Reflections in Black and White

Why color doesn’t matter

Some music reactors thought Bobby Caldwell, the Righteous Brothers and Timi Yuro were black – until they saw them perform. This writer got a similar surprise way back in elementary school. Barry Campbell, a great mimic, would walk about singing “Get a Job” by the Silhouettes, “Who Wrote the Book of Love” by the Monotones, and other do-wop tunes. I thought the singers were pale people like Barry, but as Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand” revealed, the Silhouettes and Montones were all black. As I came to see, it wasn’t so for other groups.

The Del-Vikings, performers of “Come Go With Me,” were black and white. That was also true of the Marcels, performers of “Blue Moon.” Same goes for the Impalas on “I Ran All the Way Home,” and the Crests on “Sixteen Candles,” with the great Johnny Maestro on the lead vocal. On the other hand, I was certain that Danny Williams, performer of “White on White,” was of that same skin shade. In fact, Williams was a black man once hailed as Britain’s Johnny Mathis.

Many years after “Sea of Love” hit the charts, I discovered that vocalist Phil Phillips was black. I thought the same of Johnny Otis, who scored a hit with “Willie and the Hand Jive,” in 1958. Years later I learned that Johnny Otis was Ioannis Alexandres Veliotes, son of Greek immigrants, who one day simply decided he would be black. Talent and soul have no color, as young reactors point out, and many artists await their attention.

After seeing Goldfinger, Edwin Starr wrote “Agent Double-O Soul,” a hit with the dancing crowd. Many artists have performed Willie Nelson’s “Funny How Time Slips Away,” but nobody takes it home like Joe Hinton. Dobie Gray’s “Drift Away” is a favorite with reactors, who should know that Dobie also took on “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” first performed by The Band. Like Levon Helm, Dobie knows the song is all about the suffering of war, and he’s feeling it. While reactions await, check out The Band and the Staples Singers on “The Weight.” They might just take a load for free.

Some reactors have detected the practice of lip-synching but there’s a back story here. On “American Bandstand” and other shows, the kids wanted to hear the songs exactly as on the record. What they were hearing was a live performance in the studio, with no recording tricks. That is why the performers sound just as good live. Consider Bobby Hatfield on “Summertime” and “Unchained Melody.” Here he is with Righteous Brother Bill Medley on their original “Little Latin Lupe Lu,” and with the Blossoms on “Night Time is the Right Time,” first recorded by the great Ray Charles in 1958. By many accounts, Ray’s best live performance came six weeks after the massive attack of September 11, 2001.

On October 28, 2001 in Phoenix, before a World Series game between the New York Yankees and Arizona Diamondbacks, Ray Charles performed “America the Beautiful.” Three years later the great genius left us. Rest in peace, Brother Ray, and thanks for the memories.