[The first article I ever wrote (in August 1964) was on the Clovers. To call it bad is being charitable,
but you can read it here.]
One of the most enduringly popular R&B groups has been the
"Mighty Clovers" (as they were tagged by Dr. Jive). Extremely successful
in the early- and mid-50s, the Clovers placed 21 tunes on the R&B
charts, 19 of them in the top 10. Not only were they favorites of record
buyers, but also of their peers. In addition, the Clovers were also one
of the most popular live acts during the early to mid 50s. They
continually played the theater circuits, and were in demand to appear in
the package shows which toured the country.
In fact, the Clovers were the most popular group between 1951
and 1955. One measure of popularity is how long a record remains on the
charts. (This really should be computed by assigning points for how long
a record stays at which position on the charts, but the following is a
reasonable approximation.) The Dominoes, who started at almost the exact
same time as the Clovers, managed to place 11 tunes on the R&B
charts from 1951 to 1955; the combined time on the charts was 103 weeks
(including 30 weeks for "Sixty Minute Man"). The Drifters had 10 songs,
for a total of 107 weeks. (However, since the Drifters weren't formed
until May 1953, let's bend the rules a bit and compute totals for the
first 5 years of their existence. Using that method, there were 15
charted songs, for a grand total of 124 weeks; this includes 23 weeks
for "Honey Love.") The only other group that had any similar
impact during this period was the Midnighters. However, in their first 5
years, they placed only 7 songs on the charts for a total of 69 weeks
(although "Work With Me Annie" was there for 26 of them). Even the
Orioles, who were no longer a force to be reckoned with by this time,
had had only 62 weeks of chart hits in their first 5 years. The Ravens
had had a dismal 34. And what about the Clovers? In the first 5 years of
their existence, they had 17 R&B hits, for a total of 191 weeks on
the charts. It's true that "Sixty Minute Man," "Honey Love," and "Work
With Me Annie" were bigger hits than any Clovers tune, but "Don't You
Know I Love You," "Fool, Fool, Fool," and "Lovey Dovey," were
each on the charts for over 20 weeks. You can add to this the
fact that 5 of their records during this period were double-sided hits,
with 3 of them in a row! Actually, as far as vocal groups go, the
Clovers, Dominoes, Drifters, and Midnighters pretty much had the charts
tied up during this period.
The Clovers were originally a trio, which was formed about 1946 in
Washington, D.C.'s Armstrong High School. Tenor/Baritone Harold "Hal"
Lucas was both the lead and the originator of the name "Clovers,"
feeling it would be lucky for them; the others were tenor Billy Shelton
and bass Thomas Woods. After a while, tenor John "Buddy" Bailey, another
Armstrong High student, was added, and the group became known as the "4
Clovers." As time went on, Buddy took over the lead, with Harold
switching down to baritone. According to Lucas, their influences were
the Charioteers, the Ravens, the Cap-Tans, the Syncopators, and the
Orioles.
Sometime around 1948, neighborhood friend Matthew McQuater was
returning home from football practice at Howard University, when he
spotted the Clovers practicing on the street. Hearing something wrong
with their harmony (his "ear" had been formed by singing in church), he
stopped to offer some advice. He was invited to some rehearsals, and
soon Billy Shelton was out and Matthew was in.
The guys did the rounds of amateur shows, and it was at one of these
that they met bass Harold Winley. Sometime in 1948, Winley (whose influences ranged from the Delta Rhythm Boys' Lee Gaines and the Ravens' Jimmy Ricks to gospel bass Jimmy Jones) was listening to DJ Jackson Lowe's amateur show on
WWDC, when he heard the 4 Clovers win with their version of "Yes
Sir, That's My Baby." Winley was impressed with their sound, and the
next week found him appearing on the show too (singing his baritone
arrangement of "That Lucky Old Sun"). After the show, which Harold won,
he and the 4 Clovers started singing in the bathroom and they found
(while harmonizing on the Ravens' arrangement of "Old Man River") that
he had a very deep bass voice. Soon, Thomas Woods found himself out of
the 4 Clovers (Winley simply showed up to their practice sessions and
kept right on singing). According to Lucas, their music wasn't aimed at
anyone in particular; but they did sing around schools, just to
meet girls.
At the beginning, they sang mainly Pop songs, primarily at area
clubs. One place they worked a lot was Washington's Old Rose Social Club
(an old bootleg joint dating back to the 20s, frequented by performers
from the Howard Theater). The Clovers sang there for nothing and even
became the custodians simply to have a place to sing and rehearse!
In the fall of 1950, the Clovers were finally "discovered." They knew
"Waxie Maxie" Silverman, owner of a record store called Quality Music
(right down the block from the Old Rose Social Club) and Maxie played
cards with a "sportsman" (the term at the time for a gambler) named Earl
Thomas in the back of his store. While Maxie was actually a silent
partner with Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson in Atlantic Records (according to Atlantic maven Pete
Grendysa), he knew that vocal groups weren't the thing for Atlantic at
the time. Instead, Earl Thomas introduced them to Lou Krefetz, a
salesman for Gimbel Brothers Record Distributors in Baltimore, who
agreed to be their manager.
Krefetz started his long association with the Clovers by getting them
a recording session with Eddie Heller's Rainbow Records in New York.
They journeyed up to the Big Apple, where Heller had a small studio in
lower Manhattan. It was there that they recorded two songs ("Yes Sir,
That's My Baby" and "When You Come Back To Me"), with Buddy Bailey
displaying a beautiful, never-repeated high-tenor-lead ballad style. The
counterpoint of Harold Winley's bass on these make it, in my opinion,
one of the best two-sided records of the 50s. Jerome Carrington, pianist
at the Old Rose, coached them on these songs; as yet they had no
accompanist. Heller released the record in November 1950, but Rainbow
never seems to have promoted it, or even sent it out for review.
"Yes Sir, That's My Baby" had been written in 1925 by Gus Kahn and
Walter Donaldson, expressly for Eddie Cantor. "When You Come Back To Me," given to them by Krefetz, was subsequently done by Savannah Churchill and the Striders (in January 1951), Steve Gibson and the Red Caps (in July 1951), and the Mills Brothers (in June 1952). As far as I can tell, the Clovers made the first recording of this tune. Note that Buddy Bailey made a
mistake on the second bridge. The line should be: "How lonely I have
been/How much I cried you'll never know." Instead, he sings: "How lonely
I have cried/How much I cried you'll never know." The fluff was
either never caught or Rainbow decided not to do any more takes.
When it was released, "Yes Sir, That's My Baby" faced competition
from the Orioles' "Can't Seem To Laugh Anymore," the Blenders' "I'm So
Crazy For Love," the Ravens' "I'm So Crazy For Love," the Shadows'
"Jitterbug Special," the Drifters' "And I Shook," the 4 Barons' "Lemon
Squeezer," and the Cap-Tans' "Chief Turn The Hose On Me."
While Buddy Bailey could play the guitar
somewhat, it proved too much for him to learn all the tunes in their
repertoire. One night, in late 1950, they went to a jazz club and saw
Bill Harris perform. Harris, a native of Nashville, North Carolina,
played classical, jazz, and blues guitar, and had travelled around the
country with Irvin C. Miller's Brownskin Models. Said Winley, "We went
to his house and sang every song we knew; he was completely
unimpressed." They finally interested him in their arrangement of "That
Old Black Magic," and he agreed to join them.
Ahmet Ertegun, one of the owners of burgeoning Atlantic Records (along with Herb Abramson and "Waxie Maxie" Silverman), was
always on the lookout for talent, and Krefetz invited him down to
Washington to see the group perform. This happened at exactly the
right time. While Ahmet had had little interest in vocal groups before,
a new phenomenon, Federal Records' Dominoes (with tenor sensation Clyde
McPhatter and booming bass Bill Brown), were tearing up the charts with
"Do Something For Me" and "Chicken Blues"; Ahmet wanted to compete. (As
the 50s progressed, Atlantic would rise to the top of the heap of
independent R&B labels; its only serious competition came from the
complex of King/Federal/DeLuxe Records).
Ahmet listened to the Clovers singing "Pennies From Heaven," "How
High The Moon," and "What Is Thing Called Love" and, like Bill Harris
before him, wasn't particularly impressed. Of course, he was trying to
sell records, and he had a pretty good grasp of what his audience
wanted. The Clovers' style wasn't it!
He was, however, interested in the group, and he gave them a song he
had written on the plane from New York: "Don't You Know I Love You."
Ahmet sang it for them himself, evoking peals of laughter from the group
(at which Krefetz panicked). Finally, however, a deal was worked out,
and it was announced, in early February 1951, that the Clovers had been
signed to Atlantic. The same announcement said that they had been picked
up by Billy Shaw's Shaw Artists Corporation, which would handle their
bookings. (Probably during the same trip, Ahmet signed the Mellotones
and the Oakeneers. The Mellotones soon changed their name to the
Cardinals, becoming another of Atlantic's finest groups. No one knows who the Oakeneers were, but they never recorded for Atlantic under that name.)
Shaw first booked the Clovers' into the Apollo Theater the week beginning February 15, 1951. (Note that they'd only had the Rainbow release at this point.)
They came to their first rehearsal with no arrangements (only Bill
Harris had any notion of their music). Apollo owner Frank Schiffman,
after hearing them rehearse, didn't like their material any more than
Ahmet Ertegun or Bill Harris had (a definite trend here). Schiffman had
them come to his office and go through their entire repertoire. (He even
looked at Harold Lucas and said, "You're a nice-looking fellow;
smile!")
They didn't even know how to walk out on a stage that big! The night
before their first appearance, after the Dominoes (the prior week's
guest act) had done their last performance, Schiffman had them come out
onto the stage for practice. Then, during the week, "Porto Rico," the
crazed stagehand (who, wearing a dress, would chase amateurs around the
stage shooting off a starter's pistol), said "Who told you you could
sing?" Even comedian Pigmeat Markham got on their case: "You tell
Schiffman to get you some damned clothes!" Their uniforms were blue
serge suits with gingham ties (featuring a big "C" stitched on them) and
blue suede shoes. They also had no stage routines to go with their
songs. Says Harold Winley, "We stood flatfooted and sang.... We had no
presence." While other groups (like the Mills Brothers and Delta Rhythm
Boys) had presence, only Leonard Puzey, of the Ravens, threw in some
dance steps; Sonny Til and George Nelson, first and second leads of the
Orioles, had a little step when they switched places at the lead mike.
At the beginning of the week, Schiffman was yelling at Irving Seidel
(representative of the Shaw Agency) for sending him an act with so
little to recommend it. But, "By the end of the week, we had a little
fan club; eight to ten girls from Brooklyn," remembers Winley. Although
they began to find favor with the audiences, Schiffman assured them that
they'd never work there again. Boy, would he be proven wrong!
The songs they sang that week were "Yes Sir, That's My Baby," "When
You Come Back To Me," "Mona Lisa," and "That Old Black Magic." For their
first week of glory, they received $100 each. The other acts on the show
that week were Buddy Rich, Slim Gaillard (formerly of Slim & Slam),
Edna May Harris, and Pigmeat Markham.
Another early Shaw booking that Harold Winley remembers was in
Greenville, North Carolina. They substituted for Charles Brown in a
tobacco warehouse, performing on two flatbed trucks!
Their first Atlantic session took place on February 22, 1951, at the
Apex Recording Studios in New York. With Buddy Bailey in the lead, and
the Frank "Floorshow" Culley band behind them (along with Bill Harris,
who always played on their sessions), they recorded only two sides: the
bouncy "Don't You Know I Love You" and the ballad "Skylark." The first
of these was credited to Ahmet Ertegun under his reverse pen name
"Nugetre"; the other tune was a 1942 opus by Hoagy Carmichael and Johnny
Mercer, which had been popularized by Ray Eberle, along with the Glenn
Miller Orchestra. In an R&B vein, it had been done previously by
Billy Eckstine, singing with the Earl Hines Orchestra. "Skylark," which
was given to them by Atlantic (although the Clovers were familiar with
the song), was basically done as a Pop tune; this is the way the Clovers
wanted to sound. Once the flip took off, however, it would be a
long time before the Clovers would get back to their favorite way of
singing. Most of the Clovers' up-tempo tunes would be only medium-fast,
rather than driving, and with minimal instrumentation. For several years
this was kind of a Clovers trademark.
(Just as an aside, R&B vocal group singing might have been a
wasteland if groups could have chosen their own material and style. So
many groups wanted to sing Pop or modern harmony; they simply weren't
allowed to by the record companies.)
Then it was on to the Howard Theater in Washington, where, after
they'd sung "Yes Sir, That's My Baby" and "When You Come Back To Me,"
bandleader Lucky Millinder told the audience to go out and buy the
record. This was probably more publicity than Eddie Heller had
given the songs! (According to Harold Winley, after they'd had a couple of hits on Atlantic, Millinder approached Ahmet Ertegun and asked him why he'd ruined their sound!)
Atlantic released "Don't You Know I Love You" and "Skylark" in March
1951. The Clovers were playing the Royal Theater in Baltimore, and Lou
Krefetz came by with a copy. When they heard it, they immediately phoned
Ahmet and begged him to recall all the copies. They were under the
impression that a different take was going to be issued, and they hated
the released version. It was the second Clovers record in a row that wasn't sent out for review, but its competition was the 4 Buddies' "I Will Wait," the Orioles' "I Miss You So," Charles Brown's "Black Night," the Ravens' "Midnight Blues" and "Lilacs In The Rain," Little Esther & the Dominoes' "The Deacon Moves In," and Jackie Brenston's "Rocket 88."
By the week of May 19, 1951, "Don't You Know I Love You"
was a Territorial Tip in Los Angeles. This was the same week that some
of their stablemates at Atlantic got reviewed: the Cardinals' "Shouldn't
I Know," Joe Turner's "Chains Of Love," Joe Morris' "Midnight Grinder,"
and Stick McGhee's "One Monkey Don't Stop The Show."
By June, "Don't You Know I Love You" had entered the national charts,
where it stayed for five months, rising to the #1 slot (after a
leisurely 15 weeks). The disk sold around 250,000 copies, a lot of wax
for an R&B song in 1951, when most activity was on juke boxes (don't believe the tall tales about "million sellers" back then). On
June 17, the Clovers journeyed to Cleveland to open at the famed
Gleason's Musical Bar.
Now, Frank Schiffman called up Shaw Artists pleading to get them back to the Apollo. Suddenly, his story
was, "I gave them their chance." Fortunately, everything was smoothed
over and the Clovers would appear many times at the Apollo.
On July 12, 1951 they held their second recording session; this time,
at the WHOM Studios. They did "Needless" and "Fool, Fool, Fool," two
more tunes led by Buddy Bailey. "Needless" was credited to Lou Krefetz,
Bill Harris, and Matthew McQuater, while "Fool, Fool, Fool" was another
Ahmet Ertegun opus. Additionally, two other songs were recorded that
day: "Better Be On My Way" and "All Night Boogie." The latter has
recently surfaced on the second Rhino Atlantic collection, and is of
decidedly poor quality. Neither the vocals nor the instrumental backing
is polished; this may have been done as more of a test recording than
anything, since "Needless" and "Fool, Fool, Fool" were up to the usual
Atlantic professional standards. (After listening to "All Night Boogie,"
Harold Winley still didn't remember it.) It's probable that
"Better Be On My Way" was of the same low quality, since it was never
released either.
While people were always offering them songs, Atlantic's Ahmet
Ertegun and Herb Abramson kept a tight rein on what was recorded (at
least in the beginning). This resulted in a certain "Clovers' Sound,"
which provided an identity for the group.
In July 1951, the Clovers did a Midwest tour
along with Memphis Slim. In August, "Needless" and "Fool, Fool, Fool"
were released. Once again, the magic worked, with "Fool, Fool, Fool"
hitting the charts in September. Selling about 500,000 copies, it too,
charted for five months, and was also a #1 R&B hit. In mid-1952, Kay
Starr, backed by the Lancers, had a decent-sized Pop hit with the tune
(although for some reason she left out the line that went "When you
walked down the street/I said 'there goes my meat'"; in fact, most of
the lyrics were re-written for her). Though it's often cited as one of
the times when the white "cover" outsold the black original, Kay Starr's
version wasn't a cover at all, being released nearly a year later.
"Needless" is a beautiful ballad which failed to chart, but should have.
In September, it was reported that the Clovers were doing so well that Lou
Krefetz had resigned his position as salesman for Gimbel Brothers Record
Distributors, in order to concentrate on their career.
At this point, the recording industry was feeling the first
"explosion" of R&B vocal groups. Where once there was only a modest
number of groups, now, in addition to the Ravens and Orioles, there were
the Clovers, Dominoes, 5 Keys, 4 Buddies, and Swallows, all with recent
chart hits. It wouldn't stop here!
"Fool, Fool, Fool" and "Needless" were reviewed the week of
September 15, 1951, both receiving excellent reviews. The only other
R&B group record reviewed that week was the Hollywood Four Flames'
version of "The Glory Of Love." By September 29, "Fool, Fool, Fool" was
a Territorial Tip in Dallas.
A trade paper item, dated September 24, 1951, proclaimed:
Lou Krefetz has signed Charlie White, lead [sic] of the Dominoes, to a personal management contract. White will join the Clovers and will also record as a single for Atlantic.
This would happen, as we'll see, but the notice was a bit premature. First, Charlie would become a member of the
Checkers, who would soon start recording for King Records.
On October 4, the Clovers and Slim Gaillard (author, with Slam
Stewart, of "The Flat Foot Floogie (With The Floy-Floy)") began a week
at Philadelphia's Earle Theater.
The Clovers had an Atlantic session on October 26, 1951, from which
nothing was ever issued. They recorded "Blue Moon," as well as
the original takes of "Middle Of The Night" and "Comin' On." Sometime in
October, the Clovers once again played the Apollo Theater (this time
headlining), along with the Griffin Brothers Band, singer Margie Day,
and the Sy Oliver Orchestra.
November 1951 saw Atlantic moving once
again. Here was a company that kept outgrowing its offices! This time
they headed two blocks north of their 54th Street office to 234 West
56th Street. Also in November, "Fool, Fool, Fool" was taking the country
by storm. It was #9 in Chicago, #8 in Los Angeles, #6 in Harlem, #5 in
Dallas, and #4 in New Orleans. On November 17, the Clovers were featured
on the cover of Cash Box, having been photographed in front
of the Apollo during their October appearance.
December 19 found the Clovers in the Atlantic Recording Studios,
re-recording "Middle Of The Night" and "Comin' On." The third tune this
time wasn't "Blue Moon," but a song that was soon to become a standard
in its own right: "One Mint Julep." "Middle Of The Night" and "Comin'
On" were penned by Ahmet Ertegun, while "One Mint Julep" was by veteran
R&B tunesmith Rudolph Toombs. From now until April of 1954, all of
the Clovers' recordings would be done at the Atlantic Studios.
(Actually, calling them "studios" is being kind. Considering that
Atlantic used their offices, with desks pushed out of the way and piled
on top of each other, they got an amazingly professional sound out of
their acts.)
And then their first year was over. Atlantic had only issued two Clovers
records in 1951, and they both shot straight to #1 hits. How could a new
group ask for better than that?
In January 1952, Atlantic announced that Lou Krefetz had been made a
National Sales Representative. (At the same time, Jack Walker was named
Publicity and Promotion Director; in another year, Walker would also
become a DJ on WOV.)
In March 1952, Atlantic released "One Mint Julep" and
"Middle Of The Night." Could lightening strike thrice? It sure could!
While neither side reached #1, both sides charted, with "One Mint Julep"
reaching #2 and "Middle Of The Night" right behind it at #3. To me, one of the great
"hooks" in Clovers' recordings is the tinkly piano of Harry Van Walls,
heard to perfection on "One Mint Julep." Of course, it didn't hurt to
have Harold Winley lament, "I got six extra children from gettin'
frisky." This was one of the Clovers' cautionary drinking songs. Would
any listener really believe that just one mint julep was the
cause of it all? I think not! The Rudolph Toombs tune was a sensation
then, and has since become a classic. (If you only know the instrumental
version by Ray Charles, you don't know the song at all!)
"Middle Of The Night" was one of the light sexual songs around at the
time. This one was helped by having a driving, pounding beat (unusual in
what was a very slow up-tempo tune).
The record was reviewed the week of March 15, 1952, along with Ruth
Brown's "5-10-15 Hours," Joe Turner's "Sweet Sixteen," the Dominoes'
"That's What You're Doing To Me," the Larks' "Stolen Love," Tab Smith's
"Moon Dream," and the Heartbreakers' "You're So Necessary To Me." (Both
"One Mint Julep" and "5-10-15 Hours" would be big chart hits for writer
Rudy Toombs.) "One Mint Julep" would go on to be covered by Buddy Morrow
and Louis Prima.
The next session was held on March 18, 1952. This time they recorded "Wonder Where My Baby's Gone" (by Lou Krefetz and Bill
Harris), "I Played The Fool" (credited to Diane Alexis, the daughter of
Lee Magid, who had actually written the song), "Ting-A-Ling" (also by
Ahmet), and "Pretty Woman." All were led by Buddy Bailey. The session was timed to take advantage of them being in town for another Apollo Theater engagement.
The Clovers rarely worked on arrangements on their own. When they
were in town for a while, Ahmet would bring them into the studio, hand
them a few songs, and let them spend several days rehearsing with
brilliant arranger Jesse Stone. (Stone, one of the true unsung heroes of
R&B, wrote "Shake, Rattle, And Roll," under the pseudonym "Charles
Calhoun.")
The week of April 5 found "Middle Of The Night" as a territorial Tip
in New Orleans. Two weeks later, "One Mint Julep" was a Tip in Atlanta.
In May, the Clovers went on a southern tour, along with the Billy
Ford Orchestra and Mr. Google Eyes (Joe August).
In June 1952, Atlantic issued "Ting-A-Ling," backed with "Wonder
Where My Baby's Gone." "Ting-A-Ling" was destined to become the Clovers'
third (and last) national #1 R&B hit. "Wonder Where My Baby's Gone" wasn't far behind it,
peaking at #7.
"Wonder Where My Baby's Gone" is another slow bouncer, with sax work
that makes you feel that the girl hopped a freight train out of town (it
was probably heavily influenced by "Night Train," which was a current
hit at the time). "Ting-A-Ling" picks up the tempo a bit, and its lyrics
"I'm just a poor young boy and these girls are bound to drive me wild"
must have played havoc with lots of emerging libidos. It also has a
great sax break.
The record was reviewed the week of July 5, 1952, with excellent
ratings for both sides. Other reviews that week were Tiny Bradshaw's
"Lay It On The Line," the Ravens' "Mam'selle," Piano Red's "Sales Tax
Boogie," and Big Boy Crudup's "Worried 'Bout You Baby." The week of July
19 found "Ting-A-Ling" a Tip in Philadelphia.
In July, the Clovers and Roscoe Gordon began a 27-day tour of Texas,
promoted by Brisk Enterprises, a newly-formed promotional agency, which
was headed up by Lester Sill and Ralph Bass.
On August 2, the Clovers were booked on a Saturday night riverboat
cruise up the Chesapeake River. Promoted by Irvin Feld, the gig also
starred Charles Brown and Lester Young. They then headed back to New
York, where, on August 7, 1952 they recorded four more songs: "One More
Kiss," "Crawlin'" (by Rudolph Toombs), "Yes, It's You" (by Ahmet), and
"Hey Miss Fannie" (also by Ahmet). All leads were, once again by
Buddy.
Unfortunately, Buddy Bailey had received his draft notice, and right
after this session he left to serve in the army. Initially, his place
was taken by soloist and guitarist John Phillip, who was from West
Virginia. When the Clovers found out that Buddy had been drafted, they
immediately began looking for a replacement. They met John Phillip when
they played a dance in West Virginia, and again the next day at their
hotel, where they heard him sing and play. The guys were interested and
brought him to the attention of Lou Krefetz, who had the final say;
Phillip was hired.
On August 10, the Clovers and Bullmoose Jackson began a week at
Weeke's (that's Weeke's Cafe in Atlantic City). Later that month, they
played Akron Ohio's Summit Beach Ballroom in a show hosted by Alan
Freed, and co-starring Charles Brown. As usual, with a Freed show, at
least a thousand people had to be turned away due to the demand.
On September 1, 1952, the Clovers began another tour with Roscoe
Gordon, this time starting on the West Coast. September 30 found both
acts playing Joe Morris' Club Alabam in Los Angeles. When the tour
ended, the Clovers played one-nighters back across the country.
In October 1952, "Hey Miss Fannie" and "I Played The Fool"
were released. This became another double-sided triumph for the guys,
with "Hey Miss Fannie" going up to #2, and "I Played The Fool" (the first straight ballad to
chart for the Clovers) right behind it at #3. The record was reviewed
the week of October 18, along with Ruth Brown's "Three Letters," the
Dominoes' "I'd Be Satisfied," Tab Smith's "You Belong To Me," Ray
Charles' "Roll With My Baby," Earl Bostic's "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes,"
and Shirley & Lee's "I'm Gone." "Hey Miss Fannie" became a Tip in
Atlanta, the week of October 25.
"You've become my heart's disease" and "I don't care what your mama
says/Let's have a good time anyways" were lyrics that helped make "Hey
Miss Fannie" a tremendous hit. "I Played The Fool" has second tenor
Matthew McQuater adding an echo effect to Buddy's lead, and "I'll drink
a toast to a memory/I'll chase it down with tears" are outstanding
lyrics.
The week of November 1 found "I Played The Fool" a Tip in Newark.
Other Tips that week were "You Know I Know" (the 5 Royales, in New York) and
"I'd Be Satisfied" (the Dominoes, in Philadelphia). November 22 saw the tune
as a Tip in New York, while the Dominoes' "I'm Lonely" was a Tip in San
Francisco.
On December 14, the Clovers performed at the W.C. Handy Theater in
Memphis. Also in December, it was announced that Lou Krefetz had been
promoted to Atlantic's National Sales Manager. Sometime in late 1952 (or possibly early 1953), Atlantic released the first of three EPs featuring the Clovers. Since EPs are difficult to date, they'll only be listed in the discography, not in the text.
On January 15, 1953, the Clovers and Fats Domino began a two-week
series of one-nighters. It started out in Roanoke, Virginia, and ended
up at Virginia Beach on February 1. Then it was on to a week at
Philadelphia's Earle Theater on the 5th, and another week at
Washington's Howard on the 13th. This was followed by another series of
one-nighters throughout the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, and Virginia.
Also in January, Herb Abramson, Ahmet Ertegun's partner in Atlantic
Records, was drafted. He had been schooled as a dentist, and the Korean
War created a need for medical men in uniform. This would ultimately
prove to be detrimental to the Clovers, but that was still in the
future.
Atlantic next issued "Yes, It's You" and "Crawlin'" in February 1953.
"Crawlin'" was a wildly funny song that had "hit" written all over it
(it peaked at #3). It tells the story of a poor lad, who (innocently?)
"stopped to have a little drink with the lady down the street." By the
time "her husband broke in and threw me out in the street," he's so
sloshed with the "sneaky pete" concoctions that he's mixed, that he "was
crawlin', instead of ballin'." Another Clovers' cautionary tale! "Yes,
It's You" was another of the Clovers' great overlooked ballads, with
wonderful Van Walls tinkly piano work.
The record got excellent ratings the week of February 28, when it was
reviewed along with Sonny Til's "Lonely Wine," the Crickets' "You're
Mine," Edna McGriff's "Why, Oh Why," and Hadda Brooks' "When I Leave The
World Behind." Also in February, Bill Darnell and Cathy Ryan (with Art
Mooney's Orchestra) released Pop cover versions of "I Played The Fool."
Sometime around the beginning of the year, John Phillip left the
group. He had been with the Clovers for less than six months, and had
never recorded with them. Says Winley, "He was never really into the
group.... People in DC didn't accept him at all. He just didn't fit in."
This time, Lou Krefetz brought in Charlie White (remember when he'd
almost joined back in September 1951?). Charlie, a second tenor who was
under personal contract to Krefetz, had been one of the original
Dominoes (along with Clyde McPhatter, Bill Brown, and Joe Lamont), and
had recently been in the Checkers along with Bill Brown.
The next Clovers session was on March 4, 1953. There were only two
songs recorded, both led by Charlie White: "Good Lovin'" (by Danny "Run
Joe" Taylor, Leroy Kirkland, and "Jesmet"), and "I Confess" (by Ahmet).
Two days later, the Clovers started a week at the Apollo, along with
Lucky Millinder's Orchestra. Then, on March 13, they started a tour with
the Choker Campbell Orchestra, hitting Florida, and other points south,
before heading out to Texas and California.
A blurb in the trades in early March lauded the Clovers for placing
their sixth straight record on the R&B charts, with three of the
records being double-sided smashes. By the time they had their first
chart "miss," their string had grown to the first twelve
releases, with five of them being double-sided hits.
According to the Atlantic files, on April 8, 1953, they were back in
the studio, recording "Here Goes A Fool" (by Gladys DeJesus), "The
Feeling Is So Good" (by Charlie Singleton and Ahmet), and "I Confess"
(the second, unreleased version). This is a mystery session: the problem
is that at least the first two tunes were led by Buddy Bailey, who was
still in the army. According to Harold Winley, however, Buddy
never did any Clovers sessions while on
leave. However, there was a blurb in the trades indicating that the
group was in New York at this time for a session, so it can't be
a mix-up in the Atlantic files. According to this notice, while the
Clovers were in New York to record, Atlantic presented them with a gold
record for having had accumulated sales of over 2,000,000 records to
date. This averaged out to over 330,000 copies of each of their first 6
records, a staggering feat for the time. According to Winley, they not
only regularly got royalties from Atlantic, but are still
getting them.
In May, it was reported that Lou Krefetz was leaving his Sales
Manager position with Atlantic in order to concentrate on his managerial
duties with the Clovers.
June 1953 saw the release of "Here Goes A Fool," coupled with "Good
Lovin'," which would chart at #2. "Good Lovin'" the first release
featuring Charlie White's gritty lead has the interesting lyrics (on the 78 version): "now's
the time for our midnight creep." (Note, however, that the original 45 version says "now's the time for that midnight creep.") "Here Goes A Fool" is an incredibly sad tune, about a guy who knows she's going to hurt him again, just as she always does. But "The moment that I'm close to you, I know I'll forgive you again."
On June 12, while driving from Houston, Texas to Clovis, New Mexico,
the Clovers' car was hit by a truck and its rear end completely ripped
up. They had just passed the tractor part of a cattle truck (which was
going in the opposite direction), when it swerved off the road with the
trailer part snapping around to hit their car from the rear. While
Harold Winley got some glass in his eyes, the rest escaped unharmed.
They returned to Houston to rest up for a few days, while Lou Krefetz,
who had flown down, purchased a new car for them (a Chrysler station
wagon). Some of their engagements had to be cancelled, but they soon
resumed the tour in Phoenix, before heading off to California.
"Good Lovin'" and "Here Goes A Fool" were reviewed the week of July 4, 1953, both sides
receiving excellent ratings. Other reviews that week included Ray
Charles' "Mess Around," the Blenders' "Please Take Me Back," Willis
"Gator Tail" Jackson's "Shake Dance," the 4 Bells' "Please Tell It To
Me," and the Rocketeers' "Foolish One" (rated very poorly). By July 18,
the new release was being touted as a sure thing in the trades.
On
July 17, the Clovers joined the Gale Agency's "Biggest Rhythm And
Blues Show," which also featured Joe Louis, Ruth Brown, Wynonie Harris,
Leonard Reed, the tap dancing Edwards Sisters, Dusty Fletcher, Stuffy
Bryant, and the Buddy Johnson Orchestra (with Ella Johnson and Nolan
Lewis). It kicked off in Boston, then swung through Newark, Buffalo,
Cleveland (where promotion was handled by Alan Freed), Detroit, Flint
(Michigan), Cincinnati, Evansville (Indiana), and St. Louis. Six weeks
and four days after it began, the show ended up in New Orleans.
Their next Atlantic session was on September 24, 1953, at which time
they recorded three tracks led by Charlie White: "Lovey Dovey" (written
by Memphis Curtis and Ahmet), "I've Got My Eyes On You" (by Charlie
Singleton and Harold Winley's brother, Paul), and "Little Mama" (by the
mob of Carmen Taylor, Willis Carroll, Jerry Wexler, and Ahmet Ertegun).
This would be the last song written for them by Ahmet, as he started to
concentrate more and more on the business end of Atlantic, leaving the
production to Jerry Wexler. (Wexler had been brought on board about a
year before, to replace the drafted Herb Abramson. Unfortunately, the
group that he favored was the one he helped put together and would guide
for the next few years, the Drifters.)
Around November 1953, Charlie White left the Clovers. According to
Harold Winley "He had a problem that we couldn't tolerate. He wasn't
taking care of business at home." Charlie was let go after a performance
at Detroit's Graystone Ballroom.
Charlie stayed with Atlantic, however, and ended up recording for
their Cat subsidiary. He would later record some sides for the Winley
label (owned by Harold's brother, Paul). Charlie's voice had brought a
new sound to the Clovers; a tough, down-and-dirty sound that Buddy
Bailey just didn't have. It's a shame that his contributions to the
group were so limited and that he couldn't have remained with them.
Unfortunately, Charlie's best work (with the Dominoes, Checkers, and
Clovers) was now behind him.
Charlie's replacement was tenor Billy "Long-Tall" Mitchell. Billy had been a
vocalist with the Joe Morris Blues Cavalcade, and had turned out some
great bluesy sides for Atlantic (see discography). Back in November,
1951, an Atlantic ad had Joe Morris saying: "I am really proud of the
record my two vocalists have made in the new popular duet style. Billy
Mitchell and [female vocalist] Teddy Smith do a great job on 'If I Had
Known'.... The reverse side, 'Verna Lee,' shows off Billy Mitchell to
his best advantage and he can really wail those blues." Also from D.C.,
Billy was a neighborhood friend of the Clovers ("We used to sing on
street corners"). He had recently been discharged from the army (after
having served in Korea), and was once again appearing with Joe Morris.
The Clovers ran into him at a show in Gary, Indiana, but they didn't
know that Charlie was a short-timer at that point. The Clovers went on
to Cleveland and Detroit, where Charlie was let go.
When they came back to DC, Harold Winley looked up Billy Mitchell and
told him there was now an opening in the Clovers; Billy was approved by
both Lou Krefetz and the rest of the group. More of a soloist, Billy had
to change his style to lead the Clovers: "Singing with a group was a
blocking thing; I had to sing like Buddy."
In November, Atlantic released the lazy "Comin' On" (recorded back in
December 1951) and the rocker "The Feeling Is So Good." While still a
substantial hit, "Comin' On" (which has the memorable line: "I'm the
latest edition to the Woman's Home Companion") would only rise as far as
#9 on the R&B charts. It was reviewed the week of November 7, along
with the Dominoes' "Rags To Riches," the Checkers' "White Cliffs Of
Dover," the Ebonaires' "Baby, You're The One," and Little Esther's "Stop
Cryin'." It was touted as a "Best Buy" the week of December 5, since it
was doing so well in Philadelphia, Upstate New York, Cleveland,
Nashville, St. Louis, Dallas, Pittsburgh, and Detroit.
It was reported in the trades that the Clovers would take a two-week
vacation in December, before going off on a Texas and California tour
with Fats Domino, on December 21. It couldn't have been much of a
vacation, because they needed the time to thoroughly rehearse Billy
Mitchell for their next recording session, held on December 15, 1953.
With Billy in the lead, they recorded: the first, unreleased, version of "Only While I Dream"; the first version of "Your Cash Ain't Nothin' But
Trash" (by "Charles E. Calhoun" [pseudonym of Atlantic arranger Jesse
Stone]), which shows up on some albums; and the first, unreleased,
version of "Down In The Alley" (also by Jesse Stone).