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The Moonglows
Origin Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Genre(s) R&B/doo-wop
Years active 1951-1972
Label(s) Champaign
Chance
Chess
Lana
Times Square
Crimson
RCA
Associated acts Alan Freed
Former members
Harvey Fuqua
Bobby Lester
Pete Graves
Prentiss Barnes
Billy Johnson
Marvin Gaye
Reese Palmer
Chuck Barksdale
James Knowland
Chester Simmons
Doc Green
George Thorpe
Bearle Easton
Doc Williams
Chuck Lewis

The Moonglows was an influential American R&B and doo-wop group based in Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland is a City in the US state of Ohio and the County seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other Doo-wop is a style of vocal-based Rhythm and blues music which developed in African-American communities in the 1940s and which achieved mainstream popularity both in the 1950s In the Music industry, a record label can be a Brand and a Trademark associated with the Marketing of music recordings and Music Chess Records was an American Record label based in Chicago Illinois. RCA Records (originally The Victor Talking Machine Company, then RCA Victor is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. Alan Freed (December 15 1921 &ndash January 20 1965 also known as Moondog, was an American Disc-jockey who became Harvey Fuqua, born July 27, 1929 in Louisville Kentucky, is an African-American soul singer Songwriter, Record producer Prentiss Barnes ( April 12, 1925 - October 1, 2006) was an American rhythm and blues singer in the 1950's Marvin Pentz Gay Jr, known as Marvin Gaye ( April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Singer-songwriter The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Doo-wop is a style of vocal-based Rhythm and blues music which developed in African-American communities in the 1940s and which achieved mainstream popularity both in the 1950s A musical ensemble is a group of two or more Musicians who perform instrumental or vocal Music. Cleveland is a City in the US state of Ohio and the County seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state

Contents

Career

Early years

Originally formed in their native Louisville Kentucky as the Crazy Sounds, the group moved to Cleveland, where legendary disc jockey Alan Freed renamed them the Moonglows (after his own nickname, "Moondog"). A disc jockey (also known as DJ or deejay) is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience Alan Freed (December 15 1921 &ndash January 20 1965 also known as Moondog, was an American Disc-jockey who became Freed helped to promote the group during their early years and, in a common practice of the day, took a co-writer credit as compensation for his efforts. Lead Fuqua served as the group's leader and chief writer. Vocals were split between Bobby "Lester" Dallas and Harvey Fuqua and sometimes, in the group's occasional duet leads, both. Harvey Fuqua, born July 27, 1929 in Louisville Kentucky, is an African-American soul singer Songwriter, Record producer The other members were tenor Alexander "Pete" Graves and bass Prentiss Barnes, with Billy Johnson on guitar. The Moonglows recorded one single for Freed's Champagne label in late 1952, and then for Chicago's Chance record label in 1953 and 1954. After a moderately-successful release of the Lester-led version of Doris Day's "Secret Love" on Chance, the Moonglows signed to independent Chicago powerhouse Chess Records in mid-1954. Doris Mary Anne von Kappelhoff (born April 3, 1922) is an American Singer, actress, and animal welfare advocate known as Chess Records was an American Record label based in Chicago Illinois.

R&B stardom and influence

Their first Chess release, 1954's "Sincerely" became a number one R&B hit and was "covered" successfully for the pop (read: "White") market by The McGuire Sisters. " Sincerely " is a popular Song written by Harvey Fuqua and Alan Freed and published in 1954. The McGuire Sisters were a singing trio in American Popular music. Between 1955 and 1957, the Moonglows reached the R&B charts frequently with hits like "Most of All", "In My Diary", "When I'm With You", "See Saw", "We Go Together", and "Please Send Me Someone to Love. " Different styles defined the Moonglows lead singers: Fuqua favored the uptempo R&B/rock numbers while Lester sung more of the romantic ballads, for which the group was better known, and occasionally the two would share the leads, duet-style. Although Lester and Fuqua are credited as forming a spinoff group called the Moonlighters, recording in 1955 for the Chess subsidiary label Checker, they paired on only two numbers released as by the Moonlighters, "So All Alone" and "New Gal. " The flip sides of these two songs, respectively "Shoo-Do-Be-Doo" and "Hug And A Kiss" featured the full group. The flip side of "Starlite" called "In Love" also featured a Lester-Fuqua duet. In 1957, the Moonglows appeared the Alan Freed movie Rock, Rock, Rock. In late 1957, the group recorded their classic "Ten Commandments of Love," featuring Fuqua on lead and guitarist Billy Johnson flawlessly executing the spoken recitation. This became the group's second biggest hit, after "Sincerely," early in 1958. It was also the first record to be billed on the label as "Harvey & the Moonglows".

The Moonglows singing style is revered by aficionados as "blow" harmony, based on the techincial method used by the backgrounds singers. This style can be heard in many other groups of the era and beyond, perhaps most notably the Chi-Lites (particularly on their hit "Oh Girl").

Fallout from the original group and "The New Moonglows"

In 1958, shortly after the Moonglows recorded their final hit, "10 Commandments of Love", Fuqua re-asserted himself as the group's lead singer, putting Lester further in the background causing friction among group members. The biggest blow came when Fuqua spotted a young vocal group, the Marquees from Washington, D.C., and took the talented quartet of Reese Palmer, Chester Simmons, James Knowland and nineteen-year-old lead singer Marvin Gaye under his wing. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Marvin Pentz Gay Jr, known as Marvin Gaye ( April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Singer-songwriter The group had recently recorded (unsuccessfully) on the Okeh record label after being discovered by rock icon Bo Diddley when Fuqua found them. Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll) is a form of Music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s with roots in mostly African Bo Diddley ( December 30 1928 &ndash June 2 2008, born Ellas Otha Bates) was an original and influential American Recording with fifth member Chuck Barksdale, who had been (and would again become) the bass singer of The Dells, Fuqua hired them as his new Moonglows. This group recorded songs such as "Twelve Months of the Year" (featuring a speaking part by Marvin Gaye), "Beatnik" and "Mama Loocie", which (the first recorded lead by Gaye), released in 1959. The forming of the "New Moonglows" ended he affiliation of the original Moonglows. In 1959 and 1960, Fuqua also recorded several duets for the Chess label with the singer of "Roll with Me Henry" (and future blues superstar) Etta James. After Barksdale left to return as member of The Dells, the other four Moonglows recruited bass John Bowie to fill their commitments, and then disbanded. The Dells are an influential R&B musical group who was one of the few groups to span music genres resulting in successful recordings surpassing more than four decades

After the Moonglows and splinter groups

In 1960, Fuqua moved to Detroit, Michigan, disbanded the Moonglows, and joined the new Motown label as behind-the-scenes jack of all trades. While there, Fuqua was responsible for getting Marvin Gaye signed to Motown, and would continue to play a pivotal role in Gaye's career later serving as producer of some of his famed recording duets with Tammi Terrell and later being the production adviser of Marvin's final album, 1982's Midnight Love. Tammi Terrell ( April 29, 1945 – March 16, 1970) was a Grammy Award -nominated American soul Singer Midnight Love is the final studio album recorded and issued by American soul singer Marvin Gaye and was the singer's first release from Fuqua also began a record label called Tri-Phi, signing and mentoring the original Spinners, who copied the Moonglows style on their 1961 hit, "That's What Girls are Made For. " Fuqua would serve as a staff songwriter and producer for Motown producing hits for The Spinners and later played a role in forming the funk-soul band New Birth in the 1970s. Funk is an American musical style that originated in the mid- to late-1960s when African American musicians blended Soul music, Soul Soul music is a Music genre that combines Rhythm and blues and Gospel music, originating in the United States. New Birth (originally The Nite-Liters) is an American Funk and R&B band formed in Detroit Michigan by former Motown songwriters

Pete Graves started another Moonglows group in 1964 with the Drifters' Doc Green and George Thorpe and Bearle Easton, which recorded briefly for the Lana, Times Square and Crimson record labels, before disbanding. The Drifters were a long-lived American Doo wop / R&B vocal group with a peak in popularity from 1953 to 1962 though several splinter Drifters continue to perform today Lester, who had returned to Louisville and opened a nightclub, formed yet another Moonglows in 1970, with a Louisville-based group called the Aristocrats, including his cousin Gary Rodgers, Albert Workman, Robert Ford and Clyde McPhatter's son Billy. Clyde McPhatter ( November 15, 1932 – June 13, 1972) was an influential American R&B singer In 1972, the three original Moonglows who had remained active, Graves, Lester, and Fuqua, joined with new members Doc Williams and Chuck Lewis, and recorded an LP called "Return of the Moonglows" for RCA. The group released an updated, uptempo soul single of their hit "Sincerely", which became the group's final chart record. Soon after, the group parted ways, with Lester re-forming his Louisville Moonglows. Their LP, released in 1979, captured a live, mostly acapella performance of a nightclub date. Barnes, meanwhile, had retired from professional performing after a car accident in 1969.

Death and recent years

Lester was the first of the original members to die, succumbing to a bout of cancer in 1980 at the age of 49. Billy McPhatter had not been in the group in 1979, however he joined the current members for a performance at Madison Square Gardens, originally intended to include Bobby Lester, and remained in the group. Gary Rodgers took over management of the group and they began calling themselves Bobby Lester's Moonglows (sometimes also referred to as Gary Rodgers' Moonglows). Harvey reunited with most of his 1972 Moonglows for a 1983 Grammy performance and later toured as Harvey and the Moonglows up until 1986. By the 1980s the Billy McPhatter group included Rodgers, Robert Lee Davis, Pete Lawford, and Bruce Martin. In the early 1990s McPhatter was replaced by Bobby's son, Bobby Lester, Jr. [1] In 1999, Harvey and members of Bobby Lester's Moonglows reunited to perform on the PBS special, Doo Wop 50. The Public Broadcasting Service ( PBS) is a Non-profit Public broadcasting Television service with 354 member TV stations in the Doo Wop 50 was a PBS special created by TJ Lubinsky, grandson of Herman Lubinsky. By this time, the Moonglows were Rodgers, Martin, Lawford, and Gene Kelly.

Fuqua still sings occasionally and produces and manages gospel acts. Marvin Gaye later died in a tragic incident with his father during an argument in 1984. Year 1984 ( MCMLXXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar) By that point, the former Moonglows singer had become one of the world's most influential soul artists of his generation[2]. Soul music is a Music genre that combines Rhythm and blues and Gospel music, originating in the United States. Reese Palmer, a fellow member with Gaye on the "new Moonglows", became a member of The Orioles, while Barksdale returned to The Dells and has remained with them since 1960. The Orioles were a successful and highly influential American R&B group of the late 1940s and early 1950s one of the earliest such vocal bands who established The Dells are an influential R&B musical group who was one of the few groups to span music genres resulting in successful recordings surpassing more than four decades Original guitarist Johnson died in Los Angeles in 1987, Rodgers died in 2005 and original member Prentiss Barnes died in 2006 [3]. Prentiss Barnes ( April 12, 1925 - October 1, 2006) was an American rhythm and blues singer in the 1950's The Moonglows were inducted to the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. The Vocal Group Hall of Fame was organized to honor what they term "the Greatest Vocal Groups in the World" The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a Museum located on the shores of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland Ohio, United States

Members

Original members

Other members

Harvey Fuqua and the New Moonglows
Pete Graves' Moonglows
Bobby Lester's Moonglows
The revived Moonglows

References

  1. ^ Warner, Jay. American Singing Groups: A History from 1940s to Today. Google Books link
  2. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_Gaye
  3. ^ http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/politics/15661794.htm

External links

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