Billy Ward and His Dominoes - Billy Ward and His Dominoes (1955)

"Sixty Minute Man" by The Dominoes


Federal Records, a subsidiary of King Records, was one of the breeding grounds for the birth of rock and roll, particularly from the blues-tinged doo-wop groups that populated its lineup such as Hank Ballard & The Midnighters and Billy Ward and His Dominoes.

The Dominoes start with Billy Ward, a Juilliard educated composer, pianist, and arranger.  He started on Broadway but set to form a vocal group after meeting talent agent and eventual songwriting partner Rose Marks.  Together, they put together an ensemble featuring Charlie White (tenor), Joe Lamont (baritone), Bill Brown (bass), and Clyde McPhatter (lead tenor) whom Ward discovered at Amateur Night at the Apollo Theater.  (Note: That makes three blogged singers so far discovered through the Apollo's Amateur Night (McPhatter, Sarah Vaughan, and Ella Fitzgerald in reverse order)).

Ward and His Dominoes (originally The Ques) got off to a hot start with the 1951 singles "Do Something for Me" with McPhatter singing lead and "Sixty Minute Man" lead by Bill Brown.  The latter is often in the discussion for the first rock and roll song.  The quintet were one of the hottest vocal groups of the early fifties but suffered from internal disputes brought on by Ward's military stricture and unfair compensation of his talent (often not even enough off which to live).  White and Brown left very early on and were replaced by James Van Loan and David McNeill.  The Dominoes continued with great success thanks to McPhatter of which all the singles on which he sang lead broke into the Top 10 of the R&B charts.  After all, Clyde never made a bad side and everyone knew it.

Here is the discography surrounding Billy Ward and His Dominoes's debut album:

Chicken Blues (1950 single as The Dominoes)
No! Says My Heart (1951 single as The Dominoes)
Sixty Minute Man (1951 single as The Dominoes)
Weeping Willow Blues (1951 single as The Dominoes)
That's What You're Doing to Me (1952 single as The Dominoes)
Deep Sea Blues (1952 single as The Dominoes)
That's What You're Doing to Me (1952 single)
No Room (1952 single)
I'm Lonely (1952 single)
The Bells (1952 single)
Don't Leave Me This Way (1953 single)

The Chronological Classics: Billy Ward & His Dominoes 1950-1953 (compilation album)

Billy Ward and His Dominoes (1954 EP)

Billy Ward and His Dominoes Vol. 2 (1954 EP)

Billy Ward and His Dominoes Vol. 3 (1954 EP)
Billy Ward and His Dominoes

"Don't Leave Me This Way" by Billy Ward and His Dominoes


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