The Gentrys
| The Gentrys | |
|---|---|
 The Gentrys, 1965. |
|
| Background information | |
| Origin | Memphis, Tennessee |
| Genres | Rock and Roll |
| Labels | MGM Records |
The Gentrys were an American band of the 1960s and early 1970s best known for their 1965 hit "Keep on Dancing" (in 1971 also a #9 hit for the Bay City Rollers). Follow-up singles charted outside of the top 40: "Every Day I Have to Cry" (1966), "Spread It On Thick" (1966), "Cinnamon Girl" (1970), "Why Should I Cry" (1970), "Wild World" (1971), and a 'Bubbling Under' Billboard chart entry "Brown Paper Sack" (#101, 1966).
[edit] Career
The seven-member group of Treadwell High School (Memphis, Tennessee), alumni included Bruce Bowles (vocals), Bobby Fisher (saxophone, keyboards), Jimmy Hart (vocals), Jimmy Johnson (trumpet), Pat Neal (bass guitar), Larry Raspberry (guitar, lead vocalist), and drummer Larry Wall (replaced by Rob Straube)[1] and also with another member, Larry Butler (keyboards). The youths formed the Gentrys in May 1963.[1]
After bubbling under the Billboard charts for about a year,[2] the Gentrys scored with the million-selling "Keep on Dancing" reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1965.[1] Success led to appearances on "Hullabaloo," Shindig!, and "Where the Action Is" and they toured with The Beach Boys and Sonny and Cher, as well as playing on Dick Clark bills. However, two follow-up singles failed to break into the Top 40, and not long after appearing in the 1966 movie It's a Bikini World, the group disbanded. Other notable band members during the 1963–1966 years were Claude Wayne Whitehead (rhythm guitar), Larry Butler (keyboards), Ronnie Moore (bass), Sonny Pitman (bass), engineer/producer Terry Manning (keyboards) and drummer Rob Straube.
"Keep on Dancing" is notable for the fact that it is actually one short recording repeated, to stretch the record out to the length of the typical pop single of its day. The second half of the song—after the false fade, beginning with Wall's famous drum fill -- is the same as the first.[3] Though the group had Jimmy Hart and Bruce Bowles as singers, their biggest hit was sung by guitarist Larry Raspberry.[4]
Original member Hart reformed The Gentrys in 1969, with himself as lead singer; they recorded initially for the Bell Records label.[1] The 1969–1971 Gentrys included Hart, Steve Speers (bass), Davey Beaver (keyboards), Jimmy Tarbutton (guitar), and Mike Gardner (drums). In 1970 they recorded an album on Sam Phillips's Sun label and put 2 singles into the Billboard 100: "Why Should I Cry" (peaked at #61 on 7 March 1970) and "Cinnamon Girl"[5], charting before Neil Young's version and peaking at #52 on 13 June 1970.
The 1971 through 1972 line-up of The Gentrys included Hart on Vocals along with Wesley Stafford on Lead Guitar & Vocals, Alan Heidelberg on Drums and Bobby Liles on Bass. Marty Lacker (Member of Elvis' "Memphis Mafia") helped to land this version of The Gentrys a contract with Capitol Records that produced the single written by Hart & Stafford entitled "Let Me Put This Ring Upon Your Finger." Knox Phillips (Sam Phillips Recording Services-Memphis,Tn) was Producer and Mentor for all recording endeavors of this period.
Hart subsequently found much greater fame and success in professional wrestling as a manager and composer, nicknamed "The Mouth of the South." During this time, he returned to music at least once, as a member of The Wrestling Boot Band, a group fronted by Hulk Hogan. The story of the Gentrys is described in the book The Mouth of the South by Jimmy Hart, Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart, Jerry Lawler.[6]
Raspberry went on to play with Alamo, who released a self-titled LP in 1971,[7] and subsequently formed Larry Raspberry and the Highsteppers, releasing 2 LP's in the mid-70's. The band is still active.[8]
A contemporary lineup under the Gentrys name is a gospel family quartet of no relation to the original band.[9]
[edit] Album discography
- 1965 MGM SE 4336 Keep On Dancing
- 1966 MGM SE 4346 Gentry Time
- 1970 Sun 117 The Gentrys
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 190. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- ^ Billboard Oct. 9, 1965 p. 12
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2apM0DAe1g
- ^ http://www.famousinterview.ca/interviews/larry_raspberry.htm
- ^ Billboard May 30, 1970 p. 66
- ^ Hart, Jimmy (2004). The Mouth of the South: The Jimmy Hart Story (1st ed.). Ecw Press. pp. 264. ISBN 1550225952.
- ^ http://www.musicstack.com/item/114194873
- ^ http://home.earthlink.net/~lraspberry/contents.htm
- ^ http://www.thegentrysministries.com/fr_welcome.cfm
