The Drifters History

The group was formed in 1953 by lead singer in the Dominoes Clyde McPhatter and Ahmet Ertegun - founder of Atlantic Records under the management of former jazz singer George Treadwell. Right from the very beginning there was a constant succession of regular lineup changes that would characterize The Drifters name. Early line up members included William Anderson, David Baughan, David Baldwin and James Johnson, bass player Bill Pinkney, guitarist Jimmy Oliver, brothers Gerhart and Andrew Thrasher and bass singer Willie Ferbee.

Early recordings included songs such as ‘Lucille,’ ‘Money Honey,’ ‘Such a Night’ and ‘Honey Love.’ The Drifters' career was quickly established and they became one of the most popular acts in the charts and on stage. In 1954, McPhatter parted with the group to pursue a solo career that would make him successful for the rest of the 1950s. He sold off his interest in the group to George Treadwell, making the line up nothing more than salaried members earning as little as $100 a week – a factor that contributed to the constant line up rotation in the group’s history.

Ertegun, Treadwell and Jerry Wexler decided to continue recording The Drifters. In 1954, George Treadwell auditioned tenor Johnny Moore, previously a member of The Hornets, who would remain with the group for over two decades. A number one R&B chart single, ‘Adorable’ followed thanks to the outstanding songwriting talents of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who would later take over the job of producing the group.

The first album by group, entitled ‘Clyde McPhatter & the Drifters’ was released in 1956. Despite a busy tour diary, financial disputes continued as did the constant line up change, with the departure of Bill Pinkney and Andrew Thrasher. Subsequent line up members included Jimmy Ricks, Tom Evans, Charlie Hughes, Jimmy Millender and guitarist Jimmy Oliver.

On one occasion, George Treadwell sacked the entire line up just before a show at the Apollo Theater in New York and replaced them with a group known as ‘The Five Crowns’. And so the rotation continued, with a new line up that included baritone Benjamin Earl Nelson, later known as Ben E. King, Dock Green and Elsbeary Hobbs.

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