Search - Jacks :: 50's R and B

Cagey Ploy By Ace Records, Mt Favourite distributor, Is Not

09/01/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The quintet known alternately as The Jacks [when recording for RPM] and The Cadets [when releasing material for Modern] had exactly two charted hits - one under each name. In 1955 Why Don't You Write Me? by The Jacks made it to # 3 R&B and # 82 Billboard Pop Top 100 b/w My Darling, and in 1956 as The Cadets they had the comedy hit Stranded In The Jungle which peaked at # 4 R&B and # 15 Top 100 b/w I Want You.



To get all four sides you have to purchase both this CD and another Ace release, Why Don't You Write Me? Pretty mean approach to marketing I'd say.



The group consisted of Aaron Collins [whose sisters Betty and Rosie formed The Teen Queens of Eddie My Love fame], Willie Davis [the lead vocal on Why Don't You Write Me?], Ted Taylor, Dub Jones [who did the narration on Stranded In The Jungle], and Lloyd McGraw. Both Davis and Collins later joined The Flairs/ Flares, while Jones hooked up with The Coasters. From 1965 to 1976 Taylor would rack up six R&B hits for Okeh, Ronn, and Alarm, two of which would cross over to the lower regions of the pop charts. He died in an automobile accident on October 22, 1987.



As a group they were obviously not hugely successful, part of the reason being many of their releases were inferior cover versions of other's hits, such as The Church Bells May Ring, Rollin' Stone, Don't Be Angry, and Smack Dab In The Middle [done better in each instance by The Willows, Marigolds, Nappy Brown, and Ray Charles respectively] and even Heartbreak Hotel [we all know who had the hit there].



Why Ace Records saw fit to put out TWO compilations of their offerings is beyond me. Nothing special here or in the other album and unless you are a completist collector of hit singles I can think of no valid reason why you should purchase either one.

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