Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds
Encyclopedia
Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds was a 1970s AM soft rock
trio
from Los Angeles
. The original members were Dan Hamilton (guitar
/lead vocal), Joe Frank Carollo (bass
/vocal), and Tommy Reynolds (multi-instrumentalist/vocal), all of whom had previously played in The T-Bones, a 1960s band noted for the instrumental
hit
"No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)".
The group first hit the charts in 1971 with "Don't Pull Your Love
." Reynolds left the group in late 1972, and was replaced by keyboardist Alan Dennison; however, the band still kept the name 'Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds'. This revised line-up scored the group's biggest hit, 1975's "Fallin' in Love".
producer, Joe Sareceno to form a "live" version of the studio group, The T-Bones. In November 1965, Judd Hamilton agreed, and asked brother Dan Hamilton to join him on lead guitar. Both had worked for, and been mentored by, The Ventures
, who Saraceno also produced at the time. Once the Hamilton brothers officially became The T-Bones, they rounded out their initial road group with three other Los Angeles musicians, George Dee (aka Arnold Rosenthal) on bass, Richard Torres on keyboards/sax, and drummer Gene Pello.
TV commercial. Dee and Torres quickly decided to leave the band, and were replaced by Tommy Reynolds and Joe Frank Carollo. "No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)" reached #3 in the US
Billboard Hot 100
in March 1966. This revised version of The T-Bones toured the US and Japan. Their third and final album was not commercially successful and they disbanded near the end of 1967.
offered a recording contract
to 'Hamilton, Joe Frank and Reynolds'. The following year "Don't Pull Your Love Out" peaked at #4 on Billboard
chart, sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
by the R.I.A.A. in August 1971. A couple more singles, "Annabella" and "Daisy Mae", were Top 40 hits, but two Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds albums and several other singles failed to register any significant chart action.
Tommy Reynolds left the group in the latter days of 1972 to form a band called Shango, while Hamilton and Carollo continued recording and touring with various session musician
s such as Larry Knechtel
on keyboards and Joe Correro on drums, but their contract with Dunhill was cancelled. With the addition of Alan Dennison and Rick Shull, Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds continued to perform locally.
on the proviso that they retain the name Hamilton, Joe Frank, and Reynolds, even though Reynolds had left the group. Within another few months they released "Fallin' in Love
", which reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also became their second gold disc, and their first and only song to appear in the UK Singles Chart
.
They followed this success with "Winners & Losers" which reached #21 in 1976, but the next releases, "Don't Fight The Hands (That Need You)", "One Good Woman", and "Everyday Without You" all failed to reach the Top 40. For their second Playboy Records album the band changed their name to the more-accurate moniker of "Hamilton, Joe Frank & Dennison", but in 1980 they once again disbanded, this time permanently. Hamilton continued to write and publish songs, and also wrote and recorded a couple of film themes.
In the winter of 1993 Dan Hamilton became seriously and mysteriously ill, and was eventually diagnosed as suffering from Cushing's syndrome
. He died in Los Angeles on December 23, 1994, at the age of 48.
, the characters jokingly discussed how difficult it is for the average person to determine exactly how many people were in the group. Without seeing the name written down, one could assume it was a quartet
("Hamilton, Joe, Frank, and Reynolds"), a duo
("Hamilton Joe Frank" and Reynolds), a trio
(consisting instead of "Hamilton Joe, Frank, and Reynolds"), or even a quintet
("Hamilton, Joe, Frank, Ann, Reynolds").
"Don't Pull Your Love Out" was featured at the beginning of The West Wing episode "In the Shadow of 2 Gunmen Part II". The song was also heard in When Harry Met Sally. "Fallin' in Love
" appeared in The Hitcher
.
A running joke from the radio personality Dan Ingram
involved introducing the group as "Hamilton, Joe, Frank Reynolds and the entire Eyewitness News team," a reference to the band and a nod to ABC news anchor Frank Reynolds
during his tenure as co-anchor of World News Tonight.
Soft rock
Soft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
trio
Trio (music)
Trio is generally used in any of the following ways:* A group of three musicians playing the same or different musical instrument.* The performance of a piece of music by three people.* The contrasting section of a piece in ternary form...
from Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. The original members were Dan Hamilton (guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
/lead vocal), Joe Frank Carollo (bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
/vocal), and Tommy Reynolds (multi-instrumentalist/vocal), all of whom had previously played in The T-Bones, a 1960s band noted for the instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
"No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)".
The group first hit the charts in 1971 with "Don't Pull Your Love
Don't Pull Your Love
"Don't Pull Your Love" is the title of a song written by Brian Potter and Dennis Lambert. The song was originally recorded in 1971 by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds, reaching four on both the US Billboard Hot 100 and the Easy Listening chart .-Sam & Dave:...
." Reynolds left the group in late 1972, and was replaced by keyboardist Alan Dennison; however, the band still kept the name 'Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds'. This revised line-up scored the group's biggest hit, 1975's "Fallin' in Love".
Early group
Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds came together as a result of Hamilton's brother, musician/actor Judd Hamilton, being asked by Liberty RecordsLiberty Records
Liberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.-1950s:...
producer, Joe Sareceno to form a "live" version of the studio group, The T-Bones. In November 1965, Judd Hamilton agreed, and asked brother Dan Hamilton to join him on lead guitar. Both had worked for, and been mentored by, The Ventures
The Ventures
The Ventures is an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington. Founded by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle, the group in its various incarnations has had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. With over 100 million records sold, the group is the best-selling...
, who Saraceno also produced at the time. Once the Hamilton brothers officially became The T-Bones, they rounded out their initial road group with three other Los Angeles musicians, George Dee (aka Arnold Rosenthal) on bass, Richard Torres on keyboards/sax, and drummer Gene Pello.
New line-up
They hit the road in January, 1966 to promote their first single "No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)", an instrumental piece based upon a then-popular Alka-SeltzerAlka-Seltzer
Alka-Seltzer is an effervescent antacid and pain reliever first marketed by the Dr. Miles Medicine Company. It was developed by Treneer in Elkhart Indiana. Alka-Seltzer is marketed for relief of minor aches, pains, inflammation, fever, headache, heartburn, sour stomach, indigestion, and hangovers,...
TV commercial. Dee and Torres quickly decided to leave the band, and were replaced by Tommy Reynolds and Joe Frank Carollo. "No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)" reached #3 in the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in March 1966. This revised version of The T-Bones toured the US and Japan. Their third and final album was not commercially successful and they disbanded near the end of 1967.
Big hit
In 1970, Dunhill RecordsDunhill Records
Dunhill Records was started by Lou Adler, Al Bennett, Pierre Cossette and Bobby Roberts in 1964 as Dunhill Productions, originally for the purpose of releasing Johnny Rivers recordings on Imperial Records. It became a record label in 1965 and was distributed by ABC Records...
offered a recording contract
Recording contract
A 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...
to 'Hamilton, Joe Frank and Reynolds'. The following year "Don't Pull Your Love Out" peaked at #4 on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
chart, sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
by the R.I.A.A. in August 1971. A couple more singles, "Annabella" and "Daisy Mae", were Top 40 hits, but two Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds albums and several other singles failed to register any significant chart action.
Tommy Reynolds left the group in the latter days of 1972 to form a band called Shango, while Hamilton and Carollo continued recording and touring with various session musician
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
s such as Larry Knechtel
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William "Larry" Knechtel was an American keyboard player and bassist, best known for his work as a session musician with such artists as Simon & Garfunkel, Duane Eddy, The Beach Boys, The Mamas & the Papas, The Partridge Family, The Doors, and Elvis Presley, and as a member of the 1970s...
on keyboards and Joe Correro on drums, but their contract with Dunhill was cancelled. With the addition of Alan Dennison and Rick Shull, Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds continued to perform locally.
Name change
In the latter part of 1974 they secured another recording deal with Playboy RecordsPlayboy Records
Playboy Records was a record label in Los Angeles, California, and a unit of Playboy Enterprises. Artists recording for the label included Barbi Benton, Blue Ash, Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers, Brenda Patterson, Jeanne French , Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds, Ivory, Wynn Stewart, Mickey Gilley...
on the proviso that they retain the name Hamilton, Joe Frank, and Reynolds, even though Reynolds had left the group. Within another few months they released "Fallin' in Love
Fallin' in Love (1975 song)
"Fallin' In Love" is an American pop music song recorded and released by the trio of Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. The song was written by band member Dan Hamilton. Released in the summer of 1975, the song became the group's second Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S...
", which reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also became their second gold disc, and their first and only song to appear in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
.
They followed this success with "Winners & Losers" which reached #21 in 1976, but the next releases, "Don't Fight The Hands (That Need You)", "One Good Woman", and "Everyday Without You" all failed to reach the Top 40. For their second Playboy Records album the band changed their name to the more-accurate moniker of "Hamilton, Joe Frank & Dennison", but in 1980 they once again disbanded, this time permanently. Hamilton continued to write and publish songs, and also wrote and recorded a couple of film themes.
In the winter of 1993 Dan Hamilton became seriously and mysteriously ill, and was eventually diagnosed as suffering from Cushing's syndrome
Cushing's syndrome
Cushing's syndrome is a hormone disorder caused by high levels of cortisol in the blood. This can be caused by taking glucocorticoid drugs, or by tumors that produce cortisol or adrenocorticotropic hormone or CRH...
. He died in Los Angeles on December 23, 1994, at the age of 48.
Pop culture
In an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
, the characters jokingly discussed how difficult it is for the average person to determine exactly how many people were in the group. Without seeing the name written down, one could assume it was a quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
("Hamilton, Joe, Frank, and Reynolds"), a duo
Duet (music)
A duet is a musical composition for two performers. In classical music, the term is most often used for a composition for two singers or pianists; with other instruments, the word duo is also often used. A piece performed by two pianists performing together on the same piano is referred to as...
("Hamilton Joe Frank" and Reynolds), a trio
Trio (music)
Trio is generally used in any of the following ways:* A group of three musicians playing the same or different musical instrument.* The performance of a piece of music by three people.* The contrasting section of a piece in ternary form...
(consisting instead of "Hamilton Joe, Frank, and Reynolds"), or even a quintet
Quintet
A quintet is a group containing five members.It is commonly associated with musical groups, such as a string quintet, or a group of five singers, but can be applied to any situation where five similar or related objects are considered a single unit....
("Hamilton, Joe, Frank, Ann, Reynolds").
"Don't Pull Your Love Out" was featured at the beginning of The West Wing episode "In the Shadow of 2 Gunmen Part II". The song was also heard in When Harry Met Sally. "Fallin' in Love
Fallin' in Love (1975 song)
"Fallin' In Love" is an American pop music song recorded and released by the trio of Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. The song was written by band member Dan Hamilton. Released in the summer of 1975, the song became the group's second Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S...
" appeared in The Hitcher
The Hitcher (2007 film)
The Hitcher is a 2007 horror film starring Sean Bean, Sophia Bush, and Zachary Knighton. It is a remake of the 1986 film of the same name starring Rutger Hauer, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and C. Thomas Howell. The Hitcher was directed by Dave Meyers and produced by Michael Bay’s production company...
.
A running joke from the radio personality Dan Ingram
Dan Ingram
Daniel Trombley "Dan" Ingram is an American Top 40 radio disc jockey with a forty-year career on radio stations such as WABC and WCBS-FM in New York...
involved introducing the group as "Hamilton, Joe, Frank Reynolds and the entire Eyewitness News team," a reference to the band and a nod to ABC news anchor Frank Reynolds
Frank Reynolds
Frank James Reynolds was an American television journalist for ABC and CBS News.He was a New York-based anchor of the ABC Evening News from 1968 to 1970 and later as the Washington D.C.-based co-anchor of World News Tonight from 1978 until his death in 1983...
during his tenure as co-anchor of World News Tonight.
Singles
- 1971: "Don't Pull Your LoveDon't Pull Your Love"Don't Pull Your Love" is the title of a song written by Brian Potter and Dennis Lambert. The song was originally recorded in 1971 by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds, reaching four on both the US Billboard Hot 100 and the Easy Listening chart .-Sam & Dave:...
" (US #4) - 1971: "Annabella" (US #46)
- 1971: "Daisy Mae" (US #41)
- 1975: "Fallin' in LoveFallin' in Love (1975 song)"Fallin' In Love" is an American pop music song recorded and released by the trio of Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. The song was written by band member Dan Hamilton. Released in the summer of 1975, the song became the group's second Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S...
" (US #1, UKUK 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 selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#33) - 1976: "Winners and Losers" (US #21)
- 1976: "Everyday Without You"
- 1976: "Don't Fight the Hands (That Need You)" (US #72)
Albums
- 1971: Hamilton, Joe Frank & ReynoldsHamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds (album)Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds was the debut album for the band of the same name. Two singles were lifted from this album: "Annabella" and the band's first Top 40 hit "Don't Pull Your Love ."-Side 1:...
(U.S. #59) - 1972: Hallway SymphonyHallway SymphonyHallway Symphony was the second studio album of the band Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds, released in 1972. It was their final album for the Dunhill label...
(U.S. #191) - 1975: Fallin' in LoveFallin' in Love (album)Fallin' in Love was the third studio album of the band Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds and their first for Playboy Records where they signed to a year before...
(U.S. #82) - 1976: Love & Conversation