User:Willgee/sandbox

The Twist
According to the book "The Twist", by Jim Dawson,musician and bandleader Dave Appell,working for Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe's Cameo-Parkway Records of Philadelphia, wanted to record a version of The Midnighters'hit ,"The Twist." Although Ballard was credited as the sole writer of the song, it's origins allegedly went back further that that. In the summer of 1960, while serving as bandleader of Cameo-Parkway's house band, Appell wanted to re-record the song, as he saw the song as having hit potential. In the meantime, Dick Clark, the host of ABC's American Bandstand, also noticed how local white teens in Philly were dancing to Hank and The Midnighters' original, and felt exactly the same as Appell. He saw the Twist as being a potential goldmine, a national smash hit and a big money-maker for him if handled the right way. But, having no literal or financial connection to The Midnighters' record label, Cincinatti- based King Records, Clark had no way to capitalize on The Midnighters' song. In addition,the group's reputation for raunchy R&B tunes and risque live performances made them too big a risk to appear on his national dance party show. (What was not known to many at the time, was the fact that Clark was a silent partner in Cameo-Parkway and several other record companies). So, a secret deal was struck between Clark and King Records president Syd Nathan. In exchange for letting one of his Cameo Parkway artists, one with a more wholesome, "family friendly" image that would not offend his T.V. audience or the show's sponsors record "The Twist" (and one that would result in big profits for his Philadelphia-based label, Clark would give heavy promotion and airplay to 2 of The Midnighters records, "Finger Popping Time", and Let's Go, Let's Go, Let's Go on American Bandstand, which would make for big profits for Nathan's label.Thus, The Midnighters would lose out on the big financial windfall that "The Twist" would provide,but would still have big hits with two of their other songs ,providing them with more lucrative bookings, and extra publishing income to Syd Nathan for licensing The Twist to Clark's company. But, where to find such a singer?

None of this info,of course, was known to the general public at the time, which was probably a good thing,because Clark had interest and part ownership of several record companies back then, which put him and several other popular Disc Jockeys under investigation by the Federal Government during the infamous "payola" scandals of the late 1950's due to conflict of interest.As the popular host of American Bandstand,Clark could and did give airplay and exposure to artists that recorded

King Records put "The Twist" on the B-side of a ballad called "Teardrops on Your Letter," one reason rock historians say it did not achieve big success. But the Midnighters still performed it, and after seeing them in Baltimore, teens in the audience took the dance to Buddy Deane's TV dance show -- immortalized in "Hairspray" as "The Corny Collins Show." Deane told Dick Clark he should have the Midnighters on "American Bandstand," but though most accounts say Clark invited the group, for unknown reasons, that never happened. So Clark found a singer and impersonator named Ernest Evans who could imitate Ballard's voice, renamed him Chubby Checker, and released his own recording of "The Twist."

Pure Dynamite !
James Brown and The Famous Flames soon became known for their explosive live performances across America...in venues such as The Royal Theatre in Baltimore, The Regal Theatre in Chicago,the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, The Howard Theatre in Washington D.C.,and the famed Apollo Theatre in New York, where they routinely shattered all previous attendance records.The group's dynamic live performances across the country rarely failed in bringing audiences to states of frenzy.

=Johnny Terry=

Johnny Terry was an American singer, songwriter, and choreographer, notable as an original (but not founding) member of the R&B/Soul,Doo Wop vocal group The Famous Flames. He is also noted as the writer or co-writer of several hit singles,among them The Flames' first million-selling 1956 hit song, "Please Please Please"- credited to James Brown & The Famous Flames In 2012 .He was posthumously inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Famous Flames''.

Little info is available on the internet concerning Terry's early life. In his 1988 autobiography,"James Brown-The Godfather of Soul" (co-written with Bruce Tucker) Brown stated that Terry was actually his cell-mate in juvenile prison back in the early fifties. When Famous Flames founder Bobby Byrd recruited Brown for his vocal group, The Flames, Terry, released a short time later, also joined shortly thereafter.

Also, according to Famous Flame Bobby Bennett in a 2012 interview for Goldmine magazine, Terry was the uncredited writer for many songs credited solely to James Brown, including Papa's Got a Brand New Bag,

The Midnighters Awards

 * * Vocal Group Hall of Fame (inducted 1999)


 * * Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (The Midnighters-inducted 2012)
 * * Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Ballard only-1990)


 * * Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame


 * * Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame (Hank Ballard & The Midnighters-inducted 2015)