Growing up, my dad's passion for 50s rock and roll was the soundtrack of our home, and now I get to share that joy with you through the legends themselves—The Coasters. Join us as we uncork a bottle and let the memories flow, celebrating the group that turned harmonies and humor into an art form.
This episode is a harmonious blend of nostalgia and history, as I recount how The Coasters, originally known as the Robins, took their Oakland roots and soared to stardom with their unique brand of music. We'll explore their collaboration with Lieber and Stoller, the shift from gospel to secular tunes, and the creation of hits like "Down in Mexico"—a song that still plays on my dad's turntable. Let's raise a glass to the times when rock and roll was king, and laughter was a melody away with The Coasters.
Growing up, my dad's passion for 50s rock and roll was the soundtrack of our home, and now I get to share that joy with you through the legends themselves—The Coasters. Join us as we uncork a bottle and let the memories flow, celebrating the group that turned harmonies and humor into an art form.
This episode is a harmonious blend of nostalgia and history, as I recount how The Coasters, originally known as the Robins, took their Oakland roots and soared to stardom with their unique brand of music. We'll explore their collaboration with Lieber and Stoller, the shift from gospel to secular tunes, and the creation of hits like "Down in Mexico"—a song that still plays on my dad's turntable. Let's raise a glass to the times when rock and roll was king, and laughter was a melody away with The Coasters.
Hey, hey, hey everybody. This is Harriet Westmore with the More Wine and Music podcast, the podcast where we discuss music over a glass of wine. Welcome to episode number 30 of the season three rock and roll, 50s genre. Before we get started, I want everybody to hit that like, hit that subscribe, hit that share button. Also, go to wwwmorewindingmusiccom to see past genre music that I have broadcasted from seasons one and two.
Speaker 1:
All right, this season, in episode number 30 of the early 50s rock and roll, I am going to talk about the coasters. I remember the coasters. No, let me take that back. I was not born when the coasters were very active. I just remember hearing their music as a child because my dad was an avid fan of the 50s rock and roll era. So I just remember listening to some of the music, some of the songs of their music, on the albums as I was a child and I mean I was describe the Coasters as a very comical type vocal group who sang about things that were funny but yet true. But they just have such a comical way of describe, you know, talking about whatever the lyrics of the songs that they recorded.
Speaker 1:
But who were they? Okay, they were actually started from two brothers, which were William and Ray Richards and this was in Oakland in California in 1945. And along with a friend of theirs named Ty Terrell, they were a trio. But actually when they became the coasters of who we know in the 50s, the members were Carl Gardner, billy Guy, Leon Hughes and Bobby Nunn. They all came, you know, they came from Oakland, california, but then decided to move into the LA area where they feel that they would be more, have a more better chance of becoming famous, and so their main influence of music was secular music rather than rhythm and blues. And they decided to take their talent because if you listen to any of their records, they have such a great vocal harmony together. And so they took their harmony and they just created these wonderful songs that were just light and just funny and just, you know, enjoyable for young people to listen to.
Speaker 1:
So at first, prior to becoming the Coasters, they were known as the Robins, and so the Robins while they recorded for the A Latin Records, which was a subsidiary record company. They recorded in 1949. But obviously I never heard of them, and I'm probably sure nobody else have. I never heard of them and I'm probably sure nobody else have. I mean their record wasn't as popular as when they would change their names to become the Coasters by number one hit as a Robin, though, as when they were recording as the Robins, their number one hit was Double Crossing Blues, and that song was featured Little Esther Phillips. And then in 1953, they met Lieber and Stoller when they moved from Crown Records to RCA, and in 1954, robins followed Lieber and Stoller to Spark Records. Richard Berry, who was another member he was actually a member of the group called the Flares asked to come to the Robins to sing lead bass on their first release of records, which was called Right in Cell, block Number Nine. That didn't make it. It wasn't a national hit, but it did sell at least 100,000 copies in the Los Angeles and Bay Area, los Angeles and Bay Area. So I mean, you know, while they weren't very, very popular in the early 50s, I think they became more popular between the late and more in the late 50s.
Speaker 1:
And at that time, before they became who they are, who we know as the Coasters Carl Gardner and Bobby Nunn they stayed with Lieber and Stoller and Billy Guy, who was a comedic singer, and they, you know just, I guess they just wanted to kind of revamp their whole style. They wanted to create something that was a little more light than what they were doing before, and so, um, in um, 1956, they became um, known as the Coasters. They changed their names, so it's like they changed their names a few times, from the Robins, and I think before that they were called the Excelsior, and I mean they changed their names and then they finally became the Coasters and in 1956, their song was their first single in 1956 was Down in Mexico, and I do remember that song. That was on one of the songs that was on one of the albums that my dad had, so I do remember that song. And then the next one was called Searching Back with Youngblood and that went to number one and number three.
Speaker 1:
And in 1957, they started picking up as far as notoriety and popularity. In 1957, they sold 2 million copies and you know, it was becoming, they were becoming to be, they were coming to get their groove, so to speak. But there were people that didn't really care for their clowning of their song. Again, like I said, if you listen to a lot of their songs, their songs are very light, very comical, and there were some people that just didn't, you know, care for that. I don't know why, but I guess not so, but they, you know. But again, it was part of that doo-wop and you know. But they got caught some backlash because of it, as they were trying to progress on their next three singles. They didn't sell, um, but this was in LA, so they decided to just, you know, leave LA. Okay, let's try our genre, our, our, our style of so uh of songs and go to New York.
Speaker 1:
So in 1957, they moved to New York and they met a guy who was named Cornell or Cornelius I've seen both names during the research was either Cornell or Cornelius. Gunter I've seen his name is Gunther with a T-H, but I think his actual name was Gunter. His actual name was Gunter. He ironically sang with the Flares and he was asked to replace one member of the group at that time who was Jesse Obie. And in 1957, bobby Nunn, who was part of the group, quit and was replaced by Will Dub Jones and he was formerly of the group called the Yak, which kind of sparked the new song Yakety Yak.
Speaker 1:
Again, I remember that song and it was basically was aimed at teenagers talking about their problems that they actually experienced. So between Yakety Yak, and then Charlie Brown. That came out in 1959. And also Along Came Jones. That was in 1959. And then in America's song that everybody can relate to was also in 1959. And that was Poison Ivy, and I really, really liked that song. I just remember playing that over and over again on the album that my dad had Ed had. So I mean, this was all you know. So I think 1959 was actually their best year for songs and their fame.
Speaker 1:
But as we all know and just knowing you know the history of the style and the songs of the 50s, 1959 was really a pivotal point of change in the rock and roll genre, as we talked about earlier in a prior episode. With Richie Valens, that was the song. That was the year that we lost three big rock and roll stars, which is now known as the day the music died, which was the loss of Richie Valens, buddy Holly and the Big Bopper from a horrible plane crash. So I think in 1959, that was just the kind of the beginning of the end of the 50s era everything has, um, the whole dynamics changed at that point and in doing so the coasters pretty much was kind and they really didn't do anything else in the 60s instead of, I think, in 19, between 1960 and 1961. They recorded a few songs but it just wasn't like their peak in the singles that they've made between 57, 58 and 59. So their last, their last, their very last song that they recorded together as a group was Love Potion, number nine, and that was in 1971.
Speaker 1:
And again, you know the Coastal, their style of music just couldn't cut it in the 60s. I think all the a lot of the groups that came through and recorded in the 50s just couldn't cut it. I mean, the whole dynamic, the whole world was changing, the politics, I mean the unrest of the civil rights and everything that was just changing, and a lot of the groups in the 50s were just lost and just couldn't keep up with the influx of the turmoil that was going on at that time. And the Coasters were one of those groups that just, you know, just couldn't keep up. So but interesting enough, they were inducted into the Hall of Fame and you know this was at the Rock Hall Hall of Fame and here in Cleveland, in the Cleveland area, in 1987.
Speaker 1:
I mean, they did make a impact in the 50s and that's why I wanted to kind of portray them, because they did make an impact of the 50s and because I remember and listen and enjoyed their, their light-hearted, um, comical songs. It was just cute to me, you know, even though I was a kid, but it was just cute. It wasn't nothing sexual or nothing, you know, that was. That was just, you know, doom and gloom. It was just very to me it was. I thought it was lighthearted and I just loved how they their harmony. The guys had such a great harmony in their songs and so you know, it was short-lived, their career was very short lived.
Speaker 1:
But, interesting enough, later on, in decades later, there are still obviously the not the same original coasters. You know a few of the original coasters have passed on, but there have been tragedies that two of the coasters members died in a homicidal way, two coastal members were murdered, and so if you I'm going to talk about that on my YouTube channel the more wine music behind the, behind the, the songs story behind the songs on the music channel on my YouTube music channel, on my YouTube music channel, more Wine and Music channel, so I will put the link in the show notes so that you can listen to the stories of the two group members that were ultimately murdered. For you know two circumstances where it's just kind of, for you know two circumstances where it's just kind of eerie that two famous members of a one group, of the same group, they were both murdered, both of different circumstances. But so I will talk about that on my YouTube channel, which is the More Wine and Music YouTube channel, the story behind the music. So, episode 30, the Coasters very short because it was very short-lived group. So hit that like and hit that like and hit that subscribe button on all podcast platforms wwwmorewineandmusiccom, where I talk more in depth about different tragedies behind a lot of the entertainers that we know and have known from yesteryear to current and next week.
Speaker 1:
Episode number 31,. I have a special treat that I'm working on, so I'm not going to say anything right now, but I'm hoping, um, I will be able to um record and showcase that specific episode before the end years and if not, it will be next month. So I think it would be an interesting episode. But in the meantime, next week I think we're going to go into a girl group. I have not decided yet, so I'm just going to leave that open, so we're going to just decide. I'll decide right then, and there I mean when I go on, I'll do a little advertisement before I figure out who, what happened to two of the members of the Coasters and their demise of being murdered and the tragedy that happened, the circumstances that happened. Okay, you guys, take care, talk to you next week. Bye.