Caleb Nathaniel Ginyard Jr. (possibly, January 15, 1910 – August 11, 1978), known as Junior Caleb "J. C." Ginyard, was an American gospel and

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

singer and songwriter who performed with various vocal groups between the 1930s and 1970s, including the Royal Harmony Singers, the Jubalaires and

the Du Droppers The Du Droppers were an American doo-wop group formed in Harlem, New York, in 1952. Members of the band were experienced gospel singers in ensembles dated to the 1940s, and were one of the oldest groups to record during the era. Among the Du Dro ...

. There is some uncertainty over his birth date and name. The ''Encyclopedia of South Carolina Jazz and Blues Musicians'' suggests, on the basis of U.S. Census information, that he was born in 1908 in Calhoun County, South Carolina, though he always claimed a birth date in January 1910. He was probably born Caleb Nathaniel Ginyard, but he was also noted as Junior Caleb (J.C.) Ginyard (his father being Caleb Ginyard Sr.) or as Julius Caleb Ginyard. Eugene Chadbourne, "Julius Caleb Ginyard: Biography", ''Allmusic.com''
Retrieved September 3, 2016 He got the name Ginyard from his father, who was a slave in South Carolina, where he got this name from his slave boss. He sang in his church as a youth before becoming a professional singer as a tenor (later

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

). He started his singing career as one of the founders of the Royal Harmony Singers in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1936. They moved to Philadelphia in 1941.Karen Caplan, "The Jubalaires", United in Harmony Association Hall of Fame, April 4, 1998
Retrieved September 3, 2016 The group worked on the Arthur Godfrey radio show in New York and later renamed their group as the Jubalaires, appearing in several movies and

short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

s. In 1947 Ginyard left the Jubalaires to form a new group, the Dixieaires, who remained together with a varying membership until the mid-1950s. In 1952, Ginyard also formed secular vocal group

. The group recorded "Can't Do Sixty No More", and had two hit records in 1953, "I Wanna Know" and "I Found Out (What You Do When You Go 'Round There)". All were either written or co-written by Ginyard. The Du-Droppers, ''Discogs.com''
Retrieved September 2, 2016 He left both the Du Droppers and Dixieaires in 1955, and joined the Golden Gate Quartet. After work entertaining US troops, the group settled in Europe in 1959. In 1971, Ginyard left the group and settled in Basel, Switzerland, where he died in 1978 at the age of 68. He was married to Janie Elnora, née Flowers in USA having five children and also to Gunilla in Sweden having two children.

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Caleb N. Ginyard
at Gospel-Lexikon {{DEFAULTSORT:Ginyard, Caleb N 20th-century births 1978 deaths People from St. Matthews, South Carolina 20th-century American singers Singer-songwriters from South Carolina