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All good things come to an end and the UGHA 25th Anniversary weekend was winding down on Sunday. Sunday might be called a "Collector's Show" because their certainly were some really great "Collector's Groups". At the least, they put on an incredible show from start to finish. In the opinion of this writer, Mr. Ray Pollard took top prize for the entire weekend. Every fan has their favorite singer/group but I have to believe that everyone would be in awe of Ray Pollard. He was just absolutely devastating. The Hurricanes came on, well, like a Hurricane and really took the house by surprise with some a great performance. Sunday was an incredible close to a monumental event. Let's hope for 25 more !!!!
MYSTIQUE
It's a pleasant change to have a female acapella group on the scene today and that's exactly Mystique brings to the stage. They hail from central NJ and are delivering some great sounds with their unique stylings. The ladies kicked off Sunday's show with "Rhythm & Blues", "Will You Love Me Tomorrow", "Stand By Me", "It's Alright", "Chapel of Love" and a rousing version of "Higher & Higher".
HURRICANES
One of the really great early Brooklyn groups. The Hurricanes were quite a polished group and should have a lot farther than they did, although they did appear in the motion picture, "Rockin the Blues" in 1955. The group was origianlly the Toppers on Jubilee who recorded "Baby Let Me Bang Your Box". They also recorded as the Memos on Memo records. They also backed up Jerry Dorn on his hit recording "Wishing Well".
The Hurricanes today consist of originals, Vernon Britton and Fred Williamson. They are augmented by Cornel Brown and the incredible lead of George Green. They really took the audience by surprised and kicked off their set with the rocking, "Pistol Packi' Mama". George Green is a newcomer to UGHA but it was obvious that he was no stranger to a stage and packs a strong voice. George led the group through "Little Dancing Girl", ""Yours", "Maybe It's All For the Best", "Raining in my Heart" and "Fallen Angel' . We hope to see these folks back real soon. They were outstanding!
ROYAL BLUE
Phildephia has long provided some great vocalists and today is no exception. Led by Courtney Bailey and Buzzy Garland, Royal Blue has combined some of the best vocalists Philly has to offer today. They offered songs that very few groups would ever attempt because there are very few Courtney Bailey's around today. Courtney kicked off their spot with an incredible rendition of "Lundee Dundee" originally recorded by Ricky Cordo & Versatiles (later the Majors). It just got better and better with each song. Courtney followed up with the Blue Note's "She's Mine" and hit notes that are still floating around the hall today. The group included several gospel numbers that were just awesome, "Jesus Is All Right With Me' and "I Dream't I Dwelt In Heaven". The group also did killer versions of "Foolish Me" and "In Each Corner of My Heart". A truly outstanding aggregation of top notch vocalists. Super job. Probably the very best accapella heard in these parts for quite awhile.
RAY POLLARD / SHEPS
Ray Pollard and the Wanderers started in Harlem in 1952 as the Barons. They were signed to Savoy records in 1954 and recorded one record as the Wanderers and then backed up Dolly Cooper on another Savoy disc. After Savoy they recorded for Decca as the Singing Wanderers. They signed with Onyx in 1957 as the Wanderers. When Onyx closed it's doors, they finished up with Cub and Orbit records. They left an incredible legacy of some of the most beautiful records ever recorded. Thanks to the incredible voice of Ray Pollard. They appeared in the movie "Rockin' The Blue". Ray did some work on Broadway in the 70's and appeared in "Purlie".
One of the truly great lead singers, "Ray The "Man".Pollard gave an inspired performance on Sunday and pretty much stole the show. Ray thrilled the audience with "I'll Never Smile Again", "No Greater Love", "Thinking of You", "Shadrack" and a rocking rendition of "When The Saint's Go Marching In".
CLIFTONAIRES
Most groups come together because one guy hooks up with another guy who wants to sing and so on. This group did not follow that typical route. They were hand picked by record producer Ronnie "I". Ronnie was tired of hearing sub standard CD's being put on the marketplace and wanted to produce a group "his way". He started by picking some of the best vocalists in the area so that he could produce a "quality" package. The nucleus of the group includes, John Clemente, Joel Katz, Phil Granito, Jack Scandura and Louis Vinci. Wayne Smith also subs with the group during live performances.
The group was in high gear on Sunday and dished out some "delicious' acapella, such as, "Wheel of Fortune", "Tonight and Forever", "I've Got a Feeling", "Time Makes You Change" and "All The Pretty Young Girls".
VELOURS
The Velours are considered one of the legendary NYC groups from the 1950's. The group formed in Bed-Sty Brooklyn in 1956. They auditioned for Jerry Winston and were signed to his Onyx label. Charles Moffit joined the group on Onyx 512 "Can I Come Over Tonite" which has become one of the truly great songs of all time. Charles Moffit reformed the Velours in the 1980's and appeared at the UGHA 10th Anniversary concert. He was murdered on his way home later that evening. Moffit was one of the great bass singers and we're fortunate that Eulis Mason and the other guys carries in the Velour's sound today.
Eulis is a great lead and does a fantastic job fronting the Velours. They closed the Sunday concert with some great tunes like, "Remember", "I'll Never Smile Again", "C'est La Vie", "I Apologize", "This Could Be The Nite", topped off by "Can I Come Over Tonight'.
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Mystique. |
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The Hurricanes. |
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Ronnie I chatting onstage with the Hurricanes. The man under the cowboy hat is original bass Vernon Britton and to his left is another original member, Fred Williamson. |
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The Hurricanes. |
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George Green, lead singer of the Hurricanes. |
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Royal Blue |
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Courtney Bailey, singing lead with Royal Blue |
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Royal Blue |
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Ray Pollard and Sheps. |
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Ray Pollard and Sheps. |
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Ray Pollard and Sheps. |
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Ray Pollard. |
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Ray Pollard. |
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Ray Pollard and Sheps. |
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Ray Pollard. |
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Ray Pollard. |
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Ray Pollard and Sheps. |
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The Velours |
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Eulis Mason, lead singer of the Velours. |
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The Velours |
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The Velours |
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Bill Witt, formerly sang with Paragons and Rocketones. |
