But with an incipient hit on his hands, Johnson found himself out of his depth as far as distribution went. He struck a deal with George Goldner, of Gone Records, and “Don't Ask Me To Be Lonely” was re-released on Gone in April and received national distribution. The first of five consecutive local hits for the Dubs, it was big enough in New York (although it only made it to #72 on the national Pop charts) so that the Dubs were booked into the Apollo Theater, for the week beginning July 12. They shared the stage with the Spaniels, the Cadillacs, Shirley & Lee, Huey Smith & the Clowns, and Otis Williams & the Charms.
“Could This Be Magic” was next, in August 1957. This one did better on the national charts (#23) and got them another trip to the Apollo, beginning November 1. This time they appeared with the Heartbeats, the Sentimentals, Linda Hopkins, and Donnie Elbert. The MC was Evelyn Robinson, a DJ on WOV. Then there was "Beside My Love." It looks like the original release of the record was erroneously issued on End (E-5020) in late 1957 and then immediately re-issued (in January 1958) on Gone 5020. Once again, it did well enough locally to get them back to the Apollo. Lloyd Price, Shirley & Lee, and Geoffrey Holder were also on the show.
Next came “Be Sure My Love” (May 1958), followed by “Chapel Of Dreams” (November 1958; this one struggled to #74 on the charts). Other appearances for the Dubs included shows with Alan Freed, Dick Clark. Peter Tripp (“The Curly-Headed Kid In The Third Row”), Kae Williams, Jocko, and Tommy Smalls. There were also tours of Canada, Texas and the South (including a Sam Cooke tour).
Then suddenly the Dubs were no more. The group broke up in late 1958, since they didn't feel that they were making enough money considering the hits they were having. Richard Blandon joined the Vocaleers, Cleveland Still worked in a shipping department. Tommy Grate joined the Sanitation Department, Jake Miller worked for the Transit Authority, and Billy Carlisle became a musician.
When Joe Duncan, lead of the Vocaleers was discharged from the Army in late 1958, he teamed up with his brother (Paul Roland Martinez), Herman Dunham, and Richard Blandon to form another Vocaleers group. These four tenors met up with the former lead singer of the Valentines, Richard Barrett, who was now working as an a&r man for Twentieth Century Fox. With Roland in the lead, they practiced a single song “Ain't That So, Columbus?” in Fox's studio, unaware that Barrett was recording it. For whatever reason, it was never released, nor did they do any other sides.
In mid-1959, the Vocaleers were restructured. They had Joe Duncan, Herman Dunham, and Richard Blandon remained and Lamar Cooper and Melvin Walton (both former members of the group) rejoined.
They turned to Hy Weiss at Old Town Records and, on June 25, 1959, the reconstituted Vocaleers recorded a couple of songs for Old Town's Paradise subsidiary: “I Need Your Love So Bad,” (led by Herman and heavily inspired by Jerry Butler and the Impressions) and “Have You Ever Loved Someone,” a more typical Vocaleers side, led by Joe Duncan.
Nothing happened with the record and then, around September 1959, Richard left to re-form the Dubs. This time, they recorded for ABC-Paramount (recalling their days as the Marvels). The personnel were Richard Blandon, James Miller, Tommy Grate, and Billy Carlisle. The fifth member was first tenor Cordell Brown.
Their first session, at an unknown date, produced "No One" and "Early In The Evening," which were released in October 1959. On January 19, 1960, they recorded "Don't Laugh At Me," "You'll Never Belong To Me," "For The First Time," and "Ain't That So."
"Don’t Laugh At Me" and "You’ll Never Belong To Me" were released in March 1960. When this showed no signs of chart action, ABC issued "For The First Time"/"Ain’t That So" in October.
The Dubs' next session was held on February 6, 1961. They only recorded two songs: "If I Only Had Magic" and "Joogie Boogie." These were released in March.
Prior to the final ABC session (held on September 25, 1961), Cleveland Still returned, to replace Cordell Brown. The four songs recorded were: "Down, Down, Down I Go," "Two Hearts Are Better Than One," "Lullaby," and "You've Discovered Love." "Down, Down, Down I Go" and "Lullaby" were paired for their final ABC-Paramount release in November.
The same five returned to George Goldner for a couple of 1962 sessions which produced “This To Me Is Love”/“Now That We Broke Up” (released on End in February of that year) and “You're Free To Go” (issued on Gone in September); its flip was a re-release of 1958's “Is There A Love For Me.”
On July 28, 1961, the Dubs began their final appearance at the Apollo Theater, as part of an Alan Fredericks Old Goldies show. The other “old-timers” were the Cleftones, the Teenagers, the Cadillacs, the Bobbettes, the Solitaires, the Charts, Johnnie & Joe, and the Sil Austin Orchestra.
By the time the Dubs made 1963 recordings for Wilshire ("Your Very First Love" and "Just You" in March) and Josie ("Wisdom Of A Fool" and "This I Swear" in August), Cordell Brown had once again replaced Cleveland Still.
When Cleveland Still left the Dubs this time, he was gone for almost a decade. Richard Blandon kept the group going, turning out re-recordings of "Could This Be Magic," "Don’t Ask Me To Be Lonely," and "Your Very First Love" for Lana in 1965. (The fourth side was "Blue Velvet.")
By 1971, the Dubs were a trio, consisting of Richard Blandon, Cleveland Still, and first tenor Kirk Harris. They released “I Love You” on S.C.M., probably in that year. There was also 1971's “Lost In The Wilderness” on the Vicki label. Two years later, the same three were on “We Three,” released on Candelite. They also recorded an album for that label, on which they re-sang many of their hits. In later 1973 they added the fourth voice of baritone Dave Shelley, and recorded two singles for the Clifton label. "Where Do We Go From Here"/"I Only Have Eyes For You" was issued that year. The other songs ("You’re Just A Heartache To Me" and "You’re Welcome") came out in 1975.
There were a couple of Dubs singles issued on Johnson in 1973. These were old masters from 1957 that finally saw the light of day.
By the mid-80s, Cleveland Still had formed his own Dubs, with Steve Brown and John “Spider” Truesdale (both of whom had been with the Charts), Bernard Jones (who had been with Dock Green's Drifters) and Leslie Anderson. This group recorded the final platter on Clifton (a reprise of "Could This Be Magic," backed with "Teddy Bear"), as well as “Beside My Love” on a numberless UGHA pressing that was originally intended as a giveaway promotional gimmick.
Richard Blandon continued on with his version of the Dubs. Kirk Harris remained, and Jay McKnight was an alternate lead singer (fronting all the non-Dubs numbers they did). By 1987, Kenny White was added as a fourth member, but Kirk Harris left soon after. An occasional member during this time was Doretha Gills, who had a powerful voice when she did their version of “Gee Whiz.” By late 1990, Danny Foy had replaced Kirk Harris, and the trio of Blandon, McKnight, and Foy recorded “Wherever You Are” for Classic Artists, released in December of that year. This group was self-contained, having its own band, including Joe Owens on piano (they also had sax, bongos, bass, guitar, and drums).
This group continued on until Blandon's death in December 1991, when his brother, Darryll, took over the lead. At a February 1992 show, the Dubs were: Darryll Blandon, Jay McKnight, Danny Foy, and Doretha Gills.
In 2004, both Cleveland Still and Darryl Blandon have Dubs groups that occasionally perform. The Dubs have left us with some fine music. Although their national chart appearances left something to be desired, they had no lack of fans in New York. In the summer of 2009, in spite of having had a lung removed, Cleveland Still is still performing with the Dubs.
Special thanks to Ronnie Italiano, Bob Davis, and Bob Kretzschmar. Discography courtesy of Ferdie Gonzalez.