Previous Vocal Group Record of the Week
#800 (11/9/13 - 11/22/13)

"SPOTLIGHT ON THE ROBINS - PART ONE (SAVOY LABEL)

"If I Didn't Love You So"
by The Robins
on Savoy 726
released in 1949
 

"Our Romance Is Gone"/
"There Ain't No Use Beggin'"
by The Robins
on Savoy 738
released in 1950

"I'm Living O.K."/
"There's Rain In My Eyes"
by The Robins
on Savoy 752
released in 1950



[The above image is courtesy of Galen Gart.]
Above: Savoy advertisement from January 1950. The Robins, on the Savoy label, were Ty Terrell (tenor), Bobby Nunn (bass), Roy Richard (baritone), and Billy Richard (tenor). Note that the ad states "The 4 Robins." On The Robins' first record (Excelsior, 1949), they were "The 4 Bluebirds." Johnny Otis' Orchestra backs them on all of their Savoy sides. The Savoy labels for 731, 738 and 752 identify the "orchestra" as the "Johnny Otis Quintette." The Savoy 732 label has "Johnny Otis Orchestra." (NOTE: Session notes for Savoy 726 show the "orchestra" as a quintet.) Otis plays the vibraharp on all of this week's selections.

Click HERE for an article about The Robins by Marv Goldberg and Todd Baptista.
(Will open in a separate window)



[The above image is courtesy of Galen Gart.]
Above: Savoy advertisement from February 1950.
Reference Link: Double Crossing Blues - Savoy 731


[The above image is courtesy of Galen Gart.]
Above: Savoy advertisement from July 1950.


Above: Savoy Records artists Mel Walker, Johnny Otis and Little Esther. Walker was backed by The Robins (The Bluenotes) on the Regent label, a subsidiary of Savoy, in 1950.... with the ever-present Johnny Otis Orchestra.
Reference Links: Mel Walker - Regent 1016    Johnny Otis - Peacock 1625    Little Esther - Decca 48305



Above Left: Column from The Billboard dated 1/28/50. However, per Marv Goldberg/Todd Baptista's article, The Robins did not participate in this tour due to a disagreement with Johnny Otis.

Above Right: Label image of Savoy 726 recorded on December 1, 1949 and released in December 1949. Earlier in 1949, The Robins had one release each on Aladdin and Aladdin's subsidiary Score.
Under composers, Mario Delegarde was the bass player in Otis' orchestra. "Richards" is Roy Richard. "Leonard" is Ty Terrell.


Above: Label images of Savoy 738 and Savoy 752 recorded on December 1, 1949 (the flip-sides on February 13, 1950) and released in March 1950 and June 1950, respectively. The Robins had five records on the Savoy label (1949-50) plus one side backing Little Esther on Savoy (1950) and one side backing Mel Walker on Savoy's subsidiary label, Regent (1950).

Billy Richard is the tenor lead on "There Ain't No Use Beggin'" and Bobby Nunn is the bass lead on the other four sides.

The Billboard Review (4/1/50):

THE ROBINS—SAVOY 738
There Ain't No Use Beggin'
(76) A ballad with a catch figure is handled Ink Spot style with a lead voice, carrying the tune, giving way to a "honey chile" recitative.
Our Romance Is Gone (82) Effective performance of a good slow blues should attract action.

The Billboard Review (6/24/50):

THE ROBINS—SAVOY 752
I'm Livng O.K.
(52) Sub-par effort for the vocal group is this attempt at a rhythm novelty with a small combo jump backing.
There's Rain In My Eyes (62) Ballad material here is a strong improvement over flip. The treatment is lagging, group achieves little tension.

(NOTE: Ratings had a range of 0-100 with 0-39 as "poor," 40-69 as "satisfactory," 70-79 as "good," 80-89 as "excellent," and 90-100 as "tops.")

Listen to this week's selections by The Robins on Savoy from 1949/50:
[Audio restoration by Dave Saviet.]

     A. Stream RealAudio (DO NOT USE...LISTEN USING DOWNLOAD REALAUDIO)...
 
          1. If I Didn't Love You So
          2. Our Romance Is Gone
          3. There Ain't No Use Beggin'
          4. I'm Living O.K.
          5. There's Rain In My Eyes
 
          ALL FIVE played in sequence

     B. Download RealAudio...
 
          1. If I Didn't Love You So
          2. Our Romance Is Gone
          3. There Ain't No Use Beggin'
          4. I'm Living O.K.
          5. There's Rain In My Eyes

     C. Stream/Download Media Player...
 
          1. If I Didn't Love You So
          2. Our Romance Is Gone
          3. There Ain't No Use Beggin'
          4. I'm Living O.K.
          5. There's Rain In My Eyes


     [To download audio files, right-click on link and then select "Save (Link) Target As..."]


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