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Can Soul Singles be of historical value
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The Delcos - Short But Sweet The Delcos were from South Bend, Indiana and all attended South Bend Central High where they all knew each other. By 1962 though, they had all graduated from school when they formed the group. The original members were: Peter Woodard (first and second tenor), Pike Miller (first tenor), Richard Greene (second tenor, baritone), and Otis Smith (bass), and James Thomas (Tenor) After only a few months, however, they decided that Pike Miller wasn't fitting in and he was asked to leave. He was briefly replaced by his brother, Gilbert, who then also left The group recorded a whole album of songs, but they were not of sufficient quality to be released having been recorded as rehearsals rather than the finished product recorded in a studio. It was then that Glenn Madison, who knew the rest of the group from school joined, at the same time, James Thomas left and was replaced by Ralph Woods. In October 1962, the Delcos recorded their first release at the studio of radio station WSBT ‘Arabia / These Three Little Words’. Their manager, Juanita Henson's formed her own label to release the single; Ebony Records. Realising that she might have a hit on her hands Juanita Henson went to Monument Records in Nashville with the hope of better promotion for the single. However Monument had other ideas.
They re-cut both tracks with the group backed by the Boots Randolph Orchestra. The new recording was a far more professional effort, but to me lost the magic of the original Released on the Showcase label (A subsidiary of Monument) in February 1963, it was too late. Any impetus gained from the October ’62 Ebony release was gone, and although the group had regional hits, and gained a lot of work from the single, it wasn’t enough to secure their future. Incidentally, the Showcase single was released as a white demo, and then on blue, green, and red labels with the title of the flip side changed from ‘These Three Little Words’ to ‘Those Three Little Words’. A follow up single was released on Showcase, with a final release on Sound Stage (Which was another Monument subsidiary.) A mystery presents itself here though. Sound Stage 7 2501 is listed as ‘Arabia / Those Three Little Words’. However, I can find no evidence that this single was ever released, so if you know different get in touch. The group eventually broke up when Glenn Madison was drafted for Vietnam, and never got back together again. Discography
The
Delcos
(members
Peter Woodard
(first and second tenor), Pike Miller (first tenor), Richard
Greene (second tenor, baritone), and Otis Smith (bass), and
James Thomas (Tenor) My Guardian
Angel (Unreleased on vinyl at the time of recording) Glenn
Madison (The
label credits Glenn Madison as a solo singer, but the whole
group were on the recording) The
Delcos CD Crystal
Ball 1035 - Boy Could They Sing
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