Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs 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 ...
/
R&B vocal group in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Originally the (Royal) Charms, the band changed its name to the Gladiolas in 1957 and the Excellos in 1958, before finally settling on the Zodiacs in 1959.
Early history
Maurice Williams was born 26 April 1938 in
Lancaster,
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
.
His first experience with music was in the church, where his mother and sister both performed. By the time he was six, Williams was performing regularly there. With his childhood friend Earl Gainey, Williams formed the gospel group the Junior Harmonizers. As
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...
and
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 ...
became their primary interest, the Junior Harmonizers changed their name to the Royal Charms.
The Royal Charms and the Gladiolas
In addition to Williams and Gainey, the Royal Charms were made up of Willie Jones (
baritone
A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...
), William Massey (
tenor
A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...
, baritone,
trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
), and Norman Wade (
bass).
In the winter of 1956, while still in
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
, Williams and his band traveled to
Nashville
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
,
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, to
record for the
Excello label. At the time they were going by the name the Royal Charms, but the founder of Excello Records, Ernie Young, convinced them to change their name to the Gladiolas
(at the time, there were at least two other bands using the same name).
The song "
Little Darlin'
"Little Darlin'" is a popular Top 40 song, made famous by the Diamonds.
The Gladiolas' version
It was written by Maurice Williams with both melody and doo-wop accompaniment strongly emphasizing the clave rhythm. It was first recorded by ...
" was a No. 11
hit
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...
on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
R&B chart
A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabu ...
in 1957, but only reached number 41 on Billboard's Top 100. However, when it was
covered
Cover or covers may refer to:
Packaging
* Another name for a lid
* Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package
* Album cover, the front of the packaging
* Book cover or magazine cover
** Book design
** Back cover copy, part of co ...
by the
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
group
the Diamonds
The Diamonds are a Canadian vocal quartet that rose to prominence in the 1950s and early 1960s with 16 ''Billboard'' hit records. The original members were Dave Somerville (lead), Ted Kowalski (tenor), Phil Levitt (baritone), and Bill Reed (ba ...
, it moved up to No. 2.
The Zodiacs
Williams finished high school and while on the road with the band, their station wagon broke down in
Bluefield, West Virginia
Bluefield is a city in Mercer County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 9,658 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Bluefield WV- VA micropolitan area, which had a population of 106,363 in 2020.
Geography
Bluefie ...
. The band came across a British-built Ford car known as the
Zodiac
The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the Sun path, apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. ...
(a 'luxury' version of the
Ford Zephyr
The Ford Zephyr is an executive car manufactured by Ford of Britain from 1950 until 1972. The Zephyr and its luxury variants, the Ford Zodiac and Ford Executive, were the largest passenger cars in the British Ford range from 1950 until their r ...
built in Britain, Australia and New Zealand) and changed their name.
Shortly thereafter, Henry Gaston replaced Earl Gainey.
In the spring of 1959, Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs performed at the
University of South Carolina in
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...
. Around that time, the group split and reformed. The members were Williams, Gaston, Wiley Bennett, and Charles Thomas. Later, Little Willie Morrow and Albert Hill were added.
One month later, in the early summer of 1959, the band recorded in a
Quonset Hut
A Quonset hut is a lightweight prefabricated structure of corrugated galvanized steel having a semi cylindrical cross-section. The design was developed in the United States, based on the Nissen hut introduced by the British during World War I ...
on Shakespeare Road in Columbia. The
recording engineer
An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...
, Homer Fesperman, recorded several tracks that the band had hoped would include a hit. One of the last tracks that they recorded that day was "
Stay
Stay may refer to:
Places
* Stay, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the US
Law
* Stay of execution, a ruling to temporarily suspend the enforcement of a court judgment
* Stay of proceedings, a ruling halting further legal process in a tri ...
",
a song that Williams had written a couple of weeks before. Williams sang lead and Henry Gaston sang the counter-verse falsetto.
After taking the
demo
Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to:
Music and film
*Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release
* ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes
* ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...
of "Stay" to Al Silver at
Herald Records
Herald Records was an American record label of the 1950s and 1960s.
Herald was founded in Elizabeth, New Jersey in 1952 by Fred Mendelsohn. He teamed up with Al Silver and Silver's brother-in-law, who continued Herald Records after Mendelsohn left ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, the song was pressed and released in early 1960. At 1:36, "
Stay
Stay may refer to:
Places
* Stay, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the US
Law
* Stay of execution, a ruling to temporarily suspend the enforcement of a court judgment
* Stay of proceedings, a ruling halting further legal process in a tri ...
" is the shortest recording ever to reach
number one
Number One most commonly refers to:
* 1 (number)
Number One, No. 1, or #1 may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''Number 1'' (Big Bang album), and the title song
* ''No. 1'' (BoA album), and the title song
* ''No.1'' (EP), by CLC
* ''n.1 ...
on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the United States.
At the end of 1963, the British band
the Hollies
The Hollies are a British pop rock band, formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke (singer), Allan Clarke and Graham ...
recorded "Stay",
which gave the group their debut Top Ten hit single in the UK, peaking at No.8 in January 1964, three years after the Zodiacs' version had peaked at No. 14 on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
(January 1961). Later versions of "Stay", by
the Four Seasons (1963) and
Jackson Browne
Clyde Jackson Browne (born October 9, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and political activist who has sold over 18 million albums in the United States.
Emerging as a precocious teenage songwriter in mid-1960s Los Angeles, he h ...
(1978),
reached the Top 20 in the U.S., each selling over one million copies in the United States alone. The inclusion of the Zodiacs' "Stay" on the
soundtrack
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
to the
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
''
Dirty Dancing
''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romantic drama dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tells the story of Frances "Baby" Houseman ...
'' in 1987 led to the song selling more records than it had during its original release.
A 1965 recording by the group, "May I", released by Vee Jay Records and Dee-Su Records, became, over the years, another million-selling
record.
Later life
Williams continues to record, tour, and release music. He was inducted into the
North Carolina Music Hall of Fame
The North Carolina Music Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization and museum in Kannapolis, North Carolina that was created to honor musicians, composers and artists with ties to North Carolina that have made significant impact in the music indus ...
in 2010. He also made several performances for the PBS "Doo Wop 50" show series in 2001.
Henry Gaston died on August 24, 2015.
Discography
*1960 singles:
Stay
Stay may refer to:
Places
* Stay, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the US
Law
* Stay of execution, a ruling to temporarily suspend the enforcement of a court judgment
* Stay of proceedings, a ruling halting further legal process in a tri ...
; I Remember; ''Stay with Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs'' (6-track EP)
*1965 ''At the Beach''
*1997 ''Let This Night Last'', produced and arranged by Ron Oates
*2000 The 21-song album, ''Back To Basics'', was produced and arranged by Ron Oates in Nashville, Tennessee. It contains re-recorded versions of "Stay" and "Little Darlin".
See also
*
List of doo-wop musicians
This is a list of doo-wop musicians.
A
*The Accents
*The Ad Libs
* The Alley Cats
* Lee Andrews & the Hearts
* The Angels
* The Aquatones
*The Ardells
*The Avons
B
*Hank Ballard
* The Belmonts
*The Blenders
*The Blue Jays
* The Bop Chords
...
*
List of artists who reached number one in the United States
This is a list of recording artists who have reached number one on '' Billboard'' magazine's weekly singles chart(s). This list spans from the issue dated January 1, 1955 to the present. Prior to the creation of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, ''Bil ...
*
Vocal Group Hall of Fame
The Vocal Group Hall of Fame (VGHF) is an American-based hall of fame that honors vocal groups throughout the world in every genre of music. Headquartered in the Columbia Theatre in Sharon, Pennsylvania, it includes a theater and a museum.
It was ...
*
List of 1960s one-hit wonders in the United States
A one-hit wonder is a musical artist who is successful with one hit song, but without a comparable subsequent hit. The term may also be applied to an artist who is remembered for only one hit despite other successes (such as " Take on Me" by A-ha ...
*
List of people from South Carolina
References
External links
*
*
*
American Singing Groups: A History from 1940 to Today (Jay Warner)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams and the Zodiacs, Maurice
Musical groups from South Carolina
Williams, Maurice
American pop music groups
Vee-Jay Records artists
Herald Records artists