on Terry Johnson of the Flamingos, Richie Freeman of the Five Satins, Tony Middleton of the Willows and Cornelius Grant, a guitarist with the
Temptations. There's a lot more coming to this website shortly, so we suggest you check it out by going to EarlyRnB.com. [This website is part of the ‘Early Music’ group also comprising EarlyBlues.com and EarlyGospel.com] [ Photo above, Ed Martin, courtesy of Kirk Lang.] |
Rare Northern Soul Record of the Month: The Charades
I'm amazed at the auction prices of records, these days, especially northern soul records. Our Classic Urban Harmony Archives houses quite a few rare records, most of which I happened to pick up years ago at a fraction of what they are going for today. I just saw that today's Northern Soul Record of the Month, "The Key to my Happiness" just sold on EBay for $ 787. Now, what sold is a stock copy and we only have the promo copy which isn't as rare. However, we're very happy to have a copy. It's a great record. If you enjoy Northern Soul, give a listen by clicking Charades. |
Article on the late Dave Antrell, extraordinary R&B group record collector, singer, songwriter, producer
I didn't know Dave Antrell as well as other collectors did. I'd only met him in person once or twice at UGHA or at record conventions. We lived on different coasts, but he did call me occasionally looking for leads on certain records. I have to say, I admired his dedication to tracking down and acquiring rare records. And I loved the records he produced with Bruce Patch, often featuring Dave as songwriter, arranger, musician and background singer. That's why I was very interested in this article sent to me by Warren Tesoro. To read, click Dave Antrell. |
Volume 1 of our book on black music from Asbury Park (1871 - 1945) is available on Amazon.com
E Haven't yet ordered Volume One of our new book, " Springwood Avenue Harmony: The Unique Musical Legacy Of Asbury Park's West Side, Volume 1, 1871 - 1945"? What are you waiting for? It's a great read if we do say so ourselves. We're working hard on Volume 2 (1946 - 1980) which covers the R&B, Doo Wop and Soul music years as well as Gospel and Jazz. But if you only buy Volume 2 you'll miss what led up to that era. Visit Amazon.com to pick up your copy now. - Charlie & Pam |
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Correction to our last issue: Last issue when writing about the new Viscaynes CD we misspelled the name of producer, Arno Konings. Our apologies. - Charlie & Pam
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Motor City Review to play Brook Arts center in Bound Brook NJ, April 24.
So glad to see live music beginning to return, even if it's at reduced capacity. The Motor City Revue, an 11-piece cover band will perform at the Brook Arts Center in Bound Brook, NJ on April 24. They'll be performing songs by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, The Supremes and countless others. Advance tickets $30. At the Door $35 VIP seating Advance $35 Door $40. For info see Brook Arts Center. |
That's it for this issue. Thanks for reading. Until next issue, stay safe! - Charlie & Pam Horner
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