The Platters is an American vocal group. They were one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound was a bridge between the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the burgeoning new genre. The act went through several personnel changes, with the most successful incarnation comprising lead tenor Tony Williams, David Lynch, Paul Robi, Herb Reed, and Zola Taylor. The group had 40 charting singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart between 1955 and 1967, including four no. 1 hits. The Platters were one of the first African American groups to be accepted as a major chart group and were, for a period of time, the most successful vocal group in the world. (More from Wikipedia)
Not everyone feels that way though. Doc Dosco, a jazz guitarist who played on Black Russian wrote of his early session work on his website www.docdosco.com: “‘I did tons of “guitar for hire” studio dates back then’, says Doc, ‘and I gigged a lot during the late seventies and eighties. I was a funky fusion style player and there was lots of funk style work. I also did pick-up work, casuals, society gigs and played numerous concerts with old timers such as Little Anthony, the Drifters, the Diamonds, the Platters, Freddy Cannon, Connie Stevens. I worked for composer Dennis McCarthy on the Barbara Mandrell [and the Mandrell Sisters] TV show. I also wrote songs for Jerry Lee Lewis and German pop sensation Nina Hagen, produced “Billboard Queen” Angelyne, and recorded an album with the revolutionary Motown recording artists Black Russian.’”
(April 2015/1)
