Billy Ward and His Dominoes were an African-American musical team, one of the best-selling
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&BRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
groups of the 1950s. The team began the careers of both
Clyde McPhatterClyde McPhatter was an American R&B singer.-Life and career:McPhatter was raised in a religious Baptist family, and formed a gospel group in 1945 after his family moved to New Jersey...
and
Jackie WilsonJack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson Jr. was an American singer, and performer, and a 1987 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee. Known as "Mr. Excitement", Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was known as a master showman, and as one of the most dynamic singer and...
.
Billy Ward (born Robert L. Williams, 19 September 1921,
SavannahSavannah is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Chatham County, Georgia, USA. Savannah was established in 1733 and was the first colonial and state capital of Georgia...
,
GeorgiaGeorgia is a state in the United States. One of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution, it had been the last of the Thirteen Colonies to be established, in 1733. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January...
—died 16 February 2002,
InglewoodInglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, southwest of downtown Los Angeles. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. In 2006, its population was estimated at 129,900. The city is in the South Bay region of the greater Los Angeles area...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
) grew up in Philadelphia, the second of three sons of Charles Williams and Cora Bates Williams, and was a child musical prodigy, winning an award for a
pianoThe piano is a musical instrument which is played by means of a keyboard. Widely used in Western music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
composition at the age of 14.
Billy Ward and His Dominoes were an African-American musical team, one of the best-selling
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&BRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
groups of the 1950s. The team began the careers of both
Clyde McPhatterClyde McPhatter was an American R&B singer.-Life and career:McPhatter was raised in a religious Baptist family, and formed a gospel group in 1945 after his family moved to New Jersey...
and
Jackie WilsonJack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson Jr. was an American singer, and performer, and a 1987 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee. Known as "Mr. Excitement", Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was known as a master showman, and as one of the most dynamic singer and...
.
Career
Billy Ward (born Robert L. Williams, 19 September 1921,
SavannahSavannah is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Chatham County, Georgia, USA. Savannah was established in 1733 and was the first colonial and state capital of Georgia...
,
GeorgiaGeorgia is a state in the United States. One of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution, it had been the last of the Thirteen Colonies to be established, in 1733. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January...
—died 16 February 2002,
InglewoodInglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, southwest of downtown Los Angeles. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. In 2006, its population was estimated at 129,900. The city is in the South Bay region of the greater Los Angeles area...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
) grew up in Philadelphia, the second of three sons of Charles Williams and Cora Bates Williams, and was a child musical prodigy, winning an award for a
pianoThe piano is a musical instrument which is played by means of a keyboard. Widely used in Western music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
composition at the age of 14. Following
military serviceMilitary service, in its simplest sense, is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, whether as a chosen job or as a result of an involuntary draft . Some nations Military service, in its simplest sense, is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, whether...
he studied
musicMusic is an art form whose medium is sound. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
in Chicago, and at the Juilliard School of Music in
New YorkNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
. While working as a vocal coach and part-time
arrangerIn music, an arrangement is either a rewriting of a piece of existing music with additional new material or a fleshing-out of a compositional sketch, such as a lead sheet...
on
BroadwayBroadway Theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, is the theatre associated with the 40 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located in the Theatre District, New York in Manhattan, New York City...
, he met talent agent Rose Marks, who became his business and
songwritingA songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics, as well as the musical composition or melody to songs. One who writes only lyrics is a lyricist, while one who writes only music is a composer.-History and background of songwriters:...
partnerA partnership is a type of business entity in which partners share with each other the profits or losses of the business. Partnerships are often favored over corporations for taxation purposes, as the partnership structure does not generally incur a tax on profits before it is distributed to the...
.
The pair set out to form a vocal group from the ranks of his students. The group was at first called the Ques, and comprised Clyde McPhatter (lead
tenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
), Charlie White (tenor), Joe Lamont (
baritoneBaritone is a type of classical male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek βαρύτονος, meaning 'deep sounding', music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second G below middle C to the F above...
), and Bill Brown (bass). Ward acted as their
pianistA pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers....
and arranger. After the group made successful appearances on talent shows in the
Apollo TheaterThe Apollo Theater in New York City is one of the most famous music halls in the United States, and the most famous club associated almost exclusively with African-American performers. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and is the home of Showtime at the Apollo, a...
and on the
Arthur GodfreyArthur Morton Leo Godfrey was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer who was sometimes introduced by his nickname, The Old Redhead...
show in 1950,
Rene HallRené Hall , was an American guitarist and music arranger.He was born in Morgan City, Louisiana, and first recorded as a banjo player with Joseph Robichaux in New Orleans in 1933. He then worked around the country as a member of the Ernie Fields Orchestra, before joining Earl Hines as musical arranger...
recommended them to
Ralph BassRalph Bass , born in The Bronx, New York, was an influential Italian American rhythm and blues record producer and talent scout for several independent labels and was responsible for many hit records. He was a pioneer in bringing black music into the American mainstream...
of
Federal RecordsFederal Records was an American record label founded in 1950 as a subsidiary of Syd Nathan's King Records and based at Cincinnati, Ohio. It was run by famed record producer Ralph Bass and was mainly devoted to Rhythm & Blues releases. But also hillbilly and rockabilly recordings were released, e.g....
, a subsidiary of
KingKing Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a King." One of the...
, where they were signed to a
recording contractA recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
and renamed themselves the Dominoes. Their first
singleIn music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.-History:...
release, "Do Something For Me", with McPhatter’s lead vocal, reached the R&B charts in early 1951, climbing to #6.
After a less successful follow-up, the group released "
Sixty Minute Man"Sixty Minute Man" is a rhythm and blues record released in 1951 by The Dominoes. It was written by Billy Ward and Rose Marks and was the first R&B hit records to crossover to become a pop hit on the pop charts. It was also the first double entendre hit...
", on which Brown sang lead, and boasted of being able to satisfy his girls with fifteen minutes each of "kissin'" "teasin'" and "squeezin'", before "blowin'" his "top". It reached #1 on the R&B chart in May 1951 and stayed there for a 14 weeks. It was an important record in several respects—it crossed the boundaries between
gospelGospel music is music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
singing and
bluesBlues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre created within the African-American communities in the Deep South of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, its
lyricsLyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
pushed the limits of what was deemed acceptable, and it appealed to many
whiteWhite people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
as well as
blackThe term black people usually refers to a racial group of humans with skin colors that range from light brown to nearly black. It also has been used to categorize a number of diverse populations into a common group. Some definitions of the term include only people of relatively recent Sub Saharan...
listeners, peaking at #17 on the pop charts. In later years, it became a contender for the title of "the
first rock and roll recordThere are many candidates for the title of the first rock and roll record, but it is arguable whether any such thing exists. As with all forms of music, the roots of "rock and roll" are deep and wide...
".
The group toured widely, building up a reputation as one of the top R&B acts of the era, and an audience which crossed racial divides. However, Ward's strict disciplinarian approach, and failure to recompense the singers, caused internal problems. The name "The Dominoes" was owned by Ward and Marks, who had the power to hire and fire, and to pay the singers a salary. Clyde McPhatter was being paid barely enough to live on, and often found himself billed as "Clyde Ward" to fool
fansA fan, aficionado, or supporter is someone who has an intense, occasionally overwhelming liking and enthusiasm for a sporting club, person , group of persons, company, product, activity, work of art, idea, or trend. Fans of a particular thing or person constitute its fanbase or fandom...
into thinking he was Billy Ward's
brotherA sibling is a brother or a sister; that is, any person who shares at least one of the same parents.In most societies throughout the world, siblings usually grow up together and spend a good deal of their childhood with each other. This genetic and physical closeness may be marked by the...
. White and Brown both left in 1951 to form
The CheckersThe Checkers was a Japanese pop/rock band famous in the 80s. The band was formed by Toru Takeuchi, the leader and the guitarist, who asked Fumiya Fujii to start a band with him. They made a debut on 21 September 1983 and split up on 31 December 1992. All of their single releases entered top 10 in...
, and were replaced by James Van Loan and David McNeil (previously of
The LarksThe Larks were an African American vocal group, active in the early 1950s. They were not the same group as the Los Angeles-based Larks featuring Don Julian.-Original members:...
).
In March 1952, the Dominoes were chosen to be the only vocal group at
Alan FreedAlbert James Freed , generally known as Alan Freed and also as "Moondog", was an American disc-jockey who became internationally known for promoting African-American rhythm and blues music on the radio in the United States and Europe under the name of rock and roll...
's "
Moondog Coronation BallThe Moondog Coronation Ball was a concert held at the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, Ohio on March 21, 1952. It is generally accepted as the first major rock and roll concert....
". The hits continued, with "
Have Mercy Baby"Have Mercy Baby" is a popular rhythm and blues song, written by Billy Ward and Rose Marks, recorded by The Dominoes in Cincinnati, produced by Ralph Bass, and released by Federal Records in 1952...
" topping the R&B charts for 10 weeks in 1952. However, in early 1953, McPhatter also decided to leave, and soon formed a new group,
The DriftersThe Drifters are a long-lived African-American doo wop/R&B vocal group with a peak in popularity from 1953 to 1962, though several splinter Drifters continue to perform today. They were originally formed by Clyde McPhatter in 1953...
. His replacement in the Dominoes was
Jackie WilsonJack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson Jr. was an American singer, and performer, and a 1987 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee. Known as "Mr. Excitement", Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was known as a master showman, and as one of the most dynamic singer and...
, who had sung with the group on tour. Lamont and McNeil also left and were replaced by Milton Merle and Cliff Givens (Givens had been in
The Golden Gate QuartetThe Golden Gate Quartet is the most successful of all of the African-American gospel music groups who sang in the jubilee quartet style. Founded as the Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet in Norfolk, Virginia in 1934 by Robert Ford, A.C. Griffin, Willie Johnson, William Langford, Henry Owens and Orlandus...
, and joined
The Ink SpotsThe Ink Spots were a popular African American vocal group that helped define the musical genre that led to rhythm & blues and rock and roll, and the subgenre doo-wop...
in 1944 upon the death of original bass Orville "Hoppy" Jones). With Wilson singing lead, singles such as "You Can't Keep A Good Man Down" continued to be successful.
In 1954, Ward moved the group to the
JubileeJubilee Records was a record label specializing in rhythm and blues along with novelty records. It was founded in New York City in 1946 by Herb Abramson and Jerry Blaine. Blaine would later buy out Abramson's half of the company. The company name was Jay-Gee Recording Company, a subsidiary of the...
label and then to
DeccaDecca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; later the link with the British company was broken for several decades...
, where they enjoyed a #27 pop hit with "St. Teresa of the Roses". However, the group were unable to follow that success in the charts, and there were a succession of personnel changes. They increasingly moved away from their R&B roots with appearances in
Las VegasThe Las Vegas Strip is an approximately stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada. A small portion of the Strip lies in Las Vegas, but most of it is in the unincorporated areas of Paradise and Winchester...
and elsewhere. In late 1956, Wilson left for a
soloIn music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
career and was replaced by Gene Mumford of The Larks. The group then got a new contract with
Liberty RecordsLiberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Alvin Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals....
, and had a #13 pop hit with "
StardustStardust may refer to several concepts:In space and aviation:*Cosmic dust of interstellar origin*Stardust , a spacecraft designed to return samples from a comet's coma...
". The track also reached #13 in the
UK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
in October 1957. It was to be their only million seller. This proved to be their last major success, although various line-ups of the group continued recording and performing into the 1960s.
They were inducted into the
Vocal Group Hall of FameThe Vocal Group Hall of Fame was organized to honor what they term "the Greatest Vocal Groups in the World". The Hall of Fame is headquartered in Sharon, Pennsylvania, United States. It includes a theater and a museum.It was originally organized in 1998...
in 2006.
External links