The Del Vikings - Come And Go With Me
The Del Vikings were one of the first integrated vocal groups in rock 'n' roll. Corinthian "Krips" Johnson, Norman Wright and Clarence Quick were black, and David Lerchey and Donald "Gus" Backus were white. Although the group's two biggest hits, "Whispering Bells" and "Come Go With Me" were released by Dot Records in 1957 and 1958, both songs were actually recorded in 1956 for a small Pittsburgh label called FeeBee Records. The songs became a hit in the local Pittsburgh area and Dot signed the group to a contract. Instead of having them re-record their songs, which was what was usually done in those situations, Dot simply purchased the master tapes from FeeBee and pressed the records from them--a practice that became commonplace later, but Dot was one of the first, if not the first, to do it. ~ www.imdb.com/name/nm1812573/bio One of the leading cover groups of the mid-'50s, the Diamonds adapted current R&B hits into pop gold of their own. Hailing from Toronto, the Canadian quartet (consisting of Ted Kowalski, Phil Leavitt, Bill Reed, and Dave Somerville) signed with Mercury in 1955 and immediately zoomed up pop play lists with covers of the Teenagers' "Why Do Fools Fall in Love"; the Willows' "Church Bells May Ring"; and their biggest hit of all, a sanitized version of the Gladiolas hit "Little Darlin'." Fronted by David Somerville, the quartet hit with an original, the smooth dance outing "The Stroll." After weathering major personnel changes, the Diamonds notched their last hit in 1961. Somerville remained active as a solo artist for a time, and the Diamonds often toured the oldies scene. ~ Bill Dahl, All Music Guide PLEASE NOTE: I divided my uploads among multiple channels, Bookmark this link in your browser for instant access to an index with links to all of John1948's oldies classics. LINK: john1948.wikifoundry.com/page/John1948%27s+Youtube+Index
