The Ink Spots - I Cover The Waterfront
The Ink Spots -
I Cover The Waterfront
Decca W73453
T2A
Rec.: 1946.
Early years
The Ink Spots formed in the early
1930s in
Indianapolis. The original members were :-
Orville "
Hoppy"
Jones (b.
17 February 1902,
Chicago, Illinois - d.
18 October 1944,
New York City) (bass) (
Played bass guitar)
Ivory "
Deek"
Watson (b. 18 July
1909,
Mounds, Illinois - d.
4 November 1969,
Washington, DC) (tenor) (Played guitar and trumpet)
Jerry Daniels (b.
14 December 1915 -
7 November 1995,
Indianapolis, Indiana) (tenor) (Played guitar and ukulele)
Charlie Fuqua (b.
20 October 1910 -
21 December 1971,
New Haven, Connecticut) (baritone) (Played guitar)
As "
Jerry and
Charlie", Daniels and Fuqua had formed a vocal duo performing in the
Indianapolis area around 1931. About the same time, Jones and Watson were part of a quartet, "
The Four Riff Brothers", who appeared regularly on radio station
WLW in
Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1933, that group disbanded, and Watson,
Daniels and Fuqua got together to form a new vocal, instrumental and comedy group, which was initially called "
King, Jack, and
Jester". They continued to appear regularly on radio in
Ohio, and became a foursome when Jones was added to the group the following year.
In July 1934 they accepted a booking at the
Apollo Theater,
New York, supporting
Tiny Bradshaw. At that
point they changed their name to "The 4
Ink Spots" at the request of bandleader
Paul Whiteman, to avoid confusion with his vocal group "
The King's Jesters".
Later that year, The Ink Spots achieved international success touring the UK with
Jack Hylton's
Orchestra, one review in the
Melody Maker stating
The sensation of the programme is the coloured quartette, the Four Ink Spots. They sing in a style something between the
Mills Brothers and the Three Keys, and accompany themselves on three tenor guitars and a 'cello - which is not bowed, but picked and slapped like a double bass. Their natural instinct for hot rhythm is exemplified in their terrific single-string solo work and their beautifully balanced and exquisitely phrased vocalisms. They exploit all kinds of rhythmic vocalisms - straight solos, concerted, scat, and instrumental imitations. They even throw in a bit of dancing to conclude their act, and the leading guitarist simultaneously plays and juggles with his instrument.
They first recorded for
Victor Records in 1935, but although the group was growing rapidly in popularity their early record releases were not commercially successful.
The following year Daniels left, and was replaced by
Bill Kenny (b. 12 June
1914,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - d. 23
March 1978,
Vancouver, British Columbia). Also in 1936, they appeared on the first
NBC demonstration television programmes.
For the next two years, their popularity grew through radio programs and tours. After a series of unsuccessful recordings for Victor Records and
Decca Records, they had their first smash hit with "
If I Didn't Care", a song written by
Jack Lawrence, on Decca, in
1939. They released such other Decca
singles as "
Address Unknown" (1939), "
My Prayer" (1939), "When
The Swallows Come Back To
Capistrano" (
1940), "
Whispering Grass" (1940), "
Do I Worry" (1940), "
Java Jive" (1940), "
Shout,
Brother, Shout" (
1942), "
Don't Get
Around Much
Anymore" (1942), "
I Can't Stand Losing You" (1943), "
Cow-Cow Boogie" (1944 - with
Ella Fitzgerald), "Into Each
Life Some
Rain Must
Fall"/"I'm
Making Believe" (1944 - both with Ella Fitzgerald), and "
The Gypsy" (1946). Many of these records made # 1 on early versions of the US pop charts - "The Gypsy" was their biggest chart success, staying at the # 1 position for 13 weeks.
They also recorded for
Grand Award Records (2 records in
1955, 1 in 1956-57 and 1 in
1958).