The Isley Brothers were a band on the Billboard Top 40 charts for fifty years. Their ability to synthesize R&B, soul, funk, disco, and rock & roll elements into their discography made the group electrifying and interesting. The band was important to the creation of the soul … Read MoreThe Isley Brothers (1957-1984)
The Delfonics, an R&B vocal band whose founding members were William “Poogie” Hart, Wilbert Hart, Randy Cain, Ritchie Daniels, and arranger/ producer Thom Bell, formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the late 1960s. They are credited with significantly contributing to the development of the Philadelphia sound … Read MoreThe Delfonics (1966-1975)
The Commodores were a rhythm and blues/ funk group popular throughout the 1970s and 1980s and one of the most successful acts signed to Motown records. They produced numerous chart-topping and award-winning records. Lionel Richie, their lead vocalist, attained superstardom after leaving to pursue a … Read MoreLionel Richie and the Commodores (1967- )
In 1964, seven friends from Jersey City, New Jersey, including Robert “Kool” Bell on bass and his brother Ronald Bell on keyboards, decided to perform together as an instrumental jazz and soul group named the Jazziacs. The other original members included Robert Mickens on trumpet, … Read MoreKool and the Gang (1964- )
The Coasters began on September 28, 1955, in Los Angeles, California after four of six members from another singing group, The Robins, broke off to start this new group. Bobby Nunn and Carl Gardner, leading vocalists of The Robins, were convinced by the up-and-coming composing/managing … Read MoreThe Coasters (1955- )
Hank Ballard and the Midnighters was a rhythm and blues band that were a major influence on the rock and roll genre beginning in the 1950s. They recorded a number of hugely popular songs and were known as the most risqué R&B group of their … Read MoreHank Ballard and the Midnighters (1950-1965); (Hank Ballard 1927-2003)
The Platters was one of the most successful rhythm and blues vocal groups during the rock and roll era. They began in Los Angeles, California and were initially managed by Ralph Bass at Federal Records. The original band consisted of Alex Hodge, Cornell Gunter, David … Read MoreThe Platters (1953- )
Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers began in 1954 as a singing group founded at Edward W. Stitt Junior High School in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan (New York City, New York) by second tenor Jimmy Merchant and bass Sherman Garnes. They initially called themselves the Earth Angels. Eventually they added lead singer, Herman Santiago, and … Read MoreFrankie Lymon and The Teenagers (1954-1957)
Boyz II Men is one of the most successful R&B male groups of all time. Originally called Unique Attraction, the group was formed in 1988 by Nathan Morris and Mare Nelson at the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Morris and Nelson met with Wanya Morris, … Read MoreBoyz II Men (1988- )
The Chi-Lites is an R&B and Soul vocal group from Chicago, Illinois who rose up to fame in the early 1970s. The group was formed at Hyde Park High School in Chicago in 1959 by its original members, Eugene Record, Robert Lester, and Clarence Johnson. The group originally went … Read MoreThe Chi-Lites (1959- )
