Spinners Henry Fambrough talks to Tom Meros

[soulwally]

Quite a long interview, from a couple of years back. Not that much on the Motown years that we didn't already know, but Henry is an engaging speaker, a seemingly humble man, almost 'ordinary' considering his and his groupmates' achievements. Unfortunately for someone who seems to know hits stuff, Tom falls for the old chestnut that Ivy Jo Hunter is one and the same as Ivory Joe Hunter [[he namechecks his Since I Met You Baby hit).

[marv2]

I really appreciate Tom Meros interviews. He basically is obtaining oral histories of some of my musical favorites that cannot found in any books. Some of his subjects have passed away in recent years, which makes me appreciate what he has done even more. He's interview Bobby Rogers of Miracles, Paul Williams Jr., Billy Joe Royal, Rosalind Ashford and Annette Beard of the Vandellas and many more.

[marv2]

So it was Aretha that got the Spinners hooked up with Atlantic Records.

[heikki]

Yes, Marv,
it was Aretha.

Bobbie Smith: "When we got free of Motown, we put the word out that we were shopping for a label."

Pervis Jackson: "Several companies approached us. Stax was one of them. King Records was another." Also Avco showed interest.

Bobbie: "We were on tour with Aretha quite a bit. We finally made the decision to go with Atlantic after Billy [[Henderson) talked with her. She thought it would be a good company for us. They didn't have a group competition at Atlantic like they had at Motown."

On the replacement for G.C. Cameron:
Bobbie: "First we auditioned Danny Woods, of Chairman of the Board. We knew him real well and he came over for an audition, and we never heard from him again."

Pervis: "Danny Woods was the guy that we really wanted. Danny just had other ideas and things he wanted to do. He was unwilling to make a commitment."

Bobbie: "Next we auditioned a gentleman by the name of Jimmy Cheers. We kept him for a minute."

Pervis: "That was a short-term thing. We only did one or two shows with Jimmy."

Then came Philippé and sang "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", and he was accepted right away. After that Jimmy Roach produced four songs on the group, prior to Thom Bell.

Best regards
Heikki

[soulwally]

Yes, Marv,
it was Aretha.

Bobbie Smith: "When we got free of Motown, we put the word out that we were shopping for a label."

Pervis Jackson: "Several companies approached us. Stax was one of them. King Records was another." Also Avco showed interest.

Bobbie: "We were on tour with Aretha quite a bit. We finally made the decision to go with Atlantic after Billy [[Henderson) talked with her. She thought it would be a good company for us. They didn't have a group competition at Atlantic like they had at Motown."

On the replacement for G.C. Cameron:
Bobbie: "First we auditioned Danny Woods, of Chairman of the Board. We knew him real well and he came over for an audition, and we never heard from him again."

Pervis: "Danny Woods was the guy that we really wanted. Danny just had other ideas and things he wanted to do. He was unwilling to make a commitment."

Bobbie: "Next we auditioned a gentleman by the name of Jimmy Cheers. We kept him for a minute."

Pervis: "That was a short-term thing. We only did one or two shows with Jimmy."

Then came Philippé and sang "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", and he was accepted right away. After that Jimmy Roach produced four songs on the group, prior to Thom Bell.

Best regards
Heikki

Thanks for the added info Heikki, I knew you'd be interested in this. I think Danny Woods would have been a good fit with his exuberant, preaching style.

[heikki]

Hi Soulwally!

I also think so, but Chairmen were riding very high those days, so I guess he didn't want to risk his career.

I added those citations just to show that there was quite a lot happening between Motown and Atlantic.

Great that you found the interview with Henry.

Best regards
Heikki