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The Diamonds are a Canadian
vocal The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production i ...
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 (bass). They were most noted for interpreting and introducing
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 ...
vocal group music to the wider
pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describe ...
audience. Contrary to a popular myth, the father of
Tom Hanks Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. Ha ...
was never a member of the group.


History


1950s

In 1953, Dave Somerville, while working as a
sound 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, ...
for the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...
in
Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, Canada, met three other young singers. They decided to form a stand-up quartet called the Diamonds. The group's first performance was in the basement of St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Toronto singing in a Christmas minstrel show. The audience's reaction to the Somerville-led group was so positive that they decided that night they would turn professional. After 18 months of rehearsal, they drove to New York and tied for 1st Place on ''
Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts ''Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts'' (also known as ''Talent Scouts'') was an American radio and television variety show which ran on CBS from 1946 until 1958. Sponsored by Lipton Tea, it starred Arthur Godfrey, who was also hosting '' Arthur Godf ...
''. The prize of being guest artist for a week on Godfrey's show led to 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 ...
with
Coral Records Coral Records was a subsidiary of Decca Records that was formed in 1949. Coral released music by Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, the McGuire Sisters and Teresa Brewer. Coral issued jazz and swing music in the 1940s, but after Bob Thiele became head o ...
. Professional musician Nat Goodman became their manager. Coral released four songs, the most notable being "Black Denim Trousers & Motorcycle Boots", written by
Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Lyricist Jerome Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011) and composer Michael Stoller (born March 13, 1933) were American songwriting and record producing partners. They found success as the writers of such crossover hit songs as " Hound Dog" ( ...
. The next big step was an audition with
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
,
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
, radio disc jockey,
Bill Randle Bill Randle (March 14, 1923 – July 9, 2004) was an American disc jockey, lawyer and university professor. Randle was born William McKinley Randle Jr. in Detroit, Michigan. In Detroit, he hosted a popular show on WJLB-AM radio (now WDTK) calle ...
, who had aided in the success of some popular groups, such as
The Crew-Cuts The Crew Cuts were a Canadian vocal quartet, that made a number of popular records that charted in the United States and worldwide. They named themselves after the then popular crew cut haircut, one of the first connections made between pop musi ...
. Randle was impressed with the Diamonds and introduced them to a producer at
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 ...
who signed the group to a recording contract. The Diamonds’ first recording for Mercury was " Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (originated by
Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers The Teenagers are an American music group, most noted for being one of rock music's earliest successes, presented to international audiences by DJ Alan Freed. The group, which made its most popular recordings with young Frankie Lymon as lead s ...
), which reached No. 12 in the U.S. as their first hit, and their follow-up hit single, " The Church Bells May Ring" (originally by
The Willows The Willows may refer to: Places * The Willows, El Paso, Texas, USA * The Willows, Queensland, a town in Australia * The Willows, Salford, home of Salford Rugby League club in Salford, England, UK * The Willows, Saskatoon, a residential community ...
), reached No. 14 in the U.S. The Diamonds' biggest hits were 1957's "
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 ...
" (originally recorded by The Gladiolas, written by Maurice Williams) and " The Stroll" (1957), an original song written for the group by
Clyde Otis Clyde Lovern Otis (September 11, 1924 – January 8, 2008), was an American songwriter and record producer, best known for his collaboration with singer Brook Benton, and for being one of the first African-American A&R executives at a major label ...
, from an idea 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 ...
. Although they were signed to do
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 ...
, Mercury also paired them with jazz composer and arranger
Pete Rugolo Pietro "Pete" Rugolo (December 25, 1915 – October 16, 2011) was an American jazz composer, arranger and record producer. Life and career Rugolo was born in San Piero Patti, Sicily. His family emigrated to the United States in 1920 and settle ...
, in one of his ''Meet'' series recordings. The album, entitled ''The Diamonds Meet Pete Rugolo'', allowed them to return to their roots and do some established standards. The group sang "Little Darlin'" and "Where Mary Go" in the film ''The Big Beat''. They sang the theme song to the 1958 film, '' Kathy O’''. Their television appearances included the TV shows of
Steve Allen Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen (December 26, 1921 – October 30, 2000) was an American television personality, radio personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, and writer. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-cre ...
,
Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...
,
Vic Damone Vic Damone (born Vito Rocco Farinola; June 12, 1928 – February 11, 2018) was an American traditional pop and big band singer and actor. He was best known for his performances of songs such as the number one hit " You're Breaking My Heart", an ...
,
Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (born August 3, 1926), known professionally as Tony Bennett, is an American retired singer of traditional pop standards, big band, show tunes, and jazz. Bennett is also a painter, having created works under his birth ...
,
Eddy Arnold Richard Edward Arnold (May 15, 1918 – May 8, 2008) was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a Nashville sound (country/popular music) innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the ''Billboard'' cou ...
, and
Paul Winchell Paul Winchell (''né'' Wilchinsky; December 21, 1922 – June 24, 2005) was an American actor, comedian, humanitarian, inventor and ventriloquist whose career flourished in the 1950s and 1960s. From 1950 to 1954, he hosted ''The Paul Winchell S ...
. They also appeared on ''
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 ...
''. In the late 1950s, Reed, Kowalski and Levitt left the group and were replaced by Mike Douglas, John Felten, and Evan Fisher.


1960s, 1970s and 1980s

Despite the ever-changing style of rock & roll and their Mercury contract expiring, the Diamonds continued touring the country. After Dave Somerville left the group in 1961 to pursue a folk singing career as "David Troy", he was replaced by Jim Malone. There were no more hit records by the Diamonds after Somerville left. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s the Diamonds performed mostly in Las Vegas led, at first, by Mike Douglas, later being continued by Glenn Stetson. At one time, there were at least two groups performing under the Diamonds name, the other principally being led by John Felten until his death on May 17, 1982, in a plane crash. This created an issue in the late 1980s that ultimately went to court. The right to the use of the name "The Diamonds" was awarded to Gary Owens (a member of Felten's group) with the original members being allowed to use their name on special occasions each year. Owens, along with members Bob Duncan, Steve Smith (both former members of
Lawrence Welk Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was an American accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted the ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1951 to 1982. His style came to be known as "champagne music" to his radio, tele ...
's band and television program), and Gary Cech, released an album in 1987, "Diamonds Are Forever", which contained two songs that entered the lower reaches of the Country Music Charts, "Just a Little Bit" and "Two Kinds of Women". In 1986, Glenn Stetson and Dick Malono opened up Little Darlin's Rock and Roll Palace near Disney in Orlando, Florida which was a magical success for all the acts of that era to perform. The Country Music Network also starting videos of the groups that went on the TV network. In 1983, the Diamonds with Glenn Stetson were the first rock and roll group to go on the Country Music Network on a show called Nashville Now with Ralph Emory.


2000s and beyond

The Diamonds received national attention once again in 2000, when the original members were invited to sing in TJ Lubinsky’s
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
production of ''
Doo-Wop 51 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 ...
'', and again in the PBS production entitled ''Magic Moments - The Best of '50s Pop'' in 2004. Stetson received a
heart transplant A heart transplant, or a cardiac transplant, is a surgical transplant procedure performed on patients with end-stage heart failure or severe coronary artery disease when other medical or surgical treatments have failed. , the most common proce ...
in 2000, and died in 2003. Original member Kowalski died on August 8, 2010, from
heart disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...
, at the age of 79. In 2012 the Diamonds were listed as guest stars with
The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies ''The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies'' was a Ziegfeld Follies style dance and musical review show that played at the historic Plaza Theatre in Palm Springs, California, United States, seasonally from November to mid-May. The Follies was founded i ...
at the Plaza Theatre in
Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land a ...
. Douglas died in a car accident on July 2, 2012, at age 78. Somerville died on July 14, 2015, in
Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...
. The Diamonds continue to tour to this day with the line-up of Gary Owens (baritone), Adam David Marino (tenor), Michael Lawrence (lead) and Jeff Dolan (bass), although none of the members are from the original group which had records on Mercury Records.


Original members

* Dave Somerville – Lead (died 2015) / Replaced by Jim Malone in 1961. * Ted Kowalski – Tenor (died 2010) / Replaced by Evan Fisher in 1958. * Phil Levitt – Baritone / Replaced by Mike Douglas in 1957. * Bill Reed – Bass (died 2004) / Replaced by John Felten in 1958 (died 1982) / Replaced by Gary Cech until 1992 (voluntarily left the group).


Replacement members

*
Glenn Stetson Glenn Stetson (November 12, 1940 – August 22, 2003) was a Canadian singer, concert promoter and television producer. Glenn Campbell Stetson was born in the Ottawa Valley (Ramsayville) of eastern Ontario and raised in Hamilton, Ontario. He was a ...
, lead vocalist. Replaced John Felten in 1968. Mike Douglas remained with the group as the only original member who recorded for Mercury in the 1950s and early 1960s. At this time the Diamonds consisted of Glenn Stetson (Canada), Harry Harding (Canada), Danny Rankin (USA), and Mike Douglas (Canada). * Joe Derise, vocalist and composer joined in 1969. * Jerry Honeycutt, was with John Felten during the mid-1970s, right up until Felten's death. * Steve Smith, of ''
The Lawrence Welk Show ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' is an American televised musical variety show hosted by big band leader Lawrence Welk. The series aired locally in Los Angeles for four years, from 1951 to 1955, then nationally for another 16 years on ABC from 195 ...
'' fame has been with the Diamonds since 1982. * John Wagner, vocalist, singing tenor and playing tenor sax, joined Glen Stetson in 1983 and was with Stetson until 2003 when Stetson died. The Diamonds continued to perform until Stetson's death. It needs to be understood that the group that evolved when Somerville left the Diamonds in 1961 and Mike Douglas continued the group is the same group that Stetson kept going until his death in 2003. The historical continuation that began in 1968 ended with Stetson's death. * Mike Douglas and Joe Derise rejoined the Diamonds in 1988. Derise eventually died and Mike Douglas (one of the original singers from the group's Mercury days) died in 2012. * Bob Duncan, tenor, began singing with John Felten in 1979. * Gary Owens, baritone, joined John Felten in 1975. He sings, plays saxophone and flute, and does most of the vocal arranging for the group. * Gary Cech, bass, began singing with Bob Duncan in 1982 shortly after John Felten's death and left the group in 1992. * Jerry Siggins, bass.


Discography


Original albums

* ''The Diamonds'' (1957) * ''America's Number One Singing Stylists'' (1957) * ''The Diamonds Meet Pete Rugolo'' (Mercury, 1958) (with
Pete Rugolo Pietro "Pete" Rugolo (December 25, 1915 – October 16, 2011) was an American jazz composer, arranger and record producer. Life and career Rugolo was born in San Piero Patti, Sicily. His family emigrated to the United States in 1920 and settle ...
)
* ''America's Favorite Song Stylists'' (1959) * ''Songs from the Old West'' (1959) * ''Bandstand Boogie'' (1960) * ''Pop Hits'' (1960) * ''Diamonds Are Forever'' (1976) * ''We’re Still Rockin' ''(1995) * ''Solemnly Yours'' (1996) * ''Silver Bells & Diamonds: Holiday Music from the Diamonds'' (1998) * ''As Long as We're Singin'...and Swingin'!'' (2013)


Compilation albums

* ''Little Darlin (1981) * ''The Diamonds Songbook'' (2007) * ''The Stroll – 2 CD Set'' (2011) * ''The Diamonds – 4 Classic Albums Plus'' (2015)


Singles


Film appearances


''The Big Beat'' (1958)


TV appearances

* '' The Eddy Arnold Show'' (1956) * ''
The Steve Allen Show ''The Steve Allen Show'' was an American variety show hosted by Steve Allen from June 1956 to June 1960 on NBC, from September 1961 to December 1961 on American Broadcasting Company, ABC,
'' (1957)


Awards and honours

* In 1984, the Canadian Juno "Hall of Fame" award by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. * In October, 2004, inducted into the
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 ...
in Sharon, Pennsylvania. * In 2006 inducted into the Doo-Wop Hall of Fame.


See also

*
Canadian rock Rock music of Canada is a wide and diverse part of the general music of Canada, beginning with American and British style rock and roll in the mid-20th century. Since then Canada has had a considerable impact on the development of the modern po ...
*
Music of Canada The music of Canada reflects the diverse influences that have shaped the country. Indigenous Peoples, the Irish, British, and the French have all made unique contributions to the musical heritage of Canada. The music has also subsequently been ...


References


External links


The Current Diamonds

Official Fan site

'The Diamonds' Vocal Group Hall of Fame Page
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diamonds, The Canadian pop music groups Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductees Doo-wop groups Mercury Records artists