HANK BALLARD & THE MIDNIGHTERS, "THAT LOW DOWN MOVE" C/W "(I'M GOIN' BACK TO) THE HOUSE ON THE HILL," KING 5719 (REL. 3/1963)

Hank Ballard was one of King Records’ mainstays for over a decade. The Detroit-born singer, songwriter, showman and bandleader joined a Johnny Otis-connected group, The Royals, and began making records for King’s Federal imprint in 1951. The group created an early scandal with their 1953 single “Get It”—a blatant slice of carnal delight that many radio stations refused to play. The record got into the r&b Top 10 despite—or, perhaps, due to—its notoriety.

That year, the group changed its name to The Midnighters. The “5” Royales, then Apollo Records artists (tho’ they’d join King in 1954) caused name confusion amongst fans. (The Midnighters is a much cooler name!) Their string of hits then began in earnest. “Work with Me, Annie,” a revision of “Get It,” topped the r&b charts and, again, caused shock and scandal in the Black music community. To the shock of the white squares, it appealing to teenagers who hungered for something a tad stronger than Perry Como. The Midnighters supplied hard-hitting, well-rehearsed vocal group material and the success of this record led to an “Annie” saga. Her story continued with “Annie Had a Baby,” “Annie’s Aunt Fannie” and a song featuring her boyfriend, “Henry’s Got Flat Feet (Can’t Dance No More).”

The group racked up seven Top 20 r&b hits into 1955. Then came a fallow period. Though their records sold in respectable quantities to fans and were on every jukebox that catered to Black clientele, they were pushed off the charts by younger groups who had been inspired to make music by The Midnighters’ early example. This was to be expected in the record world; new acts, given enough success, become old-hat as audiences come and go.

King had great faith in Ballard and his group and let them do their thing. Their records are always engaging and enjoyable—even when they recycle elements from earlier work. 1959 saw them on the charts again with the monumental ballad "Teardrops on Your Letter.” The B-side charted even higher. It was a little throwaway called “The Twist”—a record that launched a cultural phenomenon during the Kennedy presidency. When Philadelphia singer Chubby Checker covered this flipside and took it to the top of the charts two times (in 1960 and ’61), a mania emerged. Every mother and his brother made twist records; old r&b sides were repackaged as “Twist With [Name of Artist];” Dell Comics published a one-shot title called The Twist. This mild dance move appealed to toddlers, grannies and everyone in-between and became a national plague. Beatlemania stopped it in its tracks, though some twisted to the Liverpool lads’ hit singles as well.

By this time, Ballard and The Midnighters’ sound had changed. Hints of soul music are heard in their early 1960s singles, including today’s platter, released in 1963. The intended A-side was a sequel to their 1960 hit “Let’s Go, Let’s Go, Let’s Go” (#6 pop, #1 r&b), but the real action’s on the flip.

“The New Low Down” opens with martial drums and Ballard’s rhythmic spoken-word preface. Then a killer groove emerges as Hank explains that the twist and other dance crazes are passé. The house band is on fire: that drummer delivers a prize-worthy performance, abetted by a throaty sax. This is a solo vocal performance by Ballard, whose clear, passionate voice rings the rafters. A creepy organ enters the scene late in the record, because why not?

This is a perfect example of where Ballard’s head was at in the transitional period into soul music. All the elements are there: a starker presentation, persuasive percussion and a riveting groove. Were Ballard’s voice higher in the mix, and a horn section there to blat out a harmonized riff, you’d have a great 1966 soul side. Records like this one helped usher in this change in Black music, which happened over several years and hundreds of singles and LP tracks.

>>> Hear it HERE! <<<

Cash Box and I agree re "That Low Down Move--" tho' they got the title wrong in the review.

“(I’m Goin’ Back to) The House on the Hill” is a gospel-tinged, almost rueful sequel to the big 1960 hit. Gone is the jubilee of fierce harmonies and hard, fast rhythms. The languor suggests that the narrator has visited said house one time too many; the high life has taken its toll on his corpus vivendi. Still, he gropes for his dancing shoes and declares he’s still trudging uphill to enjoy another night of hedonistic fun.

He sounds a bit worse for the wear, as if he’s trying to psych himself out of bed, shake off a lingering hangover and trundle home at dawn, worse for the wear and feeling old and tired. I have no idea if that was the intent of songwriter Rudolph Toombs (who also co-penned the other side), but that’s the vibe of this arrangement. “I’m goin’ back if it kills me!” the narrator seems to say.

>>> Hear it HERE! <<<

Ballard split from The Midnighters in 1965 and continued as a solo act. He embraced soul and funk and his later singles reflect the mood of their time. He collaborated with label-mate James Brown and, late in his career, joined the disco movement with the very 1979 song “Freak Your Boom-Boom.”

Fun Fact: Hank’s cousin Florence Ballard was a member of Motown hitmakers The Supremes.

Ballard re-created The Midnighters in the late 1980s and rode the Boomer nostalgia circuit until 2002. Health issues caused his retirement; he passed on in 2003 from throat cancer. In tribute, Germany’s Bear Family Records issued a five-CD box set of his Federal and King material from 1951-1962, Nothing but Good. That’s an apt title.

Tomorrow: before he hit big with 1965’s “Down in the Boondocks,” Billy Joe Royal was just another Atlanta, GA singer trying to make it. A 1962 single with songs and production by Joe South will be heard.