The Hi-Lo's
The Hi-Lo's were an a cappella vocal group for jazz and pop founded in Los Angeles in 1953 . They recorded numerous records and had a far-reaching musical influence, for example on Manhattan Transfer and the King's Singers , but also on California pop groups such as the Beach Boys or the Mamas and Papas .
Founding members were the bass-baritone, arranger and leader of the group Gene Puerling (1929–2008), the baritones Bob Strasen (1928–1994) and Bob Morse (1923–2001) and the tenor (and lead voice) Clark Burroughs (* 1930) . Morse and Burroughs previously sang with the Encores , the vocal group of the Billy May band. The name The Hi-Lo's referred partly to the vocal range of the group, partly to their different physical lengths (Strasen and Morse were very long, Puerling and Burroughs were small). Her role models at the time include The Four Freshmen , The Modernaires and the Mel-Tones by Mel Tormé . In 1959 Don Shelton (* 1934) replaced Bob Strasen. They made numerous recordings, first in 1954 (the EP The Hi Lo's with their single chart hit My Baby Just Care's for Me and Georgia on My Mind ) and the first LP in 1955 ( Listen!, Starlite). They toured with Judy Garland in the mid-1950s . They had their last appearance in 1962 (at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas) and broke up completely in the mid-1960s. Puerling switched to advertising in San Francisco. Clark continued to sing as a studio musician, Morse became an antique dealer. In 1967 Puerling was the founder of the four-member Singers Unlimited (to which Shelton belonged), but they only made recordings (for MPS ) and also multiplied their voices using the overdubbing process.
They had a comeback in the late 1970s, marked by an appearance at the Monterey Jazz Festival 1978. Their first LP since 1964 was also released in 1978. They went on tour regularly from the 1980s to 1994, after Morse's death in 2001 they only performed occasionally on.
They were poll winners as a vocal group in 1957. They received three Grammy nominations.
They appeared in the 1964 film comedy Lend Me Your Man (Good Neighbor Sam) with Jack Lemmon . Her piano accompanist and occasional arranger was Clare Fischer for many years .