Ev'ry Night-The Robins-19'57-Whippet 208.wmv

by Marv Goldberg and Todd Baptista --thank you...




Despite having only a few national hits, the Robins, nevertheless, were an essential part of West Coast Rhythm and Blues. Whether you feel that their greatest contribution lies in Bobby Nunn's repartee with Little Esther in "Double Crossin' Blues," the spawning of the Coasters, or the vital stepping stone they provided in the career of Leiber and Stoller, they most certainly influenced many of the acts who followed them.

The history of the Robins goes back to around 1945 when tenor Terrell Leonard (professionally known as Ty Terrell) got together with brothers Billy and Roy Richard (tenor and baritone, respectively) at San Francisco's Alameda High School. All three were originally from the deep south: Leonard from Jackson, Mississippi and the Richard brothers from Texas. Having migrated to California with their families as children, the three met in high school and, after a young girl told Leonard she loved his voice, decided to start a group.

Calling themselves the A-Sharp Trio, their influences included the King Cole Trio, Golden Gate Quartet, the Delta Rhythm Boys, and Johnny Moore's Three Blazers. By 1947, they'd found their way down to the Watts area of Los Angeles where the raucous sounds of early Los Angeles R&B were heard nightly. Entering the Thursday night talent show at Johnny Otis' new Barrelhouse Club in Watts, the trio placed second with their rendition of "Satchelmouth Baby." First place that night went to a guitarist named Pete Lewis, whom Otis hired immediately for his orchestra. He also put the A-Sharp Trio to work, playing them $5 a night to sing there on weekends.

Another singer who appeared at the Barrelhouse was Ulysses "Bobby" Nunn, a baritone/bass from Birmingham, Alabama (by way of Detroit) with a bluesy style. Like many aspiring bass singers, Nunn was heavily influenced by the Ravens' Jimmy Ricks (although, in truth, Nunn sounds much better as a baritone than as a bass). More than singing, however, Nunn did odd jobs around the club. In early 1949, Otis had the idea of merging the two acts together to form a quartet to compete with the Ravens.

The group's recording debut came with an April 1949 release on Otis Rene's Excelsior label (for which Otis had been recording for a few years). Their single side, "My Baby Done Told Me" (credited to the "4 Bluebirds") was the flip of Johnny Otis' own "Courtroom Blues." With Bobby Nunn in the lead, the group is mostly doing unison singing in the background, a technique used in many of their songs. This time it's relieved by nice chiming at the end. Although uncredited, the quartet was also part of the "court congregation" heard in "Courtroom Blues." Despite Otis' selection of the name 4 Bluebirds, the group didn't like it and it was never used again.

Soon after, the group approached Eddie and Leo Mesner who owned Aladdin Records on Santa Monica Boulevard. Their first session as the Robins took place on May 27, 1949 at Radio Recorders in Los Angeles. They recorded four tunes, all led by Nunn: "Don't Like The Way You're Doing," "Around About Midnight" (their version of Roy Brown's "Long About Midnight"), "Come Back Baby," and "You Sure Look Good To Me," which had been a national hit for songwriter Leonard Caston and his Big Three Trio (including bassist Willie Dixon) in 1948.

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[speedoj69]

sounds like the great King Curtis on tenor sax