The Coasters are an American

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm ...

vocal group who had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with " Searchin'" and " Young Blood" in 1957, their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producing team of Leiber and Stoller. Although the Coasters originated outside of mainstream

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 ...

, their records were so frequently imitated that they became an important part of the doo-wop legacy through the 1960s. In 1987, they were the first group inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

History

The Coasters were formed on October 12, 1955, when two of The Robins, a

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

–based rhythm-and-blues group, joined

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 im ...

. They were dubbed The Coasters because they went from the west coast to the east. The Robins included Carl Gardner and Bobby Nunn. The original Coasters were Gardner, Nunn, Billy Guy, Leon Hughes (who was replaced by Young Jessie on a couple of their early Los Angeles recordings), and the guitarist

Adolph Jacobs Adolph Jacobs, later known as Al Jacobs (April 15, 1939 – July 23, 2014), was an American guitar player, best known as an original member of The Coasters. Biography Born Adolf Jacobs in Pineland, Sabine County, Texas, he played guitar with Vern ...

. Jacobs left the group in 1959. The songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller started Spark Records and in 1955 produced "Smokey Joe's Cafe" for the Robins (their sixth single with Leiber and Stoller). The record was popular enough for

to offer Leiber and Stoller an independent production contract to produce the Robins for Atlantic. Only two of the Robins—Gardner and Nunn—were willing to make the move to Atlantic, recording their first songs in the same studio as the Robins had done (Master Recorders). In late 1957, Nunn and Hughes moved to New York and joined with Cornell Gunter and

Will "Dub" Jones Will J. "Dub" Jones (May 14, 1928 – January 16, 2000) was an American R&B singer. He was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, and died in Long Beach, California. The new quartet was from then on stationed in New York, although all had Los Angeles roots. The Coasters' association with Leiber and Stoller was an immediate success. Together they created a string of good-humored "storytelling" hits that are some of the most entertaining from the original era of rock and roll. According to Leiber and Stoller, getting the humor to come through on the records often required more recording "takes" than for a typical musical number. Their first single, " Down in Mexico", was an R&B hit in 1956. The following year, the Coasters crossed over to the pop chart in a big way with the double-sided " Young Blood"/" Searchin'". "Searchin'" was the group's first U.S. Top 10 hit, and topped the R&B chart for 13 weeks, becoming the biggest R&B single of 1957 (all were recorded in Los Angeles). " Yakety Yak" (recorded in New York), featuring

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 musician ...

on tenor

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

, included the famous lineup of Gardner, Guy, Jones, and Gunter, and became the act's only national number one single, topping both the pop and R&B charts. The next single, "

Charlie Brown Charles "Charlie" Brown is the principal character of the comic strip '' Peanuts'', syndicated in daily and Sunday newspapers in numerous countries all over the world. Depicted as a "lovable loser," Charlie Brown is one of the great American a ...

", reached number two on both charts. It was followed by " Along Came Jones", " Poison Ivy" (number 1 for almost two months on the R&B chart), and "

Little Egypt (Ying-Yang) "Little Egypt (Ying-Yang)" is a 1961 rock song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and was recorded by the Coasters for their 1962 album, '' Coast Along with the Coasters''. The song reached #16 on the R&B chart and #23 on The Billboard Hot 1 ...

". Changing popular tastes and changes in the group's line-up contributed to a lack of hits in the 1960s. During this time, Billy Guy was also working on solo projects; the New York singer Vernon Harrell was brought in to replace him for stage performances. Later members included Earl "Speedo" Carroll (lead of

the Cadillacs The Cadillacs were an American rock and roll and doo-wop group from Harlem, New York, active from 1953 to 1962. The group was noted for their 1955 hit " Speedo", written by Esther Navarro, which was instrumental in attracting white audiences to ...

Ronnie Bright Ronald David Bright (October 18, 1938 – November 26, 2015) was an American R&B and doo-wop singer of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. He was born in New York City. Biography Bright was the bass vocalist for doo-wop groups the Valentines, the Cadil ...

(the bass voice on Johnny Cymbal's " Mr. Bass Man"),

Jimmy Norman Jimmy Norman (August 12, 1937 – November 8, 2011) was an American rhythm and blues and jazz musician and a songwriter. In his early career, Norman had a record chart, charting single of his own, "I Don't Love You No More (I Don't Care Abo ...

, and guitarist Thomas "Curley" Palmer. The Coasters signed with

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

' Date label in 1966, reuniting with Leiber and Stoller (who had parted ways with Atlantic Records in 1963), but never regained their former fame. In 1971, the Coasters had a minor chart entry with " Love Potion No. 9", a song that Leiber and Stoller had written for the Coasters, but instead gave to

the Clovers The Clovers are an American rhythm and blues/ doo-wop vocal group who became one of the biggest selling acts of the 1950s.The Guinness Who's Who of Fifties Music. General Editor: Colin Larkin. First published 1993 (UK). . The Clovers p77. They h ...

in 1959. In Britain, a 1994

Volkswagen Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German Automotive industry, motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a ...

TV advertisement used the group's "Sorry But I'm Gonna Have to Pass", which led to a minor chart placement in that country. In 1987, the Coasters became the first group inducted into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and ...

, crediting the members of the 1958 configuration. The Coasters also joined the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999. Several groups used the name in the 1970s, touring throughout the country, though original member Carl Gardner held the legal rights to it. Gardner continued to tour with the Coasters and made many attempts to stop bogus groups with no connection to the original group using the name. In late 2005, Carl's son Carl Gardner Jr. took over as lead with the group when his father retired. The Coasters' line-up then consisted of Carl Gardner Jr., J. W. Lance, Primo Candelara, and Eddie Whitfield. Carl Jr. later left this group and has started his own group with Curley Palmer. Carl's widow Veta owns the rights to the Coasters name. Leon Hughes is the last surviving member of the original Coasters and performs with his own group. Some of the former members suffered tragic ends. The saxophonist

(the "fifth Coaster") was stabbed to death by two

junkie Junkie is a pejorative usually referring to a person with an addiction. Entertainment and media * ''Junkie'' (novel), a novel by William S. Burroughs * "Junkie" (song), 2013 song by Medina featuring Svenstrup & Vendelboe * ''The Junkies'', a ...

s outside his apartment building in 1971. Cornelius Gunter was shot to death while sitting in a Las Vegas parking garage in 1990. Nate Wilson, a member of one of Gunter's offshoot Coasters groups, was shot and his body dismembered in 1980. Former manager Patrick Cavanaugh was convicted of the murder, which took place after Wilson threatened to notify authorities of Cavanaugh's intent to buy furniture with stolen checks. Cavanaugh was convicted of the murder and given the death sentence in 1984, but his sentence was commuted to life in prison. He died at 60 in 2006, in Ely State Prison, in Nevada.

Group members

; Current members * J. W. Lance – lead vocals, previously tenor vocals (July 2001–present) * Primotivo Candelaria – tenor vocals (October 2008–present) * Robert Fowler – bass vocals (January 2015 – present) * Dennis Anderson – baritone vocals (June 2011–present) ; Former members (Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame inductees listed in bold.) * Carl Gardner – lead vocals (1955–2005) * Billy Guy – baritone vocals (1955–1973) * Bobby Nunn – bass vocals (1955–1957) * Leon Hughes – tenor vocals (1955–1957) * Adolph Jacobs – guitar (1956–1959/1960) * Young Jessie – tenor vocals (1957; substitute) * Will "Dub" Jones – bass vocals (1958–1967) * Cornell Gunter – tenor vocals (1958–1961) * Albert "Sonny" Forriest – guitar (1959–1961) * Earl "Speedo" Carroll – tenor vocals (1961–1979) * Thomas "Curley" Palmer – guitar (1962–2011) * Vernon Harrell – baritone vocals (1965–1967; substitute) * Ronnie Bright – bass vocals (1968–2009) * Jimmy Norman – baritone vocals (substitute 1969–1972; member 1973–1978, 1980–1997) * Alvin Morse – baritone vocals (1997–2008) * Carl Gardner, Jr. – tenor vocals (1997–2001 and 2004), lead and baritone vocals (2005–2011) * Eddie Whitfield - bass vocals (November 2009-December 2015)

Discography

Studio albums

* 1960: ''The Coasters One by One'' Atco LP 33-123 (SD33-123 stereo) * 1972: ''On Broadway''

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

K-1146-498 (KS-1146-498 stereo)

Compilation albums

* 1957: ''The Coasters''Atco LP 33-101 * 1959: ''The Coasters' Greatest Hits''Atco LP 33-111 (SD33-111 rechanneled stereo 1960) * 1962: ''Coast Along with the Coasters''Atco LP 33-135 (SD33-135 alternate stereo edition) * 1965: ''That Is Rock & Roll''Clarion LP 605 (SD-605 stereo) * 1971: ''Their Greatest Recordings: The Early Years''Atco LP SD33-371 (stereo compilation with alternates)

Charting singles

The Coasters recorded many songs that were released as two-song record singles and several appeared in the charts, including ''Billboard's''

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

and

Hot R&B The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

singles charts and 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 ...

''Billboard'' Year-End performances

References

Bibliography

* Carl Gardner – ''Yakety Yak I Fought Back - My Life with The Coasters'' (Veta Gardner, AuthorHouse, 2007, ) * Bill Millar – ''The Coasters'' (Star Books, 1974, )

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Coasters, The American rhythm and blues musical groups Doo-wop groups Rock music groups from California African-American musical groups Atlantic Records artists Atco Records artists Musical groups from Los Angeles Rock and roll music groups 1955 establishments in California Musical groups established in 1955