1956 - Later, Later Baby / You Lied To Me (Sound 129)
1956 - Cha Cha Toni / Dream My Darling, Dream (Sound 135)
1956 - So In Love / It Happened To Me (Teen 122)
1958 - False Alarm / When You Come Back To Me (Chess 1708)
The Revels
1959 - Dead man Stroll / Talking To My Heart (Norgolde 103)
1959 - Midnight Stroll / Talking To My Heart (Norgolde 103)
1959 - Foo Man Choo / Tweedlee Dee (Norgolde 104)
1959 - Money Is All I Need / Injun Joe (Norgolde 106)
1960 - The Greatness Of Love / Gates Of Heaven (Norgolde 218)
1960 - Please / Two Little Monkeys (Andie 5077)
1961 - Oh How I Love You / I Met My Lost Love (Palette 5074)
1964 - Down Town / Dollar Sign (Kapp 621)
Biography :
In 1954, West Philadelphia High School students John Kelly (lead
vocalist), John Grant, John Jones, Henry Colclugh and Bill Jackson
formed the vocal group, originally performing under the moniker the
Re-Vels Quartette. Their live appearances made the combo a well-attended
attraction in Northern Philadelphia, which enticed Atlas Records in
1955 and Sound Records in the following year to record singles with the
group.[1] Credited to the shortened name the Re-Vels, the singles
released in the two years included "So in Love", "You Lied to Me", and
"Cha-Cha Toni", the latter of which was a big regional hit in
Philadelphia and some other eastern cities but never charted nationally.
In
1958, the Re-Vels signed with Chess Records and released "False Alarm",
perhaps their most accomplished record thus far. However, success still
alluded the group, prompting Chess Records, which was still in the
midst of a prosperous string of releases from Chuck Berry and the
Moonglows, to cut the Re-Vels from their roster.A small record label
established by Harold Nussbaum (also known as Hal Norton) and William
Goldstein called Norgolde Records signed the group, now without a hyphen
in their moniker. Jackson's self-penned novelty song "Dead Man's
Stroll", paired with "Talking to My Heart", was selected to be recorded
and distributed for the Halloween market in 1959.
Author Richard Aquilla described the single as a teen favorite with
"a spooky sound, replete with midnight tolls and wailing
ghosts".Released in September 1959, "Dead Man's Stroll" began being
played across the United States leading to an appearance on Dick Clark's
American Bandstand at the end of the month. Clark, however, objected to
the song's title, forcing the Revels to alter it to "Midnight Stroll"
to avoid losing the much-needed television exposure. The song peaked at
number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 in early November and remained on the
charts until December 1959.
The
Revels followed-up "Midnight Stroll" with "Foo Man Choo" in 1960, which
also attempted to inflict more chills on its listeners. However, the
release could not reach the height of popularity as its predecessor and
failed to chart. The group released other singles in the 1960s before
disbanding in 1962. Jackson, having composed the majority of the Revels'
original material, continued in the music industry as a songwriter. He
joined Cameo-Parkway Records in 1963 and had a hand in penning the
Tymes' hit song "So Much in Love". In addition, Jackson co-wrote "Here
She Comes", "The Magic of Our Summer Love", and "You Little Trustmaker",
and produced the group's recordings in 1963 and 1964.
