Others assumed Ward was doing the lead singing. McPhatter often found himself billed as "Clyde Ward" to fool fans into thinking he was Billy Ward's little brother. Allegedly, Ward paid his singers $100 a week (US$1,094 in 2022 dollars ), minus deductions for taxes, food and hotel bills. "Whenever I'd get back on the block where everybody'd heard my records-half the time I couldn't afford a Coca-Cola," according to McPhatter. Clyde McPhatter was being paid barely enough to live on, even though most of the Dominoes' success was due to McPhatter's soaring vocal abilities. The name "The Dominoes" was owned by Ward and Marks, who had the power to hire and fire and to pay the singers a salary.
#The white door dominos code#
Article 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice gives a unit commander authority to mete a certain amount of punishment to troops under his or her command without going through a court-martial, which includes fines (partial forfeiture of pay). You better believe it! You paid a fine if you stepped out of line." Ward most likely got the idea of levying fines against group members from his tenure in the military. He knew what he wanted, and you had to give it to him. He played piano and organ, could arrange, and he was a fine director and coach. Jackie Wilson recalled, "Billy Ward was not an easy man to work for. Ward is remembered as a petty tyrant who levied fines against group members for infractions, including arriving late for rehearsals and wearing un-shined shoes on stage.
However, Ward's strict disciplinarian approach, and failure to recompense the singers, caused internal problems. The group toured widely, building up a reputation as one of the top R&B acts of the era, edging out the Five Keys and the Clovers (two of the top R&B groups of the early 1950s) and commanding audiences which crossed racial divides. The recording "opened the door for other sexually forthright records, planting the seed for songs like Hank Ballard's "Work with me Annie", Etta James' "Roll with Me Henry" and other future hits". Its success on the pop charts indicated that R&B cross over was certainly possible. It arguably coined the very name of this new type of music: rock and roll". One source summarized the song's appeal: it "contains "rebelliousness, unsubtle sexuality, and a steady rhythm. In later years, it became a contender for the title of " first rock 'n' roll record". It was an important record in several respects-it crossed the boundaries between gospel singing and blues, its lyrics pushed the limits of what was deemed acceptable, and it appealed to many white as well as black listeners. It reached number 1 on the R&B chart in May 1951 and stayed there for 14 weeks, and crossed over to the pop charts, reaching number 17 and voted "Song of the Year" of 1951.
Īfter a less successful follow-up, the group released " Sixty Minute Man", on which Brown sang lead, and boasted of being able to satisfy his girls with fifteen minutes each of "kissin'" "teasin'" and "squeezin'", before "blowin'" his "top". Their first single release, "Do Something For Me", with McPhatter's lead vocal, reached the R&B charts in early 1951, climbing to number 6. After the group made successful appearances on talent shows in the Apollo Theater and on the Arthur Godfrey show in 1950, Rene Hall recommended them to Ralph Bass of Federal Records, a subsidiary of King, where they were signed to a recording contract and renamed themselves the Dominoes. Ward acted as their pianist and arranger. The group was at first called the Ques, composed of Clyde McPhatter (lead tenor), whom Ward recruited after McPhatter won "Amateur Night" at the Apollo Theater, Charlie White ( tenor), Joe Lamont ( baritone), and Bill Brown ( bass). The pair set out to form a vocal group from the ranks of his students, hoping to cash in on the new trend of vocal quintets in R&B. While working as a vocal coach and part-time arranger on Broadway, he met talent agent Rose Marks, who became his business and songwriting partner.
Following military service with the Coast Guard Artillery Choir, he studied music in Chicago, and at the Juilliard School of Music in New York, a rare achievement for Black musicians at the time. Williams, September 19, 1921, Savannah, Georgia, died February 16, 2002, Inglewood, California ) grew up in Philadelphia, the second of three sons of Charles Williams and Cora Bates Williams, and was a child musical prodigy, winning an award for a piano composition at the age of 14. One of the most successful R&B groups of the early 1950s, the Dominoes helped launch the singing careers of two notable members, Clyde McPhatter and Jackie Wilson. Billy Ward and his Dominoes were an American R&B vocal group.
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