The Flamingos "I Only Have Eyes for You"

[marv2]

Here is a great classic that many of you may remember.......

[splanky]

Dang, I've loved that song since my puberty but I didn't know you'd posted footage in this
thread, Marv. Didn't know they'd been on Dick Clark's show either....

[marv2]

Dang, I've loved that song since my puberty but I didn't know you'd posted footage in this
thread, Marv. Didn't know they'd been on Dick Clark's show either....

Splanky, yeah, this is from Dick Clarks's Saturday night Beech-Nut Show that broadcast out of NYC and aired between 1958-60. There is some incredible footage that was saved from this series. I was trying to see if I could pick out Johnny Carter in this clip. I don't think he had joined the Dells yet.

[splanky]

I could be wrong but if this was between 58 and 60 what I'm getting from Marvin Goldberg's
R&B notebooks says Johnny was drafted into the army and when he returned to the States
they wouldn't let him back in the group so he wound up trying out and getting into The Dells...

[marv2]

I could be wrong but if this was between 58 and 60 what I'm getting from Marvin Goldberg's
R&B notebooks says Johnny was drafted into the army and when he returned to the States
they wouldn't let him back in the group so he wound up trying out and getting into The Dells...

That is what I heard and also I believe they mentioned it in the Dells Documentary I posted here a short while back. The Flamingos were the group that influence everyone from the Temptations to the Spinners.

[marv2]

Here is a 1957 photo of the group showing 5 members. In the clip above there are 6 members I believe:

[marv2]

I could be wrong but if this was between 58 and 60 what I'm getting from Marvin Goldberg's
R&B notebooks says Johnny was drafted into the army and when he returned to the States
they wouldn't let him back in the group so he wound up trying out and getting into The Dells...

BTW, Marvin Goldberg's R&B Notebook is priceless1 It is the Bible of Doo Wop and R&B!

[JIVE FIVE Mary G.]

Great group, great song. One of the true pioneers. There are Flamingo groups still performing on the oldies circut, most notably Terry Johnson's Flamingos based in Florida.

~~Mary~~

[heikki]

Hi!

in 1961 Johnny Carter had a 9-to-5 job working for a contractor company. He came to a certain lounge to have a drink each day about five o'clock, and that's where the other guys picked him up and next day went on a tour with Dinah Washington.

Best regards
Heikki

[marv2]

Great group, great song. One of the true pioneers. There are Flamingo groups still performing on the oldies circut, most notably Terry Johnson's Flamingos based in Florida.

~~Mary~~

Yeah I had heard that. I also read that most of the originals in the clip above have now passed on. Tommy Hunt is still around.

[marv2]

Hi!

in 1961 Johnny Carter had a 9-to-5 job working for a contractor company. He came to a certain lounge to have a drink each day about five o'clock, and that's where the other guys picked him up and next day went on a tour with Dinah Washington.

Best regards
Heikki

Heikki, that is an interesting story. I bet he [[Johnny Carter) never imagined at the time that he would be one of the few to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame......TWICE!

[splanky]

BTW, Marvin Goldberg's R&B Notebook is priceless1 It is the Bible of Doo Wop and R&B!

You know that's the truth!...Actually there are a few other sites like Marvin's that give very
detailed accounts of different artists careers and history including a couple of other Doo
Wop and early R&B ones. I had them all in a separate favorites folder a couple of years back
but after a computer crash I lost all of them. I've been trying to manually locate and re-book
mark them and now I keep hard copy notes of their urls in an index card book I keep by my
computer...

[marv2]

You know that's the truth!...Actually there are a few other sites like Marvin's that give very
detailed accounts of different artists careers and history including a couple of other Doo
Wop and early R&B ones. I had them all in a separate favorites folder a couple of years back
but after a computer crash I lost all of them. I've been trying to manually locate and re-book
mark them and now I keep hard copy notes of their urls in an index card book I keep by my
computer...

I love the information on Marvin's site too. Especially how it helps me track and undestand who the individuals were in many of the older groups and what happened to them. When I come across other Doo Wop, R&B sites, I will share the links with you. I am sure you have seen this one:

http://www.soulwalking.co.uk/

[marv2]

Now check this out! These guys were bad!

[JIVE FIVE Mary G.]

Yeah I had heard that. I also read that most of the originals in the clip above have now passed on. Tommy Hunt is still around.

Yes, Tommy is and formed his own group of Flamingos a while ago. I don't know if they're still performing or not. Also, Jake Carey's son had a group of Flamingos.

~~Mary~~

[tjl]

Interesting footnote: Terry"Buzzy" Johnson [[who was the 2nd lead voice on) Lovers Never Say Goodbye" also co-wrote "Baby Baby Don't Cry" and "Here I Go Again" with Smokey for The Miracles.

Terry's a real good guy, for some reason I'm not sure of [[he does not often get the credit he should for his vocal work) in one of their greatest hits Lovers Never Say Goodbye, Time Was, Loved Walked In, But Not For Me.

I think he also wrote Mio Amore for The Flamnigos. I believe he also arranged "I Only Have Eyes For You". He's been on a few of my shows - as did Zeke Carey, wonderful group.

[marv2]

Interesting footnote: Terry"Buzzy" Johnson [[who was the 2nd lead voice on) Lovers Never Say Goodbye" also co-wrote "Baby Baby Don't Cry" and "Here I Go Again" with Smokey for The Miracles.

Terry's a real good guy, for some reason I'm not sure of [[he does not often get the credit he should for his vocal work) in one of their greatest hits Lovers Never Say Goodbye, Time Was, Loved Walked In, But Not For Me.

I think he also wrote Mio Amore for The Flamnigos. I believe he also arranged "I Only Have Eyes For You". He's been on a few of my shows - as did Zeke Carey, wonderful group.

TJ, I've seen Terry Johnson on one of your specials. I knew he was good friends with Smokey. I never knew he co-wrote some of those songs. I believe I met him once.

[milven]

Yeah I had heard that. I also read that most of the originals in the clip above have now passed on. Tommy Hunt is still around.

Is Tommy Hunt the same Tommy Hunt who recorded HUMAN? I didn't know he was a Flamingo

[robb_k]

Is Tommy Hunt the same Tommy Hunt who recorded HUMAN? I didn't know he was a Flamingo

Yes, he's the same Tommy Hunt. He joined The Flamingos in late 1956, just before they moved from Chess to Decca Records. But he didn't sing lead until after they moved to End Records in New York. He was originally also from Chicago, and had known the other members when they were all in high school. When Nate Nelson left the group, Tommy became their new lead singer, with Terry[[also a later member) doing a few leads, here and there.

The Flamingos started out in Chicago in 1952, and in 1953 started recording, signing with record distributor, Art Sheriden's, Chance Records. They moved on to DJ, Al Benson's Parrot Records in late 1953, before getting their big chance for national exposure with Chess Records in 1955 due to the influence of Alan Freed. In the meantime, in late 1963, their lead singer, Sollie McElroy, left the group, and later, joined The Moroccos. Nate Nelson became their new lead. After lots of success with Chess, they decided to mimic the style of The Platters, to cross over more into the Pop market, by changing to a major pop label, Decca Records in late 1956, That proved to be a mistake, and they later signed with George Goldner's End Records, and moved to New York. There, they changed their style to a more "poppish" sound, with a lot of orchestration featuring strings.

I much prefer their earliest recordings [[1953-early 1955), Chance, Parrot and the earliest Chess recordings, to their "lush productions" of the late '50s and early '60s.

[milven]

Thanks for the info Rob. I had no idea that he was a Flamingo prior to having his hit HUMAN.
I loved that song. It had so much soul. And I remember during the height of its popularity, a dee-jay in NYC said that it was an accidental hit. It was supposed to be the "B" side. The "A" side was a song written by Bacharach& David. I forget the song, but it was a hit later, probably by Dione Warwick, who was on the same label.

[robb_k]

Thanks for the info Rob. I had no idea that he was a Flamingo prior to having his hit HUMAN.
I loved that song. It had so much soul. And I remember during the height of its popularity, a dee-jay in NYC said that it was an accidental hit. It was supposed to be the "B" side. The "A" side was a song written by Bacharach& David. I forget the song, but it was a hit later, probably by Dione Warwick, who was on the same label.

The flip side of "Human" was "Parade Of Broken Hearts ". I don't remember it being a "hit" by anyone. I seem to remember that Dionne Warwick recorded it, and it was on one of her albums. If it was on a single by her it was a very late one, and it wasn't the "A" side.

[reese]

Both Tommy and Dionne recorded I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF. That might be the one Milven was thinking of. I don't recall Dionne recording PARADE OF BROKEN HEARTS.

[robb_k]

o wonder I didn't remember a Dionne Warwick 45 of it!

[Soul Sister]

Tommy is originally from Pittsburgh moved to Chicago when he recorded with The Flamingoes, then to New York City [[I knew him then through his buddy singer Sammy Ambrose) where he lived for years before moving to England.

After "Human" I love "The Biggest Man".

S.S.
***

[smark21]

It's a good version, but I prefer the original version by Dick Powell, thanks to a spectacular production number staged by Busby Berkeley in the 1934 musical Dames.