The Checkmates, Ltd. were an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

R&B group from

Fort Wayne Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. The group, discovered by Nancy Wilson, included both

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

and

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

members; their one major

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 in ...

was 1969's " Black Pearl", produced by

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

. The song peaked at No. 13 on the U.S. pop chart. Their remake of " Proud Mary" reached No. 30 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 late 1969. The group broke up in 1970, but reunited in 1974 for a few more years. They performed on the same billing as

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

and Herb Alpert, and sang the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...

for the

Thrilla in Manila Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier lll, billed as the "Thrilla in Manila", was the third and final boxing match between WBA, WBC, and '' The Ring'' heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, and Joe Frazier, for the heavyweight championship of the world. T ...

in 1975. Lead singer

Sonny Charles Sonny Charles (born Charles Hemphill, September 4, 1940)Joel Whitburn, ''The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits''. 7th edn, 2000 is an American soul singer born to a sharecropping family at Blytheville, Arkansas. At the age of 10. he moved with his pa ...

later had a moderately successful career as a

solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series * Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''S ...

artist. Charles and Marvin ("Sweet Louie") Smith later reunited and toured the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

into the 2000s. Smith died on December 15, 2007, of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

, while on a

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as "s ...

in the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

where he and Sonny Charles were scheduled to perform. He was 68.Lifeinlegacy.com

Members

– lead vocals – (born Charles Hemphill, September 4, 1940, Blytheville, Arkansas)Joel Whitburn, ''The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits''. 7th edn, 2000 – Charles was later a vocalist with the Steve Miller Band.Steve Miller Band Celebrates 40 Years With 'Live' DVD
Billboard.com *Bobby Stevens – vocals *Harvey Trees – guitar *Bill Van Buskirk – bass *Marvin "Sweet Louie" Smith – drums, vocals *Calvin Thomas – drums *Jimmy Milton – vocals

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

* ttps://www.soulexpress.net/checkmates_part2.htm The Checkmates Ltd. story, part 2 - 1969-1975 {{authority control Musical groups from Indiana American rhythm and blues musical groups