The Drifters are a long-lived African-American doo wop/R&B
vocal group with a peak in popularity from 1953 to 1962, though several
splinter Drifters continue to perform today. They were originally formed
by Clyde McPhatter (of Billy Ward & the Dominoes) in 1953. Wanting
to blend gospel and secular sounds, his first effort was to get 4 out of
5 members of his old church group, the Mount Lebanon Singers. They were
William Chick Anderson (tenor), David Baldwin (baritone),
James Wrinkle Johnson (bass), and David Little Dave
Baughan (tenor). After a single recording session of four songs on June
29, 1953, McPhatter saw this combination didn't work and recruited
another lineup. This second effort also comprised gospel vocalists in
second tenor Gerhart Thrasher, baritone Andrew Thrasher (both formerly
of the gospel group the "Thrasher Wonders"), Bill Pinkney (of
the Jerusalem Stars) on high tenor, Willie Ferbee as bass, and Walter
Adams on guitar. This group recorded "Money Honey" in 1953.
This is a non-profit, informational web page, meant to be a
reminder of the music we listened to 50 years ago. Use of copyrighted
material is consistent with the "fair use" provisions contained in
section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976; the use of copyrighted material is
of a nonprofit, educational nature, intended for the sole purposes of
research and comment and does not significantly negatively affect "the
potential market for or value of the copyrighted work(s)."