Gregory Carroll, "Stand By Me" c/w "Wa Ding Dung Do," Epic 5-9416 (rel. 9/1960)
No, Virginia, it's not that "Stand By Me!" And it's a solo record by Gregory Carroll, ex-member of Black vocal group The Ravens and a prolific songwriter who often worked by Doris Payne, BKA Doris Troy.
Columbia signed him as a solo act and put out one single each on OKeh and Epic, their subsidiaries for music they didn't want to sully their main label with; thus, there's more interesting music on those labels than on Columbia proper.
Larry Harrison, who ran in the same songwriting crowd as Carroll, Luther Dixon and other New York cleffers, co-wrote "Stand By Me," which is nothing like the iconic song recorded by Ben E. King in 1961. Just one of those coincidences, and proof that a good song title has many lives.
This "Stand By Me" is an uplifting piece of pop-r&b with Carroll's appealing voice in a punchy arrangement with a gospel-style vocal chorus that may include Doris Payne, who did session work to help keep the lights on. There are, indeed, loads of teen beat joy and rhythmic drive here. A bootin' sax solo helps matters. Layered handclaps add to the feel-good excitement. Had Columbia known what to do with Black artists, they might have promoted this into a pop hit--and an easy mark for the r&b charts. But...
Columbia signed him as a solo act and put out one single each on OKeh and Epic, their subsidiaries for music they didn't want to sully their main label with; thus, there's more interesting music on those labels than on Columbia proper.
Larry Harrison, who ran in the same songwriting crowd as Carroll, Luther Dixon and other New York cleffers, co-wrote "Stand By Me," which is nothing like the iconic song recorded by Ben E. King in 1961. Just one of those coincidences, and proof that a good song title has many lives.
This "Stand By Me" is an uplifting piece of pop-r&b with Carroll's appealing voice in a punchy arrangement with a gospel-style vocal chorus that may include Doris Payne, who did session work to help keep the lights on. There are, indeed, loads of teen beat joy and rhythmic drive here. A bootin' sax solo helps matters. Layered handclaps add to the feel-good excitement. Had Columbia known what to do with Black artists, they might have promoted this into a pop hit--and an easy mark for the r&b charts. But...
Cash Box seemed more savvy marketers than the record companies pretended to be; they wielded influence, but without promotional effort by the labels, a good record seldom went far in this competitive and often corrupt world of backroom deals.
"Wa Ding Dung Do" is Carroll's own competition, and seems aimed at the teen pop market. Nonsense syllables act as part of an algebraic formula meant to express the intensity of teenage emotions and hormonal desires. "All these words are just for you," Carroll sings in a song that sustains the longstanding tradition of nonsense-endearments in pop music.
This was Gregory Carroll's last solo recording. He did well as a songwriter and producer. He and Doris Troy hit the pop charts with their classic "Just One Look," the first of five classic singles for Atlantic Records that exemplify the gradual shift from rhythm and blues into soul music in the 1960s.
Tomorrow: Nino Tempo delivers a pair of delightful teen rockers with Henry Mancini's combo on a sought-after 1958 RCA Victor platter. Such energy!
Tomorrow: Nino Tempo delivers a pair of delightful teen rockers with Henry Mancini's combo on a sought-after 1958 RCA Victor platter. Such energy!
Never heard these before--thanks, Frank! Co-writer of "Just One Look"! That's such a great song. Strong, smooth lead vocals on these two tracks...rich-sounding, economical recordings...tight band. Love the bass playing, too. I find the BG vocals a little intrusive but that's a matter of taste I guess. Overall the feel of these recordings are to my ear a little reminiscent of some of the Jimmy Jones and Roy Hamilton hits of that stretch...bouncy, rollicking, playful, and "up." PS: I'm having trouble posting a comment on Safari so I tried Chrome here to see if that was the issue.
ReplyDeleteHi Dean! It's always a pleasure to get your thoughts. Yes, Jimmy Jones: quite similar vibe. I don't mind Black vocal choruses on r&b records. It's when they stick The Whitey Whitebread Singers in that I get annoyed. These choruses could always be mixed down more than they are, but...(insert shrug emoji here).
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