DESCRIPTION:
DOOWOP - VOCAL GROUP HARMONY

Parliaments (1) (Plainfield, New Jersey)
Personnel :
George Clinton (Lead)
Ray Davis
Fuzzy Haskins
Calvin Simon
Grady Thomas

Discography :
1958 - Poor Willie / Party Boys (APT 25036)
1959 - Lonely Island / You Make Me Wanna Cry (Flip 100)
1963 - I'll Get You Yet / You're Cute (Symbol 917)
1965 - Heart Trouble / That Was My Girl (Golden Word-46)

Biography :
The Parliaments were a doo-wop quintet from Plainfield, New Jersey, formed in the back room of a barbershop in the late 1950s and named after the cigarette brand. After some early personnel changes their lineup solidified with George Clinton, Ray Davis, Fuzzy Haskins, Calvin Simon, and Grady Thomas. Clinton was group leader and manager, and part owner of the barbershop where the group convened to entertain customers.
The group was originally based on Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers, but by the 1960s had developed a unique sound based on emerging styles of soul and funk music, with a notable penchant for bizarre lyrics. The group struggled for hits during most of the
1960s, recording singles on a variety of small record labels.
They switched labels many times, and released several double-sided singles without success, including "Poor Willie" (Apt Records), "Lonely Island" (for Flipp) and "Heart Trouble" on Golden World Records. Eventually, Clinton gained employment at Motown Records as a songwriter and producer, making weekly trips to Detroit to produce for The Pets, Roy Handy, and other acts.
In 1967 the Parliaments released "(I Wanna) Testify" on Revilot and finally achieved a hit single, with the song reaching #3 R&B and #20 Pop on the Billboard charts.