The Easy Riders (American band)
Encyclopedia
The Easy Riders were an American
folk music
band, that operated from 1956 to 1959, consisting of Terry Gilkyson
, Richard Dehr, and Frank Miller
. Their career was guided by Mitch Miller
, who had them under contract for Columbia Records
.
Their greatest hit, in early 1957, was the song "Marianne". The group also composed some tunes for the 1958 cinemiracle
-documentary Windjammer, such as "Kari Waits For Me" and "Sugar Cane". One of Gilkyson's songs was a number one hit for Frankie Laine
, "The Cry Of The Wild Goose". Gilkyson wrote many tunes for Laine, and he and The Easy Riders were also featured on Frankie's 1957 hit, "Love Is A Golden Ring", having also penned the number for Laine.
Many songs of the group became better known through the interpretation of other singers, such as the Kingston Trio, Gale Storm
, Harry Belafonte
, Doris Day
, Burl Ives
and the The Brothers Four
. Their song "Memories Are Made of This
" became a top hit through the interpretation by Dean Martin
. After the Easy Riders made a single with the 1927 song "Tell The Captain", the Beach Boys adapted it and made of it their hit "Sloop John B".
Gilkyson left the group in the early 1960s to work for Disney studios and wrote the Oscar-nominated "The Bear Necessities" for Disney's The Jungle Book
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
band, that operated from 1956 to 1959, consisting of Terry Gilkyson
Terry Gilkyson
Hamilton H. Gilkyson III , better known as Terry Gilkyson, was an American folk singer, composer, and lyricist.-Biography:...
, Richard Dehr, and Frank Miller
Frank Miller (singer)
Frank Miller is a singer and songwriter. He was born in Brooklyn, New York.With Terry Gilkyson and Richard Dehr, he wrote the song "Marianne." As a group called The Easy Riders, Dehr and Miller accompanied Gilkyson on the best-selling recording of the song in 1956.Subsequently, Frank Miller, Jerry...
. Their career was guided by Mitch Miller
Mitch Miller
Mitchell William "Mitch" Miller was an American musician, singer, conductor, record producer, A&R man and record company executive...
, who had them under contract for Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
.
Their greatest hit, in early 1957, was the song "Marianne". The group also composed some tunes for the 1958 cinemiracle
Cinemiracle
Cinemiracle was a widescreen cinema format competing with Cinerama developed in the 1950s. It was ultimately unsuccessful, with only a single film produced and released in the format. Like Cinerama it used 3 cameras to capture a 2.59:1 image. Cinemiracle used two mirrors to give the left and right...
-documentary Windjammer, such as "Kari Waits For Me" and "Sugar Cane". One of Gilkyson's songs was a number one hit for Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine, born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio , was a successful American singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performance of "That's My Desire" in 2005...
, "The Cry Of The Wild Goose". Gilkyson wrote many tunes for Laine, and he and The Easy Riders were also featured on Frankie's 1957 hit, "Love Is A Golden Ring", having also penned the number for Laine.
Many songs of the group became better known through the interpretation of other singers, such as the Kingston Trio, Gale Storm
Gale Storm
Gale Storm was an American actress and singer who starred in two popular television programs of the 1950s, My Little Margie and The Gale Storm Show.-Early life:...
, Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte
Harold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
, Doris Day
Doris Day
Doris Day is an American actress, singer and, since her retirement from show business, an animal rights activist. With an entertainment career that spanned through almost 50 years, Day started her career as a big band singer in 1939, but only began to be noticed after her first hit recording,...
, Burl Ives
Burl Ives
Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives was an American actor, writer and folk music singer. As an actor, Ives's work included comedies, dramas, and voice work in theater, television, and motion pictures. Music critic John Rockwell said, "Ives's voice .....
and the The Brothers Four
The Brothers Four
The Brothers Four are an American folk singing group, founded in 1957 in Seattle, Washington, known for their 1960 hit song "Greenfields".-History:...
. Their song "Memories Are Made of This
Memories Are Made of This
"Memories Are Made of This" is a popular song written by Terry Gilkyson, Richard Dehr, and Frank Miller in 1955.-History:The most popular version of the song was recorded by Dean Martin. It reached #1 on the Billboard chart for six weeks in 1956, and became his biggest hit...
" became a top hit through the interpretation by Dean Martin
Dean Martin
Dean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
. After the Easy Riders made a single with the 1927 song "Tell The Captain", the Beach Boys adapted it and made of it their hit "Sloop John B".
Gilkyson left the group in the early 1960s to work for Disney studios and wrote the Oscar-nominated "The Bear Necessities" for Disney's The Jungle Book
The Jungle Book (1967 film)
The Jungle Book is a 1967 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Released on October 18, 1967, it is the 19th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was inspired by the stories about the feral child Mowgli from the book of the same name by...
.
Discography
- Marianne and Other Songs You'll Like (1957, Columbia CL 990)
- Blue Mountain (1958, Columbia CL 1103)
- Wanderin': Folk Songs by The Easy Riders (1959, Columbia CS 8102)
- Rollin (1960, Kapp KL-1196)
- Remember The Alamo (1961, Kapp KL-1216)
- The Cry Of The Wild Goose (1963, Kapp KS-3327)