The Dominoes

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

The Dominoes · Billy Ward and his Dominoes were an American R&B group and one of the most successful vocal groups of the early 1950s. The leader, Billy Ward, was a pianist, arranger and vocal coach. He had studied in Chicago and at the Juilliard School in New York, something unusual for a black musician at the time. Together with his business partner Rose Marks he put together a group from his pupils, with Clyde McPhatter as lead tenor, whom he had heard after a win on Amateur Night at the Apollo Theater.

Music and breakthrough

The group signed with Federal Records and called itself the Dominoes. In 1951 it had its first R&B hit with Do Something For Me. Then came Sixty Minute Man, with bass singer Bill Brown as lead vocalist. The song spent fourteen weeks at the top of the R&B chart and also reached the pop chart. The lyrics went further than was usual at the time, and the song appealed to black and white audiences alike. It is considered a candidate for the first rock 'n' roll record. In 1952 came Have Mercy Baby.

Influence

Ward was a strict leader who fined his singers and paid them little. In 1953 McPhatter left to start the Drifters. Later Jackie Wilson also became a member of the group. In this way the Dominoes helped launch two great singers. Their blend of gospel singing and blues, on the border between R&B and rock and roll, became an example for later groups.

Listening

Discography

Studio albums

• 1957Clyde McPhatter with Billy Ward and His Dominoes
• 1958Yours Forever