Saturday, September 12, 2015

Saturday Night Doo-Wop

Thurston Harris








From: Wikipedia:

Thurston Harris (July 11, 1931 – April 14, 1990) was a male American singer, popular in the early to mid-1950s.

Harris first appeared on record in 1953. He was the vocalist for South Central Los Angeles R&B band the Lamplighters. He remained with the band as it evolved through several name changes, from the Tenderfoots to the Sharps.

In 1957, Harris signed as a solo artist for Aladdin. His former band backed him when he released his version of Bobby Day's "Little Bitty Pretty One". It reached #6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The track sold over one million records, achieving gold disc status. The Sharps would go on to another name change to become The Rivingtons, achieving fame with the single "Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow".
Unusually, "Little Bitty Pretty One" was released on three different-colored labels: purple, blue and maroon. The song appeared on the soundtracks to films or television dramas, such as Telling Lies in America, Matilda, Lipstick on Your Collar, and Christine.

Harris had a second and final hit in 1958 with "Do What You Did", which reached the Top 20. His other best known song was "Runk Bunk", recorded in 1959, and released by Aladdin Records (Aladdin 3452). Harris later recorded on Cub, Dot, Imperial, Intro, Reprise and United Artists.
Before his death, he helped start off the musical career of his grand child LaVonna Harris ("Beautiful"), whom eventually made her own mark in the industry as an independent recording artist.


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