The Diamonds were a Canadian vocal quartet of the 1950s and early 1960s who rose to prominence performing mostly cover versions of songs by black musicians. The original members were Dave Somerville(lead), Ted Kowalski (tenor) died from heart disease he was , 79, Phil Levitt (baritone), and Bill Reed (bass).
History
1950s
In 1953, Dave Somerville was working as a sound engineer for the Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation in Toronto, Canada. One of the shows produced at the CBC was Pick The Stars, a local talent show. He noticed four gentlemen practicing in the hallway for that show, and stopped to listen. After exchanging niceties, Somerville offered to be their manager. This group was composed of Stan Fisher, Ted Kowalski, Phil Levitt, and Bill Reed. They agreed and for the next several months, Somerville provided tutoring, and got practice time in un-occupied studios at the CBC.
That Christmas, the group was to sing for a Christmas party at a local church. That date conflicted with studies for a law exam of Stan Fisher, the lead singer and Fisher decided he needed the study time. Since Somerville knew all the songs, he took Fisher’s place. The audience reaction to the Dave Somerville led group was so tremendous, that the group that night decided to turn professional. In one fateful decision Fisher decided to stay in law school and not continue with the group. Somerville became the permanent lead, and that was the night The Diamonds were born.
By 1955, all members of the group had left college, and/or jobs, to sing full time. Professional musician Nat Goodman became their manager, and Goodman got the Diamonds onto Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts on American television. The result of the contest was a stalemate between the Diamonds and another contestant. With the prize of being guest artist for a week on Godfrey’s show, this led to a recording contract with Coral Records. Coral released four songs, the most notable being "Black Denim Trousers & Motorcycle Boots", a cover of a recording originally by The Cheers. The Diamonds' version sold a few thousand copies, which was only enough to get them a little local recognition.
The next big step was an audition with Cleveland, Ohio, radio disc jockey Bill Randle, who aided in the success of some popular groups, such as The Crew Cuts. Randle was impressed with the Diamonds and introduced them to Mercury Records, who signed the group to a recording contract. At this time, black artists were not played on white radio stations. Mercury Records, as well as other major record companies, were designating white artists to cover the recordings of black artists for the purpose of expanding their listening audience.
The Diamonds’ first recording for Mercury was "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," a cover of Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers’s version, which reached #12 in the U.S. as their first hit. They had a hit follow-up single, "The Church Bells May Ring" (originally by The Willows), which reached #14 in the U.S. They also covered songs by such black groups as The Clovers and The Heartbeats.
The Diamonds biggest hits were 1957's "Little Darlin'" (originally recorded by The Gladiolas) and 1958's "The Stroll", which was not a cover, but actually an original song written for the group by Brook Benton, from an idea by Dick Clark.[1]
Although they were signed to do rock and roll, Mercury also paired them with Pete Rugolo in one of his "Meet" series. The album entitled "The Diamonds Meet Pete Rugolo" allowed The Diamonds to return to their roots and do some established standards.
The group sang "Little Darlin'" and "Where Mary Go" in the film, The Big Beat, and sang the theme song for another film, Kathy-O.
They had many television appearances, including the TV shows of Steve Allen, Perry Como, Vic Damone, Tony Bennett, Eddy Arnold and Paul Winchell. They also appeared on American Bandstand.
1960s and 1970s
By 1961, all original members had left the group. The members were now Jim Malone (lead vocal), Mike Douglas (baritone), Evan Fisher (tenor, who, contrary to popular belief, was not the brother of original lead, Stan Fisher), and John Felton (bass). With the ever-changing style of rock & roll and their Mercury contract expired, the Diamonds continued touring the country. There is a popular belief that The Diamonds disbanded in the early sixties. This is untrue. After their Mercury contract expired, the group recorded a single ("The Slide/Melody of Love") and an album for the independent NATHANIAL label. Jimmy Malone and Evan Fisher left the group to perform as a duo in the mid 60s.
Mike Douglas carried the torch throughout the 1960s and 70s, working in some of the most prestigious lounges in Las Vegas. The Diamonds was one of the first groups to perform at Caesars Palace. At one time, there were at least two groups performing under the Diamonds' name, principally one led by John Felton (a group that continues to perform, as of 2009, led by Gary Owens, who joined Felton in 1975)[2], and one led by Glenn Stetson. Stetson's Diamonds worked prolifically in the 1970s and 1980s and were instrumental in the '50s music revival.
Stetson founded Little Darlin's Rock-n-Roll Palace in Kissimmee, Florida which featured numerous artists of the 1950s and early 1960s era.[3] This created an issue that was ultimately went to court, with Stetson losing rights to use the name to the group formed by Felton (which was led by Bob Duncan at the time)[4], and allowed the original four to use the name a few times each year.
2000s and beyond
The Diamonds received national attention once again in 2000, when the original members were invited to sing in TJ Lubinsky’s PBS production of Do-Wop 51, and again in the PBS production entitled Magic Moments-The Best Of '50s Pop in 2004.
Stetson received a heart transplant in 2000, and died in 2003. Original member Kowalski died on August 8, 2010, from heart disease, at the age of 79.[5]
Original members
- Dave Somerville - Lead / Replaced by Jim Malone 1961
- Ted Kowalski - Tenor (died 2010) / Replaced by Evan Fisher 1958
- Phil Levitt - Baritone / Replaced by Mike Douglas 1957
- Bill Reed - Bass (died 2004) / Replaced by John Felten 1958 (died 1982)
Replacement members
- Glenn Stetson - Lead vocalist / Replaced John Felten in 1968. Mike Douglas remained with the group as the only original member that recorded for Mercury records in the fifties and early sixties. At this time, The Diamonds consisted of Glenn Stetson(Canada), Harry Harding (Canada), Danny Rankin(USA), Mike Douglas(Canada)
- Joe Derise - Vocalist and composer joined in 1969.
Discography
Original albums
- America's Number One Singing Stylists
- Meet Pete Rugolo
- Songs From The Old West
- Laughs, Singing, Laughs
Compilation albums
- America's Famous Song Stylists
- Pop Hits
- The Best of the Diamonds: The Mercury Years
- Little Darlin'
- Scrapbook of Golden Hits
- Hall of Fame
- Best of the Diamonds
- The Diamonds Songbook (2007)
Billboard charted singles
- "Why Do Fools Fall In Love" – Debut on 02/18/56, Peaked at #12.[6][7]
- "The Church Bells May Ring" – Debut on 04/21/56, Peaked at #14
- "Love, Love, Love" – Debut 06/23/56, Peaked at #30
- "Ka-Ding-Dong" – Debut on 09/08/56, Peaked at #35
- "Soft Summer Breeze" – Debut on 09/22/56, Peaked at #34
- "Little Darlin'" – Debut on 03/16/57, Peaked at #2 for 8 weeks (Gold discs|Gold)[8]
- "Words Of Love" – Debut on 06/24/57, Peaked at #13
- "Zip Zip" – Debut on 08/26/57, Peaked at #16
- "Silhouettes" – Debut on 11/04/57, Peaked at #10
- "The Stroll" – Debut on 12/30/57, Peaked at #4 (Gold)
- "High Sign" – Debut on 04/14/58, Peaked at #37
- "Kathy-O" – Debut on 07/28/58, Peaked at #16
- "Happy Years" – Debut on 08/04/58, Peaked at #73
- "Walking Along" – Debut on 10/27/58, Peaked at #29
- "She Say (Oom Dooby Doom)" – Debut on 01/26/59, Peaked at #18
- "One Summer Night" - Debut 07/03/61, Peaked at #22
Film appearances
TV appearances
- The Eddy Arnold Show (1956)
- The Steve Allen Show (1957)
Awards and honours
- In 1984, the Canadian Juno "Hall of Fame" award by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.[9]
- In October, 2004, inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in Sharon, Pennsylvania.[10]
- In 2006 inducted into The Doo-Wop Hall of Fame.
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