The Jive Five
Encyclopedia
The Jive Five is an American
doo wop group.
The group formed in Brooklyn
, New York
in the late 1950s with Eugene Pitt
, Jerome Hanna, Richard Harris, Thurmon Prophet, and Norman Johnson. The group found success in 1961 with "My True Story
" on Beltone Records, which reached #3 on the U.S. Pop Singles
chart.
The group reorganized following the death of Hanna in 1962 with Pitt, Johnson, Hanna's replacement Andre Coles, Casey Spencer, and Beatrice Best. They recorded "What Time is It" and "These Golden Rings" for Belltone, before switching to United Artists Records
, where they had a hit with "I'm a Happy Man". In 1970 the group moved to Decca Records
and recorded as "The Jyve Fyve", with Pitt, Spencer, Richard Fisher
, and Richard Harris's brother Webster. They had a minor hit with this name, "I Want You To Be My Baby", on Decca. They also recorded briefly for Avco Records
. They made a 1974 recording for Chess Records
as "Shadow", and a 1975 recording for Columbia Records
as "Ebony, Ivory, and the Jades".
They changed back to "The Jive Five" in 1978. At this time the lineup was Pitt, Spencer, and the returning Beatrice Best and Richard Harris. The group reorganized in 1982, with Pitt, Best, Charles Mitchell, and Pitt's brothers Herbert and Frank. In the late 1990s, the group was Pitt, Best, Harold Gill, Maurice Unthank, and Art Loria. Daniel Loria was later in for Best, who was in and out with health issues.
In 1985, Eugene and The Jive Five were introduced to New York cable TV branding consultants Fred Seibert
and Alan Goodman (and their company Fred/Alan, Inc.) by their latest producer, Ambient Sound's Marty Pekar. Together with Fred/Alan producer Tom Pomposello they embarked on an almost ten-year relationship, creating and singing the acappella signature sound of the American kids' television network Nickelodeon
, one of the first popular "network" specialized cable television channels. They used the group to write and record some of the most memorable advertising jingles of their day with the catch phrase, "Nic-Nic-Nic", performed in a doo wop style. They were part of the popular "Kid's Choice" awards.
The group performed on the PBS special Doo Wop 50
. The lineup was Pitt, Spencer, Richard Harris, Best, and a fifth member. The group released a single in 2003 entitled It's Christmas. It was credited to "Eugene Pitt and the Jive Five" and featured Pitt, Best, Gill, Unthank, and the Lorias. Norman Johnson died in 1970. Webster Harris died in 2003. Maurice Unthank died July 21, 2008. Artie Loria died October 23, 2010 from a tragic accident. Dan Loria still performs and produces and is active in the business in various capacities.
Currently (June 2010), the group consists of 72-year-old Eugene Pitt, first tenor Frank Pitt, second tenor Casey Spencer, baritone Beatrice Best, and bass Herbert Pitt.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
doo wop group.
The group formed in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in the late 1950s with Eugene Pitt
Eugene Pitt
Eugene Sampson Pitt born November 6, 1937 in Brooklyn, New York, USA was the founding member of Jive Five.He first formed a group with some schoolfriends in 1954 called the Genies, in which he was the lead singer...
, Jerome Hanna, Richard Harris, Thurmon Prophet, and Norman Johnson. The group found success in 1961 with "My True Story
My True Story
"My True Story" is a 1961 single by, The Jive Five. The single was the biggest hit for the group on both the R&B and pop charts. "My True Story" made it to number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and was number one on the R&B Sides chart for three weeks.. The song has remained popular on "Oldies...
" on Beltone Records, which reached #3 on the U.S. Pop Singles
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart.
The group reorganized following the death of Hanna in 1962 with Pitt, Johnson, Hanna's replacement Andre Coles, Casey Spencer, and Beatrice Best. They recorded "What Time is It" and "These Golden Rings" for Belltone, before switching to United Artists Records
United Artists Records
United Artists Records was a record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 initially to distribute records of its movie soundtracks, though it soon branched out into recording music of a number of different genres.-History:...
, where they had a hit with "I'm a Happy Man". In 1970 the group moved to Decca Records
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
and recorded as "The Jyve Fyve", with Pitt, Spencer, Richard Fisher
Richard Fisher
Richard Fisher may refer to:* Richard B. Fisher , American business manager* Richard W. Fisher , American banker* J. Richard Fisher , American astronomer...
, and Richard Harris's brother Webster. They had a minor hit with this name, "I Want You To Be My Baby", on Decca. They also recorded briefly for Avco Records
Avco Records
Avco Records was a record label started in 1968 by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore and Joseph E. Levine as Avco Embassy Records. In the late 1960s, they released a psychedelic rock album by the group Bead Game, titled Welcome. The Embassy name was dropped in 1971 making the label Avco Records...
. They made a 1974 recording for Chess Records
Chess Records
Chess Records was an American record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, soul, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
as "Shadow", and a 1975 recording for Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
as "Ebony, Ivory, and the Jades".
They changed back to "The Jive Five" in 1978. At this time the lineup was Pitt, Spencer, and the returning Beatrice Best and Richard Harris. The group reorganized in 1982, with Pitt, Best, Charles Mitchell, and Pitt's brothers Herbert and Frank. In the late 1990s, the group was Pitt, Best, Harold Gill, Maurice Unthank, and Art Loria. Daniel Loria was later in for Best, who was in and out with health issues.
In 1985, Eugene and The Jive Five were introduced to New York cable TV branding consultants Fred Seibert
Fred Seibert
Frederick "Fred" Seibert is a television and film producer and entertainment entrepreneur who owns Frederator Studios, and who has held leading positions with MTV Networks, Hanna-Barbera, and Next New Networks; he owns Frederator Studios...
and Alan Goodman (and their company Fred/Alan, Inc.) by their latest producer, Ambient Sound's Marty Pekar. Together with Fred/Alan producer Tom Pomposello they embarked on an almost ten-year relationship, creating and singing the acappella signature sound of the American kids' television network Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
, one of the first popular "network" specialized cable television channels. They used the group to write and record some of the most memorable advertising jingles of their day with the catch phrase, "Nic-Nic-Nic", performed in a doo wop style. They were part of the popular "Kid's Choice" awards.
The group performed on the PBS special Doo Wop 50
Doo Wop 50
Doo Wop 50 was a PBS pledge drive special created and produced for PBS member station WQED-TV by TJ Lubinsky, grandson of Herman Lubinsky...
. The lineup was Pitt, Spencer, Richard Harris, Best, and a fifth member. The group released a single in 2003 entitled It's Christmas. It was credited to "Eugene Pitt and the Jive Five" and featured Pitt, Best, Gill, Unthank, and the Lorias. Norman Johnson died in 1970. Webster Harris died in 2003. Maurice Unthank died July 21, 2008. Artie Loria died October 23, 2010 from a tragic accident. Dan Loria still performs and produces and is active in the business in various capacities.
Currently (June 2010), the group consists of 72-year-old Eugene Pitt, first tenor Frank Pitt, second tenor Casey Spencer, baritone Beatrice Best, and bass Herbert Pitt.