The Charioteers
The Charioteers were an American singing group that was successful in gospel and pop music from 1930 to 1957 .
history
The group was put together in 1930 by Professor Howard Daniel at Wilberforce University in Wilberforce, Ohio . At first they called themselves "The Harmony Four", but later changed their name to "The Charioteers" after the song Swing Low, Sweet Chariot , which was part of their repertoire and which they recorded in 1939. After starting out with gospel, they later turned more towards popular music.
In 1931 they won the Ohio State Quartet competition. They were then signed by the WLW radio station in Cincinnati , where they stayed for two years until they found accommodation with a station in New York City .
In 1935 they got their first record deal with Decca Records . Until 1939 they also recorded for other labels without being able to land a hit. Nevertheless, her fame rose through her radio and live appearances. In 1940 they finally had the desired success with So Long (number 23 in the pop charts ). A few years later they climbed even higher: On the Boardwalk in Atlantic City (1946, 12th place), Open the Door, Richard (1947, 6th place), Ooh! Look-a-There, Ain't She Pretty? (1948, number 20), and A Kiss and a Rose (1949, number 8 on the R&B charts, number 19 on the pop charts).
Between 1935 and 1945, the group recorded with well-known musicians, including Pearl Bailey and Frank Sinatra , long time appeared in the Broadway - revue "Hellzapoppin '" on (1404 demonstrations) and was for several years the studio choir in Bing Crosby's radio program.
After the frontman Wilfred "Billy" Williams left the group in 1950 to form their own group - the Billy Williams Quartet - the Charioteers' career lagged for a few years with various record companies until the group settled down in 1957 after 75 Singles broke up in 22 years.
Award
In 2003 the Charioteers were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame .
Web links
- The Charioteers at Allmusic (English)
- The charioteers at Discogs (English)