Album: Billy Storm
Artist: Billy Storm
Label: Buena Vista Records
Year Released: 1963
In December of 1962, Disney released the animated short A Symposium on Popular Songs. Hosted by Ludwig von Drake, the short promised a tour of “Sixty years of syncopation.” Each song in the short was written by the Sherman Brothers, and each represented a different era and musical style.
The film included the song “Puppy Love is Here to Stay,” which was performed by an animated group known as Jackie Babylon and the Babylonians. The part of Jackie Babylon was performed by a twenty four year old singer known as Billy Storm. The song itself was a gentle parody of songs like Paul Anka’s “Puppy Love,” and other hits of the 1950s, specifically the love songs of doo wop groups like The Penguins, The Teenagers, and The Del-Vikings.
Doo-wop had grown out of rhythm and blues, gospel, and the music of Black vocal groups like The Mills Brothers and The Ink Spots. The form grew and flourished among teens, typically Black males, who gathered and sang the music in locations like street corners and school gyms.
It was a natural for Storm, born William Spicer, who was a member of The Sabers, alongside Sheridan “Rip” Spencer, Brice Coefield, Walter Carter, and a member remembered only as “Herbie.” Born in Dayton, Ohio in 1938, Spicer later moved to Los Angeles, where he sang in the LA High School Choir, alongside Bruce Coefield. “Rip” Spencer, Coefield’s cousin, was a student at Jordan High School.
Spicer was massively influenced by the music and singing of Clyde McPhatter, who’d achieved his earliest success as lead tenor of Billy Ward and the Dominoes (who recorded “Sixty-Minute Man,” occasionally referred to as the “first rock and roll song”), and later was a member of The Drifters.
The Sabers released the song “Always, Forever” in 1955, but it was not a commercial success. As a result, they rechristened themselves The Chavelles. During this time, they became acquainted with jazz pianist Lloyd Glenn. He took an interest in the group and offered to let them use a song he’d written called “Red Tape.” They then began working with Robert “Bumps” Blackwell, who would stake a place for himself in music history working with Little Richard, Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, Sam Cooke, and others.
The group released “Valley of Love” through Vita Records in 1956 and“Red Tape” was the B-side on the record. Both were recorded at the studio of Ted Brinson, the same studio that The Penguins used to record their hit “Earth Angel.” Sadly, “Valley of Love” did not achieve the same success as “Earth Angel” and both Herbie and Walter Carter left the group.
The group was acquainted with The Squires, a group from Pasadena who’d been influenced by musicians like The Five Blind Boys of Mississippi, and The Dixie Hummingbirds. Chester Pipkin was their guitarist and tenor, and the remaining members of the Chavelles recruited him to join their group. Another name change followed, and the Chavelles became The Valiants.
The group’s first real hit came in 1957 with the release of “This is the Nite.” The B-side was a jump blues tunes written by John Marascalco and “Bumps” Blackwell called “Good Golly, Miss Molly.” Little Richard had recorded his version in 1956, but did not release the song until 1958, meaning that The Valiants version was the first released. It did not, however, ever achieve the level of success that Little Richard with the number.
Songs like “Lover, Lover,” “Temptation of My Heart,” and “Please Wait My Love,” followed, but the Valiants never achieved great commercial success and in 1958 Spicer departed. He joined up with a group known as the Vita Squires and recording two songs, “Every Word of the Song,” and “Listen to Your Heart.” These would be released on one label under the name Billy Fortune and the Squires and on another as Billy Storm and the Squires.
Spicer’s greatest commercial success, “I’ve Come of Age,” was released in 1959 and reached #28 on the Pop Charts. Over the next two years, he would record songs with Phil Spector. Then in 1962, he made his Disney debut.
Following A Symposium on Popular Song, he appeared on Disney’s 1962 album Maurice Chevalier and Hayley Mills Take You to Teen Street. He had three songs on the record, “Pushover,” “Double Date,” and “Good Girl.”
His self-titled album was released one year later. The entire first side of the record is a performance of Sigmund Rosberg and Oscar Hammerstein II’s song “Lover Come Back to Me.” It’s a virtuoso performance, lasting just over 16 minutes and shifts through multiple styles. The concept was based on Salvador “Tutti” Camarata’s belief that the LP was not being used to its full potential in pop music, and that (much as in classical) it should make better use of the long playing ability.
Camarata (who would become a Disney Legend) leads the orchestra and chorus that accompanies Spicer on songs like “Lonely People Do Foolish Things,” and “Body and Soul.” The orchestration is lush and evocative. By contrast, “Walk on the Wild Side” begins with nothing but drums and vocals that soar with all the passion of a southern preacher at the pulpit. When he sings “Sinner, hear what I’m sayin’” its almost enough to send a non-believer to the chapel. The track “Cee Cee Rider” features a screaming blues guitar line, while the spare instrumentation on “God Bless the Child” perfectly captures the pathos of the lyrics.
Though it contains a sparse six tracks, the album is a gem from a voice that deserves to be much better known.
Suggested Listening
Song: This is the Night
Artist: The Valiants
Label: Keen
Year Released: 1957
Song: Such a Night
Artist: The Drifters featuring Clyde McPhatter
Label: Atlantic
Year Released: 1954
Song: Honey Love
Artist: Billy Storm
Label: Atlantic
Year Released: 1961
Make Mine Music 