Will J. "Dub" Jones (May 14, 1928 – January 16, 2000) was an American R&B

singer Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...

. He was born in

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, third-most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The bulk of Shreveport is in Caddo Parish, Lo ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, and died in

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

.Thedeadrockstarsclub.com
- accessed June 2010 He was inducted as a member of the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...

as a member of

The Coasters The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group who had a string of hits in the late 1950s. With hits including "Searchin'", "Young Blood (The Coasters song), Young Blood", "Charlie Brown (The Coasters song), Charlie Bro ...

in 1987. Other groups with which he recorded include The Cadets,

The Crescendos The Crescendos were an early American rock and roll group from Nashville, Tennessee. Formed in 1957 by five men who attended Cumberland High School in Nashville, the Crescendos succeeded with the song " Oh Julie" the following year, which rose to ...

, and

The Charades The Charades is a doo-wop, Rhythm and blues, R&B group which was mostly active in California in the early to mid-1960s and has released a number of singles on various labels. One of the songs it recorded, which was associated with the Surf musi ...

Biography

Jones is a singer who is most notable as the bass vocalist for

and The Cadets. His best known vocals were on The Cadets' biggest hit single "

Stranded in the Jungle "Stranded in the Jungle" is a song originally recorded by the American doo-wop group the Jay Hawks. It was written by Ernestine Smith and the band's first tenor, James Johnson. The Jay Hawks' version of the song peaked at No. 18 on the ''Billboard ...

" and his

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

vocals on The Coasters' hits "

Yakety Yak "Yakety Yak" is a song written, produced, and arranged by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller for the Coasters and released on Atco Records in 1958, spending seven weeks as #1 on List of number-one rhythm and blues hits (United States), the R&B chart ...

" and "

Charlie Brown Charles "Charlie" Brown is the Protagonist, principal character of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', syndicated in daily newspaper, daily and Sunday newspapers in numerous countries all over the world. Depicted as a "lovable loser", Charlie Brown ...

Cornell Gunter Cornell Gunter (November 14, 1936 – February 26, 1990) was an American rhythm and blues singer, most active in the 1950s and 1960s. He was born in Coffeyville, Kansas, and died in Las Vegas, Nevada, after being shot in his automobile. He was i ...

and Jones joined The Coasters in early 1958, as replacements for

Leon Hughes Leon Hughes Sr. (May 6, 1930 – March 1, 2023) was an American rhythm and blues singer. He was the last surviving original member of The Coasters. Biography Leon Hughes was an original member of The Coasters ( Bobby Nunn, Carl Gardner, and ...

and

Bobby Nunn Robert or Bobby Nunn may refer to: *Robert Nunn (American football) (born 1965), American football defensive line coach *Bobby Nunn (doo-wop musician) (1925–1986), American singer with The Robins and The Coasters *Bobby Nunn (R&B musician), Ameri ...

. Jones also appeared on various other recordings. In 1956, he sang on

' recording "Sweet Dreams". In 1957, he sang with

Jesse Belvin Jesse Lorenzo Belvin (December 15, 1932 – February 6, 1960) was an American singer, pianist and songwriter popular in the 1950s. Belvin co-wrote the 1954 Penguins' doo-wop classic " Earth Angel", which sold more than 10 million copies, while h ...

& The Space Riders on the Modern #1027 single "My Satellite" / "Just To Say Hello". He had also recorded with Cora Washington, billed as Cora And Dub. He is said to have sung lead on

The Trammps The Trammps are an American disco and soul band, who were based in Philadelphia and were one of the first disco bands. The band's first major success was their 1972 cover version of " Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart", while the first disc ...

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of "

Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart" is a 1935 popular song with words and music by James F. Hanley. It was introduced by Hal Le Roy and Eunice Healey in the Broadway revue '' Thumbs Up!.'' Notable recordings *The most notable recordings were ma ...

" (on which he had previously sung lead while with The Coasters). He went on to record with later versions of The Coasters – in 1976 on the album ''The World Famous Coasters'' (with Leon Hughes); and with

Billy Guy Billy Guy (June 20, 1936 – November 5, 2002) was an American singer, best known as a lead singer for the Coasters. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. Biography Born Frank Phillips in Texas, Guy is best known as a memb ...

's group of Coasters in 1977, recording such songs as "Ain't No Greens In Harlem" and "Jumbo Bwana". Jones also teamed up with former fellow Cadets member Lloyd McCraw for gospel recordings including " Joshua Fit The Battle" as The Melodians. Jones and The Cadets sang

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

on a few of Richard Berry's recordings in 1955. These included "Jelly Roll", which appeared on the 2001

Ace An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or a club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the ...

compilation album of the group The Dreamers entitled ''They Sing Like Angels''. In 1987, Jones also sang backing vocals on the song "We Got It All" by

. Jones died in January 2000, from the effects of

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

. He was 71 years old.

Discography

Solo singles

* "Hands Across The Table" / "Love Can Do Most Anything" (Modern #1024) (1957) (as Will Jones & The Cadets) * "Cold Blooded Women" / "What Can I Do" (MJC #101) (circa 1960) (as Dub & Cora) * "Heaven's Not So Far" (MJC #108) (about 1960) (as Dub Jones) * "Cold Blooded Women" / "Heaven's Not So Far" (MJ #102) (about 1969) (

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

by Dub & Cora) * "Cold Blooded Women" / "What Can I Do" (Cotillion #44079) (1970) (as Dub & Cora)

References

External links

The Coasters website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Will 1928 births 2000 deaths American rhythm and blues singers Burials at Riverside National Cemetery Deaths from diabetes in California Musicians from Shreveport, Louisiana The Coasters members 20th-century American singers American basses Singers from Louisiana The Cadets (group) members 20th-century American male singers