Little Jimmy Rivers & the Tops were an American

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

group from

Harlem, New York Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

, best remembered for their 1958 recording "Puppy Love" written by

Ronnie Mack Ronald Augustus Mack (July 11, 1940 – November 5, 1963)

(later the writer of "

He's So Fine "He's So Fine" is a song written by Ronnie Mack. It was recorded by The Chiffons who topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for four weeks in the spring of 1963. One of the most instantly recognizable golden oldies with its ''doo-lang doo-lang doo-la ...

"). The song became a local hit in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in 1961. Charlie Horner, "Little Jimmy & the Tops", ''ClassicUrbanHarmony.net'', 2016
Retrieved August 8, 2016 Sylvia Peterson, later of

The Chiffons :''The Chiffons also briefly recorded under the name The Four Pennies; for the British band of the latter name see The Four Pennies.'' The Chiffons are an American girl group originating from the Bronx, a borough of New York City, in 1960. Hist ...

, sang with Little Jimmy & the Tops, sharing lead vocals with Jimmy on "Say You Love Me," the B-side of "Puppy Love."

History

The group originated in Harlem in the mid-1950s as the Young Lads, comprising Vernon Rivers (b. c.1941), his younger brother Jimmy Rivers (b. c.1944), Eddie Bonelli (b.1941) and Louis Brown. The Rivers brothers were both born in

Bishopville, South Carolina Bishopville is a town in Lee County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 3,471 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Lee County. Geography Bishopville is located at (34.219027, -80.248877) near Lee State Park. According t ...

, moving to New York around 1953; Bonelli and Brown were both from New York. They soon replaced Brown with bass singer Moses Groves (b. 1941,

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

), and began rehearsing and performing their own songs, many of which were co-written by their friend Ronnie Mack. Mack played piano with the group and acted as their mentor, suggesting that they add a girl singer, Sylvia Peterson (born September 30, 1946). "Little Jimmy & The Tops", ''Doo-Wop Groups''
Retrieved 9 August 2016
Retrieved 9 August 2016 They changed their name to Four Bees and a Gee (for four boys and a girl), and performed in talent shows at the

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

and elsewhere. At Mack's suggestion, they auditioned for

Richie Barrett Richard Barrett (July 14, 1933 – August 3, 2006), also known as Richie Barrett, was an American singer, record producer, and songwriter. Biography Barrett was born in Philadelphia in 1933. He was an early fifties successful independent black ...

Gone Records Gone Records was a record label founded in 1957 by George Goldner, along with music publishing arm Real Gone Music, that was active in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Among the artists that recorded for the label were Bill Haley & His Comets, Ral D ...

. Barrett proposed that they be renamed the Tops, and arranged for them to record two of Mack's songs, "Puppy Love" and "Say You Love Me", with

Dave "Baby" Cortez David Cortez Clowney (born August 13, 1938), known by the stage name Dave "Baby" Cortez, is an American pop and R&B organist and pianist, best known for his 1959 hit, " The Happy Organ". Life and career Clowney was born in Detroit, Michigan, Un ...

on organ. The record was first released in late 1958 or early 1959 on the V-Tone label in Philadelphia, possibly because of Barrett's connections with V-Tone's owner, Venton "Buddy" Caldwell. It was subsequently reissued on several other small labels, credited to Little Jimmy Rivers and the Tops or sometimes Little Jimmy and the Tops. The record found little initial success. Bonelli left the group in 1960, and Peterson also left, being replaced by Pat Smith (a niece of saxophonist

Red Prysock Wilburt "Red" Prysock (February 2, 1926 – July 19, 1993) was an American R&B tenor saxophonist, one of the early Coleman Hawkins-influenced saxophonists to move in the direction of rhythm and blues, rather than bebop. Career With Tiny Grimes ...

); Peterson later joined

the Chiffons :''The Chiffons also briefly recorded under the name The Four Pennies; for the British band of the latter name see The Four Pennies.'' The Chiffons are an American girl group originating from the Bronx, a borough of New York City, in 1960. Hist ...

, and had a hit with Mack's song "He's So Fine". However, in late 1961 the Tops' record was re-promoted by Philadelphia radio DJs, and was reissued on the

Swan Swans are birds of the family (biology), family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form t ...

label which had been co-owned by

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 198 ...

. Jimmy Rivers appeared on Clark's ''

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the pro ...

'', without the other group members, to promote the record in early 1962, but it failed to break into the national charts. The Tops continued to perform for a while, with Bonelli's sister Eleanor Carter replacing Pat Smith. However, in 1963/64 both Moses Groves and Vernon Rivers were drafted, and the group split up. Jimmy Rivers performed as a solo artist, and worked as a voice coach. In 1966, the Rivers brothers, Groves and Carter reformed, and renamed themselves the Extroads, recording a single, "The Verge". Jimmy Rivers later moved to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

where he has continued to work as a voice coach. Moses Groves became an artist and art teacher in the Bronx.

References

{{reflist Doo-wop groups Musical groups from Harlem