William Hargis Bowman, Jr. (April 21, 1941 – February 22, 2011), better known by his stage name Beau Dollar, was an American soul vocalist and drummer for King Records. He performed on many studio albums for various artists under contract with King, including

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

. His most prominent work was performed as "Beau Dollar & The Dapps" and "Beau Dollar & The Coins".

Career

Beau Dollar & The Dapps were formed in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

in 1965, where they often played the famous Living Room nightclub. The band consisted of Bowman, Eddie Setser, Charles Summers, Tim Heding, Ron Geisman, Les Asch, and David Parkinson.Thompson, Dave. ''Funk''. Dave Thompson (2001), pp. 3–4. The band found success after being discovered by James Brown the same year they were formed. Under Brown's direction, the band produced their first single, "It's A Gas". However, Brown's long-running dispute with King caused the single to be shelved. At the same time, the band also worked with

Hank Ballard Hank Ballard (born John Henry Kendricks; November 18, 1927 – March 2, 2003) was an American singer and songwriter, the lead vocalist of The Midnighters and one of the first rock and roll artists to emerge in the early 1950s. He played an inte ...

, who had left

The Midnighters The Midnighters were an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan. They were an influential group in the 1950s and early 1960s, with many Rhythm and blues, R&B hit records. They were also notable for launching the career of lead singer Hank B ...

in search of solo success. In 1967, they released two singles, "Bringing Up The Guitar" and "

There Was a Time "There Was a Time" is a song written and performed by James Brown. Release history "There Was a Time" was recorded in June 1967 during a live performance at the Apollo Theater in a medley with " Let Yourself Go" and "I Feel All Right", and was ...

". The single "There Was a Time", with "The Rabbit Got the Gun" on the B-side, featured saxophonist Alfred Ellis and it "bubbled under" the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at No. 103 in 1968. The Dapps eventually broke up in 1969. Brown replaced the band with

The Pacesetters The Pacemakers were a late-1960s American funk group that consisted of bassist William "Bootsy" Collins, his older brother Phelps "Catfish" Collins on guitar, Philippé Wynne on vocals, and drummer Will Jackson (later replaced by Frankie "Kash ...

, who eventually became The J.B.'s. Beau Dollar & The Coins had some success with " Soul Serenade" in 1966 (a cover of the

King Curtis Curtis Ousley (born Curtis Montgomery; February 7, 1934 – August 13, 1971), known professionally as King Curtis, was an American saxophonist who played rhythm and blues, jazz, and rock and roll. A bandleader, band member, and session musicia ...

1964 single). Beau Dollar's only solo credited song was "Who Knows" (which is believed to have been backed by The Dapps) in 1970. Beau Dollar also played with

Lonnie Mack Lonnie McIntosh (July 18, 1941 – April 21, 2016), known as Lonnie Mack, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was an influential trailblazer of blues rock music and rock guitar soloing. Mack emerged in 1963 with his breakthroug ...

in the early 1960s. Beau Dollar died on February 22, 2011, at age 69.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dollar, Beau African-American drummers American rock drummers American soul singers American rock singers 1941 births 2011 deaths 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people