|
Vocal Group Hall of Fame
-- inducted 2000
Ben E. King began his career while still
a high-school student singing in a doo-wop group, the Four B's. He later
joined The Five Crowns who, in 1959, assumed the name The Drifters. King was the featured lead vocalist and occasional composer on several of their recordings including "There Goes My Baby" and "Save The Last Dance For Me" (written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman).
 After leaving the group in 1960, he recorded the
classic single "Spanish Harlem" (1961), which maintained the
Latin quality of the Drifters' work and deservedly reached the US Top
10. The follow-up, "Stand By Me" (1961), was even more
successful and was followed by further hits, including "Amor"
(1961) and "Don't Play That Song" (1962).
Throughout this period, King's work was aimed
increasingly at the pop audience. "I (Who Have Nothing)" and
"I Could Have Danced All Night" (both 1963) suggested show
business, and Bert Berns' "It's All Over" (1964) was a superb
song.
"Seven Letters" and "The Record (Baby I
Love You)" (both 1965) prepared the way for the rhetorical
"What Is Soul?" (1967), which effectively placed King
alongside such soul contemporaries as Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett
and Joe Tex. King later re-signed with his former company and secured a US Top 5 hit in 1975 with "Supernatural Thing Part 1." In 1977, a collaboration with the
Average White Band
resulted in two R&B chart entries and an excellent album, "Benny And Us."
King's later recordings included "Music
Trance" (1980) and "Street Tough" (1981). He briefly
joined up with Johnny Moore in a version of the Drifters, still plying
their trade on the cabaret circuit. In 1986, "Stand By Me" was
included in a film of the same name, reaching the US Top 10 and number 1
in the UK.
Hit songs include --
- Stand By Me
- Supernatural Thing
- Don't Play That Song (You Lied)
- Do It In The Name of Love
- Music Trance
- Amor
- Spanish Harlem
- Seven Letters
- I (Who Have Nothing)
- How Can I Forget
- I Had A Love
- The Record (Baby I Love You)
- A Star in the Ghetto
- Tell Daddy
- Tears, Tears, Tears
- I Swear By The Stars Above
- What Is Soul?
- Don't Take Your Love From Me
- First Taste of Love
- Ecstasy
Ben E. King may be available for your next special event!
For booking information, click
HERE!
Genre: R&B
Styles:
.Classic Rock.
.Early Pop/Rock.
.Soul.
.Brill Building Pop.
.Early R&B.
.Pop-Soul.
.AM Pop.Years active:
..60s, ..70s
Born: ..in North Carolina
..in Henderson
Sep 23, 1938 |