The Dominoes have a special place in R&B history: if they had done nothing else, they would be remembered for the wonderful music they produced. Additionally, they gave the world Clyde McPhatter (whom, along with Bill Kenny, Jimmy Ricks, Sonny Til, and Frankie Lymon, I rank as one of the 5 most influential R&B group leads). If that weren't enough, they also gave us Jackie Wilson and used the amazing talents of Eugene Mumford.

The Dominoes were the creation of “Billy Ward,” who was born Robert Williams in Savannah, Georgia in September 1921, and moved to Philadelphia as a child. He sang in his church choir and eventually became its organist (this isn’t surprising, since his father was a preacher and his mother a choir singer). He was a musical prodigy as a child, and, when he was 14, he won an award from famed composer Walter Damrosch for a piano piece he had written, called “Dejection.” In the army, he rose to the rank of Captain, and directed the Coast Artillery Choir at Fort Eustis, Virginia.

Upon his discharge, he came to New York and attended the Julliard School of Music, also becoming a vocal coach and arranger by the late 1940s (the time that he changed his name to "Billy Ward," for unknown reasons). He met Rose Ann Marks, who had a Broadway advertising agency, and ended up working for her as a composer and pianist. She became his manager and encouraged him to form a vocal group. Since Ward liked the Mariners, an integrated group that appeared on the Arthur Godfrey Show, he formed his own mixed group. Since the singers were black and white, he called them the “Dominoes.” The group met with no success and disbanded in early 1950. Ward decided to try again, this time with an all-black group.

The next aggregation that Ward formed, probably out of some of his students, was called the Ques. It didn’t last long; he disbanded them when he found how undisciplined singers could be. Later that year (around September), he formed another Ques group: Clyde McPhatter (lead tenor), Charlie White (tenor), William Joseph Lamont (baritone), and Bill Brown (bass). All the singers had gospel backgrounds: Clyde and Charlie had come from the Mount Lebanon Singers; Joe and Bill were from the 5 International Gospel Singers of South Carolina. Billy was the pianist and arranger for the group, as well as an occasional lead singer. This time his army command training took over and he became very strict with the members.

Ward and Marks became partners both in managing this group and writing songs for them (they also had the Ward-Marks Music Publishing Company). Some of the songs that they wrote for the Dominoes are: "Do Something For Me", "Chicken Blues", "I Can't Escape From You", "Heart To Heart", "The Deacon Moves In", "No, Says My Heart", "Weeping Willow Blues", "Sixty Minute Man", "I Am With You", "That's What You're Doing To Me", "Have Mercy Baby", "I'd Be Satisfied", "The Bells", "Pedal Pushin' Papa", "You Can't Keep A Good Man Down", and "Can't Do Sixty No More".

The group’s initial victory, within weeks of their formation, was taking first place in the Apollo Theater amateur show. On the strength of this, they appeared on the Arthur Godfrey Talent Scouts show in October 1950, winning with the current pop hit “Goodnight Irene.” Rene Hall, a black arranger working as a talent scout for King Records, saw their triumph and contacted King owner Syd Nathan, who contracted the the Ques. They also received a new name: the “Dominoes.” Either someone felt that “Ques” was a strange name, or Ward liked the name he had previously chosen, or possibly they were named for Ward and Marks (as he was black and she was white).

On November 14, 1950, the Dominoes recorded their first sides for King's new Federal subsidiary (the masters all have an "F" prefix). The sides were: Bill Brown's rollicking "Chicken Blues", and Clyde's plaintive ballads: "No! Says My Heart", "Do Something For Me", and "Weeping Willow Blues". When "Chicken Blues" and "Do Something For Me" were released in late December (as the first release on Federal), it was the first time R&B audiences heard Clyde McPhatter; the results would shake the R&B world.

"Do Something For Me" started slowly, but by early February had entered the R&B charts, eventually climbing to #6. The Dominoes were on their way! However, even before the song reached the charts, the Dominoes had gone back to the studio for two more sessions. On December 30, they recorded "Sixty Minute Man" (with Bill Brown), and Clyde's "Harbor Lights".

On January 27, 1951, they did a split session with Little Esther, teaming with her on two songs (remember, that a year earlier, she had had a monster hit with “Double Crossin’ Blues,” backed by the Robins; lightning could strike twice). “Heart To Heart” is pretty much a duet between Little Esther and Clyde, but not a great one: it’s keyed for Esther’s voice, and Clyde sounds uncomfortable with how low he has to sing. (The same thing would happen again in 1955, when Clyde was paired with Ruth Brown on a couple of duets.) Note that the intro to “Heart To Heart” would be recycled, a few months later, into “These Foolish Things.” The other pairing, “The Deacon Moves In” is a wonderful repartee between Little Esther and Charlie White (who would not reach his potential with the Dominoes). The other two tunes recorded that day featured only the Dominoes: “That’s What You’re Doing To Me” (the first version, which may or may not have made it to any singles - see the note at February 1952) and “I Can’t Escape From You,” both led by Clyde.

Their January 1951 release, “No! Says My Heart”/”Harbor Lights,” (issued prior to “Do Something For Me” becoming a hit), failed to chart, even though both sides are strong Clyde-led ballads. In February, Federal released “The Deacon Moves In,” backed with a Little Esther solo (“Other Lips, Other Arms”), which also went nowhere. But it was just a matter of time, and only a little time.

In March, on the strength of "Do Something For Me", Federal released Bill Brown's "Sixty Minute Man" and Clyde's "I Can't Escape From You". "Sixty" wasn't even double-entendre; it was just plain raunchy! Entering the R&B charts in May, it remained for 30 weeks, including a staggering 14 of them at #1. It was such a monster hit that it crossed over onto the Pop charts, peaking at #17.

The history of "Sixty Minute Man" was the subject of an article by George Moonoogian in the November 1991 "Record Collector's Monthly". On record, the subject seems to go back to 1937, when both Georgia White and the 4 Southerners recorded "Dan, The Back Door Man". A "back-door man" was the lover of a married woman; he'd high-tail it out the back door (or window!) as the lady's husband was coming in the front. However, Dan had a longer history than this. There was also Eddie Cantor's "Dapper Dan, The Ladies Man From Dixie Land", which goes back to 1921.

John A. Jackson, in his biography of Alan Freed ("Big Beat Heat", Schirmer Books, 1981), said:

The song had other, far-reaching effects. Chip Deffaa, jazz critic for the NY Post, wrote in his 1989 liner notes for a Ruth Brown album (talking about her hit "5-10-15 Hours"):

This was probably the time that Billy Ward's army background really surfaced. He instituted rules for this and rules for that; fines for this and fines for that. According to later bass David McNeil, you couldn't wear a moustache (a new rule; Bill Brown and Charlie White had had them), you couldn't talk to the members of the band, you couldn't even talk to the chauffeur! If you left your room at night it was a $50 fine; if you knew someone else did and you didn't report it, it was a $100 fine. They weren't allowed to stay at the same hotel as other singers (when they played the Apollo Theater, they had to stay in Greenwich Village, which was miles away; Clyde's family was in Harlem and he wasn't allowed to go up and see them). Ward even made each of them drink a warm glass of milk at night! The singers were on salary; there was no sharing of the profits. And he constantly drilled them in singing; at least that paid off: the Dominoes looked good and sounded good and their fans couldn't get enough. Once they hit it big, Ward started billing Clyde McPhatter as his younger brother, "Clyde Ward". At first Clyde was proud to say that he was Billy's brother, but as time went on, he rebelled. (This was still going on as late as March, 1953.)

A few days before "Sixty Minute Man" entered the charts, it was back into the studio, and, on May 24, 1951, the Dominoes recorded: "That's What You're Doing To Me" (Clyde, with Charlie on the bridge), "I Am With You" (Clyde and Bill), "Love Love Love" (Bill), "Don't Leave Me This Way" (Clyde), and the unreleased version of "These Foolish Things" (Clyde).

July saw Federal release two Dominoes' records. The first was "Heart To Heart" with a Little Esther solo ("Lookin' For A Man") on the flip. The other was pure Dominoes: "Weeping Willow Blues" and "I Am With You". The latter made it to #8 (R&B), but it took about four months to enter the charts in the first place. No further recordings were issued in 1951.

In September, the Dominoes received an achievement award, onstage at the Apollo Theater, from the Independent Press Service.

The first of numerous personnel changes occurred when Charlie White left the group, probably in September 1951. There's a Billboard release (9/24/51) that proclaimed:

While Charlie would end up with the Clovers, that wouldn’t happen for a while; first he'd take a detour to the Checkers), whom we'll meet in a few paragraphs.

Charlie's place in the Dominoes was taken by tenor/baritone James Van Loan, brother of Joe Van Loan, who at this time was taking over tenor lead chores from Maithe Marshall in the Ravens. There's an undated photo that shows Clyde, Joe, Bill and James on stage, indicating that Charlie really was the first to leave.

The next to go was the Dominoes' booking agency. In December, after only a year, Ward and Marks broke with Ben Bart's Universal Attractions, switching over to Moe and Tim Gale's Gale Agency. Also, at this time, their initial one-year contract with Federal was up, and they signed another one for 2½ years, with an option to renew. That option, as we'll see later, would get them in a lot of trouble.

The next trip to the recording studio took place on January 28, 1952. This time they did "Deep Sea Blues" (Clyde), "Have Mercy Baby" (Clyde), "Pedal Pushin' Papa" (unreleased version), and "When The Swallows Come Back To Capistrano" (Clyde).

The song that gives us some trouble is "Pedal Pushin' Papa"; the bass voice on it isn't Bill Brown's (although he is, without question, on "Have Mercy Baby"). David McNeil listened to it and feels that it sounds like Billy Ward himself (singing in the same manner as he taught Dave to sing it), however, some of the words have sloppy pronunciation, and Dave contends that Ward would never do that. This voice remains a mystery. Worse than that, Dave says that (1) the song was written for him, and (2) when the second (released) version was recorded (9/17/52) the group, including Clyde and Joe Lamont, were all learning the song, which means that if it really was recorded earlier, the group completely forgotten the arrangement in only eight months.. The good news is that the tune brought back our old friend Dan ("Just ask for Dan, the lovin' man/A pedal pushin' papa am I").

In February 1952, "That's What You're Doing To Me" and "When The Swallows Come Back To Capistrano" were released. So was Bill Brown, who just couldn't take any more of the discipline in the Dominoes.

Bill and Charlie White somehow ran into a group from Harlem that called itself the Checkers, as a tribute to the Dominoes. Since the membership of the Checkers was pretty fluid, there was plenty of room for two professionals like Bill and Charlie. Hired by King Records, the Checkers would be around for a couple of years, with Bill Brown as its guiding force. Charlie would get to sing lead on two Checkers sides; his bluesy voice can be heard on “Flame In My Heart” and “Love Wasn’t There.” He finally reported to the Clovers to replace John “Buddy” Bailey (who was in the army) in time for their April 1953 session. While with the Clovers, he led “Good Lovin’,” “I Confess,” “Lovey Dovey,” “I’ve Got My Eyes On You,” and “Little Mama.” When he left the Clovers, he became a soloist for Atlantic (backed by the Playboys, who were, in reality, the Cues).

NOTE: While "That's What You're Doing To Me" had been recorded twice (once on January 27, 1951 and then again on May 24, 1951), it's the latter version that was released. However, there are a small number of singles in existence (both 45s and 78s) which have a completely different version of the song, one which also shows up on the King R&B Box Set (as an "alternate version"), with a recording date of "5/14/51". There's no way to tell if this version is what the song sounded like at the first session or if it's an alternate take from the second. Considering that the arrangement is so totally different, the former is probable. Presumably, King shipped the wrong tape to one of its pressing plants, and a run was done before someone realized the difference. Most of the "defective" records were probably recovered and destroyed, but some have survived. (Thanks to Carl Tancredi for this info.)

Bill’s place in the Dominoes was originally taken by Raymond Johnson, who had been with the Beavers, the Blenders, and Maithe Marshall’s Marshall Brothers (with whom he’s heard doing “Just A Poor Boy In Love”). The Marshall Brothers were only together for 3 or 4 months, after which Ray was hired by Billy Ward. When I interviewed Ray in 1975, he told me that he was only with the Dominoes for a short time and wasn’t on any record¬ings with them. The only session he could have been on was the one at which they recorded “Have Mercy Baby,” and it’s a good bet that he would have remembered that!

On March 21st, the Dominoes had a singular honor. They were chosen to be one of three acts (and the only vocal group) at Alan Freed's "Moondog Coronation Ball", the first large-scale show he ever put on. The other acts were Paul Williams and his Orchestra and femme singer Varetta Dillard. Williams was onstage playing for the sold-out crowd of about 9000, when an additional 6000 disappointed fans literally crashed the show (breaking down the doors of the Cleveland Arena). Neither the Dominoes nor Varetta Dillard ever got to perform, but already Freed showed that he knew who to book.

Raymond Johnson was replaced, around May 1952, by David McNeil (who had been the bass of the Larks). At the time he was hired, Dave was singing with the remnants of the Larks: Gene Mumford, Thurman Ruth and Orville Brooks. Billy Ward saw them on TV, and made him an offer. How could Dave refuse? "Sixty Minute Man" had only recently vacated the charts, and "That's What You're Doing To Me" was about to enter (it would rise to #7).

Dave was assigned to be Clyde's roommate, and trouble started immediately. Thurman Ruth (of the Larks) had been a good businessman, and had watched over the group's finances. Dave had picked up a lot from him. Now he asked Clyde about what kind of advances and royalties the Dominoes got; Clyde had no idea that they should be getting any of those things. Ward treated the members like sidemen. They received a small salary (out of which they had to pay for their uniforms), and the rest was held back and invested for them (although they never saw any of it). Dave was severely reprimanded for talking with Clyde about these verboten subjects.

The next Dominoes release was "Have Mercy Baby" and "Deep Sea Blues", in April 1952. "Mercy" was almost as big a hit as "Sixty Minute Man" had been, entering the charts in late May and staying for 20 weeks (10 of them at #1). The interesting thing about this record is that it signaled the end of "the Dominoes". From now on, record labels would read "Billy Ward and His Dominoes".

On May 17/18, the Dominoes appeared at Alan Freed's "Moondog Maytime Ball" at the Cleveland Arena. Other acts on the bill were: Todd Rhodes and his Orchestra, H-Bomb Ferguson, Freddie Mitchell and his Orchestra, Little Jimmy Scott, Al "Fats" Thomas, Joan Shaw, the Kalvin Brothers, and Morris Lane and his Great Orchestra. Note that this was both a show and a dance, which explains why Freed had three bands. This time, there were three shows to handle the expected crowds, and the Dominoes got to perform.

The next session (September 17, 1952) saw eight songs recorded: "No Room" (led by Dominoes' valet and watchdog Johnny Oliver, who was a protégé of Billy Ward), "I'd Be Satisfied" (Clyde), "The Bells" (Clyde and Billy, with Clyde laughing instead of crying in this tearjerker), "Pedal Pushin' Papa" (Dave), "I Ain't Gonna Cry For You" (Billy Ward and Dave), "I'm Lonely" (Johnny Oliver), "Yours Forever" (Clyde), and "These Foolish Things" (Clyde and Billy). Note that while Billy Ward allowed Johnny Oliver to occasionally sing on recordings, he never sang at performances, except when they did that famous Arthur Godfrey R&B smash, "Slow Poke". He's the same Johnny Oliver who had at least four singles on MGM, in 1954-56.

In October, as part of a Federal double ad for “I’m Lonely” (Popular) and “No Room” (Rhythm & Blues) was this disclaimer: “The Dominoes do not record under any other name and are under exclusive recording contract with Federal Records.” The first part probably was meant to differentiate them from the Checkers. With Bill Brown in the lead, the Checkers could sound very much like the Dominoes. The following year, it would be further confused by the Checkers' use of Little David Baughan, a tenor whose voice sounded almost identical to Clyde’s (he can be heard on “House With No Windows” and “I Promise You”). And, since both groups recorded for King/Federal, it’s anybody’s guess what the second part of the disclaimer means. (Allen “Fat Man” Matthews and the 4 Kittens would do a song called “When Boy Meets Girl,” which, stylistically, sounds like a carbon copy of “I Am With You,” but that wouldn’t be released until December.)

Things were getting out of hand with Billy Ward's discipline. Said Dave, "he tried to run his group like a squad in the army". While they weren't allowed to do anything during the day, Ward would sometimes let them go out at night (at 2 am he'd tell them they could go out and drive around the city in a taxi, but to be sure to be back by 5 am). One night, in Los Angeles, after a show at the Club Oasis, they discovered some girls who had somehow sneaked up the fire escape of the hotel and were outside tapping on the window. At this point Clyde, Dave and Van cracked and just walked out the door, past Johnny Oliver (who, they knew, would report them to Ward); they stayed away for about two weeks. Ward finally had them picked up by the police.

It wasn’t the first time Van had gotten into trouble with Ward; he had run away in El Paso, and Ward had him arrested (for walking off with his uniform). On their next show, which also happened to be in Los Angeles, with Van in jail and Joe Lamont out sick, they picked up Grady Chapman (who was probably poised to join the Robins) to sing lead. He was given Billy Ward’s white uniform and Clyde was moved down to second tenor. I never realized this myself, but it seems that Grady was capable of sounding just like Clyde; Dave says that no one knew the difference (which infuriated Clyde, especially when Grady started signing autographs). Joe’s place for the performance was taken by a relatively-unknown Jesse Belvin (whose "Dream Girl" duet with Marvin Phillips had yet to be released).

After the September 17 session, Dave McNeil went into the army. (While there, he sang with a group called the Pyramids, which included Rudy West and Jesse Belvin). When he was discharged, he joined Charlie Fuqua's Ink Spots, staying with him until Charlie's death in 1971. Dave then took over Charlie's Ink Spots, which stayed together for several more years.

In October, "No Room" and "I'd Be Satisfied" were released. "Satisfied" climbed to #8. A second October release was "I'm Lonely" and "Yours Forever", which failed to chart. The last record of the year was issued in December: "The Bells" and "Pedal Pushin' Papa". This one really took off, as a double-sided hit. "The Bells" entered the charts in January 1953, eventually peaking at #3, while "Pedal Pushin' Papa" entered in March, and climbed to #4.

Clyde was the next one to get sick of the way he was being treated, leaving around April of 1953. He always claimed he’d quit; Ward always claimed he was fired. Dave McNeil believed Clyde: Ward might try to keep the reins on his group, but he wouldn’t fire the star who was bringing in all that money. Clyde, of course, went on to form the Drifters, and then had a successful solo career. Mention must be made of his enormous contribution to R&B music: literally hundreds of singers made him their idol and wanted to sound like him. It’s actually amazing how many of them could come close: Little David Baughan (Harps and Checkers), Allen “Fat Man” Matthews (Hawks), Al Banks (Turbans), even Johnny Thunder (listen closely to “Loop De Loop”). Baritone Joe Lamont, the forgotten man in the Dominoes, seems to have left at the same time as Clyde. Considering that, with the prior session, Ward started featuring everybody’s voice (including the valet!), Joe Lamont never got to sing lead.

Fortunately for Ward, he had Clyde's replacement waiting in the wings. Around September of 1952, Ward had been approached by Jackie "Sonny" Wilson, a former Golden Gloves fighter and possessor of a remarkable tenor voice: not the same as Clyde's but powerful and exciting also. Jackie had done a couple of tunes for Dizzy Gillespie's Dee Gee label in late 51 or early 52 ("Danny Boy" and "The Rainy Day Blues") and had been in a Detroit group called the 4 Falcons with some guys you may have heard of: Levi Stubbs (4 Tops), Lawson Smith (Royals, Midnighters), and Sonny Woods (Royals, Midnighters). But Jackie had bigger ambitions. Ward took him along on a Dominoes tour, so he learned the routines and was ready when Clyde left. (Just like Buck Ram worked Tony Williams' crude voice into something magnificent, Billy Ward must have made Jackie practice night and day; the Dee Gee cuts barely gave any indication at all of what Jackie was capable of. It pays to have a great vocal coach!)

The last Clyde-led release was in April 1953: "Don't Leave Me This Way" (an oldie recorded in 1951) and "These Foolish Things". In June it entered the charts, finally peaking at #5.

Thus, at their next session (June 27, 1953), James Van Loan was the only carryover. The new members were: lead tenor Jackie “Sonny” Wilson, second tenor Milton Murrill (who simplified the spelling to “Merle” professionally), and bass Cliff Givens (who had been in the Ink Spots, the Golden Gate Quartet, and the Melody Masters). This session produced “You Can’t Keep A Good Man Down” (Jackie), “Where Now Little Heart” (probably Billy Ward), and “The Handwriting On The Wall” (Billy, the unreleased version). “Keep” and “Heart” were released in July, with “Keep” making it to #8. In spite of the personnel changes, they were still capable of making hits.

Another new "member", added in the summer of 1953, was chauffeur Ralph Hockster, an ex-GI, who had been working as a bellhop in a hotel in Detroit where the group was staying. Ward hired him on the spot, as the Dominoes' driver had quit a couple of days previously. While none of this sounds too exciting, Hockster was white, and Billy Ward was soundly criticized in the black community for it. He held his ground, however, and Hockster remained with them for a few years.

In August of 1953 the Dominoes (along with Bing Crosby and Bob Hope) performed for President Eisenhower in Denver. The group also performed at Alan Freed's "Second Annual Moondog Birthday Party" show.

Another big session was held on October 12, 1953, at which 9 songs were recorded. The titles were: "My Baby's 3-D" (Billy, doing a tune based on the current 3-D movie craze), "Above Jacob's Ladder" (Jackie and Billy Ward), "Cave Man" (Billy), "Rags To Riches" (Jackie), "The Handwriting On The Wall" (Billy), "Ringing In A Brand New Year" (probably Billy), "Christmas In Heaven" (Jackie), "Don't Thank Me" (Merle, with Jackie joining him on the bridge), and "Lay It On The Line" (Billy).

In October, "Rags To Riches" and "Don't Thank Me" were released. This time, though, they weren't on Federal, but on the parent label, King. This is probably because the Dominoes' were covering the Tony Bennett pop hit "Rags To Riches"; Federal was known as a Rhythm 'n' Blues label. "Rags" made it to #2, which was good, but it was the last Dominoes record to chart for close to 4 years.

The next month just in time for the holidays, another King release was forthcoming: "Ringing In A Brand New Year" and "Christmas In Heaven". On December 3, 1953, there was a small session at which they recorded two Jackie-led ballads "Until The Real Thing Comes Along" and "One Moment With You". Federal released the former a couple of weeks later, backed with "My Baby's 3-D". On Christmas day, they once again appeared on an Alan Freed show, this time the "Holiday Ball" at the Akron Armory, with Little Walter and his Jukes and the Ralph Williams Orchestra.

An article appearing in the February 5, 1954 Kansas City Call sounds like a press agent's ravings, but the photo that accompanied it seems to indicate that it’s true: The Dominoes did a benefit performance at Denver's Englewood Arena for jazz trumpeter Billy Butterfield, who needed heart surgery. Then they played the exclusive Wolhurst Country Club, where their good deed so impressed William H. Teel, a Colorado oil millionaire, that he presented them with shares in one of his Texas oil wells. This was expected to give each of the Dominoes dividends of $100 per month for the next two years (not bad for 1954). Since there was a photo of Teel handing out the shares, I'll take it on faith that the story was true.

Another big session occurred on March 2, 1954. This time they recorded 8 tunes: "Lonesome Road" (Cliff), "Love Me Now Or Let Me Go" (Jackie), "Little Black Train" (Billy), "Tenderly" (Jackie), "Tootsie Roll" (Billy), "St. Louis Blues" (Jackie), "I'm Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town" (Jackie and Billy), " A Little Lie" (Jackie).

Two records were released in April 1954, one on Federal (the R&B sides), and one on King (the ones management hoped would be crossover Pop). The Federal record was "Tootsie Roll"/"I'm Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town" (this author's favorite Jackie Wilson song); the King offering was "Tenderly"/"A Little Lie". Neither charted. In May, there was a further Federal: "Handwriting On The Wall"/"One Moment With You". Also in May (on the 25th), there was a session to record a single song: the immensely popular pop tune, "Three Coins In The Fountain". It was released, on King, in June, with "Lonesome Road" on the flip.

At a session on June 7, they recorded “Little Things Mean A Lot” (Jackie and Billy) and “I Really Don’t Want To Know” (Billy), both of which were released, on King, that same month. Note how Billy Ward is attempting to make a pop group out of them. This made good financial sense: there was a lot more money in playing Las Vegas and other “legitimate” venues than in schlepping around the “Chittlin’ Circuit.”

In June, with still a year to go on the Federal/King contract, Ward announced that he was leaving them. Why did Ward think he could get away with walking out on King? In the July 3, 1954 issue of Billboard, it was reported that he was fighting with King Records. He wanted to get out of the contract, and thought that he had found the way: King had forgotten to pick up the Dominoes' option (remember that pesky old option from their December 1951 contract?).

In August 1954, Federal released "Above Jacob's Ladder"/"Little Black Train", which, unfortunately, chugged off into the sunset, without charting. In that same month they appeared in Alan Freed's "Moondog Jubilee Of Stars under the Stars" in Ebbet's Field (home, for a little while longer, of the Brooklyn Dodgers). Also on the bill were the Clovers, the Orioles, Fats Domino, Little Walter, Muddy Waters, Count Basie's Orchestra, and Buddy Johnson's Ork.

Also in August, in defiance of the King contract, Ward signed with Jerry Blaine's Jubilee label. In September, the Dominoes recorded a session there. At least five sides were cut: "Gimme Gimme Gimme" (all), "Come To Me Baby" (Billy), "Sweethearts On Parade" (all), "Take Me Back To Heaven" (Jackie), and "Stop!...You're Sending Me" (Jackie). In October, Jubilee released the first two sides, amidst a big advertising campaign.

But King wasn't to be foiled that easily. Their contract was worded in such a way that the Dominoes still had to record 12 more sides for King before the relationship could be terminated. Therefore King had the Dominoes locked up until June of 1955, or however long it took them to record 12 sides. As it turned out, the group did their 12 songs in 3 more sessions, which conveniently ended in June 1955. They never again recorded for Jubilee.

In November of 1954, James Van Loan walked out just prior to an engagement at New York’s Basin Street. The official Dominoes’ story was that he was distraught over the death of his mother. While this was undoubtedly true to some extent, he himself later said that he was “tired and fed up with the outfit.” His place was taken, for a few weeks, by brother Joe, who was the soaring tenor of the Mercury Ravens, although he could also sing baritone. James Van Loan would later sing with the Ravens on Argo. Just like Joe Lamont, James Van Loan never got to sing lead with the Dominoes (at least on record). I played all the Dominoes' sides that could possibly have been led by James for David "Boots" Bowers, who was also a member of the Argo Ravens; he confirmed that none of the voices belonged to Van Loan.

In late November, it was announced that there were two new members. The first was lyric tenor Prentice Moreland and the other was arranger, conductor, and guitarist Rene Hall.

Prentice Moreland was only a permanent member of the group for a couple of months. He had been with the Du Droppers in New York (and, since Joe Van Loan had also been with them, it's possible that Joe suggested Prentice). The group of Jackie Wilson, Prentice Moreland, Milton Merle, and Cliff Givens did a single session on January 6, 1955. It produced "Can't Do Sixty No More" (Cliff), "Give Me You" (Jackie), "If I Never Get To Heaven" (Prentice), and "Bobby Sox Baby" (Jackie).

In spite of the Dominoes' ties to the Du Droppers, "Sixty", a belated answer to "Sixty Minute Man", was not the same song as the tune of the same title that the Du Droppers had done a couple of years earlier. In this installment, Dan's dissolute life has caught up with him and he's completely worn out by all the years of amorous interludes ("Now I guess I'll take a rest/'cause I can't do sixty no more"). It was issued (with "If I Never Get To Heaven" on the flip) in February 1955.

About this time, Rose Marks and Billy Ward had decided to take the group off the Chittlin' Circuit and concentrate on the big time. To this end the Dominoes were booked into the Sahara in Las Vegas for 16 weeks, beginning February 4, 1955 (they played from 6 pm to midnight, when Louis Prima came on). At the same time, the Platters were at the Moulin Rouge, newly-opened to cater to black audiences. (The Platters hadn't yet hit it big and didn't even have matching suits.) Keeping to a grueling schedule when they played Las Vegas, the Dominoes worked six days on and one day off. On the off day they drove to Los Angeles to unwind. The rest of the time was spent in their trailer, since Las Vegas was a segregated city then. The Dominoes' opening number was the Billy Ward-led "When You're Smiling". Ward would stand with the group when he sang lead on something, but would then retreat to his piano when others sang lead; it was from there that he ran the show and directed the group.

In the midst of this, Prentice Moreland quit and lyric baritone Milton Grayson was hired to replace him. Grayson had been waiting tables at the Savoy Ball¬room, where he met Major Robinson, a gossip columnist for Jet Magazine. Robinson introduced him to Billy Ward and Rose Marks. Mrs. Marks was very impressed with Milton and hired him.

The Dominoes had two managers: Rose Marks had the money and Billy Ward had the contacts, so it worked out quite well. According to Milton Grayson, while Billy Ward was the flamboyant one in the foreground, Mrs. Marks was the one who guided the group and made the decisions; she was as strict as Ward about the rules. While Ward was the focus of the Dominoes’ discontent, the members respected Rose Marks. However, not long after Milton joined, she died of cancer. At some point after this, Ward got a new personal manager, Harry Stein.

Grayson (unfortunately there are now two "Miltons" in the group) was alternated with Jackie Wilson as lead, giving dramatic readings, such as "Over The Rainbow". The members now were Jackie Wilson, Milton Merle, Milton Grayson, and Cliff Givens.

Prentice Moreland was in and out of the group after that, never staying for any length of time. He had an unusually high voice and is best remembered (although unheralded) for the six words he said on the Cadets' "Stranded In The Jungle": "Great googa mooga, lemme outta here!" (Yes, he stayed on the West Coast and joined the Cadets too. Actually, Prentice was with the Du Droppers, Dominoes, Cadets, Crescendos [Dootone], Colts, Fortunes, and Hollywood Flames in his long career. Still, his greatest contribution was those six words.)

In April, Federal issued "Cave Man"/"Love Me Now Or Let Me Go". Then, the Dominoes were back in the studio (on the 18th) to record "That's How You Know You're Growing Old" (Jackie), "I Need Someone In My Arms" (Grayson), "How Long, How Long Blues" (Grayson), and "Take Me To The Altar" (all).

On June 23, 1955 the Dominoes did their last session for Federal, turning out "Learnin' The Blues" (Jackie), "May I Never Love Again" (Grayson), "Deed I Do" (Billy), and "Over The Rainbow" (Grayson). It had been a profitable 5 years for both Federal and Billy Ward.

In July, Jubilee issued the second and last Dominoes record: "Take Me Back To Heaven"/ "Sweethearts On Parade". Also in July, King put out "Learnin' The Blues"/"May I Never Love Again". King's August release was "Give Me You"/"Over The Rainbow". There were three more releases, all on Federal, that might as well be dealt with here: "Bobby Sox Baby"/"How Long, How Long Blues" (April 1956); "One Moment With You"/"St. Louis Blues" (July 1957); and the oldies "Love, Love, Love"/"Have Mercy Baby" (September 1957). In January 1960, King re-issued "Sixty Minute Man," using an alternate take (F108-X), with a slightly different intro by Clyde.

Now that the Dominoes’ King/Federal contract had expired, Ward started negotiating with Decca. He wanted his group to be big in the pop field, and felt that Decca was a label that could give them a good push in that direction. In March 1956, Decca’s Milt Gabler announced that they’d been signed to a “straight pop recording contract,” leaving it up to Billy Ward if they’d ever record R&B again. Interviewed at the Sahara Hotel (Las Vegas), Ward said that he wouldn’t turn down future R&B material. Note that by this time, the papers had taken to calling the group the “Wardmen.” Also in March, Ward and Marks also let it be known that they were dropping Joe Glaser’s Associated Booking Corporation at the end of April (when their contract expired). They’d actually been on the outs with Glaser for about a year, and Ward had been claiming mismanagement.

Their first Decca session took place on April 18, 1956. The eight tunes they recorded that day were: "Will You Remember" (Jackie), "Come On, Snake, Let's Crawl" (Grayson), "Half A Love" (Billy), "Rock Plymouth Rock" (Billy), "'Til Kingdom Come" (Grayson), "St. Therese Of The Roses" (Jackie - there's also a chorus present), "Evermore" (Jackie), and "Home Is Where You Hang Your Heart" (Billy). If the melody to "Come On, Snake, Let's Crawl" sounds familiar, it's simply that they recycled the tune from 1951's "The Deacon Moves In".

The first Decca single was released in June of 1956: “St. Therese Of The Roses”/“Home Is Where You Hang Your Heart.” “Therese” made it to #13 on the Pop charts remaining for 15 weeks. It seemed like a great beginning. Decca followed it up with “Will You Remember”/“Come On Snake Let’s Crawl” in October. When that failed to take off (as would all remaining Decca releases) it was followed by “Half A Love”/“Evermore” in December.

January 2, 1957 found them back in the studio to record eight more sides: "I Don't Stand A Ghost Of A Chance" (Grayson), "To Each His Own" (Milton Merle doing his best Jackie Wilson imitation, with Milton Grayson singing bass), "Oh, Lady Be Good" (Cliff), "When The Saints Go Marching In" (Grayson), "St. Louis Blues" (Jackie), "Am I Blue" (Cliff), "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" (Jackie and Cliff), and "September Song" (Billy). Only "Ghost", "Each", "Saints" and "September" were released on singles (in August and December 1957). Note that each of these songs is a pop standard (as were most of the ones done at the first session).

In early 1957, Jackie Wilson was fired after getting into a fight with Billy Ward. Wilson was a party animal, and you can imagine how much Billy Ward liked that! Ex-boxer Jackie "Sonny" Wilson went back to Detroit and hooked up with another ex-boxer, Berry Gordy, who wrote "Reet Petite" and "Lonely Teardrops" for him. He signed with Brunswick in the summer, producing a string of hits for them. (Milton Grayson said that Jackie was happy in the Dominoes and didn't particularly want to leave them, but his conduct was unacceptable to Ward.)

In the midst of this turmoil, Decca issued another record, in March 1957: “Rock Plymouth Rock”/“Til Kingdom Come.” But with no chart hits for months, Ward switched companies again. The group probably had a one-year contract with Decca, running from April 56 to April 57. Ward chose Liberty Records as the next home of the Dominoes.

Actually, Ward didn’t even wait for the end of the Decca contract, signing with Liberty sometime in 1956 (even though there was the January 7, 1957 session with Decca). The Liberty contract was an interesting document. In return for not paying Ward a bonus for signing with them, Liberty gave him “reversion rights” to some of the material. Specifically, it seems that anything that was recorded after April 15, 1958 belonged to Ward, not Liberty. Unfortunately, there is either no existing session information at Liberty, or no one knows where it is (although some people I talked to there gave it a valiant effort). There’s also a hint in the files that Ward did all the Liberty recordings on his own and then delivered them to Liberty (or possibly used their studios for the recordings, which he was then allowed to remove from the premises for mixing and editing, before returning the tapes to them).

Initially, Stanley Mitchell (of Detroit's Tornados) was recommended to Billy Ward as someone who both sounded like Clyde McPhatter and who had “legitimate” singing experience (having been with Lionel Hampton’s Hamptones). Mitchell didn’t last long, however, not being able to take Ward's rules. Then Prentice Moreland returned again. The group did a lot of rehearsing, but before they could make any appearances, Moreland was out and Gene Mumford, former lead of the Larks, was hired as the new lead singer. Milton Grayson said he “just seemed to appear.”

The Decca recordings were released slowly, so by the time Decca issued an album of their material (“Billy Ward and the Dominoes”) in November, Gene Mumford’s name appears in the liner notes, even though he isn’t on any of the cuts! (Worse, Jackie Wilson’s name is nowhere to be found in the notes.) Moreland did return on at least one other occasion, leading the Dominoes on “Alone In A Crowd” and “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows,” two unreleased Liberty cuts.

At this point, even though their biggest hit was ahead of them, the Dominoes had ceased to be an R&B group. Billy Ward wanted to have a respected black Pop group. He was about to get his wish.

The only Liberty session that can be dated is their first, which took place on March 7, 1957. At it, they cut four tunes: the old Hoagy Carmichael standard, “Stardust” (Gene), “Be Still, My Heart,” “Lucinda” (Billy), and “Skid Row.”

Their first release, in April 1957, was “Stardust,” backed with “Lucinda.” Their style had changed radically, and “Stardust” was the hit that Billy had been hoping for. It peaked at #12, remaining on the charts for a respectable 24 weeks. This put them square into the big time: now the Dominoes spent six months a year in Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe and Los Angeles. There were extensive Liberty recordings, but master numbers seem to have been assigned at pressing time, so they're meaningless. Also, most of the songs appear on albums, not singles, making it even harder to trace session data.

Around June 1957, Liberty released the "Sea Of Glass" album; it contained religious and inspirational songs. This was an interesting album; many of the arrangements were unusual (to say the least). "Joshua" (Grayson) had an exciting arrangement, full of drums; somehow it manages to sound like a Hawaiian war chant. "Bye And Bye" (Billy and Gene) has kind of a Latin arrangement, and "Motherless Child" (Gene) is a cross between Middle Eastern and a cha cha. "Above Jacob's Ladder" is a re-recording of their Federal song, but Gene Mumford's voice doesn't have the power of Jackie Wilson's; even Billy Ward's preaching part is more restrained. George Moonoogian said of "Were You There?" (Cliff, with opening narration by Grayson), "this one makes 'The Bells' sound tame". He's right. Finally, "I Am The Resurrection" (Gene and Billy) begins and ends with thunder sound effects left over from "Were You There?".

That same month, Liberty announced that it had made Billy Ward a "talent director", responsible for scouting out new acts for the label. He would spend part of the year appearing with the Dominoes, and several months at Liberty's Hollywood headquarters.

Their next Liberty release, “Deep Purple” (Gene)/“Do It Again” (Billy), put out in August 1957, was also a hit, climbing to #20.

Although the Dominoes were gone, Decca was still releasing their records. They issued two more singles in 1957: “I Don’t Stand A Ghost Of A Chance”/“To Each His Own” in August and “When The Saints Go Marching In”/“September Song” in December. These were, of course, released to capitalize on the success of “Stardust.”

As usual, there's a price to be paid for fame. Billy Ward had what he wanted: a black group that could make the pop charts and have prestigious Las Vegas bookings. But, because of the Dominoes' hits and drawing power, they were booked into a week-long show at the Apollo Theater (beginning October 10), which featured solid R&B and R&R singers: the Chantels, the 5 Satins, the Delroys, Little Joe Cook, and Charlie & Ray.

In October 1957, Liberty put out “My Proudest Possession” (Gene)/“Someone Greater Than I” (Grayson), and then “Sweeter As The Years Go By” (all)/“Solitude” (Gene) in February 1958. Neither charted. “Jennie Lee”/“Music Maestro Please,” both led by Milton Merle, were released in April. "Jennie Lee" was the Dominoes’ last chart hit, reaching #55. And then the upheavals started again.

Milton Grayson left after an April 1958 session, also tired of the Dominoes. He first joined Keen records as a soloist, became a vocalist for Duke Ellington from 1960 to 1964, and then went back to Las Vegas as a soloist. Grayson’s replacement was second tenor Robbie Robinson. At this point, Milton Merle moved down to baritone.

Also in April, Gene Mumford left to pursue a solo career, first for Liberty and then for Columbia. Billy Ward sued Liberty, claiming that they enticed Mumford to leave the group.

Mumford was replaced by Monroe Powell. Monroe had been hanging around the famed Brill Building in Manhattan (the hub of the songwriting/recording industry in NY), after having just gotten out of the service. There he met Johnny Oliver (remember him?) who told him that Billy Ward was looking for a tenor lead to replace Gene. Monroe quickly sent off a photo and a tape recording of his voice and about a week later he received a phone call from Ward, followed by an airline ticket to Reno, Nevada. (He was met at the airport by Robbie Robinson, who cautioned him not to say too much around Ward.) At the time that Monroe joined, the other members were: Billy Ward, Robbie Robinson, Milton Merle, Phil "Shoulders" Colbert (another baritone), and Cliff Givens. The mysterious Colbert, who was only with the group for a "hot minute", was fired after their Reno engagement at the Golden Hotel.

Robbie Robinson too was only there for a few months, and doesn't seem to have recorded with the group. He was soon replaced by tenor Eddie Herring, from Dayton, Ohio. Herring, heard on only two sides, has a beautiful clear tenor voice, which sometimes verges on the soprano. He could easily be compared to the Ink Spots' Bill Kenny.

They kept on recording for Liberty, working up to the "Pagan Love Song" album, with confusing results. Milton Grayson had sung lead on "Hawaiian Wedding Song", then, when the album came out (after he had left the group), he found that the voice on the song wasn't his! Actually, he couldn't recognize any of the voices on the whole album, other than Billy Ward's. (The album itself doesn't even mention the Dominoes; it's credited to "The Billy Ward Orchestra And Chorus".) According to Monroe, Billy made extensive use of the Jack Halloran Singers, a white Los Angeles studio group. They, and not the members of the Dominoes, are featured on most of the tunes heard on "Pagan Love Song". Monroe is a Tony Williams-type lead on "Magic Island", Billy does the talking part on "Bird Of Paradise", Milton Merle is the voice on "I'll Weave A Lei Of Stars For You", and Eddie Herring does a beautiful job on "Moonlight And Shadows". Otherwise, don't look for any familiar voices here! Actually, "Pagan Love Song" is a very pleasant pop concept album, as long as you don't expect Clyde McPhatter, Jackie Wilson, or Bill Brown.

The final Liberty single was released in February 1959: "Please Don't Say No" (Monroe)/"Behave Hula Girl" (a Jack Halloran singer). Most of the Dominoes' Liberty recordings were issued on three albums: "Yours Forever", "Sea Of Glass", and "Pagan Love Song" (see discography). Several others were issued on other labels over the years.

In January of 1960, King re-issued "Sixty Minute Man" and "Have Mercy Baby," using alternate takes. These were overdubbed with the Dread Chorus and given new master numbers.

Then, in the spring of 1960, another new label: ABC Paramount. The group was now: Billy Ward, Monroe Powell (tenor), Bruce Cloud (second tenor), and Milton Merle (tenor/baritone). Both Eddie Herring and Cliff Givens had departed, probably earlier in the year. There were 4 songs done at a single session, held on May 6: "The Gypsy" (Bruce), "You're Mine" (Merle), "You" (Monroe), and "The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise" (Monroe).

The first of two releases came out in June 1960: “The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise”/“You’re Mine.” When this didn’t chart, ABC released “The Gypsy”/“You” in October. At this point, the group was just staggering on. In March of 1962, for some reason, Liberty dipped into its vaults and re-released "Stardust", backed with "Deep Purple".

Sometime in the early 60s, Ward did four additional tunes for Liberty at United Recording (although documentation isn't clear whether it's supposed to be the Dominoes or something else). The titles are: "Because", "Cucurucu Coo Paloma", "Kathleen", and "Japanese Girl". Orchestration was done by Ernie Freeman. They're included in the discography, on the chance that they're the Dominoes.

In 1962, Bruce Cloud left to make it on his own, although it didn’t work out for him. He had at least two singles on Era (1962 and 1963), two on Motif (ca. 1963), and an LP on Capitol (California Soul in 1969). Around 1970, he killed his wife and child, before committing suicide.

This left just a trio: Billy Ward, Monroe Powell and Milton Merle, although Monroe didn’t last much longer. In 1970, Monroe would join the Buck Ram Platters, with whom he still appears (in 2008, it will be 38 years, for those of you who want to feel old!).

However, Ward was determined to keep the Dominoes going. To that end, he placed an ad in several black newspapers in order to recruit singers. Al Anderson, former singer for the Fabians, read the ad in a Pittsburgh paper. It requested a picture and an audition tape, and that's what Al sent off. The Dominoes (whoever they were at that time) were off on a tour of the Far East, but one day Al got a telegram saying that they were returning; he was told to meet them in Bakersfield, California.

Al auditioned in person and Ward hired him as part of the Dominoes (Al couldn't remember the names of the others). By that time, Ward was occupied with all his wheelings and dealings, and Milton Merle was in charge of most of the rehearsals. The group practiced for a few months and were getting ready for a tour (there hadn't been any appearances up till then). It turned out, however, that Al had to return to Pittsburgh in order to get out of a contract. He spent three days on a bus, conducted his business, and returned with another three-day bus ride. But in that short space of time, Ward had found someone else and had left on the tour. Al waited around for a while and then went to Washington, D.C., where his brother lived. In spite of the disappointment, Al stayed in touch with Billy Ward. Don't forget Al Anderson; we'll meet him again later.

In November 1962, there was a release on Ro-Zan, which was distributed by King, but a division of Billy Ward Enterprises (that's "Ro-Zan" as in "Rose Ann" Marks). These were old Liberty masters, mostly featuring the inevitable Jack Halloran Singers. Of the two released sides, "Man In The Stained Glass Window" was the whole group singing in unison, and "My Fair Weather Friend" was led by the long-departed Eddie Herring. The recordings on Liberty were so confused that Monroe couldn't even remember if his own voice was on the record (he did practice the songs with the group, which leads to the confusion).

In either late 1964 or early 1965, Milton Merle, a mainstay of the Dominoes for almost a dozen years finally left. From this point on, the history of the group gets much vaguer.

In 1965, Billy Ward decided to re-form the Dominoes. As lead singer, he chose Lou Ragland. Here's what Lou remembered:

In 1965, I was a solo artist with my very own band, Lou Ragland and the Band Masters. We recorded for a local Cleveland, Ohio label, "Way Out Records," owned by Lester Johnson of the Hornets. My first recording [in 1962] was "Never Let Me Go"/"Party At Lester's." [Later on, football great Jim Brown, Walter Roberts, and several others became part owners of the label.]

In the summer of 1965, I was 23 years old and performing at the Music Box in Cleveland. One of the owners heard that Billy Ward was reorganizing the Dominoes and sent him my recording and photo. Billy Ward called me and sent me a train ticket to Los Angeles (because at that time I would not fly).

I arrived in Los Angeles on the very first day of the Watts riots [which would make it August 11, 1965] and moved into a small apartment right over a Fred Astaire dance studio. Billy Ward lived in a suite on the floor above.

"Mr. Ward," as he wanted all of us to call him, had the [instrumental] tracks for the songs already recorded and I was selected to sing lead. I told him about one of my band members, a second tenor named Benny Butcher, and he sent for him. The other two guys I did not know and don't remember their names. [The years hadn't mellowed Ward; Benny was fired, for tardiness, only two weeks after he'd started.]

It was just about one month after I got there that we started to go to the studio and over-dub voices. We recorded ["I'm Walking Behind You" and "This Love Of Mine"] at Mystic Sound studio in Hollywood. [Actually, these two were recorded in late August.] The other two songs ["What Are You Doing New Year's Eve" and "O Holy Night"] were done a couple of weeks later. Because I sounded so much like Gene Mumford, Billy Ward taught me the lead for "This Love Of Mine."

I was on salary. I left Billy Ward and the Dominoes after making the recordings because of friction over label credit. Billy was already taking most of my pay back for “expenses” (as he called it), but all I wanted was to have my name out front on the songs I sang: "Billy Ward and His Dominoes, featuring Lou Ragland," but he said no.

I was only in the Dominoes for about 4 months. [Actually, it must have been more like a month.] We did not perform anywhere. Billy Ward had us in the rehearsal and recording studio during all that time.

I was fortunate enough to have enough of my own cash with me to be able to leave California whenever I wanted. Billy told me that I could not leave, and if I did I would have to make it back to Cleveland on my own.

I told him it would not be a problem for me to do that, as I had $500.00 in cash in my pocket when I arrived. My pay from him was $400.00 per week, from which he took back room and board of $300.00 per week. This I didn't really mind; all I wanted was to be recognized for my voice on records.

I drove Billy Ward's new lady friend's car back to Sloan, Iowa and took a train home from there. After I was home for just 12 hours, Billy Ward flew in to talk to my mother. He asked her to persuade me to return to the group, but we had the same problem with the label credit. As far as I know the Dominoes ended then, but the records got released.

For the last twelve years [almost 20, as of 2008], I have been the lead singer for "The World Famous Ink Spots" (third generation, of course). Before that, I was the guitarist and baritone voice with "George Holmes' Ink Spots" for 8 years. [In the late 1970s, both Sonny Til and George Grant had been part of Holmes' unit.]

At this point, Al Anderson re-enters our story. Billy Ward sent for him in the summer of 1965. He joined up with them again in late August, possibly to replace the abovementioned Benny Butcher. By the time he got to Los Angeles, the “I'm Walking Behind You” session had already taken place, and Al started practicing “What Are You Doing New Year's Eve” and “O Holy Night.” At the session, Lou Ragland polished off “O Holy Night,” but then, according to Al, he couldn't get “What Are You Doing New Year's Eve” right. The session dragged on and on, and finally Ward asked Al to try it; he nailed it in two tries.

And then, fate stepped in again: after never having appeared with the Dominoes at all, Al got a call from his brother that their father was very ill back in West Virginia. That was the end of Al's tenure with the Dominoes.

The final releases by the Dominoes were once again on King. “I'm Walking Behind You” and “This Love Of Mine” came out in September 1965; “O Holy Night” and “What Are You Doing New Year's Eve” were issued in October. While all leads were originally done by Lou Ragland (with assist from Billy Ward on “I'm Walking Behind You”), after Lou listened to all the sides, he concluded that, when Ward was sure that Lou wasn't coming back, he had someone else re-record the lead vocals to “I'm Walking Behind You” and “This Love Of Mine.” Lou Ragland is thus heard only on “O Holy Night” and Al Anderson does “What Are You Doing New Year's Eve.” Interestingly, the style on these was seven or eight years out of date (with “I'm Walking Behind You” harking back to the arrangement of 1954's “Above Jacob's Ladder”).

Most of the Dominoes are gone now: Clyde McPhatter, Jackie Wilson, Gene Mumford, Bill Brown, Joe Lamont, Charlie White, David McNeil, Milton Grayson, and even Billy Ward himself (on February 16, 2002). Milton Merle is still alive (aged 84) in 2006.

As an R&B group, the Dominoes had few peers. Imagine a group that had both Clyde McPhatter and Jackie Wilson as leads! Once Gene Mumford joined, however, the R&B days were buried for good. Billy Ward led them on into a new era, transcending their R&B roots. However, while Gene's voice on "Stardust" is beautiful, it can't even begin to compete with what he sounded like with the Larks (my opinion, of course). This is not meant to be a criticism of Gene; of course he sang what and how Billy Ward told him to. It's not even a criticism of Billy Ward; the group was obviously much more successful as a pop group than they could ever hope to be as an R&B group. And as a Pop group, they had legions of new fans, becoming "legitimate" as Las Vegas performers.

Special thanks to Ferdie Gonzalez (for discographical information), Mitch Rosalsky, George Moonoogian, Terry Shorr, and Cord Coslor.

The ads appeared in various volumes of First Pressings, and are used by permission of Galen Gart.