Zelf Gemaakte slide .----------------------------------------------------------. The Drifters are 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. They were originally formed by Clyde McPhatter (of Billy Ward & the Dominoes) in 1953. Rolling Stone magazine states that The Drifters were the least stable of the vocal groups due to being low-paid hired musicians of The Drifters' management.[1] The Treadwell Drifters website states that there have been 60 vocalists in the history of the Treadwell Drifters line.[2] Several splinter groups by former Drifters members add to the count. Nevertheless, there are two iterations of The Drifters which are notable. The first classic Drifters formed by Clyde McPhatter was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame as The Drifters or The Original Drifters.[3] The second Drifters formed by Treadwell featuring Ben E. King was separately inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame as Ben E. King and The Drifters.[4] In their induction, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame eclectically selected four members from the classic Drifters, two from the second Drifters, and one from the post-King Treadwell Drifters. According to the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, "Through turmoil and changes the (original) Drifters managed to set musical trends and give the public 13 chart hits, most of which are legendary recordings today."[ After hearing that McPhatter had left the Dominoes, on May 7, 1953 Ahmet Ertegn of Atlantic Records signed him to form a new group. Wanting to blend gospel and secular sounds, his first effort was to get 4 out of 5 members of his old church group, the Mount Lebanon Singers. They were William Chick Anderson (tenor), David Baldwin (baritone), James Wrinkle Johnson (bass), and David Little Dave Baughan (tenor). After a single recording session of four songs on June 29, 1953, McPhatter saw this combination didn't work and recruited another lineup. This second effort also comprised gospel vocalists in second tenor Gerhart Thrasher, baritone Andrew Thrasher (both formerly of the gospel group the "Thrasher Wonders"), Bill Pinkney (of the Jerusalem Stars) on high tenor, Willie Ferbee as bass, and Walter Adams on guitar. This is the group on the second session, which produced the group's first major hit, "Money Honey", released September 1953. "Lucille" from the first session was put on the B side, making a recording industry rarity as a single released with songs from two essentially separate groups of the same name on the A and B sides. "Money Honey" was a huge success and propelled The Drifters to immediate fame. More lineup changes followed after the session when Ferbee was involved in an accident and left the group, and then Adams passed away to be replaced by Jimmy Oliver. Ferbee was not replaced and the voice parts were shifted around. Gerhart Thrasher became first tenor, Andrew Thrasher was now the baritone, and Bill Pinkney shifted down to bass. This group released several more hits ("Such A Night" - Nov '53, [5][6] "Honey Love" - Jun '54, "Bip Bam" Oct '54, "White Christmas" - Nov '54, and "What'cha Gonna Do" Mar '55) before McPhatter received his draft letter in May 1954. Initially stationed in Buffalo, New York, he was able to continue for a time, with "What'cha Gonna Do" being Clyde's last recording, (after which he pursued a successful solo career charting 16 R&B and 21 Pop records). McPhatter had demanded a large share of the group's profits, which he had been denied in the Dominoes, but, upon his departure, did not ensure that this would continue for his successor. He sold his share of the group to George Treadwell, manager, former jazz trumpeter, and husband of singer Sarah Vaughan. As a result, the Drifters cycled through many members, none of whom made much money. McPhatter later expressed regret at this action, recognizing that it doomed his fellow musicians to unprofitability. McPhatter was first replaced by David Baughn, who was on the new group's first session. While his voice was similar to McPhatter's, his erratic behavior made him unsuitable in the eyes of Atlantic Records executives. Baughn soon left the group to form the Harps (1955) (finding his way back into Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters in 1958), and was replaced by Cleveland native Johnny Moore (formerly of The Hornets). September 1955 saw this lineup record a major double-sided R&B hit with the A side's "Adorable", reaching number one and the B side, "Steamboat," going to number five. These were followed by "Ruby Baby - Feb '56," and "I Got To Get Myself A Woman". Low salaries contributed to burnout among the members, particularly Bill Pinkney, who was fired after asking Treadwell for more money. In protest, Andrew Thrasher left as well. Pinkney formed another group, called The Flyers, with lead singer Bobby Hendricks, who would leave to join the Drifters the next year. Bill Pinkney was replaced by Tommy Evans (who had replaced Jimmy Ricks in The Ravens). Charlie Hughes, a baritone, replaced Andrew Thrasher. Moore, G. Thrasher, C. Hughes, and Evans were the last quality lineup with top ten hit, "Fools Fall in Love", 1957, (number 69 Pop and number 10 R&B). Moore and Hughes were drafted in 1957 and replaced by Bobby Hendricks and Jimmy Millender. By early 1958, the lineup was: Bobby Hendricks (lead tenor), Gerhart Thrasher (first tenor), Jimmy Millender (baritone), Tommy Evans (bass), and Jimmy Oliver (guitar). This lineup had one moderate hit, the original version of "Drip Drop" (number 58 Pop), released in April 1958. With declining popularity, the last of the original Drifters were reduced to working the club scene and doing double duty with gigs under The Coasters and the Ravens names.[3] By May 1958, both Hendricks and Oliver had quit, returning only for a week's appearance at the Apollo Theater. During that week, one of the members got into a fight with the owner of the Apollo. That was the last straw for manager George Treadwell, who fired the entire group
Zelf Gemaakte slide .----------------------------------------------------------. The Drifters are 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. They were originally formed by Clyde McPhatter (of Billy Ward & the Dominoes) in 1953. Rolling Stone magazine states that The Drifters were the least stable of the vocal groups due to being low-paid hired musicians of The Drifters' management.[1] The Treadwell Drifters website states that there have been 60 vocalists in the history of the Treadwell Drifters line.[2] Several splinter groups by former Drifters members add to the count. Nevertheless, there are two iterations of The Drifters which are notable. The first classic Drifters formed by Clyde McPhatter was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame as The Drifters or The Original Drifters.[3] The second Drifters formed by Treadwell featuring Ben E. King was separately inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame as Ben E. King and The Drifters.[4] In their induction, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame eclectically selected four members from the classic Drifters, two from the second Drifters, and one from the post-King Treadwell Drifters. According to the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, "Through turmoil and changes the (original) Drifters managed to set musical trends and give the public 13 chart hits, most of which are legendary recordings today."[ After hearing that McPhatter had left the Dominoes, on May 7, 1953 Ahmet Ertegn of Atlantic Records signed him to form a new group. Wanting to blend gospel and secular sounds, his first effort was to get 4 out of 5 members of his old church group, the Mount Lebanon Singers. They were William Chick Anderson (tenor), David Baldwin (baritone), James Wrinkle Johnson (bass), and David Little Dave Baughan (tenor). After a single recording session of four songs on June 29, 1953, McPhatter saw this combination didn't work and recruited another lineup. This second effort also comprised gospel vocalists in second tenor Gerhart Thrasher, baritone Andrew Thrasher (both formerly of the gospel group the "Thrasher Wonders"), Bill Pinkney (of the Jerusalem Stars) on high tenor, Willie Ferbee as bass, and Walter Adams on guitar. This is the group on the second session, which produced the group's first major hit, "Money Honey", released September 1953. "Lucille" from the first session was put on the B side, making a recording industry rarity as a single released with songs from two essentially separate groups of the same name on the A and B sides. "Money Honey" was a huge success and propelled The Drifters to immediate fame. More lineup changes followed after the session when Ferbee was involved in an accident and left the group, and then Adams passed away to be replaced by Jimmy Oliver. Ferbee was not replaced and the voice parts were shifted around. Gerhart Thrasher became first tenor, Andrew Thrasher was now the baritone, and Bill Pinkney shifted down to bass. This group released several more hits ("Such A Night" - Nov '53, [5][6] "Honey Love" - Jun '54, "Bip Bam" Oct '54, "White Christmas" - Nov '54, and "What'cha Gonna Do" Mar '55) before McPhatter received his draft letter in May 1954. Initially stationed in Buffalo, New York, he was able to continue for a time, with "What'cha Gonna Do" being Clyde's last recording, (after which he pursued a successful solo career charting 16 R&B and 21 Pop records). McPhatter had demanded a large share of the group's profits, which he had been denied in the Dominoes, but, upon his departure, did not ensure that this would continue for his successor. He sold his share of the group to George Treadwell, manager, former jazz trumpeter, and husband of singer Sarah Vaughan. As a result, the Drifters cycled through many members, none of whom made much money. McPhatter later expressed regret at this action, recognizing that it doomed his fellow musicians to unprofitability. McPhatter was first replaced by David Baughn, who was on the new group's first session. While his voice was similar to McPhatter's, his erratic behavior made him unsuitable in the eyes of Atlantic Records executives. Baughn soon left the group to form the Harps (1955) (finding his way back into Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters in 1958), and was replaced by Cleveland native Johnny Moore (formerly of The Hornets). September 1955 saw this lineup record a major double-sided R&B hit with the A side's "Adorable", reaching number one and the B side, "Steamboat," going to number five. These were followed by "Ruby Baby - Feb '56," and "I Got To Get Myself A Woman". Low salaries contributed to burnout among the members, particularly Bill Pinkney, who was fired after asking Treadwell for more money. In protest, Andrew Thrasher left as well. Pinkney formed another group, called The Flyers, with lead singer Bobby Hendricks, who would leave to join the Drifters the next year. Bill Pinkney was replaced by Tommy Evans (who had replaced Jimmy Ricks in The Ravens). Charlie Hughes, a baritone, replaced Andrew Thrasher. Moore, G. Thrasher, C. Hughes, and Evans were the last quality lineup with top ten hit, "Fools Fall in Love", 1957, (number 69 Pop and number 10 R&B). Moore and Hughes were drafted in 1957 and replaced by Bobby Hendricks and Jimmy Millender. By early 1958, the lineup was: Bobby Hendricks (lead tenor), Gerhart Thrasher (first tenor), Jimmy Millender (baritone), Tommy Evans (bass), and Jimmy Oliver (guitar). This lineup had one moderate hit, the original version of "Drip Drop" (number 58 Pop), released in April 1958. With declining popularity, the last of the original Drifters were reduced to working the club scene and doing double duty with gigs under The Coasters and the Ravens names.[3] By May 1958, both Hendricks and Oliver had quit, returning only for a week's appearance at the Apollo Theater. During that week, one of the members got into a fight with the owner of the Apollo. That was the last straw for manager George Treadwell, who fired the entire group
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