The story begins with two other groups: the Flamingos and the Debonairs.
In 1952, Cornelius “Cornell” Gunter sang lead with a group called the Flamingos: Cornell Gunter (first tenor), Gaynel Hodge (first tenor), Curtis Williams (baritone), and Richard Berry (bass). The Flamingos were a loose organization of singers, and their ranks ebbed and flowed, depending on who was available for rehearsals and shows. In time, Cornell and Richard drifted away, to be replaced by Tony Williams and Herb Reed. Just before the Flamingos were ready to record, Chicago's Flamingos started hitting it big on the Los Angeles charts with “That's My Desire,” so another new member, Alex Hodge (Gaynel's brother), redubbed the L.A. group the “Platters.”
Meanwhile, the Debonairs had formed at Jefferson High The members were: Arthur Lee Maye (tenor), Thomas “Pete” Fox (tenor), Obadiah Jessie (baritone), Joe Winslow (baritone), and A.V. Odom (bass). (There was one talent show they won with Odom leading on the Hollywood 4 Flames' “Young Girl”; that night they beat out Johnny “Guitar” Watson and H.B. Barnum.) After a while, Joe Winslow dropped out and the group continued on as a quartet. Then A.V. Odom left and they got Richard Berry to replace him as bass. However, Arthur Lee Maye was so keen on baseball that he put it ahead of practicing with the group (he would, of course, end up playing for the Milwaukee Braves). Therefore, the Debonairs brought in a first tenor named Beverly Thompson (who attended Fremont High) to replace him. While Obie Jessie once told me that Beverly was added because he was “the guy who had the car,” Pete Fox strongly denies this. “We always had access to cars. We got around fine before Beverly joined.”
Finally, Richard Berry introduced them to Cornell Gunter, and suggested that he be added to the group as lead tenor. Thus the Debonairs were back to five members again. Since most of the guys attended Jefferson High, Cornell gave a phony address so that he could attend Jefferson instead of going to Manual Arts.
In December 1952, when the Debonairs decided they were ready to record, they looked up John Dolphin, who owned a record label. His music store (Dolphin's Of Hollywood) was pretty close to Jefferson High, so everyone knew about him. Dolphin recorded the Debonairs doing two original tunes: “I Had A Love” (led by Cornell) and “Tell Me You Love Me” (led by Richard). While the recordings were crude by anyone's standards, Dolphin ended up releasing them in January 1953 (on his Recorded In Hollywood label), with the Debonairs magically renamed the “Hollywood Bluejays.” (Dolphin had actually recycled this name, having released tunes by a group called the 5 Hollywood Bluejays some months earlier.)
Nothing came of this recording and the guys decided to try their luck elsewhere. Both Cornell and Pete agreed that Cornell then sat down with a pile of his records and tried to find another local company. The one he came up with was Modern Records, home of B.B. King. Cornell made a phone call and set up an audition. (Richard Berry claimed they played hooky from school, driving around in Beverly's car until they spotted a sign for Modern Records. Pete, however, says they wouldn't have done this. Beverly's father kept on top of his son's activities, so Beverly would never have played hooky.)
A real family affair, Modern had lots of subsidiaries (not all of which were in existence at that time). Modern and RPM were run by Saul Bihari, Crown and Kent by Jules Bihari, and Flair by Joe Bihari (a fourth brother, Lester, ran Meteor Records in Memphis). You may recognize a few of the other names at Modern: Jules Taub, Joe Josea, and Sam Ling. These were pen names used by Jules, Joe, and Saul when they decided to give themselves writer credit for other artists' songs.
The Debonairs auditioned and management was impressed. The Biharis took down all their addresses and phone numbers and the guys left, confident that they'd be called when it was time to record. The Biharis, confident that the Debonairs would call them, went ahead and set up a recording session. Ultimately, the day of the session came and the Debonairs didn't show up (not surprising, they didn't know about it). The Biharis had to go to Jefferson and Fremont High Schools to round up five singers who were actually in school instead of in Modern's recording studio. (According to Pete Fox this is a wonderful story which never happened. A session was arranged for a time when school was out for the summer and everyone showed up. Just like it should have been. Period.)
Modern decided that the Debonairs would come under the wing of Joe Bihari (the youngest of the brothers) and be placed on the
(mostly Country & Western) Flair label. While the “Debonairs” wasn't a bad name, Bihari suggested that they rename
themselves the “Flairs.” The group thought it over and quickly realized that if they were named after the label, the
Biharis would have a greater stake in pushing their records. Thus the Flairs were born. The blurb at the time said that they were
all Juniors at Jefferson High (although Cornell was younger than the rest and Beverly attended Fremont). Pete says he was 17 when
they first recorded for Flair and the others were within a year of that, either way.Few session dates exist for Flair (and master numbers are less than helpful), but by July 1953 the Flairs had done a lot of practicing and Flair had issued their rerecorded version of “I Had A Love” (done in a much more professional style). The flip, featuring Richard Berry, was “She Wants To Rock.” DJ Hunter Hancock made the Flairs say, on the air, that when they said “rock” they of course meant “dance.”
When “I Had A Love” started to make some noise, John Dolphin (who not only had a record store, but DJs in his front window) pulled out his primitive recording of the tune and started playing it on the air instead of the more polished Flair version. After the Flairs went to him to complain he ended up playing the correct version.
Presumably Flair paid for the group's first (and probably only) photo session. In it, Obie has a tie with the initial
“H” and Beverly has one with a “P.” If that isn't bad enough, these ties don't even match those worn by the
other guys. No big mystery here, though; the ties were obtained from the photo studio.On August 15, 1953, the Flairs were part of Gene Norman's “Fourth Annual Rhythm And Blues Jamboree” at L.A.'s Shrine Auditorium. Also on the bill were the phenomenally successful Johnny Ace, Big Mama Thornton, the Robins, Linda Hopkins, the Roy Milton Orchestra with Camille Howard, Helen Humes, Jimmy Witherspoon, Chuck Higgins, Gil Bernal, Maxwell Davis, and Marvin Phillips. The emcee was Dick “Huggy Boy” Hugg.
On September 5, “I Had A Love” (which had never been reviewed) was rated a Pick of the Week by the trades. It was reported doing well not only in Los Angeles, but in St. Louis, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, and Chicago. Along the way, Richard Berry had a solo session and, also in September, Flair issued his “I'm Still In Love With You”/“One Little Prayer.”
The group's next release, which came out as by the “Hunters” so as not to eat into sales of “I Had A Love,” was issued in September 1953. (Company management, not the group, decided what name would appear on the label.) “Rabbit On The Log” was mostly unison singing, with some solo parts by Richard Berry. The flip, “Down At Hayden's,” was led by Obie Jessie (with some narration by Pete Fox). It was reviewed on October 10, along with Berdell Forrest's “Be Cool My Heart,” Richard Berry's “I'm Still In Love With You,” The Love Notes' “Surrender Your Heart,” and Roscoe Thorne's “Peddler Of Dreams.”
Finally, a known recording date! On October 8, 1953 the Flairs recorded four tracks: “Baby Wants,” “You Were Untrue,” “This Is The Night For Love,” and “Let's Make With Some Love.” All featured Richard Berry, with Cornell sharing the lead on “This Is The Night For Love.” It would be a while before any of them were released.
November 1953 saw the next Flairs record: “You Should Care For Me” (led by Cornell), backed with their re-recorded “Tell Me You Love Me” (Richard). Both songs had been recorded back in the early summer, at the same session that gave us “I Had A Love.”) These were reviewed on November 14, along with the Du Droppers' “Don't Pass Me By,” the Lamplighters' “Be Bop Wino,” and the Dominoes' “Ringing In A Brand New Year.”
The next Flairs release (January 1954) only credited “Young Jessie” (the nickname by which Obie Jessie would be known for most of his career): “Lonesome Desert” and “I Smell A Rat” (a cover of the Willie Mae Thornton tune). No group is mentioned on the label, but they're all there. For some reason, the song wasn't reviewed until May 8 (when “I Smell A Rat” was rated “excellent). Other reviews that week went to the Crows' “Baby,” Amos Milburn's “Milk And Water,” the Blue Dots' “Don't Do That Baby,” the 4 Bars' “Grief By Day, Grief By Night,” and the Platters' “Roses Of Picardy.”
In February, Flair released “Love Me Girl” (led by Richard and Cornell), backed with “Gettin' High” (Richard). The bandleader/guitarist on that session (and several others) was Ike Turner, whom the Biharis had just brought out to the Coast. That same month, Richard (who really loved to sing) was also in a trio that recorded a couple of records for Flair (Arthur Lee Maye, Richard Berry, and Johnny Coleman). The first two sides were credited to the “5” Hearts (“The Fine One”/“Please Please Baby”). The other two sides (“Sweet Thing” and “Rock Bottom”; probably recorded at the same time) would be issued, as by the Rams, in March 1955. On February 21, the Flairs appeared at the Elk's Hall, along with the Lamplighters, Mel Walker, and Linda Hayes.
Richard knew Jennell Brown (aka Jennell Hawkins) from Jefferson High and he invited her to a Flairs session. She ended up joining Richard for a couple of duets (with the Flairs in the background): “This Time It's Real” and “Each Step,” which (when they were released in March 1954) were credited to “Ricky & Jennell.” It's hard enough to keep these things straight without the Byzantine machinations of Modern Records!
On March 13, the Flairs were part of a Gene Norman show at the Embassy Ballroom. They shared the stage with Earl Bostic, Christine Kittrell, and the Robins. The show then moved on to Bakersfield, Salinas, Ventura, Pasadena, and Oakland. On March 20, “Love Me Girl” was reported a Territorial Tip in Philadelphia. The following week, it was a Tip in St. Louis.
May 1954 saw Richard Berry moonlighting as lead of the Robins. The story goes that he was hanging around the Spark studios when the Robins were recording “Riot In Cell Block #9,” and bass lead Bobby Nunn just couldn't seem to get the part right. Richard jumped in and ended up being the featured voice on the side. The Biharis were none too pleased about this extracurricular activity and tried to get even by having Berry record “The Big Break” (backed up by Arthur Lee Maye's Crowns), released in October 1954.
“Baby Wants” and “You Were Untrue” were issued in May 1954. They were reviewed on May 29, along with Johnny Ace's “Please Forgive Me,” the 4 Bells' “Only A Miracle,” Junior Denby's “With This Ring,” and Louis Jordan's “A Dollar Down.”
On June 20, the Flairs were part of the “Tenth Annual Cavalcade Of Jazz” at Wrigly Field along with Louis Jordan, Ruth Brown, Christine Kittrell, the Lamplighters, Perez Prado, and Count Basie.
“This Is The Night For Love” and “Let's Make With Some Love” came out in July. Both sides were ranked “fair” on July 17, along with the Clovers' “Your Cash Ain't Nothin' But Trash,” Ruth Brown's “Oh What A Dream,” Marvin & Johnny's “Cherry Pie,” the Honey Bears' “It's A Miracle,” the Ravens' “Love Is No Dream,” the 5 C's' “My Heart's Got The Blues,” and the Quails' “Somewhere Somebody Cares.”
Sometime over the summer of 1954, Beverly Thompson departed (he would occasionally sing with the Turks in the future). His place (on recording sessions only) was eventually taken by first tenor Charles Jackson, but at appearances, the Flairs were now a quartet. In August, the guys appeared at the Riverside Rancho in Hollywood (usually a Country & Western venue) along with Tiny Bradshaw. They could also be seen that month at the Carillo Ballroom in Santa Barbara and the Starlite Theater in Burbank (along with Big Jay McNeely, Richard Lewis, the Robins, and Jimmy Witherspoon). On August 19, Joe Bihari put on a show at L.A.'s Savoy Ballroom. While loads of local talent appeared, the Flairs were conspicuous by their absence.
By this time, Richard Berry was also singing with both Arthur Lee Maye and the Crowns (named after the Biharis' Crown label) and the Dreamers (Fanita Bryant, Gloria Jones, Nannette Williams, and Annette Williams), a group of girls from Fremont High to whom he had been introduced by Beverly Thompson. All were altos, except for Fanita, a soprano. This group would one day become the Blossoms.
Finally, friction developed because the Flairs decided Richard was spreading himself too thin. Not long after Beverly Thompson left, Richard quit too. (A blurb in a September issue of one of the trades said that Berry, “formerly of the Flairs,” was now with the Dreamers.) His place in the Flairs was taken by bass Randy Jones. Therefore, the Flairs were now Cornell Gunter, Charles Jackson (for recordings only), Pete Fox, Obie Jessie, and Randy Jones. (However, the Flairs retained their open door policy. “I Wanna Love” by Arthur Lee May & Crowns, recorded around October, has Randy Jones doing bass.)
In September 1954, Flair released “Love Me, Love Me, Love Me” (led by Cornell) and “My Heart's Crying For You” (the whole group). This time the artist was listed as the “Chimes.” The record was reviewed on September 11, along with the Medallions' “Buick 59,” the El Dorados' “Baby I Need You,” the Dodgers' “You Make Me Happy,” and the Capris' “God Only Knows.” Later that month (the 25th), the Flairs appeared on a Gene Norman show at the Shrine Auditorium with Guitar Slim, Muddy Waters, the Robins, the Jewels, Marvin & Johnny, Chuck Higgins, and the Platters. Also in September, Flair issued the first Richard Berry & the Dreamers record: “At Last,” backed with “Daddy, Daddy.”
October's release was “I'll Never Let You Go,” backed with “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Chill Me,” both led by Cornell, with some nice bass work by Randy Jones. It was reviewed on October 16, along with Charlie & Ray's “I Love You Madly,” the Penguins' “Earth Angel,” Richard Berry's “The Big Break,” the Jewels' “A Fool In Paradise,” Lee Andrews & the Hearts' “The Fairest,” the 5 Keys' “Ling, Ting, Tong,” the Bees' “Toy Bell,” and the Blue Dots' “God Loves You, Child.”
On October 29, the Flairs, Shirley Gunter (Cornell's older sister), Roy Milton, Mickey Champion, and the Penguins
appeared in Santa Barbara. Then it was on to San Pedro, El Paso (Texas), Tucson (Arizona), Phoenix (Arizona), and Imperial
(California).In November 1954, Modern issued the first record by Arthur Lee Maye & the Crowns (with Richard Berry as bass). He was now officially recording with two groups: the Crowns and the Dreamers. He'd later form the Pharaohs too. In December, Richard could be heard as “Henry” on Etta James' “The Wallflower” (which morphed into “Dance With Me Henry).
On December 27, the Flairs appeared at the Elk's Hall with B.B. King, the Platters, and Oscar McLollie. February 26, 1955 found them at the Hermosa Beach Biltmore Hotel along with the Platters and Richard Lewis.
Possibly the last recordings done by this Flairs group were “She Loves To Dance” and “My Darling, My Sweet,” two more tunes led by Cornell and released in March 1955. The record was reviewed on March 26, along with the Rams' “Rock Bottom,” the Ravens' “Happy Go Lucky Baby,” the Admirals' “Close Your Eyes,” and the Barons' “Eternally Yours.”
After this, Charles Jackson left to join the Chimes (who would soon record “Zindy Lou” for Specialty). Randy Jones departed too, becoming an emergency replacement for Bruce Tate in the Penguins, when they went to New York to do an Alan Freed show.
This left the trio of Cornell Gunter, Pete Fox and Obie Jessie. To get some “fast cash,” they recorded a single record as the “Jac-O-Lacs” for Robert Scherman and Irving Shorten's Tampa label. “Cindy-Lou” and “Sha-Ba-Da-Ba-Doo” were released in May 1955. Since there's a bass present, they might have gotten Randy Jones back for a while, but Pete has no memory of this session at all. Actually, while they were accumulating that fast cash, they also backed up the Dooley Sisters on their version of "Shtiggy Boom," released in February.
To further complicate matters, Young Jessie's “Mary Lou,” released in June 1955, had him backed up by the Jacks/Cadets, not the Flairs. The reason: according to Pete, by the time of “Mary Lou,” the Flairs had pretty much ceased to exist. Did Pete leave the group? “I don't think of it as leaving. The group just broke up.”
Around this time, Buck Ram expressed an interest in managing the Flairs. The only problem was that the group was falling apart. The connection would have to wait awhile. (In October, there was a strange blurb in the trades that said Ram had linked up the “Peppers, formerly the Flairs” with Mercury's Wing subsidiary. Remember the “Peppers” name, however, it'll resurface in a few years.)
Sometime before the final disintegration, the
Flairs had backed up two of Modern's female singers (Dolly Cooper and Cornell's older sister, Shirley Gunter). These were probably
the last efforts by Cornell, Pete, and Obie (there doesn't seem to be a bass on any of them). First there was “Ay La
Bah” behind Dolly Cooper (they weren't on the flip, “My Man”). Then they accompanied Shirley Gunter on “Ipsy
Opsie Ooh” and “How Can I Tell You.” Both records were issued in August 1955, when the Flairs did a series of
one-nighters with Shirley. (This was presumably Cornell's new Flairs group, see below.) After this, Obie got serious about his solo career as Young Jessie (and also occasionally recorded, but didn't appear, with the Coasters) and Pete Fox joined the Jacks/Cadets, before becoming a guitarist and guitar teacher (which he still is). (Since the Jacks had been Obie's backup group on “Mary Lou,” he'd gotten to know them. Therefore, when Jacks baritone Lloyd McCraw quit the group, Obie recommended Pete Fox for the job.)
Since the rest of the Flairs were older than Cornell, they'd all graduated from Jefferson. Cornell switched over to Manual
Arts for the fall term. There, he teamed up with his cousin, Kenneth Byley (first tenor), Thomas Miller (baritone), and George
Hollis (bass) to form a new Flairs group. According to Cornell, they were heard at a school show by KFWB disk jockey Zeke Manners,
who instantly recorded them for his brand new Loma label. If true, this would have had to have happened very quickly. School
usually starts in September, the group has to form, the group has to practice, the group has to get into a talent show at the
school (unlikely that a show would be held that early in the term), Manners has to record them, Manners has to set up a new
label… (I'm getting tired just writing all this). It's a lot easier to believe that they initially got together over the
summer (especially if they were the group on the Shirley Gunter tour mentioned above). Regardless, “True Love”/“Peek, Peek-A-Boo” were issued in September 1955, but not by the Flairs. There was probably some real or perceived difficulty with using the name of their former recording company, so Manners changed it to “Cornell Gunter & the Ermines.” Strangely, none of their Loma releases were sent out for review.
The next Ermines record was issued in January 1956: “You Broke My Heart” and “I'm So Used To You Now.”
In March 1956, the Ermines/Flairs signed with Buck Ram, manager of the Platters. This had to be due, in part, to Cornell's having made some appearances with the Platters (he was capable of sounding very much like Tony Williams). The first thing Ram did for them was to get them a contract with ABC-Paramount Records, for which they never actually recorded (since the ABC books have a notation that all the masters were purchased). In all probability, Ram recorded the group privately and then sold or leased the masters to ABC.
The first of the ABC records, “In Self Defense” (with a distinct Platters sound), backed with “She Loves To Rock” were released, in April 1956, as by the Flairs. Since Buck Ram had plenty of clout in the business because of the phenomenal success of the Platters, my guess is that he made some sort of a deal with Modern/Flair to allow the guys to use the “Flairs” name again. Also in April, Loma released the Ermines' “Keep Me Alive”/“Muchacha, Muchacha.”
And then, just as the original Flairs had been, the Ermines/Flairs were all over the place in a short period of time.
Back at Modern, they backed up Shirley Gunter (also managed by Ram) on “Headin' Home”/“I Want You,” released in May 1956. It was reviewed on May 26, along with the Spaniels' “Dear Heart,” the Clovers' “Love, Love, Love,” the Magnificents' “Up On The Mountain,” and the Colts' “Never No More.”
Then it was over to Aladdin, where the Flairs backed Arthur “Fatso” Theus on a remake of Berdell Forrest's “Be Cool My Heart,” released in May 1956; the flip was “Rock 'N Roll Drive-In.”. (No one I've talked to seems to have known Theus. He was a sax player and did extensive studio work in the 60s and 70s [as Fats Theus], playing the electric sax and flute.) This disc was reviewed on June 9, along with Billy Bland's “Chicken Hop,” the 5 Keys' “My Pigeon's Gone,” the Hawks' “It's All Over,” the Youngsters' “Shattered Dreams,” the Cadillacs' “Woe Is Me,” the 4 Fellows' “Darling You,” the 5 Satins' “In The Still Of The Nite,” the Chestnuts' “Love Is True,” and the Chorals' “In My Dreams.”
On June 1, the Flairs began a week-long stay at New York's Apollo Theater as part of a Hal Jackson show. Other acts on the bill were Shirley Gunter, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, the Cadillacs, the Cookies, and the Jesse Powell Orchestra. Probably few of the Harlem patrons had ever heard of the Flairs, but Buck Ram was good at booking his acts.
Some more masters leased from Buck Ram were issued by ABC-Paramount in August. This time it was “Aladdin's Lamp” (another Platters sound)/“Steppin' Out.” While Cornell did the lead on the top side, “Steppin' Out” was led by bass George Hollis. The record was reviewed in the September 22 issue of the trades, along with Fats Domino's “Blueberry Hill,” the Teenagers' “ABC's Of Love,” the Clovers' “From The Bottom Of My Heart,” Young Jessie's “Hit, Git, And Split,” the Vibraharps' “Cosy With Rosy,” the Palms' “Darling Patricia,” the Jewels' “She's A Flirt,” and the Jayhawks' “Love Train.”
Also in August, it was reported that Richard Berry had sued Modern Records, claiming he was cheated out of royalties. The final settlement of the suit was for less than $2000.
On August 23, the Flairs were booked into Toronto's Casino Theater for a week, along with Young Jessie, the Platters, Shirley Gunter, Dolly Cooper, the Cues, the Penguins, and Joe Houston, all acts managed by Buck Ram, The show was called “The Happy Beat For Happy Feet.”
There were another two back-ups to Shirley Gunter released in September 1956. Once again on Modern, they were “Fortune In Love”/“I Just Got Rid Of A Heartache.” They were reviewed on September 22 (as was “Aladdin's Lamp,” mentioned above).
Finally, in October, Loma issued the last of the Ermines' material: “I'm Sad”/“One Thing For Me.”
In early 1957, the Flairs had been appearing in New York when something happened to make Cornell and the others part company. When they returned to Los Angeles, Vince Weaver (a tenor who had been in the Native Boys) was recruited to replace Cornell.
When the Flairs recorded for manager Buck Ram's new Antler label, it was Vince singing lead on “Swing Pretty Mama” and Kenneth Byley fronting the flip, “I'd Climb The Hills And Mountains.” Issued in April 1957, the record was reviewed on May 13, along with the Clovers' “So Young,” the Rays' “My Steady Girl,” the Sophomores' “If I Should Lose Your Love,” Louis Jordan's “Fire,” the Spaniels' “Everyone's Laughing,” the Love Notes' “United,” the Diablos' “Mambo Of Love,” and the Ebbtones' “Danny's Blues.” Note that the Ebbtones were Danny Kristian, Fred Romain (who'd sung with Vince Weaver in the Native Boys), Kenneth Byley, and George Hollis. (L.A. groups were incredibly interconnected.)
Cornell wasted no time recording as a soloist (for example, “If We Should Meet Again” on Liberty from July 1957).
In late 1957, Leon Hughes and Bobby Nunn both left the Coasters. (Hughes appeared with the Coasters, but Obie Jessie did the recordings.) Although “Searchin'” had been a tremendous hit, the group seemed to be unable to come up with another one. Additionally, Hughes and Nunn were both married and were tired of being on the road all the time.
Bobby Nunn's replacement was the Cadets' Will “Dub” Jones; Leon Hughes was replaced by Cornell Gunter (his first session gave us “Yackety Yak). Cornell would remain with the Coasters through mid-1961 (when he'd be replaced by Earl Carroll, of the Cadillacs).
There was only a single record left to the Flairs, a backup to Etta James on Modern's Kent subsidiary. It was issued in July 1958, and it's impossible to tell who the members are (simply because we can't know if it was recorded around then or much earlier). The tunes were “Sunshine Of Love” and “Baby, Baby, Every Night.” Vince Weaver doesn't know the songs; he wasn't on them.
The reason Dub Jones joined the Coasters was that the Cadets had pretty much become dormant. Pete Fox says that after they returned from their long “Stranded In The Jungle” road tour toward the end of 1956, they only made one further appearance (although they still occasionally went into the studio and Modern released a few more records). Thus, when both Vince Weaver and Kenneth Byley left the Flairs, Cadets Aaron Collins (second tenor) and Willie Davis (first tenor) were free to join as replacements. The Flairs were now (in early 1958) Willie Davis, Aaron Collins, Thomas Miller, and George Hollis. There were no recordings for two years, but then things begin to get amazingly complicated again.
By
September 1959, the Flairs changed their name to the “Flares.” In 1960, they began recording for Felsted. “Loving
You” and “Hotcha Cha Cha Brown” were released in May of that year. Strangely, Aaron Collins and Willie Davis don't
seem to be on these. The probable personnel is: Robbie Robinson (a tenor who had replaced Milton Grayson in the Dominoes for a few
months in early 1958), Eddie King, Thomas Miller, George Hollis, and Beverly Harris (whom Buck Ram hoped would endear them to
Platters fans).
Then,
they recorded as “Bennie Bunn & the Cadets” for Charles Tebbetts' Sherwood label in August 1960. I have no idea why the
name “Bennie Bunn.” There was no one in the group by that name, nor were the tunes backups to anyone. Willie Davis sang
lead on “You Must Be An Angel” and Aaron Collins fronted “I'm Looking For A Job.” Presumably, Robinson and
King were gone again. I have no idea if Beverly Harris was still there.Then, with Randy Jones returning to replace George Hollis, they recorded for the tiny Jan-Lar label (owned by Charlie Tebbetts, Milton Weiss, and Ted Quillan) as the “Cadets.” It was the eerie “Car Crash” (led by Willie). It's flip was the Aaron Collins-led “Don't.” “Car Crash” came out in the fall of 1960, as a kind of take-off on Ray Peterson's “Tell Laura I Love Her.” Willie is trying hard to cry at the end of the song, but it sounds suspiciously like he's actually laughing.
After this, on
Ram's suggestion, the Flares added the diminutive Patience Valentine to the group, although she doesn't seem to have been more
than a part-time or occasional member. Their next recording was October's “What Do You Want If You Don't Want Love” (led
by Aaron), backed with “Jump And Bump” (all) which also went nowhere. (However, the girl on the picture sleeve is Rose
Collins, not Patience Valentine and both basses, Randy Jones and George Hollis, were present [see the accompanying photo].)Then, with the dual lead of Willie Davis and Aaron Collins, they scored big in the Spring of 1961 with “Foot Stomping, Part 1.” (Part 2 was an instrumental version of the tune by the Ramrocks.) “Foot Stomping” seems to have had Willie Davis, Aaron Collins, Thomas Miller, and George Hollis. From here on in, there's no telling who's in the group at any time.
For some tours, Patience Valentine was replaced by Aaron Collins' sister, Betty. (She and another sister, Rose, had been the Teen Queens.) Betty was there when the Flares went on the “Foot Stomping Tour” to Europe; Vince Weaver was there too, having returned to replace Willie Davis for the tour. Betty can be heard doing lead on 1963's “Shimmy And Stomp.”
In June 1961, they released “A Place In My Heart” on Ensign as the “Peppers.” The flip was “One More Chance.” (Remember that blurb from 1955 about Buck Ram and the Peppers, formerly the Flairs? Well, Ram finally made it come true.) Since Willie Davis is leading both sides and since the Flares were off on tour, the masters were presumably a few months old.
After the tour, it was back to being the Flares again, this time on Buck Ram's own Press label. (The Flares had five releases on Press in 1962 and 1963.) In late 1962, they took some time out to record a couple of records as the “Thor-Ables” (named after an Air Force missile) on Lloyd McCraw's Titanic label (McCraw had been the original baritone of the Jacks/Cadets). Both “Our Love Song” and “My Reckless Heart” featured Willie Davis; “Get That Bread” was led by Aaron. (“My Reckless Heart” was a remake of a song Willie Had done with the Rocketeers/Rockets/Planets back in 1958 for MJC, a label owned by Lloyd McCraw, Dub Jones, and Aaron Collins.) If you told me that every song recorded by the group in the 60s had different personnel, you wouldn't get an argument from me!
Another “Peppers” record was released, on Press, in April 1963. Both “It Wouldn't Be The Same” and “Little Pieces Of Paper” were fronted by Aaron.
The final entry in the series came in August 1964, when the Flares backed local singer Cookie Jackson (whose real name was Lorraine Cooke) on “I Didn't Lose A Doggone Thing”. She had had releases on Cyclone and Progress, and would go on to have some on Uptown and Okeh.
At that point, the Flairs/Flares/Ermines/Peppers/Cadets came to an end. It was a good ten-year run, with a lot of nice music along the way.
Cornell Gunter, after spending many years with his own Coasters group, was murdered on February 27, 1990, at the age of 51. He was shot to death, in his car in Las Vegas, by a man with whom he was having an argument. Strangely, ten years earlier, Nathaniel “Buster” Wilson, a member of Cornell's Coasters, was also found shot to death (and partially dismembered). Richard Berry, most famous for writing “Louie, Louie” passed away at the age of 61 on January 23 1997. Randy Jones, Charles Jackson, Aaron Collins, and George Hollis have also passed away.
Thomas “Pete” Fox became a guitarist and is still teaching guitar in Los Angeles. Obie “Young” Jessie is still around too, as is Beverly Thompson, Shirley Gunter, Vince Weaver, Willie Davis, and Kenneth Byley. No one is sure what happened to Thomas Miller.
Special thanks to Ferdie Gonzalez for his discographical help.