DELEGATES (KOOL GENTS) 78 THE CONVENTION / BIG JAY MCNEELY JAYS ROCK US VJ 212 E
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Description
AN EXCELLENT COPY OF THIS ROCK AND ROLL NOVELTY 78 FROM THE DELEGATES AKA THE KOOL GENTS ON A US VEE-JAY 78
THE CONVENTION
b/w BIG JAY MCNEELY - JAY'S ROCK
Another of the great Vee-Jay groups was the Kool Gents.
The Kool Gents began life as the Golden Tones, in 1951, at Marshall High School in Chicago. The original members were Cicero Blake (lead), James Harper (first tenor/baritone), Howard McClain (second tenor), Teddy Long (second tenor/baritone), and John Carter (bass; obviously not the high tenor of the Dells). They admired, and sang the songs of, the 5 Royales, the Clovers, and the Highway Q.C.s.
By 1953, however, Blake, Harper, and McClain were out and had been replaced by Delecta "Dee" Clark (lead tenor), John McCall (lead tenor), and Doug Brown (second tenor).
Dee spent a lot of time at station WGES, where he met a DJ named Herb Kent (who styled himself "The Kool Gent"). One day Dee brought the Golden Tones in for an audition hoping that Kent would manage them (or at least allow them to call themselves the "Kool Gents"). Kent turned down managing them for lack of time, but said it would be all right if they used his name.
They had already released two records in 1956 but this was an election year, and Vee-Jay put together "The Convention" for the Kool Gents. They probably were inspired by the Democratic National Convention being held in Chicago that year. The record takes you to the floor of the convention of the "Association For The Preservation Of Rock And Roll," which nominates "Ellnis Presney" to run for president. The record not only has the Kool Gents, but also the voices of anyone who was handy that day, including a&r man Calvin Carter and general manager Ewart Abner.
Recorded on August 21 (four days after the Democratic convention ended), "The Convention" was the only song done by the group that day. It was rushed out in the last week of that month. For the flip, they used an old master by Big Jay McNeely, "Jay's Rock." In keeping with the election year theme, they decided to scrap the "Kool Gents" and call the group the "Delegates."
Ewart Abner gave the usual spiel: "We figured to follow the Democratic convention in Chi and hit the West Coast during the Republican conclave. We're pressing and shipping as fast as we can, 'cuz this will be a smash." I'm not sure how he figured his dates. The Republican convention was already under way in San Francisco when the song was recorded (it ran from the 20th to the 23rd). While both conventions would have been fresh in everyone's mind, it seems far-fetched that the record could have been pressed and shipped fast enough to take advantage of the San Francisco hoopla.
DISC DETAILS:
US VEE-JAY VJ 212 (1956) 10" 78rpm SHELLAC
CONDITION - EXCELLENT
NICE
DON'T MISS OUT ON THIS RARITY ON A 78
BUY NOW!
10" 78 RPM RECORDS NEED CAREFULLY PACKING, AND I CLAIM TO HAVE THE BEST PACKAGING IN THE WORLD FOR DISPATCHING THEM!
THE GREG'S GREAT'S SYSTEM CONSISTS OF A SPECIALLY DESIGNED INNER BOX MADE OUT OF 1" THICK POLYSTYRENE, WHICH THEN GOES INSIDE A DOUBLE CORRUGATED STIFF OUTER CARDBOARD CARTON. THE BOXES CAN TAKE UP TO 21 RECORDS,
I SEND OUT ON AVERAGE ABOUT 30 PARCELS A WEEK AND DISPATCH IS NORMALLY DONE ONCE A WEEK
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