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Can You Jerk Like Me
"Can You Jerk Like Me" (Gordy G7037) is a 1964 R&B song by Motown Records group The Contours, issued on its Gordy Records subsidiary. It charted on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching #47, and a Top 20 hit on its R&B chart, reaching #15. A single-only release, it did not appear on any original Contours studio album, as the group only had one album release during their five years on the label, 1962's " Do You Love Me (Now That I Can Dance)". (Note: It has been recently revealed that this song was recorded for a planned, but unreleased, Contours album for Motown in 1964 entitled ''The Contours: Can You Dance'' (Gordy 910). This album was released, in modified form, by the import label, Kent Records, in 2011 under the name ''Dance With The Contours'' under license from Motown Records). The song's flip side, the Smokey Robinson-written-and-produced "That Day When She Needed Me", which featured the original Contours before their departure, was also a hit, reaching #37 on the Cash Box R&B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Contours
The Contours are an American rhythm and blues vocal group. They recorded for Motown Records. They are known for their 1962 hit single "Do You Love Me", which sold over 1 million copies and became a major hit again in 1988. History Establishment and "Do You Love Me" Joe Billingslea (born November 14, 1937) and Billy Gordon founded a singing group called the Blenders in their native Detroit, Michigan in 1959. They completed the group with Billy Hoggs and Billy Rollins, who had responded to an ad placed in the local newspaper by Billingslea. The group soon added Leroy Fair (in place of Billy Rollins), and bass singer Hubert Johnson (musician), Hubert Johnson, and changed the name to "The Contours". In the fall of 1960, the group auditioned for Berry Gordy's Motown Records. Gordy turned the act down, prompting the group to pay a visit to the home of Johnson's cousin, R&B star and Gordy associate Jackie Wilson. Wilson in turn got the Contours a second audition with Gordy, at which the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The T-Bones
The T-Bones were an American, Liberty Records recording group, existing from 1963 to 1966. The studio recordings of all of their albums but the last were done by American session musicians, The Wrecking Crew. They should not be confused with Gary Farr's British mid-1960s band of the same name. In Britain, the name "U.S. T-Bones" was used for the Liberty Records group. When the T-Bones had a hit in 1966 with the single " No Matter What Shape (Your Stomach's In)", Liberty Records quickly recorded an album of the same name using session musicians from The Wrecking Crew, but those musicians were not willing to go on tour to promote the album. They were making sufficient money doing sessions in Los Angeles. So Liberty created a different "public" T-Bones group to appear on record covers, TV, and in concert. The "public" T-Bones were Judd Hamilton, Dan Hamilton, Joe Frank Carollo, Tommy Reynolds, and Gene Pello. None of them played on the hit record, nor did they play on the ne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Levi Stubbs
Levi Stubbs (born Levi Stubbles, June 6, 1936 – October 17, 2008) was an American baritone singer, widely known as the lead vocalist of the R&B group the Four Tops, that released a variety of Motown hit records during the 1960s and 1970s. He was noted for his powerful, emotional, and dramatic singing style. In 1990, Stubbs was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Four Tops. Stubbs was also a voice artist in film and television, and provided the voice of "Audrey II", the alien plant in the 1986 musical horror comedy film '' Little Shop of Horrors'' (an adaption of the stage musical of the same name), as well as Mother Brain in the 1989 TV series '' Captain N: The Game Master''. Stubbs was admired by his peers for his impressive vocal range, and influenced many later pop and soul artists, such as Daryl Hall of Hall and Oates. Stubbs was born and spent much of his life in Detroit, Michigan. He had five children with his wife Clineice Stubbs, to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Four Tops
''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with nouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of the archaic pronoun ''thee' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joe Stubbs
Joe Stubbs (born Joseph Stubbles; December 9, 1942 – February 5, 1998) was an American R&B/soul singer who became the lead singer of four different groups throughout his recording career. He was the younger brother of The Four Tops' lead Levi Stubbs. Biography Joe Stubbs was born six years after his brother Levi. The two grew up together in Detroit, Michigan, United States. As a teenager, Stubbs joined the R&B group The Falcons in 1957 and led them on several of their early hits, among them the million-seller, "You're So Fine" (1959), and "The Teacher" (1960). He was then replaced by Wilson Pickett, who took over as lead in 1960. Stubbs also recorded a solo single for the Lu Pine label entitled "Keep On Loving Me", released in 1964. He joined Motown R&B group The Contours in the mid-1960s. Several original members had left in 1964, along with lead singer Billy Gordon, who had departed the following year. A renewed version of the group, with Joe Stubbs as lead singer, began ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dennis Edwards
Dennis Edwards Jr. (February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018) was an American soul and R&B singer who was best known as the frontman in The Temptations for Motown Records. Edwards joined the Temptations in 1968, replacing David Ruffin and sang with the group from 1968 to 1976, 1980 to 1984, and 1987 to 1989. In the mid-1980s, he launched a solo career, recording the 1984 hit single " Don't Look Any Further" (featuring Siedah Garrett). Until his death, Edwards was the lead singer of The Temptations Review, a Temptations splinter group. Biography Early years and career Edwards was born in Fairfield, Alabama, about eight miles from Birmingham, to Reverend Dennis Edwards Sr. and Idessa Fuller. He began singing at two years old in his father's church. The Edwards family moved to Detroit, Michigan when Edwards was about ten years old. He would continue to sing in the church pastored by his father, eventually becoming choir director. As a teenager, Edwards joined a gospel vocal grou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sylvester Potts
Sylvester Potts (January 22, 1938 - January 6, 2017) was a singer and composer as well as an off and on member of The Contours and a one-time member of The Four Sonics. Songs that he has either composed or co-composed have been recorded by The Contours, Mamie Galore, Jimmy Ruffin and The Temptations. Personal Sylvester Potts was born on January 22, 1938, and attended North Eastern High, the same school where Martha Reeves, Mary Wilson, and Bobby Rogers were educated at. Owing to his love of the music and the excitement he got from it once said he wanted to die on stage. Career 1950s In the late 1950s, Sylvester Potts was a member of a group called The Hi-Fidelities whose line up consisted of Huey Davis, Potts, Juanita Davis and Tony York. They released two singles, "Street Of Loneliness" bw Pott's own composition, "Help Murder Police" on Hi-Q 5000 in 1957, and "Last Night I Cried" bw "Just Go" on Fortune 528 in 1958. In 1959 late 1950s, Billy Gordon, Billy Hoggs, Joe Billingsle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hubert Johnson (musician)
Hubert Johnson (January 14, 1941 – July 11, 1981) was an American singer and performer. Johnson is best known for being one of the original members of the Motown Rhythm and Blues, R&B vocal group The Contours. Johnson was also the cousin of the late Jackie Wilson. Career In 1959, local Detroit musician Joe Billingslea formed a band called "The Blenders" with fellow musicians Billy Gordon and Billy Hoggs. The next year, at the recommendation of Johnson's cousin Jackie Wilson, Johnson joined the trio making it a quartet and, at the recommendation of Billingslea, the group changed their name to "The Contours". Shortly after the renaming, Berry Gordy signed the group on to his new recording company Motown. The group's first hit came with the release of the single (music), single "Do You Love Me" in 1962. The group also achieved success with the songs "Shake Sherry" and "That Day When She Needed Me" in 1963 and 1964. In 1964, within a matter of two weeks, Johnson along with Bi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joe Billingslea
Joseph Billingslea, Jr. (born November 14, 1937) is an American singer and performer. He is most noted for being the lead singer and the founder of the R&B band the Contours in 1959. The Contours are best known for the 1962 hit single, "Do You Love Me". Early life Joseph Billingslea, Jr. was born on November 14, 1937, in Hamtramck, Michigan. Before his first birthday, his parents moved to Detroit where he was raised. He sang with the boys' choir while attending Chadsey High School where he graduated in 1954. After graduation, he enlisted in the United States Air Force. While stationed in the Maine, Billingslea formed a vocal group with four other airmen called the "Revere Tone Five". After receiving an honorable discharge following his four-year stint, he returned to Detroit in 1958. Career Upon his return from the air force in 1958, Billingslea was invited by an old high school friend, Billy Gordon, to join his singing group, the Majestics. In 1958, the group disbanded, so Bill ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Do You Love Me
"Do You Love Me" is a rhythm and blues song recorded by the Contours in 1962. Written and produced by Motown, Motown Records owner Berry Gordy Jr., it appeared twice on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, reaching numbers three in 1962 and eleven in 1988. As with many American R&B songs of the 1960s, "Do You Love Me" was recorded by several British Invasion groups. A 1963 version by The Tremeloes, Brian Poole and the Tremeloes reached number one on the UK Singles Chart. It also became a hit for The Dave Clark Five discography, the Dave Clark Five, reaching number 11 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1964. Background and recording Berry Gordy wrote "Do You Love Me" and earmarked it for the Temptations, who had no top-40 hits to their name yet. However, when Gordy was looking for the group to record it, he could not find them; they had gone to church to see Gospel music, gospel groups the Dixie Hummingbirds, the Harmonizing Four and Swan Silvertones, the Swan Silver ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), also known as Berry Gordy Jr., is an American retired record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record label and its subsidiaries, which was the highest-earning African-American business for decades. As a songwriter, Gordy composed or co-composed a number of hits including " Lonely Teardrops" and "That's Why" ( Jackie Wilson), " Shop Around" (the Miracles), and "Do You Love Me" (the Contours), all of which topped the US R&B charts, as well as the international hit " Reet Petite" (Jackie Wilson). As part of the Corporation, he wrote many hit songs for the Jackson 5, including " I Want You Back" and " ABC". As a record producer, he launched the Miracles and signed acts like the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Gladys Knight & the Pips, and Stevie Wonder. He was known for carefully directing the public image, dress, manners, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cool Jerk
"Cool Jerk" is a 1966 rhythm and blues song written by Donald Storball and originally performed by the Capitols. It became a hit song in the United States and Canada. Original version Released in 1966, it reached No. 2 on the American Rhythm & Blues Singles chart, No. 7 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and No. 9 on the Canadian Singles Chart. The session was arranged by Funk Brother Mike Terry, as the Funk Brothers, Motown's house band, played behind the Capitols on the track. Charts Weekly charts Year-end charts The Go-Go's version The Go-Go's covered the song for their 1982 album ''Vacation'' and later re-recorded it for their 1990 album '' Greatest''. A demo that pre-dates their ''Vacation'' recording was released on their 1994 compilation '' Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's''. See also *List of 1960s one-hit wonders in the United States A one-hit wonder is a musical artist who is successful with one hit song, but without a comparable subsequent hit. The ter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
