Roy Charles Hammond (August 3, 1939 – September 16, 2020), better known as Roy C or Roy "C", was an American
southern soul
Southern soul is a type of soul music that emerged from the Southern United States. The music originated from a combination of styles, including blues (both 12 bar and jump), country, early R&B, and a strong gospel influence that emanated fro ...
singer, songwriter and record executive, best known for his 1965
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 ...
, "Shotgun Wedding". Another song, "
Impeach the President", which he recorded and produced with a high school group, the Honey Drippers, has had one of the most sampled drum tracks in
hip hop music.
Life and career
Roy Hammond was born in
Newington, Georgia
Newington is a town in Screven County, Georgia, United States. The population was 322 at the 2000 census.
Geography
Newington is located at .
Georgia State Routes 21 and 24 are the main routes through the town. GA-21 runs northwest-southeast a ...
. He began singing
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 ...
with The Genies, a vocal group in
Long Beach
Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California.
Incorporate ...
,
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
, who were later offered a
recording contract
A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist (or group), where the artist makes a record (or series of records) for the label to sell and promote. Artists ...
by
record producer
A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...
Bob Shad
Robert "Bob" Shad (born Abraham Shadrinsky; February 12, 1920 – March 13, 1985) was an American record producer and record label owner. He produced the first album by Big Brother and the Holding Company (featuring Janis Joplin). Among his ...
. Their first
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
, "Who's That Knockin'", reached number 72 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 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 1958,
with Claude Johnson—later of the
duo Don and Juan
Don and Juan were an American R&B vocal duo from Long Beach, New York, United States, consisting of Roland "Don" Trone (July 2, 1936 – May 1982) and Claude "Juan" (aka "Sonny") Johnson (November 24, 1934 – October 31, 2002). Johnson had prev ...
—on lead vocal. The group then moved to
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...
, with Hammond taking over as lead singer, but their
recordings were not released, and he was drafted into the
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...
.
Solo career and record labels
When he returned to
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 ...
in 1965, Hammond organised a studio session to record his own song, "Shotgun Wedding", and released it under the name Roy Hammond on his own Hammond
label
A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed dir ...
, before leasing it to the larger Black Hawk Records under the name Roy C.
The record, with its novelty ricochet opening and subject matter that was relatively risqué for the time, reached number 14 on the national ''Billboard''
R&B chart.
It had even greater success when issued in the United Kingdom, reaching number 6 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 ...
in 1966 and number 8 when reissued in 1972.
His first album, ''That Shotgun Wedding Man'', was released on
Ember Records in 1966.
After some unsuccessful follow-ups on the
Shout label, Hammond started another new label, Alaga.
Working with guitarist J. Hines, he had more success with "Got to Get Enough (Of Your Sweet Love Stuff)" making the R&B charts in 1971.
Two years later he signed with
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...
, and had another R&B hit with "Don't Blame the Man".
He also released an album, ''Sex and Soul'', and several more minor hit singles. He stayed with Mercury for several years, until label bosses took exception to his outspoken political stance in songs, including "Great Great Grandson of a Slave" from his 1977 album ''More Sex and More Soul''.
Reviewing ''Sex and Soul'' in ''
Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies'' (1981),
Robert Christgau
Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...
wrote, "Roy Hammond is a driven artist—he cut this in his garage—and his compulsiveness comes out in the lyrics; despite convincing asides about
racism
Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...
and
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
, his title ought to be ''Infidelity and Suffering''. The songs are raw and outspoken, and the suffering's in the voice even more than the words—he strains its paradoxically mellow limits sometimes, so seekers after the Perfect Note should seek elsewhere. But old
Swamp Dogg
Jerry Williams Jr. (born July 12, 1942), generally credited under the pseudonym Swamp Dogg after 1970, is an American soul and R&B singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. Williams has been described as "one of the great cult figures of ...
fans will put aside their
feminist
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
reservations and learn
how the other half lives
''How the Other Half Lives: Studies among the Tenements of New York'' (1890) is an early publication of photojournalism by Jacob Riis, documenting squalid living conditions in New York City slums in the 1880s. The photographs served as a basis ...
."
The Honey Drippers
In 1973, Hammond discovered a group of African-American high school students from
Jamaica High School
Jamaica High School was a four-year public high school in Jamaica, Queens, New York. It was operated by the New York City Department of Education.
Jamaica High School was founded as the Union Free School in 1854, and located within a three-stor ...
in
Jamaica, Queens
Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is mainly composed of a large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis to the east; St. Albans, Springfi ...
, named the Honey Drippers (not to be confused with Robert Plant's project of the same name), and decided to record some songs with them, which he released on his Alaga label. Most notable among the songs they recorded was "
Impeach the President", a song advocating for the impeachment of President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
due to the ongoing
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...
and resulting
impeachment process against Richard Nixon
The impeachment process against Richard Nixon began in the United States House of Representatives on October 30, 1973, following the series of high-level resignations and firings widely called the " Saturday Night Massacre" during the course ...
.
Sampling of "Impeach the President"
Pioneering
hip hop producer
Marley Marl
Marlon Williams (born September 30, 1962), better known by his stage name Marley Marl, is an American DJ, record producer, rapper and record label founder, primarily operating in hip hop music. Marlon grew up in Queensbridge housing projects ...
used the drum intro from "Impeach the President" as the
breakbeat
Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and UK ...
for the 1985 song "The Bridge" by
MC Shan
Shawn Moltke (born September 6, 1965) better known by his stage name MC Shan, is an American hip hop and R&B recording artist.
He is best known for his song "The Bridge" produced by Marley Marl, and for collaborating with Snow on " Informe ...
. The opening drum sequence has since become one of the most widely used samples in hip hop.
American rapper
GZA
''Gary Eldridge Grice'' (born August 22, 1966), better known by his stage names GZA ( ) and The Genius, is an American rapper and songwriter. A founding member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, GZA is the group's "spiritual head", being both ...
makes a reference to the "Impeach the President" sample on his verse on "As High as Wu-Tang Get" by
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
on the 1997 album ''
Wu-Tang Forever
''Wu-Tang Forever'' is the second studio album of American hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, released June 3, 1997, on Loud/RCA Records in the United States. Pressed as a double album, it was released after a long run of successful solo projects fro ...
'', with the suggestion that the snare drum in the sample is easy to rap over. ("You can't flow, must be the speech impediment / You got lost off the snare off 'Impeach the President.'")
Hammond has occasionally been credited as a co-writer due to the sample, including on the hit
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...
song "
Real Love", which samples the drum track from "
Top Billin'
"Top Billin'" is a single for American hip-hop duo Audio Two, released as the B-side of the single "Make It Funky" from the album '' What More Can I Say?'' It was released before First Priority Music inked a distribution deal with Atlantic Reco ...
" by
Audio Two, which in turn uses a modified form of the drum intro from "Impeach the President". He is also credited for the 2011
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...
and
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...
song "
Otis", which uses a line from "Top Billin'", and for the 2013
Frank Ocean
Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...
song "
Super Rich Kids
"Super Rich Kids" is a song by American singer Frank Ocean featuring rap vocals from Earl Sweatshirt, and the fifth single from Ocean's debut studio album, ''Channel Orange''. It was first performed live by Ocean in 2011 and then on his Channel ...
", which interpolates the chorus of "Real Love". Neither "Otis" nor "Super Rich Kids" contain a sample from "Impeach the President".
Later career
From 1979, he continued to release a string of soul singles and albums, on his own Three Gems
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
, initially based in
New York and later in
Allendale,
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 = ...
. Hammond wrote most of the songs that appear on his over 125 records.
He recorded an album by ex-
Temptation
Temptation is a desire to engage in short-term urges for enjoyment that threatens long-term goals.Webb, J.R. (Sep 2014). Incorporating Spirituality into Psychology of temptation: Conceptualization, measurement, and clinical implications. Sp ...
Dennis Edwards
Dennis Edwards Jr. (February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018) was an American soul and R&B singer who was best known as the frontman in The Temptations, on Motown Records. Edwards joined the Temptations in 1968, replacing David Ruffin and sang ...
entitled ''Talk to Me'', and also worked on a
CD by Bobby Stringer.
Hammond also ran his own
record shop
A record shop or record store is a retail outlet that sells recorded music. In the late 19th century and the early 20th century, record shops only sold gramophone records, but over the 20th century, record shops sold the new formats that were ...
in Allendale, called Carolina Record Distributors.
"Infidelity, Georgia," also known as "Save by the Bell" or "Saved by the Bell," is a song about sexual infidelity in small town Georgia.
Hammond released an album entitled ''Stella Lost Her Groove'' in March 1999.
Discography
Singles
*Mama Blow Your Top" - as Roy Hammond & The Genies (1959)
*Dance Girl" (1965)
*Shotgun Wedding" (1965)
*"I Want To Marry You" - under the name, "Little Frankie" (1966)
*"Stop What You're Doin'" (1966)
*"Twistin Pneumonia" (1966)
*"A Merry Black Xmas" (1970)
*"I Found a Man in My Bed" (1970)
*"In Divorce Court" (1970)
*"Got To Get Enough (Of Your Sweet Love Stuff)" (1971)
*"I Wasn't There" (1971)
*"I Caught You in The Act (Neighbourhood Scandal)" (1972)
*"I'm Gonna Love (Somebody Else's Woman)" (1972)
*"
Since I Met You Baby" (with Linda Caver) (1972)
*"Don't Blame the Man" (1973)
*"She Kept on Walkin'" (1973)
*"The Wedding is Over" (1973)
*"We're On the Road to Hell" (1973)
*"If I Could Love You Forever" (1974)
*"Change Is Gonna Come" (1974)
*"
My Girl" (Reggae) (1975)
*"Virgin Girl" (1975)
*"Every Woman Has a Right" (1976)
*"I Wanna Do It Again" (1976)
*"After Loving You" (1977)
*"After The Disco is Over (We Can Stop By a Motel)" (1980)
*"To Make You Feel Like a Woman" (1980)
*"You and I" (1981)
*"I Wish You Bad Luck" (1982)
*"Leaving on the Morning Train" (1982)
*"She's a Lady" (1986)
*"Country is My Name" (1986)
*"I'm Not Going to Eat a Thing" (1987)
*"Rock Me All Night" (1989)
*"634-5789" (1992)
*"I Want to Marry You" (1992)
Albums
*''Roy "Shotgun Wedding" C'' (1966)
*''Sex And Soul'' (1973)
*''Something Nice'' (1975)
*''More Sex & More Soul'' (1977)
*''I Want To Be Where You Are (All Night Long)'' (1984)
*''Let Me Take You To Paradise'' (1987)
*''Rock Me All Night'' (1989)
*''Call Me 634 ❤️ 5789'' (1992)
*''Sex Soul And The Street'' (1992)
*''I'm Workin' Hard For You Baby'' (1998)
*''Hey Mista'' (2005)
See also
*
List of soul musicians
This is a list of soul musicians who have either been influential within the genre, or have had a considerable amount of fame. Bands are listed by the first letter in their name (not including the words "a", "an", or "the"), and individuals are l ...
References
External links
*
*
The complete Roy C discography at Soul ExpressWax Poetics article on Roy C
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roy C
1939 births
2020 deaths
American soul musicians
American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters
American soul singers
20th-century African-American male singers
People from Screven County, Georgia
People from Allendale, South Carolina
African-American songwriters
21st-century African-American people
American male singer-songwriters
Singer-songwriters from South Carolina
Singer-songwriters from Georgia (U.S. state)