The Griffin Brothers were an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

band from

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

, sometimes credited on record as the Griffin Brothers Orchestra. They made successful recordings with singer Margie Day, and had a no.1 hit on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

in 1951 with "Weepin' and Cryin'", featuring Tommy Brown.

Biography

The group was formed by brothers Jimmy (born James Rudolph Griffin,

, November 26, 1921–November 14, 2000) and "Buddy" Griffin (born Edward Elijah Griffin,

Elizabeth City, North Carolina Elizabeth City is a city in Pasquotank County, North Carolina, Pasquotank county, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 18,629. Elizabeth City is the county seat and most populous city of Pasqu ...

, October 5, 1919–October 22, 1981).Eagle and Leblanc, ''Blues - A Regional Experience'', p.331 By 1920, the family lived in Norfolk, Virginia. Both Jimmy and Buddy studied music at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

. Jimmy played trombone, and Buddy played piano. The band was completed by Wilbur Dyer (alto saxophone), Virgil Wilson (tenor saxophone), Jimmy Reeves (bass), and Emmett "Nab" Shields (drums). In the late 1940s they played local clubs in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, as well as

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

and

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, and added a singer, Margie Day. In early 1950 the band recorded as back-up to Roy Brown on the session for DeLuxe Records that yielded his no.1 R&B hit, " Hard Luck Blues".J.C.Marion, ''Griffin Brothers''
Retrieved 30 June 2013 Local music promoter Lillian Clairborne won them a recording contract with the newly formed

Dot Records Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In its early years, Dot sp ...

, established by Randy Wood. Their first record, credited to Margie Day with the Griffin Brothers Orchestra, "Street Walkin' Daddy" / "Riffin' With Griffin", became a no.7 hit on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart in late 1950, with sales reportedly reaching over 15 thousand a week.Biography by Rovi at Allmusic.com
Retrieved 30 June 2013 The follow-up record, "

Little Red Rooster "Little Red Rooster" (or "The Red Rooster" as it was first titled) is a blues standard credited to arranger and songwriter Willie Dixon. The song was first recorded in 1961 by American blues musician Howlin' Wolf in the Chicago blues style. Hi ...

", not directly related to the

Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...

song but drawing on the same folk traditions, reached no.5 on the R&B chart in early 1951. Wilson, Reeves and Shields were replaced by

Noble "Thin Man" Watts Noble "Thin Man" Watts (February 17, 1926 – August 24, 2004) was an American blues, jump blues and rhythm and blues saxophonist. He primarily played tenor saxophone. The AllMusic journalist, Bill Dahl, considered Watts "one of the most incendi ...

(tenor sax),

Wilbur Little Wilbur "Doc" Little (March 5, 1928 – May 4, 1987) was an American jazz bassist known for playing hard bop and post-bop. Little originally played piano, but switched to double bass after serving in the military. In 1949 he moved to Washington, ...

(bass), and

Belton Evans Samuel "Sticks" Evans (February 5, 1923 – April 11, 1994) was an American drummer, percussionist, music teacher, arranger and musical director. He was credited variously as Sammy "Stick" Evans, Samie Evans, Sammy Evans, Sammie Evans, Stick Eva ...

(drums). The Griffin Brothers toured widely in 1951 and 1952 with

Amos Milburn Joseph Amos Milburn (April 1, 1927 – January 3, 1980) was an American R&B singer and pianist, popular in the 1940s and 1950s. One commentator noted, "Milburn excelled at good-natured, upbeat romps about booze and partying, imbued with a ...

Paul Williams Paul Williams may refer to: Authors * Paul Williams (Crawdaddy) (1948–2013), American music and science fiction journalist; founder of ''Crawdaddy'' and the Philip K. Dick Society * Paul Williams (Irish journalist) (born 1964), Irish journalis ...

and others, and continued to record both with Margie Day, and with singer Tommy Brown. They had two R&B hits with Brown, "Tra-La-La" which reached no.7, and "Weepin' and Cryin'" which reached no.1 in January 1952. Day left the band for a solo career in late 1952, and was replaced on some appearances by Claudia Swann (née Swanson). The Griffin Brothers continued to tour with such artistes as

The Orioles The Orioles were an American R&B group in the late 1940s and early 1950s. One of the first vocal groups in R&B, they were early pioneers of the doo-wop sound. Dubbing themselves after Maryland's state bird, the Orioles started the trend of b ...

Chuck Willis Harold "Chuck" Willis (January 31, 1926 – April 10, 1958) was an American blues, rhythm and blues, and rock and roll singer and songwriter. His biggest hits, " C. C. Rider" (1957) and " What Am I Living For" (1958), both reached No.1 on the '' ...

, and

Faye Adams Faye Adams (born Fanny Tuell, May 22, 1923), who also performed under the stage names Faye Scruggs and Fannie Jones, is an American former singer who recorded and performed gospel and rhythm and blues. She had several chart hits in the early 19 ...

, and recorded for the Dot label until early 1954 when their contract ended and Jimmy Griffin left to form his own band. George R. White, Robert L. Campbell, and Tom Kelly, ''The Chess Label Part II (1953-1955)''
Campber.people.clemson.edu, Retrieved 30 June 2013 He later recorded briefly and unsuccessfully for

Atco Records ATCO Records is an American record label founded in 1955. It is owned by Warner Music Group and operates as an imprint of Atlantic Records. After several decades of dormancy and infrequent activity under alternating Warner Music labels, the com ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. Buddy Griffin signed for

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock an ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, and had a minor R&B hit in 1955, "I Wanna Hug Ya, Kiss Ya, Squeeze Ya", with Claudia Swann, credited as Buddy & Claudia with the Buddy Griffin Orchestra.Joel Whitburn, ''Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004'', p.57 The band members were "Silly Willie" Wilson (trombone), Chuck Reeves (alto and baritone saxes), Earl Swanson (tenor sax), Lawrence Burgan (bass), and Courtney Brooks (drums). Later recordings were credited to Buddy Griffin and Claudia Swann, and some featured

The Moonglows The Moonglows were an American R&B group in the 1950s. Their song " Sincerely" went to number 1 on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart and number 20 on the ''Billboard'' Juke Box chart. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. ...

as backing vocalists. Buddy Griffin and his wife, Kaye worked in real estate in

for thirty years before his death in 1981.

References

{{Authority control American rhythm and blues musical groups Ekko Records artists Dot Records artists