James Brown and The Famous Flames - Please, Please, Please (1958)

"Love or a Game" by James Brown & The Famous Flames


One of The Dominoes's biggest records was the 1952 hit single "The Bells", a novelty recording featuring Clyde McPhatter wailing and crying for a dead girlfriend and child.  One of the great admirers of Billy Ward and his band's output was James Brown and his group The Famous Flames.  The Flames took the song, added a performance skit, and it became an integral part of their live repertoire when they'd tour the chitlin' circuit with the crowd getting violent if they failed to perform it.

James Brown started singing at a young age and became more inspired to pursue performance as a career after watching a short film featuring Rhythm and Blues pioneer Louis Jordan.  His career took an early sidetrack after being arrested for armed robbery.  He got an early parole and was back singing by 1952.  His first and last group was The Gospel Starlighters who would change their names to The Flames in the form of the group's inspirations such as The Midnighters and The Dominoes.  They became famous as a unit on the circuit but didn't hit the big break until they got in contact with manager Clint Brantley.  Brantley set The Flames up with a demo tape which led to as signing with Federal Records (see Midnighters, Dominoes).  Their first single was also their first hit, the 1956 classic "Please, Please, Please".

It was a hot start followed by a quick cool.  None of the follow up singles for two years met with the same kind of impact and The Flames were in danger of being dropped from the label.  Their late 1958 single "Try Me" proved to be a saving grace and made The Flames a chart-topping band.  They quickly followed it up with a top selling album Please, Please, Please early the next year.  James Brown is the star of all of the singles with only the saxophonist for any real competition.  Brown took simple words like "Please", "I", "Yeah", and "No" and turned them into some of the most inspired and inspirational lyrics set to wax.  His stage presence and dynamic voice, able to go from sweltering heartbreak to smokey croon, made him the de facto star.  Their new manager and record label could see it and released The Famous Flames's recordings as James Brown With The Famous Flames, sometimes dropping them out entirely.  In protest and always under the impression that no one member was more important than the other, all of The Famous Flames quit with the exception of Bobby Bird who would continue to helm the namesake as Brown's backing band for years to come.

Here is the discography surrounding James Brown & The Famous Flames's debut album:

Please, Please, Please (1956 single)
I Don't Know (1956 single)
No, No, No, No (1956 single)
Just Won't Do Right (1956 single)
Chonnie-On-Chon (1957 single as James Brown)
Gonna Try (1957 single)
Messing with the Blues (1957 single)
You're Mine, You're Mine (1957 single)
That Dood It (1957 single)
Begging, Begging (1958 single)
Try Me (I Need You) (1958 single)
Please, Please, Please
Please, Please, Please (1959 EP)

"Please, Please, Please" by James Brown & The Famous Flames


"That Dood It" by James Brown & The Famous Flames


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